{"text": "The Independent Jane\nFor all the love, romance and scandal in Jane Austen’s books, what they are really about is freedom and independence. Independence of thought and the freedom to choose.\nElizabeth’s refusal of Mr. Collins offer of marriage showed an independence seldom seen in heroines of the day. Her refusal of Mr. Darcy while triggered by anger showed a level of independence that left him shocked and stunned.\nThe freedom she exhibited in finally accepting him in direct defiance of Lady Catherine and knowing her father would disapprove was unusual even for Austen. In her last book Anne Elliot is persuaded to refuse Captain Wentworth at Lady Russel’s insistence.\nAlthough Jane played by the rules of the day, all of her writing is infused with how she wanted life to be. She ‘screams’ her outrage at the limitations for women in Emma.\nWhen accosted by Mrs. Elton, Jane Fairfax says,\n“Excuse me, ma’am, but this is by no means my intention; I make no inquiry myself, and should be sorry to have any made by my friends. When I am quite determined as to the time, I am not at all afraid of being long unemployed. There are places in town, offices, where inquiry would soon produce something — offices for the sale, not quite of human flesh, but of human intellect.”\n“Oh! my dear, human flesh! You quite shock me; if you mean a fling at the slave-trade, I assure you Mr. Suckling was always rather a friend to the abolition.”\n“I did not mean, I was not thinking of the slave-trade,” replied Jane; “governess-trade, I assure you, was all that I had in view; widely different certainly, as to the guilt of those who carry it on; but as to the greater misery of the victims, I do not know where it lies.”\nThat same sentiment is emphasized in Emma’s shock when Mrs. Weston tells her of Frank Churchill’s secret engagement to Jane.\n“Good God!” cried Emma, “Jane actually on the point of going as governess! What could he mean by such horrible indelicacy? To suffer her to engage herself — to suffer her even to think of such a measure!”\nI find it interesting that at the moment of Austen’s birth or there about, John Adams left his farm in Massachusetts for the Continental Congress in Philadelphia. Doesn’t sound particularly interesting, I know but consider this.\nJohn Adams left his home in mid-December 1775 to attend an unprecedented meeting of colonial representatives to consider severing ties with their mother country and her monarch; a decision that culminated in a document unlike any ever written. In the mother country, one day in that same cold December a baby girl was born at Steventon Rectory. Her cry was heard by only the people in the house but the years to come would see her pen create works unlike any the world had ever seen.\nComparing Austen’s words with Thomas Jefferson’s may seem a trivialization but I believe that Austen’s impact on the world is no less important than Jefferson’s. The effect of Jane’s writing maybe more subtle than that of the Virginian but it is no less influential.\nJefferson’s words instigated and promoted a revolution, a war of independence. Jane’s words had no such excessive consequence. Still in her own quiet, genteel yet powerful way she declared and promoted the same principles of freedom and self-regulated independence as our American forefathers. In all her novels Jane advocates independence of person and thought, the rights of all and acceptance of responsibility for those rights.\nJane may not have incited military action as Jefferson did but even as an avowed royalist, I doubt not that Jane Austen firmly believed in his declaration of the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."}
{"text": "Taking Play Seriously\nBy ROBIN MARANTZ HENIG\nPublished: February 17, 2008\nOn a drizzly Tuesday night in late January, 200 people came out to hear a psychiatrist talk rhapsodically about play -- not just the intense, joyous play of children, but play for all people, at all ages, at all times. (All species too; the lecture featured touching photos of a polar bear and a husky engaging playfully at a snowy outpost in northern Canada.) Stuart Brown, president of the National Institute for Play, was speaking at the New York Public Library's main branch on 42nd Street. He created the institute in 1996, after more than 20 years of psychiatric practice and research persuaded him of the dangerous long-term consequences of play deprivation. In a sold-out talk at the library, he and Krista Tippett, host of the public-radio program ''Speaking of Faith,'' discussed the biological and spiritual underpinnings of play. Brown called play part of the ''developmental sequencing of becoming a human primate. If you look at what produces learning and memory and well-being, play is as fundamental as any other aspect of life, including sleep and dreams.''\nThe message seemed to resonate with audience members, who asked anxious questions about what seemed to be the loss of play in their children's lives. Their concern came, no doubt, from the recent deluge of eulogies to play . Educators fret that school officials are hacking away at recess to make room for an increasingly crammed curriculum. Psychologists complain that overscheduled kids have no time left for the real business of childhood: idle, creative, unstructured free play. Public health officials link insufficient playtime to a rise in childhood obesity. Parents bemoan the fact that kids don't play the way they themselves did -- or think they did. And everyone seems to worry that without the chance to play stickball or hopscotch out on the street, to play with dolls on the kitchen floor or climb trees in the woods, today's children are missing out on something essential.\nThe success of ''The Dangerous Book for Boys'' -- which has been on the best-seller list for the last nine months -- and its step-by-step instructions for activities like folding paper airplanes is testament to the generalized longing for play's good old days. So were the questions after Stuart Brown's library talk; one woman asked how her children will learn trust, empathy and social skills when their most frequent playing is done online. Brown told her that while video games do have some play value, a true sense of ''interpersonal nuance'' can be achieved only by a child who is engaging all five senses by playing in the three-dimensional world.\nThis is part of a larger conversation Americans are having about play. Parents bobble between a nostalgia-infused yearning for their children to play and fear that time spent playing is time lost to more practical pursuits. Alarming headlines about U.S. students falling behind other countries in science and math, combined with the ever-more-intense competition to get kids into college, make parents rush to sign up their children for piano lessons and test-prep courses instead of just leaving them to improvise on their own; playtime versus r?m?uilding.\nDiscussions about play force us to reckon with our underlying ideas about childhood, sex differences, creativity and success. Do boys play differently than girls? Are children being damaged by staring at computer screens and video games? Are they missing something when fantasy play is populated with characters from Hollywood's imagination and not their own? Most of these issues are too vast to be addressed by a single field of study (let alone a magazine article). But the growing science of play does have much to add to the conversation. Armed with research grounded in evolutionary biology and experimental neuroscience, some scientists have shown themselves eager -- at times perhaps a little too eager -- to promote a scientific argument for play. They have spent the past few decades learning how and why play evolved in animals, generating insights that can inform our understanding of its evolution in humans too. They are studying, from an evolutionary perspective, to what extent play is a luxury that can be dispensed with when there are too many other competing claims on the growing brain, and to what extent it is central to how that brain grows in the first place.\nScientists who study play, in animals and humans alike, are developing a consensus view that play is something more than a way for restless kids to work off steam; more than a way for chubby kids to burn off calories; more than a frivolous luxury. Play, in their view, is a central part of neurological growth and development -- one important way that children build complex, skilled, responsive, socially adept and cognitively flexible brains.\nTheir work still leaves some questions unanswered, including questions about play's darker, more ambiguous side: is there really an evolutionary or developmental need for dangerous games, say, or for the meanness and hurt feelings that seem to attend so much child's play? Answering these and other questions could help us understand what might be lost if children play less."}
{"text": "How do you get HIV?\nHIV can be passed on when infected bodily fluid, such as blood or semen, is passed into an uninfected person. Semen is the liquid which is released from a man's penis during sex which carries sperm. It can be infected with HIV or AIDS when someone is HIV positive or is carrying the AIDS virus. This can happen during unprotected sex. For example when two people have sex without using a condom when one partner is already infected, or between drug users who inject and share needles.\nIt can't be transmitted by things like coughing, sneezing, kissing, sharing a toilet seat, swimming pools, sweat and tears."}
{"text": "CTComms sends on average 2 million emails monthly on behalf of over 125 different charities and not for profits.\nTake the complexity of technology and stir in the complexity of the legal system and what do you get? Software licenses! If you've ever attempted to read one you know how true this is, but you have to know a little about software licensing even if you can't parse all of the fine print.\nBy: Chris Peters\nMarch 10, 2009\nA software license is an agreement between you and the owner of a program which lets you perform certain activities which would otherwise constitute an infringement under copyright law. The software license usually answers questions such as:\nThe price of the software and the licensing fees, if any, are sometimes discussed in the licensing agreement, but usually it's described elsewhere.\nIf you read the definitions below and you're still scratching your head, check out Categories of Free and Non-Free Software which includes a helpful diagram.\nFree vs Proprietary:\nWhen you hear the phrase \"free software\" or \"free software license,\" \"free\" is referring to your rights and permissions (\"free as in freedom\" or \"free as in free speech\"). In other words, a free software license gives you more rights than a proprietary license. You can usually copy, modify, and redistribute free software without paying a fee or obtaining permission from the developers and distributors. In most cases \"free software\" won't cost you anything, but that's not always the case – in this instance the word free is making no assertion whatsoever about the price of the software. Proprietary software puts more restrictions and limits on your legal permission to copy, modify, and distribute the program.\nFree, Open-Source or FOSS?\nIn everyday conversation, there's not much difference between \"free software,\" \"open source software,\" and \"FOSS (Free and Open-Source Software).\" In other words, you'll hear these terms used interchangeably, and the proponents of free software and the supporters of open-source software agree with one another on most issues. However, the official definition of free software differs somewhat from the official definition of open-source software, and the philosophies underlying those definitions differ as well. For a short description of the difference, read Live and Let License. For a longer discussion from the \"free software\" side, read Why Open Source Misses the Point of Free Software. For the \"open-source\" perspective, read Why Free Software is Too Ambiguous.\nPublic domain and copyleft.\nThese terms refer to different categories of free, unrestricted licensing. A copyleft license allows you all the freedoms of a free software license, but adds one restriction. Under a copyleft license, you have to release any modifications under the same terms as the original software. In effect, this blocks companies and developers who want to alter free software and then make their altered version proprietary. In practice, almost all free and open-source software is also copylefted. However, technically you can release \"free software\" that isn't copylefted. For example, if you developed software and released it under a \"public domain\" license, it would qualify as free software, but it isn't copyleft. In effect, when you release something into the public domain, you give up all copyrights and rights of ownership.\nShareware and freeware.\nThese terms don't really refer to licensing, and they're confusing in light of the discussion of free software above. Freeware refers to software (usually small utilities at sites such as Tucows.com) that you can download and install without paying. However, you don't have the right to view the source code, and you may not have the right to copy and redistribute the software. In other words, freeware is proprietary software. Shareware is even more restrictive. In effect, shareware is trial software. You can use it for a limited amount of time (usually 30 or 60 days) and then you're expected to pay to continue using it.\nEnd User Licensing Agreement (EULA).\nWhen you acquire software yourself, directly from a vendor or retailer, or directly from the vendor's Web site, you usually have to indicate by clicking a box that you accept the licensing terms. This \"click-through\" agreement that no one ever reads is commonly known as a EULA. If you negotiate a large purchase of software with a company, and you sign a contract to seal the agreement, that contract usually replaces or supersedes the EULA.\nMost major vendors of proprietary software offer some type of bulk purchasing and volume licensing mechanism. The terms vary widely, but if you order enough software to qualify, the benefits in terms of cost and convenience are significant. Also, not-for-profits sometimes qualify for it with very small initial purchases.\nSome of the benefits of volume licensing include:\nLower cost. As with most products, software costs less when you buy more of it.\nEase of installation. Without volume licenses, you usually have to enter a separate activation code (also known as a product key or license key) for each installed copy of the program. On the other hand, volume licenses provide you with a single, organisation-wide activation code, which makes it much easier to find when you need to reinstall the software.\nEasier tracking of licenses. Keeping track of how many licenses you own, and how many copies you've actually installed, is a tedious, difficult task. Many volume licensing programs provide an online account which is automatically updated when you obtain or activate a copy of that company's software. These accounts can also coordinate licensing across multiple offices within your organisation.\nTo learn more about volume licensing from a particular vendor, check out some of the resources below:\nQualified not-for-profits and libraries can receive donated volume licenses for Microsoft products through TechSoup. For more information, check out our introduction to the Microsoft Software Donation Program, and the Microsoft Software Donation Program FAQ. For general information about the volume licensing of Microsoft software, see Volume Licensing Overview.\nIf you get Microsoft software from TechSoup or other software distributors who work with not-for-profits, you may need to go to the eOpen Web site to locate your Volume license keys. For more information, check out the TechSoup Donation Recipient's Guide to the Microsoft eOpen Web Site.\nAlways check TechSoup Stock first to see if there's a volume licensing donation program for the software you're interested in. If TechSoup doesn't offer that product or if you need more copies than you can find at TechSoup, search for \"volume licensing not-for-profits software\" or just \"not-for-profits software.\" For example, when we have an inventory of Adobe products, qualifying and eligible not-for-profits can obtain four individual products or one copy of Creative Suite 4 through TechSoup. If we're out of stock, or you've used up your annual Adobe donation, you can also check TechSoup's special Adobe donation program and also Adobe Solutions for Nonprofits for other discounts available to not-for-profits. For more software-hunting tips, see A Quick Guide to Discounted Software Programs.\nPay close attention to the options and licensing requirements when you acquire server-based software. You might need two different types of license – one for the server software itself, and a set of licenses for all the \"clients\" accessing the software. Depending on the vendor and the licensing scenario, \"client\" can refer either to the end users themselves (for example, employees, contractors, clients, and anyone else who uses the software in question) or their computing devices (for example, laptops, desktop computers, smartphones, PDAs, etc.). We'll focus on Microsoft server products, but similar issues can arise with other server applications.\nOver the years, Microsoft has released hundreds of server-based applications, and the licensing terms are slightly different for each one. Fortunately, there are common license types and licensing structures across different products. In other words, while a User CAL (Client Access License) for Windows Server is distinct from a User CAL for SharePoint Server, the underlying terms and rights are very similar. The TechSoup product pages for Microsoft software do a good job of describing the differences between products, so we'll focus on the common threads in this article.\nMoreover, Microsoft often lets you license a single server application in more than one way, depending on the needs of your organisation. This allows you the flexibility to choose the licenses that best reflect your organisation's usage patterns and thereby cost you the least amount of money. For example, for Windows Server and other products you can acquire licenses on a per-user basis (for example, User CALs) or per-device basis (for example, Device CALs).\nThe license required to install and run most server applications usually comes bundled with the software itself. So you can install and run most applications \"out of the box,\" as long as you have the right number of client licenses (see the section below for more on that). However, when you're running certain server products on a computer with multiple processors, you may need to get additional licenses. For example, if you run Windows Server 2008 DataCenter edition on a server with two processors, you need a separate license for each processor. SQL Server 2008 works the same way. This type of license is referred to as a processor license. Generally you don't need client licenses for any application that's licensed this way.\nClient Licenses for Internal Users\nMany Microsoft products, including Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2008, require client access licenses for all authenticated internal users (for example, employees, contractors, volunteers, etc.). On the other hand, SQL Server 2008 and other products don't require any client licenses. Read the product description at CTXchange if you're looking for the details about licensing a particular application.\nUser CALs: User CALs allow each user access to all the instances of a particular server product in an organisation, no matter which device they use to gain access. In other words, if you run five copies of Windows Server 2008 on five separate servers, you only need one User CAL for each person in your organisation who access those servers (or any software installed on those servers), whether they access a single server, all five servers, or some number in between. Each user with a single CAL assigned to them can access the server software from as many devices as they want (for example, desktop computers, laptops, smartphones, etc.). User CALs are a popular licensing option.\nDevice CALs: Device CALs allow access to all instances of a particular server application from a single device (for example, a desktop computer, a laptop, etc.) in your organisation. Device CALs only make sense when multiple employees use the same computer. For example, in 24-hour call centres different employees on different shifts often use the same machine, so Device CALs make sense in this situation.\nChoosing a licensing mode for your Windows Server CALs: With Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2008, you use a CAL (either a User CAL or a Device CAL) in one of two licensing modes: per seat or per server. You make this decision when you're installing your Windows Server products, not when you acquire the CALs. The CALs themselves don't have any mode designation, so you can use either a User CAL or a Device CAL in either mode. Per seat mode is the default mode, and the one used most frequently. The description of User CALs and Device CALs above describes the typical per seat mode. In \"per server\" mode, Windows treats each license as a \"simultaneous connection.\" In other words, if you have 40 CALs, Windows will let 40 authenticated users have access. The 41st user will be denied access. However, in per server mode, each CAL is tied to a particular instance of Windows Server, and you have to acquire a new set of licenses for each new server you build that runs Windows. Therefore, per server mode works for some small organisations with one or two servers and limited access requirements.\nYou don't \"install\" client licenses the way you install software. There are ways to automate the tracking of software licenses indirectly, but the server software can't refuse access to a user or device on licensing grounds. The licenses don't leave any \"digital footprint\" that the server software can read. An exception to this occurs when you license Windows Server in per server mode. In this case, if you have 50 licenses, the 51st authenticated user will be denied access (though anonymous users can still access services).\nSome key points to remember about client licensing:\nThe licensing scenarios described in this section arise less frequently, and are too complex to cover completely in this article, so they're described briefly below along with more comprehensive resources.\nYou don't need client licenses for anonymous, unauthenticated external users. In other words, if someone accesses your Web site, and that site runs on Internet Information Server (IIS), Microsoft's Web serving software, you don't need a client license for any of those anonymous users.\nIf you have any authenticated external users who access services on your Windows-based servers, you can obtain CALs to cover their licensing requirements. However, the External Connector License (ECL) is a second option in this scenario. The ECL covers all use by authenticated external users, but it's a lot more expensive than a CAL, so only get one if you'll have a lot of external users. For example, even if you get your licenses through the CTXchange donation program, an ECL for Windows Server 2008 has an £76 administrative fee, while a User CAL for Windows Server 2008 carries a £1 admin fee. If only a handful of external users access your Windows servers, you're better off acquiring User CALs. Also, an ECL only applies to external users and devices. In other words, if you have an ECL, you still have to get a CAL for all employees and contractors.\nEven though Terminal Services (TS) is built into Windows Server 2003 and 2008, you need to get a separate TS CAL for each client (i.e. each user or each device) that will access Terminal Services in your organisation. This TS license is in addition to your Windows Server CALs.\nMicrosoft's System Centre products (a line of enterprise-level administrative software packages) use a special type of license known as a management license (ML). Applications that use this type of licensing include System Center Configuration Manager 2007 and System Center Operations Manager 2007. Any desktop or workstation managed by one of these applications needs a client management license. Any server managed by one of these applications requires a server management license, and there are two types of server management licenses – standard and enterprise. You need one or the other but not both. There are also special licensing requirements if you're managing virtual instances of Windows operating systems. For more information, see TechSoup's Guide to System Center Products and Licensing and Microsoft's white paper on Systems Center licensing.\nSome Microsoft server products have two client licensing modes, standard and enterprise. As you might imagine, an Enterprise CAL grants access to more advanced features of a product. Furthermore, with some products, such as Microsoft Exchange, the licenses are additive. In other words, a user needs both a Standard CAL AND an Enterprise CAL in order to access the advanced features. See Exchange Server 2007 Editions and Client Access Licenses for more information.\nWith virtualisation technologies, multiple operating systems can run simultaneously on a single physical server. Every time you install a Microsoft application, whether on a physical hardware system or a virtual hardware system, you create an \"instance\" of that application. The number of \"instances\" of particular application that you can run using a single license varies from product to product. For more information see the Volume Licensing Briefs, Microsoft Licensing for Virtualization and the Windows Server Virtualization Calculator. For TechSoup Stock products, see the product description for more information.\nThere are a lot of nuances to Microsoft licensing, and also a lot of excellent resources to help you understand different scenarios.\nAbout the Author:\nChris is a former technology writer and technology analyst for TechSoup for Libraries, which aims to provide IT management guidance to libraries. His previous experience includes working at Washington State Library as a technology consultant and technology trainer, and at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as a technology trainer and tech support analyst. He received his M.L.S. from the University of Michigan in 1997.\nOriginally posted here.\nCopyright © 2009 CompuMentor. This work is published under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 License.\nThe latest version of Microsoft Office Professional Plus is an integrated collection of programs, servers, and services designed to work together to enable optimised information work."}
{"text": "Hold the salt: UCLA engineers develop revolutionary new desalination membrane\nProcess uses atmospheric pressure plasma to create filtering 'brush layer'\nDesalination can become more economical and used as a viable alternate water resource.\nBy Wileen Wong Kromhout\nOriginally published in UCLA Newsroom\nResearchers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have unveiled a new class of reverse-osmosis membranes for desalination that resist the clogging which typically occurs when seawater, brackish water and waste water are purified.\nThe highly permeable, surface-structured membrane can easily be incorporated into today's commercial production system, the researchers say, and could help to significantly reduce desalination operating costs. Their findings appear in the current issue of the Journal of Materials Chemistry.\nReverse-osmosis (RO) desalination uses high pressure to force polluted water through the pores of a membrane. While water molecules pass through the pores, mineral salt ions, bacteria and other impurities cannot. Over time, these particles build up on the membrane's surface, leading to clogging and membrane damage. This scaling and fouling places higher energy demands on the pumping system and necessitates costly cleanup and membrane replacement.\nThe new UCLA membrane's novel surface topography and chemistry allow it to avoid such drawbacks.\n\"Besides possessing high water permeability, the new membrane also shows high rejection characteristics and long-term stability,\" said Nancy H. Lin, a UCLA Engineering senior researcher and the study's lead author. \"Structuring the membrane surface does not require a long reaction time, high reaction temperature or the use of a vacuum chamber. The anti-scaling property, which can increase membrane life and decrease operational costs, is superior to existing commercial membranes.\"\nThe new membrane was synthesized through a three-step process. First, researchers synthesized a polyamide thin-film composite membrane using conventional interfacial polymerization. Next, they activated the polyamide surface with atmospheric pressure plasma to create active sites on the surface. Finally, these active sites were used to initiate a graft polymerization reaction with a monomer solution to create a polymer \"brush layer\" on the polyamide surface. This graft polymerization is carried out for a specific period of time at a specific temperature in order to control the brush layer thickness and topography.\n\"In the early years, surface plasma treatment could only be accomplished in a vacuum chamber,\" said Yoram Cohen, UCLA professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and a corresponding author of the study. \"It wasn't practical for large-scale commercialization because thousands of meters of membranes could not be synthesized in a vacuum chamber. It's too costly. But now, with the advent of atmospheric pressure plasma, we don't even need to initiate the reaction chemically. It's as simple as brushing the surface with plasma, and it can be done for almost any surface.\"\nIn this new membrane, the polymer chains of the tethered brush layer are in constant motion. The chains are chemically anchored to the surface and are thus more thermally stable, relative to physically coated polymer films. Water flow also adds to the brush layer's movement, making it extremely difficult for bacteria and other colloidal matter to anchor to the surface of the membrane.\n\"If you've ever snorkeled, you'll know that sea kelp move back and forth with the current or water flow,\" Cohen said. \"So imagine that you have this varied structure with continuous movement. Protein or bacteria need to be able to anchor to multiple spots on the membrane to attach themselves to the surface — a task which is extremely difficult to attain due to the constant motion of the brush layer. The polymer chains protect and screen the membrane surface underneath.\"\nAnother factor in preventing adhesion is the surface charge of the membrane. Cohen's team is able to choose the chemistry of the brush layer to impart the desired surface charge, enabling the membrane to repel molecules of an opposite charge.\nThe team's next step is to expand the membrane synthesis into a much larger, continuous process and to optimize the new membrane's performance for different water sources.\n\"We want to be able to narrow down and create a membrane selection system for different water sources that have different fouling tendencies,\" Lin said. \"With such knowledge, one can optimize the membrane surface properties with different polymer brush layers to delay or prevent the onset of membrane fouling and scaling.\n\"The cost of desalination will therefore decrease when we reduce the cost of chemicals [used for membrane cleaning], as well as process operation [for membrane replacement]. Desalination can become more economical and used as a viable alternate water resource.\"\nCohen's team, in collaboration with the UCLA Water Technology Research (WaTeR) Center, is currently carrying out specific studies to test the performance of the new membrane's fouling properties under field conditions.\n\"We work directly with industry and water agencies on everything that we're doing here in water technology,\" Cohen said. \"The reason for this is simple: If we are to accelerate the transfer of knowledge technology from the university to the real world, where those solutions are needed, we have to make sure we address the real issues. This also provides our students with a tremendous opportunity to work with industry, government and local agencies.\"\nA paper providing a preliminary introduction to the new membrane also appeared in the Journal of Membrane Science last month.\nPublished: Thursday, April 08, 2010"}
{"text": "Not Just for Kids\nThe Hunt for Falling Leaves...\nNature's Color on the Ground\nby Mary Catherine Ball\nBeing a reporter, I am always looking for an adventure. Last week, I found one.\nI left work to go on a simple journey, but it turned out to be much more.\nFirst, I crossed a mud-ridden stream. Then, I came face to face with flying creatures, fighting to get near me. I even endured webmakers spinning my hair into a shiny maze.\nWhere did I go? Into the woods, of course. Why? I wanted to gather some fallen leaves.\nMy luck was good that day. I was able to spy lots of different kinds of leaves lying on the ground. Some were leaves I had never seen. Some were still green, while others were changing to their autumn colors.\nHave you ever hunted for leaves? I wonder if you know the names of five of the trees that live in your neighborhood? I bet the answer is no.\nWell, me neither. So I had five of the leaves analyzed. I had found the leaves from an oak, a beech, a sweet gum tree and more.\nNow, I invite you to make this journey.\nNarrow body with pointy edges\nNarrow body with pointy edges\nMay grow berries\nGood for sap & color\n3 distinct leafs\nMay grow nuts\nThis is your task...\nTravel to the deep, dark woods (in the daylight) to find these 5 leaves. Cut out the page and take it with you. Make sure you can match your discovery with mine. Happy leaf-hunting!\nStone Soup October 9 (11:30am)-Enjoy lunch and a show. After you eat peanut butter & jelly, watch Stone Soup, performed by the Lost Caravan. Lunch is at noon; show starts at 12:30. Chesapeake Music Hall, Off Rt. 50 approaching the Bay Bridge: 410/406-0306.\nAll Aboard October 9 & 10 (2pm)-Chug a chug to Zany Brainy for train fun. Listen to stories and sing railroad songs. Build your own trains. Ages 3+. Zany Brainy, Annap. Harb. Ctr.: 410/266-1447.\nTiny Tots Fall for Nature Tues. Oct 12 (10:30am-noon) Three- to five-year-olds (and their adult) hike into the woods to hear autumn stories, gather leaves and make a craft. Bring a bag lunch to enjoy w/apple cider @ King's Landing Park, Huntingtown. $3 rsvp: 800/735-2258.\nSpooky Stories in the Woods Tues. Oct. 12 (10:30-noon)-Hike with a ranger to a clearing in the woods. Listen to autumn stories and drink warm apple cider. Gather leaves to make a craft. Bring a bag lunch. Kings Landing Park, Huntingtown: 410/535-5327.\nMusical Minds Wed. Oct. 13 (4-4:45pm)-Music makes the world go round. So sing, listen to stories and play musical instruments. Ages 2-4. Chesapeake Children's Museum, Festival at Riva. $8.50; rsvp: 410/266-0677.\nNature Designs Deadline Oct. 15-Create your favorite nature scene out of clay or on paper to win prizes. Age categories are 3-5, 6-8 and 9-12 years. Place winners win nature books or statues. All art forms accepted. Take your masterpiece to Wild Bird Center, Annapolis Harbour Center: 410/573-0345.\nTiny Tots get in Touch with Mother Nature Sat. Oct 16 (10-10:30am)\nTiny tots (2-3 w/adult) learn nature by touch, feeling the many different\ntextures rough and soft in the world around us. @ Battle Creek Cypress Swamp,\nPrince Frederick: 800/735-2258.\n| Issue 40 |\nVolume VII Number 40\nOctober 7-13, 1999\nNew Bay Times\n| Homepage |\n| Back to Archives |"}
{"text": "The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft is expected to discover its 1,000TH comet this summer.\nThe SOHO spacecraft is a joint effort between NASA and the European Space Agency. It has accounted for approximately one-half of all comet discoveries with computed orbits in the history of astronomy.\n\"Before SOHO was launched, only 16 sun grazing comets had been discovered by space observatories. Based on that experience, who could have predicted SOHO would discover more than 60 times that number, and in only nine years,\" said Dr. Chris St. Cyr. He is senior project scientist for NASA's Living With a Star program at the agency's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. \"This is truly a remarkable achievement!\"\nAbout 85 percent of the comets SOHO discovered belongs to the Kreutz group of sun grazing comets, so named because their orbits take them very close to Earth's star. The Kreutz sun grazers pass within 500,000 miles of the star's visible surface. Mercury, the planet closest to the sun, is about 36 million miles from the solar surface.\nSOHO has also been used to discover three other well-populated comet groups: the Meyer, with at least 55 members; Marsden, with at least 21 members; and the Kracht, with 24 members. These groups are named after the astronomers who suggested the comets are related, because they have similar orbits.\nMany comet discoveries were made by amateurs using SOHO images on the Internet. SOHO comet hunters come from all over the world. The United States, United Kingdom, China, Japan, Taiwan, Russia, Ukraine, France, Germany, and Lithuania are among the many countries whose citizens have used SOHO to chase comets.\nAlmost all of SOHO's comets are discovered using images from its Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph (LASCO) instrument. LASCO is used to observe the faint, multimillion-degree outer atmosphere of the sun, called the corona. A disk in the instrument is used to make an artificial eclipse, blocking direct light from the sun, so the much fainter corona can be seen. Sun grazing comets are discovered when they enter LASCO's field of view as they pass close by the star.\n\"Building coronagraphs like LASCO is still more art than science, because the light we are trying to detect is very faint,\" said Dr. Joe Gurman, U.S. project scientist for SOHO at Goddard. \"Any imperfections in the optics or dust in the instrument will scatter the light, making the images too noisy to be useful. Discovering almost 1,000 comets since SOHO's launch on December 2, 1995 is a testament to the skill of the LASCO team.\"\nSOHO successfully completed its primary mission in April 1998. It has enough fuel to remain on station to keep hunting comets for decades if the LASCO continues to function.\nFor information about SOHO on the Internet, visit:\nExplore further: Long-term warming, short-term variability: Why climate change is still an issue"}
{"text": "Bolivia: Coca-chewing protest outside US embassy\nIndigenous activists in Bolivia have been holding a mass coca-chewing protest as part of campaign to end an international ban on the practice.\nHundreds of people chewed the leaf outside the US embassy in La Paz and in other cities across the country.\nBolivia wants to amend a UN drugs treaty that bans chewing coca, which is an ancient tradition in the Andes.\nBut the US has said it will veto the amendment because coca is also the raw material for making cocaine.\nThe protesters outside the US embassy also displayed products made from coca, including soft drinks, toothpaste, sweets and ointments.\nThey were supporting a Bolivian government campaign to amend the 1961 UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs to remove language that bans the chewing of coca leaf.\nThe convention stipulates that coca-chewing be eliminated within 25 years of the convention coming into effect in 1964.\nBolivia says that is discriminatory, given that coca use is so deeply rooted in the indigenous culture of the Andes.Eradication\nThe US is opposed to changing the UN convention because it says it would weaken the fight against cocaine production.\nIn a statement, the US embassy said Washington recognised coca-chewing as a \"traditional custom\" of Bolivia's indigenous peoples but could not support the amendment.\n\"The position of the US government in not supporting the amendment is based on the importance of maintaining the integrity of the UN convention, which is an important tool in the fight against drug-trafficking,\" it said.\nThe US is the world's largest consumer of cocaine and has been leading efforts to eradicate coca production in the Andes for decades.\nBolivia is the world's first biggest producer of cocaine after Peru and Colombia, and much of its coca crop is used to make the illegal drug.\nBolivian President Evo Morales has long advocated the recognition of coca as a plant of great medicinal, cultural and religious importance that is distinct from cocaine.\nAs well as being Bolivia's first indigenous head of state, Mr Morales is also a former coca-grower and leader of a coca-growers trade union.\nThe Bolivian amendment would come into effect on 31 January only if there were no objections."}
{"text": "Breaking the COX code\nUsing the team approach\nEditor’s Note: This story, first published in 2004, has been updated.\nProstaglandins, which were first isolated from the prostate gland in 1936, are very rapidly metabolized, or broken down, making measurement in the blood difficult. Researchers at Vanderbilt led by John Oates, M.D., developed methods for measuring levels of prostaglandin metabolites (breakdown products) in the urine using mass spectrometry.\nUsing this technique, the research team—which by the late 1970s included L. Jackson Roberts, M.D.—identified prostaglandin D2 as a product of the human mast cell and demonstrated its release during allergic asthma.\nWith colleagues including Garret A. FitzGerald, M.D., now chair of Pharmacology at the University of Pennsylvania, Oates and Roberts showed that low doses of aspirin blocked the production of thromboxane, a prostaglandin made by platelets that causes blood clotting and constriction of blood vessels. Their findings supported the use of low dose aspirin to prevent heart attacks.\nIn the early 1990s, Vanderbilt researchers led by Ray DuBois, M.D., Ph.D., discovered a link between the COX-2 enzyme and colon cancer. That work helped lead to current tests of COX-2 inhibitors as a potential way to prevent cancer.\nIn 2004 another group led by the late Jason Morrow, M.D., and David H. Johnson, M.D., director of the Hematology-Oncology division at Vanderbilt, reported that urine levels of a prostaglandin metabolite called PGE-M could predict the effectiveness of a COX-2 inhibitor in patients with non-small cell lung cancer. This suggests, Morrow said in 2004, “that the measurement of these inflammatory ‘mediators’ and their suppression may be useful in the treatment of lung cancer.”\nCOX enzymes also may play a role in Alzheimer’s disease. In addition to prostaglandins, the COX pathway can lead to the production of highly reactive molecular compounds called levuglandins, which, in turn, can form “adducts,” or irreversible attachments to proteins that may be toxic to nerve cells.\nAlso in 2004, Oates and his colleagues at Vanderbilt and Johns Hopkins University reported that they found a 12-fold increase in the level of adducts in the brains of patients who had Alzheimer’s disease compared to age-matched control brains.\n“These are the first clear data showing that COX products are elevated in the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease,” says Oates, Thomas F. Frist Professor of Medicine and professor of Pharmacology.\nVanderbilt currently is participating in a national trial to see if long-term use of COX inhibitors will reduce the incidence of the disease."}
{"text": "Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.\n2012 June 23\nExplanation: As seen from Frösön island in northern Sweden the Sun did set a day after the summer solstice. From that location below the arctic circle it settled slowly behind the northern horizon. During the sunset's final minute, this remarkable sequence of 7 images follows the distorted edge of the solar disk as it just disappears against a distant tree line, capturing both a green and blue flash. Not a myth even in a land of runes, the colorful but elusive glints are caused by atmospheric refraction enhanced by long, low, sight lines and strong atmospheric temperature gradients.\nAuthors & editors:\nJerry Bonnell (UMCP)\nNASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.\nA service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC\n& Michigan Tech. U."}
{"text": "Network With Us\nJoin us on Facebook to get the latest news and updates.\nLauren Boulden's Story\nUsing Think-Alouds to Get Inside Langston Hughes' Head\nOver my past few years of teaching, there have been multiple occasions where I have been stumped on how to present a particular concept to my students. I've always been able to turn to ReadWriteThink.org for hands-on, engaging lessons. For example, I knew I wanted my students to develop their skills when it came to interacting with text, particularly with poetry. While searching through the myriad options on ReadWriteThink, I came upon \"Building Reading Comprehension Through Think-Alouds.\"\nAt first, I planned to use the lesson exactly as written: Read Langston Hughes's poem \"Dream Variation\" and model a think-aloud with students; then have the students try their hand at some think-alouds using other poetry. After working out all of the details, I realized I could develop some additional skills, which would fit perfectly into the scope and sequence of my class. After completing the think-aloud to \"Dream Variation,\" I broke students into selected groups. Each group was given a different Langston Hughes poem and asked to complete a think-aloud. The next day, the students were put into a new jigsaw group where they were solely responsible for sharing what their Langston Hughes poem conveyed. Based on the meanings behind their group mates' poems, along with using the knowledge of both their poem and \"Dream Variation,\" students were asked to figure out who Langston Hughes was as a man. What did he stand for? What were his beliefs? What did he want out of life? Students used clues from the various poems to fill in a head-shaped graphic organizer to depict their understanding of who Hughes could be. This simple lesson of working with poems and think-alouds turned into a few days of group communication, text deciphering, inferences, and even an author study!\nWithout great lessons available on ReadWriteThink.org, such as \"Building Reading Comprehension Through Think-Alouds,\" my students would never have been able to tackle so many key reading strategies in such a short amount of time.\nGrades 6 – 8 | Lesson Plan | Standard Lesson\nStudents learn components of think-alouds and type-of-text interactions through teacher modeling. In the process, students develop the ability to use think-alouds to aid in reading comprehension tasks.\nLauren describes how she used ReadWriteThink in her classroom.\nI have been teaching seventh- and eighth-grade language arts in Delaware for the past five years. I grew up in Long Island, New York, but have called Delaware my home since completing my undergraduate and master’s work at the University of Delaware. Teaching and learning have become my prime passions in life, which is why my days are spent teaching English, directing plays, organizing the school newspaper, and teaching yoga in the evenings."}
{"text": "King James II of England (who was also James VII of Scotland) inherited the throne in 1685 upon the death of his brother, Charles II. James II was unpopular because of his attempts to increase the power of the monarchy and restore the Catholic faith. Deposed in the \"Glorious Revolution\" of 1688-89, he fled to France. His daughter and son-in-law succeeded him as Queen Mary II and King William III. James II died in 1701.\nUnless otherwise noted, these books are for sale at Amazon.com. Your purchase through these links will help to support the continued operation and improvement of the Royalty.nu site.\nJames II by John Miller. Biography from the Yale English Monarchs series.\nJames II: The Triumph and the Tragedy by John Callow. Charts James' life using little-known material from the UK National Archives. Includes James' own description of the Battle of Edgehill, his reasons for his conversion to Catholicism, and his correspondence with William of Orange.\nA Court in Exile: The Stuarts in France, 1689-1718 by Edward Corp. After James II was deposed, he established his court in France. The book describes his court and the close relationships between the British and French royal families.\nKing in Exile: James II: Warrior, King and Saint by John Callow. Reassesses James's strategy for dealing with his downfall and exile, presenting a portrait of a man who planned for great political rewards and popular acclaim.\nJames II and the Trial of the Seven Bishops by William Gibson. The trial of seven bishops in 1688 was a prelude to the Glorious Revolution, as popular support for the bishops led to widespread welcome for William of Orange's invasion.\nThe Making of King James II by John Callow is about the formative years of the fallen king. Out of print, but sometimes available from Alibris.\nThe Countess and the King: A Novel of the Countess of Dorchester and King James II by Susan Holloway Scott. Novel about Katherine Sedley, a royal mistress forced to make the most perilous of choices: to remain loyal to the king, or to England.\nThe Crown for a Lie by Jane Lane. Novel about how James II lost his throne. Out of print, but sometimes available from Alibris."}
{"text": "RWJF Priority: Use pricing strategies—both incentives and disincentives—to promote the purchase of healthier foods\nPrices can significantly affect family food choices and are emerging as an important strategy in the movement to reverse the childhood obesity epidemic. For example, when healthy foods like fruits and vegetables are more affordable, children are less likely to gain excess weight. And leading health authorities, including the Institute of Medicine, recommend new policies to reduce overconsumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, which are one of the top sources of calories in the American diet.\nThe resources below, from RWJF grantees and partners, explore the possible health and economic impacts of using pricing strategies to promote consumption of healthy foods and beverages and discourage consumption of unhealthy products."}
{"text": "This section provides primary sources that document how Indian and European men and one English and one Indian woman have described the practice of sati, or the self-immolation of Hindu widows.\nAlthough they are all critical of self-immolation, Francois Bernier, Fanny Parks, Lord William Bentinck, and Rev. England present four different European perspectives on the practice of sati and what it represents about Indian culture in general, and the Hindu religion and Hindu women in particular. They also indicate increasing negativism in European attitudes toward India and the Hindu religion in general. It would be useful to compare the attitudes of Bentinck and England as representing the secular and sacred aspects of British criticism of sati. A comparison of Bentinck’s minute with the subsequent legislation also reveals differences in tone between private and public documents of colonial officials. Finally, a comparison between the Fanny Parks and the three men should raise discussion on whether or not the gender and social status of the writer made any difference in his or her appraisal of the practice of self-immolation.\nThe three sources by Indian men and one by an Indian woman illustrate the diversity of their attitudes toward sati. The Marathi source illuminates the material concerns of relatives of the Hindu widow who is urged to adopt a son, so as to keep a potentially lucrative office within the extended family. These men are willing to undertake intense and delicate negotiations to secure a suitably related male child who could be adopted. This letter also documents that adoption was a legitimate practice among Hindus, and that Hindu women as well as men could adopt an heir. Ram Mohan Roy’s argument illustrates a rationalist effort to reform Hindu customs with the assistance of British legislation. Roy illustrates one of the many ways in which Indians collaborate with British political power in order to secure change within Indian society. He also enabled the British to counter the arguments of orthodox Hindus about the scriptural basis for the legitimacy of self-immolation of Hindu widows. The petition of the orthodox Hindu community in Calcutta, the capital of the Company’s territories in India, documents an early effort of Indians to keep the British colonial power from legislating on matters pertaining to the private sphere of Indian family life. Finally, Pandita Ramabai reflects the ways in which ancient Hindu scriptures and their interpretation continued to dominate debate. Students should consider how Ramabai’s effort to raise funds for her future work among child widows in India might have influenced her discussion of sati.\nTwo key issues should be emphasized. First, both Indian supporters and European and Indian opponents of the practice of self-immolation argue their positions on the bodies of Hindu women, and all the men involved appeal to Hindu scriptures to legitimate their support or opposition. Second, the voices of Indian women were filtered through the sieve of Indian and European men and a very few British women until the late 19th century.\n- How do the written and visual sources portray the Hindu women who commit self-immolation? Possible aspects range from physical appearance and age, motivation, evidence of physical pain (that even the most devoted woman must suffer while burning to death), to any evidence of the agency or autonomy of the Hindu widow in deciding to commit sati. Are any differences discernible, and if so, do they seem related to gender or nationality of the observer or time period in which they were observed?\n- How are the brahman priests who preside at the self-immolation portrayed in Indian and European sources? What might account for any similarities and differences?\n- What reasons are used to deter Hindu widows from committing sati? What do these reasons reveal about the nature of family life in India and the relationships between men and women?\n- What do the reasons that orthodox Hindus provide to European observers and to Indian reformers reveal about the significance of sati for the practice of the Hindu religion? What do their arguments reveal about orthodox Hindu attitudes toward women and the family?\n- How are Hindu scriptures used in various ways in the debates before and after the prohibition of sati?\n- What is the tone of the petition from 800 Hindus to their British governor? Whom do they claim to represent? What is their justification for the ritual of self-immolation? What is their attitude toward the Mughal empire whose Muslim rulers had preceded the British? What is their characterization of the petitioners toward those Hindus who support the prohibition on sati? How do the petitioners envision the proper relationship between the state and the practice of religion among its subjects?\n- Who or what factors do European observers, British officials, and Indian opponents of sati hold to be responsible for the continuance of the practice of sati?\n- What were the reasons that widows gave for committing sati? Were they religious, social or material motives? What is the evidence that the widows were voluntarily committing sati before 1829? What reasons did the opponents of sati give for the decisions of widows to commit self-immolation? What reasons did opponents give for widows who tried to escape from their husbands’ pyres?\n- What are the reasons that Lord Bentinck and his Executive Council cite for their decision to declare the practice of sati illegal? Are the arguments similar to or different from his arguments in his minute a month earlier? What do these reasons reveal about British attitudes toward their role or mission in India? Do they use any of the arguments cited by Ram Mohan Roy or Pandita Ramabai?\n- What do these sources, both those who oppose sati and those who advocate it, reveal about their attitudes to the Hindu religion in particular and Indian culture in general?"}
{"text": "March 30, 2012\nCDC Releases New Report on Autism Prevalence in U.S.\nResearchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health contributed to a new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that estimates the prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) as affecting 1 in 88 U.S. children overall, and 1 in 54 boys.\nThis is the third such report by the CDC’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network (ADDM), which has used the same surveillance methods for more than a decade. Previous ADDM reports estimated the rate of ASDs at 1 in 110 children in the 2009 report that looked at data from 2006, and 1 in 150 children in the 2007 report, which covered data from 2002. The current prevalence estimate, which analyzed data from 2008, represents a 78 percent increase since 2002, and a 23 percent increase since 2006.\nASDs include diagnoses of autistic disorder, Asperger disorder, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS). ASDs encompass a wide spectrum of conditions, all of which affect communication, social and behavioral skills. The causes of these developmental disorders are not completely understood, although studies show that both environment and genetics play an important and complex role. There is no known cure for ASDs, but studies have shown that behavioral interventions, particularly those begun early in a child’s life, can greatly improve learning and skills.\nThe latest CDC report, “Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorders – Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, 14 Sites, United States, 2008,” provides autism prevalence estimates from different areas of the United States, including Maryland. The purpose of the report is to provide high-quality data on the extent and distribution of ASDs in the U.S. population, to promote better planning for health and educational services, and to inform the further development of research on the causes, progression, and treatments.\n“We continue observing increases in prevalence since the inception of the project in 2000,” said Li-Ching Lee, PhD, a psychiatric epidemiologist with the Bloomberg School\"s Departments of Epidemiology and Mental Health and the principal investigator for the prevalence project’s Maryland site. “In Maryland, we found 27 percent of children with ASDs were never diagnosed by professionals. So, we know there are more children out there and we may see the increase continue in coming years.”\nThe new report, which focuses on 8-year-olds because that is an age where most children with ASD have been identified, shows that the number of those affected varies widely among the 14 participating states, with Utah having the the highest overall rate (1 in 47) and Alabama the lowest (1 in 210). Across all sites, nearly five times as many boys as girls are affected. Additionally, growing numbers of minority children are being diagnosed, with a 91 percent increase among black non-Hispanic children and a 110 percent increase for Hispanic children. Researchers say better screening and diagnosis may contribute to those increases among minority children.\nThe overall rate in Maryland is 1 in 80 children; 1 in 49 boys and 1 in 256 girls. In Maryland, the prevalence has increased 85 percent from 2002 to 2008. The increase was 41 percent between 2004 and 2008, and 35 percent between 2006 and 2008.\nThe data were gathered through collaboration with the Maryland State Department of Education and participating schools in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Cecil, Harford and Howard counties, as well as clinical sources such as Kennedy Krieger Institute, Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital, and University of Maryland Medical System.\nWhile the report focuses on the numbers, its authors acknowledge that the reasons for the increase are not completely understood and that more research is needed. They note that the increase is likely due in part to a broadened definition of ASDs, greater awareness among the public and professionals, and the way children receive services in their local communities. “It’s very difficult, if not impossible, to tease these factors apart to quantify how much each of these factors contributed to the increase,” Dr. Lee said.\nBut whatever the cause, “This report paints a picture of the magnitude of the condition across our country and helps us understand how communities identify children with autism. One thing the data tell us with certainty – there are more children and families that need help,” said CDC Director Thomas Frieden, MD, MPH.\nResearchers also identified the median age of ASD diagnosis, documented in records. In Maryland, that age was 5 years and 6 months, compared with 4 years, 6 months nationally. Across all sites, children who have autistic disorder tend to be identified earlier, while those with Asperger Disorder tend to be diagnosed later. Given the importance of early intervention, ADDM researchers carefully track at what age children receive an ASD diagnosis.\n“Unfortunately, most children still are not diagnosed until after they reach age 4. We’ve heard from too many parents that they were concerned long before their child was diagnosed. We are working hard to change that,” said Coleen Boyle, PhD, MSHyg, director of CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities.\nTo see the full report: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss6103a1.htm?s_cid=ss6103a1_w\nTo the Community Report with state statistics: http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/documents/ADDM-2012-Community-Report.pdf\nMedia contact for Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health: Natalie Wood-Wright at 410-614-6029 or email@example.com"}
{"text": "- Yes, this is a good time to plant native grass seed in the ground. You may have to supplement with irrigation if the rains stop before the seeds have germinated and made good root growth.\n- Which grasses should I plant? The wonderful thing about California is that we have so many different ecosystems; the challenging thing about California is that we have so many different ecosystems. It’s impossible for us to know definitively which particular bunchgrasses used to grow or may still grow at your particular site, but to make the best guesses possible, we recommend the following:\n- Bestcase scenario is to have bunchgrasses already on the site that you can augment through proper mowing or grazing techniques.\n- Next best is to have a nearby site with native bunchgrasses and similar elevation, aspect, and soils, that you can use as a model.\n- After that, go to sources such as our pamphlet Distribution of Native Grasses of California, by Alan Beetle, $7.50.\n- Also reference local floras of your area, available through the California Native Plant Society.\nContainer growing: We grow seedlings in pots throughout the season, but ideal planning for growing your own plants in pots is to sow six months before you want to put them in the ground. Though restorationists frequently use plugs and liners (long narrow containers), and they may be required for large areas, we prefer growing them the horticultural way: first in flats, then transplanting into 4\" pots, and when they are sturdy little plants, into the ground. Our thinking is that since they are not tap-rooted but fibrous-rooted (one of their main advantages as far as deep erosion control is concerned) square 4\" pots suit them, and so far our experiences have borne this out.\nIn future newsletters, we will be reporting on the experiences and opinions of Marin ranchers Peggy Rathmann and John Wick, who are working with UC Berkeley researcher Wendy Silver on a study of carbon sequestration and bunchgrasses. So far, it’s very promising. But more on that later. For now, I’ll end with a quote from Peggy, who grows, eats, nurtures, lives, and sleeps bunchgrasses, for the health of their land and the benefit of their cows.\n“It takes a while. But it’s so worth it.”"}
{"text": "I’m struggling a bit to teach my children to pack for themselves. I want them to learn how to be self-reliant, but I also want to make sure they have everything they need for the day. If I don’t triple check every detail, they’re likely to be fully prepared for snack time but missing important papers or sports equipment. What’s the right thing to do?\nYour desire to raise self-reliant children is fantastic. But there’s no doubt that passing the baton can be tough. The first question has to be: how old are your children? A good general rule of thumb is, if they’re old enough to read, they’re old enough to pack their own bags. Assuming your little ones are old enough, the most effective thing to do is give them some time frame to take complete responsibility for getting themselves ready, ask questions to help prompt them if you think they aren’t paying attention to something crucial, and most importantly, when things aren’t crucial (e.g. do they have the right uniform packed), letting them fail. Nothing teaches quite like experience. As you let go of the reigns a bit, here are some more ideas to guide you.\n• Planning Starts the Night Before. Mornings are not the right time to teach your children how to pack themselves. You’re rushed, and they’re often bleary-eyed and grumpy. The ideal time to sit down with them, explain what you are trying to accomplish, and get them to start preparing for the next day is after homework but before TV time. That way you have time to ask them questions and offer un-stressed help in the initial stages. This is a process that will take time and spending time in the evenings helping them learn how to become responsible for themselves is time well spent.\n• Explain as You Go. You need to develop a checklist with them and then go through the items. Don’t criticize or watch over the task being done. Accept that the task will not be done exactly the way you would do it but recognize that as long as it is accomplished and done on time, that it is okay. In the beginning, be prepared to patiently ask and answer a lot of questions! Why do emergency numbers need to be in the backpacks? Because you might need to call someone. Why does lunch have to be prepared? So that mom knows they are eating healthy and, besides, too much sugar will make them feel bad, Why do you keep asking about permission slips or projects that need to go with them? Because it’s important they do not miss out on something the rest of the class is doing. This is just a primer but you get the idea.\n• Provide Feedback. Once the task has been completed, give constructive feedback to the person. As a guideline, tell your son or daughter five great things about the job for every one criticism. If after some time you notice they are consistently sloppy or forgetful, be patient but firm and make sure there are consequences for actions."}
{"text": "Newegg.com - A great place to buy computers, computer parts, electronics, software, accessories, and DVDs online. With great prices, fast shipping, and top-rated customer service - once you know, you Newegg.\nIf you are reading this message, Please click this link to reload this page.(Do not use your browser's \"Refresh\" button). Please email us if you're running the latest version of your browser and you still see this message.\nTable of contents\nBluetooth is an industrial specification for wireless data transfer. Bluetooth connectivity is often found in high-end keyboards and mice. Bluetooth generally provide an operating range of up to 30 feet and is less prone to interference in comparison to RF technology.\nDPI and FPS\nDPI (dots per inch) and FPS (frames per second) are the number of counts in an inch of movement and the number of times the sensor reads the surface in a second respectively. These figures are measures of the amount of information recorded by the mouse's sensor. The greater the amount of information that is gathered, the more accurately and precisely the surface can be tracked. To detect movement, optical and laser mice use sensors to read beams of light as they are reflected from the tracking surface.\nCurrently 400 and 800 DPI optical mice as well as 800 DPI laser mice are very popular, but some high-end models are capable of 1000, 1600 or even 2000 DPI tracking speeds.\nThe Personal System/2 or PS/2 was the designation for IBM's second generation of personal computers. The PS/2 keyboard and mouse ports were introduced with it. PS/2 ports connect the keyboard and mouse to a computer and are usually color-coded on today's systems - purple for keyboards and green for mice. Most desktop motherboards still provide PS/2 ports, but an increasing number of keyboards and mice are using USB ports.\nRadio Frequency (RF) is a wireless communication technology. Using RF technology allows keyboards and mice to computers without annoying cables.\nThe USB (Universal Serial Bus) port is a popular I/O interface used for connecting computers and peripherals or other devices. It is capable of supporting up to 127 daisy-chained peripheral devices simultaneously. The latest USB 2.0 specification can deliver 480Mbps data transfer bandwidth. In addition, USB provides plug-and-play capabilities to allow device changes while the computer is powered on. Today, many keyboard and mice use the USB interface."}
{"text": "exactly located (exactlyLocated)\nThe actual, minimal location of an\nObject. This is a subrelation of the more general Predicate\nSUMO / BASE-ONTOLOGY\nRelated WordNet synsets\n- the precise location of something; a spatially limited location; \"she walked to a point where she could survey the whole street\"\nAgar obj is partly located in region, to yah kuch subobj nahin, ki subobj is a part of obj aur subobj is exactly located in region.\n(partlyLocated ?OBJ ?REGION)\n(part ?SUBOBJ ?OBJ)\n(exactlyLocated ?SUBOBJ ?REGION))))\nAgar obj is exactly located in region, to yah kuch otherobj nahin, ki otherobj is exactly located in region aur otherobj is not equal to obj.\n(exactlyLocated ?OBJ ?REGION)\n(exactlyLocated ?OTHEROBJ ?REGION)\n(equal ?OTHEROBJ ?OBJ))))))\n\"thing ki jagah time tha\" is equal to region agar hai thing is exactly located in region during time.\n(WhereFn ?THING ?TIME)\n(exactlyLocated ?THING ?REGION)))"}
{"text": "Reishiki - the external expression of respect\nIn Iaido dojo you will practice with a wooden sword (Bokken), or a training sword (Iaito), or even a real Japanese sword with a cutting blade (Katana). There will be numerous people practicing, all in one room. Following the rules of etiquette ensures that no one gets injured. Also, following the rules of etiquette enhances practice in other ways. The teacher can more quickly determine skill levels when students line up in the order of rank. The ceremonial bowing serves as a concentration and focusing point; when bowing, practitioners shows respect for others. Maintaining observant silence allows students to focus their attention and practice reading body language. Cleaning the dojo after practice leaves it ready for the next group.\nAlways remember, reishiki comes from the heart and without sincere respect it will be only an empty gestures.\n- Be on time.\n- Do not make class wait.\n- Finger and toe nails must be cut short and all jewelry removed.\n- Remove shoes before entering.\n- A sword should be untied and held in the right hand.\n- Step directly in to the dojo.\n- Do not block doorway.\n- Stop and bow to Shinzen.\n- Avoid drawing or pointing a sword toward Shinzen.\n- Before practice, be sure your sword is in proper shape.\n- Check the Mekugi.\n- Place it at Shimoza (opposite side of room from shinzen) with the Ha to the wall.\n- Never touch a sword without the owner's permission.\n- Do not knock or step over any sword.\n- The floor must be cleared and swept.\n- Leave the Dojo ready for those who practice after you.\n- Eating, drinking, and smoking are not allowed on the Dojo floor.\n- When on the practice floor do not have private conversations other than iaido related subjects.\n- Tell the teacher of any injuries or problems, or of having to leave early.\n- Do not leave without permission.\n- Do not speak when teacher is speaking.\n- Thank the teacher.\n- Show respect to other iaidoka (students)\n- Do not draw directly towards others.\n- Do not do anything that may distract or injure a fellow practitioner or spectator."}
{"text": "- Enter a word for the dictionary definition.\nFrom The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:\nNectarine \\Nec`tar*ine\"\\ (n[e^]k`t[~e]r*[=e]n\"), n. [Cf. F. nectarine. See Nectar.] (Bot.) A smooth-skinned variety of peach. [1913 Webster] Spanish nectarine, the plumlike fruit of the West Indian tree Chrysobalanus Icaco; -- also called cocoa plum. It is made into a sweet conserve which is largely exported from Cuba. [1913 Webster]"}
{"text": "Throughout life there are many times when outside influences change or influence decision-making. The young child has inner motivation to learn and explore, but as he matures, finds outside sources to be a motivating force for development, as well. Along with being a beneficial influence, there are moments when peer pressure can overwhelm a child and lead him down a challenging path. And, peer pressure is a real thing – it is not only observable, but changes the way the brain behaves.\nAs a young adult, observational learning plays a part in development through observing and then doing. A child sees another child playing a game in a certain way and having success, so the observing child tries the same behavior. Albert Bandura was a leading researcher in this area. His famous bobo doll studies found that the young child is greatly influenced by observing other’s actions. When a child sees something that catches his attention, he retains the information, attempts to reproduce it, and then feels motivated to continue the behavior if it is met with success.\nObservational learning and peer pressure are two different things – one being the observing of behaviors and then the child attempting to reproduce them based on a child’s own free will. Peer pressure is the act of one child coercing another to follow suit. Often the behavior being pressured is questionable or taboo, such as smoking cigarettes or drinking alcohol.\nPeer Pressure and the Brain\nRecent studies find that peer pressure influences the way our brains behave, which leads to better understanding about the impact of peer pressure and the developing child. According to studies from Temple University, peer pressure has an effect on brain signals involved in risk and reward department, especially when the teen’s friends are around. Compared to adults in the study, teenagers were much more likely to take risks they would not normally take on their own when with friends. Brain signals were more activated in the reward center of the brain, firing greatest during at risk behaviors.\nPeer pressure can be difficult for young adults to deal with, and learning ways to say “no” or avoid pressure-filled situations can become overwhelming. Resisting peer pressure is not just about saying “no,” but how the brain functions. Children that have stronger connections among regions in their frontal lobes, along with other areas of the brain, are better equipped to resist peer pressure. During adolescence, the frontal lobes of the brain develop rapidly, causing axioms in the region to have a coating of fatty myelin, which insulates them and causes the frontal lobes to more effectively communicate with other brain regions. This helps the young adult to develop judgment and self-control needed to resist peer pressure.\nAlong with the frontal lobes contributing to the brain and peer pressure, other studies find that the prefrontal cortex plays a role in how teens respond to peer pressure. Just as with the previous study, children that were not exposed to peer pressure had greater connectivity within the brain as well as abilities to resist peer pressure.\nWorking through Peer Pressure\nThe teenage years are exciting years. The young adult is often going through physical changes due to puberty, adjusting to new friends and educational environments, and learning how to make decisions for themselves. Adults can offer a helping and supportive hand to young adults when dealing with peer pressure by considering the following:\nSeparation: Understanding that this is a time for the child to separate and learn how to be his own individual is important. It is hard to let go and allow the child to make mistakes for himself, especially when you want to offer input or change plans and actions, but allowing the child to go down his own path is important. As an adult, offering a helping hand if things go awry and being there to offer support is beneficial.\nTalk it Out: As an adult, take a firm stand on rules and regulations with your child. Although you cannot control whom your child selects as friends, you can take a stand on your control of your child. Setting specific goals, rules, and limits encourages respect and trust, which must be earned in response. Do not be afraid to start talking with your child early about ways to resist peer pressure. Focus on how it will build your child’s confidence when he learns to say “no” at the right time and reassure him that it can be accomplished without feeling guilty or losing self-confidence.\nStay Involved: Keep family dinner as a priority, make time each week for a family meeting or game time, and plan family outings and vacations regularly. Spending quality time with kids models positive behavior and offers lots of opportunities for discussions about what is happening at school and with friends.\nIf at any time there are concerns a child is becoming involved in questionable behavior due to peer pressure, ask for help. Understand that involving others in helping a child cope with peer pressure, such as a family doctor, youth advisor, or other trusted friend, does not mean that the adult is not equipped to properly help the child, but that including others in assisting a child, that may be on the brink of heading down the wrong path, is beneficial.\nBy Sarah Lipoff. Sarah is an art educator and parent. Visit Sarah’s website here.\nRead More →"}
{"text": "Ptosis Correction Surgery:\nPtosis Correction Surgery India offers information on Ptosis Correction Surgery in India, Ptosis Correction Surgery cost India, Ptosis Correction Surgery hospital in India, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad & Bangalore, Ptosis Correction Surgeon in India.\nPtosis is the medical term for drooping of the upper eyelid, a condition that may affect one or botheyes.\nThe ptosis may be mild - in which the lid partially covers the pupil; or severe - in which the lid completely covers the pupil.\nWhen does Ptosis occur?\nPtosis can occur at any age. When present since birth it is called congenital ptosis. When present in the elderly it is called acquired ptosis.\nWhat causes Ptosis?\nWhile the cause of congenital ptosis is often unclear, the most common reason is improper development of the levator muscle. The levator muscle is the major muscle responsible for elevating the upper eyelid. In adults ptosis is generally due to weakening / dehiscence of the levator muscle. It may also occur following injury to the muscle as after lid injuries and eye surgeries. Rarely it may be due to myasthenia gravis ( a condition where there is progressive weakness of muscles).\nWhy should Ptosis be treated?\nChildren with significant ptosis may need to tilt their head back into a chin-up position, lift their eyelid with a finger, or raise their eyebrows in an effort to see from under their drooping eyelid. Children with congenital ptosis may also have amblyopia (\"lazy eye\"), strabismus or squint (eyes that are not properly aligned or straight), refractive errors, astigmatism, or blurred vision. In addition, drooping of the eyelid may result in an undesired facial appearance and difficult social life. In moderate ptosis there is a loss of the upper field of vision by the drooping upper lid.\nHow is Ptosis treated?\nThe eye condition Ptosis is trated by a specified sugery called ptosis surgery.\nPtosis is treated surgically, with the specific operation based on the severity of the ptosis and the strength of the levator muscle. If the ptosis is not severe, surgery is generally performed when the child is between 3 and 5 years of age (the \"pre-school\" years). However, when the ptosis interferes with the child's vision, surgery is performed at an earlier age to allow proper visual development. Ptosis repair is usually completed under general anesthesia in infants and young children and under local anesthesia in adults.\nWhat to expect after surgery ?\nMost patients will tolerate the procedure very well and have a rapid recovery. Cold packs may need to be applied to the operated eyelid for the first 48 hours following surgery. Antibiotic ointments applied to the incision are sometimes recommended. The elevation of the eyelid will often be immediately noticeable, though in some cases bruising and swelling will obscure this finding. Most patients will have sutures that need removing about a week following surgery. In children, absorbable sutures are often used.\nThe bruising and swelling associated with the surgery will usually resolve in two to three weeks. Some patients may need adjustment of the sutures to better align the lid height. This may or may not require additional anaesthesia or a trip to the operating room.\nIndia Surgery Ptosis,Ptosis Correction, India Cost Price Ptosis, Ptosis Correction Surgery, Ptosis Correction, India Ptosis Correction Surgery, India Cost Ptosis Correction Surgery, Low Cost Mechanical Ptosis Correction Mumbai,, India Low Cost Ptosis Correction Surgery Hospital, Affordable Ptosis Correction Hospital Mumbai, Health Care, Ptosis Corrective Surgery, Eyelid Surgery, Drooping, Treatment On Ptosis Correction Surgery, India Ptosis Correction Surgery Surgeons, Ptosis Correction Surgery Doctors\nCall: + 91 9029304141 (10 am. To 8 pm. IST)\nEmail : email@example.com (Preferred)\n(Only for international patients seeking treatment in India)"}
{"text": "Vol. 17 Issue 6\nOne-Legged (Single Limb) Stance Test\nThe One-Legged Stance Test (OLST)1,2 is a simple, easy and effective method to screen for balance impairments in the older adult population.\nYou may be asking yourself, \"how can standing on one leg provide you with any information about balance, after all, we do not go around for extended periods of time standing on one leg?\"\nTrue, as a rule we are a dynamic people, always moving, our world always in motion, but there are instances were we do need to maintain single limb support. The most obvious times are when we are performing our everyday functional activities.\nStepping into a bath tub or up onto a curb would be difficult, if not impossible to do without the ability to maintain single limb support for a given amount of time. The ability to switch from two- to one-leg standing is required to perform turns, climb stairs and dress.\nAs we know, the gait cycle requires a certain amount of single limb support in order to be able to progress ourselves along in a normal pattern. When the dynamics of the cycle are disrupted, loss of balance leading to falls may occur.\nThis is especially true in older individuals whose gait cycle is altered due to normal and potentially abnormal changes that occur as a result of aging.\nThe One-Legged Stance Test measures postural stability (i.e., balance) and is more difficult to perform due to the narrow base of support required to do the test. Along with five other tests of balance and mobility, reliability of the One-Legged Stance Test was examined for 45 healthy females 55 to 71 years old and found to have \"good\" intraclass correlations coefficients (ICC range = .95 to .099). Within raters ICC ranged from 0.73 to 0.93.3\nTo perform the test, the patient is instructed to stand on one leg without support of the upper extremities or bracing of the unweighted leg against the stance leg. The patient begins the test with the eyes open, practicing once or twice on each side with his gaze fixed straight ahead.\nThe patient is then instructed to close his eyes and maintain balance for up to 30 seconds.1\nThe number of seconds that the patient/client is able to maintain this position is recorded. Termination or a fail test is recorded if 1) the foot touches the support leg; 2) hopping occurs; 3) the foot touches the floor, or 4) the arms touch something for support.\nNormal ranges with eyes open are: 60-69 yrs/22.5 ± 8.6s, 70-79 yrs/14.2 ± 9.3s. Normal ranges for eyes closed are: 60-69 yrs/10.2 ± 8.6s, 70-79 yrs/4.3 ± 3.0s.4 Briggs and colleagues reported balance times on the One-Legged Stance Test in females age 60 to 86 years for dominant and nondominant legs.\nGiven the results of this data, there appears to be some difference in whether individuals use their dominant versus their nondominant leg in the youngest and oldest age groups.\nWhen using this test, having patients choose what leg they would like to stand on would be appropriate as you want to record their \"best\" performance.\nIt has been reported in the literature that individuals increase their chances of sustaining an injury due to a fall by two times if they are unable to perform a One-Legged Stance Test for five seconds.5 Other studies utilizing the One-Legged Stance Test have been conducted in older adults to assess static balance after strength training,6 performance of activities of daily living and platform sway tests.7\nInterestingly, subscales of other balance measures such as the Tinetti Performance Oriented Mobility Assessment8 and Berg Balance Scale9 utilize unsupported single limb stance times of 10 seconds and 5 seconds respectively, for older individuals to be considered to have \"normal\" balance.\nThirty percent to 60 percent of community-dwelling elderly individuals fall each year, with many experiencing multiple falls.10 Because falls are the leading cause of injury-related deaths in older adults and a significant cause of disability in this population, prevention of falls and subsequent injuries is a worthwhile endeavor.11\nThe One-Legged Stance Test can be used as a quick, reliable and easy way for clinicians to screen their patients/clients for fall risks and is easily incorporated into a comprehensive functional evaluation for older adults.\n1. Briggs, R., Gossman, M., Birch, R., Drews, J., & Shaddeau, S. (1989). Balance performance among noninstitutionalized elderly women. Physical Therapy, 69(9), 748-756.\n2. Anemaet, W., & Moffa-Trotter, M. (1999). Functional tools for assessing balance and gait impairments. Topics in Geriatric Rehab, 15(1), 66-83.\n3. Franchignoni, F., Tesio, L., Martino, M., & Ricupero, C. (1998). Reliability of four simple, quantitative tests of balance and mobility in healthy elderly females. Aging (Milan), 10(1), 26-31.\n4. Bohannon, R., Larkin, P., Cook, A., & Singer, J. (1984). Decrease in timed balance test scores with aging. Physical Therapy, 64, 1067-1070.\n5. Vellas, B., Wayne, S., Romero, L., Baumgartner, R., et al. (1997). One-leg balance is an important predictor of injurious falls in older persons. Journal of the American Geriatric Society, 45, 735-738.\n6. Schlicht, J., Camaione, D., & Owen, S. (2001). Effect of intense strength training on standing balance, walking speed, and sit-to-stand performance in older adults. Journal of Gerontological Medicine and Science, 56A(5), M281-M286.\n7. Frandin, K., Sonn, U., Svantesson, U., & Grimby, G. (1996). Functional balance tests in 76-year-olds in relation to performance, activities of daily living and platform tests. Scandinavian Journal of Rehabilitative Medicine, 27(4), 231-241.\n8. Tinetti, M., Williams, T., & Mayewski, R. (1986). Fall risk index for elderly patients based on number of chronic disabilities. American Journal of Medicine, 80, 429-434.\n9. Berg, K., et al. (1989). Measuring balance in the elderly: Preliminary development of an instrument. Physio Therapy Canada, 41(6), 304-311.\n10. Rubenstein, L., & Josephson, K. (2002). The epidemiology of falls and syncope. Clinical Geriatric Medicine, 18, 141-158.\n11. National Safety Council. (2004). Injury Facts. Itasca, IL: Author.\nDr. Lewis is a physical therapist in private practice and president of Premier Physical Therapy of Washington, DC. She lectures exclusively for GREAT Seminars and Books, Inc. Dr. Lewis is also the author of numerous textbooks. Her Website address is www.greatseminarsandbooks.com. Dr. Shaw is an assistant professor in the physical therapy program at the University of South Florida dedicated to the area of geriatric rehabilitation. She lectures exclusively for GREAT Seminars and Books in the area of geriatric function.\nAPTA Encouraged by Cap Exceptions\nNew process grants automatic exceptions to beneficiaries needing care the most\nCalling it \"a good first step toward ensuring that Medicare beneficiaries continue to have coverage for the physical therapy they need,\" Ben F Massey, Jr, PT, MA, president of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), expressed optimism that the new exceptions process will allow a significant number of Medicare patients to receive services exceeding the $1,740 annual financial cap on Medicare therapy coverage. The new procedure, authorized by Congress in the recently enacted Deficit Reduction Act (PL 109-171), will be available to Medicare beneficiaries on March 13 under rules released this week by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).\n\"APTA is encouraged by the new therapy cap exceptions process,\" Massey said. \"CMS has made a good effort to ensure that Medicare beneficiaries who need the most care are not harmed by an arbitrary cap.\"\nAs APTA recommended, the process includes automatic exceptions and also grants exceptions to beneficiaries who are receiving both physical therapy and speech language pathology (the services are currently combined under one $1,740 cap).\n\"We have yet to see how well Medicare contractors will be able to implement and apply this process. Even if it works well, Congress only authorized this new process through 2006. Congress must address this issue again this year, and we are confident that this experience will demonstrate to legislators that they must completely repeal the caps and provide a more permanent solution for Medicare beneficiaries needing physical therapy,\" Massey continued.\nThe therapy caps went into effect on Jan. 1, 2006, limiting Medicare coverage on outpatient rehabilitation services to $1,740 for physical therapy and speech therapy combined and $1,740 for occupational therapy.\nThe American Physical Therapy Association is a national professional organization representing more than 65,000 members. Its goal is to foster advancements in physical therapy practice, research and education.\nNew Mouthwash Helps With Pain\nDoctors in Italy are studying whether a new type of mouthwash will help alleviate pain for patients suffering from head and neck cancer who were treated with radiation therapy, according to a new study (International Journal of Radiation Oncology*Biology*Physics, Feb. 1, 2006).\nFifty patients, suffering from various forms of head and neck cancer and who received radiation therapy, were observed during the course of their radiation treatment. Mucositis, or inflammation of the mucous membrane in the mouth, is the most common side effect yet no additional therapy has been identified that successfully reduces the pain.\nThis study sought to discover if a mouthwash made from the local anesthetic tetracaine was able to alleviate the discomfort associated with head and neck cancer and if there would be any negative side effects of the mouthwash. The doctors chose to concoct a tetracaine-based mouthwash instead of a lidocaine-based version because it was found to be four times more effective, worked faster and produced a prolonged relief.\nThe tetracaine was administered by a mouthwash approximately 30 minutes before and after meals, or roughly six times a day. Relief of oral pain was reported in 48 of the 50 patients. Sixteen patients reported that the mouthwash had an unpleasant taste or altered the taste of their food."}
{"text": "Hypertension is often diagnosed during a visit to your doctor. Blood pressure is measured using a cuff around your arm and a device called a sphygmomanometer. Your doctor may ask you to sit quietly for five minutes before checking your blood pressure.\nIf your blood pressure reading is high, you will probably be asked to come back for repeat blood pressure checks. If you have three visits with readings over 140/90 mmHG, you will be diagnosed with high blood pressure.\nSome people’s blood pressure goes up when they are at the doctor’s office. If your doctor suspects that may be occurring, he or she may ask you to get some blood pressure readings at home. In some cases, he or she may recommend that you wear an ambulatory blood pressure monitor. This device measures your blood pressure regularly throughout the day as you go about your activities. It is usually worn for 24 hours, even while sleeping.\n- Reviewer: Michael J. Fucci, DO\n- Review Date: 09/2012 -\n- Update Date: 00/91/2012 -"}
{"text": "Engineer your first step to a four-year degree at Edmonds Community College\nEngineers Make a Difference\nEngineering is the art of applying scientific and mathematical principles, experience, judgment, and common sense to make things that benefit people. Engineers solve problems. They improve and develop products to meet consumer and societal needs. They find ways for existing products to work better, last longer, operate more safely and cost less.\nThey also look for innovative solutions to global problems. Engineers design bridges and important medical equipment as well as processes for cleaning up toxic spills and systems for mass transit.\nIt's a Fact\nEngineering professions requiring a four-year degree are among the highest paying jobs in Washington State according to the office of Labor Market and Economic Analysis. Source: www.workforceexplorer.com"}
{"text": "Information for Students\nWelcome to the Flint Regional Science Fair! We look forward to seeing you at the Fair in March.\nTaking part in a science fair is fun, educational, and rewarding. This part of our web site provides information and links that can help you get started, conduct your research and enter the Flint Regional Science Fair.\nThe FASF is held every Spring. This means you should begin planning in the Fall and Winter prior to the Fair to ensure you pick a good research topic, and have plenty of time to do a good job and present a quality project.\nParents, teachers, and mentors are important helpers to identify projects, collect the resources required for your project, and track your progress. Ask your parents and your teachers for assistance. They are your best bet for one-on-one direction and support in your Science Fair experience.\nElementary Division and Junior Division projects follow simpler rules than Senior Division projects.\nMore Web Student Science Resources\nQuestions? Email firstname.lastname@example.org."}
{"text": "Linn, Amy. Illuminating News: What You Don't Know About Lightning Might\nCome As Shock. Providence Sunday Journal. August 21, 1988.\nAbstract: This article explains some common misconceptions about\nlightning. For example, one misconception is that lightning never strikes\nthe same place twice. This is untrue. Once lightning discovers an easy target\nit will likely strike again. The article also provides important safety\nprecautions. The safest place during a thunderstorm is inside a house away\nfrom windows or inside a closed car."}
{"text": "Problems of Philosophy\nChapter 5 - Knowledge by Acquaintance and Knowledge by Description\nAfter distinguishing two types of knowledge, knowledge of things and knowledge of truths, Russell devotes this fifth chapter to an elucidation of knowledge of things. He further distinguishes two types of knowledge of things, knowledge by acquaintance and knowledge by description. We have knowledge by acquaintance when we are directly aware of a thing, without any inference. We are immediately conscious and acquainted with a color or hardness of a table before us, our sense-data. Since acquaintance with things is logically independent from any knowledge of truths, we can be acquainted with something immediately without knowing any truth about it. I can know the color of a table \"perfectly and completely when I see it\" and not know any truth about the color in itself. The other type of knowledge of things is called knowledge by description. When we say we have knowledge of the table itself, a physical object, we refer to a kind of knowledge other than immediate, direct knowledge. \"The physical object which causes such-and-such sense-data\" is a phrase that describes the table by way of sense-data. We only have a description of the table. Knowledge by description is predicated on something with which we are acquainted, sense-data, and some knowledge of truths, like knowing that \"such- and-such sense-data are caused by the physical object.\" Thus, knowledge by description allows us to infer knowledge about the actual world via the things that can be known to us, things with which we have direct acquaintance (our subjective sense-data).\nAccording to this outline, knowledge by acquaintance forms the bedrock for all of our other knowledge. Sense-data is not the only instance of things with which we can be immediately acquainted. For how would we recall the past, Russell argues, if we could only know what was immediately present to our senses. Beyond sense-data, we also have \"acquaintance by memory.\" Remembering what we were immediately aware of makes it so that we are still immediately aware of that past, perceived thing. We may therefore access many past things with the same requisite immediacy. Beyond sense-data and memories, we possess \"acquaintance by introspection.\" When we are aware of an awareness, like in the case of hunger, \"my desiring food\" becomes an object of acquaintance. Introspective acquaintance is a kind of acquaintance with our own minds that may be understood as self-consciousness. However, this self-consciousness is really more like a consciousness of a feeling or a particular thought; the awareness rarely includes the explicit use of \"I,\" which would identify the Self as a subject. Russell abandons this strand of knowledge, knowledge of the Self, as a probable but unclear dimension of acquaintance.\nRussell summarizes our acquaintance with things as follows: \"We have acquaintance in sensation with the data of the outer senses, and in introspection with the data of what may be called the inner sense—thoughts, feelings, desires, etc.; we have acquaintance in memory with things which have been data either of the outer senses or of the inner sense. Further, it is probable, though not certain, that we have acquaintance with Self, as that which is aware of things or has desires towards things.\" All these objects of acquaintance are particulars, concrete, existing things. Russell cautions that we can also have acquaintance with abstract, general ideas called universals. He addresses universals more fully later in chapter 9.\nRussell allocates the rest of the chapter to explaining how the complicated theory of knowledge by description actually works. The most conspicuous things that are known to us by description are physical objects and other people's minds. We approach a case of having knowledge by description when we know \"that there is an object answering to a definite description, though we are not acquainted with any such object.\" Russell offers several illustrations in the service of understanding knowledge by description. He claims that it is important to understand this kind of knowledge because our language uses depends so heavily on it. When we say common words or proper names, we are really relying on the meanings implicit in descriptive knowledge. The thought connoted by the use of a proper name can only really be explicitly expressed through a description or proposition.\nBismarck, or \"the first Chancellor of the German Empire,\" is Russell's most cogent example. Imagine that there is a proposition, or statement, made about Bismarck. If Bismarck is the speaker, admitting that he has a kind of direct acquaintance with his own self, Bismarck might have voiced his name in order to make a self-referential judgment, of which his name is a constituent. In this simplest case, the \"proper name has the direct use which it always wishes to have, as simply standing for a certain object, and not for a description of the object.\" If one of Bismarck's friends who knew him directly was the speaker of the statement, then we would say that the speaker had knowledge by description. The speaker is acquainted with sense-data which he infers corresponds with Bismarck's body. The body or physical object representing the mind is \"only known as the body and the mind connected with these sense-data,\" which is the vital description. Since the sense-data corresponding to Bismarck change from moment to moment and with perspective, the speaker knows which various descriptions are valid.\nStill more removed from direct acquaintance, imagine that someone like you or I comes along and makes a statement about Bismarck that is a description based on a \"more or less vague mass of historical knowledge.\" We say that Bismarck was the \"first Chancellor of the German Empire.\" In order to make a valid description applicable to the physical object, Bismarck's body, we must find a relation between some particular with which we have acquaintance and the physical object, the particular with which we wish to have an indirect acquaintance. We must make such a reference in order to secure a meaningful description.\nTo usefully distinguish particulars from universals, Russell posits the example of \"the most long-lived of men,\" a description which wholly consists of universals. We assume that the description must apply to some man, but we have no way of inferring any judgment about him. Russell remarks, \"all knowledge of truths, as we shall show, demands acquaintance with things which are of an essentially different character from sense-data, the things which are sometimes called 'abstract ideas', but which we shall call 'universals'.\" The description composed only of universals gives no knowledge by acquaintance with which we might anchor an inference about the longest-lived man. A further statement about Bismarck, like \"The first Chancellor of the German Empire was an astute diplomatist,\" is a statement that contains particulars and asserts a judgment that we can only make in virtue of some acquaintance (like something heard or read).\nStatements about things known by description function in our language as statements about the \"actual thing described;\" that is, we intend to refer to that thing. We intend to say something with the direct authority that only Bismarck himself could have when he makes a statement about himself, something with which he has direct acquaintance. Yet, there is a spectrum of removal from acquaintance with the relevant particulars: from Bismarck himself, \"there is Bismarck to people who knew him; Bismarck to those who only know of him through history\" and at a far end of the spectrum \"the longest lived of men.\" At the latter end, we can only make propositions that are logically deducible from universals, and at the former end, we come as close as possible to direct acquaintance and can make many propositions identifying the actual object. It is now clear how knowledge gained by description is reducible to knowledge by acquaintance. Russell calls this observation his fundamental principle in the study of \"propositions containing descriptions\": \"Every proposition which we can understand must be composed wholly of constituents with which we are acquainted.\"\nIndirect knowledge of some particulars seems necessary if we are to expressively attach meanings to the words we commonly use. When we say something referring to Julius Caesar, we clearly have no direct acquaintance with the man. Rather, we are thinking of such descriptions as \"the man who was assassinated on the Ides of March\" or \"the founder of the Roman Empire.\" Since we have no way of being directly acquainted with Julius Caesar, our knowledge by description allows us to gain knowledge of \"things which we have never experienced.\" It allows us to overstep the boundaries of our private, immediate experiences and engage a public knowledge and public language.\nThis knowledge by acquaintance and knowledge by description theory was a famous epistemological problem-solver for Russell. Its innovative character allowed him to shift to his moderate realism, a realism ruled by a more definite categorization of objects. It is a theory of knowledge that considers our practice of language to be meaningful and worthy of detailed analysis. Russell contemplates how we construct a sense of meaning about objects remote from our experience. The realm of acquaintance offers the most secure references for our understanding of the world. Knowledge by description allows us to draw inferences from our realm of acquaintance but leaves us in a more vulnerable position. Since knowledge by description also depends on truths, we are prone to error about our descriptive knowledge if we are somehow mistaken about a proposition that we have taken to be true.\nCritics of this theory have held that Russell's hypothesis of knowledge by description is confusing. His comments when defining sense-data, that the physical world is unknowable to us, contradict his theory of knowledge by descriptions. He implies that \"knowledge by description\" is not really a form of knowledge since we can only know those things with which we are acquainted and we cannot be acquainted with physical objects. Russell's theory amounts to the proposition that our acquaintance with mental objects appears related in a distant way to physical objects and renders us obliquely acquainted with the physical world. Sense-data are our subjective representations of the external world, and they negotiate this indirect contact.\nWhile innovative, Russell's theory of knowledge by description is not an attractive theory of knowledge. It is clearly unappealing because our impressions of the real world, on his view, are commensurate with muddy representations of reality. Though we have direct access to these representations, it seems impossible to have any kind of direct experience of reality. Reality, rather, consists in unconscious, inferential pieces of reasoning.\nReaders' Notes allow users to add their own analysis and insights to our SparkNotes—and to discuss those ideas with one another. Have a novel take or think we left something out? Add a Readers' Note!"}
{"text": "What are managed lanes?\nHighway facilities or a set of lanes where operational strategies are proactively implemented and managed in response to changing conditions.\nTransportation agencies are faced with growing challenges of congestion and a limited ability to expand freeway capacity due to construction costs, right-of-way constraints, and environmental and societal impacts. Transportation officials are taking advantage of opportunities to address mobility needs and provide travel options through a combination of limited capacity expansion coupled with operational strategies that seek to manage travel demand and improve transit and other forms of ridesharing. The managed lanes concept is gaining interest around the country as an approach that combines these elements to make the most effective and efficient use of a freeway facility.\nThe distinction between managed lanes and other traditional forms of freeway lane management is the operating philosophy of \"active management.\" Under this philosophy, the operating agency proactively manages demand and available capacity on the facility by applying new strategies or modifying existing strategies. The agency defines from the outset the operating objectives for the managed lanes and the kinds of actions that will be taken once pre-defined performance thresholds are met.\nYou will need the Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the PDFs on this page.\nUnited States Department of Transportation - Federal Highway Administration"}
{"text": "Dengue Fever in India\n04 March 2013\nDengue fever is a growing concern in India. In 2012, 247 deaths were recorded as a result of dengue fever nationwide.\nLatest data on disease prevalence released by the Health Ministry shows a significant rise in the incidence of dengue fever from 18 860 cases in 2011, to 49 606 in year 2012.\nAround 1700 dengue cases were reported from Delhi in 2012.\nAdvice for Travellers\nIndia is a popular tourist destination and travellers should be aware of the risk of dengue fever. Avoidance of mosquito bites, particularly during daylight hours, by covering up with clothing, the use of bite avoidance measures such as repellent and bed nets is advised. Elimination of breeding sites around hotel rooms/houses is advised for longer term stays."}
{"text": "Intellectual knowledge appears to be innate and privy to the few, but in fact, access to information, development of intellectual work skills, time investment, and the maintenance of intellectual appearances are key to being perceived as an intellectual.\nTo make education more equitable, professors must go beyond knowledge transmission and instruct students in the concrete skills of knowledge acquisition and knowledge presentation. Instruction in intellectual skills-acquisition implies the breakdown of the traditional professor-student relationship and of the academic intellectual hierarchy and professors must learn to cope with the consequences of adopting new pedagogies. If we wish to share the secrets of our professions, how do we prepare our students for such a democratic approach and at the same time maintain our professional status?\nThe author, a professor of Spanish language and literature, presents strategies for democratizing education and demystifying intellectual work through the application of skills-based pedagogical methodologies to the teaching of literature. The implications that these strategies have for a new type of learning and the impact that they have on social stratification will also be discussed.\n|Keywords:||Democratizing Education, Demystifying Intellectual Work, Knowledge Acquisition Skills, Interpretative Skills, Teaching Literature, Skills Based Teaching|\nAssistant Professor of Spanish, Department of Literature and Languages, Roosevelt University, Chicago, Illinois, USA\nThere are currently no reviews of this product.Write a Review"}
{"text": "(Phys.org)—Controlling \"mixing\" between acceptor and donor layers, or domains, in polymer-based solar cells could increase their efficiency, according to a team of researchers that included physicists from North Carolina State University. Their findings shed light on the inner workings of these solar cells, and could lead to further improvements in efficiency.\nPolymer-based solar cells consist of two domains, known as the acceptor and the donor layers. Excitons, the energy particles created by solar cells, must be able to travel quickly to the interface of the donor and acceptor domains in order to be harnessed as an energy source. Researchers had believed that keeping the donor and acceptor layers as pure as possible was the best way to ensure that the excitons could travel unimpeded, so that solar cells could capture the maximum amount of energy.\nNC State physicist Harald Ade and his group worked with teams of scientists from the United Kingdom, Australia and China to examine the physical structure and improve the production of polymer-based solar cells. In findings published in two separate papers appearing this month online in Advanced Energy Materials and Advanced Materials, the researchers show that some mixing of the two domains may not be a bad thing. In fact, if the morphology, or structure, of the mixed domains is small, the solar cell can still be quite efficient.\nAccording to Ade, \"We had previously found that the domains in these solar cells weren't pure. So we looked at how additives affected the production of these cells. When you manufacture the cell, the relative rate of evaporation of the solvents and additives determines how the active layer forms and the donor and acceptor mix. Ideally, you want the solvent to evaporate slowly enough so that the materials have time to separate – otherwise the layers 'gum up' and lower the cell's efficiency. We utilized an additive that slowed evaporation. This controlled the mixing and domain size of the active layer, and the portions that mixed were small.\"\nThe efficiency of those mixed layers was excellent, leading to speculation that perhaps some mixing of the donor and acceptor isn't a problem, as long as the domains are small.\n\"We're looking for the perfect mix here, both in terms of the solvents and additives we might use in order to manufacture polymer-based solar cells, and in terms of the physical mixing of the domains and how that may affect efficiency,\" Ade says.\nExplore further: Femtosecond 'snapshots' reveal a dramatic bond tightening in photo-excited gold complexes\nMore information: \"From Binary to Ternary Solvent: Morphology Fine-tuning of D/A Blend in PDPP3T-based Polymer Solar Cells\", Advanced Materials, 2012.\nIn the past decade, great success has been achieved in bulk hetero-junction (BHJ) polymer solar cells (PSCs) in which donor/acceptor (D/A) bi-continuous interpenetrating networks can be formed and in some recent reports, power conversion efficiency (PCE) even approach 8%. In addition to the intrinsic properties of active layer materials, such as band gaps and molecular energy levels, morphological properties of the D/A blends including crystallinity of polymers, domain size, materials miscibility, hierarchical structures, and molecular orientation, are also of great importance for photovoltaic performance of the devices. Therefore, several strategies including slow growth, solvent annealing, thermal annealing, selection of solvent or mixed solvent have been applied to modify or control of the morphology of the D/A blends. Among these, binary solvent mixtures have been successfully used in morphology control. For example, the dichlorobenzene (DCB) or chlorobenzene (CB)/1, 8-diiodooctane (DIO) binary solvent system has been widely applied in PSC device fabrication process. By mixing a few volume percent of DIO with the host solvent (DCB or CB), efficiencies of many kinds of polymers can be improved dramatically. Besides DIO, other solvents, like 1, 8-octanedithiol (OT), N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP), 1-chloronaphthalene (CN), chloroform (CF), can also be used. According to these works, it can be concluded that crystallinity, as well as domain size in the blends can be tuned effectively by using binary solvent mixtures, and thus binary solvent mixtures play a very important role in high performance PSCs."}
{"text": "Heel Bursitis is another type of heel pain. The sufferer of this kind of heel pain experiences pain at the back of the heel when the patient moves his joint of the ankle. In the heel bursitis type of heel pain there is swelling on the sides of the Achilles’ tendon. In this condition the sufferer may experience pain in the heel when his feet hit the ground. Heel bruises are also referred as heel bumps they are usually caused by improper shoes. The constant rubbing of the shoes against the heel.\nWhat is bursitis?\nBursitis is the inflammation of a bursa. Normally, the bursa provides a slippery surface that has almost no friction. A problem arises when a bursa becomes inflamed. The bursa loses its gliding capabilities, and becomes more and more irritated when it is moved.\nWhen the condition called bursitis occurs, the normally slippery bursa becomes swollen and inflamed. The added bulk of the swollen bursa causes more friction within an already confined space. Also, the smooth gliding bursa becomes gritty and rough. Movement of an inflamed bursa is painful and irritating.\n“Itis” usually refers to the inflammation of a certain part of the body, therefore Bursitis refers to the constant irritation of the natural cushion that supports the heel of the foot (the bursa). Bursitis is often associated with Plantar Fasciitis, which affects the arch and heel of the foot.\nWhat causes bursitis?\n- Bursitis and Plantar Fasciitis can occur when a person increases their levels of physical activity or when the heel’s fat pad becomes thinner, providing less protection to the foot.\n- Ill fitting shoes.\n- Biomechanical problems (e.g. mal-alignment of the foot, including over-pronation).\n- Rheumatoid arthritis.\nBursitis usually results from a repetitive movement or due to prolonged and excessive pressure. Patients who rest on their elbows for long periods or those who bend their elbows frequently and repetitively (for example, a custodian using a vacuum for hours at a time) can develop elbow bursitis, also called olecranon bursitis. Similarly in other parts of the body, repetitive use or frequent pressure can irritate a bursa and cause inflammation.\nAnother cause of bursitis is a traumatic injury. Following trauma, such as a car accident or fall, a patient may develop bursitis. Usually a contusion causes swelling within the bursa. The bursa, which had functioned normally up until that point, now begins to develop inflammation, and bursitis results. Once the bursa is inflamed, normal movements and activities can become painful.\nSystemic inflammatory conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis, may also lead to bursitis. These types of conditions can make patients susceptible to developing bursitis.\n- Cold presses or ice packs.\n- Anti-inflammatory tablets.\n- Cushioning products.\n- Massaging the foot / muscle stimulation.\n- Stretching exercises.\n- Insoles or orthotics."}
{"text": "EVEN a material 10 billion times as strong as steel has a breaking point. It seems neutron stars may shatter under extreme forces, explaining puzzling X-ray flares.\nNeutron stars are dense remnants of stars gone supernova, packing the mass of the sun into a sphere the size of a city. Their cores may be fluid, but their outer surfaces are solid and extremely tough - making graphene, the strongest material on Earth, look like tissue paper by comparison.\nThese shells may shatter, though, in the final few seconds before a pair of neutron stars merges to form a black hole - a union thought to generate explosions known as short gamma-ray bursts.\nDavid Tsang of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena and colleagues have calculated how the mutual gravitational pull of such stars will distort their shape, creating moving tidal bulges. As the stars spiral towards each other, orbiting ever faster, they squeeze and stretch each other ever faster too.\nA few seconds before the stars merge, the frequency of this squeezing and stretching matches the frequency at which one of the stars vibrates most easily. This creates a resonance that boosts the vibrations dramatically, causing the star's crust to crack in many places - just as a wine glass may shatter when a certain note is sung, the team says (Physical Review Letters, DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.108.011102).\nThe star's gravity is too powerful to let the pieces fly away, but the sudden movement can disturb its magnetic field, accelerating electrons and leading to a powerful X-ray flare. That could explain observations by NASA's Swift satellite in which a blast of X-rays preceded some short gamma-ray bursts by a few seconds.\nCombining observations of X-ray flares with those of gravitational waves emitted by the stars as they spiral together could fix the exact frequency at which the shattering occurs, which would reveal more about the stars' mysterious interiors, says Tsang.\nIf you would like to reuse any content from New Scientist, either in print or online, please contact the syndication department first for permission. New Scientist does not own rights to photos, but there are a variety of licensing options available for use of articles and graphics we own the copyright to.\nHave your say\nOnly subscribers may leave comments on this article. Please log in.\nOnly personal subscribers may leave comments on this article"}
{"text": "When he shot President Lincoln, John Wilkes Booth was 26 years old, and one of the nation’s most famous actors. (Charles DeForest Fredericks/National Portrait Gallery)\nJohn Wilkes Booth, a Maryland native, spent the war performing in theatrical productions. But the conflict was never far from his mind. In a letter to his mother, he expressed chagrin that he hadn’t joined the Confederate army, writing, “I have … begun to deem myself a coward, and to despise my own existence.” He was outraged by the reelection of Lincoln, whom he viewed as the instigator of all the country’s woes. The month after the inauguration, Booth learned that Lincoln would be attending a performance at Ford’s Theatre on April 14. That night, he crept into Lincoln’s theater box and shot him in the back of the head. It was the first time a president had been murdered. “Wanted” posters were issued for Booth, and on April 26, he was cornered in a tobacco barn and shot by a federal sergeant, acting against orders to bring him in alive.\nSeveral months later, Charles Creighton Hazewell, a frequent contributor, sought to make sense of the assassination—speculating that the plot may have been hatched in Canada (where a number of secessionist schemes had originated) and hinting at evidence that the plan had been endorsed at the highest levels of the Confederate government.—Sage Stossel\nThe assassination of President Lincoln threw a whole nation into mourning … Of all our Presidents since Washington, Mr. Lincoln had excited the smallest amount of that feeling which places its object in personal danger. He was a man who made a singularly favorable impression on those who approached him, resembling in that respect President Jackson, who often made warm friends of bitter foes, when circumstances had forced them to seek his presence; and it is probable, that, if he and the honest chiefs of the Rebels could have been brought face to face, there never would have been civil war,—at least, any contest of grand proportions; for he would not have failed to convince them that all that they had any right to claim, and therefore all that they could expect their fellow-citizens to fight for, would be more secure under his government than it had been under the governments of such men as Pierce and Buchanan, who made use of sectionalism and slavery to promote the selfish interests of themselves and their party … Ignorance was the parent of the civil war, as it has been the parent of many other evils,—ignorance of the character and purpose of the man who was chosen President in 1860–61, and who entered upon official life with less animosity toward his opponents than ever before or since had been felt by a man elected to a great place after a bitter and exciting contest …\nThat one of the most insignificant of [the secessionists’] number should have murdered the man whose election they declared to be cause for war is nothing strange, being in perfect keeping with their whole course. The wretch who shot the chief magistrate of the Republic is of hardly more account than was the weapon which he used. The real murderers of Mr. Lincoln are the men whose action brought about the civil war. Booth’s deed was a logical proceeding, following strictly from the principles avowed by the Rebels, and in harmony with their course during the last five years. The fall of a public man by the hand of an assassin always affects the mind more strongly than it is affected by the fall of thousands of men in battle; but in strictness, Booth, vile as his deed was, can be held to have been no worse, morally, than was that old gentleman who insisted upon being allowed the privilege of firing the first shot at Fort Sumter. Ruffin’s act is not so disgusting as Booth’s; but of the two men, Booth exhibited the greater courage,—courage of the basest kind, indeed, but sure to be attended with the heaviest risks, as the hand of every man would be directed against its exhibitor. Had the Rebels succeeded, Ruffin would have been honored by his fellows; but even a successful Southern Confederacy would have been too hot a country for the abode of a wilful murderer. Such a man would have been no more pleasantly situated even in South Carolina than was Benedict Arnold in England. And as he chose to become an assassin after the event of the war had been decided, and when his victim was bent upon sparing Southern feeling so far as it could be spared without injustice being done to the country, Booth must have expected to find his act condemned by every rational Southern man as a worse than useless crime, as a blunder of the very first magnitude. Had he succeeded in getting abroad, Secession exiles would have shunned him, and have treated him as one who had brought an ineffaceable stain on their cause, and also had rendered their restoration to their homes impossible. The pistol-shot of Sergeant Corbett saved him from the gallows, and it saved him also from the denunciations of the men whom he thought to serve. He exhibited, therefore, a species of courage that is by no means common; for he not only risked his life, and rendered it impossible for honorable men to sympathize with him, but he ran the hazard of being denounced and cast off by his own party … All Secessionists who retain any self-respect must rejoice that one whose doings brought additional ignominy on a cause that could not well bear it has passed away and gone to his account. It would have been more satisfactory to loyal men, if he had been reserved for the gallows; but even they must admit that it is a terrible trial to any people who get possession of an odious criminal, because they may be led so to act as to disgrace themselves, and to turn sympathy in the direction of the evil-doer … Therefore the shot of Sergeant Corbett is not to be regretted, save that it gave too honorable a form of death to one who had earned all that there is of disgraceful in that mode of dying to which a peculiar stigma is attached by the common consent of mankind.\nWhether Booth was the agent of a band of conspirators, or was one of a few vile men who sought an odious immortality, it is impossible to say. We have the authority of a high Government official for the statement that “the President’s murder was organized in Canada and approved at Richmond”; but the evidence in support of this extraordinary announcement is, doubtless for the best of reasons, withheld at the time we write. There is nothing improbable in the supposition that the assassination plot was formed in Canada, as some of the vilest miscreants of the Secession side have been allowed to live in that country … But it is not probable that British subjects had anything to do with any conspiracy of this kind. The Canadian error was in allowing the scum of Secession to abuse the “right of hospitality” through the pursuit of hostile action against us from the territory of a neutral …\nThat a plan to murder President Lincoln should have been approved at Richmond is nothing strange; and though such approval would have been supremely foolish, what but supreme folly is the chief characteristic of the whole Southern movement? If the seal of Richmond’s approval was placed on a plan formed in Canada, something more than the murder of Mr. Lincoln was intended. It must have been meant to kill every man who could legally take his place, either as President or as President pro tempore. The only persons who had any title to step into the Presidency on Mr. Lincoln’s death were Mr. Johnson, who became President on the 15th of April, and Mr. Foster, one of the Connecticut Senators, who is President of the Senate … It does not appear that any attempt was made on the life of Mr. Foster, though Mr. Johnson was on the list of those doomed by the assassins; and the savage attack made on Mr. Seward shows what those assassins were capable of. But had all the members of the Administration been struck down at the same time, it is not at all probable that “anarchy” would have been the effect, though to produce that must have been the object aimed at by the conspirators. Anarchy is not so easily brought about as persons of an anarchical turn of mind suppose. The training we have gone through since the close of 1860 has fitted us to bear many rude assaults on order without our becoming disorderly. Our conviction is, that, if every man who held high office at Washington had been killed on the 14th of April, things would have gone pretty much as we have seen them go, and that thus the American people would have vindicated their right to be considered a self-governing race. It would not be a very flattering thought, that the peace of the country is at the command of any dozen of hardened ruffians who should have the capacity to form an assassination plot, the discretion to keep silent respecting their purpose, and the boldness and the skill requisite to carry it out to its most minute details: for the neglect of one of those details might be fatal to the whole project. Society does not exist in such peril as that.\njohn wilkes booth, a Maryland native, spent the war performing in theatrical productions. But the conflict was never far from his mind. In a letter to his mother, he expressed chagrin that he hadn’t joined the Confederate army, writing, “I have … begun to deem myself a coward, and to despise my own existence.” He was outraged by the reelection of Lincoln, whom he viewed as the instigator of all the country’s woes.\nThe month after the inauguration, Booth learned that Lincoln would be attending a performance at Ford’s Theatre on April 14. That night, he crept into Lincoln’s theater box and shot him in the back of the head. It was the first time a president had been murdered. “Wanted” posters were issued for Booth, and on April 26, he was cornered in a tobacco barn and shot by a federal sergeant, who acted against orders to bring him in alive.\nSeveral months later, Charles Creighton Hazewell, a frequent Atlantic contributor, sought to make sense of the assassination—speculating that the plot may have been hatched in Canada (where a number of secessionist schemes had originated) and hinting at evidence that the plan had been endorsed at the highest levels of the Confederate government.\nRead the full text of this article here.\nThis article available online at:"}
{"text": "On January 9th, citizens living in southern Sudan will vote on a referendum to secede from the northern part of the country. A clock in the town of Juba, the political center of southern Sudan, counts down to this referendum, symbolical of the locals’ excitement to part from the hegemonic north. Nearby, the Darfur genocide crisis that continues to plague the area is not an isolated event. It’s all related, part of two brutal civil wars that have been for decades tearing the nation apart; as of late, literally.\nSudan has traditionally been seen by many as the bridge between the Arab and the African worlds—one not particularly easy to cross. The north and the south of Sudan are just about as culturally and religiously different from each other as you could possibly imagine. In the north, Arab culture dominates, and the majority religion is Islam. In the south, the predominant culture is more traditionally sub-Saharan African, and the primary religions are animist belief systems and Christianity. Ever since the country gained independence from Britain in 1956, the cultural and religious systems of the north have been heavily imposed on the whole of Sudan, resulting in southern resistance and the ongoing strife.\nIn particular, this imposition of a differing set of beliefs can in large part be attributed to the current Sudanese president, Omar al-Bashir. Al-Bashir arose to power in 1989 through a bloodless coup, and this past April, won the first ostensibly democratic election the nation has held in 24 years. I hesitate to call the election democratic because many believe that al-Bashir, who is notorious for his corruption, rigged it in his favor. While there is no proof, it is generally not unsafe to consider that leaders who are in power through a coup have significant sway in any following elections. Whether he is rightfully in power or not, al-Bashir has imposed northern ideals throughout the whole nation, a primary cause of the Sudanese civil wars. Many attribute the Darfur genocide, just a single episode of the extensive bloodshed since Sudan’s independence, to al-Bashir. Because of these accusations, he is currently on trial for war crimes, the only current head of state in such a predicament. To drive home his impositional tendencies further, al-Bashir has said that if the south secedes, he will impose Shari’a in the north, in an effort to make northern Sudan officially an Islamic state.\nMy first response to this situation was wondering: How did two peoples so immensely different from one another end up together in the first place? This is not the same as the American Civil War, where regional differences led to ideological differences, which in turn led to secession. In the Sudanese case, ideological and cultural differences existed long before the country gained independence. Thus, one should look to colonialism as the primary cause of Sudan’s problems. It seems to me that Sudan’s independence process was dangerously arbitrary; occurring at the time of mass European decolonization in Africa. It’s as if Britain backed out of the region and drew a national border at random. And now, after over half a century, the people want that to change.\nDespite the referendum on schedule for next month, the potential new border still has not been set. Money, of course, is a factor. Sudan is one of the most oil-rich nations of Africa, but most of the country’s oil is found in the south. On the one hand, the north might not want to draw a new boundary where the south gets all of the resource wealth, a potential cause for even more strife. On the other hand, some see oil as a potential area that could keep the two sides friendly if they do end up splitting. Mutual desire for the oil wealth may bring the two sides together diplomatically if the split ends up happening peacefully.\nAs you can see, this situation is extremely complex, far more so than the south simply saying “we want to secede” and secession then happening. To better understand the context, one needs to consider the past, but one should also consider the future: what will happen if the current nation of Sudan does in fact split? I am wondering particularly about those who have their roots in the south but live in the north. Since the referendum was announced, many of these people have moved back to the south, but a fair number still remain in the north. What will happen to these primarily non-Muslim people (and Muslims alike) if the north does in fact impose Shari’a on al-Bashir’s whim? Al-Bashir will go from an imposer of northern Arab and Islamic values to being completely intolerant of this significant minority in his newly allotted half of Sudan, and the results would be tragic.\nWhat message would a Sudanese split portray to the rest of Africa, the rest of the world? The African Union fears that a Sudanese split would incite other secessionists around the continent. Other nations undergoing similar domestic, regional conflicts of interest may feel not only that they have a right to secede, but may even feel encouraged to do so. Is this kind of outright division the right answer to such a complicated historical struggle?\nIs there even a right answer? Experts seem to agree that the nation will inevitably split. Whether this bifurcation happens via a timely, democratic, and peaceful referendum or through continuing bloodshed is a matter that only time will tell. I will certainly be following this issue in the coming weeks, and I wrote this article before the scheduled referendum in the hope to spark more interest on the issue. I urge you to follow it in the news; the results affect a much wider area than simply Sudan.\nStay tuned for my next column, where I will compare and contrast two leaders in South America on opposite sides of the political spectrum and compare their respective political systems to that of the United States.\nLatest posts by David Klayton (see all)\n- Should Turkey be a part of \"Europe?\" - February 26, 2011\n- Moderately Extreme: Ideological Flexibility in Latin American Politics - January 27, 2011\n- When One Nation Becomes Two - December 31, 2010"}
{"text": "Hanukkah begins this year on December 1st, at sundown. Be honest. When I say “Hanukkah,” the first thing you think of is the Adam Sandler song, talking about “eight crazy nights.” If you are a little more connected to Jewish culture, you may also think about a dreidel or potato latkes (pancakes). While it’s commonly called the “Festival of Lights,” a better translation is “Dedication.” Being Jewish (circumcised at 8 days, Bar Mitzvah at age 13) and a Christ-follower (for over 15 years), I’d like to give a brief explanation of this holiday, and why it’s a meaningful opportunity to help me worship the Lord.\nHere’s the story of Hanukkah: In the 2nd century BC, Antiochus Epiphanes gained control over parts of the Middle East, including Judea (Israel). He erected an altar to Zeus in the Temple in Jerusalem, and sacrificed pigs there, which are unclean to Jews. The Maccabee family led a revolt, finally liberating Jerusalem and the Temple in 165 BC. Before God could be properly worshiped in the Temple, it had to be cleaned and dedicated. The menorah (lamp) had to burn continuously for 8 days for the purification process. Despite there only being enough olive oil for one day, the oil miraculously lasted for 8 days and nights. That is why Hanukkah is celebrated for 8 nights.\nMost people consider this miracle to be the end in itself, and I think the bigger meaning is missed. The point isn’t just that God did a miracle, but that the miracle was the means to allow Him to be properly worshiped. The Temple needed to be purified in order for Yahweh to be worshiped, but it couldn’t be purified unless He worked a miracle. God worked a miracle so that His people could be near Him in worship.\nLet us not miss that meaning, as we celebrate the Advent of Jesus Christ, the Light of the world (John 8:12). I don’t think we need merely to reflect on the birth of Jesus, but we need to consider why the Father sent His Son. God performed a miracle (the Incarnation) not as an end to itself, but as a means to allow us to be near Him in worship (through Christ’s redemptive sacrifice for our sins). Jesus did not come only to be marveled at as a baby, but to pour out His life and blood, to open the way for a new covenant with Him."}
{"text": "by Piter Kehoma Boll\nLet’s expand the universe of Friday Fellow by presenting a plant for the first time! And what could be a better choice to start than the famous Grandidier’s Baobab? Belonging to the species Adansonia grandidieri, this tree is one of the trademarks of Madagascar, being the biggest species of this genus found in the island.\nReaching up to 30 m in height and having a massive trunk only branched at the very top, it has a unique look and is found only at southwestern Madagascar. However, despite being so attractive and famous, it is classified as an endangered species by IUCN Red List, with a declining population threatened by agriculture expansion.\nThis tree is also heavily exploited, having vitamin C-rich fruits which can be consumed fresh and seeds used to extract oil. Its bark can also be used to make ropes and many trees are found with scars due to the extraction of part of the bark.\nHaving a fibrous trunk, baoabs are able to deal with drought by apparently storaging water inside them. There are no seed dispersors, which can be due to the extiction of the original dispersor by human activities.\nOriginally occuring close to temporary water bodies in the dry deciduous forest, today many large trees are found in always dry terrains. This probably is due to human impact that changed the local ecosystem, letting it to become drier than it was. Those areas have no or very poor ability to regenerate and probably will never go back to what they were and, once the old trees die, there will be no more baobabs there.\n- – -\nBaum, D. A. (1995). A Systematic Revision of Adansonia (Bombacaceae) Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden, 82, 440-470 DOI: 10.2307/2399893\nWikipedia. Adamsonia grandidieri. Available online at <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adansonia_grandidieri>. Access on October 02, 2012.\nWorld Conservation Monitoring Centre 1998. Adansonia grandidieri. In: IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.1. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Access on October 02, 2012."}
{"text": "Ki Tisa (Mitzvot)\nFor more teachings on this portion, see the archives to this blog, below at March 2006.\nThis week’s parasha is best known for the dramatic and richly meaningful story of the Golden Calf and the Divine anger, of Moses’ pleading on behalf of Israel, and the eventual reconciliation in the mysterious meeting of Moses with God in the Cleft of the Rock—subjects about which I’ve written at length, from various aspects, in previous years. Yet the first third of the reading (Exod 30:11-31:17) is concerned with various practical mitzvot, mostly focused on the ritual worship conducted in the Temple, which tend to be skimmed over in light of the intense interest of the Calf story. As this year we are concerned specifically with the mitzvot in each parasha, I shall focus on this section.\nThese include: the giving by each Israelite [male] of a half-shekel to the Temple; the making of the laver, from which the priests wash their hands and feet before engaging in Divine service; the compounding of the incense and of the anointing oil; and the Shabbat. I shall focus here upon the washing of the hands.\nHand-washing is a familiar Jewish ritual: it is, in fact, the first act performed by pious Jews upon awakening in the morning (some people even keep a cup of water next to their beds, so that they may wash their hands before taking even a single step); one performs a ritual washing of the hands before eating bread; before each of the daily prayers; etc. The section here dealing with the laver in the Temple (Exod 30:17-21) is also one of the four portions from the Torah recited by many each morning, as part of the section of the liturgy known as korbanot, chapters of Written and Oral Torah reminiscent of the ancient sacrificial system, that precede Pesukei de-Zimra.\nSefer ha-Hinukh, at §106, explains the washing of hands as an offshoot of the honor due to the Temple and its service—one of many laws intended to honor, magnify, and glorify the Temple. Even if the priest was pure and clean, he must wash (literally, “sanctify”) his hands before engaging in avodah. This simple gesture of purification served as a kind of separation between the Divine service and everyday life. It added a feeling of solemnity, of seriousness, a sense that one was engaged in something higher, in some way separate from the mundane activities of regular life. (One hand-washing by kohanim, in the morning, was sufficient, unless they left the Temple grounds or otherwise lost the continuity of their sacred activity.) Our own netilat yadaim, whether before prayer or breaking bread, may be seen as a kind of halakhic carryover from the Temple service, albeit on the level of Rabbinic injunction.\nWhat is the symbolism of purifying one’s hands? Water, as a flowing element, as a solvent that washes away many of the things with which it comes in contact, is at once a natural symbol of both purity, and of the renewal of life. Mayim Hayyim—living waters—is an age old association. Torah is compared to water; water, constantly flowing, is constantly returning to its source. At the End of Days, “the land will be filled with knowledge of the Lord, like waters going down to the sea.” A small part of this is hinted in this simple, everyday gesture.\n“See that this nation is Your people”\nBut I cannot pass over Ki Tisa without some comment on the incident of the Golden Calf and its ramifications. This week, reading through the words of the parasha in preparation for a shiur (what Ruth Calderon, founder of Alma, a secularist-oriented center for the study of Judaism in Tel Aviv, called “barefoot reading”—that is, naïve, without preconceptions), I discovered something utterly simple that I had never noticed before in quite the same way.\nAt the beginning of the Calf incident, God tells Moses, who has been up on the mountain with Him, “Go down, for your people have spoiled” (32:7). A few verses later, when God asks leave of Moses (!) to destroy them, Moses begs for mercy on behalf of the people with the words “Why should Your anger burn so fiercely against Your people…” (v. 11). That is, God calls them Moses’ people, while Moses refers to them as God’s people. Subsequent to this exchange, each of them refers to them repeatedly in the third person, as “the people” or “this people” (העם; העם הזה). Neither of them refers to them, as God did in the initial revelation to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:7 and passim) as “my people,” or with the dignified title, “the children of Israel”—as if both felt a certain alienation, of distance from this tumultuous, capricious bunch. Only towards the end, after God agrees not to destroy them, but still states “I will not go up with them,” but instead promises to send an angel, does Moses says “See, that this nation is Your people” (וראה כי עמך הגוי הזה; 33:13).\nWhat does all this signify? Reading the peshat carefully, there is one inevitable conclusion: that God wished to nullify His covenant with the people Israel. It is in this that there lies the true gravity, and uniqueness, of the Golden Calf incident. We are not speaking here, as we read elsewhere in the Bible—for example, in the two great Imprecations (tokhahot) in Lev 26 and Deut 28, or in the words of the prophets during the First Temple—merely of threats of punishment, however harsh, such as drought, famine, pestilence, enemy attacks, or even exile and slavery. There, the implicit message is that, after a period of punishment, a kind of moral purgation through suffering, things will be restored as they were. Here, the very covenant itself, the very existence of an intimate connection with God, hangs in the balance. God tells Moses, “I shall make of you a people,” i.e., instead of them.\nThis, it seems to me, is the point of the second phase of this story. Moses breaks the tablets; he and his fellow Levites go through the camp killing all those most directly implicated in worshipping the Calf; God recants and agrees not to destroy the people. However, “My angel will go before them” but “I will not go up in your midst” (33:2, 3). This should have been of some comfort; yet this tiding is called “this bad thing,” the people mourn, and remove the ornaments they had been wearing until then. Evidently, they understood the absence of God’s presence or “face” as a grave step; His being with them was everything. That is the true importance of the Sanctuary in the desert and the Tent of Meeting, where Moses speaks with God in the pillar of cloud (33:10). God was present with them there in a tangible way, in a certain way continuing the epiphany at Sinai. All that was threatened by this new declaration.\nMoses second round of appeals to God, in Exod 33:12-23, focuses on bringing God, as it were, to a full reconciliation with the people. This is the significance of the Thirteen Qualities of Mercy, of what I have called the Covenant in the Cleft of the Rock, the “faith of Yom Kippur” as opposed to that of Shavuot (see HY I: Ki Tisa; and note Prof. Jacob Milgrom’s observation that this chapter stands in the exact center, in a literary sense, of the unit known as the Hextateuch—Torah plus the Book of Joshua).\nBut I would add two important points. One, that this is the first place in the Torah where we read about sin followed by reconciliation. After Adam and Eve ate of the fruit of the Garden, they were punished without hope of reprieve; indeed, their “punishment “ reads very much like a description of some basic aspects of the human condition itself. Cain, after murdering Abel, was banished, made to wander the face of the earth. The sin of the brothers in selling Joseph, and their own sense of guilt, is a central factor in their family dynamic from then on, but there is nary a word of God’s response or intervention. It would appear that God’s initial expectation in the covenant at Sinai was one of total loyalty and fidelity. The act of idolatry was an unforgivable breach of the covenant—much as adultery is generally perceived as a fundamental violation of the marital bond.\nMoses, in persuading God to recant of His jealousy and anger, to give the faithless people another chance, is thus introducing a new concept: of a covenant that includes the possibility of even the most serious transgressions being forgiven; of the knowledge that human beings are fallible, and that teshuvah and forgiveness are essential components of any economy of men living before a demanding God.\nThe second, truly astonishing point is the role played by Moses in all this. Moshe Rabbenu, “the man of God,” is not only the great teacher of Israel, the channel through which they learn the Divine Torah, but also, as it were, one who teaches God Himself. It is God who “reveals His Qualities of Mercy” at the Cleft of the Rock; but without Moses cajoling, arguing, persuading (and note the numerous midrashim around this theme), “were it not for my servant Moses who stood in the breach,” all this would not have happened. It was Moses who elicited this response and who, so to speak, pushed God Himself to this new stage in his relation with Israel—to give up His expectations of perfection from His covenanted people, and to understand that living within a covenant means, not rigid adherence to a set of laws, but a living relationship with real people, taking the bad with the good. (Again, the parallel to human relationships is obvious)"}
{"text": "“A remote Indian village is responding to global warming-induced water shortages by creating large masses of ice, or “artificial glaciers,” to get through the dry spring months. (See a map of the region.)\nLocated on the western edge of the Tibetan plateau, the village of Skara in the Ladakh region of India is not a common tourist destination.\n“It’s beautiful, but really remote and difficult to get to,” said Amy Higgins, a graduate student at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies who worked on the artificial glacier project.\n“A lot of people, when I met them in Delhi and I said I was going to Ladakh, they looked at me like I was going to the moon,” said Higgins, who is also a National Geographic grantee.\nPeople in Skara and surrounding villages survive by growing crops such as barley for their own consumption and for sale in neighboring towns. In the past, water for the crops came from meltwater originating in glaciers high in the Himalaya.”\nRead more: National Geographic"}
{"text": "America's oil and natural gas industry is committed to protecting the environment and to continuously improving its hurricane preparation and response plans. After any hurricane or tropical storm, the goal is to return to full operations as quickly and as safely as possible. For the 2012 hurricane season, the industry continues to build upon critical lessons learned from 2008's major hurricanes, Gustav and Ike, as well as other powerful storms, such as 2005's Katrina and Rita and 2004's Ivan.\nAPI plays two primary roles for the industry in preparing for hurricanes. First, it helps the industry gain a better understanding of the environmental conditions in and around the Gulf of Mexico during hurricane or tropical storm activity and then assists industry in using that knowledge to make offshore and onshore facilities less vulnerable. Second, API collaborates with member companies, other industries and with federal, state and local governments to prepare for hurricanes and return operations as quickly and as safely as possible.\nAPI member companies also independently work to improve preparedness for hurricanes and other natural or manmade disasters. They have, for example, reviewed and updated emergency response plans, established redundant communication paths and made pre-arrangements with suppliers to help ensure they have adequate resources during an emergency.\nThe API Subcommittee on Offshore Stuctures, the International Association of Drilling Contractors, and the Offshore Operators Committee, serve as a liaison to regulatory agencies, coordinate industry review of critical design standards and provide a forum for sharing lessons learned from previous hurricanes.\nThese combined efforts are critical since the Gulf of Mexico accounted for about 23 percent of the oil and 8 percent of total natural gas produced in the United States (approximately 82 percent of the oil supply comes from deepwater facilities), and the Gulf Coast region is home to almost half of the U.S. refining capacity.\nUpstream (Exploration and Production)\nDuring the major 2005 hurricanes, waves were higher and winds were stronger than anticipated in deeper parts of the Gulf so the industry moved away from viewing it as a uniform body of water. Evaluating the effects of those and other storms, helped scientists discover that the Central Gulf of Mexico was more prone to hurricanes because it acts as a gathering spot for warm currents that can strengthen a storm.\nThe revised wind, wave and water current measurements (\"metocean\" data) prompted API to reassess its recommended practices (RPs) for industry operations in the region.\n- The upstream segment continues to integrate the updated environmental (metocean) data on how powerful storms affect conditions in the Gulf of Mexico into its offshore structure design standards. This effort led to the publication in 2008 of an update to RP 2SK, Design and Analysis of Stationkeeping Systems for Floating Structures, that provides guidance for design and operation of Mobile Offshore Drilling Unit (MODU) mooring systems in the Gulf of Mexico during the hurricane season. API RP 95J, Gulf of Mexico Jack-up Operations for Hurricane Season, which recommends locating jack-up rigs on more stable areas of the sea floor, and positioning platform decks higher above the sea surface, was also updated.\nAPI publications are available at our (Search and Order\nAPI in the past six years also has issued a number of bulletins to help better prepare for and bring production back online after Gulf hurricanes. These include:\nProduction and Hurricanes (steps industry takes to prepare for and return after a storm)\n- Bulletin 2TD, Guidelines for Tie-downs on Offshore Production Facilities for Hurricane Season, which is aimed at better-securing separate platform equipment.\n- Bulletin 2INT-MET, Interim Guidance on Hurricane Conditions in the Gulf of Mexico, which provides updated metocean data for four regions of the Gulf, including wind velocities, deepwater wave conditions, ocean current information, and surge and tidal data.\n- Bulletin 2INT-DG, Interim Guidance for Design of Offshore Structures for Hurricane Conditions, which explains how to apply the updated metocean data during design.\n- Bulletin 2INT-EX, Interim Guidance for Assessment of Existing Offshore Structures for Hurricane Conditions, which assists owners/operators and engineers with existing facilities.\n- Bulletin 2HINS, Guidance on Post-hurricane Structural Inspection of Offshore Structures, which provides guidance on determining if a structure sustained hurricane-induced damage that affects the safety of personnel, the primary structural integrity, or its ability to perform the purpose for which it was intended.\nRefineries and Pipelines\n- Days in advance of a tropical storm or hurricane moving toward or near their drilling and production operations, companies will evacuate all non-essential personnel and begin the process of shutting down production.\n- As the storm gets closer, all personnel will be evacuated from the drilling rigs and platforms, and production is shut down. Drillships may relocate to a safe location. Operations in areas not forecast to take a direct hit from the storm often will be shut down as well because storms can change direction with little notice.\n- After a storm has passed and it is safe to fly, operators will initiate \"flyovers\" of onshore and offshore facilities to evaluate damage from the air. For onshore facilities, these \"flyovers\" can identify flooding, facility damage, road or other infrastructure problems, and spills. Offshore \"flyovers\" look for damaged drilling rigs, platform damage, spills, and possible pipeline damage.\n- Many offshore drilling rigs are equipped with GPS locator systems, which allow federal officials and drilling contractors to remotely monitor the rigs' location before, during and after a hurricane. If a rig is pulled offsite by the storm, locator systems allow crews to find and recover the rig as quickly and as safely as possible.\n- Once safety concerns are addressed, operators will send assessment crews to offshore facilities to physically assess the facilities for damage.\n- If facilities are undamaged, and ancillary facilities, like pipelines that carry the oil and natural gas, are undamaged and ready to accept shipments, operators will begin restarting production. Drilling rigs will commence operations.\nDespite sustaining unprecedented damage and supply outages during the 2005 and 2008 hurricanes, the industry quickly and safely brought refining and pipeline operations back online, delivering to consumers near-record levels of gasoline and record levels of distillate (diesel and heating oil) in 2008. The oil and oil-product pipelines operating on or near the Gulf of Mexico continue to review their assets and operations to minimize the potential impacts of storms and shorten the time it takes to recover. While there have been some shortages caused by hurricanes, supply disruptions have been temporary despite extensive damage to supporting infrastructure, such as electric power generation and distribution, production shut-ins and refinery shutdowns. Pipelines need a steady supply of crude oil or refined products to keep product flowing to its intended destinations.\nTo prepare for future severe storms, refiners and pipeline companies have\nRefineries and hurricanes (steps industry takes to prepare for and return after a storm)\n- Worked with utilities to clarify priorities for electric power restoration critical to restarting operations and to help minimize significant disruptions to fuel distribution and delivery.\n- Secured backup power generation equipment and worked with federal, state and local governments to ensure that pipelines and refineries are considered \"critical\" infrastructure for back-up power purposes.\n- Established redundant communications systems to support continuity of operations and locate employees.\n- Worked with vendors to pre-position food, water and transportation, and updated emergency plans to secure other emergency supplies and services.\n- Provided additional training for employees who have participated in various exercises and drills.\n- Reexamined and improved emergency response and business continuity plans.\n- Strengthened onshore buildings and elevated equipment where appropriate to minimize potential flood damage.\n- Worked with the states and local emergency management officials to provide documentation and credentials for employees who need access to disaster sites where access is restricted during an emergency.\n- Participated in industry conferences to share best practices and improvement opportunities.\nPipelines and hurricanes (steps industry takes to prepare for and return after a storm)\n- Refiners, in the hours before a large storm makes landfall, will usually evacuate all non-essential personnel and begin shutting down or reducing operations.\n- Operations in areas not forecast to take a direct hit from the storm often are shut down or curtailed as a precaution because storms can change direction with little notice.\n- Once safe, teams come in to assess damage. If damage or flooding has occurred, it must be repaired and dealt with before the refinery can be brought back on-line.\n- Other factors that can cause delays in restarting refineries include the availability of crude oil, electricity to run the plant and water used for cooling the process units.\n- Refineries are complex. It takes more than a flip of a switch to get a refinery back up and running. Once a decision has been made that it is safe to restart, it can take several days before the facility is back to full operating levels. This is because the process units and associated equipment must be returned to operation in a staged manner to ensure a safe and successful startup.\n- If facilities are undamaged or necessary repairs have been made, and ancillary facilities - like pipelines that carry the oil and natural gas - are undamaged and ready to accept shipments, operators will begin restarting production.\n- Pipeline operations can be impacted by storms, primarily through power outages, but also by direct damage.\n- Offshore pipelines damaged require the hiring of divers, repairs and safety inspections before supplies can flow. Damaged onshore pipelines must be assessed, repaired and inspected before resuming operations.\n- Without power, crude oil and petroleum products cannot be moved through pipelines. Operators routinely hold or lease back-up generators but need time to get them onsite.\n- If there is no product put into pipelines because Gulf Coast/Gulf of Mexico crude or natural gas production has been curtailed, or because of refinery shutdowns, the crude and products already in the pipelines cannot be pushed out the other end.\n- Wind damage to above ground tanks at storage terminals can also impact supplies into the pipeline.\n: The 2008 hurricane season was very active, with 16 named storms, of which eight became hurricanes and five of those were major hurricanes. For the U.S. oil and natural gas industry, the two most serious storms of 2008 were Hurricane Ike, which made landfall in mid-September near Baytown, Texas, and Hurricane Gustav, which made landfall on September 1 in Louisiana.\nHurricane Gustav, a strong Category 2 storm, kept off-line oil and natural gas delivery systems and production platforms that had not yet been fully restored from a smaller storm two weeks earlier, and brought significant flooding as far north as Baton Rouge. Hurricane Ike, another strong Category 2 hurricane, caused significant portions of the production, processing, and pipeline infrastructure along the Gulf Coast in East Texas and Louisiana to shut down. Ike caused significant destruction to electric transmission and distribution lines, and these damages delayed the restart of major processing plants, pipelines, and refineries. As many as 3.7 million customers were without electric power following the storm, with about 2.5 million in Texas alone.\nAt the peak of disruptions, more than 20 percent of total U.S. refinery capacity was idled. The Minerals Management Service - now called Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE)\nestimated that 2,127 of the 3,800 total oil and natural gas production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico were exposed to hurricane conditions, with winds greater than 74 miles per hour, from Hurricanes Gustav and Ike. A total of 60 platforms were destroyed as a result of Hurricanes Gustav and Ike. Some platforms which had been previously reported as having extensive damage were reassessed and determined to be destroyed. The destroyed platforms produced 13,657 barrels of oil and 96.5 million cubic feet of natural gas daily or 1.05 percent of the oil and 1.3 percent of the natural gas produced daily in the Gulf of Mexico.\n: The 2005 hurricane season was the most active in recorded history, shattering previous records. According to the Department of Energy, refineries in the path of hurricanes Katrina and Rita accounting for about 29 percent of U.S. refining capacity were shut down at the peak of disruptions. Offshore, the Minerals Management Service (MMS) estimated 22,000 of the 33,000 miles of pipelines and 3,050 of the 4,000 platforms in the Gulf were in the direct paths of the two Category 5 storms. Together the storms destroyed 115 platforms and damaged 52 others.\nEven so, there was no loss of life among industry workers and contractors. An MMS report found \"no accounts of spills from facilities on the federal Outer Continental Shelf that reached the shoreline; oiled birds or mammals; or involved any discoveries of oil to be collected or cleaned up\".\n: Hurricane Ivan was the strongest hurricane of the 2004 season and among one of the most powerful Atlantic hurricanes on record. It moved across the Gulf of Mexico to make landfall in Alabama. Ivan then looped across Florida and back into the Gulf, regenerating into a new tropical system, which moved into Louisiana and Texas.\nThe MMS estimated approximately 150 offshore facilities and 10,000 miles of pipelines were in the direct path of Ivan. Seven platforms were destroyed and 24 others damaged. The oil and natural gas industry submitted numerous damage reports to MMS, including for mobile drilling rigs, offshore platforms, producing wells, topside systems including wellheads and production and processing equipment, risers, and pipeline systems that transport oil and gas ashore from offshore facilities."}
{"text": "This section provides a short description of all the major characters in the book. This can be printed out as a study guide for students, used as a \"key\" for leading a class discussion, or you can jump to the quiz/homework section to find worksheets that incorporate these descriptions into a variety of question formats.\nMuhammad Bilal - This character is the son of a farmer who is stolen from Africa and sold as a slave.\nLizzy - This character is a slave on the Live Oaks plantation in South Carolina who never has a freedom dream.\nElijah Lewis - This character is intelligent and forward thinking and dreams of making enough money to help his family hold onto the Glory Field.\nLuvenia Lewis - This character is tall and dark-skinned. He/she has ideas of his/her own and does not want to move to Curry Island with his/her...\nThis section contains 570 words|\n(approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page)"}
{"text": "Fun Learning with Printable Flash Cards\nHere you will find our selection of free printable flash cards for preschool learning (and beyond!). Flash cards are a great way for kids to learn the basic elements and memorize them through short repeat sessions. You’ll find helping them learn their first abc, animal names and numbers incredibly rewarding.\nA few minutes here, a few minutes there, whether at home, traveling, in the park or at Auntie’s it’s learning on the go. These lovely cards turn learning into playing (… but we also love decorating kids’ rooms by sticking them on the wall or putting them in picture frames.)\nWe’ve made all our printable flash cards here free for everybody and of course you can print them as many times as you like!\nAlphabet Flash Cards\nHelping the little one’s first learning fun and sweet!\nVocabulary Flash Cards\nLearning new words and concepts is great fun!\nNumber & Math Flash Cards\nVarious flash cards for all your math activities.\nShapes & Colors Flash Cards\nTry combining abstract shapes and pretty colors with various colorful activities.\nWe have a growing selection of children’s resources for preschool, homeschool & classroom learning activities. Please check back soon to see what’s new. Thank you!\nWe’d also love to hear from parents and teachers with suggestions."}
{"text": "• Incubation: 18-20 days\n• Clutch Size: 4 eggs\n• Young Fledge: 16-21 days after hatching\n• Typical Foods: insects, aquatic invertebrates and seeds\nFemale red phalaropes are stunning -- they are a rich chestnut color with a dark crown and white face. However, virtually all Ohio birds are in drab non-breeding plumage.\nHabitat and Habits\nThis species prefers the open waters of Lake Erie. It is most typically found along stone jetties and breakwalls in sheltered harbors. The flight call is similar to that of the red-necked phalarope, but generally higher pitched.\nReproduction and Care of the Young\nBreeding takes place in Alaska and northern Canada. Nests are hollows in the ground of marshy tundra. The male raises the young."}
{"text": "Learn something new every day More Info... by email\nA predicate is part of a sentence or clause in English and is one of two primary components that serves to effectively complete the sentence. Sentences consist of two main components: subjects and predicates. Subjects are the primary “thing” in a sentence which the rest of the words then describe through either a direct description or by indicating what type of action that subject is performing. The predicate is this secondary aspect of the sentence and usually consists of a verb or adjective, though complicated sentences may have multiple verbs and a number of descriptions affecting the subject.\nIt can be easiest to understand predicates by first understanding subjects and how sentences are constructed. A sentence just about always has a subject, though it can be implied in some way and not necessarily directly stated. In a simple sentence like “The cat slept,” the subject is “the cat,” which is a noun phrase consisting of the direct article “the” and the noun “cat.” Subjects can be longer and more complicated, but they are usually fairly simple in nature.\nThe predicate of a sentence is then basically the rest of the sentence, though this is not always the case for longer and more complicated sentences. In “The cat slept,” the predicate is quite simple and merely consists of the word “slept.” This is simple because “slept” is an intransitive verb, which means that it requires no further description or objects to make it complete. The sentence could be expanded as “The cat slept on the bed,” but this is not necessary and merely adds a descriptive component to the predicate through the prepositional phrase “on the bed.”\nIn a somewhat more complicated sentence, such as “The man gave the ball to his son,” the subject of the sentence is still quite simple: “The man.” The predicate in this sentence, however, has become substantially more complicated and consists of the rest of the sentence: “gave the ball to his son.” This has been made more complicated because the verb “gave” is transitive, specifically ditransitive, which indicates both a direct object and an indirect object.\nThe act of “giving” requires that there is a direct object, which is the item given, and an indirect object, which is who or what it is given to. In this instance, the predicate consists of the verb “gave” and the direct object “the ball” with a connecting preposition “to” and the indirect object “his son.” Predicates can become even more complicated as an idea expands, such as a sentence like “The rock rolled off the table, landed on top of a skateboard, and proceeded to roll down the hill until it was stopped by a wall.” In this sentence, the subject is only “The rock,” which means that the rest of the sentence is the predicate."}
{"text": "History of Initiative & Referendum in Arizona\n|Laws • History|\n|List of measures|\nThe History of Initiative & Referendum in Arizona began when acquired statewide initiative, referendum, and recall rights at the time of statehood in 1912. The first initiative in the state was for women's suffrage. It was a landslide victory, passing by a margin of greater than two to one on Nov. 5, 1912.\nThen, in 1914, Arizona saw of 15 qualified initiatives, which held the record until 2006 when 19 initiatives were passed. Four of the 1914 initiatives passed because of the efforts of organized labor. One prohibited blacklisting of union members; a second established an \"old age and mothers' pension\"; another established a state government contract system, and a fourth limited businesses employment of non-citizens. Lastly, the voters in 1914 passed an initiative that barred the governor and legislature from amending or repealing initiatives.\nIn response, the legislature tried to pass a constitutional amendment that would make it more difficult to pass initiatives. Because this amendment needed the approval of voters, the Arizona Federation of Labor waged a campaign against the measure. The amendment was narrowly defeated in 1916.\n- This chart includes all ballot measures to appear on the Arizona ballot in the year indicated, not just initiated measures. See also Arizona ballot measures.\n|Year||Propositions on ballot||How many were approved?||How many were defeated?|\nArizonans owe many of their reforms to John Kromko. Kromko, like most Arizonans, is not a native; he was born near Erie, Pennsylvania, in 1940 and moved to Tucson in the mid-1960s. He was active in protests against the Vietnam War, and in the 1970s and 1980s he was elected to the lower house of the state legislature several times. By night, he was a computer-programming instructor; by day, he was Arizona’s \"Mr. Initiative.\"\nKromko’s first petition was a referendum drive to stop a Tucson city council ordinance banning topless dancing, arguing for free speech. In 1976 Kromko was among the handful of Arizonans who, in cooperation with the People’s Lobby Western Bloc campaign, succeeded in putting on the state ballot an initiative to phase out nuclear power. The initiative lost at the polls, but Kromko’s leadership on the issue got him elected to his first term in the legislature.\nRepealing the sales tax on food\nOnce elected, Kromko set his sights on abolishing the sales tax on food, a \"regressive\" tax that hits the poor hardest. Unsuccessful in the legislature, Kromko launched a statewide initiative petition and got enough signatures to put food tax repeal on the ballot. The legislature, faced with the initiative, acted to repeal the tax.\nAfter the food tax victory, Kromko turned to voter registration reform. Again the legislature was unresponsive, so he launched an initiative petition. He narrowly missed getting enough signatures in 1980, and he failed to win re-election that year.\nUndaunted, he revived the voter registration campaign and turned to yet another cause: Medicaid funding. Arizona in 1981 was the only state without Medicaid, since the legislature had refused to appropriate money for the state's share of this federal program.\nIn 1982, with an initiative petition drive under way and headed for success, the legislature got the message and established a Medicaid program. Kromko and his allies on this issue, the state’s churches, were satisfied and dropped their petition drive.\nMotor Voter initiative\nThe voter registration initiative, now under the leadership of Les Miller, a Phoenix attorney, and the state Democratic Party, gained ballot placement and voter approval. In the ensuing four years, this \"Motor Voter\" initiative increased by over 10 percent the proportion of Arizona’s eligible population who were registered to vote.\nLate legislative career\nKromko, re-elected to the legislature in 1982, took up his petitions again in 1983 to prevent construction of a freeway in Tucson that would have smashed through several residential neighborhoods. The initiative was merely to make freeway plans subject to voter approval, but Tucson officials, seeing the campaign as the death knell for their freeway plans, blocked its placement on the ballot through various legal technicalities. Kromko and neighborhood activists fighting to save their homes refused to admit defeat. They began a new petition drive in 1984, qualified their measure for the ballot, and won voter approval for it in November 1985.\nArizona’s moneyed interests poured funds into a campaign to unseat Kromko in 1986. Kromko not only survived but also fought back by supporting a statewide initiative to limit campaign contributions, sponsored by his colleague in the legislature, Democratic State Representative Reid Ewing of Tucson. Voters passed the measure by a two to one margin.\nKromko’s initiative exploits have made him the most effective Democratic political figure, besides former governor Bruce Babbitt, in this perennially Republican-dominated state. And Babbitt owes partial credit for one of his biggest successes - enactment of restrictions on the toxic chemical pollution of drinking water - to Kromko. Early in 1986 Kromko helped organize an environmentalist petition drive for an anti-toxic initiative, while Babbitt negotiated with the legislature for passage of a similar bill. When initiative backers had enough signatures to put their measure on the ballot, the legislature bowed to the pressure and passed Babbitt's bill. Even today, Kromko is still active in politics, writing letters to the editor about immigration policies.\nPetition drive problems in 2008\n2008 was a tough year for ballot initiatives in Arizona. Nine citizen initiatives filed signatures to qualify for the November 2008 Arizona ballot by the state's July 3 petition drive deadline. In the end, only six of the initiatives were certified, with three initiatives disqualified as a result of an historically high number of problems with flawed petition signatures. When the November vote was held, of the six that qualified for the ballot, only one was approved.,\nCriticisms of process\nAfter 19 were proposed in 2006, legislators were worried about \"ballot fatigue\" or overuse of the initiative system. This led to legislators considering steps to limit or otherwise exert more control over the initiative process. Ironically, any attempt to alter the initiative and referendum process would require an amendment to the state constitution, and thus in itself be put forth as a referendum.\nThis article is significantly based on an article published by the Initiative & Referendum Institute, and is used with their permission. Their article, in turn, relies on research in David Schmidt's book, Citizen Lawmakers: The Ballot Initiative Revolution.\nAlso portions of this article were taken from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under the GNU license.\n- ↑ Arizona Daily Star, \"'Clown' takes some serious initiative\", July 20, 2007\n- ↑ Arizona Republic, \"'Flawed' election petitions face review\", September 13, 2008\n- ↑ Phoenix New Times, \"Citizen initiatives have been kicked off the ballot this year in record numbers, and the problems could go much deeper than invalid signatures\", August 21, 2008\n- ↑ Legislators seeking more control over initiatives, Arizona Republic, Feb. 13, 2007\n- ↑ History of Arizona's initiative\n- ↑ Citizen Lawmakers: The Ballot Initiative Revolution Temple University Press, 352 pp., ISBN-10: 0877229031, October 1991\nHistory of I&R\nAlaska · Arizona · Arkansas · California · Colorado · Florida · Idaho · Illinois · Kentucky · Maine · Maryland · Massachusetts · Michigan · Mississippi · Missouri · Montana · Nebraska · Nevada · New Mexico · North Dakota · Ohio · Oklahoma · Oregon · South Dakota · Utah · Washington · Wyoming\nDirect Legislation by the Citizenship Through the Initiative and Referendum · Citizen Lawmakers: The Ballot Initiative Revolution · Direct Legislation: Voting on Ballot Propositions in the United States"}
{"text": "General Chemistry/Periodicity and Electron Configurations\nBlocks of the Periodic Table \nThe Periodic Table does more than just list the elements. The word periodic means that in each row, or period, there is a pattern of characteristics in the elements. This is because the elements are listed in part by their electron configuration. The Alkali metals and Alkaline earth metals have one and two valence electrons (electrons in the outer shell) respectively. These elements lose electrons to form bonds easily, and are thus very reactive. These elements are the s-block of the periodic table. The p-block, on the right, contains common non-metals such as chlorine and helium. The noble gases, in the column on the right, almost never react, since they have eight valence electrons, which makes it very stable. The halogens, directly to the left of the noble gases, readily gain electrons and react with metals. The s and p blocks make up the main-group elements, also known as representative elements. The d-block, which is the largest, consists of transition metals such as copper, iron, and gold. The f-block, on the bottom, contains rarer metals including uranium. Elements in the same Group or Family have the same configuration of valence electrons, making them behave in chemically similar ways.\nCauses for Trends \nThere are certain phenomena that cause the periodic trends to occur. You must understand them before learning the trends.\nEffective Nuclear Charge \nThe effective nuclear charge is the amount of positive charge acting on an electron. It is the number of protons in the nucleus minus the number of electrons in between the nucleus and the electron in question. Basically, the nucleus attracts an electron, but other electrons in lower shells repel it (opposites attract, likes repel).\nShielding Effect \nThe shielding (or screening) effect is similar to effective nuclear charge. The core electrons repel the valence electrons to some degree. The more electron shells there are (a new shell for each row in the periodic table), the greater the shielding effect is. Essentially, the core electrons shield the valence electrons from the positive charge of the nucleus.\nElectron-Electron Repulsions \nWhen two electrons are in the same shell, they will repel each other slightly. This effect is mostly canceled out due to the strong attraction to the nucleus, but it does cause electrons in the same shell to spread out a little bit. Lower shells experience this effect more because they are smaller and allow the electrons to interact more.\nCoulomb's Law \nCoulomb's law is an equation that determines the amount of force with which two charged particles attract or repel each other. It is , where is the amount of charge (+1e for protons, -1e for electrons), is the distance between them, and is a constant. You can see that doubling the distance would quarter the force. Also, a large number of protons would attract an electron with much more force than just a few protons would.\nTrends in the Periodic table \nMost of the elements occur naturally on Earth. However, all elements beyond uranium (number 92) are called trans-uranium elements and never occur outside of a laboratory. Most of the elements occur as solids or gases at STP. STP is standard temperature and pressure, which is 0° C and 1 atmosphere of pressure. There are only two elements that occur as liquids at STP: mercury (Hg) and bromine (Br).\nBismuth (Bi) is the last stable element on the chart. All elements after bismuth are radioactive and decay into more stable elements. Some elements before bismuth are radioactive, however.\nAtomic Radius \nLeaving out the noble gases, atomic radii are larger on the left side of the periodic chart and are progressively smaller as you move to the right across the period. Conversely, as you move down the group, radii increase.\nAtomic radii decrease along a period due to greater effective nuclear charge. Atomic radii increase down a group due to the shielding effect of the additional core electrons, and the presence of another electron shell.\nIonic Radius \nFor nonmetals, ions are bigger than atoms, as the ions have extra electrons. For metals, it is the opposite.\nExtra electrons (negative ions, called anions) cause additional electron-electron repulsions, making them spread out farther. Fewer electrons (positive ions, called cations) cause fewer repulsions, allowing them to be closer.\n|Ionization energy is the energy required to strip an electron from the atom (when in the gas state).\nIonization energy is also a periodic trend within the periodic table organization. Moving left to right within a period or upward within a group, the first ionization energy generally increases. As the atomic radius decreases, it becomes harder to remove an electron that is closer to a more positively charged nucleus.\nIonization energy decreases going left across a period because there is a lower effective nuclear charge keeping the electrons attracted to the nucleus, so less energy is needed to pull one out. It decreases going down a group due to the shielding effect. Remember Coulomb's Law: as the distance between the nucleus and electrons increases, the force decreases at a quadratic rate.\nIt is considered a measure of the tendency of an atom or ion to surrender an electron, or the strength of the electron binding; the greater the ionization energy, the more difficult it is to remove an electron. The ionization energy may be an indicator of the reactivity of an element. Elements with a low ionization energy tend to be reducing agents and form cations, which in turn combine with anions to form salts.\nElectron Affinity \n|Electron affinity is the opposite of ionization energy. It is the energy released when an electron is added to an atom.\nElectron affinity is highest in the upper left, lowest on the bottom right. However, electron affinity is actually negative for the noble gasses. They already have a complete valence shell, so there is no room in their orbitals for another electron. Adding an electron would require creating a whole new shell, which takes energy instead of releasing it. Several other elements have extremely low electron affinities because they are already in a stable configuration, and adding an electron would decrease stability.\nElectron affinity occurs due to the same reasons as ionization energy.\nElectronegativity is how much an atom attracts electrons within a bond. It is measured on a scale with fluorine at 4.0 and francium at 0.7. Electronegativity decreases from upper right to lower left.\nElectronegativity decreases because of atomic radius, shielding effect, and effective nuclear charge in the same manner that ionization energy decreases.\nMetallic Character \nMetallic elements are shiny, usually gray or silver colored, and good conductors of heat and electricity. They are malleable (can be hammered into thin sheets), and ductile (can be stretched into wires). Some metals, like sodium, are soft and can be cut with a knife. Others, like iron, are very hard. Non-metallic atoms are dull, usually colorful or colorless, and poor conductors. They are brittle when solid, and many are gases at STP. Metals give away their valence electrons when bonding, whereas non-metals take electrons.\nThe metals are towards the left and center of the periodic table—in the s-block, d-block, and f-block . Poor metals and metalloids (somewhat metal, somewhat non-metal) are in the lower left of the p-block. Non-metals are on the right of the table.\nMetallic character increases from right to left and top to bottom. Non-metallic character is just the opposite. This is because of the other trends: ionization energy, electron affinity, and electronegativity."}
{"text": "Cori spezzati (kor' ee spetz ah' tee), Italian for \"separated choirs,\" is the term used to describe a musical composition that uses spatial effects to emphasize the interplay between its various voices. Typically, this means placing two or more choirs or groups of instruments in various places around a performance space. Music that is intended to be performed cori spezatti is by nature antiphonal; in fact, some consider these two terms to be synonymous, at least when they refer to instrumental music.\nCori spezzati isn't a particularly common form of music, and for obvious reasons. In order for it to work out right, it must be performed in a specific type of space; namely, one which is both big enough to accomodate the separation of the instrumental/vocal groups and acoustically suited to the kind of call and answer phrasing that characterizes antiphonal music. (If the space is too echoey, the interplay among the groups just becomes muddled. If it's just moderately echoey, though, it sounds great.) And even in concert halls which meet these specifications, there's a certain awkwardness to the idea of putting half the ensemble onstage and sending the rest up to the balcony or (as I have seen done) forsaking the stage altogether and having half the group stand in the left-hand balcony and the other half in the right-hand one.\nThe type of performance space which is most obviously suited to cori spezzati is the cathedral; in churches, the problem of the stage is eliminated, and there are generally balconies and nooks and crannies galore in Renaissance-style basilicas. Unsurprisingly, a Renaissance basilica was the formal birthplace of cori spezzati: in the late 1500's, Giovanni Gabrieli, the music director, organist, and composer-in-residence at St. Mark's Basilica in Venice, began experimenting with the idea of separating his choirs and putting them in different places around the church. Gabrieli is considered to be the father of cori spezzati, and probably the only composer to write a serious volume of work in this style. He wrote both choral and instrumental pieces (mostly sacred, because of the nature of his job), some of which are still performed today and shouldn't be too hard to find recordings of. (I, unfortunately, do not own recordings of any of Gabrieli's music, although I heard his Sonata Octavi Toni for two brass choirs performed live, and it was gorgeous. I recommend it highly if you happen to like Renaissance/Baroque music.)\nThis writeup was made possible by a little bit of help from www.naxos.com/composer/gabrieli.htm, and Virginia Tech's Online Music Dictionary, found at www.music.vt.edu/musicdictionary"}
{"text": "Most people still think of Web sites such as Google as places to go. Wrong. That's the old media model. In reality, every click is a command for some computer somewhere in the world. (...) Indeed, CEO Eric Schmidt says that Google essentially is a huge, distributed supercomputer \"doing all sorts of things over a fiber-optic network that eventually are services available to end-users.\" Before long, Googling will mean not just searching for something, but getting ALMOST anything done online.\nThe New York Times estimated last year that the Googleplex and its server farms contain 450,000 servers. \"The rate at which the Google computing system has grown is as remarkable as its size. In March 2001, when the company was serving about 70 million Web pages daily, it had 8,000 computers, according to a Microsoft researcher granted anonymity to talk about a detailed tour he was given at one of Google's Silicon Valley computing centers. By 2003 the number had grown to 100,000.\""}
{"text": "One of the greatest composers of all time, Franz JosephHaydn made an enormous contribution in the creation and development of virtually all musical forms and genres. 1760, Haydn was appointed the official musician for the Esterhazy Princes. Only in 1790, Haydn was released and allowed to travel. Haydn went to London where he became the most important and influential musician. Haydn retired in Vienna still being in the service of Prince Nikolaus. Haydn remains one of the most popular musicians."}
{"text": "Since 1993, RAN’s Protect-an-Acre program (PAA) has distributed more than one million dollars in grants to more than 150 frontline communities, Indigenous-led organizations, and allies, helping their efforts to secure protection for millions of acres of traditional territory in forests around the world.\nRainforest Action Network believes that Indigenous peoples are the best stewards of the world’s rainforests and that frontline communities organizing against the extraction and burning of dirty fossil fuels deserve the strongest support we can offer. RAN established the Protect-an-Acre program to protect the world’s forests and the rights of their inhabitants by providing financial aid to traditionally under-funded organizations and communities in forest regions.\nIndigenous and frontline communities suffer disproportionate impacts to their health, livelihood and culture from extractive industry mega-projects and the effects of global climate change. That’s why Protect-an-Acre provides small grants to community-based organizations, Indigenous federations and small NGOs that are fighting to protect millions of acres of forest and keep millions of tons of CO2 in the ground.\nOur grants support organizations and communities that are working to regain control of and sustainably manage their traditional territories through land title initiatives, community education, development of sustainable economic alternatives, and grassroots resistance to destructive industrial activities.\nPAA is an alternative to “buy-an-acre” programs that seek to provide rainforest protection by buying tracts of land, but which often fail to address the needs or rights of local Indigenous peoples. Uninhabited forest areas often go unprotected, even if purchased through a buy-an-acre program. It is not uncommon for loggers, oil and gas companies, cattle ranchers, and miners to illegally extract resources from so-called “protected” areas.\nTraditional forest communities are often the best stewards of the land because their way of life depends upon the health of their environment. A number of recent studies add to the growing body of evidence that Indigenous peoples are better protectors of their forests than governments or industry.\nBased on the success of Protect-an-Acre, RAN launched The Climate Action Fund (CAF) in 2009 as a way to direct further resources and support to frontline communities and Indigenous peoples challenging the fossil fuel industry.\nAdditionally, RAN has been a Global Advisor to Global Greengrants Fund (GGF) since 1995, identifying recipients for small grants to mobilize resources for global environmental sustainability and social justice using the same priority and criteria as we use for PAA and CAF.\nThrough these three programs each year we support grassroots projects that result in at least:"}
{"text": "Per Square Meter\nWarm-up: Relationships in Ecosystems (10 minutes)\n1. Begin this lesson by presenting the powerpoint, “Per Square Meter”.\n2. After the presentation, ask students to think of animal relationships that correspond to each of the following types; Competition, Predation, Parasitism, and Mutualism\na. For example, two animals that compete for food are lions and cheetahs (they compete for zebras and antelopes)\n3. Record the different types of relationships on the board.\nActivity One: My Own Square Meter (30 minutes)\n1. Have students go outside and pick a small area (about a square meter each) to explore. It is preferable that this area be grassy or ‘natural’. The school playground might be a good spot.\n2. Each student should keep a list of both the living organisms and man-made products found in their area (i.e grass, birds, insects, flowers, sidewalk etc.) Students are allowed to collect a few specimens from this area to show to the class. If students do not have jars, they can draw their observations. *See Reproducible #1\nActivity Two: Who lives in our playground? (10 minutes)\n1. After listing, collecting, and drawing specimens, students should return to the classroom and present their findings.\na. Have the students sit in a circle. Each student should read his or her list of findings out loud. If they collected specimens or drew observations, have them present them to the class.\n2. Make a list of these findings on the board. Only write repeated findings once (to avoid writing grass as many times as there are students). Keep one list of living organisms and one list of man-made products.\n3. For now, focus on the list of living organisms. As a class, help students name possible relationships between the organisms. See if they can find one of each type of relationship. For example, a bee on a flower is an example of mutualism because the nectar from the flower nourishes the bee and in return, the bee pollinates the flower.\nActivity Three: Humans and the Environment: Human Effect on one Square Meter (15 minutes)\n1. Now that students have focused on the animal relationships of their square meter, it is time to examine the effect of humans on the natural environment. Focus on the human-made product list. Ask students to consider the possible relationships between the human-made products and the environment. Prompt a brief class discussion on the effects of man-made products on the environment. Use the following questions as guidelines.\na. What is the effect of an empty drink bottle (or any other piece of trash) in a grassy field? Will it decompose? Will it be used by an animal as a habitat or food?\nAnswer: Trash is an invasive man-made product. Most trash is non-bio degradable and is harmful to the environment and to eco-system relations.Therefore, it is a harmful addition to the square meter.\nb. Who left the bottle there? Do you think they are still thinking about it? Did they leave it there on purpose? Why did they leave it there?\nAnswer: Most people litter thoughtlessly. They are not thinking about their actions and how they may effect the environment or eco-systems. It is important that people recognize that litter has a major effect on the environment.\nc. What about a bench? Does a park bench have the same effect on the environment as a piece of trash?\nAnswer: A park bench can be considered as a positive human-made product. A park bench has little negative effect on the environment and even helps humans further appreciate eco-systems. The Park Bench may even provide shelter or a perch for the eco-systems living organisms.\nd. Is there a difference between positive human-made products and negative ones? What are some examples of each?\nAnswer: Yes, there is a difference between positive and negative human-made products. Positive products have minimal effect on the functioning of eco systems whereas negative products have major effects on eco systems. An example of a positive human-made product would be a solar powered house. An example of a negative human-made product would be a car that produces a lot of pollution.\nWrap Up: Our Classroom Eco-Web (20-30 minutes)\n1. Have students create classroom artwork by illustrating the relationships between their eco-systems.\n2. Each student should draw at least two components of his or her square meter.\n3. After everyone has finished their illustrations, create a web relating the illustrations. Draw arrows between illustrated components with written indications of the type of relationship exemplified.\n4. Post the finished product in the classroom so that students can see the interconnectedness of the earth’s eco-systems.\nExtension: Exploring Aquatic Eco-Systems (On-going Activity)\nStudents can explore another type of eco-system by creating a classroom aquarium or terrarium. The supplies for both of these mini eco-systems can be found at your local pet store. Students should help set up and maintain the aquarium or terrarium throughout the year. Periodically, students should observe how the mini-ecosystem is progressing, note changes, and assess the relationships between the organisms of the eco-system. This way, students are able to directly participate in the functioning of a natural system.\nAnother related activity might be to take your students on a field trip to a different eco-system from that of your school. If you live near a river, lake, or ocean take them there to explore different ecological relations. If you live in a city, examples of diverse eco-systems can be found at the local zoo or aquarium."}
{"text": "From the time of Aristotle (384-322 BC) until the late 1500’s, gravity was believed to act differently on different objects.\n- Drop a metal bar and a feather at the same time… which one hits the ground first?\n- Obviously, common sense will tell you that the bar will hit first, while the feather slowly flutters to the ground.\n- In Aristotle’s view, this was because the bar was being pulled harder (and faster) by gravity because of its physical properties.\n- Because everyone sees this when they drop different objects, it wasn’t questioned for almost 2000 years.\nGalileo Galilei was the first major scientist to refute (prove wrong) Aristotle’s theories.\n- In his famous (at least to Physicists!) experiment, Galileo went to the top of the leaning tower of Pisa and dropped a wooden ball and a lead ball, both the same size, but different masses.\n- They both hit the ground at the same time, even though Aristotle would say that the heavier metal ball should hit first.\n- Galileo had shown that the different rates at which some objects fall is due to air resistance, a type of friction.\n- Get rid of friction (air resistance) and all objects will fall at the same rate.\n- Galileo said that the acceleration of any object (in the absence of air resistance) is the same.\n- To this day we follow the model that Galileo created.\nag = g = 9.81m/s2\nag = g = acceleration due to gravity\nSince gravity is just an acceleration like any other, it can be used in any of the formulas that we have used so far.\n- Just be careful about using the correct sign (positive or negative) depending on the problem.\nExamples of Calculations with Gravity\nExample 1: A ball is thrown up into the air at an initial velocity of 56.3m/s. Determine its velocity after 4.52s have passed.\nIn the question the velocity upwards is positive, and I’ll keep it that way. That just means that I have to make sure that I use gravity as a negative number, since gravity always acts down.\nvf = vi + at\n= 56.3m/s + (-9.81m/s2)(4.52s)\nvf = 12.0 m/s\nThis value is still positive, but smaller. The ball is slowing down as it rises into the air.\nExample 2: I throw a ball down off the top of a cliff so that it leaves my hand at 12m/s. Determine how fast is it going 3.47 seconds later.\nIn this question I gave a downward velocity as positive. I might as well stick with this, but that means I have defined down as positive. That means gravity will be positive as well.vf = vi + at\n= 12m/s + (9.81m/s2)(3.47s)\nvf = 46 m/s\nHere the number is getting bigger. It’s positive, but in this question I’ve defined down as positive, so it’s speeding up in the positive direction.\nExample 3: I throw up a ball at 56.3 m/s again. Determine how fast is it going after 8.0s.\nWe’re defining up as positive again.\nvf = vi + at\n= 56.3m/s + (-9.81m/s2)(8.0s)\nvf = -22 m/s\nWhy did I get a negative answer?\n- The ball reached its maximum height, where it stopped, and then started to fall down.\n- Falling down means a negative velocity.\nThere’s a few rules that you have to keep track of. Let’s look at the way an object thrown up into the air moves.\nAs the ball is going up…\n- It starts at the bottom at the maximum speed.\n- As it rises, it slows down.\n- It finally reaches it’s maximum height, where for a moment its velocity is zero.\n- This is exactly half ways through the flight time.\nAs the ball is coming down…\n- The ball begins to speed up, but downwards.\n- When it reaches the same height that it started from, it will be going at the same speed as it was originally moving at.\n- It takes just as long to go up as it takes to come down.\nExample 4: I throw my ball up into the (again) at a velocity of 56.3 m/s.\na) Determine how much time does it take to reach its maximum height.\n- It reaches its maximum height when its velocity is zero. We’ll use that as the final velocity.\n- Also, if we define up as positive, we need to remember to define down (like gravity) as negative.\na = (vf - vi) / t\nt = (vf - vi) / a\n= (0 - 56.3m/s) / -9.81m/s2\nt = 5.74s\nb) Determine how high it goes.\n- It’s best to try to avoid using the number you calculated in part (a), since if you made a mistake, this answer will be wrong also.\n- If you can’t avoid it, then go ahead and use it.\nvf2 = vi2 + 2ad\nd = (vf2 = vi2) / 2a\n= (0 - 56.32) / 2(-9.81m/s2)\nd = 1.62e2 m\nc) Determine how fast is it going when it reaches my hand again.\n- Ignoring air resistance, it will be going as fast coming down as it was going up.\nYou might have heard people in movies say how many \"gee’s\" they were feeling.\n- All this means is that they are comparing the acceleration they are feeling to regular gravity.\n- So, right now, you are experiencing 1g… regular gravity.\n- During lift-off the astronauts in the space shuttle experience about 4g’s.\n- That works out to about 39m/s2.\n- Gravity on the moon is about 1.7m/s2 = 0.17g"}
{"text": "March 30, 2011 by Valerie Elkins\nThe short answer is keizu. The longer answer is not so easy. There several reasons why it is difficult for those of Japanese ancestry living outside of Japan to trace their lineage. One of the main reasons is a lack of understanding of the language. I am not going to sugar coat it, learning Japanese is hard, BUT learning how to pronounce it is not.\nThere are 5 basic vowel sounds in Japanese. They are always pronounced the same unlike in English! Vowel lengths are all uniformly short:\n|a||as in ‘father’|\n|e||as in ‘bet’|\n|i||as in ‘beet’|\n|u||as in ‘boot’|\n|o||as in ‘boat’|\nYou do not need to know everything in Japanese but learning some genealogical terms is helpful.\nGlossary of Japanese genealogical terms to begin building your vocabulary.\n- koseki ~ household register, includes everyone in a household under the head of house (who usually was male)\n- koseki tohon ~ certified copy which recorded everything from the original record.\n- koseki shohon ~ certified copy which recorded only parts from the original.\n- joseki ~ expired register in which all persons originally entered have been removed because of death, change of residence, etc. A joseki file is ordinarily available for 80 years after its expiration.\n- kaisei genkoseki ~ revised koseki\n- honseki ~ permanent residence or registered address (i.e. person may move to Tokyo but their records remain in hometown city hall).\n- genseki ~ another name for honseki\n- kakocho ~ Buddist death register\n- kaimyo ~ Buddist name given to deceased person and recorded in kakocho.\n- homyo ~ Buddist name given to living converts, similar to homyo.\n- kuni ~ country or nation\n- ken ~ prefecture\n- shi ~ city\n- gun ~ county\n- to ~ metropolitan prefecture (Tokyo-to). Similar to ken.\n- do ~ urban prefecture (Hokkaido). Similar to ken.\n- fu ~ urban prefecture (Kyoto-fu, Osaka-fu) similar to ken.\n- ku ~ ward in some large cities (Sapparo, Sendai, Tokyo) divided in to town (cho).\n- cho ~ town\n- aza ~unorganized district\n- machi ~ town within a city (cho) or ward (ku), town within a county (gun).\n- chome ~ smaller division of a town (cho) in some neighborhoods.\n- mura or son ~ village within a county (gun).\n- koshu or hittousha or stainushi ~ head of household, the head of the family\n- zen koshu ~ former head of household\n- otto ~ husband\n- tsuma ~ wife\n- chichi or fu ~ father\n- haha or bo ~ mother\n- sofu ~ grandfather\n- sobo ~ grandmother\n- otoko or dan or nan ~ male, man, son\n- onna or jo ~ female, woman, daughter\n- ani or kei or kyou ~ older brother\n- otouto or tei ~ younger brother\n- ane or shi ~ older sister\n- imouto or mai ~ younger sister\n- mago or son ~ grandchild\n- himago or souson ~ great-grandchild\n- oi ~ nephew\n- mei ~ niece\n- youshi ~ adopted child or son\n- youjo ~ adopted daughter\n- muko youshi ~ a man without sons may adopt his eldest daughter’s husband as his own son and the young man will take his wife’s surname and be listed on her family’s koseki\n- seimei or shime ~ full name, family name\n- shussei or shusshou ~ birth\n- shibou ~ deceased\n- nen or toshi ~ year\n- gatsu, getsu or tsuki ~ month\n- hi or nichi or ka ~ day\n- ji or toki ~ hour, time\n- sai or toshi ~ age\n- issei ~ person born in Japan and later immigrate elsewhere\n- nisei ~ child/generation of issei and born outside of Japan\n- sansei ~ child/generation of nisei and born outside of Japan\n- yonsei ~ child/generation of sansei and born outside of Japan\n- gosei ~ child/generation of yonsei and born outside of Japan\nThere is another Japanese term you really need to know. It is ganbatte which means ‘hang in there’ or ‘do your best’ and either one is will work.\nCategory Uncategorized | Tags:"}
{"text": "Writing An Acceptable Use Policy For Your School\nA helpful guide to creating an Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) for a school's use of services provided by the Internet. The author notes that an AUP is the most important document a school will create since it states the terms, conditions, and rules of Internet use determined by a school or district. Topics include: What is an AUP; Why Establish an AUP; Objectives of an AUP; Components; Distribution; Samples (web based); Resources (web based). Additional coverage is given to writing policy statements and consent forms, and maintaining copyrights, netiquette, privacy, and user responsibility.\nBooks & Booklets; Internet Resources\nAdministration & Leadership\nAdministrator, Teacher, Board Member / Trustee"}
{"text": "A Brief Description of Islam as the Shi'ites Believe\n5- MONOTHEISM IS THE VERY SOUL OF ALL THE ISLAMIC COMMANDMENTS\nWE BELIEVE that one of the most important subjects of the knowledge of God, is the MONOTHEISM, i.e. the belief that there is but one God. As a matter of fact Monotheism (TOWHID) is not only a principle of the religion, but the most important of the tenets. It is the very soul and the base of all the Islamic ideas and beliefs. We can say that the roots, as well as the branches of Islam take their forms in the monotheism.\nThe UNITY and ONENESS is a general topic of conversation everywhere and in every field:- UNITY OF GOD'S ESSENCE, Unity of His attributes, and actions. In other word, also the unity of prophets and their teachings, the unity of the LAW, GHIBLEH, and the books. And after all, the unity of Moslims through their brotherhood and the unity of the resurrection day. From this point of view the HOLY QURØ·N declares POLYTHEISM as an unforgiveable SIN:-\n\"Allah does not forgive those who set up partners with Him, but He may forgive any sin inferior to that, of whom he wills.\nHe that sets up CO-SHARERS with Allah is guilty of a SIN which is most heinous indeed.\"\nTHE HOLY QURAN - S4: 48\n\"It has already been revealed to you as it was revealed to those before you that:-\" If you join gods with Allah, your deeds shall be fruitless, and you surely will be one of those who lose. (all spiritual goodnesses)\nTHE HOLY QURAN - S39: 65\n6- THE BRANCHES OF MONOTHEISM\nWE BELIEVE that MONOTHEISM, (TOWHID) has many branches among which four are the most important ones:-"}
{"text": "What we ship things in makes a difference.\nTake the banana, for example. In 1876, at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition, the banana was a delicacy (and very black). Millions of bunches could only be sent to U.S. shores if they were refrigerated. By 1901, as I describe in Econ 101 1/2, United Fruit was distributing 14 million bunches of bananas in the U.S. One reason, in addition to the railroad and the steamboat, was a banana vessel that could maintain a 53 degree temperature for its cargo.\nJust like refrigerated banana vessels transformed world trade, so too has the cargo container. Introduced in 1956, now one ship can carry 3,000 forty foot containers with 100,000 tons of shoes, electronics and clothing. Imagine the potential efficiency. Put everything in the container, arrive at a port, and just slip it onto a truck or a railroad car for it to move to its next stop. Journalist Marc Levinson says the result is more variety for consumers, lower freight bills, less shipping time, lower inventory costs and longer supply chains.\nThis takes us back to yesterday’s supership post and the expansion of the Panama Canal. Larger ships mean more containers on board. The NY Times said that the newest generation of superships could hold 15,000 containers that are 20 feet long.\nThe Economic Lesson\nAdam Smith would have been delighted to see his ideas about mass production and regional specialization extend around the world. Describing the productivity of factory pin production in The Wealth of Nations, he told us that one worker, functioning alone, could produce 1 pin per day. However, when that worker specialized through a division of labor in a factory, 4,800 pins per worker per day were made.\nAdam Smith used the term “distant sale” to explain the transport of goods from a factory to a distant market. He could have been describing a container ship moving from China to the U.S."}
{"text": "ASL Literature and Art\nThis section is a collection of ASL storytelling, poetry, works of art, and other creative works. It also consists of posts on literary aspects of ASL.\nSpeech language can convey sound effects in storytelling, whereas sign language can convey cinematic effects in storytelling.\nPoetry in sign language has its own poetic features such as rhymes, rhythms, meters, and other features that charactierize poetry which is not limited to speech.\nExplore ASL literary arts in this section including some visual-linguistic literary works in ASL and discussion.\nSelected works of interest\nDeconstruct W.O.R.D.: an original poetry performance.\nKnowing Fish: poetic narrative video.\nCompare three versions of the poem \"Spring Dawn\" originally written by Meng Hao-jan. The poem is translated by the literary artist Jolanta Lapiak into ASL in video and unique one-of-a-kind photograph print. Watch how ASL rhymes arise in this signed poem."}
{"text": "May 19, 2008 A vaccine created by University of Rochester Medical Center scientists prevents the development of Alzheimer's disease-like pathology in mice without causing inflammation or significant side effects.\nVaccinated mice generated an immune response to the protein known as amyloid-beta peptide, which accumulates in what are called \"amyloid plaques\" in brains of people with Alzheimer's. The vaccinated mice demonstrated normal learning skills and functioning memory in spite of being genetically designed to develop an aggressive form of the disease.\nThe Rochester scientists reported the findings in an article in the May issue of Molecular Therapy, the journal of The American Society of Gene Therapy.\n\"Our study demonstrates that we can create a potent but safe version of a vaccine that utilizes the strategy of immune response shaping to prevent Alzheimer's-related pathologies and memory deficits,\" said William Bowers, associate professor of neurology and of microbiology and immunology at the Medical Center and lead author of the article. \"The vaccinated mice not only performed better, we found no evidence of signature amyloid plaque in their brains.\"\nAlzheimer's is a progressive neurodegenerative disease associated with dementia and a decline in performance of normal activities. Hallmarks of the disease include the accumulation of amyloid plaques in the brains of patients and the loss of normal functioning tau, a protein that stabilizes the transport networks in neurons. Abnormal tau function eventually leads to another classic hallmark of Alzheimer's, neurofibrillary tangle in nerve cells. After several decades of exposure to these insults, neurons ultimately succumb and die, leading to progressively damaged learning and memory centers in the brain.\nThe mice that received the vaccines were genetically engineered to express large amounts of amyloid beta protein. They also harbored a mutation that causes the tau-related tangle pathology. Prior to the start of the vaccine study, the mice were trained to navigate a maze using spatial clues. They were then tested periodically during the 10-month study on the amount of time and distance traveled to an escape pod and the number of errors made along the way.\n\"What we found exciting was that by targeting one pathology of Alzheimer's -- amyloid beta -- we were able to also prevent the transition of tau from its normal form to a form found in the disease state,\" Bowers said.\nThe goal of the vaccine is to prompt the immune system to recognize amyloid beta protein and remove it. To create the vaccine, Bowers and the research group use a herpes virus that is stripped of the viral genes that can cause disease or harm. They then load the virus container with the genetic code for amyloid beta and interleukin-4, a protein that stimulates immune responses involving type 2 T helper cells, which are lymphocytes that play an important role in the immune system.\nThe research group tested several versions of a vaccine. Mice were given three injections of empty virus alone, a vaccine carrying only the amyloid beta genetic code, or a vaccine encoding both amyloid beta and interlueikin-4, which was found to be the most effective.\n\"We have learned a great deal from this ongoing project,\" Bowers said. \"Importantly, it has demonstrated the combined strengths of the gene delivery platform and the immune shaping concept for the creation of customized vaccines for Alzheimer's disease, as well as a number of other diseases. We are currently working on strategies we believe can make the vaccine even safer.\"\nBowers expects the vaccine eventually to be tested in people, but due to the number of studies required to satisfy regulatory requirements, it could be three or more years before human trials testing this type of Alzheimer's vaccine occur.\nGrants from the National Institutes of Health supported the study. In addition to Bowers, authors of the Molecular Therapy article include Maria E. Frazer, Jennifer E. Hughes, Michael A. Mastrangelo and Jennifer Tibbens of the Medical Center and Howard J. Federoff of Georgetown University Medical Center.\nOther social bookmarking and sharing tools:\nNote: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.\nNote: If no author is given, the source is cited instead."}
{"text": "Saint ZachariasArticle Free Pass\nSaint Zacharias, English Zachary (born , San Severino, duchy of Benevento [Italy]—died March 14/22, 752, Rome; feast day March 15), pope from 741 to 752.\nThe last of the Greek popes, Zacharias was supposedly a Roman deacon when he succeeded Pope St. Gregory III in November/December 741. His pontificate was devoted to diplomatic relations with the Lombard and Frankish kingdoms and with the Byzantine Empire. He initiated a policy of conciliation with the Lombards while endeavouring to dissuade their rulers, Liutprand and Rachis, from conquering the Byzantine exarchate of Ravenna. Successful, he thus made peace with the Lombards. He maintained amiable relations with the Byzantine emperor Constantine V Copronymus, whom he advised to restore the veneration of icons.\nZacharias’s relations with the Franks were similarly cordial, and his correspondence with St. Boniface, the apostle of Germany, shows how great his influence was on contemporary events in the Frankish kingdom. In 741 he made Boniface legate and charged him with the reformation of the whole Frankish church. He supported the deposition (751–752) of Childeric III, the last Merovingian king, and authorized the Frankish church to anoint Pippin III the Short as king of the Franks. Zacharias’s action in the transference of the royal crown from the Merovingians to the house of Pippin (Carolingians) began a new era for church and state by establishing the Carolingian-papal alliance, which was to be of the greatest significance in future relations between pope and emperor and was of extreme importance to the theorists and controversialists of the Investiture Controversy (11th and 12th centuries). The latter dispute concerned secular rulers’ right to invest bishops and abbots, which right became one of the paramount aspects in the struggle for power between the papacy and the Holy Roman Empire.\nZacharias is known especially in the East for his Greek translation of the Dialogues of Pope St. Gregory I the Great.\nWhat made you want to look up \"Saint Zacharias\"? Please share what surprised you most..."}
{"text": "Nephila jurassica: The biggest spider fossil ever found\nSpiders are small arthropods, famous for their elasticity, strength and web-making abilities. For some people, spiders are not welcome in the home; as soon as they see one crawling on the ceiling, the first thought that comes to mind is to swat it at once.\nBut spiders predate us humans by a long way. And while sometimes spiders are tiny creatures, a team of scientists has discovered the largest spider fossil ever in a layer of volcanic ash in Ningcheng County, Inner Mongolia, China. The research was carried out by Paleontologist Professor Paul Selden, of the University of Kansas, with his team.\nNamed Nephila jurassica, this 165-million-year-old fossil is 2.5 cm in length and has a leg span of almost 9 cm. It is currently the largest known fossilized spider, and is from the family known as Nephilidae, the largest web-weaving spiders alive today.\nAccording to research published online in the 20th April, 2011 issue of Biology Letters, this prehistoric spider was female and shows characteristics of the golden orb weaver. Widespread in warmer regions, the golden silk orb weavers are well-known for the fabulous webs they weave. Females of this family weave the largest orb webs known.\n\"When I first saw it, I immediately realized that it was very unique not only because of its size, but also because the preservation was excellent,\" said ChungKun Shih, study co-author, and a visiting professor at Capital Normal University in Beijing, China.\nAccording to a press release: “This fossil finding provides evidence that golden orb-webs were being woven and capturing medium to large insects in Jurassic times, and predation by these spiders would have played an important role in the natural selection of contemporaneous insects.”"}
{"text": "Cleopatra, queen of Egypt and lover of Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, takes her life following the defeat of her forces against Octavian, the future first emperor of Rome.\nCleopatra, born in 69 B.C., was made Cleopatra VII, queen of Egypt, upon the death of her father, Ptolemy XII, in 51 B.C. Her brother was made King Ptolemy XIII at the same time, and the siblings ruled Egypt under the formal title of husband and wife. Cleopatra and Ptolemy were members of the Macedonian dynasty that governed Egypt since the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C. Although Cleopatra had no Egyptian blood, she alone in her ruling house learned Egyptian. To further her influence over the Egyptian people, she was also proclaimed the daughter of Re, the Egyptian sun god. Cleopatra soon fell into dispute with her brother, and civil war erupted in 48 B.C.\nRome, the greatest power in the Western world, was also beset by civil war at the time. Just as Cleopatra was preparing to attack her brother with a large Arab army, the Roman civil war spilled into Egypt. Pompey the Great, defeated by Julius Caesar in Greece, fled to Egypt seeking solace but was immediately murdered by agents of Ptolemy XIII. Caesar arrived in Alexandria soon after and, finding his enemy dead, decided to restore order in Egypt.\nDuring the preceding century, Rome had exercised increasing control over the rich Egyptian kingdom, and Cleopatra sought to advance her political aims by winning the favor of Caesar. She traveled to the royal palace in Alexandria and was allegedly carried to Caesar rolled in a rug, which was offered as a gift. Cleopatra, beautiful and alluring, captivated the powerful Roman leader, and he agreed to intercede in the Egyptian civil war on her behalf.\nIn 47 B.C., Ptolemy XIII was killed after a defeat against Caesar's forces, and Cleopatra was made dual ruler with another brother, Ptolemy XIV. Julius and Cleopatra spent several amorous weeks together, and then Caesar departed for Asia Minor, where he declared \"Veni, vidi, vici\" (I came, I saw, I conquered), after putting down a rebellion. In June 47 B.C., Cleopatra bore a son, whom she claimed was Caesar's and named Caesarion, meaning \"little Caesar.\"\nUpon Caesar's triumphant return to Rome, Cleopatra and Caesarion joined him there. Under the auspices of negotiating a treaty with Rome, Cleopatra lived discretely in a villa that Caesar owned outside the capital. After Caesar was assassinated in March 44 B.C., she returned to Egypt. Soon after, Ptolemy XIV died, likely poisoned by Cleopatra, and the queen made her son co-ruler with her as Ptolemy XV Caesar.\nWith Julius Caesar's murder, Rome again fell into civil war, which was temporarily resolved in 43 B.C. with the formation of the second triumvirate, made up of Octavian, Caesar's great-nephew and chosen heir; Mark Antony, a powerful general; and Lepidus, a Roman statesman. Antony took up the administration of the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire, and he summoned Cleopatra to Tarsus, in Asia Minor, to answer charges that she had aided his enemies.\nCleopatra sought to seduce Antony, as she had Caesar before him, and in 41 B.C. arrived in Tarsus on a magnificent river barge, dressed as Venus, the Roman god of love. Successful in her efforts, Antony returned with her to Alexandria, where they spent the winter in debauchery. In 40 B.C., Antony returned to Rome and married Octavian's sister Octavia in an effort to mend his strained alliance with Octavian. The triumvirate, however, continued to deteriorate. In 37 B.C., Antony separated from Octavia and traveled east, arranging for Cleopatra to join him in Syria. In their time apart, Cleopatra had borne him twins, a son and a daughter. According to Octavian's propagandists, the lovers were then married, which violated the Roman law restricting Romans from marrying foreigners.\nAntony's disastrous military campaign against Parthia in 36 B.C. further reduced his prestige, but in 34 B.C. he was more successful against Armenia. To celebrate the victory, he staged a triumphal procession through the streets of Alexandria, in which he and Cleopatra sat on golden thrones, and Caesarion and their children were given imposing royal titles. Many in Rome, spurred on by Octavian, interpreted the spectacle as a sign that Antony intended to deliver the Roman Empire into alien hands.\nAfter several more years of tension and propaganda attacks, Octavian declared war against Cleopatra, and therefore Antony, in 31 B.C. Enemies of Octavian rallied to Antony's side, but Octavian's brilliant military commanders gained early successes against his forces. On September 2, 31 B.C., their fleets clashed at Actium in Greece. After heavy fighting, Cleopatra broke from the engagement and set course for Egypt with 60 of her ships. Antony then broke through the enemy line and followed her. The disheartened fleet that remained surrendered to Octavian. One week later, Antony's land forces surrendered.\nAlthough they had suffered a decisive defeat, it was nearly a year before Octavian reached Alexandria and again defeated Antony. In the aftermath of the battle, Cleopatra took refuge in the mausoleum she had commissioned for herself. Antony, informed that Cleopatra was dead, stabbed himself with his sword. Before he died, another messenger arrived, saying Cleopatra still lived. Antony had himself carried to Cleopatra's retreat, where he died after bidding her to make her peace with Octavian. When the triumphant Roman arrived, she attempted to seduce him, but he resisted her charms. Rather than fall under Octavian's domination, Cleopatra committed suicide on August 30, 30 B.C., possibly by means of an asp, a poisonous Egyptian serpent and symbol of divine royalty.\nOctavian then executed her son Caesarion, annexed Egypt into the Roman Empire, and used Cleopatra's treasure to pay off his veterans. In 27 B.C., Octavian became Augustus, the first and arguably most successful of all Roman emperors. He ruled a peaceful, prosperous, and expanding Roman Empire until his death in 14 A.D. at the age of 75."}
{"text": "From Abracadabra to Zombies | View All\nN'kisi & the N'kisi Project\nN'kisi (pronounced ‘‘in-key-see’’) is a captive bred eight or nine-year-old hand raised African Grey Parrot whose owner, Aimée Morgana, thinks uses language. She doesn't think he just sounds out words. She thinks he communicates with her in language, which would in effect make N'kisi a rational parrot. For example, N'kisi utters \"pretty smell medicine\" when he wants to describe the aromatherapy oils that Aimée uses.* Furthermore, Aimée says her parrot has a fine sense of humor and knows how to laugh. Imagine having conversations with a humorous parrot. Think of all the things you could talk and joke about, besides aromatherapy. You could discuss the fame that would come to anyone who had a parrot that can think and converse in intelligent discourse, like pretty smell medicine and look at my pretty naked body.* And when some nasty skeptic makes fun of you, the two of you can joke about it.\nI'm afraid that this story stretches the boundaries of reasonable credibility, though stories of rational parrots go back at least to the 17th century. John Locke, for example, relates a tale of a Portuguese-speaking parrot of some note in his Essay Concerning Human Understanding (II.xxvii.8). These cases are more likely cases of self-deception, delusion, and gullibility than of language-using parrots. Listen to this audio clip of N'kisi, Aimée, and a toy that \"talks\" when a button is pushed. First listen without reading the transcript. Some of it is intelligible, especially after the fourth or fifth repetition, but it is difficult to understand the \"conversation,\" especially with the toy making its sounds as Aimée stimulates her parrot. Some of the tape sounds like gibberish until you are told what to listen for. When you listen while reading the transcript something amazing happens: you can hear just what you're reading. Why is that? The same thing happens when you listen to audio tapes played backward. When you just listen without anyone telling you what to listen for, you usually don't understand anything intelligible. But as soon as someone shows or tells you what to listen for, you can hear the message. Such is the power of suggestion and the way of audio perception. Hearing is a constructive process, like vision, in that bits of sensory data are \"filled in\" by the brain to produce a visual or auditory perception that is clear and distinct, and in accord with your expectations. Consider the following from an interview with Dr. Irene Pepperberg, Morgana's inspiration, who has been studying Alex, an African Grey Parrot, for many years:\nWe were doing demos at the Media Lab [at MIT] for our corporate sponsors; we had a very small amount of time scheduled and the visitors wanted to see Alex work. So we put a number of differently colored letters on the tray that we use, put the tray in front of Alex, and asked, \"Alex, what sound is blue?\" He answers, \"Ssss.\" It was an \"s\", so we say \"Good birdie\" and he replies, \"Want a nut.\"\nWell, I don't want him sitting there using our limited amount of time to eat a nut, so I tell him to wait, and I ask, \"What sound is green?\" Alex answers, \"Ssshh.\" He's right, it's \"sh,\" and we go through the routine again: \"Good parrot.\" \"Want a nut.\" \"Alex, wait. What sound is orange?\" \"ch.\" \"Good bird!\" \"Want a nut.\" We're going on and on and Alex is clearly getting more and more frustrated. He finally gets very slitty-eyed and he looks at me and states, \"Want a nut. Nnn, uh, tuh.\"\nNot only could you imagine him thinking, \"Hey, stupid, do I have to spell it for you?\" but the point was that he had leaped over where we were and had begun sounding out the letters of the words for us. This was in a sense his way of saying to us, \"I know where you're headed! Let's get on with it,\" which gave us the feeling that we were on the right track with what we were doing.*\nDr. Pepperberg thinks the bird is responding cognitively to her questions rather than simply responding to a stimulus. She thinks the bird is getting frustrated, but she has stipulated earlier in the interview:\nI never claim that Alex has full-blown language; I never would. I'm not going to be able to put Alex on a \"T\" stand and have you interview him the way you interview me.\nSo, whereas you or I might say \"give me the nut or this interview is over\" were we parrots with intentionality and language, the parrot's movements and sounds have to be less direct and more complex, so that they have to be interpreted for us by Pepperberg. In her view, Alex is \"clearly getting more frustrated\" and his frustration culminates with a \"very slitty-eyed\" expression. But this is Pepperberg's interpretation, as is her hearing the bird sound out the letters of the word 'nut'. It could have been a stutter for all we know, but Pepperberg is facilitating Alex's communication by telling us what she hears. The final paragraph indicates that Pepperberg is having a hard time drawing the line between imagining what a parrot might be thinking and projecting those thoughts into the parrot's movements and sounds. She's also having a hard time getting grant money (NIH turned her down), so she started her own private foundation, the Alex Foundation.\nWhen news of N'kisi broke on the pages of BBC online, there was no mention in the article by Alex Kirby of the parrot having conversations with people other than Aimée Morgana. (The story was originally told in USA Today in the February 12, 2001, edition.) Despite the headline \"Parrot's oratory stuns scientists,\" there was no evidence given that the parrot had stunned anyone during a conversation. It seems that Aimée is to her parrot what the facilitator is to her client in facilitated communication, except that the parrot is actually providing data to interpret and is more like clever Hans, the horse that responded to unconscious movements of his master, than a disabled human who may not be providing any content or direction at all to the facilitator. It is Aimée who gives intentionality to the parrot's sounds. She is the one who attributes 'laughter' to his shrieks and conscious awareness to his responses, though those responses could be due to any one of many stimuli, consciously or unconsciously provided by Aimée or items in the immediate environment. Nevertheless, Dr. Jane Goodall, who studies chimpanzees, met N'kisi and said that he provides an \"outstanding example of interspecies communication.\" There is some evidence, however, that much of the work with language-using primates also mistakes subjective validation by scientists for complex linguistic abilities of their animal subjects (Wallman 1992).\nAccording to Mr. Kirby, N'kisi not only uses language but has been tested for telepathy and he passed the test with flying colors:\nIn an experiment, the bird and his owner were put in separate rooms and filmed as the artist opened random envelopes containing picture cards.\nAnalysis showed the parrot had used appropriate keywords three times more often than would be likely by chance.\nKirby doesn't provide any details about the experiment, so a reader might misinterpret this claim as implying that this parrot did about twice as well as people did in the ganzfeld telepathy experiments. In those experiments, subjects in separate rooms were monitored as one tried to telepathically send information from a picture or video to the other. Typically, there was a 20% chance of guessing what the item was but results as high as 38% were reported in some meta-analyses. If the parrot scored three times better than chance, then he would have gotten 60% correct. The odds of a parrot randomly blurting out words that match up 60% of the time with pictures being looked at simultaneously in another room are so high that there is virtually no way that this could happen by chance. However, as you might suspect, Kirby's claim is a bit misleading.\nI assume that Kirby was writing about an experiment that was part of the N'kisi project, a joint effort by Morgana and Rupert Sheldrake to test not only the parrot's language-using abilities but his telepathic talents as well. Sheldrake has already validated the telepathic abilities of a dog and thinks the \"findings [of this experiment] are consistent with the hypothesis that N'kisi was reacting telepathically to Aimée's mental activity.\"*\nThe full text of Sheldrake's study published in the peer reviewed Journal of Scientific Exploration is available online. The title of the paper would send most journal editors to their grave, killed by laughter: \"Testing a Language-Using Parrot for Telepathy.\" Fortunately for Sheldrake and his associates there will always be a sympathetic editor for another story like that of J. B. Rhine and the telepathic horse, \"Lady Wonder.\" At least Sheldrake's protocols show some measure of sophistication, unlike Rhine's. Even so, as the editor at the Journal of Scientific Exploration commented: \"once again, we have suggestive results, a level of statistical significance that is less than compelling, and the devout wish that further work with refined protocols will ensue.\"* So, we'll just have to wait and see whether further study of N'kisi supports the telepathic hypothesis.\nAnyway, here is how Sheldrake set up the experiment. He first compiled a list of 30 words from the bird's vocabulary that \"could be represented by visual images.\" A package of 167 photos from a stock supplier was used for the test. Since only 20 of the photos corresponded to words on the list, the word list was reduced to 20. The word 'camera' was removed from the list because 'N’kisi \"used it so frequently to comment on the cameras used in the tests themselves.\" Thus, they were left with 19 words.\nDuring the tests, N’kisi remained in his cage in Aimée’s apartment in Manhattan, New York. There was no one in the room with him. Meanwhile, Aimée went to a separate enclosed room on a different floor. N’kisi could not see or hear her, and in any case, Aimée said nothing, as confirmed by the audio track recorded on the camera that filmed her continuously. The distance between Aimée and N’kisi was about 55 feet. Aimée could hear N’kisi through a wireless baby monitor, which she used to gain ‘‘feedback’’ to help her to adjust her mental state as image sender.\nBoth Aimée and N’kisi were filmed continuously throughout the test sessions by two synchronized cameras on time-coded videotape. The cameras were mounted on tripods and ran continuously without interruption throughout each session. N’kisi was also recorded continuously on a separate audio tape recorder. (Sheldrake and Morgana 2003)\nAccording to Sheldrake:\nWe conducted a total of 147 two-minute trials. The recordings of N’kisi during these trials were transcribed blind by three independent transcribers....He scored 23 hits: the key words he said corresponded to the target pictures....If N’kisi said a key word that did not correspond to the photograph, that was counted as a miss, and if he said a key word corresponding to the photograph, that was a hit. (Sheldrake and Morgana 2003)\nHowever, sixty of the trials were discarded because in those trials N'kisi either was silent or uttered things that were not key words, i.e., showed no signs of telepathy. A few other trials were discarded because the transcribers did not agree on what N'kisi said. In short, Sheldrake's statistical conclusions are based on the results of 71 of the trials. I'll let the reader decide whether it was proper to omit 40% of the data because the parrot didn't utter a word on the key word list during those trials. Some might argue that those sessions should be counted as misses and that by ignoring so much data where the parrot clearly did not indicate any sign of telepathy is strong evidence that Sheldrake was more interested in confirming his biases than in getting at the truth.\nN'kisi's misses were listed at 94. Ten of the 23 hits were on the picture that corresponded to the word 'flower', which N'kisi uttered 23 times during the trials. The flower image, selected randomly, was used in 17 trials. The image corresponding to water was used in 10 of the trials. The bird said 'water' in twelve trials and got 2 hits. It seems oddly biased that almost one-third of the images and more than half the hits came from just 2 of the 19 pictures.\nOne of the peer reviewers thought that the fact that the flower word and picture played so heavy a role in the outcome that the paper's results were distorted and that the paper should not be published. The other reviewer accepted Sheldrake's observation that even if you throw out the flower data, you still get some sort of statistical significance. This may be true. However, since the bird allegedly had a vocabulary of some 950 words at the time of the test, omitting sessions where the bird said nothing or said something not on the key list, is unjustifiable. Furthermore, there is no evidence that it is reasonable to assume that when the parrot is by itself uttering words that it is trying to communicate telepathically with Morgana. Or are we to accept Sheldrake's assumption that the parrot turns his telepathic interest off and on, and it was on only when he uttered a word on the key list? That assumption is no more valid that Morgana's belief that the telepathy doesn't work as well when she makes an effort to send a telepathic message to her parrot. In any case, I wonder why Sheldrake didn't do a baseline study, where the parrot was videotaped for two-minutes at a time while Morgana was taking an aromatherapy bath or meditating or doing something unrelated to the key word pictures. Had he made several hundred such clips, he could then have randomly selected 71 and compared them to the 71 clips he used for his analysis. If there was no significant difference between the randomly selected clips and the ones that emerged during the experiment, then the telepathy hypothesis would not be supported. On the other hand, if he found a robust statistically significant difference, then the telepathy hypothesis would be supported. I suggest he do something along these lines when he attempts to replicate his parrot telepathy test.\nIn some trials, N’kisi repeated a given key word. For example, in one trial N’kisi said ‘‘phone’’ three times, and in another he said ‘‘flower’’ ten times, and in the tabulation of data the numbers of times he said these words are shown in parentheses as: phone (3); flower (10). For most of the statistical analyses, repetitions were ignored, but in one analysis the numbers of words that were said more than once in a given trial were compared statistically with those said only once for both hits and misses. For each trial, the key word or words represented in the photograph were tabulated. Some images had only one key word, but others had two or more. For example, a picture of a couple hugging in a pool of water involved two key words, ‘‘water’’ and ‘‘hug.’’ (Sheldrake and Morgana 2003)\nHe calculated 51 hits and 126 misses when repetitions were included. I'm not going to bother with any more detail because by now the overall picture should be clear. Once the statisticians went to work on the data, they were able to provide support for the claim that the data were consistent with the telepathic hypothesis. But nowhere in Sheldrake's paper can I find a claim that the parrot did three times better than expected by chance. In any case, I have to agree with the editor who published Sheldrake's parrot paper: the results have a statistical significance that is less than compelling. However, unlike that editor, my devout wish is that when such studies as these are published in the future, responsible journalists continue to ignore them and recognize them for the rubbish they are. On the other hand, if you happen to think your parrot is psychic, drop Dr. Sheldrake a line. He's set up a page just for you.\nSheldrake has responded to this article. His comments and my responses are posted here.\nbooks and articles\nnew Grey parrots use reasoning where monkeys and dogs can’t \"Christian Schloegl and his team at the University of Vienna, let six parrots choose between two containers, one containing a nut. Both containers were shaken, one eliciting a rattling sound and the other nothing. The parrots preferred the container that rattled, even if only the empty container was shaken....Thus, grey parrots seem to possess ape-like reasoning skills....\" [/new]\nLast updated 16-Aug-2012"}
{"text": "Five new names have been approved for Mars: Angustus Labyrinthus, Chronius Mons, Promethei Mons, Sisyphi Tholus, and Thyles Montes. The names Australis Patera, Angusta Patera, and Cavi Frigores have been marked as dropped in the database. New imagery has shown that the two paterae were named using the wrong descriptor term, and the area previously named Cavi Frigores has been incorporated into the adjacent Cavi Angusti.\nThe definition of the descriptor term labyrinthus has been expanded from \"Complex of intersecting valleys\" to \"Complex of intersecting valleys or ridges.\"\nSee the Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature for more information."}
{"text": "This is the second book wrote by Lee Lehman and presents in a very detailed manner the astrological dignities. It was published in 1989 by Whitford Press.\nIn Chapter 1 - Two Unsung Revolutions in Astrology the author explains how the Copernican Revolution changed the way astrologers understand dignities. At page 18 one can find a table with traditional and modern essential dignities.\nChapter 2 - Using Traditional Rulerships\nHere you'll find many practical examples of charts analyzed using traditional dignities. There are presented five countries (Confederate States of America, Italy, Iran, Switzerland, USSR), five corporations (General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, Coca-Cola, Pepsi), five individuals (Jane Austen, Lewis Carroll, Doyle Arthur, Niccolo Machiavelli, Mark Twain) and one horary chart.\nOf course, it is always nice to see how the theory applies in practice, but I was expecting from these examples to emphasize the different results which appears when analyzing the charts with traditional and modern dignities. Unfortunately, this is not happening, the charts are analyzed using only traditional dignities.\nIn Chapter 3 - The Origin of Rulerships: A Botanical Interlude you can find out which planer or sign rules every planet. You'll see that onion is ruled by Mars, beans by Venus, holly by Saturn etc. Also, there is a table with the medicinal uses of Jupiter- ruled plants. I didn't test these, but it may be helpful.\nChapter 4 - Modern “Rulerships”: Do They Work?\nThe author is trying to prove that modern rulerships aren't working well and to find arguments. She points out that:\n“when modern astrologers discuss the modern rulerships the criterion appears to be: Which body (planet, asteroid or comet) has qualities which most resembles the sign in question?”\nSo, modern rulerships are assigned counting if a planet qualities are similar with the sign qualities and not looking at the planet strength in a sign. See another quotation:\n“We haven't any evidence that the ancients thought that Pisces and Jupiter were synonymous. It was a question of the strength of Jupiter in Pisces, not the similarity of Jupiter and Pisces.”\nNow, I think the idea is pretty clear. I must say that I totally agree with this point of view.\nThen the charts of Marie Curie, Jeddu Krishnamurti, Adolf Hitler and Death of Dracula are analyzed. This time, Lee Lehman makes an analogy between the charts interpretations with modern and traditional rulerships. The results are pretty good and the lecture enjoyable.\nOnly one problem, from my point of view. It is analyzed the chart “Death of Dracula”, where Lee writes things like: “I have been fascinated by charts of people who are, so to speak, energy sucks”, “Scorpio Sun (life of the vampire)”, etc. Hei, I am from Romania and I tell you there is no vampire. Dracula is just a myth assigned to a Romanian prince, Vlad III of Wallachia. It is true that he was cruel and liked to kill people by impaling them on a sharp pole, but everything else is imagination.\nChapter 5 – The Meaning of Each of the Essential Dignities\nIn this chapter you'll find some general characteristics for the five essential dignities: ruler, exaltation, triplicity, term and face. At page 127 is a table with key words associated with these dignities. Starting from these key words Lee Lehman gives many descriptive explanations for dignities, but it just seems to much! There are the same things explained over and over again, it seemed pretty boring to me.\nIn Chapter 6 – A Statistical Interlude the author is trying to determine the influence of terms (both Chaldean and Egyptian) making a few tests. She selected a number of charts from different categories (suicide, scientist, sport champions) and counted the terms for each planet.\nIn the final, we can see that the planet that rules the category (for example, Mars for sport champions) obtained more points that usually, on a normal pattern. Even the results apparently validates the importance of terms I won't give to much credit to such a test. Why? Because I don't see terms so important to determine a person belong to a category or another. For example, more points in the term of Saturn won't drive you to suicide because can be many other (not even major) aspects that can change this influence.\nProbably, I just don't believe terms are so important an if Lee Lehman is making those test it is clear that she also has doubts.\nChapter 7 – Detriment, Falls and Peregrines means several pages where you can find short descriptions for every planet detriment and fall.\nIn Chapter 8 – Conclusions there are the final words.\nMY EVALUATION: 6\nConclusion. If I would have to say quickly, at my first impression, some words about this book I think would be: “too much noise for nothing”. But, then, if you think for a moment you realize that you can't say “for nothing” because dignities are a very important part in astrology and one could write a whole interesting book about this subject.\nSo, back to my reasoning, why this impression? Why “too much noise for nothing?”. Maybe, because this book presents shortly the five dignities associated with some main characteristics, ideas repeated in different chapters, but the rest of the book is somewhat near the subject.\nYou can read about history, botany, statistics, all connected with dignities, but the book doesn't seem to touch the essential points. It is a surface play. It doesn't have those clear, rational statements that gives you a better understanding of the subject.\nIf a medium astrologer reads this book I don't think will have much to learn and to integrate in his astrological system. Maybe I am a little too harsh, but it is my purpose here to criticize and to present a clear point of view about the astrological books I read. My evaluation is 6."}
{"text": "Mali has been engrossed in civil war since January 2012, when separatists in Mali’s northern Azawad region began demanding independence from the southern, Bamako-based government. After forcing the Malian military from the north, however, the separatist forces soon became embroiled in a conflict of their own, between the original Mouvement National pour la Libération de l’Azawad (MNLA) and extremist Islamist splinter factions closely linked with Al-Qaeda. On 11 January 2013, France responded to Mali’s urgent request for international assistance and initiated ‘Operation Serval’ to aid the recapture of Azawad and defeat the extremist group. From the 18th, West African states began reinforcing French forces with at least 3,300 extra troops.\nIn a BBC ’From Our Own Correspondent’ editorial, Hugh Schofield wrote of ‘la Francafrique’, or France’s considerable interests in West Africa held over from the end of formal empire. In fits and spurts, France has sought to extract itself from la Francafrique and to seek a new relationship with the continent. But in the complex world of post-colonial relationships, such a move is difficult. France retains strong economic, political, and social links with West Africa. Paris, Marseille, and Lyon are home to large expatriate African communities. Opinions at l’Elycée Palace, too, have wildly shifted over the years. Jacques Chirac, at least according to Schofield, was ‘a dyed-in-the-wool Guallist’, and an ideological successor to a young François Mitterand who, in 1954, defiantly pronounced that ‘L’Algérie, c’est la France’. Nicolas Sarkozy, on the other hand, dramatically distanced himself both from Chirac and from the la Francafrique role.\nThe problem is, at least in part, topographical in nature. West Africa’s geography is dangerous, vast, and difficult to subordinate. On the eve of much of West Africa’s independence from France in 1961, R J Harrison Church spoke of the so-called Dry Zone, the area running horizontally from southern Mauritania across central Mali and Niger, as the great “pioneer fringe” of the region’s civilization. David Hilling, in his 1969 Geographical Journal examination, added that by “taming” the Saharan interior, France gained an important strategic advantage over their British rivals in the early twentieth century, enjoying access to resources unavailable along the coast.\nBut, as A T Grove discussed in his 1978 review, “colonising” West Africa was much easier said than done, and the French left a West Africa mired in dispute, open to incursions, and still heavily reliant on the former imperial power. The French relationship with the region’s extreme geography was difficult at best; political boundaries were similar to those of the Arabian Peninsula and the Rub ‘al-Khali in particular: fluid, ill-defined, and not always recognised by local peoples. European-set political boundaries only exacerbated tensions between indigenous constituencies who had little or no say in the border demarcations.\nFrench and African efforts to dam the Niger River, for instance, were hampered by high costs, arduous terrain, and political instability well into the 1960s. On independence, the French left what infrastructure they could, mostly in West Africa’s capital and port cities; the vast interiors were often left to their own devices. As a result of these events, France has maintained a large military, economic, and social presence in the region ever since. The difficulty is that such areas under weak political control, such as the Malian, Somalian, and Sudanese deserts, have become havens for individuals who wish to operate outside international and national law.\nR J Harrison Church, 1961, ‘Problems and Development of the Dry Zone of West Africa‘, The Geographical Journal 127 187-99.\nDavid Hilling, 1969, ‘The Evolution of the Major Ports of West Africa‘, The Geographical Journal 135 365-78.\nA T Grove, 1978, ‘Geographical Introduction to the Sahel‘, The Geographical Journal 144 407-15.\nIeuan Griffiths, 1986, ‘The Scramble for Africa: Inherited Political Boundaries‘, The Geographical Journal 152 204-16.\n‘Le Mali attend le renfort des troupes ouest-africaines‘, Radio France Internationale, 19 January 2013, accessed 19 January 2013.\nHugh Schofield, ‘France and Mali: An “ironic” relationship’, BBC News, 19 January 2013, accessed 19 January 2013."}
{"text": "- Join The Movement\n- Media & More\n- About Us\nTypes of Builds\nMillard Fuller used to say that a home is the foundation on which human development occurs. It is also an important, positive step in working on a safer, healthier and more responsible future. Many people struggling to put food on the table, pay bills, purchase school supplies and clothing and maintain transportation to work are not thinking about repairing their homes, even though those homes might be dangerous, literally crumbling around them and their children.\nThe Fuller Center is an organization devoted to partnership, renewed opportunity and providing a hand up instead of a hand out. The construction and rehabilitation of simple, decent houses are the two basic ways we do this.\nThe work of The Fuller Center allows the elderly to live out their rest of their days comfortably in their own homes, gives families a fresh start, enables the handicapped to maintain a level of independence in accessible homes and, in some cases, transforms entire neighborhoods."}
{"text": "A fossilised little finger discovered in a cave in the mountains of southern Siberia belonged to a young girl from an unknown group of archaic humans, scientists say.\nThe missing human relatives are thought to have inhabited much of Asia as recently as 30,000 years ago, and so shared the land with early modern humans and Neanderthals.\nThe finding paints a complex picture of human history in which our early ancestors left Africa 70,000 years ago to rub shoulders with other distant relatives in addition to the stocky, barrel-chested Neanderthals.\nThe new ancestors have been named “Denisovans” after the Denisova cave in the Altai mountains of southern Siberia where the finger bone was unearthed in 2008.\nA “Denis” is thus a member of an archaic human subspecies."}
{"text": "Tips to Facilitate Workshops Effectively\nFacilitators play a very important role in the creation of a respectful, positive learning environment during a workshop. Here you will find some tips to facilitate workshops effectively.\n- Make sure everybody has a chance to participate. For example, through small group activities or direct questions to different participants. Help the group to avoid long discussions between two people who may isolate the rest of the/other participants. Promote the importance of sharing the space and listening to different voices and opinions.\n- Be prepared to make adjustments to the agenda – sometimes you have to cross out activities, but the most important thing is to achieve the general goals of the workshop.\n- Make every possible thing to have all the logistics ready beforehand to then be able to focus on the workshop’s agenda.\n- Pay attention to the group’s energy and motivation – Plan activities where everyone is able to participate and to stay active and engaged.\n- Provide space for the participants to be able to share their own experiences and knowledge. Remember that each one of us has a lot to learn and a lot to teach.\n- Relax and have fun! Be a part of the process – You are learning, too, so you don’t have to know it all nor do everything perfect.\n- Be prepared for difficult questions. Get familiarized with the topic, know the content of the workshop but remember you don’t have to know all the answers! You can ask other participants what they know about the topic, or you can find out the answers later and share them with the participants after the workshop.\n- Focus on giving general information – Avoid answering questions about specific cases. Usually, this can change the direction of the conversation and might be considered as providing legal advice without a license to do so.\n- Your work as facilitator is to help the group learn together, not necessarily to present all the information and be the “expert” in the topic.\n- Try to be as clear as possible – especially when you are giving the exercises’ instructions. Work as a team with the other facilitators during the whole workshop."}
{"text": "This Dawn FC (framing camera) image shows some of the undulating terrain in Vesta’s southern hemisphere. This undulating terrain consists of linear, curving hills and depressions, which are most distinct in the right of the image. Many narrow, linear grooves run in various directions across this undulating terrain. There are some small, less than 1 kilometer (0.6 mile) diameter, craters in the bottom of the image. These contain bright material and have bright material surrounding them. There are fewer craters in this image than in images from Vesta’s northern hemisphere; this is because Vesta’s northern hemisphere is generally more cratered than the southern hemisphere.\nThis image is located in Vesta’s Urbinia quadrangle and the center of the image is 63.0 degrees south latitude, 332.2 degrees east longitude. NASA’s Dawn spacecraft obtained this image with its framing camera on Oct. 25, 2011. This image was taken through the camera’s clear filter. The distance to the surface of Vesta is 700 kilometers (435 miles) and the image has a resolution of about 70 meters (230 feet) per pixel. This image was acquired during the HAMO (high-altitude mapping orbit) phase of the mission.\nThe Dawn mission to Vesta and Ceres is managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, Washington D.C. UCLA is responsible for overall Dawn mission science. The Dawn framing cameras have been developed and built under the leadership of the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany, with significant contributions by DLR German Aerospace Center, Institute of Planetary Research, Berlin, and in coordination with the Institute of Computer and Communication Network Engineering, Braunschweig. The Framing Camera project is funded by the Max Planck Society, DLR, and NASA/JPL.\nMore information about Dawn is online at http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov.\nImage credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA"}
{"text": "|Freshwater Mussels of the Upper Mississippi River System|\nMussel Conservation Activities\n2005 Highlights: Possible fish predation of subadult Higgins eye was observed in the Upper Mississippi River, Pools 2 and 4.\nSubadult Higgins eye pearlymussels (Lampsilis higginsii) from the Upper Mississippi River, Pools 2 and 4. Shell damage may be due to predation by fish (i.e. common carp or freshwater drum). Top photo by Mike Davis, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources; bottom photo by Gary Wege, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.\nSpecies Identification and Location • Threatened and Endangered Mussels • Life History • Ecology • Mussel Harvest on the River • Current Threats • Mussel Conservation Activities • Ongoing Studies and Projects • Multimedia • Teacher Resources • Frequently Asked Questions • Glossary • References • Links to Other Mussel Sites\nPrivacy • FOIA • FirstGov • Contact\nDepartment of the Interior • U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service • U.S. Geological Survey\n|Last updated on\nDecember 21, 2006"}
{"text": "Overcoming perceived GIS resource limitations\nThis module (Teaching with GIS) is designed to highlight GIS concepts that may be added to many geoscience topics and exercises. In particular, we focus on using GIS at the level of introductory geoscience; however, many of the exercises and concepts may be applied in upper level courses as well. We will attempt to answer the following questions:\nDo I need to be a GIS wizard to introduce GIS concepts in my courses?\nAnswer: No! There are numerous web-based mapping utilities, some of which are specifically designed for geoscience applications. In addition, consumer-grade GPS devices and mapping software are both cheaper and easier to learn than the professional GIS/GPS tools.\nMany students new to geoscience are unfamiliar with mapping concepts that we take for granted as professional scientists. Even simple geographic and cartographic concepts can help them understand more complex GIS tasks at a later stage. The introduction of hands-on map creation/interpretation exercises and the associated terminology can greatly enhance the learning experience of the students.\nAren't the hardware and software requirements of GIS prohibitive at the introductory level?\nAnswer: No! There are many options that may be pursued despite resource limitations or student difficulties with computer tasks. Below are some ideas on what can be accomplished with different levels of resource availability or student background. Keep in mind that this site is focused on how we can introduce GIS within existing introductory geoscience courses:\nHardware-limited options—There is little or no access to computers/internet or GPS receivers by students and/or instructor within the classroom. The students often have access to computers and the internet in public labs or have personal computers. Faculty usually have access to the internet on their computers and may have access to some GIS software.\n- Instructor generates maps for exercises/labs utilizing online resources\n- Utilize traditional paper maps (e.g. geologic maps) to introduce concepts of data-driven maps\n- Assign homework exercises that access online resources from student-owned or campus computer labs\nSoftware-limited options—Some access to computers/internet and GPS receivers, but little or no GIS software for student/instructor use in or out of the classroom.\n- Instructor generates maps for exercises/labs from online sources or GIS software. Note that there is GIS shareware available (e.g. GRASS (more info) ).\n- GPS use in lab exercises, particulary field labs\n- Shareware utilities to download GPS data to computer\n- MS Excel or other software used to analyze and plot data in x-y coordinates (convert from lat/lon in GPS software)\n- Manual digitization of data locations\n- Paper maps or using graphics editing software\nNo hardware/software limitations—easy access to computers/internet, GPS receivers, and GIS software in and out of the classroom.\n- All of the more limited options listed above are possible\n- Student use of GIS hardware/software/data in classroom or lab\n- Possibilities limited only by time for GIS within the syllabus"}
{"text": "Karuk Tribe: Learning from the First Californians for the Next California\nEditor's Note: This is part of series, Facing the Climate Gap, which looks at grassroots efforts in California low-income communities of color to address climate change and promote climate justice.\nThis article was published in collaboration with GlobalPossibilities.org.\nThe three sovereign entities in the United States are the federal government, the states and indigenous tribes, but according to Bill Tripp, a member of the Karuk Tribe in Northern California, many people are unaware of both the sovereign nature of tribes and the wisdom they possess when it comes to issues of climate change and natural resource management.\n“A lot of people don’t realize that tribes even exist in California, but we are stakeholders too, with the rights of indigenous peoples,” says Tripp.\nTripp is an Eco-Cultural Restoration specialist at the Karuk Tribe Department of Natural Resources. In 2010, the tribe drafted an Eco-Cultural Resources Management Plan, which aims to manage and restore “balanced ecological processes utilizing Traditional Ecological Knowledge supported by Western Science.” The plan addresses environmental issues that affect the health and culture of the Karuk tribe and outlines ways in which tribal practices can contribute to mitigating the effects of climate change.\nBefore climate change became a hot topic in the media, many indigenous and agrarian communities, because of their dependence upon and close relationship to the land, began to notice troubling shifts in the environment such as intense drought, frequent wildfires, scarcer fish flows and erratic rainfall.\nThere are over 100 government recognized tribes in California, which represent more than 700,000 people. The Karuk is the second largest Native American tribe in California and has over 3,200 members. Their tribal lands include over 1.48 million acres within and around the Klamath and Six Rivers National Forests in Northwest California.\nTribes like the Karuk are among the hardest hit by the effects of climate change, despite their traditionally low-carbon lifestyles. The Karuk, in particular have experienced dramatic environmental changes in their forestlands and fisheries as a result of both climate change and misguided Federal and regional policies.\nThe Karuk have long depended upon the forest to support their livelihood, cultural practices and nourishment. While wildfires have always been a natural aspect of the landscape, recent studies have shown that fires in northwestern California forests have risen dramatically in frequency and size due to climate related and human influences. According to the California Natural Resources Agency, fires in California are expected to increase 100 percent due to increased temperatures and longer dry seasons associated with climate change.\nSome of the other most damaging human influences to the Karuk include logging activities, which have depleted old growth forests, and fire suppression policies created by the U.S. Forest Service in the 1930s that have limited cultural burning practices. Tripp says these policies have been detrimental to tribal traditions and the forest environment.\n“It has been huge to just try to adapt to the past 100 years of policies that have led us to where we are today. We have already been forced to modify our traditional practices to fit the contemporary political context,” says Tripp.\nFurther, the construction of dams along the Klamath River by PacifiCorp (a utility company) has impeded access to salmon and other fish that are central to the Karuk diet. Fishing regulations have also had a negative impact.\nThough the Karuk’s dependence on the land has left them vulnerable to the projected effects of climate change, it has also given them and other indigenous groups incredible knowledge to impart to western climate science. Historically, though, tribes have been largely left out of policy processes and decisions. The Karuk decided to challenge this historical pattern of marginalization by formulating their own Eco-Cultural Resources Management Plan.\nThe Plan provides over twenty “Cultural Environmental Management Practices” that are based on traditional ecological knowledge and the “World Renewal” philosophy, which emphasizes the interconnectedness of humans and the environment. Tripp says the Plan was created in the hopes that knowledge passed down from previous generations will help strengthen Karuk culture and teach the broader community to live in a more ecologically sound way.\n“It is designed to be a living document…We are building a process of comparative learning, based on the principals and practices of traditional ecological knowledge to revitalize culturally relevant information as passed through oral transmission and intergenerational observations,” says Tripp.\nOne of the highlights of the plan is to re-establish traditional burning practices in order to decrease fuel loads and the risk for more severe wildfires when they do happen. Traditional burning was used by the Karuk to burn off specific types of vegetation and promote continued diversity in the landscape. Tripp notes that these practices are an example of how humans can play a positive role in maintaining a sound ecological cycle in the forests.\n“The practice of utilizing fire to manage resources in a traditional way not only improves the use quality of forest resources, it also builds and maintains resiliency in the ecological process of entire landscapes” explains Tripp.\nAnother crucial aspect of the Plan is the life cycle of fish, like salmon, that are central to Karuk food traditions and ecosystem health. Traditionally, the Karuk regulated fishing schedules to allow the first salmon to pass, ensuring that those most likely to survive made it to prime spawning grounds. There were also designated fishing periods and locations to promote successful reproduction. Tripp says regulatory agencies have established practices that are harmful this cycle.\n“Today, regulatory agencies permit the harvest of fish that would otherwise be protected under traditional harvest management principles and close the harvest season when the fish least likely to reach the very upper river reaches are passing through,” says Tripp.\nThe Karuk tribe is now working closely with researchers from universities such as University of California, Berkeley and the University of California, Davis as well as public agencies so that this traditional knowledge can one day be accepted by mainstream and academic circles dealing with climate change mitigation and adaptation practices.\nAccording to the Plan, these land management practices are more cost effective than those currently practiced by public agencies; and, if implemented, they will greatly reduce taxpayer cost burdens and create employment. The Karuk hope to create a workforce development program that will hire tribal members to implement the plan’s goals, such as multi-site cultural burning practices.\nThe Plan has a long way to full realization and Federal recognition. According to the National Indian Forest Resources Management Act and the National Environmental Protection Act, it must go through a formal review process. Besides that, the Karuk Tribe is still solidifying funding to pursue its goals.\nThe work of California’s environmental stewards will always be in demand, and the Karuk are taking the lead in showing how community wisdom can be used to generate an integrated approach to climate change. Such integrated and community engaged policy approaches are rare throughout the state but are emerging in other areas. In Oakland, for example, the Oakland Climate Action Coalition engaged community members and a diverse group of social justice, labor, environmental, and business organizations to develop an Energy and Climate Action Plan that outlines specific ways for the City to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and create a sustainable economy.\nIn the end, Tripp hopes the Karuk Plan will not only inspire others and address the global environmental plight, but also help to maintain the very core of his people. In his words: “Being adaptable to climate change is part of that, but primarily it is about enabling us to maintain our identity and the people in this place in perpetuity.”\nDr. Manuel Pastor is Professor of Sociology and American Studies & Ethnicity at the University of Southern California where he also directs the Program for Environmental and Regional Equity and co-directs USC’s Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration. His most recent books include Just Growth: Inclusion and Prosperity in America’s Metropolitan Regions (Routledge 2012; co-authored with Chris Benner) Uncommon Common Ground: Race and America’s Future (W.W. Norton 2010; co-authored with Angela Glover Blackwell and Stewart Kwoh), and This Could Be the Start of Something Big: How Social Movements for Regional Equity are Transforming Metropolitan America (Cornell 2009; co-authored with Chris Benner and Martha Matsuoka)."}
{"text": "John Langley Howard was a revolutionary regionalist painter known for depicting labor and industry in California as well as his reverence for the natural world. Howard took a strong stance on social and environmental issues and used his art to communicate his strong emotional response toward each of his subjects.\nTable of Contents\nJohn Langley Howard was born in 1902 into a respected family of artists and architects. His father, John Galen Howard relocated the family to California in 1904 to become campus architect of the University of California, Berkeley. It was only after attending the very same campus his father helped to create, that Howard suddenly decided he wanted to pursue a career as an artist and not an engineer as previously planned. Following this decision, Howard enrolled in the California Guild of Arts and Crafts in Oakland and then transferred to the Arts Students’ League in New York City.\nAt the school, he met Kenneth Hayes Miller who supported Howard’s attitude because the “taught the bare rudiments of painting and composition, and stressed the cultivation of the ultra-sensitive, intuitive approach” (Hailey 56). After saving his money, Howard travelled to Paris for six months to seek out his own artistic philosophy. However, it quickly became apparent to Howard that he placed more value on pure talent than professional training. In 1924, Howard left art school to pursue his career and marry his first wife, Adeline Day. He had his first one-person exhibition at the Modern Gallery in San Francisco in 1927. Shortly after, he attempted portraiture.\nFollowing the start of the Depression, Howard found himself appalled by the social conditions and began to follow “his own brand of Marxism.” Howard and his wife began to attend meetings of the Monterey John Reed Club, discussing politics and social concerns. Soon, the artist became determined to communicate society’s needs for the betterment of the future. His landscapes began to include industry and its effects to the surrounding region. In 1934, Howard was hired through the New Deal Public Works Art Project to create a mural for the inside of Coit Tower on Telegraph Hill in San Francisco depicting California industry. The project called for twenty-seven artists to be hired to paint frescos inside the newly erected monument funded by philanthropist Lillie Hitchcock Coit. Each artist was to depict a scene central to California living, including industry, agriculture, law, and street scenes of San Francisco.\nHoward’s completed fresco drew notorious attention for showing an unemployed worker reading Marxist materials, a gathered group of unemployed workers, and a man panning for gold while watching a wealthy couple outside of their limousine. In a nearby mural by Bernard Zakheim (1896-1985), Howard himself was used as a model. He is shown crumpling a newspaper and grabbing a Marxist book from a library shelf. This soon led to the artists being linked to a local group of striking dock workers. They were accused of attempting to lead a Communist revolution. Howard’s murals as well as the work of Clifford Wight (1900-1960) and Zakheim became highly scrutinized, and the uproar over the works led to a delay in opening Coit Tower. In order to protect their work from being defaced or completely destroyed, the muralists chose to sleep outside the tower. The SF Art Commission ultimately cancelled the opening of Coit Tower as a result of the controversy and did not open it until months later.\nDuring this time, Howard relocated his family to Santa Fe, New Mexico citing his son’s health concerns for almost two years before returning to Monterey in 1940. Following the onset of World War II, he had a renewed interest in landscape and soon ceased to include social commentary within his work, thus removing the human figure from his paintings. The artist divorced his first wife in 1949. In 1951, Howard’s art took another turn when the artist painted The Rape of the Earth which rallied against the destruction of nature by technology, making Howard one of the first “eco-artists.” During the same year he also married sculptor Blanche Phillips (1908-1976). He began illustrating for Scientific American Magazine and used this medium to refine his technique.\nHoward’s landscapes began turning to “magic realism” or “poetic realism” as Howard preferred to call it. This method is described as the use of naturalistic images and forms “to suggest relationships that cannot always be directly described in words” (Aldrich 184). His aim was to communicate a poetic and spiritual connection with the landscape depicted. Overall, Howard lived in more than 20 different locations during his career.\nIn 1997, Howard attended the dedication of Pioneer Park at Coit Tower and was the only surviving member of the twenty-seven muralists included in the original project. The murals were restored by the City of San Francisco in 1990 after water damage and age dictated the need for restoration. Howard died at the age of 97 in his sleep at his Potrero Hill home in 1999.\nII. AN ANALYSIS OF THE ARTIST'S WORK\n“I think of painting as poetry and I think of myself as a representational poet. I want to describe my subject minutely, but I also way to describe my emotional response to it…what I’m doing is making a self-portrait in a peculiar kind of way.” – John Langley Howard\nJohn Langley Howard was widely considered a wanderer and a free spirit. While Howard did receive academic training from the California Guild of Arts and Crafts in Oakland and the Arts Students’ League in New York City, he chose to align himself with instructors whose opinions of art education matched his predetermined beliefs. These teachers included Kenneth Hayes Miller (1876-1952) who valued an analytical, bare bones approach to art instruction and supported greater personal development of intuitive talent. Howard expressed this viewpoint stating that:\n“I want everything to be meaningful in a descriptive way. I want expression and at the same time I want to control it down to a gnat’s eyebrow. I identify with my subject. I empathize with my subject” (Moss 62).\nIn the 1920s, Howard became known as a Cezanne-influenced landscape artist and portraitist. Tempera, oil, and etching became his primary media while his subject matter turned to poetic and often spiritually infused imagery which would resurface later in his career. Earth tones and very small brushstrokes were utilized, allowing Howard to refine his images.\nHoward exhibited frequently with his brothers Charles Howard (1899-1978) and Robert Howard (1896-1983). Critic Jehanne Bietry wrote of their joint Galerie Beaux Arts show that: “of (the Howard brothers), John Langley is the poet, the mystic and the most complex…there predominates in his work a certain quality, an element of sentiment that escapes definition but is the unmistakable trait by which one recognizes deeper art” (Hailey 60). It is significant that a critic would accurately take note of Howard artistic aims at such an early stage because what Bietry describes ultimately became the primary focus of Howard’s career.\nHoward experienced a dramatic change in medium when he was commissioned to paint a mural for the Coit Tower WPA project in 1934. The project was Howard’s first and only mural and provided the artist with an outlet for his newly discovered Marxist social beliefs. While Howard supported a political agenda rather explicitly in his image, his focus on deeper subject matter permeates throughout the work. Most important to Howard is “the idea of human conflict that [he] pictorializes and deplores – man’s tragic flaw manifest again in this particular situation” (Nash 79). Howard’s work had progressed steadily into the realm of social realism until the backlash against the Coit Tower murals led him in a new direction.\nHoward abandoned explicit statements of social commentary and returned to his roots as a landscape painter. However, this did not prevent the artist from illustrating important issues because he then became one of the first “eco-artists.” Through his painting, Howard investigated the role of technology on the environment and used the San Francisco Bay Area as well as Monterey to demonstrate his point of view. He continued following his original artistic tendencies by delving into “magic realism” or “poetic realism” which utilized the spiritual connection that Howard sought to find within his work. Art critic Henrietta Shore recognized the balance that Howard achieved within his work, stating that he “is modern in that he is progressive, yet his work proves that he does not discard the traditions from which all fine art has grown” (Hailey 65). Overall, Howard’s career presents a unique portrait of individual expression and spiritual exploration.\n1902 Born in Montclair, New Jersey\n1920 Enrolls as an Engineering major at UC Berkeley\n1922 Realizes he wants to be an artist\n1923-24 Attends Art Students’ League in New York\n1924 Leaves art school\n1924 Marries first wife, Adeline Day\n1927 First one-person exhibition held at The Modern Gallery, San Francisco\n1928 First child, Samuel born\n1930 Daughter Anne born\n1934 Commissioned to Paint Coit Tower mural, San Francisco\n1940 Studies ship drafting and worked as a ship drafter during World War II\n1942 Serves as air raid warden in Mill Valley, CA\n1949 Divorces his first wife\n1950 Teaches at California School of Fine Arts, San Francisco\n1951 Marries second wife, sculptor Blanche Phillips\n1951 Moves to Mexico\n1951 Paints The Rape of the Earth communicating his eco-friendly stance\n1953-1965 Illustrates for Scientific American magazine\n1958 Teaches at Pratt Institute Art School, Brooklyn, NY\n1965 Moves to Hydra, Greece\n1967 Moves to London\n1970 Returns to California\n1979 Blanche Phillips dies\n1980 Marries Mary McMahon Williams\n1999 Died in his sleep at home San Francisco, California\nCalifornia Palace of the Legion of Honor, CA\nCity of San Francisco, CA\nIBM Building, New York, NY\nThe Oakland Museum, CA\nThe Phillips Collection, Washington D.C.\nSan Francisco Museum of Modern Art, CA\nSecurity Pacific National Bank Headquarters, Los Angeles, CA\nSpringfield Museum of Fine Arts\nUniversity of Utah, UT\n1927 Modern Gallery, San Francisco, CA\n1928 Beaux Arts Gallery, San Francisco, CA\n1928 East-West Gallery, San Francisco, CA\n1928-51 San Franciso Art Association, CA\n1935 Paul Elder Gallery, San Francisco, CA\n1936 Cincinnati Art Museum, OH\n1936 Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA\n1939 Golden Gate International Exposition, Department of Fine Arts, Treasure Island, CA\n1939 Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA\n1941 Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, PA\n1943 Corcoran Gallery, Washington D.C.\n1943 M. H. de Young Memorial Museum, San Francisco, CA\n1946-47 Whitney Museum, NY\n1947 Rotunda Gallery, City of Paris, San Francisco, CA\n1952 Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, PA\n1956 Santa Barbara Museum of Art, CA\n1973 Capricorn Asunder Gallery, San Francisco, CA\n1974 Lawson Galleries, San Francisco, CA\n1976 de Saisset Art Gallery and Museum, CA\n1982 San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Rental Gallery, San Francisco, CA\n1983 California Academy of Sciences, CA\n1983 Monterey Museum of Art, CA\n1986 Charles Campbell Gallery, San Francisco, CA\n1987 Martina Hamilton Gallery, NY\n1988 Oakland Museum, CA\n1989 Tobey C. Moss Gallery, CA\n1991 M. H. de Young Memorial Museum, San Francisco, CA\n1992 Tobey C. Moss Gallery, CA\n1993 Tobey C. Moss Gallery, CA\nCalifornia Society of Mural Painters’ and Writers’ and Artists’ Union\nCarmel Art Association\nClub Beaux Arts\nSan Francisco Art Association\nSociety of Mural Painters\nMarin Society of Artists\nMonterey John Reed Club\nAnne Bremer Memorial Award for Painting, San Francisco Art Association\nFirst Prize, Pepsi-Cola Annual “Portrait of America”\nFirst Prize, San Francisco Art Association\nAward, City of San Francisco Art Festival\nCitation for Merit, Society of Illustrators, New York\n- 1. Aldrich, Linda. “John Langley Howard.” American Scene Painting: California, 1930s and 1940s. Irvine, Westphal Publishing: 1991.\n- 2. Hailey, Gene. “John Langley Howard…Biography and Works.” California Art Research Monographs, v. 17, p.54-92. San Francisco: Works Progress Administration: 1936-1937.\n- 3. Moss, Stacey. The Howards, First Family of Bay Area Modernism. Oakland Museum: 1988.\n- 4. Nash, Steven A. Facing Eden: 100 Years of Landscape Art in Bay Area. University of California Press: 1995.\nIX. WORKS FOR SALE BY THIS ARTIST"}
{"text": "June 22, 1976. North Atlantic. At 21:13 GMT a pale orange glow behind a bank of towering cumulus to the west was observed. Two minutes later a white disc was observed while the glow from behind the cloud persisted.\nHigh probability that this may have been caused by interferometry using 3-dimensional artificial scalar wave? Fourier expansions? as the interferers.\nMarine Observer. 47(256), Apr. 1977. p. 66-68.\n\"Unidentified phenomenon, off Barbados, West Indies.\"\nAugust 22, 1969. West Indies. Luminous area bearing 310 degrees grew in size and rose in altitude, then turned into an arch or crescent.\nHigh probability that this may have been caused by interferometry using artificial scalar wave? ((Fourier expansions.))\nMarine Observer. 40(229), July, 1970. p. 107-108.\n\"Optical phenomenon: Caribbean Sea; Western North Atlantic.\"\nMar. 20, 1969. Caribbean Sea and Western North Atlantic. At 23:15 GMT, a semicircle of bright, milky-white light became visible in the western sky and rapidly expanded upward and outward during the next 10 minutes, dimming as it expanded.\nHigh probability that this may be caused by interferometry using artificial scalar wave? Fourier expansions?.\nMarine Observer, 40(227), Jan. 1970. p.17; p. 17-18.\n7B.21 - Electricity\n13.06 - Triple Currents of Electricity\n14.35 - Teslas 3 6 and 9\n((16.04 - Nikola Nikola Tesla describing what electricity is))\n16.07 - Electricity is a Polar Exchange\n16.10 - Positive Electricity\n16.16 - Negative Electricity - Russell\n16.17 - Negative Electricity - Tesla\n16.29 - Triple Currents of Electricity\n((Figure 16.04.05 and Figure 16.04.06 - Nikola Nikola Tesla and Lord Kelvin))\nPart 16 - Electricity and Magnetism\nTesla - Electricity from Space\nWhat Electricity Is - Bloomfield Moore\nPage last modified on Wednesday 19 of May, 2010 05:23:05 MDT"}
{"text": "Freighter (or barge) was the term given to any spacecraft that was used to transport freight or cargo (such as parts and supplies). Both legitimate businesspersons and smugglers could be found captaining such transports. Freighters were needed from the time space travel began because of the need for supplies to all reaches of the galaxy. Freighters usually traveled with hyperdrives because people would often pay more for quick delivery.\nFor obvious reasons, freighters were used mainly for trade. Although very few fought in great battles, many freighters did see action. Smugglers and legitimate traders alike had some tangles now and then, but freighters were often armed and shielded so that they could resist attempts on their cargo.\nSmuggling was a very prominent criminal fringe activity in the galaxy that involved the transportation of contraband between planets. To do this, a freighter generally of small size such as the Millennium Falcon, was required to transport the contraband past planetary security forces. Some examples of contraband include spice, blasters and medical supplies.\nSmugglers often added upgrades to their ships so that they could beat competitors and outwit planetary security forces. Almost every smugglers vessel had improved light speed and sub-light speed drives for increased speed as well as boosted weapons systems to fight their way out of tough situations. Another of the most prevalent modifications to a smugglers freighter were numerous secret compartments to hide contraband from security checks while legitimate cargo occupied the cargo bays. On the Millennium Falcon, these consisted of removable floor plates.\nSome freighters became so heavily modified that the mess of cross wired and non traditional parts prevented starship mechanics from working on them effectively. The smugglers themselves were therefore required to have a detailed knowledge of freighter mechanics and electronics to be able to keep their vessels in working order. Most smugglers preferred it this way as they didn't trust anyone tampering with their prized possessions.\nMost smugglers freighters required a crew of more than one and as such most smugglers hired a copilot, such as Chewbacca on the Millennium Falcon or the droid LE-BO2D9 aboard the Outrider. To a smuggler, their freighter was everything; their job, their home, their lives. Many smugglers lived in their freighters as they had no terrestrial home.\n- Star Wars: The Old Republic\n- Tempest Feud\n- The Clone Wars: Decide Your Destiny: Crisis on Coruscant\n- \"The Heart\"\n- \"Maze Run\"—Star Wars Insider 131\n- Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (First appearance)\n- Choices of One\n- Star Wars: Empire at War\n- Star Wars: Empire at War: Forces of Corruption\n- \"Sandbound on Tatooine\" — Star Wars Galaxy 10\n- \"Slaying Dragons\"—Star Wars Adventure Journal 9\n- Slave Ship\n- Hard Merchandise\n- The New Rebellion\n- Vision of the Future\n- Emissary of the Void\n- Force Heretic I: Remnant\n- X-Wing Miniatures Mission 4: Den of Thieves\nIn other languages\n- freighter on Wikipedia"}
{"text": "Constantinople AgreementArticle Free Pass\nConstantinople Agreement, (March 18, 1915), secret World War I agreement between Russia, Britain, and France for the postwar partition of the Ottoman Empire. It promised to satisfy Russia’s long-standing designs on the Turkish Straits by giving Russia Constantinople (Istanbul), together with a portion of the hinterland on either coast in Thrace and Asia Minor. Constantinople, however, was to be a free port. In return, Russia consented to British and French plans for territories or for spheres of influence in new Muslim states in the Middle Eastern parts of the Ottoman Empire. This first of a series of secret treaties on the “Turkish question” was never carried out because the Dardanelles campaign failed and because, when the British navy finally did reach Istanbul in 1918, Russia had made a separate peace with Germany and declared itself the enemy of all bourgeois states, France and Britain prominent among them.\nWhat made you want to look up \"Constantinople Agreement\"? Please share what surprised you most..."}
{"text": "A new tool to identify the calls of bat species could help conservation efforts.\nBecause bats are nocturnal and difficult to observe or catch, the most effective way to study them is to monitor their echolocation calls. These sounds are emitted in order to hear the echo bouncing back from surfaces around the bats, allowing them to navigate, hunt and communicate.\nMany different measurements can be taken from each call, such as its minimum and maximum frequency, or how quickly the frequency changes during the call, and these measurements are used to help identify the species of bat.\nHowever, a paper by an international team of researchers, published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, asserts that poor standardisation of acoustic monitoring limits scientists’ ability to collate data.\nKate Jones, chairwoman of the UK-based Bat Conservation Trust\ntold the BBC that “without using the same identification methods everywhere, we cannot form reliable conclusions about how bat populations are doing and whether their distribution is changing.\n\"Because many bats migrate between different European countries, we need to monitor bats at a European - as well as country - scale.”\nThe team selected 1,350 calls from 34 different European bat species from EchoBank, a global echolocation library containing more than 200,000 bat call recordings. This raw data has allowed them to develop the identification tool, iBatsID\n, which can identify 34 out of 45 species of bats.\nThis free online tool works anywhere in Europe, and its creators claim can identify most species correctly more than 80% of the time.\nThere are 18 species of bat residing in the UK, including the common pipistrelle and greater horseshoe bat.\nMonitoring bats is vital not just to this species, but also to the whole ecosystem. Bats are extremely sensitive to changes in their environment, so if bat populations are declining, it can be an indication that other species might be affected in the future."}
{"text": "8. Scurrula buddleioides (Desrousseaux) G. Don, Gen. Hist. 3: 421. 1834.\n滇藏梨果寄生 dian zang li guo ji sheng\nShrubs 0.5-2 m tall, young branchlets, leaves, and inflorescences with dense short grayish yellow, rarely brown, verticillate and stellate hairs. Branches brownish, glabrous, scattered lenticellate. Leaves opposite; petiole 4-12 mm, pilose; leaf blade ovate, ovate-oblong to oblong, 6-10 × 3.5-8 cm, papery or thinly leathery, abaxial surface minutely tomentose, adaxial surface glabrous, lateral veins 4 or 5 pairs, base obtuse to rounded, apex acute. Racemes 2-5-fascicled, axillary, sometimes at leafless nodes, 3-5(-7)-flowered; peduncle and rachis 1.5-5 mm, brownish or grayish yellow tomentose. Flowers densely alternate; bracts ovate, ca. 1 mm. Pedicel 1-1.5 mm. Calyx pyriform, 2-3 mm, limb annular, ciliate. Mature bud tubular, 1.5-2 cm, tip ellipsoid. Corolla red, slightly curved and inflated, tomentose, lobes lanceolate, ca. 5 mm, reflexed. Style red; stigma subcapitate. Berry pyriform, 8-10 × 3.5-4 mm, pilose, base tapering into stalk. Fl. and fr. Jan-Dec.\nForests, thickets, mountain slopes, valleys; 1100-2200 m. Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan [India].\nRecorded hosts include species of Caprifoliaceae, Coriariaceae, Fagaceae, Moraceae, Rosaceae, Rutaceae, and Tiliaceae."}
{"text": "The length of amyloid fibrils found in diseases such as Alzheimer and Parkinson appears to play a role in the degree of their toxicity, according to researchers at the University of Leeds. Their findings are published in The Journal of Biological Chemistry in a paper titled “Fibril Fragmentation Enhances Amyloid Cytotoxicity.”\nSheena Radford, Ph.D., and colleagues systematically analyzed the effects of fragmentation on three of the 30 or so proteins that form amyloid in human diseases. Their results showed that in addition to the expected relationship between fragmentation and the ability to seed, the length of fibrils also correlated with their ability to disrupt membranes and reduce cell viability. This was evident even when there were no other changes in molecular architecture.\nCo-author, Eric Hewitt, Ph.D., says that while the findings provide scientists with unexpected new insights for the development of therapeutics against amyloid deposit-related diseases, the next stage of research will involve looking at a greater numbers of the proteins that form amyloid fibrils. “We anticipate that when we look at amyloid fibers formed from other proteins, they may well follow the same rules.”\n“It may be that because they’re smaller it’s easier for them to infiltrate cells,” Dr. Hewitt suggests. “We’ve observed them killing cells, but we’re not sure yet exactly how they do it. Nor do we know whether these short fibers form naturally when amyloid fibers assemble or whether some molecular process makes them disassemble or fragment into shorter fibers. These are our next big challenges.”"}
{"text": "People vary in their reactions to mosquito bites. Most people develop itchy, raised bumps on the skin that last several days. No treatment is necessary, but calamine lotion or over-the-counter hydrocortisone cream can reduce itching.\nA few people have a significant allergy to mosquito bites. The bites can result in what’s called a large local reaction: swelling, blistering, itching, and pain affecting a wide area of the body (such as an entire arm or leg). Oral antihistamines like cetirizine (Zyrtec), diphenhydramine (Benadryl), or hydroxyzine (Atarax, Vistaril) can help ease itching. Topical hydrocortisone may also help.\nRarely, people with a severe allergy to mosquito bites develop anaphylaxis, a whole-body life-threatening allergic reaction. Symptoms of anaphylaxis include:\n• Itching or rash, especially hives, in areas of skin away from the bite.\n• Hoarseness or shortness of breath.\nAnaphylaxis requires emergency medical attention. People who have had anaphylaxis-like symptoms previously should always have injectable epinephrine (an Epi-Pen) nearby.\nThis answer should not be considered medical advice...This answer should not be considered medical advice and should not take the place of a doctor’s visit. Please see the bottom of the page for more information or visit our Terms and Conditions.\nThanks for your feedback.\n37 of 42 found this helpful"}
{"text": "These LEDs are connected to a thermistor that’s running just a little bit hotter than the ambient room temperature. So, by blowing on the thermistor, the birthday boy or girl is cooling it down, thus increasing the resistence. The microcontroller senses this and turns off a few of the LEDs as a result. Make one of these guys and you’ll never again have to worry about melted wax on your cake. For detailed instructions, head on over to Instructables."}
{"text": "This tutorial shows how to send modifications of code in the right way: by using patches.\nThe word developer is used here for someone having a KDE SVN account.\nWe suppose that you have modified some code in KDE and that you are ready to share it. First a few important points:\nNow you have the modification as a source file. Sending the source file will not be helpful, as probably someone else has done other modifications to the original file in the meantime. So your modified file could not replace it.\nThat is why patches exist. Patches list the modifications, the line numbers and a few other useful information to be able to put that patch back into the existing code. (This process is called \"patching\" or also \"applying a patch.\")\nThe main tool for creating patches is a tool called diff, which makes the difference between two files. This tool has a mode called unified diff, which KDE developers use. Unified diffs have not just the difference between the file but also the neighborhood around the differences. That allows to patch even if the line numbers are not the same anymore.\nThe most simple patch is created between the modified file (here called source.cpp) and the non-modified version of the file (here called source.cpp.orig.)\ndiff -u -p source.cpp.orig source.cpp\nThat lists the difference between the two files in the unified diff format (and with function name information if possible.) However it only displays it to screen, which is of course not the goal. So you need to redirect the output.\ndiff -u -p source.cpp.orig source.cpp > ~/patch.diff\n~/patch.diff is here an example and you can create the file where you prefer with the name that you prefer. (You will soon find out that it is probably not a good idea to create a patch where the source is.)\nBut normally, you do not just change one file and you do not keep the original version around to be able to make the difference later. But here too, there is a solution.\nThe program svn, which is used on the command line interact with the SVN server, has a diff function too: svn diff.\nYou can run it like this and it will give you the difference of the current directory and all sub-directories below it. Of course, here too, you want to redirect the output.\nsvn diff > ~/patch.diff\nThere are useful variants too (shown here without redirection)\nNote: even if svn can make the difference of another directory (svn diff mydirectory), it is not recommended to do it for a patch that should be applied again. (The problem is that the person that will apply the patch will have to be more careful about how he applies it.)\nNote: for simple diff, like those shown in the examples above, svn diff can be used offline, therefore without an active connection to the KDE SVN server. This is possible, as svn keeps a copy of the original files locally. (This feature is part of the design of SVN.)\nBy default, svn diff does not have a feature like the -p parameter of diff. But svn allows that an external diff program is called, so you can call diff:\nsvn diff --diff-cmd diff --extensions \"-u -p\"\nThe procedures described above work very well with text files, for example C++ source code. However they do not work with binary files, as diff is not made to handle them. And even if SVN can internally store binary differences, svn diff is not prepared to do anything similar yet, mainly because it currently uses the unified diff format only, which is not meant for binary data.\nTherefore, unfortunately, there is little choice but to attach binary files separately from the patch, of course attached in the same email.\nFirst, you need to make svn aware of files you have added.\nsvn add path/to/new/file /path/to/another/new/file\nThen run svn diff as before.\nNote that if you do svn revert, for example, the files you created will NOT be deleted by svn - but svn will no longer care about them (so they won't show up when you do svn diff, for example). You will have to rm them manually.\n(TODO: are there any other issues with adding new files if you don't have commit access?)\nNow you are ready to share the patch. If your patch fixes a bug from KDE Bugs, then the easiest way is to attach it there, see next section.\nThe main way of sharing a patch is to email to a mailing list. But be careful not to send big patches to a mailing list, a few 10KB is the limit.\nIf you find that the patch is too big to send to a mailing list, the best is to create a bug report in KDE Bugs and to attach the patch there, after having created the bug report.\nAnother possibility, however seldom used, is to post the patch on a public Web server (be it by HTTP or FTP) and to send an email to the mailing list, telling that the patch is waiting there.\nAnother variant is to ask on the mailing list which developer is ready to get a big patch. (Try to give its size and ask if you should send it compressed, for example by bzip2.)\nA last variant, if you know exactly which developer will process the patch and that you know or that you suppose that he currently has time, is to send the patch to a developer directly. (But here too, be careful if your patch is big. Some KDE developers have still analog modems.)\nIn this section we assume that you have chosen to add your patch to an existing KDE bug or that you have created a bug report just for your patch.\nEven if this tutorial is more meant to send patches to a mailing list, most of it can be applied to adding a patch to KDE Bugs.\nYou have two ways to do it:\nTo send an email to a bug report, you can use an email address of the form firstname.lastname@example.org where 12345 is the bug number. Please be sure to attach your patch and not to have it inlined in your text. (If it is inlined, it would be corrupted by KDE Bugs, as HTML does not respect spaces.)\nNote: if you send an email to KDE Bugs, be careful to use as sender the same email address as your login email address in KDE Bugs. Otherwise KDE Bugs will reject your email.\nNote: if you create a new bug report just for your patch, be careful that you cannot attach a patch directly when creating a new bug. However as soon as the new bug is created, you can then attach files, one-by-one, therefore also patches.\nWarning: sometimes your patch will be forgotten because the developers do not always closely monitor the bug database. In this case, try sending your patch by email as described below. If that also does not help, you can always talk to the developers on IRC\nAssuming that you have chosen to send the patch to a mailing list, you might ask yourself: to which one?\nThe best destination for patches is the corresponding developer mailing list.\nIn case of doubt, you can send any patch for KDE to the kde-devel mailing list. (However with an increased risk that you would miss the right developer.)\nOf course, if you know exactly which developer will process the patch and that you know or that you suppose that he currently has time, then you can send the patch to him directly.\nNow you have a patch redirected into a file (for this example called patch.diff), you are ready to send it by email. But the first question: where?\nNow that you have entered an email address, a good practice is to attach the patch to your file before writing anything else in the email. So you will not forget to attach it.\nA little note here: yes, in KDE (unlike for the Linux Kernel for example), we prefer to have the patches sent as attachments.\nNow you are ready to write the rest of the email. Please think of a title that matches your patch. (Think of having to find it again in the archives in a few months or even years.) A good habit is to precede the title by [PATCH]. So for example a title could be [PATCH] Fix backup files.\nAs for the body of the email, please tell to which file or directory your patch applies. For example for a file: The attached patch applies to the file koffice/kword/kwdoc.cpp or for a directory: The attached patch applies to the directory koffice/kword. This help the developers to have an overview of which code has been modified. Also tell for which branch it is meant, for example for trunk.\nThen tell what your patch does. If it fixes a bug, then please give the bug number too. If the bug was not registered in KDE Bugs, then please describe instead the bug that is fixed. Similarly, if you know that the patch fixes a bug introduced from a precise SVN revision, please add the revision number.\nTell also what could be useful to the developers, for example if you could not completely test the patch (and why), if you need help to finish fixing the code or if it is a quick&dirty solution that should be fixed better in long-term.\nNow check the email again to see if you have not forgotten anything (especially to attach the patch) and you can send the email.\nOne popular way of submitting patches is KDE's reviewboard. A big advantage over using the bugtracker of KDE is that the patches are less likely to be forgotten here. Also, the reviewboard allows inline review of diffs and other gimmicks.\nFirst you need to check if the project you've created the patch for is actually using reviewboard. For this, go to the groups section and see if the project's group is listed there. If it is listed there, you should use the reviewboard, otherwise send the patch by other means.\nFor sending a patch, you first need to register. Then simply click New Review Request and fill out the form. The most important parts of the form are:\nAfter you completed the form, a notification mail will be sent to the developers and they will answer you.\nNow you have to wait that a developer reacts on your patch. (If you are not subscribed to the mailing lists where you have sent the patch, then monitor the mailing list archives] for such a message.)\nThe reaction is normally one of the following:\nThe first case is when nobody has answered. That perhaps means that you have chosen the wrong mailing list. Perhaps you have not explained correctly what the patch fixes or you have given a title that is not precise enough. If this happens, the developer might have overlooked the patch. Perhaps the developer that should have answered has not any time currently. (That too happens unfortunately.) The best is to try to work a little more on the patch, make a better description and try again a second time, perhaps to another mailing list or to use KDE Bugs instead.\nIf the developer tells you that your patch conflicts with changes that he is currently doing, you could probably not do much against it. Maybe you can discuss with him how you can effectively work with him on this piece of code.\nIf your patch was not accepted, you could work further on it. Probably you should discuss the problem on the mailing list to know in which direction you should work further.\nIf a developer wants a few changes, then work on the code to make the changes according to the critic. If you need help because you do not understand how to do the needed change, then ask it on the mailing list.\nIf your patch was accepted, congratulations! :)"}
{"text": "The authoritative source of information about all types of bottled waters, IBWA members include U.S. and International bottlers, distributors and suppliers. IBWA represents our industry’s uncompromising commitment to the safety and availability of bottled water worldwide.\nBottled water companies work hard to protect the environment, and play an important role in promoting recycling of plastic containers and groundwater management.\nThe bottled water industry is one of thousands of food, beverage and commercial water users. Bottled Water companies actively support comprehensive ground water management practices that are science-based, treat all users equitably, multi-jurisdictional, and provide for future needs of this important resource. Learn more.\nBottled water is a safe, healthy, and convenient packaged food product, which is comprehensively regulated at both the federal and state level.\nStrictly regulated as a packaged food product by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), bottled water is a safe, refreshing, convenient, and consistently reliable beverage choice. Did you know that by mandate of federal law, the FDA regulations governing the safety and quality of bottled water must be as stringent as the EPA regulations which govern tap water? Learn more.\nMYTH: Bottled water isn't as regulated as tap water.\nFACT: By federal law, the FDA regulations governing the safety and quality of bottled water must be as stringent as the EPA regulations which govern tap water.\nTo suggest in any way that bottled water is less stringently regulated than tap water is simply not true..."}
{"text": "Started conversation May 4, 2004\nIt's incorrect to say that \"gyratory system\" is just the name for a roundabout that has got too big for its boots. In fact it's the original term which was soon displaced when they became common.\nI'm not sure if the term \"gyratory circus\" was ever really used. There are a number of junctions in London known as circuses after the circular range of buildings around them. This was a particularly 18th century fashion, so of course the most famously beautiful one is in Bath.\nThe OED says of \"gyratory\":\nApplied to a system of directing road traffic round a roundabout or through a system of one-way streets to avoid the need for one line of traffic to intersect another.\n1909 Westm. Gaz. 7 Aug. 4/2 The gyratory principle, by which vehicles are directed into circular lines ingeniously devised to avoid intersection. 1926 Rep. Comm. Police Metropolis, 1925 16 in Parl. Papers (Cmd. 2660) XV. 239 Gyratory systems for the circulation of traffic, after years of discussion, reached the point of practical demonstration this year. 1928 Observer 5 Feb. 13/7 Now that every week dedicates a new bunch of streets to the Gyratory System. 1966 Guardian 8 Sept. 5/4 A new gyratory road system to ease traffic congestion..is to be built..at Stretford.\nAnd of \"roundabout\":\nA junction at which traffic moves one way round a central island. Cf. RONDPOINT b, ROTARY n. 3.\n1927 Glasgow Herald 3 Jan. 7/2 There is only one draw~back to the roundabout, and that is the inconvenience caused to pedestrians. 1937 Times 13 Apr. (British Motor No.) p. viii/1 Roundabouts..have the advantage of keeping vehicles on the move. 1947 Daily Mail 22 May 3/4 Removal of the Mansion House to make room for a big round-about. 1955 Times 2 Aug. 9/7 Makeshift tactics are particularly evident in the proposed treatment at Hyde Park Corner which includes an extremely complicated roundabout. 1967 Listener 28 Sept. 398/1 People make only occasional use of their speedometer..on such critical occasions as the approach to roundabouts. 1977 Belfast Tel. 14 Feb. 5/9, 12 shots were fired at an armoured police vehicle near the roundabout at Narrow~water Castle.\nAnd of \"circus\":\nA circular range of houses. Also, a traffic roundabout. Often in proper names as Oxford Circus, Regent Circus.\n1714 POPE Rape Lock IV. 117 Sooner shall Grass in Hide-Park Circus grow. 1766 ANSTEY Bath Guide II. ix. 57 To breathe a purer Air In the Circus or the Square. 1771 SMOLLETT Humph. Cl. 23 Apr., The same artist who planned the Circus has likewise projected a crescent [at Bath]. Ibid. The Circus is a pretty bauble..and looks like Vespasian's amphitheatre turned outside in. 1794 Looker-on No. 89 The squares and circuses are no longer the only scenes of dignified dissipation. 1898 Tit-Bits 15 Jan. 300/3 Bridges, of light and tasty design, across all the main thoroughfares, and at the various ‘circuses’ and cross roads.\nPosted Sep 2, 2004\nI'm a little confused. The definitions you gave seem to support the idea that there *is* a difference between a roundabout and a gyratory.\nThose definitions say that a roundabout is a junction, while a gyratory is a particular kind of one way system.\nOf course a roundabout could be viewed as a very small one way system, so you could argue that all roundabouts are gyratories. But not all gyratories are really roundabouts according to the definitions you produced. (Specifically, a gyratory consisting of more than one junction is, by definition, not a roundabout.)\nBut in practice, isn't the common usage pretty much as I suggested? I'm only actually aware of two road systems commonly referred to as gyratories - one is the subject of this article, and the other is in Reading. And both of them are distinctly on the large side. In particular, they both have multiple junctions.\nSo the common usage of the word seems to be to describe overgrown roundabouts (and more specifically, multi-junction ones) in practice.\nCan you point to any counterexamples in real use? I'm just going on the gyratories I know - I've not done any exhaustive research on gryatories across the nation.\nPosted Aug 12, 2005\nThere is a gyratory system at Park Gate near Southampton that consists of a pair of roundabouts connected by a pair of one way carriage ways.\nPosted Aug 12, 2005\nI have to correct my previous entry because, while I have heard it called the Park Gate gyratory system, it is not recorded as a gyratory system on Hampshire's register of adopted roads. It is recorded as the following separate components... Botley Road roundabout, the Bridge Road dual carriageway and the Brook Lane roundabout.\nHowever, I find there is a gyratory system just east of Park Gate on the A27 at Titchfield and this is a large roundabout with traffic lights and many junctions.\nComplain about this post"}
{"text": "A notch or groove cut into a piece of material to allow two sections to be combined with a flush joint.\nA woodcutting tool used to cut an L-shaped groove into a piece of material. see also Rabbet\nA strong current in a stream or river.\n1. An enclosed metal channel, usually fire-resistant, installed in a building to hold electrical wiring.\n2. A chute that directs the flow of a material to a specific location in a device.\nA channel holding electrical wiring that is designed to look like a piece of decorative trim or molding.\nA channel holding electrical wiring designed to be installed on a floor. The unit has a low profile and sloping edges to facilitate walking over it.\nThe illegal practice of directing certain races away from some neighborhoods and into others.\n1. A storage unit designed to hold various objects.\n2. To cause a structure to shift so that it is out of plumb.\n1. A force that causes a structure to shift so that it is out of plumb.\n2. Installation of bricks or other masonry units so that each course is stepped back from the previous one.\nStraight-line outward movement from a circle's center.\nA power saw with a circular blade that is mounted on a moveable arm. The arm is lowered or raised to move the cutting blade to or away from the material to be cut.\nA drill press with a moveable arm that can be swung to various positions on the work table.\nAn HVAC system with ductwork running outward from a central heating and/or cooling unit.\nThe surface of a log cut down the center.\nHeating system where electrical or hot-water heating elements are installed in a concrete slab floor.\nsee Radiant heating\nUse of radiation to generate heat such as with baseboard heating where the circulating hot water is radiated through conduction by thin metal fins at the bottom of the wall. The room is warmed by air circulating around the heating unit using convention.\nHeating unit that is exposed and which transfers heat generated by hot eater or steam through conduction. When the air circulates around the radiator using convention, the room is heated.\nThe distance from the center of a circle to the circumference. One-half of the diameter of a circle.\nA tool used for checking the radii of convex and concave surfaces.\nRadioactive gas that seeps into some homes, from the ground, through sump pumps, cracks in the foundation, etc., it is considered a health hazard.\nAny of the beams that slope from the ridge of a roof to the eaves to serve as support for the roof.\nA metal fastener attached to the top plate of a wall to hold a rafter.\nA rafter parallel to the gable end that projects out to form an overhang.\nThe end of a rafter extending beyond the line of a building's walls.\nA guide used when cutting rafters.\nThe top plate of a building's walls. The rafters rest on the rafter plate.\nThe vertical cut made into a rafter so it will rest on the wall plate. see also Rafter Seat Cut\nThe horizontal cut made into a rafter so it will rest on the wall plate. see also Rafter Plumb Cut\nCutting a section off of the end of a rafter equal to one-half of the thickness of the ridge board (the rafter on the other side of the ridge board receives a similar cut).\nTables, often printed on a framing square, containing the data required to calculate angles and lengths of rafters for various roof types.\nsee Rafter Overhang\nA horizontal structure used as a handhold or to block off a drop or other unsafe area.\n1. Continuous metal bars on which wheeled vehicles travel (i.e. railroads).\n2. The horizontal sections of a panel door.\n3. The top and bottom sections of a window sash.\nWaterproof cap, also called weatherheads, mast heads or entrance caps, which is placed at the upper part of an electrical mast at the point where the wires are run to the inside electrical meter. Wires hang from the pole to the entrance cap so that the entrance cap is not the low point in the downhill run from the pole because water will run to the low point before dripping to the ground. Wires enter the entrance cap at an upward angle through a tight insulator. Water is further stopped from getting through the entrance cap because of this entrance angle.\nWood where the fibers have swelled, usually because of becoming wet. Wood is often sanded with the grain raised to achieve an extremely smooth finished surface.\n1. A fork-like tool used for gathering materials (i.e. leaves) or smoothing an area of soil.\n2. A roof overhang on a building's gable end.\n3. An angle between objects.\nA masonry joint where a portion of mortar has been removed, creating a groove between masonry units. A raked joint if often used in brickwork.\nMortgage, most commonly used by the elderly who have substantial equity in their homes. A periodic payment is made to the borrower from the lender thus, increasing the loan balance, causing negative amortization.\nA hydraulically powered piston used for driving a weight.\nA sloping surface used to move from one elevation to another."}
{"text": "What Is Air Pollution?\nin its great magnitude has existed in the 20th century from the\ncoal burning industries of the early century to the fossil burning technology in\nthe new century. The problems of\nair pollution are a major problem for highly developed nations whose large\nindustrial bases and highly developed infrastructures generate much of the air\nEvery year, billions of tonnes of pollutants are released into the\natmosphere; the sources include power plants burning fossil fuels to the effects\nof sunlight on certain natural materials. But\nthe air pollutants released from natural materials pose very little health\nthreat, only the natural radioactive gas radon poses any threat to health.\nSo much of the air pollutants being released into the atmosphere are all\nresults of man’s activities.\nIn the United Kingdom, traffic\nis the major cause of air pollution in British cities. Eighty six percent of families own either one or two\nvehicles. Because of the\nhigh-density population of cities and towns, the number of people exposed to air\npollutants is great. This had led\nto the increased number of people getting chronic diseases over these past years\nsince the car ownership in the UK has nearly trebled. These include asthma and respiratory complaints ranging\nthrough the population demographic from children to elderly people who are most\nat risk. Certainly those who are\nsuffering from asthma will notice the effects more greatly if living in the\ninner city areas or industrial areas or even near by major roads.\nAsthma is already the fourth biggest killer, after heart diseases and\ncancers in the UK and currently, it affects more than three point four million\nIn the past, severe pollution in London during 1952 added with low winds\nand high-pressure air had taken more than four thousand lives and another seven\nhundred in 1962, in what was called the ‘Dark Years’ because of the dense\ndark polluted air.\nis also causing devastation for the environment; many of these causes are by man\nmade gases like sulphur dioxide that results from electric plants burning fossil\nfuels. In the UK, industries and\nutilities that use tall smokestacks by means of removing air pollutants only\nboost them higher into the atmosphere, thereby only reducing the concentration\nat their site.\nThese pollutants are often transported over the North Sea and produce\nadverse effects in western Scandinavia, where sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide\nfrom UK and central Europe are generating acid rain, especially in Norway and\nSweden. The pH level, or relative\nacidity of many of Scandinavian fresh water lakes has been altered dramatically\nby acid rain causing the destruction of entire fish populations.\nIn the UK, acid rain formed by subsequent sulphur dioxide atmospheric\nemissions has lead to acidic erosion in limestone in North Western Scotland and\nmarble in Northern England.\nIn 1998, the\nLondon Metropolitan Police launched the ‘Emissions Controlled Reduction’\nscheme where by traffic police would monitor the amount of pollutants being\nreleased into the air by vehicle exhausts.\nThe plan was for traffic police to stop vehicles randomly on roads\nleading into the city of London, the officer would then measure the amounts of\nair pollutants being released using a CO2 measuring reader fixed in\nthe owner's vehicle's exhaust. If the\nexhaust exceeded the legal amount (based on micrograms of pollutants) the driver\nwould be fined at around twenty-five pounds.\nThe scheme proved unpopular with drivers, especially with those driving\nto work and did little to help improve the city air quality.\nIn Edinburgh, the main causes of bad air quality were from the vast\nnumber of vehicles going through the city centre from west to east.\nIn 1990, the Edinburgh council developed the city by-pass at a cost of\nnearly seventy five million pounds. The\nby-pass was ringed around the outskirts of the city where its main aim was to\nlimit the number of vehicles going through the city centre and divert vehicles\nto use the by-pass in order to reach their destination without going through the\ncity centre. This released much of\nthe congestion within the city but did little very little in solving the\ncity’s overall air quality.\nTo further decrease the number of vehicles on the roads, the government\npromoted public transport. Over two\nhundred million pounds was devoted in developing the country's public transport\nnetwork. Much of which included the development of more bus lanes in\nthe city of London, which increased the pace of bus services.\nIntroduction of gas and electric powered buses took place in Birmingham\nin order to decrease air pollutants emissions around the centre of the city.\nBecause children and the elderly are at most risk to chronic diseases,\nsuch as asthma, major diversion roads were build in order to divert the vehicles\naway from residential areas, schools and elderly institutions.\nIn some councils, trees were planted along the sides of the road in order\nto decrease the amount of carbon monoxide emissions.\nOther ways of improving the air quality included the restriction on the\namounts of air pollutants being released into the atmosphere by industries;\ntough regulations were placed whereby if the air quality dropped below a certain\nlevel around the industries area, a heavy penalty would be wavered against them.\n© Copyright 2000, Andrew Wan."}
{"text": "A crowd awaits a ship at Station Pier, Port Melbourne.\nSource: Italian Historical Society - Co.As.It.\nFind out why this landmark has become such an evocative symbol of Victoria's immigration history.\nStation Pier is one of Australia's longest operating passenger piers. It holds iconic significance in Victoria's heritage, and is particularly significant to Victoria's post-war immigrants for whom it is an ongoing symbol of their arrival and the start of their new life.\nThe exhibition provides an historical overview of Station Pier, including its early days as Railway Pier in the 1850s, and its upgrade in the 1920s in response to the growing needs of the city and port of Melbourne."}
{"text": "a combination of one or more elementary reaction steps which start with the appropriate reactants and end with the appropriate product(s)\na description of the path, or sequence of steps, by which a reaction occurs\na description of the path that a reaction takes\na detailed description of how a chemical reaction occurs\na detailed description of the way a reaction occurs and is based on the known experimental data about the reaction\na detailed (theoretical) description of how we think the chemical reaction proceeds\na series of elementary reactions or elementary steps that lead from reactants to products\na set of steps at the molecular level\na step by step description of the separate steps that occur during a chemical reaction\na stepwise description of the reaction path\nmechanism. A list of all elementary reactions that occur in the course of an overall chemical reaction.\nIn chemistry, a reaction mechanism is the step by step sequence of elementary reactions by which overall chemical change occurs."}
{"text": "It is fair to say that the struggle for power in the USSR between 1924 and 1929 was partially to do with the economic policy because the way in which different members of the Communist Party treated the economic policy depended how much support they got from fellow members of the Communist party. However, there were other factors involved such as a lack of democratic elections, the nature of leadership and fear of a divided party.\nYou could argue that the struggle for power was due to the differing economic policies, this is because different key players in the power struggle wanted different things. For example, the Bukharinite model wanted gradualism – to allow market forces to drive the economy forward and so letting the peasants gain wealth individually. He believed this would lead to a prosperous consumer market and heavy industry that is centrally controlled, planned economy run by a proletariat dictatorship. This would please the peasantry and results in political and economic growth as well as increased trade. Trotsky and his leftist model agreed that the party must recognise the role of the market forces during the gradual change to socialism. However, in 1926 he became increasingly critical of the gradualist approach and didn’t approve of peasants who had no obligation to sell if the market wasn’t right and therefore wanted a slightly more capitalist approach to the economic policy so that the government had greater control over produce. This created a power struggle because different people wanted different things and approached economic policy in certain ways and whilst Bukharin was trying to ensure the happiness of the public, Trotsky was trying to ensure the wealth and growth of the USSR as a trade nation. Although these two models were important in why there was a power struggle in those years it is not the most important reason.\nSecondly, you could say it... [continues]\nCite This Essay\n(2012, 05). The Struggle for Power in the Ussr. StudyMode.com. Retrieved 05, 2012, from http://www.studymode.com/essays/The-Struggle-For-Power-In-The-994323.html\n\"The Struggle for Power in the Ussr\" StudyMode.com. 05 2012. 05 2012 <http://www.studymode.com/essays/The-Struggle-For-Power-In-The-994323.html>.\n\"The Struggle for Power in the Ussr.\" StudyMode.com. 05, 2012. Accessed 05, 2012. http://www.studymode.com/essays/The-Struggle-For-Power-In-The-994323.html."}
{"text": "Nausea and vomiting - adults\nNausea is the feeling of having an urge to vomit. It is often called being sick to your stomach.\nVomiting or throwing up is forcing the contents of the stomach up through the esophagus and out of the mouth.\nEmesis; Vomiting; Stomach upset; Upset stomach\nMany common problems may cause nausea and vomiting:\nNausea and vomiting may also be early warning signs of more serious medical problems, such as:\nOnce you and your doctor find the cause, you will want to know how to treat your nausea or vomiting\n. You may be asked to take medicine, change your diet, or try other things to make you feel better.\nIt is very important to keep enough fluids in your body. Try drinking frequent, small amounts of clear liquids\nIf you have morning sickness during pregnancy, ask your doctor about the many possible treatments.\nThe following may help treat motion sickness:\n- Lying down\n- Over-the-counter antihistamines (such as Dramamine)\n- Scopolamine prescription skin patches (such as Transderm Scop) are useful for extended trips, such as an ocean voyage. Place the patch 4 - 12 hours before setting sail. Scopolamine is effective but may produce dry mouth, blurred vision, and some drowsiness. Scopolamine is for adults only. It should NOT be given to children.\nCall your health care provider if\nCall 911 or go to an emergency room if:\n- You think vomiting is from poisoning\n- You notice blood or dark, coffee-colored material in the vomit\nCall a health care provider right away or seek medical care if you or another person has:\nBeen vomiting for longer than 24 hours\nBeen unable to keep any fluids down for 12 hours or more\nHeadache or stiff neck\nNot urinated for 8 or more hours\nSevere stomach or belly pain\nVomited three or more times in 1 day\nSigns of dehydration include:\n- Crying without tears\n- Dry mouth\n- Increased thirst\n- Eyes that appear sunken\n- Skin changes -- for example, if you touch or squeeze the skin, it doesn't bounce back the way it usually does\n- Urinating less often or having dark yellow urine\nWhat to expect at your health care provider's office\nYour health care provider will perform a physical examination, and will look for signs of dehydration.\nYour health care provider will ask questions about your symptoms, such as:\n- When did the vomiting begin? How long has it lasted? How often does it occur?\n- Does it occur after you eat, or on an empty stomach?\n- What other symptoms are present -- abdominal pain, fever, diarrhea, or headaches?\n- Are you vomiting blood\n- Are you vomiting anything that looks like coffee grounds?\n- Are you vomiting undigested food?\n- When was the last time you urinated?\nOther questions you may be asked include:\n- Have you been losing weight?\n- Have you been traveling? Where?\n- What medications do you take?\n- Did other people who ate at the same place as you have the same symptoms?\n- Are you pregnant or could you be pregnant?\nThe diagnostic tests may be performed:\nDepending on the cause and how much extra fluids you need, you may have to stay in the hospital or clinic for a period of time. You may need fluids given through your veins (intravenous or IV).\nMalagelada J-R, Malagelada C. Nausea and vomiting. In: Feldman M, Friedman LS, Brandt LJ, eds. Sleisenger & Fordtran's Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease. 9th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2010:chap 14.\nMcquaid K. Approach to the patient with gastrointestinal disease. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Cecil Medicine. 24th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2011:chap 134.\nThis article uses information by permission from Alan Greene, M.D., © Greene Ink, Inc.\nGeorge F. Longstreth, MD, Department of Gastroenterology, Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program, San Diego, California. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc."}
{"text": "Cardio and weight training are two important components of well-balanced fitness plans. Knowing which types of exercises fall into which category can help you construct your workouts more effectively, and can give you more options so you don’t get bored with your workouts. When designing your fitness plan, consider adding some stretching and flexibility training. Simply add a few minutes of stretching at the end of your cardio and weight training workouts.\nCardio, or aerobic, exercises require you to move the large muscle groups in your hips, legs and arms. The movement must be continuous and rhythmic, and you must move for a sustained period. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that adults get at least 2 1/2 hours of moderate-intensity cardio exercise each week. Alternately, you can perform an hour and 15 minutes of vigorous cardio exercise. By regularly performing cardio exercise, you can improve your cardiovascular health, manage your weight more easily and enjoy a sense of well-being.\nExamples of Cardio Exercises\nExamples of cardio exercise include basketball, biking, brisk walking, dancing, jogging, jumping rope, rowing, running, swimming, tennis and water aerobics. Even some household chores -- such as mowing the lawn -- can count as cardio. The intensity with which you perform these activities determines whether they are moderate or vigorous. Moderate-intensity cardio exercises will raise your heart rate and make you breathe faster, while still allowing you to talk. When performing vigorous cardio exercises, you will find it difficult to say more than just a few words before pausing to breathe.\nWeight Training Exercises\nIn weight-training exercises, you generally focus on one muscular group at a time, doing enough repetitions of the exercise to tire the muscles. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that adults do weight-training exercises at least twice a week. Ideally, target all your major muscle groups: chest, shoulders, arms, abdomen, back, hips and legs. By performing weight-training exercises, you can build strength in your muscles, increase the amount of lean muscle in your body, manage your weight more easily and lower your risk of injury.\nExamples of Weight-Training Exercises\nYou can perform weight-training exercises with free weights -- dumbbells and barbells. Examples of these exercises include biceps curls and squats. Weight machines offer other options for weight training. You can perform leg presses, standing calf raises, chest flyes and pull-down exercises on these machines. Other types of weight-training exercises require you to move your own body weight. These include triceps dips, situps and pushups. Although technically not weight-training exercises, resistance band exercises offer more options for strength training. You can perform variations on traditional weight-training exercises -- such as biceps curls, lunges, chest flyes and overhead presses -- with these resistance bands."}
{"text": "Download Full Text (640 KB)\nDecision-making problems in water resources are often associated with multiple objectives and multiple stakeholders. To enable more effective and acceptable decision outcome, it is required that more participation is ensured in the decision making process. This is particularly relevant for flood management problems where the number of stakeholders could be very large. Although application of multi-objective decision-making tools in water resources is very wide, application with the consideration of multiple stakeholders is much more limited. The solution methodologies adapted for multi-objective multi-participant decision problems are generally based on aggregation of decisions obtained for individual decision makers. This approach seems somewhat inadequate when the number of stakeholders is very large, as often is the case in flood management.\nThe present study has been performed to have an overview of existing solution methodologies for multi-objective decision making approaches in water resources. Decision making by single and multiple stakeholders has been considered under both deterministic and uncertain conditions. It has been found that the use of fuzzy set theory to represent various uncertainties associated with decision making situations under multi-objective multiple-participant environment is very promising. Coupled with multi-objective methods (e. g. compromise programming and goal programming), fuzzy approach has also the ability to support group decisions, to reflect collective opinions and conflicting judgments.\nDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of Western Ontario\nLondon, Ontario, Canada\nOverview, Multiple objectives, Multiple stakeholders, Decision-making, Flood management\nCivil and Environmental Engineering\nAkter, Taslima and Simonovic, Slobodan P., \"A General Overview of Multi-objective Multiple-participant Decision Making for Flood Management\" (2002). Water Resources Research Report. Book 4."}
{"text": "The formation of counties was one of the first matters attended to by the Lords Proprietors  after they received their charter in 1663 from King Charles II for the vast tract of land in America he called the province of Carolina. In 1664 the Proprietors formed \"all that parte of the province which lyeth on the north east side or starboard side entering of the river Chowan now named by us Albemarle River together with the Islands and Isletts within tenn leagues thereof\" into a county that they named Albemarle County  for George Monck, the duke of Albemarle, himself one of the Proprietors. This was the site of the first permanent settlement in Carolina. They then divided the new county into four precincts: Currituck , Perquimans , Pasquotank , and Chowan . Albemarle County was subsequently enlarged, and in 1696 the area south of Albemarle Sound was removed from Albemarle and made into a new county, named Bath, which in turn was divided into the precincts of Beaufort , Hyde , Craven  and Carteret .\nThe primary reason for establishing counties (or precincts) was to provide local seats of government where citizens could record documents, such as deeds or wills, and participate in court proceedings. At the same time, the sheriff was provided with a home base from which to fulfill his basic responsibilities of collecting taxes and maintaining law and order.\nBy 1738 Albemarle and Bath Counties had been dissolved and the 14 precincts then in existence became counties, a designation that has remained since the seventeenth century. Throughout the remainder of the colonial period, as settlement spread westward and population increased, older counties were divided and new ones formed. With statehood came an even greater rate of growth, and by 1800 the number had risen to 59 counties covering all of the state. In many cases, the dividing of counties caused heated political controversy, as eastern counties were often divided to maintain that region's majority in the state legislature against expanding representation from the piedmont and mountain regions. Shifts in population continued throughout the nineteenth century and into the twentieth century, resulting in even more counties. Larger counties were divided, and those in turn were sometimes divided yet again, until the seemingly magical figure of 100 was reached in 1911. (For a time, the number of counties was actually greater than 100, but some of these were ceded to Tennessee in 1789 and others were absorbed into other counties or never fully developed.) The number remained at 100, although in 1933 the General Assembly authorized the consolidation of existing counties subject to approval of the electorate. This could have resulted for the first time in a decrease from the 100 county figure, but as of the early 2000s there had been no such consolidations.\nInitially, county government and judicial matters were in the hands of justices of the peace , who formed a body known as the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions . The justices were appointed by the governor, with strong input from the members of the colonial Assembly from the affected county, leaving the average citizen with no say as to who would run the government of the county in which he lived. At first the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions met wherever it was convenient to assemble a quorum, usually in a private home. A 1722 act of the Assembly instructed the justices to pick a site for a permanent seat of government for each precinct, where they were to buy an acre of land and build a courthouse. Whether in the early precinct days, or after the name of the local government entity was changed from precinct to county, the justices had the support of a sheriff for law enforcement, as well as a clerk of court and a register of deeds. Of the three, both the clerk of court and the register of deeds needed to remain in their offices in the courthouse, which left only the sheriff free to travel about the county. Accordingly, he was also designated tax collector, a position sheriffs continued to hold until the latter part of the twentieth century.\nThe general system of county government of the early colonial period, with the appointed members of the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions running things, was carried over into statehood, and little changed until the adoption of the North Carolina Constitution of 1868 . The system called for by the new constitution, known as the Township and County Commissioner Plan, gave control of county government to five commissioners, to be elected at large by the county's voters. In addition, each county was divided into townships whose residents elected two justices to serve as the township's governing body, as well as a three-member school committee and a constable. The new system significantly reduced the General Assembly's control of county government, since the legislators no longer appointed the justices of the peace who made up the county court.\nThe Township and County Commissioner Plan, patterned after one previously adopted in Pennsylvania, did not prove universally popular in North Carolina and lasted less than a decade. At a constitutional convention in 1875, the General Assembly was authorized to change the system, and in the session of 1877 townships were reduced to little more than geographic and administrative subdivisions of the counties. This seriously reduced the authority of county commissioners.\nThe modern system of county government, in which an elected board of commissioners is responsible for managing a county's affairs, including setting the rate and collecting taxes and determining where funds should be expended, dates to the early twentieth century. Periodically after that, the General Assembly  conferred additional authority and responsibility on the county commissioners, until at the end of the century they had been provided with such a wide range of \"home-rule\" statutes that many counties found it impossible to run their greatly expanded business without professional help. This led to the adoption by many counties of the County Manager Plan. Under this plan, commissioners employ a county manager to serve as a sort of chief executive of the county business-in some instances, the largest business in the county-with the manager having certain independent authority, including that of hiring and firing employees.\nAs with other matters, the state determines what sources the counties may tap for income. Traditionally, the real estate  tax has been the primary revenue source for North Carolina counties. However, especially in the last half of the twentieth century, counties were able to prevail on the General Assembly to let them collect from a variety of other sources, among those favored being local sales taxes, land transfer taxes, meals taxes, and occupancy taxes.\nA. Fleming Bell, ed., County Government in North Carolina (3rd ed., 1989).\nDavid LeRoy Corbitt, The Formation of the North Carolina Counties, 1663-1943 (1969).\n1 January 2006 | Stick, David"}
{"text": "European Painting before 1900, Johnson Collection\nTriptych showing scenes from the Martyrdom of Saint Barbara and scenes from the Life of Christ\nMaster of the Laufen High Altarpiece, Austrian (active Salzburg), dated work 1467\nOil and gold on panels\nEW1993-127-2a--cPurchased with the W. P. Wilstach Fund, the George W. Elkins Fund, and Museum funds, 1993\nAs described in The Golden Legend, written in about 1267 by Jacopo da Voragine, Saint Barbara converted to Christianity against the wishes of her pagan father. Locked in a tower by him, she ordered workmen to construct a third window inthe building to symbolize the Christian trinity. Enraged, her father turned her over to the Roman authorities for torture, and when her execution was ordered,he himself beheaded her. The left and right panels on the front of this triptychillustrate episodes from Barbara’s gruesome martyrdom.\nThese graphic depictions are intended to help the viewer equate Barbara’s physical torments with those of Christ, whose crucifixion is depicted in the top center composition. The figures at the top left and right, probably the apostles John and Luke, hold sayings taken from the last words of Christ on the cross, which here apply also to Barbara’s death. The bottom center panel shows Barbara enthroned in heaven, wearing a crown and holding a palm frond as symbols of victory over death. A tower and chalice, her identifying attributes, appear nearby.\nBarbara’s martyrdom is paralleled on the reverse by the resurrected Christ standing in the tomb. The left and right panels of the back, which are movable and can be folded shut to appear on the front, show the angel Gabriel announcing the incarnation of Christ to the Virgin Mary.\nSocial Tags [?]austrian [x] gabriel [x] gold [x] martyr [x] three [x] trinity [x] triptych [x] [Add Your Own Tags]\n* Works in the collection are moved off view for many different reasons. Although gallery locations on the website are updated regularly, there is no guarantee that this object will be on display on the day of your visit."}
{"text": "Vocalisation has been recognised as one of the important modes of animal communication. In one anabantoid fish, the croaking gourami Trichopsis vittata, both sexes produce loud, croaking sounds during agonistic encounters and courtship. It is known that sound emission of this fish is mostly involved with the ritualised portion of the contest, which is likely to convey information between the opponents about their respective strength and status. The sound is produced by a complex mechanism that involves two modified tendons, located behind each pectoral fin. Due to the external position of these soft structures, parasites, sickness, or injury from fights can easily damage the tendons, leading to muteness. Reduction or even loss of the croaking ability may result in a substantial decreasing of the overall fitness. Experiments were designed to test whether or not croaking gouramis can repair damaged tendons and regain fully functional sound producing organs, as well as to evaluate the effect of muting and recovery on the outcomes of agonistic interactions. Fishes were muted by surgically cutting one or both the tendons that connect the \"sonic'' muscle with the fin rays. The occurrence and timing of recovery was evaluated for 30 specimens of T. vittata after surgical muting. Croaking sounds produced by the fish were recorded during staged contests after recovery. Sound from each specimen was previously recorded before and after muting as well, for comparison. The elapsed time of reconnection of each tendon to the relative fin ray was also recorded. Some fishes were found to recover completely within less than 30 days, while others needed up to three months. However, evidence for the beginning of the recovery process was noticed as early as 4 days after operation. Behavioural performance after recovery was normal. Details of sounds produced and changes of behavioural repertoires are discussed (supported by National Organization for Hearing Research, NIMH-58198, Institute of Museum and Library Service-LL90187).\nNicola Novarini, Tomonari Akamatsu & Hong Y. Yan (2002). Effects of muting and recovery on sound production in the croaking gourami Trichopsis vittata (Pisces: Anabantoidei) [abstract]. Bioacoustics 13(2): 202-203"}
{"text": "These are poly-aromatic compounds, insoluble in n-heptane, with a number of carbon atoms greater than 50. The asphalthene content of a crude may be the cause of deposits in inter-changers and/or lines. In fact, the mix of a crude having a high asphalthene content with a paraffinic crude can displace the balance of the asphalthenes, precipitating them. A high asphalthene content ensures that the vacuum pitch will be suitable for producing asphalt.\nASTM D86 distillation is a test that measures the volatility of gasoline, kerosene and diesel.\nBasic Sediment and Water (BSW)\nThe BSW relates to the content of free water (not dissolved) and sediments (mud, sand) in the crude. It is important that its reading is low in order to avoid dirtiness and difficulties during the crude processing, in which the steam produced by the free water can damage the oven. It is reported as a percentage in volume over the crude.\nThis is the weight of the residue remaining after the combustion of a fuel sample. It represents the facility of a heavy fuel to produce particles during combustion.\nThis is the measurement of the mass of a volume. It is expressed in kilograms per liter, or grams per cubic centimeter. Density depends on the temperature as this affects the volume of the substances.\nTemperature at which a liquid stops flowing when cooled, through the precipitation of crystals of solid paraffin.\nThe draining temperature is very important as, in the unloading of paraffinic crudes using sea terminals with underwater pipelines of a certain length, the temperature of the crude can fall below the draining point, creating deposits of wax or solid paraffin in the pipelines, thus obstructing the flow.\nThis is the minimum temperature at which the vapors of a product flash or detonate momentarily when a flame is applied in controlled conditions. It represents the maximum temperature at which a product can be stored or transported in safe conditions.\nThis is the temperature at which the crystals formed during the cooling of a product sample disappear completely when the temperature rises in a controlled way\nThe metals content of a crude, vanadium and nickel, gives us an indication of their content in the heaviest products obtained in the refining. This is important because, for example, the metals in gas oil in vacuum are poison for the catalytic and hydro-cracking catalysts. A high vanadium content or metals in the combustible oil may cause oven and boiler tube breakage problems because they form corrosive products during combustion.\nNumber of cetane\nThis measures the ease with which the spontaneous ignition occurs of diesel oil using a standardized engine and a reference fuel.\nThe cetane rating is determined by making a comparison of the ignition time of a mix of cetane (C16)) and hepta-methyl-nonane (C 15), which has the same delay time in ignition as the fuel being examined. The cetane rating measured is the percentage of the cetane compound in the cetane/hepta-methyl-nonane mix.\nThe C16 has a cetane rating equal to 100 (it is an easily-ignited paraffin) and C15 has a cetane rating equal to 0 (as being a slow-combustion aromatic).\nA high cetane rating represents a high ignition quality or a short delay time between the fuel injection and the start of combustion.\nThe diesel engine uses a high compression ratio to produce the spontaneous ignition of the diesel, instead of a spark as in the case of the internal combustion engine. The compressed air temperature in the diesel engine is sufficiently high to fire the diesel.\nThe lineal paraffins have a high cetane rating and therefore burn well; on the other hand, the aromatics are of a low cetane rating and burn badly, producing deposits of carbon and the production of black smoke. For that reason, high-quality diesel should have an aromatic content compatible with the specified cetane rating.\nThe cetane rating can be calculated based on the volatility (corresponding to the temperature of 50% distilled) and the density of the diesel and is called Calculated Cetane Rating. The reason for using the formula is the high cost of the cetane engine.\nOctane number (NOR)\nThe RVP and NOR are the most important parameters of gasoline quality. The NOR measures the resistance of the gasoline to self-ignition or premature detonation in an engine's functioning conditions.\nSelf-ignition is noted for the hammering or noise produced when the gasoline self-ignites, detonating before the cylinder compresses all the gasoline and air mixture, losing power. The detonation produces sound waves that are detected using special microphones.\nThe octane rating is measured by comparing the noise of the detonation made by a reference fuel mixture in a standardized engine with that for which the fuel examined is made. The reference fuels are iso-octane (2, 2, 4 trimethyl pentane), with an octane rating equal to 100 (high resistance to hammering) and the n-heptane which has an octane rating of zero (very low resistance). The octane rating determined is the percentage in volume of iso-octane in the iso-octane/heptane mixture.\nFuels with a high octane rating have greater resistance to premature detonation than those of a lower octane rating. In addition, fuels with a high octane rating can be used in engines with a high compression ratio, which are more efficient.\nThere are two types of engine for the determination of the octane rating of gasoline. One uses the Research method and the other the Motor method.\nThe Research method represents the behavior of an engine in cities at low and moderate speeds. The Motor method represents situations with fast acceleration, like climbing gradients or overtaking.\nThere is another way of expressing the octane rating of a gasoline which is called Highway Octane. The Highway Octane rating is expressed as the sum of the Research octane and the Motor octane ratings divided by 2. The Highway Octane rating is used in the United States while the Research method is used in Chile.\nReid Vapor Pressure (RVP)\nThe Reid vapor pressure is an empirical test that measures the pressure in pounds per square inch (psi) exercised by the vapors or light components of the crude or of an oil product, in a closed container at a temperature of 100 °F (38 °C).\nA high vapor pressure of the crude tells us that light products are present in it and that they will burn in the torch in the processing if there is no suitable recovery system. In the case of an internal combustion engine, excessive vapor pressure will cause a blockage which will impede the flow of gasoline.\nCrude oil contains salt (NaCI) which comes from the oil fields or the sea water used as ballast by oil tankers. It is necessary to extract the salt with desalination equipment before the crude oil can enter the atmospheric distillation oven in order to avoid corrosion that is produced in the upper part of the atmospheric tower. The salt decomposes and produces chlorhydric acid. It is expressed in grams of salt per cubic meter of crude.\nThe temperature at which some products inflame spontaneously in contact with the air (without flame), probably due to the heat the show oxidation produces, which accumulates, raising the temperature to the inflammation point. Fortunately, the oil distillers have very high self-ignition temperatures and are therefore difficult to achieve; this is 450ºC in gasoline. Oily rags, on the other hand, self-ignite easily and cause fires and so should be suitably destroyed.\nThe ratio of the weight of a substance and the weight of an equal volume of water at the same temperature. In oil, the API specific gravity is used which is measured with hydrometers that float in the liquid. The API grades are read directly on the scale that stands above the liquid at the flotation line point. The API scale arose from the facility of graduating the hydrometer rod uniformly.\n°API =141.5/(specific gravity) -131.5\nThe °API determines whether the crude or product is light or heavy and enables us to calculate the tons of this unloaded. A light crude has an API of 40-50 while a heavy one has 10-24.\nSulfur and the API are the properties with the greatest influence on the price of crude.\nThis is the resistance to degradation through heat or oxidation of an oil product. Products containing olefinic material are unstable and susceptible to degradation.\nThe sulfur content permits the foreseeing of difficulties in meeting product and atmospheric emission specifications, as treatment units are needed to meet these; it is also poison for some catalysts. It also enables us to see whether the plant metallurgy is the most suitable for processing it. It is expressed as a percentage in weight of sulfur.\nSulfuric acid (H2S)\nA prior knowledge of the sulfuric acid content of the crude permits preventive actions and avoids accidents to people. The sulfhydric acid is very dangerous because it anesthetizes the olfactory nerve which prevents people from being aware of the situation and is mortal in small quantities. Personnel working in contact with the crude have therefore to wear protection equipment and personal sulfhydric acid sensors.\nThis is the degree of resistance of a liquid to flow. The greater the viscosity, the greater the resistance to flow. Viscosity is affected by the temperature, reducing it when the latter rises. It is measured by using special viscosimeters and is expressed in USS (Universal Saybolt Seconds), FSS (Furol Saybolt Seconds) and in centi-stokes.\nViscosity is important for fuel injection in engines and burners. It is also critical in the pumping of crude oil and products by pipeline. A higher viscosity than that designed for will reduce the desired flow and make a greater pump motor capacity necessary. The viscosity also affects measuring instrument factors, altering the readings.\nThe measurement of the facility with which a product vaporizes. Volatile products have high steam pressure and a low boiling point. It is measured through the ASTM D86 test and is expressed as the temperature at which certain volumes are distilled."}
{"text": "Peter PanLiterary Hero\nBest known as:\nFanciful boy hero of Peter Pan\nPeter Pan is the mischievous hero of J.M. Barrie's 1904 play Peter Pan. Peter is \"the boy who never grew up,\" a fantastical figure who visits the bedroom of the Darling children (Wendy, John and Michael) and flies them away to Neverland. There the children meet Peter's loyal troupe of lost boys, and have adventures and battles with the nefarious Captain Hook. The character of Peter went through several versions, from a 1902 book The Little White Bird to Barrie's hugely successful 1904 play. Barrie published the story as prose in 1911, under the title of Peter and Wendy. In 1953, Walt Disney made a hit animated movie out of a cleaned up version the story, and a 1954 Broadway musical version of the play earned a Tony award for Mary Martin, who played Peter. In films Peter has been played by Jeremy Sumpter (Peter Pan, 2003) and Robin Williams (Hook, 1991) among many others. Peter Pan is also the star of a series of adventure stories for children by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, starting with Peter and the Starcatcher (2004).\nPeter Pan is assisted by a tiny fairie named Tinkerbell, who carries a lighted wand; she has become one of the signature figures of the Walt Disney empire... Late singer Michael Jackson called his extravagant California ranch \"Neverland\"... In Barrie's story, Peter tells Wendy he lives \"Second to the right, then straight on till morning.\" In some productions this has been changed to \"Second star to the right, then straight on till morning\"... Peter is usually played onstage by women, a tradition started with the original 1904 production; gymnast Cathy Rigby and actress Sandy Duncan played the role often later in the 20th century... In 1929, Barrie donated the rights to Peter Pan to London's Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children.\nCopyright © 1998-2013 by Who2?, LLC. All rights reserved.\nMore on Peter Pan from Infoplease:\nInformation Please® Database, © 2007 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved."}
{"text": "The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity: Ecological and Economic Foundations\nHuman well-being relies critically on ecosystem services provided by nature. Examples include water and air quality regulation, nutrient cycling and decomposition, plant pollination and flood control, all of which are dependent on biodiversity. They are predominantly public goods with limited or no markets and do not command any price in the conventional economic system, so their loss is often not detected and continues unaddressed and unabated. This in turn not only impacts human well-being, but also seriously undermines the sustainability of the economic system.\nIt is against this background that TEEB: The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity project was set up in 2007 and led by the United Nations Environment Programme to provide a comprehensive global assessment of economic aspects of these issues. The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity, written by a team of international experts, represents the scientific state of the art, providing a comprehensive assessment of the fundamental ecological and economic principles of measuring and valuing ecosystem services and biodiversity, and showing how these can be mainstreamed into public policies. The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity and subsequent TEEB outputs will provide the authoritative knowledge and guidance to drive forward the biodiversity conservation agenda for the next decade.\n1. Integrating the Ecological and Economic Dimensions in Biodiversity and Ecosystem Service Valuation\n2. Biodiversity, Ecosystems and Ecosystem Services\n3. Measuring Biophysical Quantities and the Use of Indicators\n4. The Socio-cultural Context of Ecosystem and Biodiversity Valuation\n5. The Economics of Valuing Ecosystem Services and Biodiversity\n6. Discounting, Ethics, and Options for Maintaining Biodiversity and Ecosystem Integrity\n7. Lessons Learned and Linkages with National Policies\nAppendix 1: How the TEEB Framework Can be Applied: The Amazon Case\nAppendix 2: Matrix Tables for Wetland and Forest Ecosystems\nAppendix 3: Estimates of Monetary Values of Ecosystem Services\n\"A landmark study on one of the most pressing problems facing society, balancing economic growth and ecological protection to achieve a sustainable future.\"\n- Simon Levin, Moffett Professor of Biology, Department of Ecology and Evolution Behaviour, Princeton University, USA\n\"TEEB brings a rigorous economic focus to bear on the problems of ecosystem degradation and biodiversity loss, and on their impacts on human welfare. TEEB is a very timely and useful study not only of the economic and social dimensions of the problem, but also of a set of practical solutions which deserve the attention of policy-makers around the world.\"\n- Nicholas Stern, I.G. Patel Professor of Economics and Government at the London School of Economics and Chairman of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment\n\"The [TEEB] project should show us all how expensive the global destruction of the natural world has become and – it is hoped – persuade us to slow down.' The Guardian 'Biodiversity is the living fabric of this planet – the quantum and the variability of all its ecosystems, species, and genes. And yet, modern economies remain largely blind to the huge value of the abundance and diversity of this web of life, and the crucial and valuable roles it plays in human health, nutrition, habitation and indeed in the health and functioning of our economies. Humanity has instead fabricated the illusion that somehow we can get by without biodiversity, or that it is somehow peripheral to our contemporary world. The truth is we need it more than ever on a planet of six billion heading to over nine billion people by 2050. This volume of 'TEEB' explores the challenges involved in addressing the economic invisibility of biodiversity, and organises the science and economics in a way decision makers would find it hard to ignore.\"\n- Achim Steiner, Executive Director, United Nations Environment Programme\nThis volume is an output of TEEB: The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity study and has been edited by Pushpam Kumar, Reader in Environmental Economics, University of Liverpool, UK. TEEB is hosted by the United Nations Environment Programme (UENP) and supported by the European Commission, the German Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMU) and the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), recently joined by Norway's Ministry for Foreign Affairs, The Netherlands' Ministry of Housing (VROM), the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and also the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). The study leader is Pavan Sukhdev, who is also Special Adviser – Green Economy Initiative, UNEP.\nView other products from the same publisher"}
{"text": "Scaevola taccada is a dense, spreading shrub that generally grows up to 3 meter in height. The light green leaves are somewhat succulent with a waxy covering and are alternately arranged along the stem.\nThe blades are elongated and rounded at the tips, 5 to 20 cm long and 5 to 7 cm wide and the edges are often curled downward. The flowers are white or cream colored, often with purple streaks, 8 - 12 mm long, and have a pleasant fragrance. They have an irregular shape with all five petals on one side of the flower making it appear to have been torn in half. The flowers grow in small clusters from the leaf axils near the ends of the stems. The fruits of Scaevola taccada are fleshy berries. They are white, oblong, and about 1 cm long. The seeds are beige, corky and ridged. The inside of the fruit is spongy or corky and the fruits are buoyant. They can float for months in the ocean and still germinate after having been in salt water for up to a year. One study showed that the seeds germinated best after 250 days in salt water.\n(National Tropical Botanical Garden (NTBG). 1994. Naupaka. In Native Hawaiian plant information sheets. Lawai, Kauai: Hawaii Plant Conservation Center. National Tropical Botanical Garden. Unpublished internal papers.)\n(Rauch, Fred D., Heidi L. Bornhorst, and David L. Hensley. 1997. Beach Naupaka, Ornamentals and Flowers.)\n(Wagner, Warren L., Darrel R. Herbst, and S. H. Sohmer. 1990. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawai'i.)\n(Bornhorst, Heidi L. 1996. Growing native Hawaiian plants: a how-to guide for the gardener.)"}
{"text": "The common name for sedums is Stonecrop. There is a Stonecrop Nursery in eastern New York which was the first garden created by Frank Cabot. Frank created the Garden Conservancy, an organization which strives to preserve some of our exceptional gardens for posterity. Each year it also runs its Open Days Program which opens gardens to the public throughout the country. Frank Cabot went on to create Les Quatre Vents, an outstanding garden at his family home in Quebec.\nThere are two sedums which most gardeners grow; Sedum acre, a tiny low-growing\ngroundcover plant with bright yellow flowers. This is being used effectively in the Peace Garden in the plaza between the library and city hall.\nThe other is Autumn Joy which is in bloom now and will continue to provide color for\nmonths to come. Some references say it requires full sun. Not so! I have it in three locations in my garden. I have several plants growing out of a south-facing wall. But there are tall oaks and maples to the south so that the only time it gets direct sun is in spring before the oaks leaf out. The rest of the year it is dappled light. Another plant is in the east-facing bed on top of my long stone wall where it gets only morning sun. The third plant is in my shrub-perennial border where it gets a bit of sun mid-day. Mine is the ordinary run-of-the-mill Autumn Joy, but there are several cultivars offered in nurseries. Among these are: Crimson, Iceberg, which has white flowers, Autumn Fire and Chocolate Drop, growing only eight inches tall with brown leaves and pink flowers.\nThere are two native sedums: Roseroot, Sedum rosa and Wild Stonecrop, Sedum ternatum. A third Wild Live-forever, Sedum teliphiodes, grows on cliffs and rocks in Pennsylvania and southward."}
{"text": "Recent acts of violence alongside pending legislation and international pressure have brought to light the pressing need for lawmaking in support of LGBT rights in Chile. Together with protests for reforms in the education system, the public seems to be increasingly impatient about what the government is doing to protect LGBT rights. These demands are important beyond the scope of gay rights, because they have brought attention to the need for Chile to recognize, accept and protect the human rights of an evolving, heterogeneous culture as a fundamental prerequisite for continued prosperity.\nThe passage of an antidiscrimination law, which remained unresolved for over seven years, by a close 58-56 vote in the Chamber of Deputies this month was a basic necessity for the country. The Chilean Movement for Sexual Minorities (MOVILH) notes that in 2011 gay, lesbian and transgender Chileans were increasingly outspoken in reporting abuse and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. However, this recently passed antidiscrimination law does not deal with hate crimes per se, but rather defines illegal discrimination. Furthermore, certain passages have yet to be finalized in a mixed commission of Senators and Deputies on May 2. The recent death of gay youth Daniel Zamudio points to precisely why legislating solely on discrimination does not suffice in this case, serving as an exceptionally violent example as to why hate crimes require specific punishment under the law.\nZamudio received not only the public’s sympathy, but also worldwide attention including a briefing note from the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights’ spokesman, Rupert Colville, urging Chile to enact hate crime legislation. In this regard, the MOVILH also argues that Chilean society is not opposed to legislating on issues of gay rights and antidiscrimination in its entirety, but there is a lack of bravery and willingness within Congress to approach these pending issues. The recent Inter-American Court of Human Rights’ overturning of a Chilean court ruling against lesbian Judge Karen Atala, who lost custody of her children because of her same-sex relationship, is further international pressure for Chile to meet requirements stipulated by international agreements it has signed onto.\nChile’s gay rights deficit is worrying as the country continues to be viewed as an example for continued economic growth despite global market volatility. President Sebastian Piñera’s administration is cautious about giving into all public demands, as Chile’s Minister of Finance Felipe Larraín recently said: “If we surrender to the temptation of appeasing demands by giving in to all of them, we will never get to our final goal [development].” However, most gay rights issues rely merely on political willingness rather than investment for social welfare. Furthermore, acting on gay rights is not the investment equivalent of reforming a public education system.\nOn the contrary, the lack of legislative initiative to protect gay Chileans is hindering the business community’s business opportunities. Private initiatives have been taken to reach out to gay customers, like for example the granting of access to mortgages and family insurance plans to Banco de Chile customers in same-sex relationships, proving how it is not only the public that is restless, but also the private sector that recognizes the positive effects of social inclusion in business. What could potentially prove threatening to Chile’s continued economic success might just be the lack of recognition given to the longstanding need for social inclusion of minorities in the country’s legal framework. In contrast, Chile’s neighbor Argentina has clearly reaped the benefits of gay tourism and investment since legislating on gay marriage, while Chile continues to turn a blind eye to opportunity.\nThis is not to say that Piñera’s administration has not taken basic steps to promote the rights of gay couples, like for example Piñera’s public presentation of a civil unions bill in August 2011. However, this legislative project was not only perceived as a political tool in the midst of cabinet discussions with student protest leaders, but is also minimal when considering the prominent use of gay couples in campaign ads for Sebastian Piñera during his presidential campaign. For this reason, the inclusion of a question in the 2012 census that allows gay couples to state whether they live with a same-sex partner may become an important, confidential and unbiased figure that current and future administrations could use to advocate for legislation on gay unions.\nThis paradox persists despite the heightened quality of life of Chileans. Economic growth is creating an increasingly obvious deficit in basic human rights the country has yet to attain. In spite of continued development and well-regarded fiscal policy through the recession and into today’s administration, Chile continues to be in debt to not only its citizens and the country’s business community, but also to international human rights agreements on sexual orientation and gender identity. These international standards continue to be well above those demonstrated by the current state of gay rights legislation in Chile.\nEduardo Ayala is a guest blogger to AQ Online. He is Chilean-American and works at the Council of the Americas in New York. He graduated from The George Washington University, during which time he also completed coursework at The University of Chile and The Pontifical Catholic University of Chile in Santiago."}
{"text": "Language Instruction for Immigrant and Non-English Speaking Children\nTitle III of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 provides Federal financial support to state and local educational agencies to supplement English language instruction in order to ensure that all English Language Learners, including immigrant children and youth, attain English proficiency, develop high levels of academic language proficiency in English, and meet the same challenging State academic achievement standards as all Maryland students are expected to meet.\nTo comply with these requirements, the Title III office of the Maryland State Department of Education works with local school districts to ensure that quality, research based ESL programs are offered to language minority students.\nTitle III, Secs. 3101, 3102 Part A"}
{"text": "Don't feel like exercise? Scientists find compound that may help you work out harderJune 12th, 2012 in Medical research /\nAs science rushes to develop safe weight loss drugs, a new research report approaches this problem from an entirely new angle: What if there were a pill that would make you want to exercise harder? It may sound strange, but a new research report appearing online in The FASEB Journal suggests that it might be possible.\nThat's because a team of Swiss researchers found that when a hormone in the brain, erythropoietin (Epo), was elevated in mice, they were more motivated to exercise. In addition, the form of erythropoietin used in these experiments did not elevate red blood cell counts. Such a treatment has obvious benefits for a wide range of health problems ranging from Alzheimer's to obesity, including mental health disorders for which increased physical activity is known to improve symptoms.\n\"Here we show that Epo increases the motivation to exercise,\" said Max Gassmann, D.V.M., a researcher involved in the work from the Institute of Veterinary Physiology, Vetsuisse-Faculty and Zurich Center for Integrative Human Physiology at the University of Zurich in Switzerland. \"Most probably, Epo has a general effect on a person's mood and might be used in patients suffering from depression and related diseases.\"\nTo make this discovery, Gassmann and colleagues used three types of mice: those that received no treatment, those that were injected with human Epo, and those that were genetically modified to produce human Epo in the brain. Compared to the mice that did not have any increase in Epo, both mouse groups harboring human Epo in the brain showed significantly higher running performance without increases in red blood cells.\n\"If you can't put exercise in a pill, then maybe you can put the motivation to exercise in a pill instead,\" said Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal. \"As more and more people become overweight and obese, we must attack the problem from all angles. Maybe the day will come when gyms are as easily found as fast food restaurants.\"\nMore information: Beat Schuler, Johannes Vogel, Beat Grenacher, Robert A. Jacobs, Margarete Arras, and Max Gassmann. Acute and chronic elevation of erythropoietin in the brain improves exercise performance in mice without inducing erythropoiesis. FASEB J. doi:10.1096/fj.11-191197\nProvided by Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology\n\"Don't feel like exercise? Scientists find compound that may help you work out harder.\" June 12th, 2012. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-dont-scientists-compound-harder.html"}
{"text": "I do a lesson with tints and shades that requires no drawing skills.\nThe kids make a large triangular banner using their first or last\ninitial-usually 24x18 or 24x36 if you have that sized paper.\nThey make the letter on a piece of 9x12 size paper. They can embellish a\nsimple block or puffy letter with a few swirls or whatever, but keep it\nsimple enough to paint in the shape with whatever their color choice is.\nThen transfer the letter onto the triangle, near the center of the upper\npart of the wide end. I have them tape the letter in place behind the\ntriangle and trace through on the light box or at the window.\nThis is a monochromatic painting the way I do it with my 3rd graders. the\nchoose one color and use it straight from the bottle to paint the letter\nshape. This is the only shape with unmixed colors.\nThen they divide the background behind the letter into large shapes using\nstraight or curved lines (nothing too nervous, if you know what I mean. Just\nsimple lines). I usually limit the number of extra shapes to about 10-12 and\nremind the kids that the letter is the star of this show, not the background\nThen they start with tints (color plus white) and paint in half the shapes.\nDo the same with shades (color plus black) to finish the background area.\nwhen dry, we outline with a wide sharpie marker to neaten up the painted\nedges between shapes and around the letter. Sometimes we edge the whole\nthing with colored construction paper strips to make the banner a bit more\nConcepts used are always mixing from light to dark to avoid needing gallons\nof white paint to lighten up a dark blue, for example. Start with the\nlightest tint and paint a shape, progressing darker by adding into that bowl\nmore of the prime color. Same with shades, starting with a drop of black\ninto the prime color, painting a shape, and progressing with more black til\nall the shapes are done. Saves a lot of paint that way!\nThe kids usually pick a color that will match their bedroom at home . My\nthird graders love this project and look forward to it each year. If you\nneed a photo, I can take one and send it tomorrow. I am off Mondays."}
{"text": "A nocturnal bird of prey.\n(AM2: dp. 1,009 (f.); l. 18710; 1 b. 356; dr. 104; s. 14 k.; cpl. 78; a. 2 3; cl. Lapwing)\nThe first Owl (AM2) was laid down 25 October 1917 by the Todd Shipbuilding Corp., Brooklyn, N.Y.; launched 4 March 1918; sponsored by Miss Ruth R. Dodd; and commissioned 11 July 1918, Lt. (j.g.) Charles B. Babson in command.\nFollowing a New York to Charleston towing assignment, Owl reported to the 5th Naval District at Norfolk, 22 August 1918. Employed as a minesweeper for the remaining months of World War I, she then served as a light ship in the inner approach to Chesapeake Bay until 10 July 1919. From that time until 1936, she was primarily engaged in providing towing services along the eastern seaboard and in the Caribbean. Between June 1936 and January 1941, she operated with units of the Aircraft Division, Base Force, providing planeguard, seaplane tender, and target and mooring buoy planting services from New England to the Caribbean. Then, temporarily attached to Train, Patrol Force at Culebra, P.R., she steamed to Bermuda in May for towing and servicing duties with MinDiv 14. Redesignated AT137, 1 June 1942, she was based at Bermuda until June 1943. During that time, towing and escort duties frequently took her to the east coast, while numerous salvage and rescue missions, including aid to the submarine R1 and torpedoed Argentine tanker Victoria, kept her busy at Bermuda and in nearby convoy lanes.\nDetached from Bermudan duty in June, Owl spent the last six months of 1943 with DesRon 30 operating out of Guantanamo Bay. She then steamed back to Norfolk for overhaul, and sailed for Europe. She arrived at Falmouth, U.K., 14 March 1944 to join the Allied forces gathering for the invasion of France. Redesignated ATO137 on 15 May 1944, she arrived off the Normandy coast two days after D-Day. As ground forces pushed inland, she towed port and road construction materials to the French coast, thus aiding the all important flow of men and equipment to the front.\nAvailability at Falmouth early in the new year, 1945, preceded her return to the United States, 27 February, and midAtlantic coast towing assignments. Transferred to the Pacific Fleet, she sailed from Newport, 5 May, with YNG11 in tow, and arrived at San Diego 23 June, to join ServRon 2. In August she continued on to Pearl Harbor for four months of target towing duty, returning to the west coast 2 January 1946. Owl then provided towing services for the 19th (Reserve) Fleet until beginning inactivation in April. She decommissioned in the 13th Naval District 26 July 1946 and on 27 June 1947 was sold for scrapping to the Pacific Metal and Salvage Co. at Port of Nordland, Wash.\nOwl received 1 battle star for World War II service."}
{"text": "When the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) was first founded in 1973 there were only 1.5 million wild turkeys across the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Today, it is estimated there are more than 5.6 million wild turkeys.\nIn Utah, wild turkey restoration efforts continue to be the most aggressive in the nation. Over 2,800 wild turkeys have been relocated to suitable habitat areas in Utah since the winter of 1999. As a result, wild turkey permits have increased 20 percent for the spring 2002 season.\nHowever, this program will not be complete until over 200,000 wild turkeys roam the cottonwood river bottoms, pinyon/juniper, and ponderosa pine forests of the state. Whether you pursue wild turkeys as a hunter, or simply enjoy watching these magnificent birds in their natural surroundings, the time to view wild turkeys in Utah has never been better.\nAt the forefront of this dramatic return in Utah, has been the Federation's volunteers, working side-by-side with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.\nNow, with most restoration efforts completed in the East, all eyes have shifted to the West, where the wild turkey continues to redefine it's own idea of suitable habitat. While the release of a wild turkey into western habitat remains one of the federation's most enduring symbols, it is just one brick in a foundation of good works that are impacting people's lives and the environment in many positive ways.\nSince 1977, the NWTF has spent over 144 million dollars on over 16,000 projects nationwide. The federation helps fund transplants, research projects, habitat acquisition, education, and the equipment needed to successfully accomplish these tasks. Through the Federation's regional habitat programs, volunteers have helped improve hundreds of thousands of acres by planting trees, crops, winter food sources and grasses that provide food and shelter for not only the wild turkey, but many others species of wildlife as well. Also improved in many areas, particularly in the west, has been water quality. Projects occurring right here in southeastern Utah include a San Rafael Desert guzzler, Knolls Ranch habitat improvement, and numerous other projects on the La Sal Mountains, Blue Mountains and Book Cliffs areas.\nThis month the Price River chapter of the NWTF will be hosting it's annual Wild Turkey Banquet on January 26. For more information, please call (435) 259-9453."}
{"text": "Learn something new every day More Info... by email\nThermal epoxy is any adhesive epoxy that has one or more substances added to it to enhance thermal, or heat, transfer. These epoxies can be electrically conductive or not conductive, depending on the thermal additive used. Silver and other metal-based thermal additives are usually electrically conductive, and thermal epoxies that contain these additives must be applied very carefully so as not to cause electrical shorts. Ceramic-based additives are not electrically conductive but are also not as efficient at thermal conduction.\nManufacturers make thermal epoxies that are designed to work as high-performance engineering adhesives and structural adhesives in a wide range of applications and environments. These include aircraft, boats, marine equipment, cars, surfboards, snowboards, and bicycles, among others. There are thermal formulations for almost every application imaginable, including those that cure while under water, those that remain very flexible or get quite rigid when cured, those resistant to fire or high heat, and even those certified by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for low outgassing.\nHeat can damage or destroy electrical components, and today’s high-speed computer components produce a large amount of heat that must be removed. Devices called heat sinks are used to pull heat away from an object and dissipate the heat to the air, sometimes with the help of a cooling fan. Heat sinks are made from metal alloys designed to have excellent thermal conduction properties, and they have specially designed fins to help conduct and remove the heat. They are almost always mounted to a surface using a special adhesive thermal epoxy.\nWhen used in computer applications, a thermal epoxy can help fill microscopic voids that occur in the surfaces of heat sinks and other devices. These voids occur in the manufacturing process. When two objects are mounted together, for instance a chip and a heat sink, the voids fill with air. Air is a very poor thermal conductor, so a substance is introduced to fill the voids and help conduct the heat to the heat sink for removal. The substance used can be thermal grease, thermal tape, thermal pads or, if the device needs to be secured to the mounting surface, thermal epoxy.\nWhen applying thermal epoxy it is very important to use the least possible amount required to fill any voids and make the bond. If a too-thick coat of epoxy is applied, the electrical conductivity of the epoxy will be degraded. Once the epoxy has cured, the bond between the two surfaces is permanent. Epoxies should only be used in well-ventilated areas, and the manufacturer’s instructions should always be followed for best results."}
{"text": "DENVER – Put on your poodle skirts and tune in Elvis on the transistor radio, because it’s starting to look a lot like the 1950s.\nUnfortunately, this won’t be the nostalgic ’50s of big cars and pop music.\nThe 1950s that could be on the way to Colorado is the decade of drought.\nSo says Brian Bledsoe, a Colorado Springs meteorologist who studies the history of ocean currents and uses what he learns to make long-term weather forecasts.\n“I think we’re reliving the ’50s, bottom line,” Bledsoe said Friday morning at the annual meeting of the Colorado Water Congress.\nBledsoe studies the famous El Niño and La Niña ocean currents. But he also looks at other, less well-known cycles, including long-term temperature cycles in the oceans.\nIn the 1950s, water in the Pacific Ocean was colder than normal, but it was warmer than usual in the Atlantic. That combination caused a drought in Colorado that was just as bad as the Dust Bowl of the 1930s.\nThe ocean currents slipped back into their 1950s pattern in the last five years, Bledsoe said. The cycles can last a decade or more, meaning bad news for farmers, ranchers, skiers and forest residents.\n“Drought feeds on drought. The longer it goes, the harder it is to break,” Bledsoe said.\nThe outlook is worst for Eastern Colorado, where Bledsoe grew up and his parents still own a ranch. They recently had to sell half their herd when their pasture couldn’t provide enough feed.\n“They’ve spent the last 15 years grooming that herd for organic beef stock,” he said.\nBledsoe looks for monsoon rains to return to the Four Corners and Western Slope in July. But there’s still a danger in the mountains in the summer.\n“Initially, dry lightning could be a concern, so obviously, the fire season is looking not so great right now,” he said.\nWeather data showed the last year’s conditions were extreme.\nNolan Doesken, Colorado’s state climatologist, said the summer of 2012 was the hottest on record in Colorado. And it was the fifth-driest winter since record-keeping began more than 100 years ago.\nDespite recent storms in the San Juan Mountains, this winter hasn’t been much better.\n“We’ve had a wimpy winter so far,” Doesken said. “The past week has been a good week for Colorado precipitation.”\nHowever, the next week’s forecast shows dryness returning to much of the state.\nReservoir levels are higher than they were in 2002 – the driest year since Coloradans started keeping track of moisture – but the state is entering 2013 with reservoirs that were depleted last year.\n“You don’t want to start a year at this level if you’re about to head into another drought,” Doesken said.\nIt was hard to find good news in Friday morning’s presentations, but Bledsoe is happy that technology helps forecasters understand the weather better than they did during past droughts. That allows people to plan for what’s on the way.\n“I’m a glass-half-full kind of guy,” he said."}
{"text": "EPO is a nootropicWednesday, 10 September, 2008\nErythropoietin (EPO), a hormone that increases red blood cells and is used as a performance enhancer for athletic performance, has now been shown to enhance memory in normal, healthy mice. Mice that received EPO injections had enhanced memory for 3-4 weeks afterwards, which is longer than the elevation in red blood cell count lasts.\nThis effect isn’t actually novel, as other researchers had noticed that EPO improved brain function over 18 years ago (Grimm et al, 1990), and research into mental illness has also suggested that EPO has an effect on brain function (Ehrenreich et al, 2004). But it was always thought to be dependent on the change in red blood cells, but more recent evidence has suggested it works independently of effects on blood cells (Miskowiak et al, 2007). This mouse model confirms this.\nOf course, the researchers have been focusing on this as a treatment, but anyone can see that this is a promising enhancement too. This mouse research showed that EPO enhanced memory and athletic function in healthy mice. It enhances both athletic and mental performance – how good is that?\nThen again, if EPO becomes a common cognitive enhancer, it will mean that few of us normal people would ever be able to compete in the Olympics. It was only in 2004 that caffeine was allowed in professional competition, but pretty soon college students will be doping themselves with EPO as a biochemical study aid. It will be interesting when almost all normal people would not be able to pass an Olympic-level drug test.\nThe possibility exists, however, that we may want the cognitive boost without increasing our red blood cells too much. And now that we know the cognitive effects of EPO are independent of red blood cell production, this may be possible too. Make a drug that stimulates the brain like EPO does, but doesn’t effect an increase in red blood cells. And this study has gone a long way to unraveling the relevant effects of EPO on neuronal plasticity that underly the enhancement to memory circuitry in the brain, which means that we may be able to find drugs that do so more effectively than EPO or act on other brain functions."}
{"text": "Celebrate Princeton Invention: Craig Arnold\nPosted December 21, 2009; 01:08 p.m.\nAble to adjust its focus more than 100,000 times faster than the human eye, the TAG Lens invented by mechanical and aerospace engineering professor Craig Arnold and his colleagues has applications in materials processing and imaging. (Photo: Brian Wilson)\nName: Craig Arnold, associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering\nInvention: Tunable Acoustic Gradient Index of Refraction Lens (TAG Lens)\nWhat it does: The TAG lens features a cylinder made of a special material that vibrates when electricity is passed through it, enclosed inside a fluid-filled chamber. Controlling the flow of electricity changes the vibrations that propagate through the fluid, changing the lens' focus more than 100,000 times faster than the human eye can refocus.\nInspiration: After developing a low-cost lens to shape laser beam output into different patterns, Arnold and his colleagues focused their attention on understanding how the device worked and its potential applications. Finding that the lens had the unique ability to focus rapidly at a wide range of focal lengths, they realized its potential went far beyond the original intended purpose, with numerous applications in materials processing and imaging.\nCollaborators: Euan McLeod, a 2009 Ph.D. recipient, and Alexander Mermillod-Blondin, a former postdoctoral researcher in the Arnold lab\nBack to main story"}
{"text": "- 10 to 15 minutes\n- Take turns introducing each other while pretending you are on a stage.\n- Stand up, bow, and tell all the good things you can about the other person, his hobbies, good qualities, etc. Be sure to over-dramatize.\n- Take turns introducing other family members, present or not.\n- Challenge your child to introduce a best friend or a favorite teacher.\n- Think of famous people and take turns introducing them.\nCopyright © 2004 by Susan Kettmann. Excerpted from The 2,000 Best Games & Activities with permission of its publisher, Sourcebooks, Inc.\nTo order this book visit Amazon.com."}
{"text": "2012-2013 Service Learning Courses\nHispanic Literature in Translation—\"Defiant Acts: Spanish and Latin American Theatre\"\nIsabel de Sena\nThis course will explore the full spectrum of theatre from the early modern period in Spain and colonial Spanish America to contemporary theatre on both sides of the Atlantic, including U.S. Latino playwrights. We will read across periods to identify preoccupations and generic characteristics as theatre evolves and moves between the street and the salon, the college yard and the court, enclosed theatres and theatre for the enclosed. In the process we will address a wide swath of ideas, on gender, class, freedom and totalitarianism, the boundaries of identity. Students will be introduced to some basic concepts and figures ranging from Lope de Vega’s brilliant articulation of “comedia” to Augusto Boal’s concept of an engaged theatre, and investigate the work of FOMMA (Fortaleza de la Mujer Maya) and similar contemporary collectives. And we will read plays as plays, as literature and as texts intended for performance on a stage. At the same time students will have the opportunity to explore creative practices, through engagement with different community organizations: schools, retirement homes, local theatre organizations, etc. Students are encouraged to apply concepts learned in class to their internships, and to bring their ideas and reflections on their weekly practices for discussion in class. Each other week one hour will be devoted to discussing their work in the community. NO Spanish required, but students who are sufficiently fluent in the language may opt to work in a community where Spanish is the primary language of communication. NO expertise in theatre required though theatre students are very welcome. Open to any interested student.\nFall & Spring\nFirst Year Studies\nUmuntu ngumuntu ngabantu\n[Isizulu: A person is only a person through other persons]\nHow do the contexts in which we live influence our development? And how do these contexts influence the questions we ask about development, and the ways in which we interpret our observations? How do local, national and international policies impact the contexts in which children live? Should we play a role in changing some of these contexts? What are the complications of doing this?\nIn this course, we will discuss these and other key questions about child and adolescent development in varying cultural contexts, with a specific focus on the United States and sub-Saharan Africa. As we do so, we will discuss factors contributing to both opportunities and inequalities within and between these contexts. In particular, we will discuss how physical and psychosocial environments differ for poor and non-poor children and their families in rural Upstate New York, urban Yonkers, and rural and urban Malawi, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Kenya and Tanzania. We will also discuss individual and environmental protective factors that buffer some children from the adverse effects of poverty, as well as the impacts of public policy on poor children and their families. Topics will include health and educational disparities; environmental inequalities linked to race, class, ethnicity, gender, language and nationality; environmental chaos; children’s play and access to green space; cumulative risk and its relationship to chronic stress; and the HIV/AIDS pandemic and the growing orphan problem in sub-Saharan Africa. Readings will be drawn from both classic and contemporary research in psychology, human development, anthropology, sociology, and public health; memoirs and other first-hand accounts; and classic and contemporary African literature and film.\nThis course will also serve as an introduction to the methodologies of community based and participatory action research within the context of a service-learning course. As a class, we will collaborate with local high school students in developing, implementing and evaluating effective community based work in partnership with organizations in urban Yonkers and rural Tanzania. As part of this work, all students will spend an afternoon a week working in a local after-school program. In addition, we will have monthly seminars with local high school students during our regular class time.\nEnvironment, Race and the Psychology of Place\nThis service learning course will focus on the experience of humans living within physical, social and psychological spaces. We will use a constructivist, multidisciplinary, multilevel lens to examine the interrelationship between humans and the natural and built environment, to explore the impact of racial/ethnic group membership on person/environment interactions, and to provide for a critical analysis of social dynamics in the environmental movement. The community partnership/ service learning component is an important part of this class - we will work with local agencies to promote adaptive person-environment interactions within our community.\nChildren’s Health in a Multicultural Context\nThis course offers, within a cultural context, an overview of theoretical and research issues in the psychological study of health and illness in children. We will examine theoretical perspectives in the psychology of health, health cognition, illness prevention, stress, and coping with illness and highlight research, methods, and applied issues. This class is appropriate for those interested in a variety of health careers. Conference work can range from empirical research to bibliographic research in this area. Community partnership/service learning work is encouraged in this class. A background in social sciences or education is recommended."}
{"text": "BEMIDJI -The Governor's Task Force Prevention of School Bullying met with Bemidji students, parents and educators Wednesday evening kicking off a series of sessions to help redefine the state's anti-bullying statute.\n\"The Governor has organized a task force of citizens from around the state to make recommendations to the Governor and to the Legislature in regards that might be put forth that would direct all the school districts in the state as to how they should address bullying,\" said Nancy Riestenberg, School Climate Specialist at the Department of Education.\nRiestenberg joined members of the task force to speak with students from Bemidji High School and students from Schoolcraft to discuss their concerns about bullying and ways in which they think it could be prevented.\nStudents like Thomas Caddy and Tia Siddens, 9th graders at Bemidji High School, bullying is present at the school and it is seen both physically and verbally.\n\"Words hurt more than fists in a lot of situations because if the physical wound isn't there it could still leave a mark on the mind,\" Siddens said.\nThe students said the most common targets of bullying in school are people of different race, sexual orientation or people with a mental disability.\n\"People who don't have a lot of friends are targeted more because if you don't always have those friends there to help speak up,\" Schoolcraft student Katie Fgevje said. \"With less friends you are more vulnerable in my eyes because you don't have that person to kind of help you get through it.\"\nWhen asked what the students would recommend the task force do to help the bullying problem in schools, a lot of students said there needs to be an effort to teach students from a young age why bullying is wrong, but also to teach the staff how to resolve and prevent bully situations.\n\"We have some programs that address bullying and I am happy we have them but I don't think they are exactly effective because if the person is doing it they are not going to be listening to the reasons why they are not supposed to be doing it,\" Thomas Caddy said.\nRiestenberg said this was the first of many student sessions she and the task force will conduct but she said she was impressed by how engaging the students were.\n\"They confirmed for me what I teach in my job as the school climate specialist at the Department of Education and gave insight to the task force about what students face and what they need,\" Riestenberg said.\nFollowing the parent session, the task force went to the middle school to meet with parents and educators to see what their concerns and recommendations were.\nThe common concern among the parents was the issue of cyber bullying in addition to racial and sexual orientation bullying. The parents agreed that the school and the parents need to make sure students know their resources on who they can talk to when being bullied.\n\"We need to be held accountable for our own actions and we not only need to listen to our kids but we need to show them that we are trying to do something,\" Marty Cobenais, a parent in attendance said. \"If we don't make an effort to do something our kids are not going to come talk to us when they have a problem.\"\nBemidji School Superintendent James Hess said the bullying issue is one that does need to be addressed not only at the school level but also the community level.\n\"I think about bullying and I think about the school's role in bullying and I don't think the school is the place to lay all of the blame,\" Hess said. \"I know that if you walk into any classroom in the district you won't find any teachers teaching bullying. I think we need to be a part of the search for a solution to bullying but I don't think we are the stopping place, we are the starting place. We need to look at the greater community to find solutions that are going to be the lasting solutions.\"\nThe task force will be meeting with schools across the state and will pass along recommendations to the Legislature by August."}
{"text": "A Soyuz rocket launched two Galileo satellites into orbit on Friday, marking a crucial step for Europe’s planned navigation system, operator Arianespace announced.\nThe launch took place at the Kourou space base in French Guiana, at 3:15pm (6:15pm GMT).\nThree and three-quarter hours later, the 700kg satellites were placed into orbit.\nThe new satellites add to the first two in the Galileo navigation system, which were launched on Oct. 21, last year.\nTogether they create a “mini-constellation.” Four is the minimum number of satellites needed to gain a navigational fix on the ground, using signals from the satellite to get a position for latitude, longitude, altitude and a time reference.\nGalileo will ultimately consist of 30 satellites, six more than the US Global Positioning System.\nBy 2015, 18 satellites should be in place, which is sufficient for launching services to the public, followed by the rest in 2020, according to the European Space Agency.\nIt is claimed that the system will be accurate to within one meter. The US Global Positioning System, which became operational in 1995 and is currently being upgraded, is currently accurate to between three and eight meters.\nIn May, the European Commission said the cost by 2015 would be 5 billion euros (US$6.45 billion).\nAs a medium-sized launcher, Soyuz complements Europe’s heavyweight Ariane 5 and lightweight Vega rockets."}
{"text": "Did You Know\nDid you know that there is a town in Germany by the name of Reher??\nThat there is also one by the name of Stoltenberg??\nDo you know where our Reher and Stoltenberg ancestors came from in Germany??\nJohann Reher came from the town of Bebensee.\nHis father Casper came from Dreggers which was 6 miles east of there. Bad Segeberg is also associated with the family. It is about 7 miles north and the closest large town.\nSince the town of Reher is 40 miles west of Bebensee and Dreggers I'm not sure if there is any connection to our name and family. Forty miles in the mid 1800's was quite a distance to travel.\nClaus Stoltenberg came from Brodersdorf which is 46 miles north of Bebensee and about 10 miles northeast of Kiel, a major city on the Baltic Sea. Brodersdorf is two to three miles south of the Baltic Sea. Other towns associated with the Stoltenberg side of the family are all located in close proximity. They are LaBoe, Stein, Fahren, Probsteierhagen and Wentdorf.\nThe town of Stoltenberg is only seven miles to the southeast of Brodersdorf.\nThe above map of northern Germany will show you where the towns Reher, Stoltenberg, Bebensee, Dreggers, and Brodersdorf are located. I've marked these towns with a dark asterisk * to make them easier to find.\nClick on the map to make it bigger and easier to see the towns marked with an asterisk. After the larger map comes up, click on that again to zoom in.\nIt is about 60 miles from Kiel at the top of the map to Hamburg which is towards the bottom of this map. From Reher to Bebensee it is 40 miles, to Brodersdorf it is 46 miles which is also the distance from Bebensee to Brodersdorf and Stoltenberg... almost a perfect equilateral triangle. See the map below... Reher is in the bottom left corner or the triangle, Bebensee in the bottom right and Brodersdorf in the top.\nHamburg is the port that our Johann & Sophia Reher sailed out of with their two small children, Emma and Ernest when they came to America in 1872.\nThe map above shows a closer view of the area where Bebensee & Dreggers are located... where Johann Reher and his father were born.\nOnce again, click on the map to make it larger.\nThe map above shows a closer view of the area where the Stoltenberg side of the family came from. You'll see all of the towns: Brodersdorf, LaBoe, Stein, Fahren, Probsteierhagen and Wentdorf. I've added the Stoltenberg name myself as the town didn't show up on this map.\nSo Now You Know"}
{"text": "Thrombolytic drugs for heart attack\nSmall blood vessels called coronary arteries supply blood and oxygen to the heart.\n- A heart attack can occur if a blood clot completely blocks one of these arteries.\n- Unstable angina refers to chest pain and other warning signs that a heart attack may happen soon. It is most often caused by blood clots in the arteries.\nCertain patients may be given drugs to break up the clot if the artery is completely blocked. These drugs are called thrombolytics, or clot busting drugs.\n- These drugs should be given within 3 hours of when the patient first felt chest pain.\n- The medicine is given through a vein (IV).\n- Blood thinners taken by mouth may be prescribed later to prevent more clots from forming.\nThe main risk when receiving clot busting drugs is bleeding, especially bleeding in the brain.\nThrombolytic therapy is not safe for people who have:\n- Bleeding inside the head or a stroke\n- Brain abnormalities, such as tumors or poorly formed blood vessels\n- Had a head injury within the past 3 months\n- A history of using blood thinners or a bleeding disorder\n- Had major surgery, a major injury, or internal bleeding within the past 3-4 weeks\n- Peptic ulcer disease\n- Severe high blood pressure\nOther treatments that may be done instead of thrombolytic therapy are:\n- Angioplasty is a procedure to open narrowed or blocked arteries that supply blood to the heart. It is often the first choice treatment.\n- Heart bypass surgery to open narrowed or blocked arteries that supply blood to the heart may also be done. This procedure is also called \"open heart surgery.\"\nAnderson JL, Adams CD, Antman EM, Bridges CR, Califf RM, Casey DE Jr, et al. ACC/AHA 2007 guidelines for the management of patients with unstable angina/non-ST-Elevation myocardial infarction: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines (Writing Committee to Revise the 2002 Guidelines for the Management of Patients With Unstable Angina/Non-ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction) developed in collaboration with the American College of Emergency Physicians, the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, and the Society of Thoracic Surgeons endorsed bythe American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation and the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2007;50(7):e1-e157.\nAntman EM, Hand M, Armstrong PW, Bates ER, Green LA, Halasyamani LK, et al. 2007 Focused Update of the ACC/AHA 2004 Guidelines for the Management of Patients with ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines: developed in collaboration with the Canadian Cardiovascular Society endorsed by the American Academy of Family Physicians: 2007 Writing Group to Review New Evidence and Update the ACC/AHA 2004 Guidelines for the Management of Patients With ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction, writing on behalf of the 2004 Writing Committee. Circulation. 2008;117(20:296-329.\nReviewed By: Michael A. Chen, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Harborview Medical Center, University of Washington Medical School, Seattle, Washington. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc."}
{"text": "The “presidi” translates as “garrisons” (from the French word, “to equip”), as protectors of traditional food production practices\nMonday, March 23, 2009\nThe “presidi” translates as “garrisons” (from the French word, “to equip”), as protectors of traditional food production practices\nThis past year, I have had rewarding opportunities to observe traditional food cultures in varied regions of the world. These are:\nAthabascan Indian in the interior of Alaska (the traditional Tanana Chiefs Conference tribal lands) in July, 2008 (for more, read below);\nSwahili coastal tribes in the area of Munje village (population about 300), near Msambweni, close to the Tanzania border in December, 2008-January, 2009 (for more, read below); and,Laikipia region of Kenya (January, 2009), a German canton of Switzerland (March, 2009), and the Piemonte-Toscana region of northern/central Italy (images only, February-March, 2009).\nIn Fort Yukon, Alaska, salmon is a mainstay of the diet. Yet, among the Athabascan Indians, threats to subsistence foods and stresses on household economics abound. In particular, high prices for external energy sources (as of July, 2008, almost $8 for a gallon of gasoline and $6.50 for a gallon of diesel, which is essential for home heating), as well as low Chinook salmon runs for information click here, and moose numbers.\nAdditional resource management issues pose threats to sustaining village life – for example, stream bank erosion along the Yukon River, as well as uneven management in the Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge. People are worried about ever-rising prices for fuels and store-bought staples, and fewer and fewer sources of wage income. The result? Villagers are moving out from outlying areas into “hub” communities like Fort Yukon -- or another example, Bethel in Southwest Alaska – even when offered additional subsidies, such as for home heating. But, in reality, “hubs” often offer neither much employment nor relief from high prices.\nIn Munje village in Kenya, the Digo, a Bantu-speaking, mostly Islamic tribe in the southern coastal area of Kenya, enjoy the possibilities of a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, and fish/oils.\nBreakfast in the village typically consists of mandazi (a fried bread similar to a doughnut), and tea with sugar. Lunch and dinner is typically ugali and samaki (fish), maybe with some dried cassava or chickpeas.\nOn individual shambas (small farms), tomatoes, cassava, maize, cowpeas, bananas, mangos, and coconut are typically grown. Ugali is consumed every day, as are cassava, beans, oil, fish -- and rice, coconut, and chicken, depending on availability.\nEven with their own crops, villagers today want very much to enter the market economy and will sell products from their shambas to buy staples and the flour needed to make mandazis, which they in turn sell. Sales of mandazis (and mango and coconut, to a lesser extent) bring in some cash for villagers.\nA treasured food is, in fact, the coconut. This set of pictures show how coconut is used in the village. True, coconut oil now is reserved only for frying mandazi. But it also is used as a hair conditioner, and the coconut meat is eaten between meals. I noted also that dental hygiene and health were good in the village. Perhaps the coconut and fish oils influence this (as per the work of Dr. Weston A. Price).\nPhotos L-R: Using a traditional conical basket (kikatu), coconut milk is pressed from the grated meat; Straining coconut milk from the grated meat, which is then heated to make oil; Common breakfast food (and the main source of cash income), the mandazi, is still cooked in coconut oil\nNote: All photos were taken by G. Berardi\nThursday, February 19, 2009\nDespite maize in the fields, it is widely known that farmers are hoarding stocks in many districts. Farmers are refusing the NCPB/government price of Sh1,950 per 90-kg bag. They are waiting to be offered at least the same amount of money as that which was being assigned to imports (Bii, 2009b). “The country will continue to experience food shortages unless the Government addresses the high cost of farm inputs to motivate farmers to increase production,” said Mr. Jonathan Bii of Uasin Gish (Bartoo & Lucheli, 2009; Bii, 2009a, 2009b; Bungee, 2009).\nPride and politics, racism and corruption are to blame for food deficits (Kihara & Marete, 2009; KNA, 2009; Muluka, 2009; Siele, 2009). Clearly, what are needed in Kenya are food system planning, disaster management planning, and protection and development of agricultural and rural economies.\nClick here for the full text.\nPhotos taken by G. Berardi\nCabbage, an imported food (originally), and susceptible to much pest damage.\nCamps still remain for Kenya’s Internally Displaced Persons resulting from post-election violence forced migrations. Food security is poor.\nLack of sustained recent short rains have resulted in failed maize harvests.\nFriday, January 16, 2009\nToday I went to a lunch time discussion of sustainability. This concept promoted development with an equitable eye to the triple bottom line - financial, social, and ecological costs. We discussed the how it seemed relatively easier to discuss the connections between financial and ecological costs, than between social costs and other costs. Sustainable development often comes down to \"green\" designs that consider environmental impacts or critiques of the capitalist model of financing.\nAs I thought about sustainable development, or sustainable community management if you are a bit queasy with the feasibility of continuous expansion, I considered its corollaries in the field of disaster risk reduction. It struck me again that it is somewhat easier to focus on some components of the triple bottom line in relation to disasters.\nThe vulnerability approach to disasters has rightly brought into focus the fact that not all people are equally exposed to or impacted by disasters. Rather, it is often the poor or socially marginalized most at risk and least able to recover. This approach certainly brings into focus the social aspects of disasters.\nThe disaster trap theory, likewise, brings into focus the financial bottom line. This perspective is most often discussed in international development and disaster reduction circles. It argues that disasters destroy development gains and cause communities to de-develop unless both disaster reduction and development occur in tandem. Building a cheaper, non-earthquake resistant school in an earthquake zone, may make short-term financial sense. However,over the long term, this approach is likely to result in loss of physical infrastructure, human life, and learning opportunities when an earthquake does occur.\nWhat seems least developed to me, though I would enjoy being rebutted, is the ecological bottom line of disasters. Perhaps it is an oxymoron to discuss the ecological costs of disasters, given that many disasters are triggered natural ecological processes like cyclones, forest fires, and floods. It might also be an oxymoron simply because a natural hazard disaster is really looking at an ecological event from an almost exclusively human perspective. Its not a disaster if it doesn't destroy human lives and human infrastructure. But, the lunch-time discussion made me wonder if there wasn't something of an ecological bottom line to disasters in there somewhere. Perhaps it is in the difference between an ecological process heavily or lightly impacted by human ecological modification. Is a forest fire in a heavily managed forest different from that in an unmanaged forest? Certainly logging can heighten the impacts of heavy rains by inducing landslides, resulting in a landscape heavily rather than lightly impacted by the rains. Similar processes might also be true in the case of heavily managed floodplains. Flooding is concentrated and increased in areas outside of levee systems. What does that mean for the ecology of these locations? Does a marsh manage just as well in low as high flooding? My guess would be no.\nAnd of course, there is the big, looming disaster of climate change. This is a human-induced change that may prove quite disasterous to many an ecological system, everything from our pine forests here, to arctic wildlife, and tropical coral reefs.\nPerhaps, we disaster researchers, need to also consider a triple bottom line when making arguments for the benefits of disaster risk reduction.\nTuesday, January 13, 2009\nThis past week the Northwest experienced a severe barrage of weather systems back to back. Everyone seemed to be affected. Folks were re-routed on detours, got soaked, slipped on ice, or had to spend money to stay a little warmer. In Whatcom and Skagit Counties, there are hundreds to thousands of people currently in the process of recovering and cleaning-up after the floods. These people live in the rural areas throughout the county, with fewer people knowing about their devastation and having greater vulnerability to flood hazards.\nLuckily, there are local agencies and non-profits who are ready at a moment’s call to help anyone in need. The primary organization that came to the aid of the flood victims was the American Red Cross.\nThe last week I began interning and volunteering with one of these non-profits, the Mt. Baker American Red Cross (ARC) Chapter. While I am still in the process of getting screened and officially trained, I received first-hand experience and saw how important this organization is to the community.\nWith the flood waters rising throughout the week, people were flooded out of their homes and rescued from the overflowing rivers and creeks. As the needs for help increased, hundreds of ARC volunteers were called to service. Throughout the floods there have been several shelters opened to accommodate the needs of these flood victims. On Saturday I was asked to help staff one of these shelters overnight in Ferndale.\nWhile I talked with parents and children, I became more aware of the stark reality of how these people have to recover from having all their possessions covered in sewage and mud and damaged by flood waters. In the meantime, these flood victims have all their privacy exposed to others in a public shelter, while they work to find stability in the middle of all the traumas of the events. As I sat talking and playing with the children, another thought struck me. Children are young and resilient, but it must be very difficult when they connect with a volunteer and then lose that connection soon after. Sharing a shelter with the folks over the weekend showed a higher degree of reality and humanity to the situation than the news coverage ever could.\nI posted this bit about my volunteer experience because it made me realize something about my education and degree track in disaster reduction and emergency planning. We look at ways to create a more sustainable community, and we need to remember that community service is an important part of creating this ideal. Underlying sustainable development is the triple bottom line (social, economy, and environment). Volunteers and non-profits are a major part of this social line of sustainability. Organizations like the American Red Cross only exist because of volunteers. So embrace President-elect Obama’s call for a culture of civil service this coming week and make a commitment to the organization of your choice with your actions or even your pocketbook. Know that sustainable development cannot exist with out social responsibility.\nThursday, January 8, 2009\nIts been two days now that schools have been closed in Whatcom County, not for snow, but for rain and flooding. This unusual event coincides with record flooding throughout Western Washington, just a year after record flooding closed I5 for three days and Lewis County businesses experienced what they then called an unprecedented 500 year flood. I guess not.\nThere are many strange things about flood risk notation, and this idea that a 500 year flood often trips people up. They often believe a flood of that size will happen only once in 500 years. On a probabilistic level, this is inaccurate. A 500 year flood simply has a .2% probability of happening each year. A more useful analogy might be to tell people they are rolling a 500 sided die every year and hoping that it doesn’t come up with a 1. Next year they’ll be forced to roll again.\nBut, this focus on misunderstandings of probability often hides an even larger societal misunderstanding . Flood risk changes when we change the environment in which it occurs. If a flood map tells you that you are not in the flood plain, better check the date of the map. Most maps are utterly out of date and many vastly underestimate present flood risk. There are several reasons this happens. Urban development, especially development with a lot of parking lots and buildings that don’t let water seep into the ground, will cause rainwater to move quickly into rivers rather than seep into the ground and slowly release. Developers might complain that they are required to create runoff catchment wetlands when they do build. They do, but these requirements may very well be based upon outdated data on flood risk. Thus, each new development never fully compensates for its runoff, a small problem for each site but a mammoth problem when compounded downstream.\nDeforesting can have the same effect, with the added potential for house-crushing and river-clogging mudslides. Timber harvesting is certainly an important industry in our neck of the woods. Not only is commercial logging an important source of jobs for many rural and small towns, logging on state Department of Natural Resource land is the major source of funding for K-12 education. Yet, commercial logging, like other industries, suffers from a problem of cost externalization. When massive mudslides occurred during last year’s storm, Weyerhaeuser complained that it wasn’t it’s logging practices, but the fact that it was an unprecedented, out of the blue, 500 year storm that caused it. While it is doubtful the slides would have occurred uncut land, that isn’t the only fallacy. When the slide did occur, the costs of repairing roads, treatment plants, and bridges went to the county and often was passed on to the nation’s tax payers through state and federal recovery grants. Thus, what should have been paid by Weyerhaeuser, 500 year probability or not, was paid by someone else.\nFinally, there is local government. Various folks within local governments set regulations for zoning, deciding what will be built and where. Here is the real crux of the problem. Local government also gets an increase in revenue in the form of property, sales, and business income taxes. Suppress the updating of flood plain maps, and you get a short term profit and often, a steady supply of happy voters. You might think these local governments will have to pay when the next big flood comes, but often that can be avoided. Certainly, they must comply with federal regulations on flood plain management to be part of the National Flood Insurance program, but that plan has significant leeway and little monitoring. Like the commercial logging, disaster-stricken local governments can often push the recovery costs off to individual homeowners through the FEMA homeowner’s assistance program, and off to state and federal agencies by receiving disaster recovery and community development grants and loans. Certainly, some communities are so regularly devastated, and are so few resources, that disasters simply knock them down before they can given stand up again. But others have found loopholes and can profit by continuing to use old food maps and failing to aggressively control flood plain development.\nWhat is it going to take to really change this system and make it unprofitable to profit from bad land use management?\nHere’s a good in-depth article on last year’s landslides in Lewis County. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008048848_logging13m.html\nAn interesting article on the failure of best management practices in development catchment basins can be found here: Hur, J. et al (2008) Does current management of storm water runoff adequately protect water resources in developing catchments? Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 63 (2) pp. 77-90.\nMonday, December 29, 2008\nIt’s difficult to imagine a more colorful book, celebrating locally-grown and –marketed foods, than David Westerlund’s Simone Goes to the Market: A Children’s Book of Colors Connecting Face and Food. This book is aimed at families and the foods they eat. Who doesn’t want to know where their food is coming from – the terroir, the kind of microclimate it’s produced in, as well as who’s selling it? Gretchen sells her pole beans (purple), Maria her Serrano peppers (green), Dana and Matt sell their freshly-roasted coffee (black), Katie her carrots (orange), a blue poem from Matthew, brown potatoes from Roslyn, yellow patty pan squash from Jed, red tomatoes (soft and ripe) from Diana, and golden honey from Bill (and his bees). This is a book perfect for children of any age who want to connect to and with the food systems that sustain community. Order from firstname.lastname@example.org."}
{"text": "The Brazilian Supreme Court's recognition of same-sex unions in early May marks the latest victory for gay rights in Latin America. The Court's ruling grants equal legal rights to same-sex civil unions as those enjoyed by married heterosexuals, including retirement benefits, joint tax declarations, inheritance rights, and child adoption.\nAn Unlikely Victory\nAs the world's largest Roman Catholic country, Brazil was an unlikely venue for such a promising gay rights victory. The Roman Catholic Church has actively fought proposals for same-sex unions in Brazil, arguing that the Brazilian Constitution defines a \"family entity\" as \"a stable union between a man and a woman.\"2 The Catholic Church responded to the recent ruling with outrage. As Archbishop Anuar Battisti put it, the Supreme Court's decision marked a \"frontal assault\" on the sanctity of the family.3\nThe Catholic Church is losing its power in Brazil, which helped pave the way for the Supreme Court's recent decision in favor of homosexuals. Nevertheless, homophobia retains a tenacious grip on Brazilian society. Despite the fact that the nation boasts the world's largest gay pride parade, the LGBT movement has been unable to achieve fundamental progress and quell discrimination at a societal level. For instance, Marcelo Cerqueira, the head of the Gay Group of Bahia, claims the country is \"number one when it comes to assassination, discrimination and violence against homosexuals.\"4 Additionally, in a disconcerting report, the Gay Group of Bahia found that 260 Brazilian gay people were murdered in 2010, exemplifying the level of hostility towards homosexuals.5 Because of this discriminating environment, gay rights activists traditionally have had little success in Brazil. Most notably, Congress disregarded proposals for gay rights legislation for nearly ten years.\nThe Supreme Court’s recent ruling was therefore a major turning point after a history of protracted, unsuccessful struggles. The judicial decision was made in response to two lawsuits, one of which was filed by Rio de Janeiro Governor Sérgio Cabral and the other by the Office of the Attorney General. While Congress repeatedly ignored requests for equal rights for gay Brazilian citizens, the Supreme Court argued that \"Those who opt for a homosexual union cannot be treated less than equally as citizens.\"6 In this way, by appealing to the judicial system, the LGBT movement was able to achieve success despite deep-seated hostility throughout Brazilian society and in other branches of the government.\nLatin America's Gay Rights Revolution\nProfessor Omar Encarnación of Bard College calls the recent string of gay rights legislation in Latin America a \"gay rights revolution.\"7 Brazil's ruling came on the heels of several other noteworthy gay rights victories in Latin America, such as Uruguay’s legalization of same-sex civil unions in 2007. Shortly thereafter, in 2010, Argentina became the first Latin American nation and eighth nation worldwide to legalize gay marriage. Other landmark decisions in the past few years include Uruguay's decision to allow all men and women, regardless of sexual orientation, to serve in the military and Mexico City's legalization of same-sex civil unions.\nThe recent surge in gay rights victories throughout Latin America is altogether stunning, considering the region has generally been regarded as very homophobic. The Catholic Church has traditionally been a formidable enemy to gay rights movements in the region, but the secularization of much of Latin America has led to the impressive expansion of opportunities for gay rights movements.\nYet this success of gay rights movements throughout Latin America cannot be attributed solely to the declining importance of religion in the region. It is equally important, if not more so, to recognize the vital roles played by gay activist groups and the dynamic strategies these groups employ. For instance, gay rights groups in Brazil were able to reverse legislation banning gays from the workplace by forming partnerships with progressive businesses. In recent years, the use of social media has provided much of the gay movement's momentum by enhancing activist groups' ability to communicate and spread information. For instance, as Javier Corrales notes, by simply posting a video of a hate crime in San Juan or of a gay wedding in Argentina on YouTube, gay rights groups have been able to reach thousands of people and garner support.8 These innovative strategies have brought success despite a notably hostile environment towards homosexuals.\nThrough a comparison with the United States, we can see how remarkable the success of gay rights in Latin America has been. Latin America is marked by a much more homophobic environment than the US, according to a survey conducted by Mitchell Seligson and Daniel Moreno Morales.9 However, although the US has lower levels of societal discrimination towards gays, it is hard to imagine that the United States would completely legalize same-sex civil unions or gay marriage on a national scale. The fact that this legalization occurred in several Latin American nations, despite the formidable opposition there, makes these recent rulings even more significant.\nFurthermore, the recent victories for gay rights exemplify the considerable progress toward the region's consolidation of democracy. The three Latin American countries that have now legalized same-sex unions—Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay—were each ruled by repressive military regimes just over two decades ago. Even Colombia, which is one of the region's worst human rights violators, granted same-sex unions equal rights regarding social security benefits and inheritance rights in 2007. The fact that gay liberation movements have been successful in these unlikely places is a testament to how far these countries have progressed in recent years.\n Marilia Brocchetto and Luciani Gomes. \"Same-sex unions recognized by Brazil's high court.\" 5 May 2011.\nYana Marull. \"Brazil top court recognizes same-sex civil unions.\" American Free Press. 5 May 2011.\n Omar Encarnación. \"A Gay Rights Revolution in Latin America.\" Americas Quarterly. 17 May 2011.\n Javier Corrales. \"Latin American Gays: The Post-Left Leftists.\" Americas Quarterly. 19 March 2010.\n Mitchell A. Seligson and Daniel E. Moreno Morales, \"Gay in the Americas,\" Americas Quarterly, Winter 2010."}
{"text": "By Elliot Mamet\nOn June 23rd, 1972, President Nixon signed Title IX into law. Nearly 40 years later, the passage of Title IX is viewed as an unequivocal milestone in the struggle to protect, defend and expand civil liberties. As we celebrate Title IX’s 40th birthday, it is worth reflecting on its significance, as well as on the challenges that lie ahead.\nTitle IX mandates that federally funded institutions may not exclude or discriminate from an educational program or activity on the basis of sex. The law leverages federal funds in order to require equal opportunity for men and women. There are exceptions to Title IX (like sororities or the Boy Scouts), although in general, Title IX has applied quite broadly and unilaterally to different institutions. Through Title IX, the doors have opened a little wider for equal opportunity in the United States.\nTitle IX shattered the stereotype that women are too “fragile” or “weak” to play sports, but Title IX goes so much further than sports. By prohibiting discrimination based on non-conformity with gender stereotypes, Title IX has been used as an effective tool for defending the civil rights and civil liberties of LGBT students. Additionally, Title IX prohibits discrimination\nand harassment based on students’ gender identity, change of sex, and/or transgender status.\nYet even with these successes, enforcing Title IX still has its challenges. One important concern for policymakers is applying Title IX in a way that is conscious of the diversity of gender expression. In a society where gender and sexual orientation mean different things to different people, self-identifying as the normative “male” or “female” can be difficult\n. A sound approach to Title IX regulation would prioritize meeting the needs of participants in a particular sport or program. Federally funded institutions should allow students to participate in programs and sports based on the gender with which they identify, in a way that is conscious to individual needs. In this way, programs and activities could act as a safe space where program leaders are more sensitive to the diversity of gender expression.\nLooking back at the past 40 years under Title IX, it is clear that Title IX has grown to reflect a fundamental mindset—that human institutions, whether the soccer team or a PhD program—shouldn’t shut out certain categories of people a priori\n. If the Declaration of Independence and the Emancipation Proclamation mean anything at all to us today, surely they must be interpreted as another step on our quest to “make declarations of freedom real\n,” as Martin Luther King Jr. said. And surely, in its own way, Title IX reflects that quest. It is today, nearly 40 years after Title IX was passed into law, that Title IX’s lessons must be heeded with the utmost resolve.\nElliot Mamet is the summer Colorado College Public Interest Fellow at the ACLU of Colorado. He is an incoming sophomore at Colorado College, a four-year, private liberal arts school, where he is studying political science."}
{"text": "Jonas Salk, with both eloquence and simplicity, once stated that there are two primary approaches to treating ill people. He said that there are therapeutic techniques that directly impact specific symptoms, and there are methods that stimulate the body's own immune and defense system.\nWhereas conventional medical treatments today tend to focus on the former goal of treating or controlling symptoms, various natural therapeutics primarily attend to the latter goal of augmenting the person's own inherent defenses. Although the direct treatment of symptoms often has immediate effects, its benefits tend to be short-term. Because such therapeutic interventions do not usually strengthen the person's own defenses, the individual remains prone to recurrence of their problem.\nIn contrast, therapeutic methods that strengthen a person's immune and defense system has longer term benefit and can prevent recurrence, but the benefit is sometimes achieved more slowly.\nThese generalizations about therapeutic methods are, however, just that, generalizations. There are plenty of exceptions, but these generalizations create a useful framework from which to evaluate the benefits and limitations of various therapeutic approaches.\nHomeopathy and Immune Response\nHomeopathy obviously fits into the class of therapeutic methods that augment the body's own defenses. The basis of homeopathy, called the principle of similars, suggests that a microdose of a substance will heal whatever pattern of symptoms this substances causes in large dose. This principle is also observed in the use of vaccinations and allergy treatments, though homeopathic medicines are both considerably smaller and safer in dose and more individualized to the person they are being used to treat.\nAlthough homeopathic medicines are thought to stimulate the body's own defenses, how they do so remains a mystery. One study published in the European Journal of Pharmacology1 showed that a homeopathic medicine, Silicea, stimulated macrophages (macrophages are a part of the body's immune system which engulf bacteria and foreign substances). How or why Silicea was able to have this action or why exceedingly small doses of it are so active is unknown. In the same way that physicians and pharmacologists do not understand how many drugs work, we do not understand how homeopathic medicine actually work.\nHomeopathic medicine do not simply stimulate the body's immune system to treat ill people, for they can also calm it when this is necessary for the healing of the individual. An example of this latter effect was observed in a study of the homeopathic treatment of people with rheumatoid arthritis, a condition which is considered an autoimmune illness. People with auto-immune ailments suffer because their body's immune system is over-active and it attacks the person's own cells, not just bacteria, viruses, or foreign substances.\nThis study on 46 people with rheumatoid arthritis showed that those given an individualized choice of homeopathic medicine got considerably more relief than those given a placebo.2 A total of 82% of those people given a homeopathic medicine experienced relief of pain, while only 21% of those given a placebo got a similar degree of relief.\nHomeopathy and Infectious Diseases\nToward the end of Louis Pasteur's life, he had come to realize that germs may not be the cause of disease afterall, but instead are probably the results of disease. In other words, various bacteria and other infective organisms may be present when there is some type of disease, but infection tends to establish itself primarily when a person's own defenses are compromised sufficiently to make him susceptible to the infection."}
{"text": "Racism can be a tough thing to study. In situations where all things appear even, they might not be even at all. For example, in situations where employers are refusing to hire minority candidates, the argument could sometimes be made (although maybe not successfully) that there are extenuating circumstances. A truly successful study of race should be made in a laboratory of sorts. The only difference between two people should be skin color.\nWell, thanks to the internet, the great equalizer, we do have such a situation, eBay. Three Yale and Harvard researchers conducted a study called, “Race Effects on Ebay.” The results? Americans are racist.\nEven when selling the exact same items, buyers responded more favorably to white people than to black. From Good Technology:\nThe researchers auctioned off moderately priced baseball cards, which were photographed held in either a dark black hand or a white hand. Though the cards themselves were the same, cards held in a black hand sold for about 20 percent less than cards held in a white hand. What’s more, “the race effect was more pronounced in sales of minority player cards.”\nThe eBay study mimics a similar one from 2010. While that experiment, from the Centre for Economic Policy Research, focused on iPods sold via general online classified ads, the results were sadly the same: Black sellers received fewer responses and fewer cash offers than white sellers, and the cash offers they did receive were significantly lower. Beyond that, buyers corresponding with black sellers “exhibited lower trust,” according to the researchers. In other words, they were far less likely to accept delivery by mail (44 percent) and far more likely to object to the idea of making a long-distance payment (56 percent).\nThe 2010 study also found that there were regional discrepancies. The Northeast part of the U.S. was the worst, where black people received 32% fewer offers. The Midwest had a 23% gap and the South, 15%. There was virtually no difference in the West."}
{"text": "Memory loss (amnesia) is unusual forgetfulness. You may not be able to remember new events, recall one or more memories of the past, or both.\nForgetfulness; Amnesia; Impaired memory; Loss of memory; Amnestic syndrome\nNormal aging may cause some forgetfullness. It's normal to have some trouble learning new material, or needing more time to remember it.\nHowever, normal aging does NOT lead to dramatic memory loss. Such memory loss is due to other diseases. Sometimes, memory loss may be seen with depression. It can be hard to tell the difference between memory loss and confusion due to depression.\nSome types of memory loss may cause you to forget recent or new events, past or remote events, or both. You may forget memories from a single event, or all events.\nMemory loss may cause you to have trouble learning new information or forming new memories.\nThe memory loss may be temporary (transient), or permanent.\nMemory loss can be caused by many different things. To determine a cause, your doctor or nurse will ask if the problem came on suddenly or slowly.\nMany areas of the brain help you create and retrieve memories. A problem in any of these areas can lead to memory loss.\nCauses of memory loss include:\n- Alcohol or use of illicit drugs\n- Not enough oxygen to the brain (heart stopped, stopped breathing, complications from anesthesia)\n- Brain growths (caused by tumors or infection)\n- Brain infections such as Lyme disease, syphilis, or HIV/AIDS\n- Brain surgery, such as surgery to treat seizure disorders\n- Cancer treatments, such as brain radiation, bone marrow transplant, or after chemotherapy\n- Certain medications\n- Certain types of seizures\n- Depression, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia when symptoms have not been well controlled\n- Dissociative disorder (not being able to remember a major, traumatic event; the memory loss may be short-term or long-term)\n- Drugs such as barbiturates or benzodiazepines\n- Electroconvulsive therapy (especially if it is long-term)\n- Encephalitis of any type (infection, autoimmune disease, chemical/drug induced)\n- Epilepsy that is not well controlled with medications\n- Head trauma or injury\n- Heart bypass surgery\n- Illness that results in the loss of, or damage to, nerve cells (neurodegenerative illness), such as Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, or multiple sclerosis\n- Long-term alcohol abuse\n- Migraine headache\n- Mild head injury or concussion\n- Nutritional problems (vitamin deficiencies such as low vitamin B12)\n- Permanent damage or injuries to the brain\n- Transient global amnesia\n- Transient ischemic attack (TIA)\nA person with memory loss needs a lot of support. It helps to show them familiar objects, music, or photos.\nWrite down when the person should take any medication or complete any other important tasks. It is important to write it down.\nIf a person needs help with everyday tasks, or safety or nutrition is a concern, you may want to consider extended care facilities, such as a nursing home.\nWhat to Expect at Your Office Visit\nThe doctor or nurse will perform a physical exam and ask questions about the person's medical history and symptoms. This will almost always include asking questions of family members and friends. They should come to the appointment.\nMedical history questions may include:\n- Can the person remember recent events (is there impaired short-term memory)?\n- Can the person remember events from further in the past (is there impaired long-term memory)?\n- Is there a loss of memory about events that occurred before a specific experience (anterograde amnesia)?\n- Is there a loss of memory about events that occurred soon after a specific experience (retrograde amnesia)?\n- Is there only a minimal loss of memory?\n- Does the person make up stories to cover gaps in memory (confabulation)?\n- Is the person suffering from low moods that impair concentration?\n- Time pattern\n- Has the memory loss been getting worse over years?\n- Has the memory loss been developing over weeks or months?\n- Is the memory loss present all the time or are there distinct episodes of amnesia?\n- If there are amnesia episodes, how long do they last?\n- Aggravating or triggering factors\n- Has there been a head injury in the recent past?\n- Has the person experienced an event that was emotionally traumatic?\n- Has there been a surgery or procedure requiring general anesthesia?\n- Does the person use alcohol? How much?\n- Does the person use illegal/illicit drugs? How much? What type?\n- Other symptoms\n- What other symptoms does the person have?\n- Is the person confused or disoriented?\n- Can they independently eat, dress, and perform similar self-care activities?\n- Have they had seizures?\nTests that may be done include:\nCognitive therapy, usually through a speech/language therapist, may be helpful for mild to moderate memory loss.\nSee: Dementia - homecare for information about taking care of a loved one with dementia.\nKirshner HS. Approaches to intellectual and memory impairments. In: Gradley WG, Daroff RB, Fenichel GM, Jankovic J, eds. Neurology in Clinical Practice. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Butterworth-Heinemann; 2008:chap 6.\nLuc Jasmin, MD, PhD, Department of Neurosurgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, and Department of Anatomy at UCSF, San Francisco, CA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Health Solutions, Ebix, Inc.\nThe information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Call 911 for all medical emergencies. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. © 1997-\nA.D.A.M., Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited."}
{"text": "CentOS uses both font systems and they use different folders: http://www.centos.org/docs/5/html/Deployment_Guide-en-US/s1-x-fonts.html\nRed Hat Enterprise Linux uses two subsystems to manage and display fonts under X: Fontconfig and xfs.\nThe newer Fontconfig font subsystem simplifies font management and provides advanced display features, such as anti-aliasing. This system is used automatically for applications programmed using the Qt 3 or GTK+ 2 graphical toolkit.\nFor compatibility, Red Hat Enterprise Linux includes the original font subsystem, called the core X font subsystem. This system, which is over 15 years old, is based around the X Font Server (xfs).\nOn CentOS5/Redhat it seems that XFS gets its fonts from the X config file /etc/X11/fs/config which points to /usr/share/X11/fonts, and fontconfig gets its config from /etc/fonts/font.conf which points to /usr/share/fonts. By default neither font system sees the fonts from the other system.\nSeems that RH wants to move to fontconfig but still has some things that use XFS. Why they didnt just put all the fonts in 1 folder and pointed everything there so that both font systems had all the same fonts is a mystery."}
{"text": "Ears, Nose, and Throat Surgery\nOne of the most critical areas on the human body is the Ear, Nose and Throat area, commonly called ENT. Many times, obstructions or complications in this area can affect basic health system functions such as breathing, eating and sleeping.\nVarious surgeries for the ear, nose, and throat are available to improve health and functionality. Airway reconstruction is an option for patients with breathing difficulties such as constriction and noisy breathing, while vocal cord surgery addresses similar problems with sound and articulation.\nIn many cases, surgeons operate on delicate structures such as minute blood vessels, which requires a level of precision and expertise that our medical staff are skilled at providing. Common procedures in the ENT area can include:\nHead and Neck\nTo find a surgeon at Trinity visit our Physician Finder."}
{"text": "Mars is a cold desert world. It is half the diameter of Earth and has the same amount of dry land. Like Earth, Mars has seasons, polar ice caps, volcanoes, canyons and weather, but its atmosphere is too thin for liquid water to exist for long on the surface. There are signs of ancient floods on Mars, but evidence for water now exists mainly in icy soil and thin clouds.\nFeatured Mission: Mars Science Laboratory/Curiosity\nCuriosity, a robotic rover about the size of a small SUV, is designed to find whether the Red Planet ever was -- or is still today -- an environment suitable for life. The rover landed on Mars in August 2012.\nRead More About Mars"}
{"text": "With the hope of encouraging Pennsylvanians to better understand their personal finances, Governor Tom Corbett has declared April to be “Financial Education Month” in the state.\nThe administration believes a basic financial education is essential to ensuring that Pennsylvanians of all ages are prepared to manage money, credit, investments, and debt.\nPennsylvania Department of Banking is looking to both celebrate and draw attention to public and private education efforts. “One of our goals is to empower people. In the run up to the economic downturn, we saw a lot of very hardworking people make poor decisions with credit cards, mortgage financing, and home purchases,” said Department of Banking spokesperson Ed Novak.\nThe governor believes in order for Pennsylvanians to fully recover from the economic slide, they need to be responsible for better educating themselves. “It’s clear to us that as a starting point for getting ourselves out of this economic downturn, Pennsylvanians need to increase their financial literacy to help them navigate what is becoming an increasingly complex financial marketplace,” said Novak."}
{"text": "Emacs Lisp uses two kinds of storage for user-created Lisp objects: normal storage and pure storage. Normal storage is where all the new data created during an Emacs session are kept (see Garbage Collection). Pure storage is used for certain data in the preloaded standard Lisp files—data that should never change during actual use of Emacs.\nPure storage is allocated only while temacs is loading the\nstandard preloaded Lisp libraries. In the file emacs, it is\nmarked as read-only (on operating systems that permit this), so that\nthe memory space can be shared by all the Emacs jobs running on the\nmachine at once. Pure storage is not expandable; a fixed amount is\nallocated when Emacs is compiled, and if that is not sufficient for\nthe preloaded libraries, temacs allocates dynamic memory for\nthe part that didn't fit. The resulting image will work, but garbage\ncollection (see Garbage Collection) is disabled in this situation,\ncausing a memory leak. Such an overflow normally won't happen unless\nyou try to preload additional libraries or add features to the\nstandard ones. Emacs will display a warning about the overflow when\nit starts. If this happens, you should increase the compilation\nSYSTEM_PURESIZE_EXTRA in the file\nsrc/puresize.h and rebuild Emacs.\nThis function makes a copy in pure storage of object, and returns it. It copies a string by simply making a new string with the same characters, but without text properties, in pure storage. It recursively copies the contents of vectors and cons cells. It does not make copies of other objects such as symbols, but just returns them unchanged. It signals an error if asked to copy markers.\nThis function is a no-op except while Emacs is being built and dumped; it is usually called only in preloaded Lisp files.\nThe value of this variable is the number of bytes of pure storage allocated so far. Typically, in a dumped Emacs, this number is very close to the total amount of pure storage available—if it were not, we would preallocate less.\nThis variable determines whether\ndefunshould make a copy of the function definition in pure storage. If it is non-\nnil, then the function definition is copied into pure storage.\nThis flag is\ntwhile loading all of the basic functions for building Emacs initially (allowing those functions to be shareable and non-collectible). Dumping Emacs as an executable always writes\nnilin this variable, regardless of the value it actually has before and after dumping.\nYou should not change this flag in a running Emacs."}
{"text": "35 - The Philosopher's Toolkit: Aristotle's Logical Works\nPeter discusses Aristotle’s pioneering work in logic, and looks at related issues like the ten categories and the famous “sea battle” argument for determinism.\nYou are missing some Flash content that should appear here! Perhaps your browser cannot display it, or maybe it did not initialize correctly.\n• J. Hintikka, Time and Necessity. Studies in Aristotle's Theory of Modality (Oxford:1973).\n• W. Leszl, “Aristotle's Logical Works and His Conception of Logic,” Topoi 23 (2004), 71–100.\n• R. Smith, \"Logic,\" in J. Barnes (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Aristotle (Cambridge: 1995), 27-65.\n• S. Waterlow, Passage and Possibility (Oxford: 1982).\nOn the \"sea battle\" problem:\n• G.E.M. Anscombe, “Aristotle and the Sea Battle,” in J.M.E. Moravcsik (ed.), Aristotle: a Collection of Critical Essays, (1967), reprinted from Mind 65 (1956).\n• D. Frede, “The Sea-Battle Reconsidered: a Defence of the Traditional Interpretation,” Oxford Studies in Ancient Philosophy 3 (1985).\n• J. Hintikka, “The Once and Future Sea Fight: Aristotle’s Discussion of Future Contingents in de Interpretatione 9,” in his Time and Necessity (see above)."}
{"text": "Find More Accuracy in the Treatment of Brain Tumor by Stereotactic Radiosurgery\nStereotactic radiotherapy (also called stereotaxy) is a type of minimally invasive surgical intervention. It uses radiation treatment to deliver a large and precise radiation dose to the tumor area in a single session. This type of surgery applies a three-dimensional coordinates system to locate small targets inside the body. With the help of gamma knife, radiation beams are focused at the tumor from various angles for a short period of time. Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) can be performed by several other machines such as X-Knife, CyberKnife and Clinac. It is used to treat brain tumors and other brain disorders that are difficult to be treated by regular surgery.\nThis type of surgery works under three main components. The first one is stereotactic planning system; it includes multimodality image matching tools. The stereotactic atlas is a series of cross sections of anatomical structure. In most atlases, the three dimensions are as latero-lateral (x), dorso-ventral (y) and rostro-caudal (z). Another one is a stereotactic device or apparatus which uses a set of three coordinates (x, y and z). And the last one is stereotactic localization and placement procedure. This therapy works in the same way as other forms of radiation treatment. Instead of removing the tumor, stereotactic radiotherapy damages the DNA of tumor cells. In this way malignant and metastatic tumors may shrink more rapidly.\nStereotactic radiosurgery can effectively treat different types of tumors including benign, malignant, primary, metastatic, single and multiple. A study in 2008 by The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center revealed that SRS and Whole brain radiation therapy (WBRT) for the treatment of metastatic brain tumors have more that twice the risk of developing leaning and memory problems than treated with SRS alone."}
{"text": "NOLAN, MATTHEW (1834–1864). Matthew Nolan, Mexican War veteran, Texas Ranger, Nueces County sheriff, and Confederate cavalry officer, was born in 1834 in Providence, Rhode Island. He was the son of Irish immigrants. Some sources claim he was born in New York. His parents died when he and his older sister Mary and younger brother Tom were children, leaving them on their own. Mary married a soldier and enlisted her brothers as buglers in Zachary Taylor's Second Dragoons. She became a laundress so that she could travel with her husband and brothers to Texas on the eve of the Mexican War. They settled in Corpus Christi until Taylor moved his army to the Rio Grande valley at the beginning of the war. By this time Mary was working as a hospital matron. Matthew and Tom Nolan were at the battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma and traveled with the army until the end of the war in 1848 and then returned to Corpus Christi.\nIn 1850 Nolan joined John S. \"Rip\" Ford's Texas Ranger unit as a bugler where he distinguished himself in a May 26, 1850, skirmish with Comanche Indians near Fort Merrill. In Ford's memoirs he wrote that Nolan \"rushed barefoot through prickly pear to get a shot at the retreating foe.\" Nolan stayed with Rip Ford and the Texas Rangers during the 1850s and fought minor territorial battles throughout Texas. In 1858 Nolan was elected sheriff of Nueces County, and he named his brother Tom a deputy sheriff.\nAt the outbreak of the Civil War, Nolan raised a company of volunteers from Corpus Christi and joined the Second Texas Cavalry. He fought along the Mexican border with his former commander Ford. He returned to Corpus Christi to marry Margaret J. McMahon on May 22, 1862. Nolan rejoined his regiment to take part in the January 1, 1863, recapture of Galveston Island. His actions in the battle of Galveston led to his promotion to major.\nLater in 1863 Nolan was sent back to a volatile Corpus Christi to help keep the peace in South Texas and monitor the coast. Corpus Christi was equally divided between Northern and Southerner sympathizers. Ford employed Nolan to keep watch on Cecilio Balerio, Union sympathizer and rancher. With Ford's blessing, Nolan was reelected to county sheriff on August 1, 1864. His job was to arrest, \"perfidious renegades.\" One of these \"renegades,\" former sheriff H. W. Barry, was a Mexican War veteran who was providing cotton to Union ships in the Gulf of Mexico. Nolan reported to Ford that he had seen Barry in action. By December 1864 Corpus Christi was suffering the effects of war, and tensions ran high. On the night of December 22, 1864, Nolan and horse trader J. C. McDonald met outside of the Nolan home, and while they talked, two of Barry's stepsons, Frank and Charles Gravis, appeared and started an argument with Nolan. In the commotion that ensued, one of the Gravis brothers shot and fatally wounded Nolan. Other sources claim that Nolan was in the process of arresting McDonald, and the two brothers, intending to kill McDonald for seducing their sister, accidentally shot Nolan instead.\nMatthew Nolan is buried next to his brother Tom in the Old Bayview Cemetery in Corpus Christi.\nMurphy Givens, \"Corpus Christi History: The Nolans arrive in Corpus Christi,\" Corpus Christi Caller–Times, August 23, 2000 (http://www.caller2.com/2000/august/23/today/murphy_g/2672.html), accessed March 23, 2011.\nThe following, adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this article.Stephanie P. Niemeyer, \"NOLAN, MATTHEW,\" Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fno33), accessed May 22, 2013. Published by the Texas State Historical Association."}
{"text": "scintillation counterArticle Free Pass\nscintillation counter, radiation detector that is triggered by a flash of light (or scintillation) produced when ionizing radiation traverses certain solid or liquid substances (phosphors), among which are thallium-activated sodium iodide, zinc sulfide, and organic compounds such as anthracene incorporated into solid plastics or liquid solvents. The light flashes are converted into electric pulses by a photoelectric alloy of cesium and antimony, amplified about a million times by a photomultiplier tube, and finally counted. Sensitive to X rays, gamma rays, and charged particles, scintillation counters permit high-speed counting of particles and measurement of the energy of incident radiation.\nWhat made you want to look up \"scintillation counter\"? Please share what surprised you most..."}
{"text": "Learning how to read coherently and write effectively teaches you to think critically, increases your vocabulary, and improves your language and research skills. No matter what field you enter, communication and writing skills are important and highly sought after by employers. Maranatha’s English major will expose you to enduring literary works and teach you to write more effectively, whether you write sermons, correspondence, books, magazine articles, or other forms of communication. Because of its emphasis on critical thinking and writing, English is also one of the best ways to prepare for graduate school.\nUnlike secular English programs that promote relativistic theory about language, Maranatha’s English major teaches students to “approve things that are excellent” (Phil. 1:10) and to evaluate literature from a moral and biblical perspective. The English major will not only immerse you in the wide world of literature and awaken your cultural awareness but also equip you to discern objective truth and beauty according to God’s standard.\nAn English minor is also available for those majoring in another field who want to improve their ability to think, read, and write effectively through an acquaintance with excellent literary works.\nThis is the suggested class list for the English major. You may also look over the details for our English Education major.\n|English Composition 1||3||English Composition 2||3|\n|Computer Information System Elective||1||Computer Information System Elective||2|\n|Christian Life 1||1||New Testament Survey||2|\n|Old Testament Survey||2||Minor||3|\n|Fundamentals of Public Speaking||2||Music Elective||2|\n|The Modern World||3||Science Elective||3|\n|British Literature Survey to 1789||3||British Literature Survey: 1789 to Present||3|\n|Composition and Literature||3||American Masterpieces||3|\n|Elementary Spanish 1||3||Elementary Spanish 2||3|\n|Computer Information System Elective||1||Baptist Heritage||3|\n|Christian Life 2||1||Bible Elective||2|\n|Principles of Bible Study||2||Minor||3|\n|Writing Elective||3||Literary Criticism||3|\n|Period Literature Elective||3||Computer Information System Elective||1|\n|Intermediate Spanish 1||3||Intermediate Spanish 2||3|\n|Introduction to Philosophy||2||Bible Doctrine 1||3|\n|Christian Life 3||1||Minor||3|\n|Minor||3||American Studies Elective||3|\n|Period Literature Elective||3||Period Literature Elective||3|\n|Writing Elective||3||Writing or Period Literature Elective||3|\n|Bible Doctrine 2||3||English Elective||3|\n|Humanities Elective||3||Humanities Elective||3|\n- Copy editor\n- Creative writer\n- English as a Second Language teacher\n- Linguistic specialist\n- Literacy tutor\n- Literature specialist\nChelsie (Czichray) Messenger (’08) is enrolled in the Professional Communications program at Clemson University and hopes to someday work in business communications or public relations. She previously taught English at Easley Christian School in Easley, SC. “My academic advisor, Nathan Huffstutler, helped me sort out my future career goals and helped me develop my love of technical writing,” Messenger said."}
{"text": "Dry, flaky skin, also referred to as xerosis, not only looks unattractive, it can be uncomfortably tight and itchy. In severe cases, the skin is so dry that fissures and cracks develop which can become inflamed or infected. The symptoms worsen in the winter months when skin is exposed to dry air and heat, but some people deal with xerosis all year round.\nDry skin is caused by a lack of moisture in the outer layer of the skin. The outermost layer of the skin contains lipids. These lipids consist of ceramides, fatty acids and cholesterol that help to hold in water and prevent dryness. People with dry skin often have lower levels of ceramides. This affects the skin’s ability to retain moisture. When the outer layer of skin is too dry, skin cells aren’t shed properly and the cells build up on the surface of the skin causing it to look rough and flaky.\nSome people are prone towards dry skin genetically, but lifestyle habits play a role too. Ceramides that keep skin moist and supple can be stripped away by using harsh cleansers and detergents, washing skin in hot water, exposing skin to chemicals, frequent bathing and exposure to dry air or extremes in temperature. Areas with the fewest oil glands such as the extremities and trunk are most susceptible.\nIt’s important to reduce your skin’s exposure to elements that damage the lipid layer and remove moisture from the skin. Some people live in homes with a low humidity. Adding a home humidifier to increase moisture in the air is a simple way to sooth dry, irritated skin. Staying covered up outdoors in the winter helps too.\nAnother problem that aggravates xerosis is excessive exposure to water, especially hot water. Dry skin was less common years ago when people didn’t have the convenience of taking a shower every day. Using harsh cleansers and bath products including soap also worsen the problem by stripping away the lipids and oils that keep skin moist. A better alternative is to use a soap-free cleanser which contains ingredients that remove dirt while helping to repair the protective lipid barrier. Keep baths short, and use warm, not hot, water. A brief shower is a better alternative.\nAfter cleansing, it’s important to moisturize. Pat skin dry and immediately apply a layer of moisturizer while skin is still slightly damp. Choose one that contains ingredients known to be effective for dry skin such as hyaluronic acid, glycerin, alpha-hydroxy acids or urea. Alpha-hydroxy acids have the additional advantage of smoothing the skin surface and improving its texture so it reflects light better, making skin look more youthful. Stay away from lanolin and fragrance which can irritate the skin.\nA lotion works well for xerosis on the body, but creams are better for treating facial dryness. Select a product which contains hyaluronic acid and glycerin along with other moisturizers such as shea butter and safflower seed oil to retain moisture. Using a combination of moisturizers also helps to smooth out the appearance of fine lines and makes skin feel supple and silky.\nDry skin is more than just a cosmetic problem. It can make skin feel itchy and uncomfortable. Fortunately, it can be treated by making a few lifestyle changes and using the right skin care products."}
{"text": "Gonorrhoea - the drugs don't work\nPublished: 23rd Dec 2011 08:41:37\nThe prospect of untreatable gonorrhoea has provoked alarm around the world, and there are no new classes of antibiotics in development.\nIn this week's Scrubbing Up column, Peter Greenhouse of the British Association for Sexual Health & HIV (BASHH) argues financial incentives will be needed to seek a new cure.\nWe're all familiar with stories about hospital-acquired superbugs - MRSA and the like - becoming more difficult to treat, and are fearful whenever an elderly relative needs in-patient care.\nBut now, with a report from Japan of multidrug-resistant gonorrhoea, and the festive season in full swing, the spectre of an untreatable sexually transmitted infection looms over us - and our teenagers - for the first time in a generation.\nSince penicillin was first used to treat gonorrhoea in 1943, the organism has gradually developed novel means of evading control by each new antibiotic.\nFor treatment to be effective and practical, it must be simple to administer by mouth as a single dose, achieving a high enough concentration of the drug in the body to treat over 95% of infections.\nIf the efficacy drops below this figure, the treatment has to change.\nBut over-the-counter medication, widely available in Africa and Asia means people self-medicate often taking the wrong dose at the wrong time, perhaps with alcohol which further reduces the concentration of the drug.\nStrains of gonorrhoea which need a higher concentration of a drug to kill them become the dominant ones. This keeps happening until the drug no longer works.\nIf gonorrhoea becomes untreatable in these countries, the effect on increasing HIV rates could be disastrous - because any sexually transmitted infection which causes inflammation and discharge increases the transmission efficiency of HIV.\nOn average, transmission is five times more likely to occur if gonorrhoea or chlamydia are present\nIn the UK, the situation is monitored annually by the Health Protection Agency, providing an essential early warning of drugs which are about to fail, allowing a switch of treatment regimes before they become ineffective.\nThere's a desperate world-wide demand for new antibiotics, yet the drug companies aren't interested”\nCiprofloxacin - a drug introduced in the mid-1980s after the failure of penicillin - lasted in the UK until 2002: This may have survived longer because of the world-wide drop in gonorrhoea rates following the arrival of HIV, when fear of the new virus meant people practised safe-sex and changed partners less.\nBut it had already failed in the Far East, some four years previously.\nResistance develops faster in homosexual men, not just because of high rates of partner change.\nMost people don't realise that oral sex is an important route of transmission for gonorrhoea, which doesn't usually cause a sore throat.\nGonorrhoea mixes with organisms which live naturally in the rectum and throat, picking up new types of antibiotic resistance from these bugs.\nThe next drug, cefixime, was introduced around 2003, but lasted only six years in the UK before resistance rose suddenly, hitting 25% among homosexual men.\nNow, their only treatment option is an injection (Ceftriaxone) which has recently failed in Japan.\nBut why isn't there a new drug in development?\nSince the mid-1980s and the arrival of HIV, almost all drug company research has focused on antiviral medicines, with no new classes of antibiotics being produced since the 1970s, and none on the horizon.\nThere's a desperate world-wide demand for new antibiotics, yet the drug companies aren't interested, so how could we motivate them?\nFinancial reality dictates research policy: Why bother to develop a drug which works in one day or one week, when you could make one - such as an antidepressant, statin or antiviral - which must be taken for months, for years, or for life?\nSo either the new drug(s) would have to be seriously expensive, precluding their use where they would be most needed, or there would have to be a substantial reward offered, perhaps of a magnitude only affordable by a fund such as the Gates Foundation.\nYet even if novel drugs could be produced, the biology and transmission dynamics of gonorrhoea mean that each new regime would probably fail within five-to-ten years of its introduction, unless we use multi-dose, multi-drug regimes, which will be less practical and more expensive to administer.\nFaced with this, what can we do to stay sexually healthy? Stay at home, or take your partner to the New Year party: If that's not possible, use condoms - meticulously, and visit your local clinic - frequently.\nHarvard CitationBBC News, 2011. Gonorrhoea - the drugs don't work. [Online] (Updated 23 Dec 2011)\nAvailable at: http://www.ukwirednews.com/news.php/212819-Gonorrhoea-the-drugs-dont-work [Accessed 14th May 2013]\nAt 07:53:07 in BusinessA group of international investors is interested in buying UK water supplier Severn Trent, the company has said....\nAt 07:49:21 in WalesMajor road safety works have started on a one-mile stretch of coast road at Flintshire which has been the scene of serious accidents....\nAt 07:48:53 in EnglandStuart Hazell is due to be sentenced later after admitting mid-trial to killing his partner's granddaughter....\nAt 07:47:03 in WalesAn independent TV company has issued redundancy notices to 10 members of staff due to a cut in work from Welsh language broadcaster S4C....\nAt 07:43:33 in WalesFurther forensic evidence is expected to be heard later in the trial of the man accused of murdering April Jones....\nAt 07:41:47 in WalesA Cardiff theatre was asked to explain by the Arts Council of Wales why there was no plan to tackle an £800,000 overspend, it has emerged....\nAt 07:40:22 in EntertainmentHollywood actress Angelina Jolie has undergone a double mastectomy to reduce her chances of getting breast cancer....\nAt 07:32:39 in HeadlinesA boat carrying Rohingya Muslims has capsized off western Burma, aid agencies say. ...\nAt 07:31:47 in BusinessIndia's top drugmaker Ranbaxy Laboratories is to pay a record fine in the US for lying to officials and selling badly made generic drug...\nAt 07:31:30 in Northern IrelandPolice have issued a description of a man they want to question about the rape of a teenage girl in west Belfast....\nNews In Other Categories\nA group of international investors is interested in buying UK water supplier Severn Trent, the company has said....\nFree wi-fi access is to be introduced at 25 of Scotland's busiest railway stations before the end of the year. ...\nMajor road safety works have started on a one-mile stretch of coast road at Flintshire which has been the scene of serious accidents....\nWhat makes a great foreign minister? Some of those who have held the great office of state, including Lord Carrington, David Owen and David ...\nIt was a melodious spectacle....\nWith the doors to its brand new £1million training centre officially open, one of the UK's leading apprentice training providers, Bristol ba..."}
{"text": "2011 State Poverty Data Underscore the Need to Protect Programs for Low-Income Women\nNew data from the Census was just released, and NWLC’s calculations show that many women and their families around the country are still struggling in the wake of the great recession. Though poverty stabilized between 2010 and 2011, protecting low income programs remains absolutely critical for women.\nIn 2011, more than one in five women was poor in Mississippi (22.3 percent) and Louisiana (20.6 percent). Only one state, New Hampshire, had a poverty rate of less than ten percent for women, at 8.9 percent. In the other 47 states and the District of Columbia, between 10 and 20 percent of women lived below the poverty line.\nIn 2011, more than half of female-headed families with children were poor in Kentucky (51.3 percent), Louisiana (50.3 percent), Mississippi (51.8 percent), and West Virginia (51.6 percent). In eight more states (AL, AR, ID, MI, NM, OH, SC, and TN), their poverty rates were 45 percent and above.\nWhat about women of color? In eleven states, about a third or more of black women were poor (IA, IN, LA, ME, MI, MN, MS, SD, WI, WV, and, VT). Roughly a third of Hispanic women were poor in six states (IN, MS, NC, PA, RI, TN).\nYet again, these numbers underscore the importance of federal and state programs for low-income people. We’ve talked about this before, but with poverty rates at record highs, programs like Social Security, Medicare, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly food stamps), and the Earned Income Tax Credit, among others, are essential for keeping millions of women and families above the poverty line. We know that women disproportionately rely on these programs, making the message from the state poverty data clear: Programs for low-income families and individuals must be protected. We sincerely hope Congress is taking note.\nArticles by Topic\nJoin the New Reproductive Health Campaign\nGo to ThisIsPersonal.org to get the facts and tools you need to help protect women's reproductive health."}
{"text": "The Founding Fathers, as a group, were a band of very wise men. Perhaps the wisest was Benjamin Franklin, a rare combination of genius and solid common sense. He also had that attribute of truly wise people: the sense to hide his intellect to some extent behind a fog of good humor. How fortunate for America that throughout his life he placed his intellect at the service of his country, a country he understood at an early date embraced all of the colonies in British America.\nAt the end of his life his final great service to America was at the Constitutional Convention where his calming words helped bring disputing factions together to achieve the task of hammering a document together that has endured through the centuries. Many of the delegates noted the importance of Doctor Franklin in the process of bringing the Constitution to life. One of the delegates, Dr. James McHenry of Maryland, a surgeon who had served as an aide to General Washington during the Revolutionary War, recorded that as Franklin was leaving Constitution Hall “A lady asked Dr. (Benjamin) Franklin, “Well Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?” “A republic,” replied the Doctor, “if you can keep it.”\nI have always been struck by that answer, because Franklin indicated in it that it is the responsibility of each individual American to keep the nation a Republic, not the responsibility of someone else. Sound advice in 1787, sound advice in 2011."}
{"text": "While Americans and others may celebrate Easter only on a Sunday, that occasion is marked in Spain by an entire week of festivities known as Semana Santa, or Holy Week. The Holy Week festivals that take place all over the country are especially marked in Andalucia. Here, the emphasis is less on doleful repentance and more on celebration of the central figures of Christianity.\nThe central feature of all those activities are the notable processions that take place in every town in the region. The times, participants and style varies considerably from town to town. But almost all have some common themes.\nTypically, traffic is closed off to allow for the floats and the hundreds or sometimes even thousands of people that precede or follow them. The festival is marked by religious figures dressed in Church finery carrying candles and directing the parade. Encircled by them is the main focus of the event: the floats.\nEvery float is a unique and creative construction that contains a figure of Jesus, Mary or an important saint.\nA small statue of Saint Rocco, for example, may be held aloft on one platform, displaying his bare leg. He is regarded as a patron of the sick and the hopeful will often toss money onto the float, seeking relief or improvement.\nOther floats will depict scenes from the Bible, early Christian stories, or any of a thousand different images that evoke memories of tales passed down through hundreds of generations. There is the Gitano del Polvorín, the Virgen de la Victoria and the Señor de Sevilla, among many more.\nThe processions, like the stories, are an ongoing tradition that has its origins in the early Middle Ages. As far back as 1,500 years ago the faithful annually walked with the platforms to celebrate the Annunciation, the Sermon on the Mount, the Rising from the Dead and other well-known scenes from the Bible.\nFor centuries – during the period Spain was ruled by Islamic Moors, Berbers, Arabs and others from North Africa – the festivals were forbidden. Not surprisingly, therefore, after the Reconquest by Christian kings and the re-establishment of Christianity in the country, the festivals started anew. They have been a regular event in Andalucia, with few interruptions, ever since.\nBut the natives are not the only participants. Church officials from Rome and elsewhere, along with people from around the world merely wanting to take part, celebrate the Holy Week festivals, too.\nThe celebrations ramp up a notch the final few days before Easter, making that an especially good time to visit in order to see or participate in Semana Santa. Musicians will play and sing as others carry banners, followed by Nazarenos dressed in tunics and masks.\nWhether taking place in Cadiz or Cordoba, or any of the other dozens of cities large and small in Andalucia, the scene is similar. At the end of the procession, which often takes place from dusk to the following dawn, the float enters its individual sponsoring church and a hush comes over the crowd, signifying the culmination of Semana Santa."}
{"text": "Objective: To determine the prevalence of infant exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) among infants attending child health clinics in regional NSW; the association between such exposure and household smoking behaviours; and the factors associated with smoking restrictions in households with infants. Methods: Parents completed a computer-based questionnaire and infant urine samples were collected. Information was obtained regarding the smoking behaviours of household members and samples were analysed for cotinine. Results: Twenty seven per cent of infants had detectable levels of cotinine. Infant ETS exposure was significantly associated with the smoking status of household members, absence of complete smoking bans in smoking households and having more than one smoker in the home. Smoking households were significantly less likely to have a complete smoking ban in place. Conclusions: This study suggests that a significant proportion of the population group most vulnerable to ETS were exposed. Implications: Future efforts to reduce children's exposure to ETS need to target cessation by smoking parents, and smoking bans in households of infants where parents are smokers if desired reductions in childhood ETS-related illness are to be realised.\nAustralian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health Vol. 34, Issue 3, p. 269-273"}
{"text": "Did You Know... The Facts About HPV?\nThe Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania\nLast Modified: January 13, 2008\n- HPV is one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases in the world.\n- By age 50, about 80% of women have been infected by some type of HPV.\n- Most HPV infections do not cause any symptoms, therefore people are unaware that they are infected.\n- 70-80% of HPV infections resolve spontaneously because our immune system fights them off.\n- HPV is found in 99% of cervical cancers.\n- There are 100 strains of HPV, 12 or more are classified as “high risk” and are linked to cancer.\n- Most women with HPV do NOT develop cervical cancer.\n- About 20% of women infected with HPV will develop chronic infection, and 2% of these will develop cervical cancer.\n- Two strains of HPV are responsible for causing genital warts.\n- Sexual intercourse is not necessary for transmission of HPV; skin to skin genital/genital, genital/anal and possibly genital/oral contact is sufficient for transmission.\n- Use of condoms can reduce the risk of transmission, but it cannot prevent all transmission because some genital tissue remains uncovered.\n- HPV is the cause of many high and moderate grade abnormal pap smears (CIN 2/3) and some low grade lesions (CIN 1).\n- HPV is estimated to cause:\n- 70% of anal cancers\n- 50% of vaginal and vulvar cancers\n- 50% of penile cancers\n- 20% of head and neck cancers\n- Researchers are looking at vaccinating men as well as women."}
{"text": "SAINT ALEXANDER NEVSKY\nAlexander Nevsky (1220-1263) was proclaimed Saint of the Russian Orthodox Church by Metropolite Macarius in 1547\n||| Back to the Royal Russia News Archive |||\n||| Royal Russia Bulletin - Our Official Blog. Updated Daily With News Clips, Videos & Photographs |||\n||| Royal Russia Video & Film Archive ||| Romanov & Imperial Russia Links |||\n||| Our Bookshop: Books on the Romanovs & Imperial Russia ||| Gilbert's Books - Publisher of Books on the Romanovs |||\n||| What's New @ Royal Russia - Updated Monthly |||\n||| Return to Royal Russia - Directory ||| Return to Royal Russia - Main Page |||\nAlexander Nevsky (1220-1263)\nThe life of a saint is always a mystery both for contemporaries and for descendants. Only our Lord and Savoir Jesus Christ can evaluate in full measure all the troubles and accomplishments of his hermit. The life of a saint, although it belongs to the church on our sinful earth, serves as an expression of the will of the Church in Heaven. We recall the saints in the most difficult minutes of our life, when it seemed there is no way out. And that is when God sends us his hermit. This happened to our Russian land more than once.\n“In the year 1237,” runs the chronicle, “Batu Khan, cruel and godless, came to the Russian land and there were many Tartars with him. Batu Khan’s army was so big that one Russian had to fight against a thousand Tartars, and two – against a legion. There had never been a battle like that and there were no survivors.\nAlmost all Russia, except its Northern areas, languished under the Tartar-Mongol yoke for nearly 300 years.\nHaving conquered the Russian land, the Tartars went down the Volga River where they founded their kingdom – the “Golden Horde”. The town of Sarai was its capital.\nFortunately, the Tartars, though they imposed a heavy tax on Russia, left untouched the Russian Orthodox Church – the guarantee of the future liberation of Russia.\nAlexander’s father, Grand Prince Yaroslav, undertook to take care of the devastated Russian land.\nThe Tartars and Mongols were not the only enemies Russia had to face at the time. Germans and Swedes threatened it from the West. Prince Alexander was 20 years old when he clashed with them for the first time.\nBe that time Grand Prince Yaroslav, Alexander’s father, made him Prince of Novgorod. Taught martial arts since early childhood, Alexander was a skilled warrior. He was a man of military bearing and rare beauty. A contemporary wrote about him:\n“I traveled about many countries and saw many celebrities, but never did I meet a prince or king equal to Prince Alexander.”\nPrince Alexander was a wise and just ruler, and had good manners which made him very popular and highly respected. A contemporary of his wrote:\n“He treated priests and monks with love and respect; he was considerate to the poor. And as for metropolitans and bishops, Prince Alexander honored them as he honored Jesus Christ.”\nPrince Alexander’s subjects used to say: “Our Prince is sinless.”\nIn 1240 Prince Birger of Sweden sent his messengers to Prince Alexander with the following address.\n“Hey, Prince Alexander! You may resist if you can. But remember that I am already here ready to conquer your land.”\nFor a long time Prince Alexander prayed in the St. Sofia Cathedral of Novgorod. He recalled the words of Jesus Christ: “No love is greater than the love of a man who gives life for his friends”. When he left the church, he addressed the army in these words:\n“God is not force, God is truth.”\nPrince Alexander entrusted his hopes to the Holy Trinity and made up his mind to fight.\nThe two armies met on the banks of the Neva River. One was the army of the proud invader, the other – of the Russian combatants. Our Lord helped his hermit — Prince Alexander. The legend has it that a soldier named Philip had a miraculous vision on the eve of the battle. He was on patrol on the Neva River. At dawn he saw a boat with martyr princes Boris and Gleb, ancestors of Prince Alexander, in full combat gear. Suddenly Philip heard a voice from the boat:\n“Gleb, brother of mine! Hurry up, we must help our relative, Grand Prince Alexander.”\nAnd the vision disappeared…\nEncouraged by the miraculous vision, Alexander rushed his men to the scene and gave the battle on the banks of the Neva.\nThe battle was great, says the chronicle, and many people were killed, both Russians and Latins, and Prince Alexander left a scar on the face of their leader with a lance.\nAt this point I must explain that in medieval Russia all intruders from the West were called Latins.\nAfter the glorious victory in the battle of the Neva Prince Alexander was awarded the honorary title Alexander Nevsky or Alexander of the Neva.\nBirger and his warriors were defeated. But another threat to Russia already loomed in the West. The German crusaders (or Teutonic knights) conquered the ancient Russian fortress of Koporye. In 1241 Alexander Nevsky regained it, but in a year the Teutonic knights were back. They also seized the ancient Russian towns Pskov and Izborsk.\nBy the winter of 1242 Prince Alexander had gathered an army to defend Russia from the German crusaders. And on April 5th Russian warriors and Teutonic knights met in a merciless battle on the ice of Lake Chudskoye, also known as Lake Peipus.\nPrince Alexander was praying: God and our Savior Jesus Christ! Help us defend our country, our mothers and fathers, our sons and daughters, as many years ago you helped Moses.\nHere’s how one chronicler described the battle on Lake Chudskoye:\n“Prince Alexander arranged his men in battle formation and moved towards the enemy. Alexander had many brave men, like King David in ancient times. It was a Saturday. The troops clashed when the sun rose. It was a fierce battle. The crackle of breaking spears and the clanging swords sounded as though the ice began to move. The ice couldn’t be seen for blood…\nWith God’s help the courageous Russian warriors defeated the Teutonic knights. Many knights drowned, others were taken prisoner, and only few of them escaped.\nThe contemporaries rejoiced over the victory in what would later be called “The Battle on the Ice”.\nEntrance of Alexander Nevsky at Pskov after the Battle on the Ice. Artist: Valentin Serov\nHaving preserved Russian land in the West, the Grand Prince Alexander clearly realized he ought to maintain peace with the Tartars, the “Golden Horde”. Weak and devastated, Russia was in no position to fight again.\nThe Tartar yoke was a heavy burden on the Russian people. Before he could become a real ruler of his domain any Russian prince had to go to the “Golden Horde” where, after a long and humiliating procedure he might (or might not) get the so called “Yarlyk” – a license to rule. For many Russian princes, landlords and warriors the way to the “Golden Horde” was the last.\nAlexander Nevsky too, went to see Batu Khan, the king of the Tartars. Batu Khan was amazed to see him; he told his nobles: “It’s true what they said, that there’s no one like him.” He paid the prince all due honors and let him go safely.\nAlexander Nevsky had to go to Sarai, the capital of the “Golden Horde” on three occasions. And every time he was not sure he would return. But he never lost heart, for he was sure that God would not leave him.\nIn the “Golden Horde” Prince Alexander always remembered he was not only a prince but also a Christian. He told pagans and Muslims about the Christian faith, about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and about the Holy Trinity. That was the beginning of Christianization of oriental peoples. Thousands of them turned their souls to Jesus Christ. Owing to the efforts of Alexander Nevsky the Russian Orthodox episcopate was established in Sarai in 1261.\nIn 1252 Alexander Nevsky became the absolute ruler of the Russian land. His responsibilities were enormous. He managed to protect southern, eastern and western boundaries of Russia firmly enough. His wise rule breathed a new life into Russia after the Tartar invasion. Churches, monasteries and towns were built all over the country.\nUnfortunately, Prince Alexander’s farsighted policy was sometimes disapproved of by his fellow countrymen. In 1261 many Russian towns rose in revolt. The Tartar envoys who had come to collect tribute were killed. People waited for revenge with horror. Prince Alexander had to go to the Tartar capital again in order to ward off devastating raids against Russia. An excellent diplomat, the prince saved Russia and coped with his duty to God and the country.\nHowever years of wars and the affairs of the state undermined Alexander Nevsky’s health. Upon his return from Sarai the Grand Prince fell ill and died in a small monastery of St. Feodor in the town of Gorodets, not far from the ancient city of Vladimir, on November 14, 1263. Just before his death Alexander, in keeping with the ancient Russian tradition, took monastic vows and was named Alexi.\nThe death of Alexander Nevsky in 1263. Artist: M. V. Nesterov\n“Brethren! The sun has set over Russian land! Our Grand Prince Alexander has passes away. No one like him will be found in Russian land.”\nAnd there was so much weeping and groaning as had never been heard before; the land trembled.\nNine days people carried Grand Prince Alexander’s body to the city of Vladimir where the burial service took place in the St. Vladimir Cathedral on November 23. During that service a miracle happened. When a priest about to pull a scroll with the last prayer in the late prince’s hand approached the body, the dead prince stretched out his hand, took the prayer and crossed his hands on his chest again. This episode caused awe and terror in the crowd present…\nIn 120 years, shortly before a great battle with the Tartars, a monk at the church where the Grand Prince Alexander’s body was buried saw a vision during the night praying.\nThe candles in front of Prince Alexander’s tomb suddenly lit up and two elders came up to the tomb and said: “Arise, our prince! Hurry to help your relative, Prince Dmitry!” And the saint prince arose and became invisible. After that vision the saint’s tomb was opened and the relics found undecayed. Many sick people who came close to them are said to have been healed.\nThe Russian Orthodox Church canonized Grand Prince Alexander.\n1724 was the time of sweeping and rapid reforms of the Russian emperor Peter the Great. Those were the times of great changes in all spheres of life: spiritual, political, economic. The Emperor and the Holy Synod began to play the leading role in the Russian Church, whereas before the Patriarch was the most important figure. The Emperor and the Holy Synod decided that the relics of Alexander Nevsky be transferred to St. Petersburg, to the monastery built in his honor. On August 30 the capital of the Russian Empire welcomed the boat carrying the holy relics. Peter the Great piloted the boat himself; senior officials assisted him as sailors. A festive religious service for the Grand Prince took place at the monastery of his name. The commemoration of St. Alexander took place shortly after Russia’s victory in the Northern war of 1700-1721 against Sweden.\nAlmost for 200 years the relics of St. Alexander were kept in the Alexander Nevsky Monastery. After the Bolshevik revolution of 1917 the relics were taken away and put on display at a museum of atheism. As for the Alexander Nevsky Monastery, it was closed down. Alexander Nevsky remained a saint most revered by the Russian people. People named in his honor are too numerous to count.\nIn 1990 the relics of Saint Alexander Nevsky were returned to the Russian Orthodox Church to take their place in the Alexander Nevsky Lavra in St. Petersburg to the joy of all Russian believers. And we know that owing to St. Alexander’s prayers, our Russian land will be revived and stand firm forever…\nWatercolour of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra in St. Petersburg\n7 December, 2012"}
{"text": "Definition of Amylo-\nAmylo-: (Amyl- before a vowel.) A prefix pertaining to starch. From the Greek amylon, meaning starch.\nLast Editorial Review: 6/14/2012\nBack to MedTerms online medical dictionary A-Z List\nNeed help identifying pills and medications?\nGet the latest health and medical information delivered direct to your inbox FREE!"}
{"text": "Many conditions during pregnancy or labor can make a C-section necessary, including:\nProlonged or ineffective labor\nPlacenta issues if the placenta is positioned abnormally low in the cervix (placenta previa), it can block the birth canal.\nThe placenta can also suddenly separate from the uterus (placenta abruptia), causing the mother to hemorrhage and the baby to have an abnormal heart rate.\nDisproportion or multiple births: if the baby’s head is too large for the birth canal, or if there is more than one baby to deliver, a C-section may be safer than a vaginal delivery.\nAbnormal presentation: if the baby’s position in the womb is abnormal, it may be safer to deliver via a C-section.\nProlapsed cord: if the umbilical cord cord comes before the baby through the vagina, it can strangle the baby during a vaginal delivery.\nFetal distress or medical problems: if the mother has diabetes, genital herpes, hypertension, cardiac disease, toxemia, or ovarian or uterine cysts, vaginal delivery may be hazardous for both mother and child.\nIf a C-section may be necessary for you, it is important to plan ahead and know what risks may be involved. Learn more about potential C-section risks ."}
{"text": "Some of school going kids uses Electricity and Magnetism related science projects Experiments in there school’s science fair. children’s always trying to know that what is a magnet or something about electricity.\nSomeone can make electricity and Magnetism Science Fair Projects Using Batteries, Balloons etc. these Electricity and Magnetism Physics Projects are so interesting and Hair Raising.\nElectricity and magnetism, electromagnetic waves and Magnetism are most used in these Physics Projects of school. here we have video to know more about Electricity and Magnetism Physics Projects Experiments."}
{"text": "About this site\nThe main goal of Across Cultures is to celebrate Canadian cultural diversity by highlighting the extraordinary contributions that different communities have made to Canada, as well as the many challenges they have had to face, while acknowledging the less praiseworthy moments in Canadian history regarding cultural diversity. The site is also intended as a tribute to filmmakers from various cultural and ethnic communities who have made it their work to show the Canadian population the great richness of their cultures. Lastly, the site is designed to help teachers present the issues around Canadian multiculturalism in a dynamic and inviting way that also matches the goals of their academic programs.\nFilms and film clips\nThe site features 120 films from the NFB collection (60 in English; 60 in French in the French part). Of those, 48 (24 in English; 24 in French in the French part) include an audio description for the blind and visually impaired; and 49 films (27 in English; 22 in French in the French part) are available with closed-captioning. Users will also find 164 film clips (80 in English; 84 in French in the French part).\nThese 120 films are only a fraction of NFB productions on Canada’s ethnic and cultural communities; however, they are representative of communities from all over the country, and altogether more than 60 years of film production are covered. The selection does not include films on Aboriginal peoples, since another site – Aboriginal Perspectives – is devoted entirely to them.\nSome people may be surprised at the omission of well known works from our list. They are absent because we were unable to obtain online broadcast rights for all the films we might have wanted to include and because the project, which is supported by the Canadian Memory Fund, had to leave aside some newer works to give pride of place to those of high heritage value.\nHow the site is organized\nThe Across Cultures Web site is divided into five sections: Themes to Explore; Cinema and Representation; Points of View; See Everything, Hear Everything; and For Teachers. The Themes section covers 6 themes formulated as questions. Each theme includes film clips with accompanying questions, original articles and interviews with experts, public opinion polls, archival materials and classroom activities. Cinema and Representation considers the ways in which ethnic and cultural communities have been represented in NFB documentaries. In it, you will find film clips, archival materials, original articles by NFB experts, interviews with filmmakers and a classroom activity. The third section, Points of View, addresses issues of racism, identity and social integration in Canada. It comprises original articles by Canadian experts in the field, film clips and discussions. The See Everything, Hear Everything section gives users access to all the complete films, film clips, archival artefacts and other types of audiovisual content available on the site. Finally, For Teachers offers lesson plans, web links and bibliographic resources. It contains a Glossary of Terms (also available on the Tools menu) to familiarize users with the language of cultural diversity.\nOur main focus is on the complete films, but we also include film clips as an easy introduction to each section. The clips allow teachers, students and other users to quickly pinpoint specific content – the issues raised in each theme, expert viewpoints, or aspects of ethnic and cultural representation, for example. Of course, the complete films are always available and easily accessed for viewing.\nClearly, we cannot claim to cover every aspect of diversity, describe every issue, raise every question, or mention the challenges and achievements of every ethnic and cultural community in the country. Across Cultures does, however, provide an excellent introduction to the area for anyone interested in multiculturalism and the issue of cultural diversity in Canada.\nWe encourage users to visit two other sites our team has built with support from the Canadian Memory Fund, which also deal with issues of cultural diversity: Documentary Lens and Aboriginal Perspectives."}
{"text": "Aleja wakes up very early in the morning, as she does every Saturday, to go to the market and buy the groceries for the week. She takes with her the same amount of money she usually does, but to her surprise she can’t even buy half of the things she needs.\nAt home, Aleja has five small children waiting for her to bring them something to eat. She is a single parent, mother of two sponsored children from Betel Student Center in the city of Oruro. She was abandoned by her husband and left with her children.\nThe family lives in a very small and dark room where they have three beds, a small table, some chairs and a small, wrecked shelf. Outside of the room, they use a small space covered with old pieces of calamines as their kitchen.\nAleja works washing clothes. She earns around $21 per week, and that is how she supports her family. She uses the money to pay the rent, the water, the electricity, the gas and buy the food and some things her children need for school.\nBolivia is experiencing a food crisis as a consequence of many things. Besides the inflation, there are other variables that are affecting the country.\nWhen we have the “typical” unrests, immediately some food is “hidden,” so people speculate, and as a consequence the prices rise. This general rise of prices in basic food has affected everybody, especially those who need it the most.\n“It affects my family because I can’t feed my children properly, I can’t provide them everything they need,” says Aleja.\nFamilies have had to reduce the number of meals they have every day, because what they earn and what they have is simply not enough.\nWhen people go to buy what they need for the week, they go back home with half, or less, of the things they were supposed to buy. It seems like money doesn’t have the same value anymore. It seems like money flies out of their hands. It seems like money falls out from holes in their pockets.\nSonia, the Betel Student Center director says,\n“Many rather not eat bread anymore. They eat quinua (grain) or other things they bring from their crops. They eat chuño (dried potato) soup. They bring food from the country, like potatoes, chuño, grains, and that way they don’t have to buy things here.\nFor example, they don’t eat oat, lentils or milk. Things that are good for them, they can’t have because they are too expensive.”\nThe development centers have also been affected by this situation. Suddenly, the budget they had wasn’t enough, so they had to take some measures that also affected the children. They had to reduce the daily provision they gave the children in order to make the money last for the whole month. Sonia explains,\n“We were very sad, because we started to give the children only one plate of food. One day they received soup; the other a dry plate. We also suspended special activities for the children, like field trips. Also in the material for the classes, we stopped buying some things.”\nHowever, not everything is discouraging. Thanks to special funding through the Complementary Intervention Program (CIV), many children who have malnutrition will be helped by receiving extra nourishment at the student center.\nThis intervention will benefit 80 child development centers in Bolivia. They will work with all of the undernourished registered children, up to 18 years old.\nSonia says that parents are very thankful for this extra support they receive. They were already thankful for the meals, but this extra food can be considered an extra blessing for them.\nThey are very thankful; they come here and say that here they can have meals and a soft drink. Those are the only three days they can eat. At their home they don’t.\nChildren don’t miss a day at the center, even though many of them live far away and have to walk around one hour or more to get here.”\nThe children are very thankful, too. They might not express it with words, but their faces of happiness, when they receive their meals, say it all."}
{"text": "Digital Audio Networking Demystified\nThe OSI model helps bring order to the chaos of various digital audio network options.\nCredit: Randall Fung/Corbis\nNetworking has been a source of frustration and confusion for pro AV professionals for decades. Fortunately, the International Organization of Standardization, more commonly referred to as ISO, created a framework in the early 1980s called the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) Reference Model, a seven-layer framework that defines network functions, to help simplify matters.\nProviding a common understanding of how to communicate to each layer, the OSI model (Fig. 1) is basically the foundation of what makes data networking work. Although it's not important for AV professionals to know the intricate details of each layer, it is vital to at least have a grasp of the purpose of each layer as well as general knowledge of the common protocols in each one. Let's take a look at the some key points.\nThe Seven Layers\nStarting from the bottom up, the seven layers of the OSI Reference Model are Physical, Data Link, Network, Transport, Session, Presentation, and Application. The Physical layer is just that — the hardware's physical connection that describes its electrical characteristics. The Data Link layer is the logic connection, defining the type of network. For example, the Data Link layer defines whether or not it is an Ethernet or Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) network. There is also more than one data network transport protocol. The Data Link layer is divided into two sub-layers: the Media Access Control (MAC) and the Logical Link Control (above the MAC as you move up the OSI Reference Model).\nThe seven layers of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) Reference Model for network functions.\nHere is one concrete example of how the OSI model helps us understand networking technologies. Some people assume that any device with a CAT-5 cable connected to it is an Ethernet device. But it is Ethernet's Physical layer that defines an electrical specification and physical connection — CAT-5 terminated with an RJ-45 connector just happens to be one of them. For a technology to fully qualify as an Ethernet standard, it requires full implementation of both the Physical and Data Link layers.\nThe Network layer — the layer at which network routers operate — “packetizes” the data and provides routing information. The common protocol for this layer is the Internet Protocol (IP).\nLayer four is the Transport layer. Keep in mind that this layer has a different meaning in the OSI Reference Model compared to how we use the term “transport” for moving audio around. The Transport layer provides protocols to determine the delivery method. The most popular layer four protocol is Transmission Control Protocol (TCP). Many discuss TCP/IP as one protocol, but actually they are two separate protocols on two different layers. TCP/IP is usually used as the data transport for file transfers or audio control applications.\nComparison of four digital audio technologies using the OSI model as a framework.\nTCP provides a scheme where it sends an acknowledge message for each packet received by a sending device. If it senses that it is missing a packet of information, it will send a message back to the sender to resend. This feature is great for applications that are not time-dependent, but is not useful in real-time applications like audio and video.\nStreaming media technologies most common on the Web use another method called User Datagram Protocol (UDP), which simply streams the packets. The sender never knows if it actually arrives or not. Professional audio applications have not used UDP because they are typically Physical layer or Data Link layer technologies — not Transport layer. However, a newcomer to professional audio networking, Australia-based Audinate, has recently become the first professional audio networking technology to use UDP/IP technology over Ethernet with its product called Dante.\nThe Session and Presentation layers are not commonly used in professional audio networks; therefore, they will not be covered in this article. Because these layers can be important to some integration projects, you may want to research the OSI model further to complete your understanding of this useful tool.\nThe purpose of the Application layer is to provide the interface tools that make networking useful. It is not used to move audio around the network. It controls, manages, and monitors audio devices on a network. Popular protocols are File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Telnet, Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), Domain Name System (DNS), and Virtual Private Network (VPN), to name just a few.\nNow that you have a basic familiarity with the seven layers that make up the OSI model, let's dig a little deeper into the inner workings of a digital audio network.\nBreaking Down Audio Networks\nAudio networking can be broken into in two main concepts: control and transport. Configuring, monitoring, and actual device control all fall into the control category and use several standard communication protocols. Intuitively, getting digital audio from here to there is the role of transport.\nControl applications can be found in standard protocols of the Application layer. Application layer protocols that are found in audio are Telnet, HTTP, and Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP). Telnet is short for TELetype NETwork and was one of the first Internet protocols. Telnet provides command-line style communication to a machine. One example of Telnet usage in audio is the Peavey MediaMatrix, which uses this technology, known as RATC, as a way to control MediaMatrix devices remotely.\nSNMP is a protocol for monitoring devices on a network. There are several professional audio and video manufacturers that support this protocol, which provides a method for managing the status or health of devices on a network. SNMP is a key technology in Network Operation Center (NOC) monitoring. It is an Application layer protocol that communicates to devices on the network through UDP/IP protocols, which can be communicated over a variety of data transport technologies.\nControl systems can be manufacturer-specific, such as Harman Pro's HiQnet, QSC Audio's QSControl, or third party such as Crestron's CresNet, where the control software communicates to audio devices through TCP/IP. In many cases, TCP/IP-based control can run on the same network as the audio signal transport, and some technologies (such as CobraNet and Dante) are designed to allow data traffic to coexist with audio traffic.\nThe organizing and managing of audio bits is the job of the audio Transport. This is usually done by the audio protocol. Aviom, CobraNet, and EtherSound are protocols that organize bits for transport on the network. The transport can be divided into two categories: logical and physical.\nPurely physical layer technologies, such as Aviom, use hardware to organize and move digital bits. More often than not, a proprietary chip is used to organize and manage them. Ethernet-based technologies packetize the audio and send it to the Data Link and Physical layers to be transported on Ethernet devices. Ethernet is both a logical and physical technology that packetizes or “frames” the audio in the Data Link layer and sends it to the Physical layer to be moved to another device on the network. Ethernet's Physical layer also has a Physical layer chip, referred to as the PHY chip, which can be purchased from several manufacturers.\nComparing Digital Audio Systems\nThe more familiar you are with the OSI model, the easier it will be to understand the similarities and differences of the various digital audio systems. For many people, there is a tendency to gloss over the OSI model and just talk about networking-branded protocols. However, understanding the OSI model will bring clarity to your understanding of digital audio networking (Fig. 2).\nDue to the integration of pro AV systems, true networking schemes are vitally important. A distinction must be made between audio networking and digital audio transports. Audio networks are defined as those meeting the commonly used standard protocols, where at least the Physical and Data Link layer technologies and standard network appliances (such as hubs and switches) can be used. There are several technologies that meet this requirement using IEEE 1394 (Firewire), Ethernet, and ATM technologies, to name a few. However, because Ethernet is widely deployed in applications ranging from large enterprises to the home, this will be the technology of focus. All other technologies that do not meet this definition will be considered digital audio transport systems, and not a digital audio network.\nThere are at least 15 schemes for digital audio transport systems and audio networking. Three of the four technologies presented here have been selected because of their wide acceptance in the industry based on the number of manufacturers that support it.\nLet's compare four CAT-5/Ethernet technologies: Aviom, EtherSound, CobraNet, and Dante. This is not to be considered a “shoot-out” between technologies but rather a discussion to gain understanding of some of the many digital system options available to the AV professional.\nAs previously noted, Aviom is a Physical layer–only technology based on the classifications outlined above. It does use an Ethernet PHY chip, but doesn't meet the electrical characteristics of Ethernet. Therefore, it cannot be connected to standard Ethernet hubs or switches. Aviom uses a proprietary chip to organize multiple channels of audio bits to be transported throughout a system, and it falls in the classification of a digital audio transport system.\nEtherSound and CobraNet are both 802.3 Ethernet– compliant technologies that can be used on standard data Ethernet switches. There is some debate as to whether EtherSound technology can be considered a true Ethernet technology because it requires a dedicated network. EtherSound uses a proprietary scheme for network control, and CobraNet uses standard data networking methods. The key difference for both the AV and data professional is that EtherSound uses a dedicated network, and CobraNet does not. There are other differences that may be considered before choosing between CobraNet and EtherSound, but both are considered to be layer two (Data Link) technologies.\nDante uses Ethernet, but it is considered a layer four technology (Transport). It uses UDP for audio transport and IP for audio routing on an Ethernet transport, commonly referred to as UDP/IP over Ethernet.\nAt this point you may be asking yourself why does the audio industry have so many technologies? Why can't there be one standard like there is in the data industry?\nThe answer to the first question relates to time. Audio requires synchronous delivery of bits. Early Ethernet networks weren't much concerned with time. Ethernet is asynchronous, meaning there isn't a concern when and how data arrives as long as it gets there. Therefore, to put digital audio on a data network requires a way to add a timing mechanism. Time is an issue in another sense, in that your options depend on technology or market knowledge available at the time when you develop your solution. When and how you develop your solution leads to the question of a single industry standard.\nMany people don't realize that the data industry does in fact have more than one standard: Ethernet, ATM, FiberChannel, and SONET. Each layer of the OSI model has numerous protocols for different purposes. The key is that developers follow the OSI model as a framework for network functions and rules for communicating between them. If the developer wants to use Ethernet, he or she is required to have this technology follow the rules for communicating to the Data Link layer, as required by the Ethernet standard.\nBecause one of the key issues for audio involves time, it's important to use it wisely.\nThere are two types of time that we need to be concerned with in networking: clock time and latency. Clock time in this context is a timing mechanism that is broken down into measurable units, such as milliseconds. In digital audio systems, latency is the time duration between when audio or a bit of audio goes into a system until the bit comes out the other side. Latency has many causes, but arguably the root cause in audio networks is the design of its timing mechanism. In addition, there is a tradeoff between the timing method and bandwidth. A general rule of thumb is that as the resolution of the timing mechanism increases, the more bandwidth that's required from the network.\nEthernet, being an asynchronous technology, requires a timing method to be added to support the synchronous nature of audio. The concepts and methodology of clocking networks for audio are key differences among the various technologies.\nCobraNet uses a time mechanism called a beat packet. This packet is sent out in 1.33 millisecond intervals and communicates with CobraNet devices. Therefore, the latency of a CobraNet audio network can't be less than 1.33 milliseconds. CobraNet was introduced in 1995 when large-scale DSP-based digital systems started replacing analog designs in the market. Because the “sound system in a box” was new, there was great scrutiny of these systems. A delay or latency in some time-critical applications was noticed, considered to be a challenge of using digital systems. However, many believe that latency is an overly exaggerated issue in most applications where digital audio systems are deployed. In fact, this topic could be an article unto itself.\nA little history of digital systems and networking will provide some insight on the reason why there are several networking technologies available today. In the late '90s, there were two “critical” concerns in the digital audio industry: Year of 2000 compliance (Y2K) and latency. To many audio pros, using audio networks like CobraNet seemed impossible because of the delay —at that time, approximately 5 milliseconds, or in video terms, less time than a frame of video.\nEnter EtherSound, introduced in 2001, which addressed the issue of latency by providing an Ethernet networking scheme with low latency and better bit-depth and higher sampling rate than CobraNet. The market timing and concern over latency gave EtherSound an excellent entry point. But since reducing latency down to 124 microseconds limits available bandwidth for data traffic, a dedicated network is required for a 100-MB EtherSound network. Later, to meet the market demands of lower latency requirements, CobraNet introduced variable latency, with 1.33 milliseconds being the minimum. With the Ethernet technologies discussion thus far, there is a relationship between the bit-depth and sample rate to the clocking system.\nAudio is not the only industry with a need for real-time clocking schemes. Communications, military, and industrial applications also require multiple devices to be connected together on a network and function in real-time. A group was formed from these markets, and they took on the issue of real-time clocking while leveraging the widely deployed Ethernet technology. The outcome was the IEEE 1588 standard for a real-time clocking system for Ethernet networks in 2002.\nAs a late entry to the networking party, Audinate's Dante comes to the market with the advantage of using new technologies like IEEE 1588 to solve many of the current challenges in networking audio. Using this clocking technology in Ethernet allows Dante to provide sample accurate timing and synchronization while achieving latency as low as 34 microseconds. Coming to the market later also has the benefit of Gigabit networking being widely supported, which provides the increased bandwidth requirement of ultra-low latency. It should be noted here that EtherSound does have a Gigabit version, and CobraNet does work on Gigabit infrastructure with added benefits but it is currently a Fast Ethernet technology.\nDante provides a flexible solution to many of the current tradeoffs that require one system on another due to design requirements of latency verses bandwidth, because Dante can support different latency, bit depth, and sample rates in the same system. For example, this allows a user to provide a low-latency, higher bandwidth assignment to in-ear monitoring while at the same time use a higher latency assignment in areas where latency is less of a concern (such as front of house), thereby reducing the overall network bandwidth requirement.\nThe developers of CobraNet and Dante are both working toward advancing software so that AV professionals and end-users can configure, route audio, and manage audio devices on a network. The goal is to make audio networks “plug-and-play” for those that don't want to know anything about networking technologies. One of the advances to note is called “device discovery,” where the software finds all of the audio devices on the network so you don't have to configure them in advance. The software also has advance features for those who want to dive into the details of their audio system.\nAdvances in digital audio systems and networking technologies will continue to change to meet market applications and their specific requirements. Aviom's initial focus was to create a personal monitoring system, and it developed a digital audio transport to better serve this application. Aviom's low-latency transport provided a solution to the market that made it the perfect transport for many live applications. CobraNet provides the AV professional with a solution to integrate audio, video, and data systems on an enterprise switched network. EtherSound came to the market by providing a low-latency audio transport using standard Ethernet 802.3 technology. Dante comes to the market after significant change and growth and Gigabit networking and new technologies like IEEE 1588 to solve many of challenges of using Ethernet in real-time systems.\nNetworking audio and video can seem chaotic, but gaining an understanding of the OSI model helps bring order to the chaos. It not only provides an understanding of the various types of technology, but it also provides a common language to communicate for both AV and data professionals. Keeping it simple by using the OSI model as the foundation and breaking audio networking down into two functional parts (control and transport) will help you determine which networking technology will best suit your particular application.\nBrent Harshbarger is the founder of m3tools located in Atlanta. He can be reached at email@example.com."}
{"text": "Definitions for acanthosis nigricans\nacanthosis nigricans, keratosis nigricans(noun)\na skin disease characterized by dark wartlike patches in the body folds; can be benign or malignant\nU.S. National Library of Medicine\nA circumscribed melanosis consisting of a brown-pigmented, velvety verrucosity or fine papillomatosis appearing in the axillae and other body folds. It occurs in association with endocrine disorders, underlying malignancy, administration of certain drugs, or as in inherited disorder.\nUse the citation below to add this definition to your bibliography:\n\"acanthosis nigricans.\" Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2013. Web. 23 May 2013. <http://www.definitions.net/definition/acanthosis nigricans>."}
{"text": "Eye tracking is a process that identifies a specific point in both space and time that is being looked at by the observer. This information can also be used in real-time to control applications using the eyes. Recent innovations in the video game industry include alternative input modalities to provide an enhanced, more immersive user experience. In particular, eye gaze control has recently been explored as an input modality in video games. This book is an introduction for those interested in using eye tracking to control or analyze video games and virtual environments. Key concepts are illustrated through three case studies in which gaze control and voice recognition have been used in combination to control virtual characters and applications. The lessons learned in the case studies are presented and issues relating to incorporating eye tracking in interactive applications are discussed. The reader will be given an introduction to human visual attention, eye movements and eye tracking technologies. Previous work in the field of studying fixation behavior in games and using eye tracking for video game interaction will also be presented.\nCollect Fly Buys when you purchase this title\nThe final chapter discusses ideas for how this field can be developed further to create richer interaction for characters and crowds in virtual environments. Alternative means of interaction in video games are especially important for disabled users for whom traditional techniques, such as mouse and keyboard, may be far from ideal. This book is also relevant for those wishing to use gaze control in applications other than games. Table of Contents: Introduction / The Human Visual System / Eye Tracking / Eye Tracking in Video Games / Gaze and Voice Controlled Video Games: Case Study I and II / Gaze and Voice Controlled Drawing: Case Study III / Conclusion"}
{"text": "MONTFERMEIL, France (AP) -- The streets in one of the Paris region's toughest housing projects, burgeoning with immigrants, bear names like Cezanne, Picasso and Utrillo, as if to stamp the French heritage onto the psyches of its residents.\nBut neither the names of the great masters nor the idyllic images conjured up by the name of the project, Les Bosquets, or The Groves, capture the daily realities of the French-style ghetto, an enclosed world where many residents don't speak French.\nDelinquency soars and the unemployment rate is estimated at some 40 percent, nearly four times the national rate. Montfermeil's town hall could not provide an official figure.\nJust 17 kilometers (10.5 miles) from Paris, Les Bosquets is light years from the world of Parisians.\nLes Bosquets, like other projects that surround the big cities of France, belies this nation's special brand of integration whereby newcomers from afar assimilate into the French culture, becoming one with it whatever their origins. Despite quiet debate, French authorities, whatever their political colors, have stood by a French model that's colorblind to differences, in total contrast to the U.S. notion of a vibrant melting pot.\nThe story of France is often viewed as the antithesis to the U.S., one in which race and ethnicity are not counted in the government census and minority rights need not exist, due to residents who share a common identity of \"French.\" Many French shudder at the word \"multiculturalism.\"\nBut housing projects such as Les Bosquets, often cut off by poor public transport from the cities, raise questions about how much assimilation is really happening in France and whether the French model of integration, long the nation's pride, is wearing thin.\nEven Muslim immigrants from France's former North African colonies, many in their third generation, and making up a large portion of residents of Les Bosquets, are far from melding with the mainstream.\nFor Patrick Simon, a leading demographer, the French model has a basic flaw that is becoming increasingly evident as time goes by.\n\"It's a model founded on the invisibility of differences,\" Simon said. The problem is that minorities are increasingly visible, many of them with origins in France's former colonies in Muslim North Africa, and because \"we see them, we can't ignore their existence.\"\nEven second- and third-generation citizens of foreign origin are perceived as different and treated thus.\nStatisticians are not allowed to count people by their origins, complicating research.\nBut the postcard vision of France with church steeples perched over a contented populace that's wearing berets and carrying baguettes has been upended in the Seine-Saint-Denis region northeast of Paris.\nFrench kings are buried in the great cathedral of Saint-Denis, the main town, but traditional minorities have become the majority in the region.\nA study by Simon puts immigrants and their descendants through the second generation at 75 percent of the city's population. It includes people from French overseas departments (8 percent), who are French but of color. The jobless rate was 16.5 percent in 2009, according to Insee, the national statistics agency. But the economic leaders are in the white minority, Simon said, putting new stress on the notion that immigrants and their children are being successfully assimilated.\nIn Les Bosquets, the most widespread complaint remains poor public transport and the isolation that keeps Les Bosquets at a distance from mainstream France. It takes nearly 90 minutes to get to Paris.\n\"They've done everything to keep us closed among ourselves,\" said a 34-year-old born in France of Algerian parents. \"It is they who don't want us to integrate.\" Like most residents of the projects, the man, who works with a private fire department, refused to identify himself by name.\nDiscrimination is a fact of life in France for minorities, and a poll by the Ipsos firm published this year in the daily Le Monde showed no sign that that might lessen. A full 70 percent of those questioned felt there were \"too many foreigners in France.\" The finger was pointed, above all, at those of the Muslim faith."}
{"text": "TV is one of the most popular forms of media. As much as there are many people who might want to dispute this, a majority of people still find themselves drawn to the entertainment box. Radio which was more popular in the previous generation is slowly losing its glory. This is mostly because there are numerous gadgets that can be used to listen to music.\nPodcasts for example can be used in place of the radio. This is one of the things that is increasingly gaining popularity in social media. Some of the basics that involve the podcasts include:\nThis is a combination of the words “broadcast” and “iPod”; podcasts are a kind of digital media that is episodic. Users can download to this media via web syndication when they have subscribed. They take the form of the audio although there are video podcasts where slideshows are used.\nIn the past, they were only used by the techie demographic but the general public son caught up. Content used in the podcasts usually ranges from culture, sports, music and magic among many others.\nSocial Media and Podcasts\nPodcasts were introduced almost at the same time as social media. Most people understand social media as fancy web 2.0 terminologies that are related to Facebook and Twitter which are a means of opening up communication as well as interactions between organizations and their followers, fans and audience, brands and persons.\nThe podcasts allow for a wider interaction with people mostly because of the syndication feeds. Feeds permit the users to download the podcasts once they have been released and listen to them using a variety of mediums. This is different from the radio where you have to tune in at a specific time or date.\nMost of the time, the people who have produced the podcasts will become the producers and vice versa thus they end up holding conversations with each other. Podcasting calling usually calls for active participation and listening.\nContent and Freedom\nPodcasts empower both the consumer and the producer. Listeners can choose the time they want to listen to the content.\nAnyone with a computer and microphone can participate as it does not have too many restrictions. They have become one of the most unique ways of sharing information/content. Podcasts have broad audience, do not have any restrictions, can be used easily as it does not have difficult applications and is one of the major forms of media which gives people voice to be heard. More on podcast transcription"}
{"text": "One of the great bits of repartee in The King’s Speech comes as the maverick Australian speech therapist, Lionel Logue, is just getting to know His Royal Highness Prince Albert, the stammering Duke of York:\nLogue: “Surely a prince’s brain knows what his mouth’s doing?” Bertie: “You’re obviously not well acquainted with many royal princes.”\nNo one could have imagined any such dialogue involving Archduke Otto von Habsburg, who died on July 4—not because the archduke was a fearsome personality, but because he was a pre-eminently intelligent and decent man.\nThe full name he was given at his baptism in 1912—Franz Josef Otto Robert Maria Anton Karl Max Heinrich Sixtus Xavier Felix Renatus Ludwig Gaetan Pius Ignatius—speaks volumes about the history of his family, whose rule over central Europe extended back some seven centuries. Otto might have been thought an anachronism after his father, Emperor Karl, was driven from the throne of the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary in the waning days of World War I. Yet the son declined to disappear from the scene and played roles both dramatic and useful over the eight decades of his maturity.\nHe worried Hitler, who saw him as a potential threat to the Anschluss uniting Austria with Germany. So the Nazi Führer twice tried to meet the young Austrian nobleman when Archduke Otto was studying in Berlin in 1931-32. Otto von Habsburg not only rebuffed Hitler on both occasions, thus putting himself firmly on the Gestapo’s list of enemies; in 1938, as the Nazi vice was closing on an independent Austria, the archduke, at obvious risk to his life, volunteered to return to Austria as the head of government, to provide a national rallying point against Nazi paganism.\nIn June 1940, the Luftwaffe bombed the Belgian castle in which Otto von Habsburg and his family were living, just hours after the family had fled south ahead of the Wehrmacht’s drive west. Hounded by the Gestapo in neutral Lisbon, Archduke Otto and his family came to the United States at the invitation of President Franklin Roosevelt and spent the Second World War years in America. Otto von Habsburg returned to Europe after the Nazi defeat, married Princess Regina of Sachsen-Meiningen, who was working as a nurse at a Munich refuge camp the archduke visited (and whose father, Duke George III, had died in the Soviet Gulag); the couple had seven children, and lived a model Christian family life.\nElected to the European parliament in 1979, Otto von Habsburg spent 20 years as perhaps that body’s most respected member: an adroit debater in seven languages, he kept alive the vision of a post-Cold War Europe reunited as a single civilizational enterprise, built on the sturdy foundations of biblical religion, faith in reason, and commitment to the rule of law. In that sense, Otto von Habsburg was arguably the first modern “European.”\nHe may also have been the last. For the European Union, as it has evolved in the early 21st century, has been built around a naked public square in which biblical religion plays no role; faith in reason is faltering under the assault of post-modernism and political correctness; and the rule of law is jeopardized by what another great son of Mitteleuropa, Joseph Ratzinger, has called the “dictatorship of relativism.” In 2006, I spent a memorable evening discussing this unhappy situation with the Archduke Otto, at an Acton Institute dinner in Rome at which we were seated across the table from one another. He was not bitter, for he was a man of deep Catholic faith, and thus a man of hope. But he was concerned about Europe’s future, and his concerns have turned out to be entirely prescient.\nOtto von Habsburg’s father, Emperor Karl, was beatified by John Paul II in 2004. The late pope once greeted Archduke Otto’s mother, Empress Zita, by saying that he was “happy to receive the widow of my father’s last sovereign.” It is entirely safe to say that we shall not see their likes again. May they rest in peace.\nGeorge Weigel is Distinguished Senior Fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C.\nBecome a fan of First Things on Facebook, subscribe to First Things via RSS, and follow First Things on Twitter."}
{"text": "Bipolar Disorder: Hypomanic Episodes\nHypomanic episodes can occur in people who have mood disorders. Hypomanic episodes are less severe than manic episodes, although a hypomanic episode can still interfere with your ability to function properly.\nHypomania may be diagnosed if:\n- A distinct period of elevated or irritable mood occurs in which the mood is clearly different from a regular nondepressed mood.\n- Three or more of the following symptoms last for a\nsignificant period of time:\n- Inflated self-esteem or unrealistic feelings of importance\n- Decreased need for sleep (feels rested after only a few hours of sleep)\n- Racing thoughts or flight of ideas\n- Being easily distracted\n- An increase in goal-directed activity (work or personal)\n- Irresponsible behaviors that may have serious consequences, such as going on shopping sprees, engaging in increased sexual activity, or making foolish business investments\n- The mood or behavior change is noticeable to others.\n- The episode is not severe enough to cause impairment in social or job functioning and does not require hospitalization.\n- The symptoms are not caused by Reference substance abuse Opens New Window.\nIf you feel that you or someone you care about may be experiencing a hypomanic episode, contact your doctor to discuss the possible causes and the treatment options.\n|By:||Reference Healthwise Staff||Last Revised: Reference March 1, 2012|\n|Medical Review:||Reference Patrice Burgess, MD - Family Medicine\nReference Lisa S. Weinstock, MD - Psychiatry"}
{"text": "An accessor method is an instance method that gets or sets the value of a property of an object. In Cocoa’s terminology, a method that retrieves the value of an object’s property is referred to as a getter method, or “getter;” a method that changes the value of an object’s property is referred to as a setter method, or “setter.” These methods are often found in pairs, providing API for getting and setting the property values of an object.\nYou should use accessor methods rather than directly accessing state data because they provide an abstraction layer. Here are just two of the benefits that accessor methods provide:\nYou don’t need to rewrite your code if the manner in which a property is represented or stored changes.\nAccessor methods often implement important behavior that occurs whenever a value is retrieved or set. For example, setter methods frequently implement memory management code and notify other objects when a value is changed.\nBecause of the importance of this pattern, Cocoa defines some conventions for naming accessor methods. Given a property of type\ntype and called\nname, you should typically implement accessor methods with the following form:\nThe one exception is a property that is a Boolean value. Here the getter method name may be\nisName. For example:\nThis naming convention is important because much other functionality in Cocoa relies upon it, in particular key-value coding. Cocoa does not use\ngetName because methods that start with “get” in Cocoa indicate that the method will return values by reference."}
{"text": "Identifying time lags in the restoration of grassland butterfly communities: a multi-site assessment\nWoodcock, B.A.; Bullock, J.M.; Mortimer, S.R.; Brereton, T.; Redhead, J.W.; Thomas, J.A.; Pywell, R.F.. 2012 Identifying time lags in the restoration of grassland butterfly communities: a multi-site assessment. Biological Conservation, 155. 50-58. 10.1016/j.biocon.2012.05.013Full text not available from this repository.\nAlthough grasslands are crucial habitats for European butterflies, large-scale declines in quality and area have devastated many species. Grasslandrestoration can contribute to the recovery of butterfly populations, although there is a paucity of information on the long-term effects of management. Using eight UK data sets (9–21 years), we investigate changes in restoration success for (1) arable reversion sites, were grassland was established on bare ground using seed mixtures, and (2) grassland enhancement sites, where degraded grasslands are restored by scrub removal followed by the re-instigation of cutting/grazing. We also assessed the importance of individual butterfly traits and ecological characteristics in determining colonisation times. Consistent increases in restoration success over time were seen for arable reversion sites, with the most rapid rates of increase in restoration success seen over the first 10 years. For grasslands enhancement there were no consistent increases in restoration success over time. Butterfly colonisation times were fastest for species with widespread host plants or where host plants established well during restoration. Low mobility butterfly species took longer to colonise. We show that arable reversion is an effective tool for the management of butterflycommunities. We suggest that as restoration takes time to achieve, its use as a mitigation tool against future environmental change (i.e. by decreasing isolation in fragmented landscapes) needs to take into account such time lags.\n|Programmes:||CEH Topics & Objectives 2009 onwards > Biodiversity|\n|CEH Sections:||CEH fellows\n|Additional Keywords:||arable reversion, calcareous, grassland enhancement, mesotrophic, functional traits, recreation|\n|NORA Subject Terms:||Ecology and Environment|\n|Date made live:||12 Sep 2012 15:38|\nActions (login required)"}
{"text": "You are browsing the web and suddenly come across a page that displays numbers\ninstead of letters? You see four numbers inside a little box instead of letters? Well then you might just be missing a Unicode font. Here is a simple fix.\nThose four numbers inside the little box are the hexadecimal code for the letter. If you have not got the font that translates those four numbers into a character or glyph you will only be able to see the number.\nHere you can find a list of all Unicode fonts as well as a comparison of those Unicode fonts.\nHaving a look at the list, \"GNU Unifont\" clearly stands out with 63,446 characters 63,449 glyphs. As the name already suggests GNU Unifont is free to use and to download. You can get the GNU Unifont for Mac and Windows from here. Download the WinZip archive for Mac or Windows, it is 3MB in file size.\nOnce downloaded simply unzip the file and copy it to your systems fonts folder.\nIf you have trouble with that have a look here for Windows 7 users and here for Windows XP users. Basically in Windows the fonts are located at c:\\windows\\fonts.\nMac users can check this out to install the font.\nAdditionally here is a link to the Unicode 6.0 Character Code Charts."}
{"text": "A diplomatic crisis is engulfing part of Borneo, after Filipino rebels seized control of a remote section of Malaysia’s Sabah state as part of an unresolved territorial dispute that stretches back centuries. Malaysian security forces have surrounded 100 to 200 members of the Royal Army of Sulu, who have holed up in the village of Lahad Datu for the past two weeks in order to press their historic claim to the land. The Philippine and Malaysian governments are now engaged in tense negotiations in order to resolve the dispute without the use of force. The rebels, who hail from the autonomous island province of Sulu in the southwestern Philippines, had been given until midnight on Tuesday to voluntarily leave the area, but Manila has been desperately trying to negotiate an extension to this deadline to avoid bloodshed and a tense standoff currently hangs in place.\nThe leader of the rebel unit is the brother of Jamalul Kiram III, one of the two main claimants to the title of Sultan of Sulu. Back in the 17th century, before the Philippines existed in its present form, the two principle sultanates in the region were Sulu and Brunei. In 1658, the Sultan of Brunei for some reason gave Sabah to the Sultanate of Sulu, which today is considered part of the Philippines. However, the picture is further complicated by an 1878 deal between the Sultanate of Sulu and the British North Borneo Company, in which Sabah was leased to the Europeans on a rolling contract. To this day, the Malaysian government pays a token sum, equivalent to around $1,500, to the Philippines every year in recognition of this continuing arrangement. The Royal Army of Sulu interprets this deal as a lease that can be canceled, while Malaysia believes that it represents the permanent transfer of the territory.\nIt does not appear that the Malaysian authorities are willing to give up the land, which boasts valuable petroleum reserves, palm-oil plantations and also serves as an agricultural and manufacturing hub. Regional commentators have accused the Sulu rebels of trying to exploit past claims as a gateway toward ensuring future prosperity. “The governments of Malaysia and the Philippines are trying to manage this incident carefully,” Jonah Blank, senior political scientist specializing in Southeast Asia for RAND Corp., a global policy think-tank, tells TIME. ”We’ve seen many Muslim rebel groups arise or take refuge in the southern part of the Philippines, and Malaysia has brokered a fragile cease-fire: neither Kuala Lumpur nor Manila is eager to see that fall apart.”\nPhilippine President Benigno Aquino III on Tuesday appealed to Kiram to instruct his brother to end the occupation. “If you are truly the leader of your people, you should be one with us in ordering your followers to return home peacefully,” he said during a statement aired on national TV. On Sunday, Manila sent the Philippine navy ship BRP Tagbanua to Borneo carrying Filipino-Muslim leaders, social workers and medical personnel for a “humanitarian mission” to bring their compatriots home. However, Royal Army of Sulu sources indicate that the rebels are not willing to entertain such a retreat.\nSome observers believe that the timing of the occupation is designed to disrupt the Malaysian national elections that are due before the end of June, and the issue has now become a political hot potato domestically. The Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility, a Philippine NGO, on Tuesday released a joint statement condemning the arbitrary detention of three al-Jazeera journalists who were in Sabah to report on the standoff. The group was eventually released after being held and interrogated for at least six hours. Liew Chin Tong, a Democratic Action Party MP and shadow Defense Minister for the Pakatan Rakyat opposition coalition of Malaysia, tells TIME that the country is now suffering the consequences of decades of poorly enforced border controls. “Sabah is a key state which was previously seen as a safe zone for the government but now keenly contested by the opposition,” he says."}
{"text": "Stop by the library to fill out an application to get a library card. To get a card, the hopeful patron must present a photo identification and at least one proof of residence (a utility bill, an envelope mailed to yourself). Minors must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. This spring, everyone will be recieving a brand new card to celebrate the activation of the One Card Network, a project of the sister libraries belonging to the Washington County Library System. The updated cards are free and each will automatically link to our Overdrive electronic book database.\nGREAT SCHOOLS offers ten easy tips for inspiring children to make reading a part of everyday life. Great Schools Website\nYOUTH COMPUTER STATION - Visit a quiet corner of our sunny children's room to play (and learn) on our children's computer. The computer provides a myriad of games to encourage many skills and some games just for fun. Parents may also choose to use this work station themselves while their children read books, play with our puppet theatre or learning games, explore our interactive science display, or simply sit at a table to draw in a sunny room.\nSTOP HUNGER AND LEARN - Every correct answer you give while playing this online brain-building game earns ten grains of rice for the United Nations World Food program. Visit Free Rice.\nONE BOOK, LOTS OF FAMILY FUN - Copies of Suzanne Bloom's picture book The Bus for Us are available at all Pennsylvania pubic libraries. Reading aloud is one of the best activities you can do to prepare your child for school. Make time to read aloud every day, using lots of expression while taking time to enjoy the pictures and asking thought-provoking questions. Before reading the book: Look at the cover, point out the title and author. Ask your child to tell you everything he or she knows about riding a bus and going to school. While reading the book: Occasionally run your finger under the words as you read them. Use facial expressions and vary your voice. Ask questions about the story (Is this the bus, or it is another type of truck? What do you think the children have in their bags?) Have your child help you read the repeated question, \"Is this the bus for us, Gus?\" After reading the book: Talk about the emotions the children in the story felt. Point out their expressions in the drawings. Talk about the different vehicles shown in the story. Read books about trains, boats, airplanes, dirigibles,trucks or cars. Stop by your California Information Station to pick up an activity book outlining additional ideas, including games to play, activities to develop STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) Skills, and tips on safety and preparing for school. For information about the book and its creator, visit www.paonebook.org."}
{"text": "General Information / Education / Medical / Cultural / Entertainment\nThe History ... Cumberland Gap has been used as a crossing point in the Appalachian Mountains. Animals have used it as a path to the green pastures of Kentucky. Native Americans used the Gap as the Warrior's Path that led from the Potomac River down the south side of the Appalachians through the Gap and north to \"The Dark and Bloody Ground\" known as Kentucky and on to Ohio.\nIn 1750 Dr. Thomas Walker found the Gap and mapped its location, but the French and Indian Wars closed the new frontiers.\nDaniel Boone and many other long-hunters used the Gap to the Kentucky hunting grounds. In 1775, after the Treaty of Sycamore Shoals ended most Indian troubles, Boone and thirty men marked out the Wilderness Trail from what is now Kingsport Tennessee through the Cumberland Gap to Kentucky. Part of the Wilderness Road can be walked in Cumberland Gap, Tennessee by the Iron Furnace.\nBefore the Revolutionary War over 12,000 people crossed into the new frontier territory. By the time of Kentucky's admission to the Union, over 100,000 people had passed through the Gap. By 1800 the Gap was being used for transportation and commerce, both east and west. In the 1830's, other routes west caused the Gap to decline in importance.\nDuring the Civil War the Gap was called the Keystone of the Confederacy and the Gibraltar of America. Both armies felt the invasion of the North or South would come through the Gap. Both armies held and fortified the Gap against the invasion that never came.\nThe Gap exchanged hands four times to be finally abandoned in 1866 by the Federal Army.\nToday the Cumberland Gap is the main local route North and South, via Cumberland Gap Parkway (Hwy. 25E). By the mid 1990's a four lane tunnel under the Gap will open a new North-South, East-West route and the Cumberland Gap will be restored like the first pioneer saw it.\nClaiborne County located on the Tennessee-Kentucky-Virginia borders in East Tennessee, one of the state's three \"Grand Divisions.\" It was formed in 1801 from parts of Hawkins and Grainger Counties. The county seat is Tazewell.\nThe communities of Tazewell and New Tazewell are in Claiborne County, Tennessee. We are located in the beautiful mountains of the Cumberland Gap area. Cumberland Gap is located where Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia meet.\nClaiborne County is a rural county with a population of 28,828. The county covers 2400 square miles. Tazewell, the county seat, is located about 40 miles north of Knoxville, Tennessee. Along with our beautiful mountains we have beautiful Norris Lake with 850 miles of shoreline. Norris Lake was the first T.V.A. lake built in the late 1930's. The lake is fed by two large rivers, the Clinch and the Powell. The lake is enjoyed by fisherman and water lovers of all ages.\nSome of the larger communities in the county are Tazewell, New Tazewell, Harrogate, Speedwell, Forge Ridge, Midway, Springdale, Cumberland Gap, Cedar Grove, Dogwood Heights, and Lone Mountain.\nPopulation in Claiborne County 28,828\nCommuni Comm Services\nClaiborne County Utility District\nUnited Cities Propane Gas\nThe Claiborne County area is home to 11 schools. The Claiborne County Board of Education consists of 7 members.\nFor additional information contact our superintendent of schools is Dr. Roy K. Norris. You can contact the central office at Box 179, Tazewell, Tennessee 37879. The phone number is (423)626-5225.\nWelcome to Lincoln Memorial University (LMU). For more than 100 years, LMU has helped serve the higher education needs of our tri-state area and beyond. We are excited by that heritage, and we invite you to share it! The University offers a talented, dedicated faculty and staff, a strong and varied curriculum, a well-rounded student life, a beautiful campus, and excellent facilities.\nIn keeping with its Lincoln legacy, LMU prides itself in providing well developed and relevant academic programs for today's students destined to compete in tomorrow's competitive workplace. Some of our nation's most competent lawyers, doctors, nurses, artists, veterinarians, business persons, and writers have their academic roots at Lincoln Memorial University\nClaiborne County Hospital and Nursing Home 1850 Old Knoxville Road P.O. Box 219 Tazewell, TN 37879 (865) 626-4211\nThe Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum houses one of the most diverse Lincoln and Civil War collections in the country. Located on the beautiful campus of Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee.\nExhibited are many rare items - the silver-topped cane Lincoln carried the night of his assassination, a lock of his hair clipped as he lay on his death bed, two life masks made of Lincoln, the tea set he and Mary Todd owned in their home in Springfield, and numerous other belongings. Over 20,000 books, manuscripts, pamphlets, photographs, paintings, and sculptures tell the story of President Lincoln and the Civil War period in America.\nThe Cumberland Gap National Historical Park in Cumberland Gap is a natural opening in the mountains made famous by Daniel Boone. The Indians used this path long before Boone arrived. Today, you can visit the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park and enjoy the history and beauty of our area.\nIf your interested in fishing, boating, or any water activity, then Norris Lake offers all that and more. There are several marinas and boat docks throughout the county.\nToll Free 800-747-0713"}
{"text": "NetWellness is a global, community service providing quality, unbiased health information from our partner university faculty. NetWellness is commercial-free and does not accept advertising.\nSaturday, May 18, 2013\nCold and Flu\nCatching Colds and Flu\nI wasn`t sure which catergory this would come under, but it involves catching a cold or the flu. I know that germs are the cause of getting these conditions and being outside in the cold whether without a jacket doesn`t cause someone to get them. But someone told me that if you are exposed to a cold environment and then warm one, back and forth, it can make someone sick with the cold or the flu, and does involve germs somehow. If that is true, can you please explain how that happens? Thanks\nA cold or flu is caused by a viral infection, and viruses tend to be very contagious. They are spread primarily by droplets, or in other words, by saliva and mucus either sprayed into the air or by direct human contact. Going repeatedly from a cold to a warm environment and back should not increase one's chances to become infected. However, when the weather turns colder, people tend to begin spending more time indoors. This creates closer human contact and thereby increases the likelihood of infection. This is in large part why cold and flu season is during the colder months.\nAllen M Seiden, MD\nProfessor of Otolaryngology, Director of Division of Rhinology and Sinus Disorders, Director of University Taste and Smell Center, Director of University Sinus and Allergy\nCollege of Medicine\nUniversity of Cincinnati"}
{"text": "Buried inside Robert Bryce’s relatively new book entitled Power Hungry is a call to “aggressively pursue taxes or caps on the emissions of neurotoxins, particularly those that come from burning coal” to generate electricity such as mercury and lead. This is notable not because Bryce agrees with many environmental and human health experts, but also because the book credibly debunks the move to tax or cap carbon dioxide emissions both from technical and political perspectives.\nThe word “neurotoxic” literally translates as “nerve poison”. Broadly described, a neurotoxicant is any chemical substance which adversely acts on the structure or function of the human nervous system.\nAs its subtitle signals, Power Hungry also declares policies subsidizing renewable sources of electricity, biofuels and electric vehicles as too costly and impractical to make a significant difference in making the U.S. power and transportation systems more sustainable.\nSo why take aim at mercury and lead, which is certain to drive up the cost of coal-fired electricity just as a carbon cap or tax would? Because, Bryce asserts, “arguing against heavy metal contaminants with known neurotoxicity will be far easier than arguing against carbon dioxide emissions. Cutting the output of mercury and the other heavy metals may, in the long run, turn out to have far greater benefits for the environmental and human health.” Bryce draws a parallel to the U.S. government ordering oil refiners to remove lead from gasoline starting in the 1970s.\nIn the book, which has has received predominantly good reviews on Amazon.com, Bryce makes some valid points about the carbon density of our energy sources. Among his overarching messages is that the carbon density of the world’s major economies is actually declining (see graph below). Not to be missed: his attack on carbon sequestration, pp. 160-165. His case about the threat of neurotoxins begins on p. 167.\nThere’s a lot more to this challenge of reducing America’s reliance on coal-fired power plants than this. But considering the failure by the U.S. Congress to agree on a carbon tax or cap, his idea has serious merit and deserves a broad discussion, especially as Congress reassess its budget priorities. This includes billions of dollars of tax breaks and incentives for oil and other fossil fuels."}
{"text": "Deaths in Moscow have doubled to an average of 700 people a day as the Russian capital is engulfed by poisonous smog from wildfires and a sweltering heat wave, a top health official said today, according to the Associated Press.\nThe Russian newspaper Pravda reported: “Moscow is suffocating. Thick toxic smog has been covering the sky above the city for days. The sun in Moscow looks like the moon during the day: it’s not that bright and yellow, but pale and orange with misty outlines against the smoky sky. Muscovites have to experience both the smog and sweltering heat at once.”\n“Russia has recently seen the longest unprecedented heat wave for at least one thousand years, the head of the Russian Meteorological Center,” the news site Ria Novosti reported.\nVarious news sites report that foreign embassies have reduced activities or shut down, with many staff leaving Moscow to escape the toxic atmosphere.\nRussian heatwave: This NASA map released today shows areas of Russia experiencing above-average temperatures this summer (orange and red). The map was released on NASA’s Earth Obervatory website.\nNASA Earth Observatory image by Jesse Allen, based on MODIS land surface temperature data available through the NASA Earth Observations (NEO) Website. Caption by Michon Scott.\nAccording to NASA:\nIn the summer of 2010, the Russian Federation had to contend with multiple natural hazards: drought in the southern part of the country, and raging fires in western Russia and eastern Siberia. The events all occurred against the backdrop of unusual warmth. Bloomberg reported that temperatures in parts of the country soared to 42 degrees Celsius (108 degrees Fahrenheit), and the Wall Street Journal reported that fire- and drought-inducing heat was expected to continue until at least August 12.\nThis map shows temperature anomalies for the Russian Federation from July 20-27, 2010, compared to temperatures for the same dates from 2000 to 2008. The anomalies are based on land surface temperatures observed by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite. Areas with above-average temperatures appear in red and orange, and areas with below-average temperatures appear in shades of blue. Oceans and lakes appear in gray.\nNot all parts of the Russian Federation experienced unusual warmth on July 20-27, 2010. A large expanse of northern central Russia, for instance, exhibits below-average temperatures. Areas of atypical warmth, however, predominate in the east and west. Orange- and red-tinged areas extend from eastern Siberia toward the southwest, but the most obvious area of unusual warmth occurs north and northwest of the Caspian Sea. These warm areas in eastern and western Russia continue a pattern noticeable earlier in July, and correspond to areas of intense drought and wildfire activity.\nBloomberg reported that 558 active fires covering 179,596 hectares (693 square miles) were burning across the Russian Federation as of August 6, 2010. Voice of America reported that smoke from forest fires around the Russian capital forced flight restrictions at Moscow airports on August 6, just as health officials warned Moscow residents to take precautions against the smoke inhalation.\nPosted by David Braun\nEarlier related post: Russia burns in hottest summer on record (July 28, 2010)\nTalk about tough: These guys throw themselves out of 50-year-old aircraft into burning Siberian forests. (National Geographic Magazine feature, February 2008)\nPhoto by Mark Thiessen\nJoin Nat Geo News Watch community\nReaders are encouraged to comment on this and other posts–and to share similar stories, photos and links–on the Nat Geo News Watch Facebook page. You must sign up to be a member of Facebook and a fan of the blog page to do this.\nLeave a comment on this page\nYou may also email David Braun (email@example.com) if you have a comment that you would like to be considered for adding to this page. You are welcome to comment anonymously under a pseudonym."}
{"text": "New to Typophile? Accounts are free, and easy to set up.\nIn current practice, usage of the term case most likely refers to the use of uppercase (capital) or lowercase letters. See some examples below. In letterpress practice, case refers to the physical box (case), usually wooden, that a given set of letters is stored. Capital letters were stored in the upper (top) case and lowercase letters were stored in the lower (bottom) case.\nALL CAPS -- All letters are capitalized.\nTitle Case -- The first letter of each word is capitalized.\nSentence case -- where the first character is capital and the remaining words are lowercase.\nCamel Case -- Also called internal caps where one or more characters in a given word (or string) has a capitalized letter. This is often used in programming languages and increasingly seen for naming or branding companies or products.\nGreek OpenType Features"}
{"text": "|born on||11 March 1611 at 12:00 (= 12:00 noon )|\n|Place||Southwick, England, 50n50, 0w13|\n|Timezone||LMT m0w13 (is local mean time)|\n|Astrology data||20°32' 15°14 Asc. 17°30'|\nBritish scientist, a brilliant linguist and mathematician. He was the son of a non-conformist clergyman who died when the boy was five and left the legacy of a good library. Pell was a bright and multi-lingual student and very handsome. Famed in philosophy and math, he established a school in Sussex.\nMarried in 1632, he had eight kids. Also unpractical and improvident, he struggled with his financial position and died in poverty 12/12/1685.\n- Relationship : Marriage 1632 (Lasting)\n- Death, Cause unspecified 12 December 1685 (Age 74)\nchart Placidus Equal_H.\n- Death of Father 1617 (When he was five)\nMartin Harvey in Nativitas I, \"His youngest uncle guessed 'about noon.'\"\n- Notable : Famous : Top 5% of Profession\n- Notable : Extraordinary Talents : For Languages\n- Vocation : Science : Mathematics/ Statistics (Mathematician)\n- Family : Parenting : Kids more than 3 (Eight)\n- Family : Relationship : Number of Marriages (One)\n- Family : Childhood : Family traumatic event (Age five when dad died)\n- Lifestyle : Financial : On the edge (Impractical; died in poverty)"}
{"text": "What fun it is to build a snowman each year! This Shared Reading book is similar to the familar \"Buckle My Shoe\" but with original text. It shows each step necessary to make a snowman. It is a perfect way to develop the concept of sequencing with your students. ?This full colored printable comes with matching pictures and word cards for your Pocket Chart & a student extension worksheet to use in a poetry journal or as a Take-Home page.?Enjoy our poem! Jackie and Kylene\nJackie and Kylene primary grade teachers who specialize in Singable Text for grades Kindergarten & 1st. Our songs, poems, and songs are always set to familiar tunes and great for developing literacy skills in both English only and English Language Learners. We LOVE creating both our singables and other resources that support teachers like skill-based games, writing extensions, emergent readers.\nVisit our website at www.jkcurriculumconnection.com for additional FREE downloads and teaching tips and resources."}
{"text": "Variation is a term used in genetic science, and concerns the emergence of different varieties, or species. This genetic phenomenon causes individuals or groups within a given species to possess different features from others. For example, all human beings on Earth possess essentially the same genetic information. But thanks to the variation potential permitted by that genetic information, some people have round eyes, or red hair, or a long nose, or are short and stocky in stature.\nDarwinists, however, seek to portray variation within a species as evidence for evolution. The fact is, however, that variations constitute no such thing, because variation consists of the emergence of different combinations of genetic information that already exists, and cannot endow individuals with any new genetic information or characteristics.\nVariation is always restricted by existing genetic information. These boundaries are known as the gene pool in genetic science. (See The Gene Pool.) Darwin, however, thought that variation had no limits when he proposed his theory267, and he depicted various examples of variation as the most important evidence for evolution in his book The Origin of Species.\nAll human beings on Earth share basically the same genetic information, but thanks to the variation potential permitted by this genetic information, they often look very different from one another.\nAccording to Darwin, for example, farmers mating different variations of cow in order to obtain breeds with better yields of milk would eventually turn cows into another species altogether. Darwin’s idea of limitless change stemmed from the primitive level of science in his day. As a result of similar experiments on living things in the 20th century, however, science revealed a principle known as genetic homeostasis. This principle revealed that all attempts to change a living species by means of interbreeding (forming different variations) were in vain, and that between species, there were unbreachable walls. In other words, it was absolutely impossible for cattle to evolve into another species as the result of farmers mating different breeds to produce different variations, as Darwin had claimed would happen.\nLuther Burbank, one of the world’s foremost authorities on the subject of genetic hybrids, expresses a similar truth: “there are limits to the development possible, and these limits follow a law.” 268 Thousands of years of collective experience have shown that the amount of biological change obtained using cross-breeding is always limited, and that there is a limit to the variations that any one species can undergo.\nIndeed, in the introduction to their book Natural Limits to Biological Change Professor of Biology Lane P. Lester and the molecular biologist Raymond G. Bohlin wrote:\nThat populations of living organisms may change in their anatomy, physiology, genetic structure, etc., over a period of time is beyond question. What remains elusive is the answer to the question, How much change is possible, and by what genetic mechanism will these changes take place? Plant and animal breeders can marshal an impressive array of examples to demonstrate the extent to which living systems can be altered. But when a breeder begins with a dog, he ends up with a dog—a rather strange looking one, perhaps, but a dog nonetheless. A fruit fly remains a fruit fly; a rose, a rose, and so on.269\nVariations and their various changes are restricted inside the bounds of a species’ genetic information, and they can never add new genetic information to species. For that reason, no variation can be regarded as an example of evolution.\nThe Danish scientist W. L. Johannsen summarizes the situation:\nThe variations upon which Darwin and Wallace placed their emphasis cannot be selectively pushed beyond a certain point, that such variability does not contain the secret of “indefinite departure.” 270\nThe fact that there are different human races in the world or the differences between parents and children can be explained in terms of variation. Yet there is no question of any new component being added to their gene pool. For example, no matter how much you seek to enrich their species, cats will always remain cats, and will never evolve into any other mammal. It is impossible for the sophisticated sonar system in a marine mammal to emerge through recombination. (See Recombination.) Variation may account for the differences between human races, but it can never provide any basis for the claim that apes developed into human beings.\nVestigial Organs Thesis\nOne claim that long occupied a place in the literature of evolution but was quietly abandoned once it was realized to be false is the concept of vestigial organs. Some evolutionists, however, still imagine that such organs represent major evidence for evolution and seek to portray them as such.\nA century or so ago, the claim was put forward that some living things had organs that were inherited from their ancestors, but which had gradually become smaller and even functionless from lack of use.\nThe tonsils, which evolutionists long sought to define as vestigial organs, have been found to play an important role in protecting against throat in fections, particularly up until adulthood.\nThose organs were in fact ones whose functions had not yet been identified. And so, the long list of organs believed by evolutionists to be vestigial grew ever shorter. The list of originally proposed by the German anatomist R. Wiedersheim in 1895 contain approximately 100 organs, including the human appendix and the coccyx. But the appendix was eventually realized to be a part of the lymph system that combats microbes entering the body, as was stated in one medical reference source in 1997:\nOther bodily organs and tissues—-the thymus, liver, spleen, appendix, bone marrow, and small collections of lymphatic tissue such as the tonsils in the throat and Peyer’s patch in the small intestine—are also part of the lymphatic system. They too help the body fight infection. 271\nThe tonsils, which also appeared on that same list of vestigial organs, were likewise discovered to play an important role against infections, especially up until adulthood. (Like the appendix, tonsils sometimes become infected by the very bacteria they seek to combat, and so must be surgically removed.) The coccyx, the end of the backbone, was seen to provide support for the bones around the pelvic bone and to be a point of fixation for certain small muscles.\nIn the years that followed, other organs regarded as vestigial were shown to serve specific purposes: The thymus gland activates the body’s defense system by setting the T cells into action. The pineal gland is responsible for the production of important hormones. The thyroid establishes balanced growth in babies and children. The pituitary ensures that various hormone glands are functioning correctly.\nToday, many evolutionists accept that the myth of vestigial organs stemmed from sheer ignorance. The evolutionist biologist S.R. Scadding expresses this in an article published in the magazine Evolutionary Theory:\nSince it is not possible to unambiguously identify useless structures, and since the structure of the argument used is not scientifically valid, I conclude that ‘vestigial organs’ provide no special evidence for the theory of evolution.272\nEvolutionists also make a significant logical error in their claim that vestigial organs in living things are a legacy from their ancestors: Some organs referred to as “vestigial” are not present in the species claimed to be the forerunners of man.\nFor example, some apes have no appendix. The zoologist Professor Hannington Enoch, an opponent of the vestigial organ thesis, sets out this error of logic:\nApes possess an appendix, whereas their less immediate relatives, the lower apes, do not; but it appears again among the still lower mammals such as the opossum. How can the evolutionists account for this? 273\nThe scenario of vestigial organs put forward by evolutionists contains its own internal inconsistencies, besides being scientifically erroneous. We humans have no vestigial organs inherited from our supposed ancestors, because humans did not evolve randomly from other living things, but were fully and perfectly created in the form we have today.\nIt has now been realized that the appendix (below), which evolutionist biologists imagined to be vestigial, plays an important role in the body's immune system. The lowest bone in the spinal column, known as the coccyx, is al so not vestigial, but a point for muscles to at tach to."}
{"text": "The dangers of feeding lorikeets\nLorikeet feeding habits\nLorikeets are brightly coloured parrots of the family Psittacidae and sub-family Loriinae (lories and lorikeets). Six species are found in Australia, although further species occur in New Guinea, Indonesia and many South Pacific islands.\nThe tip of a lorikeet's tongue holds a brush-like appendage, enabling the bird to feed on pollen, nectar and fruits. Because lorikeets are mainly seen feeding on blossoms, it was long thought that nectar was their staple diet. However, studies have now shown that pollen is probably their major food. They also eat insects and insect larvae, together with other invertebrates found in foliage and blossom.\nLorikeets travel in small, swift flocks which attract attention with their piercing calls. The birds locate blossoms by sight and by the calls of other birds already feeding. When food is abundant, large numbers gather in the blossoms and foliage, clamouring noisily.\nLorikeets have a very simple digestive system. Proteins and fats are obtained from pollen and insects, and carbohydrates come from the sugars found in nectar. They spend a large amount of time foraging for food, which indicates that carbohydrates are extremely important to them. Their diet is high in energy, and low in protein.\nThe dangers of feeding lorikeets\nMany people have taken to encouraging lorikeets into their gardens by giving them a variety of alluring foods. These foods are usually based on sugar, honey or jam, which will ensure regular visits to the garden by these wonderfully happy, colourful birds. However, it is this very act of 'kindness' that can cause the death of lorikeets at an unnaturally early age.\nOEH officers became concerned at outbreaks of lorikeets dying in large numbers for no apparent reason, and decided to investigate. Autopsies were carried out by NSW Agriculture. With other investigations, these autopsies established that the lorikeets were dying from a disease called necrotizing enteritis. A bacteria called clostridia was isolated as the organism responsible.\nNecrotizing enteritis is associated with poor hygiene and an inadequate diet, and it was found that the disease is not normally associated with lorikeets living a natural way of life. The scientists could directly relate the lorikeets' deaths to inadequate artificial diets, and to the unsanitary conditions of trays and other containers from which they were being fed.\nAnother disease is also having a serious impact on lorikeets. Called psittacine beak and feather disease (PBFD) or psittacine circovirus disease, it is considered the most important viral disease affecting cockatoos, parrots, lories, lorikeets and macaws around the world. Affecting the immune system of the birds, it often results in an AIDS-like condition. The keratin in the birds' bodies breaks down, causing deformed beaks and feathers, and feather loss. The disease is usually fatal, but infected birds may not display symptoms for many months or even years.\nInfected birds can drop faeces, which contain the potentially infectious circovirus particles, into the environment to infect other birds. Unfortunately, there is a great potential for the virus to spread at places like feed stations. Clustering in large numbers, many birds may come into contact with contaminated perches and food dishes.\nPreventing lorikeet deaths\nObviously the best solution to these problems is to stop feeding the birds altogether. The only feeding method recommended by OEH is to plant a variety of flowering native shrubs, such as grevilleas, callistemon (bottlebrushes) and banksias, around your garden. These plants not only look good; they also provide safe, healthy food for blossom-feeding birds such as lorikeets and honeyeaters.\nPage last updated: 15 April 2011"}
{"text": "Doing u-substitution twice (second time with w) Example where we do substitution twice to get the integral into a reasonable form\nDoing u-substitution twice (second time with w)\n⇐ Use this menu to view and help create subtitles for this video in many different languages. You'll probably want to hide YouTube's captions if using these subtitles.\n- Let's see if we can take the integral of cosine of 5x over e to the sine of 5x dx.\n- And there's a crow squawking outside of my window so I'll try to stay focused.\n- So let's think about whether u-substitution might be appropriate. Your first temptation might to said,\n- \"Hey, maybe we let u equal sine of 5x, and if u is equal to sine of 5x,\n- we have something that is pretty close to du up here.\" Let's verify that.\n- So du could be equal to -- so du/dx (derivative of u with respect to x),\n- well we just use the chain rule. Derivative of 5x is 5,\n- times the derivative of sine of 5x with respect to 5x, that's just going to be cosine of 5x.\n- If we want to write this in differential form, which is useful when we do our u-substitution,\n- we could say that du is equal to 5 cosine 5x.\n- Now when you look over here, we don't have quite du there. We have just cosine of 5x dx--\n- sorry, I need cosine of 5x dx, just like that. So when you look over here,\n- you have a cosine of 5x dx, but we don't have a 5 cosine of 5x dx,\n- but we know how to solve that. We can multiply by 5 and divide by 5.\n- 1/5 times 5 is just going to be 1. So we haven't changed the value of the expression.\n- But when we do it this way, we see pretty clearly, we have our u and we have our du.\n- Our du is 5 -- let me circle that and let me do that in that blue color --\n- is 5 cosine of 5x dx. So we can rewrite this entire expression as --\n- I'll do that 1/5 in purple -- this is going to be equal to 1/5 --\n- I hope you don't hear that crow outside; he's getting quite obnoxious --\n- 1/5 times the integral of, well all this stuff in blue is my du,\n- and then that is over e to the u. So how do we take the anti-derivative of this?\n- Well, you might be tempted to -- well, what would you do here?\n- Well, we're still not quite ready to simply take the anti-derivative here.\n- If I were to rewrite this, I could rewrite this as (this is equal to)\n- 1/5 times the integral of e to the negative u du.\n- And so, what might jump out of you is maybe we do another substitution,\n- and we already use the letter u, so maybe we might use w. We'll do some \"w-substitution.\"\n- And you might be able to do this in your head, but we'll do w-substitution just to make it a little bit clearer.\n- So let's -- this would've been really useful if this was just e to the u,\n- because we know the anti-derivative of e to the u. It's just e to the u.\n- So let's just try to get it in terms of the form of e to the negative something.\n- So let's set -- and I'm running out of colors here -- w equal to negative u.\n- And in that case, then dw (derivative of w with respect to u) is negative 1,\n- or if we were to write that statement in differential form,\n- dw is equal to du times negative 1 is negative du.\n- So this right over here would be our w, and do we have a dw here?\n- Well we just have du; we don't have a negative du there.\n- But we can create a negative du by multiplying this inside by negative 1,\n- but then also multiplying the outside by negative 1.\n- Negative 1 times negative 1 is positive 1; we haven't changed the value.\n- We have to do both of these in order for it to make sense.\n- Or I could do it like this. So negative 1 over here, and a negative 1 right over there.\n- And if we do it in that form, then this negative 1 times du --\n- that's the same thing as negative du -- this is this right over here.\n- And so we can rewrite our integral -- it's going to be equal to --\n- now it's going to be negative 1/5 -- trying to use the colors as best as I can --\n- times the indefinite integral of e to the -- well instead of negative u, we could right w.\n- E to the w. And instead of du times negative 1 or negative du, we can write \"dw.\"\n- Now this simplifies things a good bit. We know what the anti-derivative of this in terms of w.\n- This is going to be equal to negative 1/5 e to the w, and then we might have some constant there,\n- so I just do a plus C. And now we just have to all of our un-substituting.\n- So we know that w is equal to negative u, so we could write that --\n- so this is equal to negative 1/5 -- I want to stay true to my colors -- e to the negative u,\n- that's what w is equal to, plus C. But we're still not done un-substituting.\n- We know that u is equal to sine of 5x. So we can write this as being equal to\n- negative 1/5 times e to the negative u, which is negative u is sine of 5x,\n- and then finally, we have our plus C. Now, there was a simpler way that we could've done this\n- by just doing one substitution. But then you kind of have to look ahead a little bit\n- and realize that it was not trivial to take -- not to bad to take your anti-derivative of e to the negative u.\n- The inside that you might of have although you shouldn't really hold yourself\n- when you feel too bad when you didn't see that inside.\n- We could've rewritten that original integral -- let me rewrite it --\n- it's cosine of 5x over e to the sine of 5x dx. We could've written this entire integral as being equal to\n- cosine of 5x times e to the negative sine of 5x dx. And in this situation, we could've said\n- u to be equal to negative of 5x, and say well, if u is equal to --\n- or negative sine of 5x, then du is going to be equal to negative 5 cosine of 5x,\n- and we don't have a negative 5 -- oh, dx, we don't have a negative 5 here,\n- but we can construct one by putting negative 5 there, then multiplying by negative 1/5,\n- and then that would've immediately simplified this integral right over here to be equal to\n- negative 1/5 times the integral of -- well, we have our du -- let me do this in a different color --\n- that's the negative 5 -- let me do it this way -- negative 5 cosine of 5x dx.\n- So that is our du -- I'm just changing the order of multiplication -- times e to the u.\n- This whole thing now is u this second time around. So if we did it this way, with just one substitution,\n- we could've immediately gotten to the result that we wanted. You take the anti-derivative of this --\n- I'll do it in one color now, just 'cause I think you get the idea -- this is equal to\n- negative 1/5 e to the u plus C. u is equal to negative sine of 5x,\n- so this is equal to negative 1/5 e to the negative sine of 5x plus C. And we're done.\n- So this one is faster; it's simpler, and over time, you might even start being able to do this in your head.\n- This top one, you still didn't mess up by just setting u equal to sine of 5x;\n- we just have to do an extra substitution in order to work it through all the way.\n- And I was able to do this video despite the crowing crow outside -- or squawking crow.\nBe specific, and indicate a time in the video:\nAt 5:31, how is the moon large enough to block the sun? Isn't the sun way larger?\nHave something that's not a question about this content?\nThis discussion area is not meant for answering homework questions.\nShare a tip\nWhen naming a variable, it is okay to use most letters, but some are reserved, like 'e', which represents the value 2.7831...\nHave something that's not a tip or feedback about this content?\nThis discussion area is not meant for answering homework questions.\nDiscuss the site\nFor general discussions about Khan Academy, visit our Reddit discussion page.\nFlag inappropriate posts\nHere are posts to avoid making. If you do encounter them, flag them for attention from our Guardians.\n- disrespectful or offensive\n- an advertisement\n- low quality\n- not about the video topic\n- soliciting votes or seeking badges\n- a homework question\n- a duplicate answer\n- repeatedly making the same post\n- a tip or feedback in Questions\n- a question in Tips & Feedback\n- an answer that should be its own question\nabout the site"}
{"text": "Definitions of bullying\nBullying is when a person or a group repeatedly and intentionally uses or abuse their power to intimidate, hurt, oppress or damage someone else. It can be covert or cyber-based (happening online through social networks or even through mobile phones). Bullying can be physical or emotional.\nAccording to the National Centre Against Bullying, there are five different kinds of bullying behaviour. They are:\n1. Physical bullying: when physical actions such as hitting, poking, tripping or pushing, are used to hurt and intimidate. Repeatedly and intentionally damaging someone's belongings is also physical bullying, says the centre.\n2. Verbal bullying: involves the use of negative words, like name calling, insults, homophobic or racist slurs, or words used to intentionally upset someone.\n3. Social bullying: when lies, the spreading of rumours or nasty pranks are used. This includes repeated mimicking and deliberate exclusion.\n4. Psychological bullying: involves the repeated and intentional use of words or actions which can cause psychological harm. Examples include intimidation, manipulation and stalking.\n5. Cyber bullying: this is the big one at the moment and is when technology is used to verbally, socially or psychologically bully. It can occur in chat rooms, on social networking sites, through emails or on mobile phones.\n- mutual arguments and disagreements\n- single episodes of social rejection or dislike\n- single-episode acts of nastiness or spite\n- random acts of aggression or intimidation.\nFind more bullying solutions and information\n- 15 solutions to bullying and cyber bullying\n- Helping when your child is bullied\n- How bullies pick their victim\n- My child is a bully\n- What makes a bully\n- What is bullying\n- Facts and figures about bullying\n- Is your child being bullied\n- How to deal with bullying\n- What parents can do about bullying\n- When your child is a bully, here's what to do\n- How to talk about bullying and cyber bullying\n- Cyber bullying: here's what it is and how to tackle it\n- How parents can prevent bullying\n- School policies on bullying\nThis article was written by Fiona Baker, former editor in chief of Mother & Baby, Pregnancy & Birth and Wondertime magazines, for Kidspot, Australia's leading parenting and pregnancy resource. Sources include Bullying No Way , National Centre Against Bullying, Raising Children Network, Bullying Hurts brochure\n- 1. Bunk beds for kids: The ultimate safety guide\n- 2. 'Granny's gone to heaven': How to talk to your kids about death\n- 3. How to get kids to listen\n- 4. How to stop nagging\n- 5. How birth order affects siblings\n- 6. Pool safety\n- 7. Kaz Cooke's 5 sibling rivalry tips\n- 8. United parenting: how to be on the same page\n- 9. How to tackle cyber bullies\n- 10. When your child is the bully, here's what to do"}
{"text": "Summer is usually the time for beach fun and barbeques but if you're stuck inside with a miserable cold, you may be sick longer than usual.\nMedical experts are now saying that summer colds can last longer and have a higher chance of recurring than winter colds.\nWinter viruses that cause upper respiratory infections are joined in the warmer months by enterovirus. This virus spread by coughing, sneezing and fecal matter. On top of the typical common cold symptoms, enterovirus can cause diarrhea, sore throats and rashes and linger around longer.\nAnother summer-specific factors is constant exposure to re-circulated air, which can dry out the lining of the nostrils and provide easier access to viruses. Dr. Muhammed Choudhry of Texas Health WNJ says there are several way to battle these summer colds.\n\"Most of these should respond to rest and plenty of hydration. They are usually caused by viruses and should get better in a few days. If they do not, you should talk to your doctor and see if there's something else that needs to be done such as a prescription to an antibiotic,\" said Choudhry.\nYou can prevent summer colds by following these tips:\nWASH HANDS OFTEN\nGET PLENTY OF SLEEP\nEAT A BALANCED DIET\nAVOID CONTACT WITH SICK PEOPLE\nDesigned by Gray Digital Media"}
{"text": "Studies of a thigh bone fossil have uncovered strong evidence that a human-like creature walked upright six million years ago rather than the widely accepted four million years ago.\nWalking on two feet, bipedalism , is one of the characteristics that distinguishes apes from humans.\n‘Dating the beginnings of bipedalism is very important in the human story,' said Chris Stringer, human evolution expert at the Natural History Museum. 'Because, for many experts, it would mark a clear divergence from the ancestral/ape pattern and show that the human lineage had really begun.'\n‘Bipedalism probably does represent a fundamental first step in human evolution,’ Stringer said. ‘As Darwin recognised, walking on two legs frees up the arms and hands for tasks like carrying, tool making, and tool use. And much of what happened in human evolution later on stemmed from it.’\nCT (Computed tomography) scans were carried out on the fossil thigh bone and the density patterns of the bone were much closer to a modern human than to an ape.\nReported on the National Geographic website, Robert Eckhardt, who lead the research team at Pennsylvania State University, said ‘In present-day chimps and gorillas, the thicknesses in the upper and lower parts of that bone are approximately equal. In modern humans, the bone on top is thinner than on the bottom by a ratio of one to four or more.’ The ratio in the fossil was one to three, showing a bone formation more in line for an upright walker.\nEckhardt and the research team report their findings in the journal Science ."}
{"text": "After failing to win reelection to the Congress Morris moved to Philadelphia and resumed his law practice. A series of newspaper articles on finance secured him the post of assistant to Robert Morris (no relative) in handling the finances of the new government (1781-85). In this position he planned the U.S. decimal coinage system. As a member of the U.S. Constitutional Convention of 1787 Morris played an active role, defending a strong centralized government and a powerful executive, opposing concessions on slavery, and putting the Constitution into its final literary form. He remained, however, a champion of aristocracy who distrusted democratic rule.\nIn 1789 Moris went to France as a private business agent, remained in Europe, and was appointed (1792) U.S. minister to France. During the French Revolution his sympathies lay with the royalists; he even helped plan a scheme to rescue Louis XVI. His recall was requested in 1794, but he traveled for several years before returning to America in 1798. From 1800 to 1803, Morris, a Federalist, was a U.S. senator from New York. He then retired to his estate. He condemned the War of 1812, going so far as to recommend the severance of the federal union. Morris was a strong advocate of the Erie Canal and served as chairman (1810-13) of the canal commission.\nSee his Diary of the French Revolution (1939), edited by his great-granddaughter, Beatrix Cary Davenport; biographies by T. Roosevelt (1888, repr. 1972), D. Walther (tr. 1934), and R. Brookhiser (2003); M. M. Mintz, Gouverneur Morris and the American Revolution (1970).\n(born , Jan. 31, 1752, Morrisania house, Manhattan—died Nov. 6, 1816, Morrisania house) American statesman and financial expert. He was admitted to the bar (1771) and served in the New York Provincial Congress (1775–77) and the Continental Congress (1778–79). He distrusted the democratic tendencies of colonists who wanted to break with England, but his belief in independence led him to join their ranks. As assistant superintendent of finance (1781–85), he proposed the decimal coinage system that became the basis for U.S. currency. A delegate to the Constitutional Convention, he helped write the final draft of the Constitution of the United States. He served as minister to France (1792–94) and as a U.S. Senator (1800–03), and he was the first chairman of the Erie Canal commission (1810–16).\nLearn more about Morris, Gouverneur with a free trial on Britannica.com.\nBorn in what is now part of New York City in 1752, Gouverneur Morris was of Welsh and Huguenot background. Morris graduated from King's College, known since the American Revolution as Columbia University, in 1768. He practiced law in the city starting in 1771.\nMorris had a wooden leg as a result of an accident that occurred while he was climbing onto a carriage without anyone tending to the horses, which suddenly took off, catching his left leg in one of the carriage wheels on May 14, 1780. Physicians told Morris that they had no choice but to remove the leg below the knee.\nOn May 8, 1775, Morris was elected to represent his family estate in the New York Provincial Congress, an extralegal assembly dedicated to achieving independence. His advocacy of independence brought him into conflict with his family, as well as his mentor William Smith, who had abandoned the patriot cause when it moved towards independence.\nDespite an automatic exemption from military duty because of his handicap and his service in the legislature, he joined a special \"briefs\" club for the protection of New York City, a forerunner of the modern New York Guard.\nAfter the Battle of Long Island in August 1776, the British seized New York City and his family's estate. His mother, a Loyalist, gave the estate over to the British for military use. Because his estate was now in the possession of the enemy, he was no longer eligible for election to the New York state legislature and was instead appointed as a delegate to the Continental Congress.\nHe took his seat in Congress on January 28, 1778 and was immediately selected to a committee in charge of coordinating reforms in the military with General Washington. On a trip to Valley Forge, he was so appalled by the conditions of the troops that he became the spokesman for the Continental Army in Congress and pushed for substantial reforms in the training and methods of the army. He also signed the Articles of Confederation in 1778.\nIn 1779, he was defeated for re-election to Congress, largely because his advocacy of a strong central government was at odds with the decentralist views in New York. Defeated in his home state, he moved to Philadelphia to work as a lawyer and merchant.\nIn Philadelphia, he was appointed assistant superintendent of finance (1781-1785), and was a Pennsylvania delegate to the Constitutional Convention in 1787, before returning to live in New York in 1788.\nDuring the convention, he was a friend and ally of George Washington and others who favored a stronger central government. Morris was elected to serve on a committee of five (chaired by William Samuel Johnson) that would draft the final language of the proposed Constitution. Catherine Drinker Bowen, in Miracle at Philadelphia, called Morris the committee's \"amanuensis,\" meaning that it was his pen that was responsible for most of the draft.\n\"An aristocrat to the core,\" Morris believed that \"there never was, nor ever will be a civilized Society without an Aristocracy\". He also thought that common people were incapable of self-government and feared that the poor would sell their votes to rich people, and consequently thought that voting should be restricted to property owners. Morris also opposed admitting new Western states on an equal basis with the existing Eastern states, fearing that the interior wilderness could not furnish \"enlightened\" statesmen. At the Convention he gave more speeches than any other delegate, totaling 173.\nHe went to Europe on business in 1789 and served as Minister Plenipotentiary to France from 1792-1794. His diaries written during that time have become an invaluable chronicle of the French Revolution, capturing much of the turbulence and violence of that era. He returned to the United States in 1798 and was elected in 1800 as a Federalist to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of James Watson, serving from April 3, 1800, to March 3, 1803. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1802. After leaving the Senate, he served as chairman of the Erie Canal Commission, 1810-1813.\nAt the age of 57, he married Anne Cary (\"Nancy\") Randolph, who was the sister to Thomas Mann Randolph, husband of Thomas Jefferson's daughter Martha Jefferson Randolph. He died at the family estate of Morrisania and is buried at St. Ann's Episcopal Church in the Bronx borough of New York City.\nMorris's half-brother, Lewis Morris (1726-1798), was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Another half-brother, Staats Long Morris, was a Loyalist and major-general in the British army during the American Revolution. His nephew, Lewis Richard Morris, served in the Vermont legislature and in the United States Congress. His grandnephew was William M. Meredith, United States Secretary of the Treasury under Zachary Taylor. Morris's great-grandson, also named Gouverneur (1876-1953), was an author of pulp novels and short stories during the early twentieth century. Several of his works were adapted into films, including the famous Lon Chaney, Sr. film The Penalty.\nEnvoy to the Terror: Gouverneur Morris and the French Revolution.(Napoleon's Troublesome Americans: Franco-American Relations, 1804-1815)(Book review)\nJun 22, 2007; Envoy to the Terror: Gouverneur Morris and the French Revolution. By Melanie Randolph Miller. (Dulles, VA: Potomac Books, 2005...."}
{"text": "Habitat Affects Escape Behavior of Birds\nIt seems birds of the same species raised in diverse settings behave differently in the face of a threat. Birds raised in an urban environment react differently than country-bred birds when faced with a predator.\nA study undertaken by Diego Ibanez-Alamo, researcher at the University of Granada (UGR) and Anders Pape Moller from Paris-Sud University, highlights the fact that urbanization plays an influential role in a bird's survival strategies.\nThey analyzed the escape techniques of 1,132 birds belonging to 15 species in different rural and urban areas.\nLike Us on Facebook\nThe study showed that city birds have changed their behavior to adapt to new threats like cats, which are their main enemies in an urban habitat, instead of their more traditional enemies in the countryside, such as the sparrow hawk.\n\"When they are captured, city birds are less aggressive, they produce alarm calls more frequently, they remain more paralyzed when attacked by their predator and they lose more feathers than their countryside counterparts,\" explained by Juan Diego Ibanez-Alamo.\nThey were surprised to see that urbanization was directly linked with these differences. This finding gives rise to the concept that escape strategies evolve alongside the expansion of cities.\n\"It is crucial to discover how birds adapt to transformations in their habitat so that we can decrease their effects,\" said Ibanez-Alamo..\n\"Predation change caused by city growth is serious,\" outlined Ibanez-Alamo.\nAs the scientist indicates, tactics against their hunters are \"crucial\" so that birds can adapt to their new environment: \"Birds should modify their behavior to be able to survive in cities because if not, they will become extinct at the mercy of urban growth.\"\nThese results appear in the journal, Animal Behavior."}
{"text": "FDA OKs Nexium for Kids 1-11\nFDA Approves Nexium for Short-Term Treatment of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) in Young Children\nFeb. 28, 2008 -- The FDA today approved short-term use of the drug Nexium for children aged 1-11 with gastroesophageal\nreflux disease (GERD).\nThe FDA OK'd Nexium in two forms -- a delayed-release capsule and a liquid\nform -- in doses of 10 milligrams or 20 milligrams for kids aged 1-11.\nNexium was already approved for children aged 12-17 in 20 mg or 40 mg\n\"This approval provides important information for appropriate dosing for\nchildren ages 1-11 years with GERD,\" Julie Beitz, MD, director of the FDA's\nOffice for Drug Evaluation III in the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.\n\"Children prescribed this drug should be monitored by their physicians for\nany adverse drug reactions.\"\nNexium is part of a class of drugs known as proton pump inhibitors (PPIs).\nPPIs decrease the amount of acid produced in the stomach and help heal erosions\nin the lining of the esophagus, a condition known as erosive\nThe FDA approved Nexium's use in children aged 1-11 for short-term treatment\nof GERD based data extrapolated from previous studies done in adults, as well\nas studies done in children.\nIn one study, 109 GERD patients aged 1-11 were treated with Nexium once\ndaily for up to eight weeks to evaluate Nexium's safety and tolerability. Most\nof the patients showed healing of their esophageal erosions after eight weeks\nThe most common adverse reactions in children treated with Nexium were headache, diarrhea, abdominal pain, nausea, gas, constipation, dry mouth, and\nNexium isn't approved for children younger than 1. The drug's safety and\nefficacy hasn't been established in children in that age range, the FDA\nNexium is made by the drug company AstraZeneca."}
{"text": "I was helping a friend with setting up her iMac computer yesterday for genealogy and she said something that caught my attention. She said, \"I have to learn what all the genealogy terms mean.\" That brought home a common problem with all specializations; learning the jargon.\nJargon is a really a technical term I became acquainted with during my graduate studies in Linguistics at the University of Utah. It is defined as special words or expressions that are used by a particular profession or group and are difficult for others to understand. The main problem with jargon is that we often do not even know we are using it.\nTake for example, the word \"genealogy\" itself, as in \"I am doing my genealogy\" or \"I am working on my genealogy.\" What does that statement communicate to a non-genealogist? And sometimes we wonder why we get blank stares. The challenge is that there is really no way to avoid jargon. It is present in every (I mean every) activity and profession and interest in the entire world from skydiving to sewing. Every human activity has its own special set of insider terms.\nJargon can be very exclusionary. If you are the outsider, trying to understand what the \"insiders\" are talking about can be a formidable challenge. An extreme type of jargon is called an argot. Sometimes the word argot is associated with criminal activities so using the word jargon is more appropriate. Usually term \"argot\" is used to identify an extreme jargon specifically designed to exclude outsiders. What is more difficult is that the people who are using the jargon are usually not even aware that they are using specialized words and terminology.\nI have noticed that many people who are new to genealogy are put off immediately by genealogists using terms they don't immediately understand. For example, they are asked if they have a pedigree chart or family group record. Although these terms seem so simple and fundamental, they are in fact very specialized uses of common words. If you add in the jargon associated with computers and computer use, coming into the world of genealogy can be formidable.\nBy the way, it often doesn't help to try to explain or define our \"jargon\" terms because we end up using even more jargon to define the terms. I suggest that when you are talking to non-genealogists, you think carefully about the terms you are using and ask frequent questions to see if those you are speaking to understand what you are saying."}
{"text": "Editor’s Note: Ronald E. Hall, Ph.D. is a professor at Michigan State University and the author of \"The Melanin Millennium.\" He has lectured on skin color both domestically and internationally, and testified as an expert witness in skin color discrimination cases. His forthcoming book is a revised edition of \"The Color Complex.\"\nBy Ronald E. Hall, Special to CNN\n(CNN) - In the early part of this century, there were separate facilities for blacks and whites, the Ku Klux Klan was a popular white supremacist organization and racism was easy to see.\nIn 1964, civil rights legislation outlawed racial discrimination, and there has been an advance of racial equality, including the election, and re-election of the first black president.\nBut while overt acts of racism have declined, discrimination continues in another form: colorism.\nColorism is a manifestation of how Western imperialism has exported European ideals, most notably the universal idealization of light skin, to American shores.\nNot only have whites discriminated against blacks because of skin color, but people of color have also discriminated against one another. While colorism has existed for some time, it has only been recently acknowledged, as seen in the increase of legal cases and studies examining this “ism.”\nColorism is rooted in the long span of American history. The NAACP’s Crisis magazine printed an editorial on a heated exchange between the light-skinned W. E. B. DuBois and the dark-skinned Marcus Garvey. DuBois referred to Garvey as \"fat, black” and “ugly,\" as if to suggest that a dark skin color denoted inferiority. Such an exchange was not an anomaly. A prominent NAACP official referred to Garvey by skin color, as a \"Jamaican Negro of unmixed stock.” The not-so-subtle derogatory remark implied that having dark skin was unattractive.\nRecently, I was retained as an expert witness for a suit filed against Sears Holding Management Corp. in Chicago. The plaintiff in the case was African-American, and previously employed by the defendant as an executive. In filing suit, the plaintiff alleged she was denied equal pay, promotion and then terminated on the basis of her age, race and skin color. According to testimony, a light-skinned African-American male employee of the company with less seniority cooperated in the plaintiff’s eventual termination. The case is ongoing.\nIn 1989, the Federal District Court of Atlanta heard the case of Walker vs. the Internal Revenue Service. Tracey Walker, the plaintiff, alleged that her IRS supervisor discriminated against her via performance evaluations on the basis of skin color. This is a landmark case as both the plaintiff and her supervisor are African-Americans. The plaintiff is light-skinned, whereas the defendant, by comparison, is dark-skinned. The presiding judge determined that such discrimination is a fact in the African-American community but that the plaintiff had failed to prove it to his satisfaction in her particular case.\nThe issue has not only been among African-Americans. In Felix v. Marquez, a case litigated in 1981 by the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia, the litigants were employees of the Office of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico in Washington. The darker-skinned Felix alleged that the lighter-skinned defendant did not promote her because of colorism. During the trial, Felix contended that only two of her 28 fellow employees were as dark or darker in skin color than she, which Felix suggested is the reason she was not promoted.\nThe increase in legal cases has been telling of the increase in acknowledging colorism in the United States, and recent studies have also explored the topic around the world.\nEurogamy is a discriminatory marital pattern based on having light skin. Eurogamy was demonstrated in a study done in Asia using random samples of a mail-order bride magazine published from 1991 through 2000. In the study, 620 Asian females were questioned about their spousal preferences. When light skin was a requirement for marriage, 96% of the females requested Caucasian men, 2% requested Asian men and 2% requested Hispanic men.\nColorism is manifested in discriminatory references to skin color, even who is seen as a suitable mate: If there is no action, it will continue as another insidious “ism” of the new millennium.\nThe opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Ronald E. Hall."}
{"text": "Title IX built generation of better athletesby Alex Friedrich, Minnesota Public Radio\nST. PAUL, Minn. — For the girls at this year's Minnesota high school track and field championships, Title IX is a lesson in a history book.\nThe sports it helped open up now dominate the lives of many of the girls.\nTake 18-year-old Aitkin, Minn., High School senior Emily Lundgren, who runs the 400 meters.\nLundgren, who has been captain of her track and basketball teams and also plays tennis, said sports have been a big part of her life since the first grade.\n\"That's what you do in your summer — you practice your sports,\" she said. \"They mean a lot to me, to say the least. They've really made me who I am today.\"\nLundgren and her teammates are arguably better athletes because of Title IX. It has given them better coaching, training facilities and even sports and nutrition research than girls received 40 years ago.\nThe change is the result of Title IX, a landmark piece of federal legislation enacted 40 years ago tomorrow.\nDesigned to prevent gender discrimination in the nation's education system, Title IX has paid dividends. Ten times more young women now play high-school sports than in 1972, according to statistics from National Federation of State High School Associations. There are six times as many female college athletes in NCAA colleges.\nBut it has become better known for opening up sports to women. Critics, meanwhile, say that progress has come at the cost of men's programs.\nStronger high school athletes grow into better college players -- and a few into professional athletes.\nOne example of the resources now available is the basketball camp held for young girls this month at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul. Varsity women's basketball players helped run the girls through drills, teach them special moves and immerse them in the game.\nOne of the teachers is Alyssa Favilla, a St. Thomas sophomore varsity forward who said sports gave her structure.\n\"They taught me time management — and how to be a competitor,\" she said. \"And I use that in the classroom, too.\"\nWith each generation since Title IX, female athletes have grown bigger, stronger and faster, said Mary Jo Kane, director of the University of Minnesota's center for research on women's sports.\n\"They are infinitely more gifted than they have ever been,\" Kane said. \"And it is a direct result of the decision of Title IX.\"\nKane, 61, knows what it's like to have been excluded. She grew up a tomboy in Illinois in the 1950s and '60s and played touch football, basketball and baseball in her neighborhood. But her high school had no organized sports for girls.\nThe choice was little better for JoAnn Andregg, now associate athletic director at the University of St. Thomas. At her California high school, women's volleyball and basketball held second-class status: No coaches. No budget. No rights to the gym.\n\"That usually meant we got in there after the boys' team was finished practicing,\" Andregg said. \"Then we got in there. And we had to wear these God-awful uniforms, these one-piece uniforms for practice and games. I remember that so distinctly. \"\nTitle IX changed that. Now, high schools and colleges typically provide sports opportunities proportional to the number of enrolled students of each gender.\nIn the last four decades, the number of women's college teams per campus has almost quadrupled, according to a report by Brooklyn College professors R. Vivian Acosta and Linda Jean Carpenter. But that has led to criticism that growth has come at the expense of men's programs.\nWhile women now outnumber men on many college campuses, critics note that fewer women play college sports.\nThe American Sports Council, a group that wants to Congress to overhaul Title IX, has filed two lawsuits contesting the requirement of proportional sports offerings. Council media director Jim McCarthy said cash-strapped colleges have limited or slashed men's sports such as swimming, volleyball and soccer to make room for women's sports such as rowing, ice hockey and bowling.\nMcCarthy said Title IX requirements have led to a quota system that excludes male athletes who normally would have a shot at sports.\n\"That's been an absolute outrage, because the law is supposed to protect against discrimination,\" he said.\nThe solution, McCarthy said, is to end proportionality -- or at least survey all students about their real sports interests.\n\"Let the students themselves have a voice in how the law is applied,\" he said.\nKane and other Title IX supporters don't oppose surveys. But she said the methodology of past attempts has been flawed, and new surveys would have to be constructed and administered correctly.\nTitle IX supporters also say colleges are\nKane says colleges could cut the fat from large football programs and use the savings to pay for women's sports without dropping men's.\nStudents still seem to prefer men's sports, judging from what some college athletes say.\n\"We've earned a lot of respect,\" Favilla said. \"But I can see how they don't see us as equal sometimes. We don't dunk or don't sprint as fast. But usually they treat us well.\"\nAndregg, of St. Thomas, is concerned with one ironic outcome of the legislation.\nThanks to Title IX, women's college sports have become more competitive. So men now want to coach them. According to the Brooklyn College report, more than half of women's college sports teams have male coaches. Before Title IX, only one in 10 did.\n\"We're going to have daughters coming up who never see a female coach,\" Andregg said of the trend. \"And I just think that's a shame.\"\nIf that happens, Andregg says, girls won't have many female athletic role models - and that might risk the gains they've made in the past 40 years."}
{"text": "Great apes go through mid-life crisis\nThey may not take up surfing or start second careers as cupcake-makers, but chimpanzees and orangutans seem to go through a ‘mid-life crisis’, just like humans.\nA study of 508 great apes in captivity shows that the animals’ sense of well-being bottoms out in their late 20s to mid-30s, the ape equivalent of middle age, before rebounding in old age.\nThe finding that mid-life crises may not be uniquely human suggests that the events might have a biological, rather than a sociological, cause.\nMen and women worldwide, regardless of their wealth or status, experience a dip in happiness at middle-age, generally defined as from the mid-30s to late 50s. Despite this universality, social scientists have struggled to identify the underlying cause of the dissatisfaction. Social and economic factors, such as financial hardship and the failure to realize unrealistic ambitions, are possible causes.\nAlexander Weiss, a psychologist at the University of Edinburgh, UK, and his team set out to see if there might be a biological factor involved in the crises. They sought to assess the well-being of captive chimpanzees and orangutans as judged by their keepers or those who knew them well.\nThe apes covered all age ranges, and their ‘happiness’ was rated through a survey answered by their keepers. The survey covered four criteria: the animals’ overall mood; how much pleasure they got out of socializing; their success in achieving goals such as obtaining food and objects they desire; and how happy the keeper would be if he or she were that animal for a week.\nThe survey is admittedly anthropomorphic, says Weiss, but he adds that it is easy for someone who spends a lot of time with an ape to gauge its mood. Moreover, his previous work shows that the measure of well-being is consistent when measured by different caretakers, and is based, in part, on inherited genetic factors.\nAmong three different groups of chimps and orangutans surveyed, the happiest tended to be the oldest and youngest, and the most dissatisfied tended to be in their 30s. The study, however, is a snapshot — it didn’t follow any of the apes over time — which means there could be confounding factors such as the early death of unhappy apes. Nonetheless, Weiss believes the results offer a true picture."}
{"text": "Even if, internationally, Austria is not considered to be a special case, there is still widespread agreement on the fact that cooperation and the coordination of interests between the federations is one of this country’s distinctive features. The common definition for this type of cooperation is “social partnership”.\nThe federations and chambers work in close contact with one or other of the two political parties, the Austrian People’s Party or the Social Democratic Party of Austria. The considerable economic growth and rise in employment and wages during the 1950s and 1960s created a favourable basis for the exchange of economic and socio-political interests. All this contributed to the wide-spread establishment of the Austrian system of social partnership in the 1960s. If the 1970s could be regarded as its heyday, the 1990s, in particular, have witnessed a change in this system’s significance.\nSocial partnership is neither anchored in the Austrian constitution nor laid down in any specific act. It is rooted in the free will of the players concerned. To a large extent, it is implemented informally and confidentially and is not normally accessible to the general public.\nThe umbrella federations of the social partners wield great influence as regards political opinion-forming and decision-making. Their co-operation has thus often been criticised as a “secondary government”, although the political omnicompetence often attributed to the social partners has, in fact, never existed as such. The co-operation and coordination of interests among the associations and with the government have only ever applied to specific fields of politics, such as income policies and certain aspects of economic and social policies, (e.g. industrial safety regulations, agrarian market legislation, labour market policies and principles of equal treatment). In these areas, during the past decades the social partners have substantially contributed to Austria’s economic, social and political stability – evidence of which can be found in economic growth, in the rise of employment, in the expansion of the welfare state and also in the often quoted “social peace”.\nSeveral avenues for political decision-making are open to the large national federations. A traditionally used channel is their close relationship with one or the other of the long-standing government parties, i.e. the Social Democratic Party or the Austrian People’s Party. In addition, the federations are incorporated, both formally and informally, into the political opinion-forming process of the relevant ministries, as evidenced by their participation in a number of committees, advisory boards and commissions. Even at the parliamentary level, involvement of experts from the federations and chambers is a normal practice.\nAustria’s accession to the European Union has expanded the federations’ scope in that they not only have privileged access to relevant information and documentation. Of even greater importance are their possibilities for influencing the Austrian position in proposing EU legislation. All in all, by comparison with many other countries, this means that the large national federations in Austria have excellent possibilities for shaping the policies relating to their interests. However, social partnership in the true sense of the word goes beyond this: its core task consists of the balancing of opposing interests in the aforementioned political fields through contextual compromises among federations or between the federations and the government.\nSince the 1980s, economic, social and political changes have become apparent in Austria, too. Evidence of this lies in reduced economic growth, rising budgetary deficits, increasing competition and unemployment, and an expanding rivalry between the political parties. Against this backdrop, it has not only become more difficult for the federations to align the different interests of their members to a common denominator: reduced turnout in elections to the chambers and the general calling into question of compulsory membership are symptoms of change. In addition, it is not only becoming increasingly difficult, but also rarer, to strike a balance between the federations’ interests. Well-known institutions, such as the Paritätische Kommission für Lohn- und Preisfragen (Parity Commission for Wages and Prices), which – particularly in the comments of foreign observers – has been widely recognised as a central institution of the Austrian social partnership, have lost some of their significance. The changes are mainly manifest in the re-weighting of the influence of the players involved in the political decision-making process; the government has gained formative power and influence. In important budgetary, economic and socio-political questions it decides both the procedure and the core contents. Austria’s accession to the European Union has reinforced this development. At the same time, however, EU membership also entails a loss of terrain for the federations. Decisions on topics such as agricultural, competition and monetary policies are decided at EU level. Here, the influence of the federations is essentially limited to formulating the Austrian position, which is just one out of 15.\nAll this does not currently mean that the system of social partnership has come to an end. There are also visible signs of continuity. The privileged position of the national federations remains unchanged. In the political decision-making process a balance of interests can still be achieved. However, the influence has lessened. Not the end, but certainly changes and reforms of the social partnership, are currently on the agenda."}
{"text": "\"From the creators of Animachines, a playful way for kids to learn actions, animals, and opposites.\"\nOpposites are everywhere in our world. A day at the park will reveal busy kids and active animals doing opposite actions. There, on the slide: Sam goes up as Hiroko zips down. And there, in the tree: one squirrel climbs up and another scurries down. Not far away, Daddy is quiet but Simon is LOUD, while a mother bird is silent as she feeds her chirping babies.\nIn Kids Do, Animals Too ten pairs explain opposites to young children. Each pair features people and a different animal, including: fast, slow -- dogs in, out -- mice up, down -- squirrels on, off -- frogs ahead, behind -- ants quiet, loud -- birds under, over -- spiders wet, dry -- ducks toward, away -- butterflies asleep, awake -- squirrels, bats\nThe softly colored artwork features familiar park settings, and includes look-and-find details that cleverly connect each active scene. Meanwhile, the aptly crafted language keeps the action moving and the learning fun."}
{"text": "January 10, 2002\nParshat Vaerah (Exodus 6:2-9:35)\nFrom the Torah's beginning until its end, God is portrayed as being personally involved in the welfare of humanity. Deism is not a Jewish notion. God is not an \"unmoved mover,\" the proverbial clockmaker who after assembling and winding his ware, steps back watching it tick down, never to again involve Himself with it. On the contrary, God hears our innermost thoughts, feels our deepest concerns, judges us and guides us through our lives. A traditional Jewish concept of God is one that is interactive and intimately personal.\nThis week's Torah portion, Vaerah, begins with God hearing, and ultimately reacting to, the Israelites brutal enslavement. \"I have now heard the moaning of the Israelites because the Egyptians are holding them in slavery, and I have remembered My covenant.\" (Exodus 6:5) The covenant being remembered is between God and the Israelite people. Curiously, it was the king of Egypt, and not God, or the Israelites themselves, who coined the phrase, \"Israelite People.\" Acting out of panic, Pharaoh wanted to do away with the Hebrews, when he declared they were becoming too numerous. (Exodus 1:9)\nEven so, the distinction placed on our understanding of covenant is an important one. The covenant serves to bind God to an entire group, not to an individual, or a handful of individuals. \"The God of Israel is no mythological deity who mingles freely with men in history,\" writes philosopher Rabbi Emil Fackenheim in his book, \"God's Presence in History.\" \"Nevertheless, not messengers, not angels, not intermediaries, but God himself acts in human history.\"\nGod hears the cries of the people Israel and responds. The plagues used to dislodge the Hebrew slaves are physical indicators of God's personal involvement. Admittedly, not all the Hebrew slaves were liberated from their miserable environment. Over the span of several hundred years, countless generations of Israelites were born and died while held captive by Pharaoh and his cohorts, never having experienced the beauty of life.\nCollectively, we have survived as a people, and the covenant between God and us continues. While unimaginably large numbers of Jews have suffered and died throughout history, the Jewish People continue to thrive; the covenant remains intact. To those who are turned off to faith because of great personal, or even national loss, little can be said; out of respect, perhaps nothing ought to be said. After the Holocaust, for example, a number of Jewish theologians have felt the covenant was so compromised that it is no longer binding.\nAll that notwithstanding, the spiritual question most of us encounter is whether life is little more than a series of coincidences. To some, our existence is the outgrowth of luck, possibly karma, astrology or magic. To the Jew, our people's existence is the result of God, and the covenant we have with Him. No doubt, life is made more palatable because of it. And, if the message conveyed throughout the Torah is correct, all peoples, Jewish or not, are additionally blessed to have a God who is personally involved in the day-to-day affairs of their lives.\nMichael Gotlieb is the rabbi of Kehillat Ma'arav in Santa Monica."}
{"text": "By Vendor > AgBio Communications > grassland plants of south dakota and the northern great plains\ngrassland plants of south dakota and the northern great plains\n\"Learning to identify and understand the plants that produce the forage, provide the cover, protect the soil, and enrich our lives in many ways is an essential first step to conserving our native grassland, whether they are the grasslands we own and manage, or the grasslands we hunt and hike over, or simply the grasslands we view from our vehicles. This photographic guide can help you discover and learn about the plants inhabitating our northern prairies and plains.\" David J. Ode, Botanist/Ecologist, South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Department Authors are James R. Johnson and Gary E. Larson\n$19.95 and Free Shipping\nAs Done By:\nAgBio Communications — Click to view all items by this member."}
{"text": "Herbal In Italy\n( Originally Published 1912 )\nThe Italian botanists of the Renaissance devoted them-selves chiefly to interpreting the works of the classical writers on Natural History, and to the identification of the plants to which they referred. This came about quite naturally, from the fact that the Mediterranean flora, which they saw around them, was actually that with which the writers in question had been, in their day, familiar. The botanists of southern Europe were not compelled, as were those whose homes lay north of the Alps, to distort facts before they could make the plants of their native country fit into the procrustean bed of classical descriptions.\nOne of the chief of the commentators and herbalists of this period was Pierandrea Mattioli [or Matthiolus] (Text-fig. 40), who was born at Siena in 1501, and died of the plague in 1577. We realise something of the frightful extent of this scourge, when we remember that it claimed as victims no less than three of the small company of Renaissance botanists, Gesner, Mattioli and Zaluzian. Leonhard Fuchs was brought into fame by his successful treatment of one of these epidemics. It should also be recalled that, while Gaspard Bauhin, one of the best known of the later herbalists, was practising as a physician at Basle, no less than three of these terrible outbreaks occurred in the town.\nMattioli was the son of a doctor, and his early life was passed in Venice, where his father was in practice. He was destined for the law, but his inherited tastes led him away from jurisprudence to medicine. He practised in several different towns, and became physician, successively, to the Archduke Ferdinand, and to the Emperor Maximilian II.\nMattioli's ` Commentarii in sex libros Pedacii Dioscoridis,' his chef-d'oeuvre, the gradual production and improvement of which occupied his leisure hours throughout his life, was first published in 1544. It was translated into many languages and appeared in countless editions. The success of the work was phenomenal, and it is said that 32,000 copies of the earlier editions were sold. The title does not do the book justice, for it contains, besides an exposition of Dioscorides, a Natural History dealing with all the plants known to Mattioli. The early editions had small illustrations only (Text-figs. 41, 42, 93 and 94), but, later on, editions with large and very beautiful figures were published, such as that which appeared at Venice in 1565.\nMattioli's descriptions of the plants with which he deals are not so good as those of some of his contemporaries.\nHe found and recorded a certain number of new plants, especially from the Tyrol, but most of the species, which he described for the first time, were not his own discoveries, but were communicated to him by others. Luca Ghini, for instance, had projected a similar work, but handed over all his material to Mattioli, who also placed on record the discoveries made by the physician, Wilhelm Quakelbeen, who had accompanied the celebrated diplomatist, Auger-Gislain Busbecq, on a mission to Turkey.\nBusbecq brought from Constantinople a wonderful collection of Greek manuscripts, including Juliana Anicia's copy of the Materia Medica of Dioscorides, now in the Vienna Library (see pp. 8 and 154). He discovered this great manuscript in the hands of a Jew, who required a hundred ducats for it. This price was almost prohibitive, but Busbecq was an enthusiast, and he successfully urged the Emperor, whose representative he was, to redeem so illustrious an author from that servitudes.\" His purpose in buying the manuscript seems to have been largely in order to communicate it to Mattioli, who would thus be able to make use of it in preparing his Commentaries on Dioscorides.\nThe personal character of Mattioli does not appear to have been a pleasant one. He engaged in numerous controversies with his fellow botanists, and hurled the most abusive language at those who ventured to criticise him.\nAnother Italian herbalist, Castor Durante, slightly later in date than Mattioli, should perhaps be mentioned here, not because of the intrinsic value of his work, but because of its widespread popularity. At least two of his books appeared in many editions and translations.\nDurante was a physician who issued a series of botanical compilations, bedizened with Latin verse. The best known of his works is the Herbaro Nuovo,' published at Rome in 1585 (Text-figs. 45 and 103). A second book, the original version of which is seldom met with, has survived in the form of a German translation, by Peter Uffenbach. The German version was named ` Hortulus Sanitatis.' As an illustration of Durante's charmingly unscientific manner, we may take the legend of the \" Arbor tristis \" which occurs in both these works. The figure which accompanies it (Text-fig. 45) shows, beneath the moon and stars, a drawing of a tree whose trunk has a human form. The description, as it occurs in the ` Hortulus Sanitatis,' ay be translated as follows :\n\"Of this tree the Indians say, there was once a very beautiful maiden, daughter of a mighty lord called Parisa taccho. This maiden loved the Sun, but the Sun forsook her because he loved another. So, being scorned by the Sun, she slew herself, and when her body had been burned, according to the custom of that land, this tree sprang from her ashes. And this is the reason why the flowers of this tree shrink so intensely from the Sun, and never open in his presence. And thus it is a special delight to see this tree in the night time, adorned on all sides with its lovely flowers, since they give forth a delicious perfume, the like of which is not to be met with in any other plant, but no sooner does one touch the plant with one's hand than its sweet scent vanishes away. And however beautiful the tree has appeared, and however sweetly it has bloomed at night, directly the Sun rises in the morning it not only fades but all its branches look as though they were withered and dead.\"\nMuch more famous than Durante was Fabio Colonna, or, as he is more generally called, Fabius Columna (Plate IX), who was born at Naples in 1567. His father was a well-known littérateur. Fabio Colonna's profession was that of law, but he was also well acquainted with languages, music, mathematics and optics. He tells us in the preface to his principal work that his interest in plants was aroused by his difficulty in obtaining a remedy for epilepsy, a disease from which he suffered. Having tried all sorts of prescriptions without result, he examined the literature on the subject, and discovered that most of the writers of his time merely served up the results obtained by the ancients, often in a very incorrect form. So he went to the fountain head, Dioscorides, and after much research identified Valerian as being the herb which that writer had recommended against epilepsy, and succeeded in curing himself by its use.\nThis experience convinced Colonna that the knowledge of the identity of the plants described by the ancients was in a most unsatisfactory condition, and he set himself to produce a work which should remedy this state of things. This book was published in 1592, under the name of ` Phytobasanos,' which embodies a quaint conceit after the fashion of the time. The title is a compound Greek word meaning \"plant torture,\" and was apparently employed by Colonna to explain that he had subjected the plants to ordeal by torture, in order to wrest from them the secret of their identity. But it must be confessed that Colonna himself is by no means free from error, as regards the names which he assigns to them.\nThe great feature of the `Phytobasanos,' however, is the excellence of the descriptions and figures. The latter are famous as being the first etchings on copper used to illustrate a botanical work (Text-figs. 46 and 105). They were an advance on all previous plant drawings, except the work of Gesner and Camerarius, in giving, in many cases, detailed analyses of the flowers and fruit as well as habit drawings. We owe to Colonna also the technical use of the word \"petaI,\" which he suggested as a descriptive term for the coloured floral leaves'.\nBy means of his wide scientific correspondence, Colonna kept in touch with many of the naturalists of his time, notably with de l'Écluse and Gaspard Bauhin.\nA passing reference may be made here to a book which is rather of the nature of a local flora than a herbal, entitled Prosperi Alpini de plantis .iEgypti,' which was published at Venice in 1592. It contains a number of wood-cuts, which appear to be original. The one reproduced (Text-fig. 47) represents Salicornia, the Glasswort. The author was a doctor who went to Egypt with the Venetian consul, Giorgio Emo, and had opportunities of collecting plants there. He is said to have been the first European writer to mention the Coffee plant, which he saw growing at Cairo. Prospero Alpino eventually became Professor of Botany at Padua, and enriched the botanical garden of that town with Egyptian plants."}
{"text": "NASA scientists captured some footage of Plasma Indirection, a plasma shift on the surface of the Sun that looks like huge tornadoes churning. Pretty amazing stuff.\nAs if it could not make up its mind . . . darker, cooler plasma slid and shifted back and forth above the Sun’s surface seen here for 30 hours (Feb. 7-8, 2012) in extreme ultraviolet light. An active region rotating into view provides a bright backdrop to the gyrating streams of plasma. The particles are being pulled this way and that by competing magnetic forces. They are tracking along strands of magnetic field lines. This kind of detailed solar observation with high-resolution frames and a four-minute cadence was not possible until SDO, which launched two years ago on Feb. 11, 2010. So it’s our 2nd Anniversary!"}
{"text": "The benefits of a post-secondary degree are plentiful. For example, an employee with a four year college degree earns 60 percent more than a worker with only a high school diploma. Paying for college, however, has become a daunting task and strain for many American students and families. The cost of higher education across the country is rapidly increasing, at almost double the rate of inflation, outpacing increases in financial aid and many families ability to pay. The combination of these factors result in too many students being unable to earn or complete their degrees due to financial constraints.\nBy one estimate, the federal government spent over $367 billion in 2005 aloneon subsidizing Americans' retirement savings and tax breaks to build upother assets like buying a home. Unfortunately, those subsidies gooverwhelmingly to those Americans who already have high-incomes; almostnone of it goes to the poorest Americans who need the most helpbuilding the financial assets that can lead to long-term economicopportunities and security."}
{"text": "We Can End Domestic Abuse\nIf your friend or loved one is experiencing domestic violence or is a survivor, there are many ways you can help to support them.\nDo respect what she wants to do.\nEvery step is up to her.\nDo share resources with your friend or loved one.\nProfessionals who work at shelters and on hotlines can help. You can’t do it all alone!\nDo offer your unconditional understanding and support.\nStart by helping them feel good about themselves. Emphasize their strengths.\nDo be clear that you are there to listen, and not to judge.\nThere is an important balance between expressing concern and telling someone what to do. Encourage them to express their feelings and make their own decisions.\nDo tell her it's not her/his fault.\nStress that she doesn’t deserve the abuse and that abuse is NEVER okay. Remind them often that you’re there for support whenever necessary.\nDo identify the unhealthy behaviors.\nKeep track of things you have noticed about the relationship and the abuser. Identify the changes you have seen in your loved one's behavior.\nDo acknowledge the scariness of domestic violence.\nIt is scary and difficult to talk about interpersonal violence. Be prepared with good information.\nDo encourage your loved one to build a support system.\nA good support system includes the safe and healthy people in her life.\nDon't spread gossip.\nGossip can put a victim in danger if it gets back to the abuser, so think before you speak. Your friend or loved one has taken a big step in coming to you—it is critical that they can trust you with confidential information.\nDon't blame your friend or loved one for the abuse.\nThe victim should never feel as though the abuse is her fault.\nDon't make them do something.\nDon't force her to do something she is uncomfortable doing. They can make their own decisions. Don't try to end the relationship for them.\nDon't criticize your loved one or her partner.\nEven if you disagree with her choices. This may isolate them even more by making them feel that no one approves, or that they have to hide their relationship."}
{"text": "new zealand curriculum\nThe New Zealand Curriculum is\nbuilt around the acquisition of essential academic and practical\nskills. It identifies 7 academic or essential\nThese are balanced by 8 practical\nor essential skills:\n- Language and languages\n- Social sciences\n- The arts\n- Health & physical\n- Communication skills\n- Numeracy skills\n- Information skills\n- Problem-solving skills\n- Self-management and\n- Social and co-operative\n- Physical skills\n- Work and study skills\nEach term, most schools prepare\nstudent Progress Reports and hold parent-teacher evenings.\nSubjects Taught At New Zealand Schools\nThe following is a general list of subjects taught in\nNew Zealand schools. Not all schools offer all the subjects\nlisted and others may offer additional disciplines. Some subjects\n||Agriculture & Horticulture |\n||Business Studies |\n||Classical Studies |\n||Media Studies |\n||Physical Education |\n||Social Studies |\n||Graphics & Design |\n||Clothing & Design\nThe school year begins in late January or early\nFebruary, after a summer holiday of about 6 weeks, and ends in\nDecember. It is divided into 4 terms with breaks of two to three\nweeks between them.\nSecondary school students have slightly longer holidays\nthen primary school students.\nCheck with your local New Zealand school for actual term dates,\nhowever the terms usually run as follows:\nTerm 1 - End of January to early April\nTerm 2 - Late April to end of June\nTerm 3 - Mid July to late September\nTerm 4 - Mid October to mid December (or early December for\nNew Zealand’s qualifications system is changing from traditional examination based awards to standards based qualifications. In 2002, level 1 of the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) replaced School Certificate. The NCEA will replace Sixth Form Certificate in 2003 and University Bursaries in 2004.\nNational Certificate of Educational Achievement\nNCEA (National Certificate of Educational Achievement) is New Zealand's main national qualification for secondary school students and part of the National Qualifications Framework.\nThe Qualifications Framework covers industry and education qualifications from year 11 (formerly Form 5) of secondary schooling and entry level to vocations, through to post-graduate level.\nAll qualifications currently on the Framework are made up of national standards. A standard describes what a learner should aim to achieve in a skill or knowledge area. Standards are set by written criteria along with a national moderation system. Learners who meet all requirements get credit for that standard; those who don't may be reassessed when they are ready.\nEach standard is at a level from 1 to 8. Level 1 is similar to School Certificate level; level 2 to Sixth Form Certificate; levels 3 and 4 are similar to University Bursaries. Each standard also has a credit rating.\nSchools can also use many standards from beyond the school curriculum. Any number or combination of standards may be assessed within a course, so schools can develop courses to suit their students.\nStudents accumulate Framework credits towards National Certificates and National Diplomas. As well as being able to work towards a range of National Certificates, eg, National Certificate in Computing, from 2002 school students will work towards a general qualification, the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA). Students can start on Framework qualifications at school and carry on in the workplace or tertiary studies.\nNCEA provides the pathway to tertiary education and workplace training and gives everyone a full picture of what students know and can do.\n- Challenges students of all abilities, in all learning areas\n- Reports more details about a student's achievement\n- Is officially recognised in New Zealand and internationally\n- Is recognised by employers, universities and polytechnics and used as the benchmark for selection\n- Provides opportunities to begin studying for tertiary and industry qualifications * Enables students to gain credits from traditional school curriculum areas AND alternative school curriculum programmes\n- Has exams as well as internal assessment\n- Has a national system for checking internal assessments\n- Shows credits and grades for separate skills and knowledge in some standards\nThe National Qualifications Framework contains two types of national standards: achievement standards and unit standards. Credits from all achievement standards and all unit standards count towards NCEA.\nChoosing A School\nMost New Zealand students attend state-funded schools\nand every student has the right to enrol at the state school\nnearest to their home. If the school is at risk of overcrowding,\nit can set a home zone that is geographically\ndefined. Students living in this zone have the right to go to\nthat school. Those living outside the zone can be enrolled only\nunder special circumstances. These include situations where\nstudents have brothers or sisters attending the school or require\naccess to special programmes such as special education or Maori\nlanguage. If the school is still at risk of over-crowding,\nselection is made through a supervised ballot.\nERO reports are available at no charge from New Zealand schools\nand ERO offices.\nFamilies also have the right to visit schools and meet with the\nprincipal and staff before deciding to enrol their children as\nState schools are fully funded by the Government. At\nprimary and intermediate level they are co-educational with\nclasses that include both boys and girls. Both co-educational and\nsingle-sex schooling is available at secondary level.\nState schools do not charge fees, however parents are expected to\nmake donations towards the support of special programmes or\nservices. These are also charges for stationery and uniforms.\nMeals are not provided but snacks can generally be purchased from\nthe school Tuck Shop, but many parents prefer to\nprovide a packed lunch.\nThe term integrated schools generally refers\nto schools with a religious focus - usually Roman Catholic\nin denomination that used to operate as private institutions. In\nrecent years, these schools have been integrated into the state\nsystem, hence the name, integrated schools, and receive\ngovernment funding. Although they follow the state curriculum\nrequirements, all have retained their special religious or\nphilosophical character. A small number of institutions, such as\nMontessori or Rudolf Steiner schools, are secular in character.\nPrivate or independent schools receive only limited\ngovernment funding and are almost entirely dependent on income\nderived from student fees. There are no standard fees as each\nschool determines its own fee scale. Fees also vary according to\nlevels, with fees in Years 12 and 13 usually significantly higher\nthan those charged in Years 9 and 10.\nFees at primary schools also vary according to level, although\nthese are generally much lower than secondary school fees.\nPrivate schools are governed by their own independent boards but\nmust meet government standards in order to be registered and they\nare also subject to the same ERO audits as state schools.\nBoarding schools exist mainly at secondary school level.\nCurrently 78 state and integrated schools and 24 private schools\nhave boarding arrangements.\nThe Correspondence School teaches a full range of school\nHome-based schooling must meet the same standards as\nregistered schools, and approval to exempt the student from\nregular schooling must be obtained from the Ministry of\nA small annual grant is available for teaching materials.\nHome schooling accounts for less than 1% of school enrolments.\nMost schools require students to wear a uniform at all\ntimes unless the school has an optional uniform policy. School\nuniforms are sold by most major department stores and some\nschools also operate their own Uniform Shops and sell both new\nand second-hand items.\nTeachers are not allowed to physically punish students\nin their care. Legal disciplinary methods include removal of\nprivileges, extra homework or detention. Parents or guardians are\nadvised in advance if a child is given detention, as this will\nrequire the child to stay at school for a specified time after\nthe end of the standard school day.\nFor serious offences, students may be suspended from school for a\nperiod of time and if they are over 16 years of age, they can be\nexpelled permanently. Expulsion generally occurs when a\nstudents conduct either sets a dangerous example to other\nstudents or threatens their safety. There are formal procedures\nfor suspending or expelling a student.\nMost secondary and primary schools expect students to do\nhomework. Each school has its own rules on the amount and type of\nParents or guardians are responsible for ensuring that a\nchild can get to school. Each year about 100,000 children use\nschool buses. Although school bus services are contracted by the\nMinistry of Education, students are expected to meet the costs of\nIf a child has to travel a long distance to school, and there is\nno public transport or school bus service, financial assistance\ncan be provided. Financial assistance and/or bus and taxi\nservices are provided for special education students.\nIf you plan to change schools, the principal of your\nchilds current school should be informed as soon as\nTransfer involving a change in the level of schooling, such as\nfrom primary to intermediate or intermediate to secondary,\nrequire additional documentation. Details of application\nprocedures are provided by the school the student plans to\ntransfer to. Most intermediate and secondary schools have open"}
{"text": "NINE BANDED ARMADILLO\nPhoto Credit: U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service\nSCIENTIFIC NAME: Dasypus novemcinctus\nOTHER NAMES: Armadillo, Common Long-Nosed Armadillo\nDESCRIPTION: The nine-banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus) cannot easily be confused with any other North American wild mammal. The armadillo’s body is covered with an armored carapace or shell. The carapace is a double layer of horn and bone, segmented into three main divisions: an anterior scapular shield covering the shoulder; a posterior pelvic shield covering the hip region; and a middle section comprised of a series of bands connected by soft, infolded skin between the bands. The head and legs are covered with thick scales, and the tail is encased in a series of bony rings. Coloration of nine-banded armadillos is generally grayish brown, with yellowish-white scales along the side of the carapace. The armadillo has a long, pointed snout, small eyes, and large, cylindrical ears. The armadillo’s pointed snout, short, stout legs, and heavy claws are well suited for digging and burrowing. Armadillos have a limited number of vocalizations: a low, wheezy grunt associated with digging and rooting; a wheezy grunt uttered by recently captured individuals; an audible buzzing noise given when highly alarmed or fleeing, a pig-like squeal given by frightened individuals; and a weak purring given by young attempting to nurse from an unrelated female. Total length ranges from 24 to 31 inches and weights vary from 8 to 15 pounds. There are six subspecies of Dasypus novemcinctus in Central and South America, but only one subspecies, D. n. mexicanus occurs in North America.\nDISTRIBUTION: Dasypus novemcinctus mexicanus’ original distribution was from the lower Rio Grande Valley between Mexico and Texas, southward through Mexico and Central America to northwestern Peru on the west side of the Andes, and all of South America to northern Argentina east of the Andes, including the islands of Grenada, Trinidad, Tobago, and Margarita. The range of the nine-banded armadillo has undergone rapid expansion into the southern United States since the late 1800s. The recent rapid expansion of the armadillo’s range was facilitated by a number of factors: reduction in the number of large carnivores; climatic and biotic changes; and accidental and deliberate relocations of animals to unoccupied areas. Armadillos now occur throughout the southern and southeastern U.S., as far north as Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, and Nebraska. These animals are common throughout most of Alabama, but less common in several northeastern counties.\nHABITAT: The armadillo is very adaptable and does well in most habitat types found in Alabama. They generally avoid or are scarce in very wet or very dry habitats. Habitat suitability likely depends more on the characteristics of the substrate or soils, rather than vegetation type due to the armadillo’s feeding and burrowing behavior.\nFEEDING HABITS: A major portion of the armadillo’s time spent outside its burrow is devoted to feeding. They typically start foraging as they emerge from their burrow and move at a slow pace following an often erratic course. Prey is apparently detected by smell, although sound also may play a role. Typical foraging behavior involves quickly probing with the nose and occasionally pausing to dig for prey. Armadillos are opportunistic feeders and consume a wide variety of food items. Invertebrates, primarily insects, make up roughly 90 percent of their diet. Small vertebrates and plant material make up the remainder of their diet. Researchers also have seen evidence of armadillos feeding on small reptiles and amphibians, the eggs of ground-nesting birds, and carrion.\nLIFE HISTORY AND ECOLOGY: Armadillos seem to exhibit a polygynous mating system, with most females paired with a single male and most males paired with more than one female. Den burrows have an enlarged nest chamber and are more complicated than a burrow dug for other purposes. The nest is a bulky mass of dried plant debris crammed into the nest chamber without any obvious structure. Armadillos in areas with poorly drained soils will construct above ground nests of dry plant material. Most breeding among armadillos occurs during the summer (June-August). The normal gestation period is 8 to 9 months, with most young born between February and May. The armadillo exhibits monozygotic polyembryony in which a single fertilized egg normally gives rise to four separate embryos at the blastula stage of development. This results in a litter of four genetically identical haploid clone offspring. Dasypus is the only genus of vertebrates in which this reproductive phenomenon occurs. The offspring are precocial and begin accompanying the female outside of the burrow at about 2 to 3 months of age. By 3 to 4 months, the young are self-sufficient. Most males reach sexual maturity between 6 to 12 months of age, but females do not become sexually mature until they are 1 to 2 years old.\nREFERENCES: Author: Chris Cook, Wildlife Biologist, June 2005\nArmstrong, J. Controlling Armadillo Ddamage in Alabama. ANR-773. Alabama Cooperative Extension System. 2pp.\nLayne, J. N. 2003. Armadillo. Pages 75-97 in G. A. Feldhamer, B. C. Thompson, and J. A. Chapman, eds. Wild Mammals of North America: Biology, Management, and Conservation. Second edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, MD and London, U.K.\nNowak, R. M. 1999. Walker’s Mammals of the World, sixth edition, volume one. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, MD and London, U.K. 903 pp.\nOutdoor Alabama Magazine Article, Nine-banded Armadillo\nWatchable Wildlife Article"}
{"text": "Chatrooms, social networking sites “behind generation that can’t spell”November 23rd, 2010 - 6:33 pm ICT by ANI\nLondon, Nov 23 (ANI): A study has suggested that Internet chatrooms and social networking sites are to be blamed for children spelling words incorrectly.\nThe study says as people type at speed online, there is now a “general attitude” that there is no need to correct mistakes or conform to regular spelling rules.\nAnd this means that children who have been brought up with the Internet do not question wrongly spelt words.\n“The increasing use of variant spellings on the internet has been brought about by people typing at speed in chatrooms and on social networking sites where the general attitude is that there isn’t a need . . . to conform to spelling rules,” the study stated.\n“We are now witnessing the effect these linguistic variations are having on children born into the computer age with such a high level of access in and out of schools,” the Scotsman quoted report author Lucy Jones, a former student at Manchester University, as saying.\n“They do not question their existence,” she stated.\nThe paper, which surveyed a group of 18 to 24 year olds as part of the research, found that the majority believe that unconventional spellings are used on the Internet because it is faster and has become the norm.\nMore than one in five (22 percent) said they would not be confident in writing an important e-mail without referring to a dictionary or spell checker.\nDespite the widespread use of so-called “variant” spelling, almost a third of those questioned said that alternative non-standard spellings are “completely unacceptable”.\nTwo thirds believe that dictionaries should contain variant spellings.\n“From this most recent survey we can conclude that the unprecedented reach and scale of the internet has given rise to new social practices and it is now an agent in spelling change,” Jack Bovill, chair of the English Spelling Society, added. (ANI)\n- Traditional art of letter writing 'dying out' among kids - May 21, 2010\n- Merriam-Webster's Word of the Summer is Sarah Palin's 'refudiate' - Sep 08, 2010\n- Excessive Internet browsing affects mental health - Sep 26, 2010\n- Indian kids worst victims of cyberbullying, says study - Jan 18, 2012\n- Attempting to save English from horrors of 'text-speak' - Jun 07, 2010\n- Twitter, MySpace, Facebook revamping dictionaries - Jan 09, 2010\n- Teen drinking linked to higher internet use - May 10, 2011\n- 'More Indian teens using networking sites to communicate' - May 23, 2012\n- A million kids worldwide addicted to Facebook - Nov 04, 2011\n- Social networking teens may turn drinks, drugs addicted - Aug 26, 2011\n- Mobile phones can produce hilarious text - Jan 09, 2011\n- Britain nurturing kids into becoming 'couch potatoes' - May 04, 2011\n- Government all for Internet freedom: NSA - May 16, 2012\n- Now, a robot that can read and learn like a human! - Dec 07, 2010\n- UK kids with own Internet profile are 'vulnerable' to grooming online - Apr 20, 2011\nTags: bovill, computer age, dictionaries, dictionary, e mail, english spelling, internet chatrooms, linguistic variations, lucy jones, manchester university, report author, scotsman, social networking sites, social practices, spell checker, spelling change, spelling rules, spelling words, spelt, variant spellings"}
{"text": "Time to think big\nDid the designation of 2010 as the first-ever International Year of Biodiversity mean anything at all? Is it just a publicity stunt, with no engagement on the real, practical issues of conservation, asks Simon Stuart, Chair of IUCN’s Species Survival Commission.\nEight years ago 183 of the world’s governments committed themselves “to achieve by 2010 a significant reduction of the current rate of biodiversity loss at the global, regional and national level as a contribution to poverty alleviation and to the benefit of all life on Earth”. This was hardly visionary—the focus was not on stopping extinctions or loss of key habitats, but simply on slowing their rate of loss—but it was, at least, the first time the nations of the world had pledged themselves to any form of concerted attempt to face up to the ongoing degradation of nature.\nNow the results of all the analyses of conservation progress since 2002 are coming in, and there is a unanimous finding: the world has spectacularly failed to meet the 2010 Biodiversity Target, as it is called. Instead species extinctions, habitat loss and the degradation of ecosystems are all accelerating. To give a few examples: declines and extinctions of amphibians due to disease and habitat loss are getting worse; bleaching of coral reefs is growing; and large animals in South-East Asia are moving rapidly towards extinction, especially from over-hunting and degradation of habitats.\n|This month the world’s governments will convene in Nagoya, Japan, for the Convention on Biological Diversity’s Conference of the Parties. Many of us hope for agreement there on new, much more ambitious biodiversity targets for the future. The first test of whether or not the 2010 International Year of Biodiversity means anything will be whether or not the international community can commit itself to a truly ambitious conservation agenda.|\nThe early signs are promising. Negotiating sessions around the world have produced 20 new draft targets for 2020. Collectively these are nearly as strong as many of us hoped, and certainly much stronger than the 2010 Biodiversity Target. They include: halving the loss and degradation of forests and other natural habitats; eliminating overfishing and destructive fishing practices; sustainably managing all areas under agriculture, aquaculture and forestry; bringing pollution from excess nutrients and other sources below critical ecosystem loads; controlling pathways introducing and establishing invasive alien species; managing multiple pressures on coral reefs and other vulnerable ecosystems affected by climate change and ocean acidification; effectively protecting at least 15 per cent of land and sea, including the areas of particular importance for biodiversity; and preventing the extinction of known threatened species. We now have to keep up the pressure to prevent these from becoming diluted.\nWe at IUCN are pushing for urgent action to stop biodiversity loss once and for all. The well-being of the entire planet—and of people—depends on our committing to maintain healthy ecosystems and strong wildlife populations. We are therefore proposing, as a mission for 2020, “to have put in place by 2020 all the necessary policies and actions to prevent further biodiversity loss”. Examples include removing government subsidies which damage biodiversity (as many agricultural ones do), establishing new nature reserves in important areas for threatened species, requiring fisheries authorities to follow the advice of their scientists to ensure the sustainability of catches, and dramatically cutting carbon dioxide emissions worldwide to reduce the impacts of climate change and ocean acidification.\nIf the world makes a commitment along these lines, then the 2010 International Year of Biodiversity will have been about more than platitudes. But it will still only be a start: the commitment needs to be implemented. We need to look for signs this year of a real change from governments and society over the priority accorded to biodiversity.\n|One important sign will be the amount of funding that governments pledge this year for replenishing the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the world’s largest donor for biodiversity conservation in developing countries. Between 1991 and 2006, it provided approximately $2.2 billion in grants to support more than 750 biodiversity projects in 155 countries. If the GEF is replenished at much the same level as over the last decade we shall know that the governments are still in “business as usual” mode. But if it is doubled or tripled in size, then we shall know that they are starting to get serious.|\nIUCN estimates that even a tripling of funding would still fall far short of what is needed to halt biodiversity loss. Some conservationists have suggested that developed countries need to contribute 0.2 per cent of gross national income in overseas biodiversity assistance to achieve this. That would work out at roughly $120 billion a year—though of course this would need to come through a number of sources, not just the GEF. It is tempting to think that this figure is unrealistically high, but it is small change compared to the expenditures governments have committed to defence and bank bail outs.\nIt is time for the conservation movement to think big. We are addressing problems that are hugely important for the future of this planet and its people, and they will not be solved without a huge increase in funds."}
{"text": "Following Oceana’s newly released report on the harmful impacts of illegal fishing, one of the questions that I as Oceana's Northeast representative was asked most often was, “Where is this happening?” The short answer: Illegal fishing happens everywhere, from the most distant waters near Antarctica to just off the U.S. coast.\nThis week brought great news for shark populations that are dwindling both in U.S. waters and worldwide. Today, the Delaware House of Representatives introduced a bill prohibiting the possession, trade, sale and distribution of shark fins within the state. If passed, House Bill 41 would make Delaware the first East Coast state to pass a ban on the shark fin trade, following in the footsteps of Oregon, Washington, California, Hawaii and Illinois.\nCurrent federal law prohibits shark finning in U.S. waters, requiring that sharks be brought into port with their fins still attached. However, this law does not prohibit the sale and trade of processed fins that are imported into the country from other regions that could have weak or even nonexistent shark protections in place.\nThis unsustainable catch is driven by the demand for shark fins, often used as an ingredient in shark fin soup, and kills millions of sharks every year. Delaware’s bill would close the loopholes that fuel the trade and demand for fins, and ensure that the state is not a gateway for shark products to enter into other U.S. state markets.\nNot only was there great news coming out of the U.S., international shark lovers have reason to celebrate as well. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), voted this week to place stricter regulations on the trade of manta rays, three species of hammerheads, oceanic whitetip and porbeagle sharks, acknowledging that these species are in dire need of protection. When countries export these species, they are required to possess special permits that prove these species were harvested sustainably. This decision will greatly curb illegal overfishing and reduce the numbers of endangered sharks killed globally.\nHistory was made today in Bangkok, when Parties to CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna) voted to protect five species of sharks and two species of manta rays. The seven protected species are: oceanic whitetip (Carcharhinus longimanus), porbeagle (Lamna nasus), scalloped hammerhead (Sphyrna lewini), great hammerhead (S. mokarran), smooth hammerhead (S. zygaena), oceanic manta ray (Manta birostris) and reef manta ray (M. alfredi).\nAll seven species are considered threatened by international trade – the sharks for their fins, and the manta rays for their gills, which are used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. CITES protection is an important complement to fisheries management measures, which, for these species, have failed to safeguard their survival.\nThe vote was to list the animals for protection under Appendix II which does not entail a ban on the trade, but instead means that trade must be regulated. Exporting countries are required to issue export permits, and can only do so if they can ensure that they have been legally caught, and that their trade is not detrimental to the species’ survival.\nAll of the proposals received the two-thirds majority needed to be accepted – but the listing is not yet final. Decisions can be overturned with another vote during the final plenary session of the meeting, which wraps up on Thursday. This is what happened with porbeagle sharks in the 2010 CITES meeting in Qatar – an Appendix II listing approved by the Committee evaporated with another vote in plenary. As a result, at that meeting, none of the proposed shark species were granted protection. Now, three years later, we’re hopeful that the international community finally sees the importance of regulating the trade that puts these animals at risk.\nKeep your fingers crossed!\nHappy Friday, everyone.\nIt's been a rough few weeks for the oceans at CITES, but now it's time to pick up the pieces. If CITES taught us anything, it's that the work of the ocean conservation community is more important than ever.\nThis week in ocean news,\n....Rick at Malaria, Bed bugs, Sea Lice and Sunsets discussed one of the more shady aspects of CITES: the secret ballots, which were invoked for votes on bluefin tuna, sharks, polar bears, and deep water corals.\n…The Washington Post reported that Maryland is cracking down on watermen who catch oysters in protected sanctuaries or with banned equipment. Once a principal source of oysters, the Chesapeake now provides less than 5 percent of the annual U.S. harvest.\n…For the first time, scientists were able to use videos to observe octupuses’ behavioral responses. The result? The octupuses had no consistent reaction to one film -- in other words, they had no “personality.” Curiously, other cephalopods display consistent personalities for most of their lives.\n…The New York Times wondered if the 700,000 saltwater home aquariums in the United States and the associated trade in reef invertebrates are threatening real reef ecosystems.\nThis is the ninth in a series of dispatches from the CITES meeting in Doha, Qatar.\nAs Oceana marine scientist Elizabeth Griffin put it: “This meeting was a flop.”\nCITES has been a complete failure for the oceans. The one success -- the listing of the porbeagle shark under Appendix II -- was overturned yesterday in the plenary session.\n“It appears that money can buy you anything, just ask Japan,” said Dave Allison, senior campaign director. “Under the crushing weight of the vast sums of money gained by unmanaged trade and exploitation of endangered marine species by Japan, China, other major trading countries and the fishing industry, the very foundation of CITES is threatened with collapse.”\nMaybe next time -- if these species are still around to be protected.\nThe failure of CITES means that Oceana’s work – and your support and activism – is more important than ever. You can start by supporting our campaign work to protect these creatures.\nHere's Oceana's Gaia Angelini on the conclusion of CITES:\nThis is the eighth in a series of dispatches from the CITES conference in Doha, Qatar.\nMore difficult news out of Doha today.\nWhile seven of the eight proposed shark species (including several species of hammerheads, oceanic whitetip and spiny dogfish) were not included in Appendix II, the one bright spot was for the porbeagle shark, which is threatened by widespread consumption in Europe.\nThe porbeagle’s Appendix II listing is a huge improvement because it requires the use of export permits to ensure that the species are caught by a legal and sustainably managed fishery.\nAnd there is a slight chance that the other shark decisions could be reversed during the plenary session in the final two days.\nHere are Oceana scientists Elizabeth Griffin and Rebecca Greenberg reflecting on the shark decisions:\nThis is the seventh in a series of posts from CITES. Check out the rest of the dispatches from Doha here.\nEight shark species have been proposed for listing to Appendix II of CITES, including the oceanic whitetip, scalloped hammerhead, dusky, sandbar, smooth hammerhead, great hammerhead, porbeagle and spiny dogfish.\nListing these species, which are threatened by shark finning, is necessary to ensure international trade does not drive these shark species to extinction.\nHere's Oceana's Ann Schroeer from our Brussels office with an optimistic outlook on the upcoming shark proposals at CITES.\nThis is the latest in a series of posts from CITES. See the rest of the dispatches here.\nOver the weekend, CITES failed to include 31 species of red and pink coral in Appendix II, trade protections that were promised during the last CITES Conference more than two and a half years ago.\nThese corals are harvested to meet the growing demand for jewelry and souvenirs. The unregulated and virtually unmanaged collection and trade of these species is driving them to extinction.\nMany of the corals are long-lived, reaching more than 100 years of age, and grow slowly, usually less than one millimeter in thickness per year. These colonies are fragile and extremely vulnerable to exploitation and destruction, and their biological characteristics severely limit their ability to recover.\nOceana campaign director Dave Allison had this to say about the corals decision (first video), as well as the failure of CITES to protect marine species in general (second video.)\nHappy Friday, ocean fans. It's almost spring, and a surfing alpaca exists in the world. Things are looking up.\nBefore we get to the week's best marine tidbits, an important announcement: Oceana board member Ted Danson will be answering questions live on CNN.com on April 1, so send your ocean queries in, stat!\nAlso, don't forget that today is the last day to take the Ocean IQ quiz for a chance to win prizes, including a trip with SEE Turtles.\nThis week in ocean news,\n…Yes, CITES failed to deliver on bluefin tuna yesterday, but as Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Julie Packard pointed out, at least the conversation is changing. Bluefin is now in the same rhetorical realm as endangered land creatures such as tigers and elephants.\n…Deep Sea News wrote a requiem for a robot -- the Autonomous Benthic Explorer (ABE) that was lost at sea last week during a research expedition to the Chilean Subduction Zone. On a recent dive, ABE had detected evidence of hydrothermal vents. At the time of its loss, ABE had just begun a second dive to home into a vent site and photograph it.\nThis is the fifth in a series of dispatches from CITES. You can read the other dispatches here.\nAlthough there were repeated calls from delegates from the E.U., U.S. and Monaco to allow time for parties to meet and arrive at a compromise position, a Libya delegate forced a preemptory vote on the E.U. proposal, which resulted in a 43 to 72 vote, with 14 abstaining.\nCampaign director Dave Allison called the defeat \"a clear win by short-term economic interest over the long-term health of the ocean and the rebuilding of Atlantic bluefin tuna populations.\"\nThe decision could spell the beginning of the end for the tigers of the sea.\nHere's Oceana's Maria Jose Cornax on the decision:"}
{"text": "SULUJAM INDIANS. Although they were apparently native to the area lying between the San Antonio and Frio rivers south and southeast of San Antonio, the Sulujams were not encountered by the earliest Spanish travelers who traversed parts of southern Texas. They were first seen in 1709 at the site of present-day San Antonio. There is no indication that they had been displaced from some other area and had migrated into southern Texas. Sulujams are said to have entered Mission San José y San Miguel de Aguayo of San Antonio in considerable numbers when it was founded in 1720. As the registers of San José have not been found, no figure can be given for the total number of Sulujams in residence at the mission. A few entered nearby San Antonio de Valero Mission, whose surviving registers identify twelve Sulujam individuals for the period 1719–56. No Sulujams seem to have entered the remaining three missions of San Antonio or any missions elsewhere. It is generally thought that the Sulujams spoke a dialect of the Coahuilteco language, but this is not based on conclusive evidence. Nothing is known of the Sulujams' culture other than that they lived by hunting and gathering.\nThomas N. Campbell and T. J. Campbell, Historic Indian Groups of the Choke Canyon Reservoir and Surrounding Area, Southern Texas (San Antonio: Center for Archaeological Research, University of Texas at San Antonio, 1981). J. Jesús Figueroa Torres, Fr. Juan Larios, defensor de los Indios y fundador de Coahuila (Mexico City: Editorial Jus, 1963). Frederick Webb Hodge, ed., Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico (2 vols., Washington: GPO, 1907, 1910; rpt., New York: Pageant, 1959).\nThe following, adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this article.Thomas N. Campbell, \"SULUJAM INDIANS,\" Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/bms44), accessed May 21, 2013. Published by the Texas State Historical Association."}
{"text": "European Decorative Arts and Sculpture\nArched Entrance from the Chapter House of the Carmelite Convent in Limoges (Les Grands Carmes des Arènes)Made in Limoges, western France, France, Europe\nSecond half of 13th century\nArtist/maker unknown, French\n1928-76-1Purchased with funds contributed by Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Tatnall Starr, 1928\nLabelThis arched entrance served as one of two passages connecting the contemplative space of the convent's cloister to the communal area of the chapter house (a meeting room for the governing body of the monastery). During the French Revolution (1789–99), the convent—continuously occupied and much expanded since its foundation in the thirteenth century—was closed and the nuns expelled. The convent was then sold and many of the buildings demolished. The chapter house escaped destruction, and in the early twentieth century this arch was rediscovered in its original location and eventually came to the Museum.\nSocial Tags [?]european art 1100-1500 [x] european decorative arts and sculpture [x] fransiscan monestary too [x] of the child of jesus (carmelite) [x] st. terasea of the little flower [x] the st. francis [x] [Add Your Own Tags]\n* Works in the collection are moved off view for many different reasons. Although gallery locations on the website are updated regularly, there is no guarantee that this object will be on display on the day of your visit."}
{"text": "Opportunities and Challenges in High Pressure Processing of Foods\nBy Rastogi, N K; Raghavarao, K S M S; Balasubramaniam, V M; Niranjan, K; Knorr, D\nConsumers increasingly demand convenience foods of the highest quality in terms of natural flavor and taste, and which are free from additives and preservatives. This demand has triggered the need for the development of a number of nonthermal approaches to food processing, of which high-pressure technology has proven to be very valuable. A number of recent publications have demonstrated novel and diverse uses of this technology. Its novel features, which include destruction of microorganisms at room temperature or lower, have made the technology commercially attractive. Enzymes and even spore forming bacteria can be inactivated by the application of pressure-thermal combinations, This review aims to identify the opportunities and challenges associated with this technology. In addition to discussing the effects of high pressure on food components, this review covers the combined effects of high pressure processing with: gamma irradiation, alternating current, ultrasound, and carbon dioxide or anti-microbial treatment. Further, the applications of this technology in various sectors-fruits and vegetables, dairy, and meat processing-have been dealt with extensively. The integration of high-pressure with other matured processing operations such as blanching, dehydration, osmotic dehydration, rehydration, frying, freezing / thawing and solid- liquid extraction has been shown to open up new processing options. The key challenges identified include: heat transfer problems and resulting non-uniformity in processing, obtaining reliable and reproducible data for process validation, lack of detailed knowledge about the interaction between high pressure, and a number of food constituents, packaging and statutory issues.\nKeywords high pressure, food processing, non-thermal processing\nConsumers demand high quality and convenient products with natural flavor and taste, and greatly appreciate the fresh appearance of minimally processed food. Besides, they look for safe and natural products without additives such as preservatives and humectants. In order to harmonize or blend all these demands without compromising the safety of the products, it is necessary to implement newer preservation technologies in the food industry. Although the fact that “high pressure kills microorganisms and preserves food” was discovered way back in 1899 and has been used with success in chemical, ceramic, carbon allotropy, steel/alloy, composite materials and plastic industries for decades, it was only in late 1980′s that its commercial benefits became available to the food processing industries. High pressure processing (HPP) is similar in concept to cold isostatic pressing of metals and ceramics, except that it demands much higher pressures, faster cycling, high capacity, and sanitation (Zimmerman and Bergman, 1993; Mertens and Deplace, 1993). Hite (1899) investigated the application of high pressure as a means of preserving milk, and later extended the study to preserve fruits and vegetables (Hite, Giddings, and Weakly, 1914). It then took almost eighty years for Japan to re- discover the application of high-pressure in food processing. The use of this technology has come about so quickly that it took only three years for two Japanese companies to launch products, which were processed using this technology. The ability of high pressure to inactivate microorganisms and spoilage catalyzing enzymes, whilst retaining other quality attributes, has encouraged Japanese and American food companies to introduce high pressure processed foods in the market (Mermelstein, 1997; Hendrickx, Ludikhuyze, Broeck, and Weemaes, 1998). The first high pressure processed foods were introduced to the Japanese market in 1990 by Meidi-ya, who have been marketing a line of jams, jellies, and sauces packaged and processed without application of heat (Thakur and Nelson, 1998). Other products include fruit preparations, fruit juices, rice cakes, and raw squid in Japan; fruit juices, especially apple and orange juice, in France and Portugal; and guacamole and oysters in the USA (Hugas, Garcia, and Monfort, 2002). In addition to food preservation, high- pressure treatment can result in food products acquiring novel structure and texture, and hence can be used to develop new products (Hayashi, 1990) or increase the functionality of certain ingredients. Depending on the operating parameters and the scale of operation, the cost of highpressure treatment is typically around US$ 0.05-0.5 per liter or kilogram, the lower value being comparable to the cost of thermal processing (Thakur and Nelson, 1998; Balasubramaniam, 2003).\nThe non-availability of suitable equipment encumbered early applications of high pressure. However, recent progress in equipment design has ensured worldwide recognition of the potential for such a technology in food processing (Could, 1995; Galazka and Ledward, 1995; Balci and Wilbey, 1999). Today, high-pressure technology is acknowledged to have the promise of producing a very wide range of products, whilst simultaneously showing potential for creating a new generation of value added foods. In general, high-pressure technology can supplement conventional thermal processing for reducing microbial load, or substitute the use of chemical preservatives (Rastogi, Subramanian, and Raghavarao, 1994).\nOver the past two decades, this technology has attracted considerable research attention, mainly relating to: i) the extension of keeping quality (Cheftel, 1995; Farkas and Hoover, 2001), ii) changing the physical and functional properties of food systems (Cheftel, 1992), and iii) exploiting the anomalous phase transitions of water under extreme pressures, e.g. lowering of freezing point with increasing pressures (Kalichevsky, Knorr, and Lillford, 1995; Knorr, Schlueter, and Heinz, 1998). The key advantages of this technology can be summarized as follows:\n1. it enables food processing at ambient temperature or even lower temperatures;\n2. it enables instant transmittance of pressure throughout the system, irrespective of size and geometry, thereby making size reduction optional, which can be a great advantage;\n3. it causes microbial death whilst virtually eliminating heat damage and the use of chemical preservatives/additives, thereby leading to improvements in the overall quality of foods; and\n4. it can be used to create ingredients with novel functional properties.\nThe effect of high pressure on microorganisms and proteins/ enzymes was observed to be similar to that of high temperature. As mentioned above, high pressure processing enables transmittance of pressure rapidly and uniformly throughout the food. Consequently, the problems of spatial variations in preservation treatments associated with heat, microwave, or radiation penetration are not evident in pressure-processed products. The application of high pressure increases the temperature of the liquid component of the food by approximately 3C per 100 MPa. If the food contains a significant amount of fat, such as butter or cream, the temperature rise is greater (8-9C/100 MPa) (Rasanayagam, Balasubramaniam, Ting, Sizer, Bush, and Anderson, 2003). Foods cool down to their original temperature on decompression if no heat is lost to (or gained from) the walls of the pressure vessel during the holding stage. The temperature distribution during the pressure-holding period can change depending on heat transfer across the walls of the pressure vessel, which must be held at the desired temperature for achieving truly isothermal conditions. In the case of some proteins, a gel is formed when the rate of compression is slow, whereas a precipitate is formed when the rate is fast. High pressure can cause structural changes in structurally fragile foods containing entrapped air such as strawberries or lettuce. Cell deformation and cell damage can result in softening and cell serum loss. Compression may also shift the pH depending on the imposed pressure. Heremans (1995) indicated a lowering of pH in apple juice by 0.2 units per 100 MPa increase in pressure. In combined thermal and pressure treatment processes, Meyer (2000) proposed that the heat of compression could be used effectively, since the temperature of the product can be raised from 70-90C to 105-120C by a compression to 700 MPa, and brought back to the initial temperature by decompression.\nAs a thermodynamic parameter, pressure has far-reaching effects on the conformation of macromolecules, the transition temperature of lipids and water, and a number of chemical reactions (Cheftel, 1992; Tauscher, 1995). Phenomena that are accompanied by a decrease in volume are enhanced by pressure, and vice-versa (principle of Le Chatelier). Thus, under pressure, reaction equilibriums are shifted towards the most compact state, and the reaction rate constant is increased or decreased, depending on whether the “activation volume” of the reaction (i.e. volume of the activation complex less volume of reactants) is negative or positive. It is likely that pressure a\\lso inhibits the availability of the activation energy required for some reactions, by affecting some other energy releasing enzymatic reactions (Farr, 1990). The compression energy of 1 litre of water at 400 MPa is 19.2 kJ, as compared to 20.9 kJ for heating 1 litre of water from 20 to 25C. The low energy levels involved in pressure processing may explain why covalent bonds of food constituents are usually less affected than weak interactions. Pressure can influence most biochemical reactions, since they often involve change in volume. High pressure controls certain enzymatic reactions. The effect of high pressure on protein/enzyme is reversible unlike temperature, in the range 100-400 MPa and is probably due to conformational changes and sub-unit dissociation and association process (Morild, 1981).\nFor both the pasteurization and sterilization processes, a combined treatment of high pressure and temperature are frequently considered to be most appropriate (Farr, 1990; Patterson, Quinn, Simpson, and Gilmour, 1995). Vegetative cells, including yeast and moulds, are pressure sensitive, i.e. they can be inactivated by pressures of ~300-600 MPa (Knorr, 1995; Patterson, Quinn, Simpson, and Gilmour, 1995). At high pressures, microbial death is considered to be due to permeabilization of cell membrane. For instance, it was observed that in the case of Saccharomyces cerevasia, at pressures of about 400 MPa, the structure and cytoplasmic organelles were grossly deformed and large quantities of intracellular material leaked out, while at 500 MPa, the nucleus could no longer be recognized, and a loss of intracellular material was almost complete (Farr, 1990). Changes that are induced in the cell morphology of the microorganisms are reversible at low pressures, but irreversible at higher pressures where microbial death occurs due to permeabilization of the cell membrane. An increase in process temperature above ambient temperature, and to a lesser extent, a decrease below ambient temperature, increases the inactivation rates of microorganisms during high pressure processing. Temperatures in the range 45 to 50C appear to increase the rate of inactivation of pathogens and spoilage microorganisms. Preservation of acid foods (pH ≤ 4.6) is, therefore, the most obvious application of HPP as such. Moreover, pasteurization can be performed even under chilled conditions for heat sensitive products. Low temperature processing can help to retain nutritional quality and functionality of raw materials treated and could allow maintenance of low temperature during post harvest treatment, processing, storage, transportation, and distribution periods of the life cycle of the food system (Knorr, 1995).\nBacterial spores are highly pressure resistant, since pressures exceeding 1200 MPa may be needed for their inactivation (Knorr, 1995). The initiation of germination or inhibition of germinated bacterial spores and inactivation of piezo-resistive microorganisms can be achieved in combination with moderate heating or other pretreatments such as ultrasound. Process temperature in the range 90-121C in conjunction with pressures of 500-800 MPa have been used to inactivate spores forming bacteria such as Clostridium botulinum. Thus, sterilization of low-acid foods (pH > 4.6), will most probably rely on a combination of high pressure and other forms of relatively mild treatments.\nHigh-pressure application leads to the effective reduction of the activity of food quality related enzymes (oxidases), which ensures high quality and shelf stable products. Sometimes, food constituents offer piezo-resistance to enzymes. Further, high pressure affects only non-covalent bonds (hydrogen, ionic, and hydrophobic bonds), causes unfolding of protein chains, and has little effect on chemical constituents associated with desirable food qualities such as flavor, color, or nutritional content. Thus, in contrast to thermal processing, the application of high-pressure causes negligible impairment of nutritional values, taste, color flavor, or vitamin content (Hayashi, 1990). Small molecules such as amino acids, vitamins, and flavor compounds remain unaffected by high pressure, while the structure of the large molecules such as proteins, enzymes, polysaccharides, and nucleic acid may be altered (Balci and Wilbey, 1999).\nHigh pressure reduces the rate of browning reaction (Maillard reaction). It consists of two reactions, condensation reaction of amino compounds with carbonyl compounds, and successive browning reactions including metanoidin formation and polymerization processes. The condensation reaction shows no acceleration by high pressure (5-50 MPa at 50C), because it suppresses the generation of stable free radicals derived from melanoidin, which are responsible for the browning reaction (Tamaoka, Itoh, and Hayashi, 1991). Gels induced by high pressure are found to be more glossy and transparent because of rearrangement of water molecules surrounding amino acid residues in a denatured state (Okamoto, Kawamura, and Hayashi, 1990).\nThe capability and limitations of HPP have been extensively reviewed (Thakur and Nelson, 1998; Smelt, 1998;Cheftal, 1995; Knorr, 1995; Fair, 1990; Tiwari, Jayas, and Holley, 1999; Cheftel, Levy, and Dumay, 2000; Messens, Van Camp, and Huyghebaert, 1997; Ontero and Sanz, 2000; Hugas, Garriga, and Monfort, 2002; Lakshmanan, Piggott,and Paterson, 2003; Balasubramaniam, 2003; Matser, Krebbers, Berg, and Bartels, 2004; Hogan, Kelly, and Sun, 2005; Mor-Mur and Yuste, 2005). Many of the early reviews primarily focused on the microbial efficacy of high-pressure processing. This review comprehensively covers the different types of products processed by highpressure technology alone or in combination with the other processes. It also discusses the effect of high pressure on food constituents such as enzymes and proteins. The applications of this technology in fruits and vegetable, dairy and animal product processing industries are covered. The effects of combining high- pressure treatment with other processing methods such as gamma- irradiation, alternating current, ultrasound, carbon dioxide, and anti microbial peptides have also been described. Special emphasis has been given to opportunities and challenges in high pressure processing of foods, which can potentially be explored and exploited.\nEFFECT OF HIGH PRESSURE ON ENZYMES AND PROTEINS\nEnzymes are a special class of proteins in which biological activity arises from active sites, brought together by a three- dimensional configuration of molecule. The changes in active site or protein denaturation can lead to loss of activity, or changes the functionality of the enzymes (Tsou, 1986). In addition to conformational changes, enzyme activity can be influenced by pressure-induced decompartmentalization (Butz, Koller, Tauscher, and Wolf, 1994; Gomes and Ledward, 1996). Pressure induced damage of membranes facilitates enzymesubstrate contact. The resulting reaction can either be accelerated or retarded by pressure (Butz, Koller, Tauscher, and Wolf, 1994; Gomes and Ledward, 1996; Morild, 1981). Hendrickx, Ludikhuy ze, Broeck, and Weemaes ( 1998) and Ludikhuyze, Van Loey, and Indrawati et al. (2003) reviewed the combined effect of pressure and temperature on enzymes related to the ity of fruits and vegetables, which comprises of kinetic information as well as process engineering aspects.\nPectin methylesterase (PME) is an enzyme, which normally tends to lower the viscosity of fruits products and adversely affect their texture. Hence, its inactivation is a prerequisite for the preservation of such products. Commercially, fruit products containing PME (e.g. orange juice and tomato products) are heat pasteurized to inactivate PME and prolong shelf life. However, heating can deteriorate the sensory and nutritional quality of the products. Basak and Ramaswamy (1996) showed that the inactivation of PME in orange juice was dependent on pressure level, pressure-hold time, pH, and total soluble solids. An instantaneous pressure kill was dependent only on pressure level and a secondary inactivation effect dependent on holding time at each pressure level. Nienaber and Shellhammer (2001) studied the kinetics of PME inactivation in orange juice over a range of pressures (400-600 MPa) and temperatures (25-5O0C) for various process holding times. PME inactivation followed a firstorder kinetic model, with a residual activity of pressure-resistant enzyme. Calculated D-values ranged from 4.6 to 117.5 min at 600 MPa/50C and 400 MPa/25C, respectively. Pressures in excess of 500 MPa resulted in sufficiently faster inactivation rates for economic viability of the process. Binh, Van Loey, Fachin, Verlent, Indrawati, and Hendrickx (2002a, 2002b) studied the kinetics of inactivation of strawberry PME. The combined effect of pressure and temperature on inactivation kinetics followed a fractional-conversion model. Purified strawberry PME was more stable toward high-pressure treatments than PME from oranges and bananas. Ly-Nguyen, Van Loey, Fachin, Verlent, Hendrickx (2002) showed that the inactivation of the banana PME enzyme during heating at temperature between 65 and 72.5C followed first order kinetics and the effect of pressure treatment of 600-700 MPa at 10C could be described using a fractionalconversion model. Stoforos, Crelier, Robert, and Taoukis (2002) demonstrated that under ambient pressure, tomato PME inactivation rates increased with temperature, and the highest rate was obtained at 75C. The inactivation rates were dramatically reduced as soon as the essing pressure was raised beyond 75C. High inactivation rates were obtained at a pressure higher than 700 MPa. Riahi and Ramaswamy (2003) studied high- pressure inactivation kinetics of PME isolated from a variety of sources and showed that PME from a microbial source was more resistant \\to pressure inactivation than from orange peel. Almost a full decimal reduction in activity of commercial PME was achieved at 400 MPa within 20 min.\nVerlent, Van Loey, Smout, Duvetter, Nguyen, and Hendrickx (2004) indicated that the optimal temperature for tomato pectinmethylesterase was shifted to higher values at elevated pressure compared to atmospheric pressure, creating the possibilities for rheology improvements by the application of high pressure.\nCastro, Van Loey, Saraiva, Smout, and Hendrickx (2006) accurately described the inactivation of the labile fraction under mild-heat and high-pressure conditions by a fractional conversion model, while a biphasic model was used to estimate the inactivation rate constant of both the fractions at more drastic conditions of temperature/ pressure (10-64C, 0.1-800 MPa). At pressures lower than 300 MPa and temperatures higher than 54C, an antagonistic effect of pressure and temperature was observed.\nBalogh, Smout, Binh, Van Loey, and Hendrickx (2004) observed the inactivation kinetics of carrot PME to follow first order kinetics over a range of pressure and temperature (650800 MPa, 10-40C). Enzyme stability under heat and pressure was reported to be lower in carrot juice and purified PME preparations than in carrots.\nThe presence of pectinesterase (PE) reduces the quality of citrus juices by destabilization of clouds. Generally, the inactivation of the enzyme is accomplished by heat, resulting in a loss of fresh fruit flavor in the juice. High pressure processing can be used to bypass the use of extreme heat for the processing of fruit juices. Goodner, Braddock, and Parish (1998) showed that the higher pressures (>600 MPa) caused instantaneous inactivation of the heat labile form of the enzyme but did not inactivate the heat stable form of PE in case of orange and grapefruit juices. PE activity was totally lost in orange juice, whereas complete inactivation was not possible in case of grapefruit juices. Orange juice pressurized at 700 MPa for l min had no cloud loss for more than 50 days. Broeck, Ludikhuyze, Van Loey, and Hendrickx (2000) studied the combined pressure-temperature inactivation of the labile fraction of orange PE over a range of pressure (0.1 to 900 MPa) and temperature (15 to 65C). Pressure and temperature dependence of the inactivation rate constants of the labile fraction was quantified using the well- known Eyring and Arrhenius relations. The stable fraction was inactivated at a temperature higher than 75C. Acidification (pH 3.7) enhanced the thermal inactivation of the stable fraction, whereas the addition of Ca^sup ++^ ions (IM) suppressed inactivation. At elevated pressure (up to 900 MPa), an antagonistic effect of pressure and temperature on inactivation of the stable fraction was observed. Ly-Nguyen, Van Loey, Smout, Ozean, Fachin, Verlent, Vu- Truong, Duvetter, and Hendrickx (2003) investigated the combined heat and pressure treatments on the inactivation of purified carrot PE, which followed a fractional-conversion model. The thermally stable fraction of the enzyme could not be inactivated. At a lower pressure (<300 MPa) and higher temperature (>50C), an antagonistic effect of pressure and heat was observed.\nHigh pressures induced conformational changes in polygalacturonase (PG) causing reduced substrate binding affinity and enzyme inactivation. Eun, Seok, and Wan ( 1999) studied the effect of high-pressure treatment on PG from Chinese cabbage to prevent the softening and spoilage of plant-based foods such as kimchies without compromising quality. PG was inactivated by the application of pressure higher than 200 MPa for l min. Fachin, Van Loey, Indrawati, Ludikhuyze, and Hendrickx (2002) investigated the stability of tomato PG at different temperatures and pressures. The combined pressure temperature inactivation (300-600 MPa/50 -50C) of tomato PG was described by a fractional conversion model, which points to Ist-order inactivation kinetics of a pressure-sensitive enzyme fraction and to the occurrence of a pressure-stable PG fraction. Fachin, Smout, Verlent, Binh, Van Loey, and Hendrickx (2004) indicated that in the combination of pressure-temperature (5- 55C/100-600 MPa), the inactivation of the heat labile portion of purified tomato PG followed first order kinetics. The heat stable fraction of the enzyme showed pressure stability very similar to that of heat labile portion.\nPeelers, Fachin, Smout, Van Loey, and Hendrickx (2004) demonstrated that effect of high-pressure was identical on heat stable and heat labile fractions of tomato PG. The isoenzyme of PG was detected in thermally treated (140C for 5 min) tomato pieces and tomato juice, whereas, no PG was found in pressure treated tomato juice or pieces.\nVerlent, Van Loey, Smout, Duvetter, and Hendrickx (2004) investigated the effect of nigh pressure (0.1 and 500 MPa) and temperature (25-80C) on purified tomato PG. At atmospheric pressure, the optimum temperature for enzyme was found to be 55-60C and it decreased with an increase in pressure. The enzyme activity was reported to decrease with an increase in pressure at a constant temperature.\nShook, Shellhammer, and Schwartz (2001) studied the ability of high pressure to inactivate lipoxygenase, PE and PG in diced tomatoes. Processing conditions used were 400,600, and 800 MPa for 1, 3, and 5 min at 25 and 45C. The magnitude of the applied pressure had a significant effect in inactivating lipoxygenase and PG, with complete loss of activity occurring at 800 MPa. PE was very resistant to the pressure treatment.\nPolyphenoloxidase and Pemxidase\nPolyphenoloxidase (PPO) and peroxidase (POD), the enzymes responsible for color and flavor loss, can be selectively inactivated by a combined treatment of pressure and temperature. Gomes and Ledward (1996) studied the effects of pressure treatment (100-800 MPa for 1-20 min) on commercial PPO enzyme available from mushrooms, potatoes, and apples. Castellari, Matricardi, Arfelli, Rovere, and Amati ( 1997) demonstrated that there was a limited inactivation of grape PPO using pressures between 300 and 600 MPa. At 900 MPa, a low level of PPO activity was apparent. In order to reach complete inactivation, it may be necessary to use high- pressure processing treatments in conjunction with a mild thermal treatment (40-50C). Weemaes, Ludikhuyze, Broeck, and Hendrickx (1998) studied the pressure stabilities of PPO from apple, avocados, grapes, pears, and plums at pH 6-7. These PPO differed in pressure stability. Inactivation of PPO from apple, grape, avocado, and pear at room temperature (25C) became noticeable at approximately 600, 700, 800 and 900 MPa, respectively, and followed first-order kinetics. Plum PPO was not inactivated at room temperature by pressures up to 900 MPa. Rastogi, Eshtiaghi, and Knorr (1999) studied the inactivation effects of high hydrostatic pressure treatment (100-600 MPa) combined with heat treatment (0-60C) on POD and PPO enzyme, in order to develop high pressure-processed red grape juice having stable shelf-life. The studies showed that the lowest POD (55.75%) and PPO (41.86%) activities were found at 60C, with pressure at 600 and 100 MPa, respectively. MacDonald and Schaschke (2000) showed that for PPO, both temperature and pressure individually appeared to have similar effects, whereas the holding time was not significant. On the other hand, in case of POD, temperature as well as interaction between temperature and holding time had the greatest effect on activity. Namkyu, Seunghwan, and Kyung (2002) showed that mushroom PPO was highly pressure stable. Exposure to 600 MPa for 10 min reduced PPO activity by 7%; further exposure had no denaturing effect. Compression for 10 and 20 min up to 800 MPa, reduced activity by 28 and 43%, respectively.\nRapeanu, Van Loey, Smout, and Hendrickx (2005) indicated that the thermal and/or high-pressure inactivation of grape PPO followed first order kinetics. A third degree polynomial described the temperature/pressure dependence of the inactivation rate constants. Pressure and temperature were reported to act synergistically, except in the high temperature (≥45C)-low pressure (≥300 MPa) region where an antagonistic effect was observed.\nGomes, Sumner, and Ledward (1997) showed that the application of increasing pressures led to a gradual reduction in papain enzyme activity. A decrease in activity of 39% was observed when the enzyme solution was initially activated with phosphate buffer (pH 6.8) and subjected to 800 MPa at ambient temperature for 10 min, while 13% of the original activity remained when the enzyme solution was treated at 800 MPa at 60C for 10 min. In Tris buffer at pH 6.8 after treatment at 800 MPa and 20C, papain activity loss was approximately 24%. The inactivation of the enzyme is because of induced change at the active site causing loss of activity without major conformational changes. This loss of activity was due to oxidation of the thiolate ion present at the active site.\nWeemaes, Cordt, Goossens, Ludikhuyze, Hendrickx, Heremans, and Tobback (1996) studied the effects of pressure and temperature on activity of 3 different alpha-amylases from Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, and Bacillus licheniformis. The changes in conformation of Bacillus licheniformis, Bacillus subtilis, and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens amylases occurred at pressures of 110, 75, and 65 MPa, respectively. Bacillus licheniformis amylase was more stable than amylases from Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens to the combined heat/pressure treatment.\nRiahi and Ramaswamy (2004) demonstrated that pressure inactivation of amylase in apple juice was significantly (P < 0.01 ) influenced by pH, pressure, holding time, and temperature. The inactivation was described using a bi-phasic model. The application of high pressure was sh\\own to completely inactivate amylase. The importance of the pressure pulse and pressure hold approach for inactivation of amylase was also demonstrated.\nHigh pressure denatures protein depending on the protein type, processing conditions, and the applied pressure. During the process of denaturation, the proteins may dissolve or precipitate on the application of high pressure. These changes are generally reversible in the pressure range 100-300 MPa and irreversible for the pressures higher than 300 MPa. Denaturation may be due to the destruction of hydrophobic and ion pair bonds, and unfolding of molecules. At higher pressure, oligomeric proteins tend to dissociate into subunits becoming vulnerable to proteolysis. Monomeric proteins do not show any changes in proteolysis with increase in pressure (Thakur and Nelson, 1998).\nHigh-pressure effects on proteins are related to the rupture on non-covalent interactions within protein molecules, and to the subsequent reformation of intra and inter molecular bonds within or between the molecules. Different types of interactions contribute to the secondary, tertiary, and quaternary structure of proteins. The quaternary structure is mainly held by hydrophobic interactions that are very sensitive to pressure. Significant changes in the tertiary structure are observed beyond 200 MPa. However, a reversible unfolding of small proteins such as ribonuclease A occurs at higher pressures (400 to 800 MPa), showing that the volume and compressibility changes during denaturation are not completely dominated by the hydrophobic effect. Denaturation is a complex process involving intermediate forms leading to multiple denatured products. secondary structure changes take place at a very high pressure above 700 MPa, leading to irreversible denaturation (Balny and Masson, 1993).\nFigure 1 General scheme for pressure-temperature phase diagram of proteins, (from Messens, Van Camp, and Huyghebaert, 1997).\nWhen the pressure increases to about 100 MPa, the denaturation temperature of the protein increases, whereas at higher pressures, the temperature of denaturation usually decreases. This results in the elliptical phase diagram of native denatured protein shown in Fig. 1. A practical consequence is that under elevated pressures, proteins denature usually at room temperature than at higher temperatures. The phase diagram also specifies the pressure- temperature range in which the protein maintains its native structure. Zone III specifies that at high temperatures, a rise in denaturation temperature is found with increasing pressure. Zone II indicates that below the maximum transition temperature, protein denaturation occurs at the lower temperatures under higher pressures. Zone III shows that below the temperature corresponding to the maximum transition pressure, protein denaturation occurs at lower pressures using lower temperatures (Messens, Van Camp, and Huyghebaert, 1997).\nThe application of high pressure has been shown to destabilize casein micelles in reconstituted skim milk and the size distribution of spherical casein micelles decrease from 200 to 120 nm; maximum changes have been reported to occur between 150-400 MPa at 20C. The pressure treatment results in reduced turbidity and increased lightness, which leads to the formation of a virtually transparent skim milk (Shibauchi, Yamamoto, and Sagara, 1992; Derobry, Richard, and Hardy, 1994). The gels produced from high-pressure treated skim milk showed improved rigidity and gel breaking strength (Johnston, Austin, and Murphy, 1992). Garcia, Olano, Ramos, and Lopez (2000) showed that the pressure treatment at 25C considerably reduced the micelle size, while pressurization at higher temperature progressively increased the micelle dimensions. Anema, Lowe, and Stockmann (2005) indicated that a small decrease in the size of casein micelles was observed at 100 MPa, with slightly greater effects at higher temperatures or longer pressure treatments. At pressure >400 MPa, the casein micelles disintegrated. The effect was more rapid at higher temperatures although the final size was similar in all samples regardless of the pressure or temperature. At 200 MPa and 1O0C, the casein micelle size decreased slightly on heating, whereas, at higher temperatures, the size increased as a result of aggregation. Huppertz, Fox, and Kelly (2004a) showed that the size of casein micelles increased by 30% upon high-pressure treatment of milk at 250 MPa and micelle size dropped by 50% at 400 or 600 MPa.\nHuppertz, Fox, and Kelly (2004b) demonstrated that the high- pressure treatment of milk at 100-600 MPa resulted in considerable solubilization of alphas 1- and beta-casein, which may be due to the solubilization of colloidal calcium phosphate and disruption of hydrophobic interactions. On storage of pressure, treated milk at 5C dissociation of casein was largely irreversible, but at 20C, considerable re-association of casein was observed. The hydration of the casein micelles increased on pressure treatment (100-600 MPa) due to induced interactions between caseins and whey proteins. Pressure treatment increased levels of alphas 1- and beta-casein in the soluble phase of milk and produced casein micelles with properties different to those in untreated milk. Huppertz, Fox, and Kelly (2004c) demonstrated that the casein micelle size was not influenced by pressures less than 200 MPa, but a pressure of 250 MPa increased the micelle size by 25%, while pressures of 300 MPa or greater, irreversibly reduced the size to 50% ofthat in untreated milk. Denaturation of alpha-lactalbumin did not occur at pressures less than or equal to 400 MPa, whereas beta-lactoglobulin was denatured at pressures greater than 100 MPa.\nGalazka, Ledward, Sumner, and Dickinson (1997) reported loss of surface hydrophobicity due to application of 300 MPa in dilute solution. Pressurizing beta-lactoglobulin at 450 MPa for 15 minutes resulted in reduced solubility in water. High-pressure treatment induced extensive protein unfolding and aggregation when BSA was pressurized at 400 MPa. Beta-lactoglobulin appears to be more sensitive to pressure than alpha-lactalbumin. Olsen, Ipsen, Otte, and Skibsted (1999) monitored the state of aggregation and thermal gelation properties of pressure-treated beta-lactoglobulin immediately after depressurization and after storage for 24 h at 50C. A pressure of 150 MPa applied for 30 min, or pressures higher than 300 MPa applied for 0 or 30 min, led to formation of soluble aggregates. When continued for 30 min, a pressure of 450 MPa caused gelation of the 5% beta-lactoglobulin solution. Iametti, Tansidico, Bonomi, Vecchio, Pittia, Rovere, and DaIl’Aglio (1997) studied irreversible modifications in the tertiary structure, surface hydrophobicity, and association state of beta-lactoglobulin, when solutions of the protein at neutral pH and at different concentrations, were exposed to pressure. Only minor irreversible structural modifications were evident even for treatments as intense as 15 min at 900 MPa. The occurrence of irreversible modifications was time-dependent at 600 MPa but was complete within 2 min at 900 MPa. The irreversibly modified protein was soluble, but some covalent aggregates were formed. Subirade, Loupil, Allain, and Paquin (1998) showed the effect of dynamic high pressure on the secondary structure of betalactoglobulin. Thermal and pH sensitivity of pressure treated beta-lactoglobulin was different, suggesting that the two forms were stabilized by different electrostatic interactions. Walker, Farkas, Anderson, and Goddik (2004) used high- pressure processing (510 MPa for 10 min at 8 or 24C) to induce unfolding of beta-lactoglobulin and characterized the protein structure and surface-active properties. The secondary structure of the protein processed at 8C appeared to be unchanged, whereas at 24C alpha-helix structure was lost. Tertiary structures changed due to processing at either temperature. Model solutions containing the pressure-treated beta-lactoglobulin showed a significant decrease in surface tension. Izquierdo, Alli, Gmez, Ramaswamy, and Yaylayan (2005) demonstrated that under high-pressure treatments (100-300 MPa), the β-lactoglobulin AB was completely hydrolyzed by pronase and α-chymotrypsin. Hinrichs and Rademacher (2005) showed that the denaturation kinetics of beta-lactoglobulin followed second order kinetics while for alpha-lactalbumin it was 2.5. Alpha- lactalbumin was more resistant to denaturation than beta- lactoglobulin. The activation volume for denaturation of beta- lactoglobulin was reported to decrease with increasing temperature, and the activation energy increased with pressure up to 200 MPa, beyond which it decreased. This demonstrated the unfolding of the protein molecules.\nDrake, Harison, Apslund, Barbosa-Canovas, and Swanson (1997) demonstrated that the percentage moisture and wet weight yield of cheese from pressure treated milk were higher than pasteurized or raw milk cheese. The microbial quality was comparable and some textural defects were reported due to the excess moisture content. Arias, Lopez, and Olano (2000) showed that high-pressure treatment at 200 MPa significantly reduced rennet coagulation times over control samples. Pressurization at 400 MPa led to coagulation times similar to those of control, except for milk treated at pH 7.0, with or without readjustment of pH to 6.7, which presented significantly longer coagulation times than their non-pressure treated counterparts.\nHinrichs and Rademacher (2004) demonstrated that the isobaric (200-800 MPa) and isothermal (-2 to 70C) denaturation of beta- lactoglobulin and alpha-lactalbumin of whey protein followed 3rd and 2nd order kinetics, respectively. Isothermal pressure denaturation of both beta-lactoglobulin A and B did not differ significantly and an increase in temperature resulted in an increase in thedenaturation rate. At pressures higher than 200 MPa, the denaturation rate was limited by the aggregation rate, while the pressure resulted in the unfolding of molecules. The kinetic parameters of denaturation were estimated using a single step non- linear regression method, which allowed a global fit of the entire data set. Huppertz, Fox, and Kelly (2004d) examined the high- pressure induced denaturation of alpha-lactalbumin and beta- lactoglobulin in dairy systems. The higher level of pressure- induced denaturation of both proteins in milk as compared to whey was due to the absence of casein micelles and colloidal calcium phosphate in the whey.\nThe conformation of BSA was reported to remain fairly stable at 400 MPa due to a high number of disulfide bonds which are known to stabilize its three dimensional structure (Hayakawa, Kajihara, Morikawa, Oda, and Fujio, 1992). Kieffer and Wieser (2004) indicated that the extension resistance and extensibility of wet gluten were markedly influenced by high pressure (up to 800 MPa), while the temperature and the duration of pressure treatment (30-80C for 2-20 min) had a relatively lesser effect. The application of high pressure resulted in a marked decrease in protein extractability due to the restructuring of disulfide bonds under high pressure leading to the incorporation of alpha- and gamma-gliadins in the glutenin aggregate. The change in secondary structure following high- pressure treatment was also reported.\nThe pressure treatment of myosin led to head-to-head interaction to form oligomers (clumps), which became more compact and larger in size during storage at constant pressure. Even after pressure treatment at 210 MPa for 5 minutes, monomieric myosin molecules increased and no gelation was observed for pressure treatment up to 210 MPa for 30 minutes. Pressure treatment did not also affect the original helical structure of the tail in the myosin monomers. Angsupanich, Edde, and Ledward (1999) showed that high pressure- induced denaturation of myosin led to formation of structures that contained hydrogen bonds and were additionally stabilized by disulphide bonds.\nApplication of 750 MPa for 20 minutes resulted in dimerization of metmyoglobin in the pH range of 6-10, whereas maximum pH was not at isoelectric pH (6.9). Under acidic pH conditions, no dimers were formed (Defaye and Ledward, 1995). Zipp and Kouzmann ( 1973) showed the formation of precipitate when pressurized (750 MPa for 20 minutes) near the isoelectric point, the precipitate redissolved slowly during storage. Pressure treatment had no effect on lipid oxidation in the case of minced meat packed in air at pressure less than 300 MPa, while the oxidation increased proportionally at higher pressures. However, on exposure to higher pressure, minced meat in contact with air oxidized rapidly. Pressures > 300-400 MPa caused marked denaturation of both myofibriller and sarcoplasmic proteins in washed pork muscle and pork mince (Ananth, Murano and Dickson, 1995). Chapleau and Lamballerie (2003) showed that high-pressure treatment induced a threefold increase in the surface hydrophobicity of myofibrillar proteins between O and 450 MPa. Chapleau, Mangavel, Compoint, and Lamballerie (2004) reported that high pressure modified the secondary structure of myofibrillar proteins extracted from cattle carcasses. Irreversible changes and aggregation were reported at a pressure higher than 300 MPa, which can potentially affect the functional properties of meat products. Lamballerie, Perron, Jung, and Cheret (2003) indicated that high pressure treatment increases cathepsin D activity, and that pressurized myofibrils are more susceptible to cathepsin D action than non- pressurized myofibrils. The highest cathepsin D activity was observed at 300 MPa. Cariez, Veciana, and Cheftel ( 1995) demonstrated that L color values increased significantly in meat treated at 200-350 MPa, the meat becoming pink, and a-value decreased in meat treated at 400-500 MPa to give a grey-brown color. The total extractable myoglobin decreased in meat treated at 200- 500 MPa, while the metmyoglobin content of meat increased and the oxymyoglobin decreased at 400500 MPa. Meat discoloration from pressure processing resulted in a whitening effect at 200-300 MPa due to globin denaturation, and/or haem displacement/release, or oxidation of ferrous myoglobin to ferric myoglobin at pressure higher than 400 MPa.\nThe conformation of the main protein component of egg white, ovalbumin, remains fairly stable when pressurized at 400 MPa, may be due to the four disulfide bonds and non-covalent interactions stabilizing the three dimensional structure of ovalbumin (Hayakawa, Kajihara, Morikawa, Oda, and Fujio, 1992). Hayashi, Kawamura, Nakasa and Okinada (1989) reported irreversible denaturation of egg albumin at 500-900 MPa with concomitant increase in susceptibility to subtilisin. Zhang, Li, and Tatsumi (2005) demonstrated that the pressure treatment (200-500 MPa) resulted in denaturation of ovalbumin. The surface hydrophobicity of ovalbumin was found to increase with increase in pressure treatment and the presence of polysaccharide protected the protein against denaturation. Iametti, Donnizzelli, Pittia, Rovere, Squarcina, and Bonomi (1999) showed that the addition of NaCl or sucrose to egg albumin prior to high- pressure treatment (up to 10 min at 800 MPa) prevented insolubulization or gel formation after pressure treatment. As a consequence of protein unfolding, the treated albumin had increased viscosity but retained its foaming and heat-gelling properties. Farr (1990) reported the modification of functionality of egg proteins. Egg yolk formed a gel when subjected to a pressure of 400 MPa for 30 minutes at 25C, kept its original color, and was soft and adhesive. The hardness of the pressure treated gel increased and adhesiveness decreased with an increase in pressure. Plancken, Van Loey, and Hendrickx (2005) showed that the application of high pressure (400- 700 MPa) to egg white solution resulted in an increase in turbidity, surface hydrophobicity, exposed sulfhydryl content, and susceptibility to enzymatic hydrolysis, while it resulted in a decrease in protein solubility, total sulfhydryl content, denaturation enthalpy, and trypsin inhibitory activity. The pressure- induced changes in these properties were shown to be dependent on the pressuretemperature and the pH of the solution. Speroni, Puppo, Chapleau, Lamballerie, Castellani, Aon, and Anton (2005) indicated that the application of high pressure (200-600 MPa) at 2OC to low- density lipoproteins did not change the solubility even if the pH is changed, whereas aggregation and protein denaturation were drastically enhanced at pH 8. Further, the application of high- pressure under alkaline pH conditions resulted in decreased droplet flocculation of low-density lipoproteins dispersions.\nThe minimum pressure required for the inducing gelation of soya proteins was reported to be 300 MPa for 10-30 minutes and the gels formed were softer with lower elastic modulus in comparison with heat-treated gels (Okamoto, Kawamura, and Hayashi, 1990). The treatment of soya milk at 500 MPa for 30 min changed it from a liquid state to a solid state, whereas at lower pressures and at 500 MPa for 10 minutes, the milk remained in a liquid state, but indicated improved emulsifying activity and stability (Kajiyama, Isobe, Uemura, and Noguchi, 1995). The hardness of tofu gels produced by high-pressure treatment at 300 MPa for 10 minutes was comparable to heat induced gels. Puppo, Chapleau, Speroni, Lamballerie, Michel, Anon, and Anton (2004) demonstrated that the application of high pressure (200-600 MPa) on soya protein isolate at pH 8.0 resulted in an increase in a protein hydorphobicity and aggregation, a reduction of free sulfhydryl content and a partial unfolding of the 7S and 11S fractions at pH 8. The change in the secondary structure leading to a more disordered structure was also reported. Whereas at pH 3.0, the protein was partially denatured and insoluble aggregates were formed, the major molecular unfolding resulted in decreased thermal stability, increased protein solubility, and hydorphobicity. Puppo, Speroni, Chapleau, Lamballerie, An, and Anton (2005) studied the effect of high- pressure (200, 400, and 600 MPa for 10 min at 10C) on the emulsifying properties of soybean protein isolates at pH 3 and 8 (e.g. oil droplet size, flocculation, interfacial protein concentration, and composition). The application of pressure higher than 200 MPa at pH 8 resulted in a smaller droplet size and an increase in the levels of depletion flocculation. However, a similar effect was not observed at pH 3. Due to the application of high pressure, bridging flocculation decreased and the percentage of adsorbed proteins increased irrespective of the pH conditions. Moreover, the ability of the protein to be adsorbed at the oil- water interface increased. Zhang, Li, Tatsumi, and Isobe (2005) showed that the application of high pressure treatment resulted in the formation of more hydrophobic regions in soy protein, which dissociated into subunits, which in some cases formed insoluble aggregates. High-pressure denaturation of beta-conglycinin (7S) and glycinin (11S) occurred at 300 and 400 MPa, respectively. The gels formed had the desirable strength and a cross-linked network microstructure.\nSoybean whey is a by-product of tofu manufacture. It is a good source of peptides, proteins, oligosaccharides, and isoflavones, and can be used in special foods for the elderly persons, athletes, etc. Prestamo and Penas (2004) studied the antioxidative activity of soybean whey proteins and their pepsin and chymotrypsin hydrolysates. The chymotrypsin hydrolysate showed a higher antioxidative activity than the non-hydrolyzed protein, but the pepsin hydrolysate showed an opposite trend. High pressure processing at 100 MPa inc\\reased the antioxidative activity of soy whey protein, but decreased the antioxidative activity of the hydrolysates. High pressure processing increased the pH of the protein hydrolysates. Penas, Prestamo, and Gomez (2004) demonstrated that the application of high pressure (100 and 200 MPa, 15 min, 37C) facilitated the hydrolysis of soya whey protein by pepsin, trypsin, and chymotrypsin. It was shown that the highest level of hydrolysis occurred at a treatment pressure of 100 MPa. After the hydrolysis, 5 peptides under 14 kDa with trypsin and chymotrypsin, and 11 peptides with pepsin were reported.\nCOMBINATION OF HIGHPRESSURE TREATMENT WITH OTHER NON-THERMAL PROCESSING METHODS\nMany researchers have combined the use of high pressure with other non-thermal operations in order to explore the possibility of synergy between processes. Such attempts are reviewed in this section.\nCrawford, Murano, Olson, and Shenoy (1996) studied the combined effect of high pressure and gamma-irradiation for inactivating Clostridium spmgenes spores in chicken breast. Application of high pressure reduced the radiation dose required to produce chicken meat with extended shelf life. The application of high pressure (600 MPa for 20 min at 8O0C) reduced the irradiation doses required for one log reduction of Clostridium spmgenes from 4.2 kGy to 2.0 kGy. Mainville, Montpetit, Durand, and Farnworth (2001) studied the combined effect of irradiation and high pressure on microflora and microorganisms of kefir. The irradiation treatment of kefir at 5 kGy and high-pressure treatment (400 MPa for 5 or 30 min) deactivated the bacteria and yeast in kefir, while leaving the proteins and lipids unchanged.\nThe exposure of microbial cells and spores to an alternating current (50 Hz) resulted in the release of intracellular materials causing loss or denaturation of cellular components responsible for the normal functioning of the cell. The lethal damage to the microorganisms enhanced when the organisms are exposed to an alternating current before and after the pressure treatment. High- pressure treatment at 300 MPa for 10 min for Escherichia coli cells and 400 MPa for 30 min for Bacillus subtalis spores, after the alternating current treatment, resulted in reduced surviving fractions of both the organisms. The combined effect was also shown to reduce the tolerant level of microorganisms to other challenges (Shimada and Shimahara, 1985, 1987; Shimada, 1992).\nThe pretreatment with ultrasonic waves (100 W/cm^sup 2^ for 25 min at 25C) followed by high pressure (400 MPa for 25 min at 15C) was shown to result in complete inactivation of Rhodoturola rubra. Neither ultrasonic nor high-pressure treatment alone was found to be effective (Knorr, 1995).\nCarbon Dioxide and Argon\nHeinz and Knorr (1995) reported a 3 log reduction of supercritical CO2 pretreated cultures. The effect of the pretreatment on germination of Bacillus subtilis endospores was monitored. The combination of high pressure and mild heat treatment was the most effective in reducing germination (95% reduction), but no spore inactivation was observed.\nPark, Lee, and Park (2002) studied the combination of high- pressure carbon dioxide and high pressure as a nonthermal processing technique to enhance the safety and shelf life of carrot juice. The combined treatment of carbon dioxide (4.90 MPa) and high-pressure treatment (300 MPa) resulted in complete destruction of aerobes. The increase in high pressure to 600 MPa in the presence of carbon dioxide resulted in reduced activities of polyphenoloxidase (11.3%), lipoxygenase (8.8%), and pectin methylesterase (35.1%). Corwin and Shellhammer (2002) studied the combined effect of high-pressure treatment and CO2 on the inactivation of pectinmethylesterase, polyphenoloxidase, Lactobacillus plantarum, and Escherichia coli. An interaction was found between CO2 and pressure at 25 and 50C for pectinmethylesterase and polyphenoloxidase, respectively. The activity of polyphenoloxidase was decreased by CO2 at all pressure treatments. The interaction between CO2 and pressure was significant for Lactobacillus plantarum, with a significant decrease in survivors due to the addition of CO2 at all pressures studied. No significant effect on E. coli survivors was seen with CO2 addition. Truong, Boff, Min, and Shellhammer (2002) demonstrated that the addition of CO2 (0.18 MPa) during high pressure processing (600 MPa, 25C) of fresh orange juice increases the rate of PME inactivation in Valencia orange juice. The treatment time due to CO2 for achieving the equivalent reduction in PME activity was from 346 s to 111 s, but the overall degree of PME inactivation remained unaltered.\nFujii, Ohtani, Watanabe, Ohgoshi, Fujii, and Honma (2002) studied the high-pressure inactivation of Bacillus cereus spores in water containing argon. At the pressure of 600 MPa, the addition of argon reportedly accelerated the inactivation of spores at 20C, but had no effect on the inactivation at 40C.\nThe complex physicochemical environment of milk exerted a strong protective effect on Escherichia coli against high hydrostatic pressure inactivation, reducing inactivation from 7 logs at 400 MPa to only 3 logs at 700 MPa in 15 min at 20C. A substantial improvement in inactivation efficiency at ambient temperature was achieved by the application of consecutive, short pressure treatments interrupted by brief decompressions. The combined effect of high pressure (500 MPa) and natural antimicrobial peptides (lysozyme, 400 g/ml and nisin, 400 g/ml) resulted in increased lethality for Escherichia coli in milk (Garcia, Masschalck, and Michiels, 1999).\nOPPORTUNITIES FOR HIGH PRESSURE ASSISTED PROCESSING\nThe inclusion of high-pressure treatment as a processing step within certain manufacturing flow sheets can lead to novel products as well as new process development opportunities. For instance, high pressure can precede a number of process operations such as blanching, dehydration, rehydration, frying, and solid-liquid extraction. Alternatively, processes such as gelation, freezing, and thawing, can be carried out under high pressure. This section reports on the use of high pressures in the context of selected processing operations.\nEshtiaghi and Knorr (1993) employed high pressure around ambient temperatures to develop a blanching process similar to hot water or steam blanching, but without thermal degradation; this also minimized problems associated with water disposal. The application of pressure (400 MPa, 15 min, 20C) to the potato sample not only caused blanching but also resulted in a four-log cycle reduction in microbial count whilst retaining 85% of ascorbic acid. Complete inactivation of polyphenoloxidase was achieved under the above conditions when 0.5% citric acid solution was used as the blanching medium. The addition of 1 % CaCl^sub 2^ solution to the medium also improved the texture and the density. The leaching of potassium from the high-pressure treated sample was comparable with a 3 min hot water blanching treatment (Eshtiaghi and Knorr, 1993). Thus, high- pressures can be used as a non-thermal blanching method.\nDehydration and Osmotic Dehydration\nThe application of high hydrostatic pressure affects cell wall structure, leaving the cell more permeable, which leads to significant changes in the tissue architecture (Fair, 1990; Dornenburg and Knorr, 1994, Rastogi, Subramanian, and Raghavarao, 1994; Rastogi and Niranjan, 1998; Rastogi, Raghavarao, and Niranjan, 2005). Eshtiaghi, Stute, and Knorr (1994) reported that the application of pressure (600 MPa, 15 min at 70C) resulted in no significant increase in the drying rate during fluidized bed drying of green beans and carrot. However, the drying rate significantly increased in the case of potato. This may be due to relatively limited permeabilization of carrot and beans cells as compared to potato. The effects of chemical pre-treatment (NaOH and HCl treatment) on the rates of dehydration of paprika were compared with products pre-treated by applying high pressure or high intensity electric field pulses (Fig. 2). High-pressure (400 MPa for 10 min at 25C) and high intensity electric field pulses (2.4 kV/cm, pulse width 300 s, 10 pulses, pulse frequency 1 Hz) were found to result in drying rates comparable with chemical pre-treatments. The latter pre-treatments, however, eliminated the use of chemicals (Ade- Omowaye, Rastogi, Angersbach, and Knorr, 2001).\nFigure 2 (a) Effects of various pre-treatments such as hot water blanching, high pressure and high intensity electric field pulse treatment on dehydration characteristics of red paprika (b) comparison of drying time (from Ade-Omowaye, Rastogi, Angersbach, and Knorr, 2001).\nFigure 3 (a) Variation of moisture and (b) solid content (based on initial dry matter content) with time during osmotic dehydration (from Rastogi and Niranjan, 1998).\nGenerally, osmotic dehydration is a slow process. Application of high pressures causes permeabilization of the cell structure (Dornenburg and Knorr, 1993; Eshtiaghi, Stute, and Knorr, 1994; Fair, 1990; Rastogi, Subramanian, and Raghavarao, 1994). This phenomenon has been exploited by Rastogi and Niranjan (1998) to enhance mass transfer rates during the osmotic dehydration of pineapple (Ananas comsus). High-pressure pre-treatments (100-800 MPa) were found to enhance both water removal as well as solid gain (Fig. 3). Measured diffusivity values for water were found to be four-fold greater, whilst solute (sugar) diffusivity values were found to be two-fold greater. Compression and decompression occurring during high pressure pre-treatment itself caused the removal of a significant amount of water, which was attributed to the cell wall rupture (Rastogi and Niranjan, 1998). Differential interference contrast microscopic examination showed the ext\\ent of cell wall break-up with applied pressure (Fig. 4). Sopanangkul, Ledward, and Niranjan (2002) demonstrated that the application of high pressure (100 to 400 MPa) could be used to accelerate mass transfer during ingredient infusion into foods. Application of pressure opened up the tissue structure and facilitated diffusion. However, higher pressures above 400 MPa induced starch gelatinization also and hindered diffusion. The values of the diffusion coefficient were dependent on cell permeabilization and starch gelatinization. The maximum value of diffusion coefficient observed represented an eight-fold increase over the values at ambient pressure.\nThe synergistic effect of cell permeabilization due to high pressure and osmotic stress as the dehydration proceeds was demonstrated more clearly in the case of potato (Rastogi, Angersbach, and Knorr, 2000a, 2000b, 2003). The moisture content was reduced and the solid content increased in the case of samples treated at 400 MPa. The distribution of relative moisture (M/M^sub o^) and solid (S/S^sub o^) content as well as the cell permeabilization index (Zp) (shown in Fig. 5) indicate that the rate of change of moisture and solid content was very high at the interface and decreased towards the center (Rastogi, Angersbach, and Knorr, 2000a, 2000b, 2003).\nMost dehydrated foods are rehydrated before consumption. Loss of solids during rehydration is a major problem associated with the use of dehydrated foods. Rastogi, Angersbach, Niranjan, and Knorr (2000c) have studied the transient variation of moisture and solid content during rehydration of dried pineapples, which were subjected to high pressure treatment prior to a two-stage drying process consisting of osmotic dehydration and finish-drying at 25C (Fig. 6). The diffusion coefficients for water infusion as well as for solute diffusion were found to be significantly lower in high-pressure pre- treated samples. The observed decrease in water diffusion coefficient was attributed to the permeabilization of cell membranes, which reduces the rehydration capacity (Rastogi and Niranjan, 1998). The solid infusion coefficient was also lower, and so was the release of the cellular components, which form a gel- network with divalent ions binding to de-esterified pectin (Basak and Ramaswamy, 1998; Eshtiaghi, Stute, and Knorr, 1994; Rastogi Angersbach, Niranjan, and Knorr, 2000c). Eshtiaghi, Stute, and Knorr (1994) reported that high-pressure treatment in conjunction with subsequent freezing could improve mass transfer during rehydration of dried plant products and enhance product quality.\nFigure 4 Microstructures of control and pressure treated pineapple (a) control; (b) 300 MPa; (c) 700 MPa. ( 1 cm = 41.83 m) (from Rastogi and Niranjan, 1998).\nAhromrit, Ledward, and Niranjan (2006) explored the use of high pressures (up to 600 MPa) to accelerate water uptake kinetics during soaking of glutinous rice. The results showed that the length and the diameter the of the rice were positively correlated with soaking time, pressure and temperature. The water uptake kinetics was shown to follow the well-known Fickian model. The overall rates of water uptake and the equilibrium moisture content were found to increase with pressure and temperature.\nZhang, Ishida, and Isobe (2004) studied the effect of highpressure treatment (300-500 MPa for 0-380 min at 20C) on the water uptake of soybeans and resulting changes in their microstructure. The NMR analysis indicated that water mobility in high-pressure soaked soybean was more restricted and its distribution was much more uniform than in controls. The SEM analysis revealed that high pressure changed the microstructures of the seed coat and hilum, which improved water absorption and disrupted the individual spherical protein body structures. Additionally, the DSC and SDS-PAGE analysis revealed that proteins were partially denatured during the high pressure soaking. Ibarz, Gonzalez, Barbosa-Canovas (2004) developed the kinetic models for water absorption and cooking time of chickpeas with and without prior high-pressure treatment (275-690 MPa). Soaking was carried out at 25C for up to 23 h and cooking was achieved by immersion in boiling water until they became tender. As the soaking time increased, the cooking time decreased. High-pressure treatment for 5 min led to reductions in cooking times equivalent to those achieved by soaking for 60-90 min.\nRamaswamy, Balasubramaniam, and Sastry (2005) studied the effects of high pressure (33, 400 and 700 MPa for 3 min at 24 and 55C) and irradiation (2 and 5 kGy) pre-treatments on hydration behavior of navy beans by soaking the treated beans in water at 24 and 55C. Treating beans under moderate pressure (33 MPa) resulted in a high initial moisture uptake (0.59 to 1.02 kg/kg dry mass) and a reduced loss of soluble materials. The final moisture content after three hours of soaking was the highest in irradiated beans (5 kGy) followed by high-pressure treatment (33 MPa, 3 min at 55C). Within the experimental range of the study, Peleg’s model was found to satisfactorily describe the rate of water absorption of navy beans.\nA reduction of 40% in oil uptake during frying was observed, when thermally blanched frozen potatoes were replaced by high pressure blanched frozen potatoes. This may be due to a reduction in moisture content caused by compression and decompression (Rastogi and Niranjan, 1998), as well as the prevalence of different oil mass transfer mechanisms (Knorr, 1999).\nSolid Liquid Extraction\nThe application of high pressure leads to rearrangement in tissue architecture, which results in increased extractability even at ambient temperature. Extraction of caffeine from coffee using water could be increased by the application of high pressure as well as increase in temperature (Knorr, 1999). The effect of high pressure and temperature on caffeine extraction was compared to extraction at 100C as well as atmospheric pressure (Fig. 7). The caffeine yield was found to increase with temperature at a given pressure. The combination of very high pressures and lower temperatures could become a viable alternative to current industrial practice.\nFigure 5 Distribution of (a, b) relative moisture and (c, d) solid content as well as (e, f) cell disi"}
{"text": "2010 is the International Year of Biodiversity. Why should you care?\nBiodiversity is the number of different species that exist in a given area. The healthier an area is, the more biodiversity it has. Different forms of wildlife and plants inhabit areas, and these plants and animals learn to coexist and form ecological relationships with each other.\nIn unhealthy environments, only a few kinds of species of each plant or animal exist. This is what is known as a monoculture, and monocultures are unhealthy. Whether a monoculture is ten thousand or a hundred thousand acres planted all together of one kind of crop, or an entire subdivision with lawns all growing the same five plants, monocultures are vulnerable to pests and disease. For example, part of the fire ant problem in the United States is exacerbated by homeowners, because fire ants prefer monocultures and will shy away from biodiverse areas.\nBy contrast, the more kinds of species that inhabit an area, the more likely it is that at least a few strains of plants or animals will be resistant to pests and disease. If you have thirty kinds of plants, and a virus blows in across the ocean from a remote island, your lawn has a better chance of surviving and renewing itself than if you have only five kinds of plants. In the same way, having more species of wild birds will provide more secure insect control than having only a few kinds of wild birds. So, by growing more kinds of plants in your yard, you will attract more animals, and help to increase your neighbourhood’s biodiversity."}
{"text": "| This article or section is a Cataclysm stub. You can help expand it by editing it.\nAncient Shark Jaws is a common fossil archaeology artifact.\nSharks have no true bones, only cartilage. Because their feeding habits involve biting things with a great deal of force, losing Teeth is Common. Therefore, sharks have multiple rows of teeth which they replace constantly throughout their lifetimes.\nPatches and hotfixes\n- Patch 4.0.3 (15-Nov-2010): Added"}
{"text": "Research and Tracking\nAccurately tracking birth defects is the first step in preventing them and reducing their effect. Birth defects tracking systems are vital to help us find out where and when birth defects occur and who they affect. This gives us important clues about preventing birth defects and allows us to evaluate our efforts.\nWe base our research on what we learn from tracking. By analyzing the data collected, we can identify factors that increase or decrease the risk of birth defects and identify community or environmental concerns that need more study. In addition, research helps the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) answer critical questions about the causes of many of these birth defects.\nWhat We’ve Learned\nWe know what causes some birth defects, such as Down syndrome and fetal alcohol syndrome. However, for about two-thirds of birth defects, the causes are unknown.1 Also, we don’t understand well how certain factors might work together to cause birth defects. While there is still more work to do, we have learned a lot about birth defects through past research. For example:\n- Taking supplements containing folic acid, a B vitamin, at least 1 month before getting pregnant and during pregnancy lowers the risk of having a baby with serious birth defects of the brain and spine (neural tube defects). For this reason, all women who can become pregnant should take supplements containing 400 micrograms of folic acid every day.\n- Drinking alcohol during pregnancy can cause the baby to be born with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). Pregnant women should not drink alcohol any time during pregnancy. Women also should not drink alcohol if they are planning to become pregnant or are sexually active and do not use effective birth control.\n- Smoking in the month before getting pregnant and throughout pregnancy increases the chance of premature birth, certain birth defects (such as cleft lip, cleft palate, or both), and infant death. Quitting smoking before getting pregnant is best. However, for women who are already pregnant, quitting as early as possible can still help protect against some health problems.\n- Women who are obese when they get pregnant have a higher risk of having a baby with serious birth defects of the brain and spine (neural tube defects) and some heart defects. Helping women to reach a healthy weight before they get pregnant could prevent birth defects.\n- Poor control of diabetes in pregnant women increases the chance for birth defects, and might cause serious complications for the mother, too. If a woman with diabetes keeps her blood sugar well-controlled before and during pregnancy, she can reduce the chance of having a baby with birth defects.\n- Taking certain medications during pregnancy can cause serious birth defects, but the safety of many medications taken by pregnant women has been difficult to determine. If you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy, you should not stop taking medications you need or begin taking new medications without first talking with your doctor. This includes prescription and over-the-counter medications and dietary or herbal products.\nBirth Defects Tracking and Research\nThe Metropolitan Atlanta Congenital Defects Program (MACDP)\nMACDP is a population-based tracking system for birth defects among children born to residents of metropolitan Atlanta. Population-based means that the researchers look at all babies with birth defects who live in a defined study area, which is important to get a complete picture of what is happening within this known population. Established in 1967, MACDP was the nation's first population-based system for active collection of information about birth defects. Active data collection means that committed staff members seek out information about birth defects and continually review medical records at multiple health care facilities in a given geographic area. Information obtained from MACDP is used to understand the characteristics of affected children, learn about other health outcomes associated with birth defects, and provide data for education and health policy decisions leading to prevention of birth defects. The system also serves as a model to help other programs develop and implement new tracking methods.\nLearn more about the Metropolitan Atlanta Congenital Defects Program (MACDP) »\nState-Based Tracking Systems\nCDC funds population-based birth defects tracking systems in 14 US states and territories. The tracking systems use the data to help prevent birth defects and to refer infants and children with birth defects to needed services. Identifying birth defects at a state level also strengthens public health officials' ability to estimate prevalence and evaluate risk factors that are the most important in their community. State-based birth defects tracking programs provide important insights into our continued efforts to prevent birth defects and support families affected by them.\nNational Birth Defects Prevention Network (NBDPN)\nCDC supports and collaborates with the NBDPN. The NBDPN is a group of over 225 individuals working at the national, state, and local levels, who are involved in tracking, researching, and preventing birth defects. The NBDPN serves as a forum for exchanging ideas about preventing birth defects for tracking and researching birth defects, and providing technical support for state and local programs. Established in 1997, the NBDPN assesses the effect of birth defects on children, families, and the health care system. It also identifies risk factors for birth defects. This information can be used to develop strategies to prevent birth defects and to assist families and their providers in preventing other disabilities in children with birth defects.\nInternational Clearinghouse for Birth Defects Surveillance and Research (ICBDSR)\nThe ICBDSR brings together birth defects programs from around the world with the aim of conducting worldwide tracking and research to prevent birth defects and to improve the lives of people born with these conditions. CDC supports and collaborates with the ICBDSR as a way to gain knowledge and expertise on birth defects worldwide and to further our domestic goals and those of the international community.\nEnvironmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT)\nEnvironmental public health tracking is the ongoing collection, integration, analysis, interpretation, and dissemination of data on environmental hazards, exposures to those hazards, and health effects that may be related to the exposures.\nCDC has worked with representatives from 23 state and local health departments that have received EPHT grants to develop a monitoring system for 12 birth defects. These defects were selected because they are serious birth defects that are relatively easily identified at or around the time of birth, have some potential for environmental risk factors, and could be adequately ascertained by the different types of birth defects tracking systems. The EPHT Network tracks the prevalence of these defects and publishes annual data tables and maps in the national portal. Currently, the national portal has birth defects data for Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Maine, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Utah, and Wisconsin.\nNational Birth Defects Prevention Study (NBDPS)\nEstablished in 1997, NBDPS is the largest population-based U.S. study looking at risk factors and potential causes of over 30 major birth defects. CDC funds the study and collects data with researchers from other study sites, collectively called the Centers for Birth Defects Research and Prevention (CBDRP). Participating sites have included Arkansas, California, Georgia (CDC), Iowa, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Texas, and Utah.\nUnderstanding the potential causes of birth defects can help us learn how to prevent them. The NBDPS has made key contributions in understanding the risk of specific medications when used just before and during pregnancy. Data from the NBDPS has also clearly demonstrated that maternal obesity is a strong risk factor for a number of major birth defects and has confirmed the association between maternal smoking and orofacial clefts. The NBDPS is one key step toward bringing us to a day when fewer babies are born with birth defects.\nNational Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES)\nNHANES is a nationally-representative survey designed to look at the health and nutritional status of adults and children in the United States. The survey is unique in that it combines interviews and physical examinations, including the collection of blood samples.\nCDC uses information from these studies to look at the amount of folic acid taken in from food and dietary supplements. Green vegetables, fruits, and juices have natural folate, and other foods, such as cereal and bread, have folic acid added to them. CDC is looking at NHANES data to see how people get folic acid and to see if they are getting the recommended amount. This information will help determine if adding different levels of folic acid to these foods or different types of foods would affect peoples’ intake. CDC is also using these data to look at folic acid intake and blood folate concentrations among women who are pregnant, or who may become pregnant, as well as specifically among women who are obese or who have diabetes. CDC also uses NHANES data to look at patterns of prescription medication use among pregnant women. This information will help determine the most commonly used medications during pregnancy, which CDC will use to identify medications that need future research to characterize their safety or risk during pregnancy.\n- Nelson K, Holmes LB. 1989. Malformations due to presumed spontaneous mutations in newborn infants. New England Journal of Medicine 320:19-23.\n- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention\nNational Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities\nDivision of Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities\n1600 Clifton Road\nAtlanta, GA 30333\nTTY: (888) 232-6348\nNew Hours of Operation"}
{"text": "The issue of Nubian rights is an often neglected and poorly understood issue for public opinion. This is not a big surprise since Egyptians did not get any education on that part of their country and it hardly ever surfaces as part of the political discussion. Despite the active participation of Nubians in and before the revolution; their efforts to highlight their cause and their history of discrimination, little attention is given to them. Nubians have more recently become a part of the political discussion, more evident in the presidential race. However, as usual Nubians were excluded from participating in shaping their country’s future as none of them was selected to be in the constitution drafting committee.\nNubians are the inhabitants of a historical part in the South of Egypt and Northern Sudan. Their suffering started long before the building of the High Dam in 1964; it was in 1902 when Aswan Dam was built. The end result was about 44 villages that drowned along with the historic area that witnessed one of the humanity’s earliest civilizations. Some of the villages even drowned without prior notice; village inhabitants would wake up one day to find their property, their land and their cattle drowned. They were moved away to the desert land of Kom Ombo despite their heavy reliance on the Nile for agriculture all their life. They never received their rightful compensation for their displacement despite many promises made by successive regimes. They postponed the call for their rights several times for considerations of war and national crises. In addition, Nubians suffered from political, economic and cultural marginalization. School curricula exclude their cultural heritage and their language is not taught in schools (even in areas where they live) and it may become extinct if efforts are not made to preserve it.\nDespite the marginalization, Nubian always asserted their “Egyptianness”. They have taken numerous patriotic stances and sacrificed several times for the sake of their country. They deserve respect not only for their struggle, but because they’re Egyptian and deserve full citizenship. They are fighting for their rights and their place in the new scene after the revolution. However their struggle exemplifies the many of the issues that Egypt suffers from:\nFirstly, the “Nubian issue” reflects our crisis with growing racism and intolerance. Clearly, discrimination against different groups in Egypt is not uncommon whether it was based on gender, religious beliefs, class, etc. Activist Fatma Emam recently wrote an article of her experience as a black Egyptian and the racism she encounters on a daily basis. Her article served as a wakeup call for so many who were unaware of such experiences to “black Egyptians”. Moreover, a common issue often cited by Nubians is that most Egyptians assume they’re Sudanese or African as if Egypt doesn’t have that southern part where darker-skinned people live. The problem highlighted here is not only that we are being racist, but we are also in deep denial about it.\nHowever, it’s not hard to find reasons why the situation has become so deteriorated. We lived under a centuries of authoritarianism and colonialism. Both systems usually play the cards of racism and divide-and-conquer very well; and they deprive societies from progressing towards pluralism. I am not justifying the racism or discrimination. However, I believe that’s a major lesson to be learnt. The more marginalized people are, the more likely people would want to rebel. And we can take South Sudan as an example. When people do not enjoy full participation and self-determination, they no longer want to be part of a country that denies them those rights.\nSecondly, the “Nubian issue” also reflects a crisis with our “elite”, and by elite here I mean our opinion leaders, intellectuals, and media people. We may also add the emerging younger elite that started to gain more visibility after the revolution. A few of the elite come out to speak up about discrimination, racism, and Nubian rights. This can be seen a part of bigger elite crisis reflected in their detachment from the public and their failure to truly engage the public. Even when the revolution began, it was hardly credited for the efforts of the elite. It is sad that the people who should lead the change get trapped by infighting and at many cases follow their own personal interests.\nOne explanation that could be given as to why “the elite” shy away from the Nubian cause is considerations of populism. It seems like the Nubian issue is not “sexy” or “doesn’t sell” for intellectuals, so more favorable topics are preferred. For example, we will not find a lack of “elite” who spoke out against Palestinian displacement, but a handful who spoke against Nubian displacements.\nWe know that activism is more effective when there is more solidarity from different groups. That’s why women issues would be further promoted if more men stand by them, and Christians’ rights would be easier to attain if more Muslims speak up against their violations. It is true that more people now calling for inclusion and representation than ever before, but a strong stance against racism, sectarianism and discrimination is still much needed.\nThirdly, history tells us that many peoples were exploited under many guises. Arab nationalism was one of those ideologies under which lots of abuses and violations against minorities in different Arab countries were justified. The attack on other languages and cultures within Arab nations carried the banner of Arab nationalism. I would personally be happy with Arab union and with breaking geographical and economic barriers between us one day. However, all I can see that from now are big shiny words about Arab brotherhood and solidarity, while none of it is materializing.\nUntil now, Nubians are accused of separationism when they speak up for their rights. And more often than not they’re told it’s not the right time to bring it up. It’s time for us to realize that values of democracy and diversity must be respected and should never be taken away under any ideological guise or notion. Discrimination cannot be condoned or downplayed anymore; we can’t even afford it anymore.\nThanks Fatma Emam for the advice given for producing this piece."}
{"text": "HISTORICAL HIGHLIGHTS OF BAYLOR UNIVERSITY\nBaylor University was founded under the leadership of Judge R.E.B. Baylor, Reverend James Huckins, and Reverend William Milton Tryon, three farsighted pioneer missionaries working through the Texas Baptist Education Society. They, along with other associations, sent representatives in 1848 to create the Baptist State Association, which later became the Baptist State Convention.\n1845-Baylor chartered on February 1 by the Republic of Texas.\n1849-Instruction in law begun.\n1857-School of Law organized.\n1883-School of Law closed.\n1920-School of Law reorganized.\n1886-Baylor merged with Waco University and moved to Waco.\n1903-College of Medicine organized in Dallas by assuming responsibility for operating the University of Dallas Medical Department.\n1943-Moved to Houston.\n1969-Given independent status.\n1903-College of Pharmacy organized in Dallas.\n1930-College of Pharmacy terminated.\n1905-Theological Seminary organized in Waco.\n1907-Separated from Baylor University.\n1910-Moved to Fort Worth.\n1918-College of Dentistry organized in Dallas by taking over the State Dental College which had been founded in 1905.\n1971-The College was separately incorporated in 1971, although Graduate programs continued to be offered through Baylor University.\n1996 -The College became a part of the Texas A&M System on September 1, 1996.\n1919-Baylor Hospital organized in Dallas – now Baylor University Medical Center.\n1919-College of Arts and Sciences organized.\n1919-College of Fine Arts organized, which consisted of offerings in music and in expression.\n1921-Terminated in favor of the present School of Music.\n1919-School of Education organized.\n1920-School of Nursing organized as a diploma-granting program.\n1921-School of Music organized.\n1923-School of Business organized.\n1959-Renamed Hankamer School of Business in honor of Mr. and Mrs. Earl Hankamer of Houston.\n1947-Graduate School organized. Graduate study and degrees had been offered since 1894.\n1950-The School of Nursing reorganized as an academic unit of Baylor University offering a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree.\n2000-Renamed Louise Herrington School of Nursing in honor of Louise Herrington Ornelas.\n1951-Graduate program in hospital administration established in conjunction with the Army Medical\nField Service School, Fort Sam Houston.\n1971-Graduate program in physical therapy added.\n1971-Program in physicianʼs assistant added in collaboration with the Army Medical Field Service School, Fort Sam Houston. Terminated in 1977.\n1972-Name of Army Medical Field Service School changed to Academy of Health Sciences of the U.S. Army.\n1973-Baylor University Memorandum of Agreement with the U.S. Army Academy of Health Sciences affiliated more than 20 programs of instruction with 150 course offerings for academic credit at Baylor University. Terminated in 1977.\n1987-University School organized. Responsibilities were reassigned to other academic units in 1992.\n1993-George W. Truett Theological Seminary organized in Waco.\n1994-Seminary classes begin.\n1995-School of Engineering and Computer Science organized.\n2002-Honors College organized.\n2005-School of Social Work granted independent status from the College of Arts and Sciences."}
{"text": "You have been insulted, your ego is bruised, your\npride is hurt, you have been shown powerless and diminished in some way, and now you are hurt\nand mad as hell! You have just\nbeen humiliated, it is unfair, and you don't like feeling foolish. Humiliation often results\nin violent retaliation and revenge.\nRemember, at the end of the day, the only opinion of yourself that matters is\n- Feeling disrespected.\n- A loss of stature or image.\n- An image change reflecting a decrease in what others believe about your\n- Induced shame\n- To reduce the pride or fail to recognize the\ndignity of another\n- An event perceived to cause loss of honor and induce\n- Feeling powerless.\n- Being unjustly forced into a degrading position.\n- Ridicule, scorn, contempt or other treatment at the hands of others.\nRoot: from Latin humilis, low, lowly, from humus, ground.\nLiterally, “reducing to dirt”.\nSynonyms include losing face, being made to feel like a fool, feeling\nfoolish, hurt, disgraced, indignity, put-down, debased, dejected, denigrated, dishonored,\ndisrespected, dis'ed, defamed,\nhumbled, scorned, slighted, slurred, shamed, mortified, rejected, being laughed\nat. While humility is considered a strength, humiliation is hurtful; the\ndistinction pivots on autonomy.\nAppreciation is the opposite of humiliation.\nHumiliation involves an event that demonstrates unequal\npower in a relationship where you are in\nthe inferior position and unjustly diminished. Often the painful experience is vividly\nremembered for a long time. Your vindictive\npassions are aroused and a humiliated fury may\nresult. There are three involved parties: 1) the perpetrator\nexercising power, 2) the victim who is shown powerless and therefore humiliated,\nand 3) the witness or observers to the event.\nBecause of the powerlessness and lack of control that it exposes, humiliation\nmay lead to anxiety.\nHumility is recognizing and accepting our own limitations based on\nan accurate and modest estimate of our importance and significance. The humble person\nrecognizes he is one among the six billion\ninterdependent people on this earth, earth is one planet circling the sun, and our sun\nis one of a billion stars in\nthe presently known universe. Because of this broad and sound perspective on her\nsignificance, the truly humble person cannot be humiliated.\nHumility reduces our need for self-justification\nand allows us to admit to and learn from our mistakes. Our ego\nHumiliation and Shame\nShame is private, humiliation is public.\nThe essential distinction between humiliation and shame is this: you agree\nwith shame and you disagree with humiliation. Humiliation is suffering an insult. If you judge the insult to be credible,\nthen you feel shame. Others can insult and humiliate\nyou, but you will only feel shame if your self-image is reduced; and that\nrequires your own assessment and decision. A person who is insecure about their\ngenuine stature is more prone to feeling shame as a\nresult of an insult. This is because they give more credibility to what others\nthink of them than to what they think of themselves. This can result in\nPeople believe they deserve their shame, they do not believe they deserve\ntheir humiliation. Humiliation is seen as unjust.\nForms of Humiliation\nHumans have many ways to slight others and humiliate them. For example:\n- Overlooking someone, taking them for granted, ignoring them, giving them\nthe silent treatment, treating them as invisible, or making them wait unnecessarily for you,\n- Rejecting someone, holding them distant, abandoned, or isolated,\n- Withholding acknowledgement, denying recognition, manipulating\n- Denying someone basic social amenities, needs, or human\n- Manipulating people or treating them like objects (it) or animals, rather\nthan as a person (thou).\n- Treating people unfairly,\n- Domination, control, manipulation, abandonment,\n- Threats or abuse including: verbal (e.g. name calling), physical, psychological, or sexual,\n- Assault, attack, or injury\n- Reduction in rank, responsibility, role, title, positional power, or\n- Betrayal, or being cheated, lied to, defrauded, suckered, or duped,\n- Being laughed at, mocked, teased, ridiculed, given a dirty look, spit on, or made\nto look stupid or foolish.\n- Being the victim of a practical joke, prank, or confidence scheme.\n- False accusation or insinuation,\n- Public shame, disrespect, or being dis'ed, downgraded, defeated, or\n- Forced nakedness,\n- Rape or incest,\n- Seeing your love interest flirt with another, induced jealousy, violating\nyour love interest, cuckolding,\n- Seeing your wife, girlfriend, sister, or daughter sexually violated,\n- Poverty, unemployment, bad investments, debt, bankruptcy, foreclosure, imprisonment, homelessness, punishment,\n- Denigration of a person's values,\nbeliefs, heritage, race, gender,\nappearance, characteristics, or affiliations,\n- Dependency, especially on weaker people,\n- Losing a dominance contest. Being\nforced to submit.\n- Trespass such as violating privacy or other boundaries,\n- Violating, denying, or suppressing\n- Losing basic personal freedoms such a mobility, access, or autonomy; being\ncontrolled, dominated, intruded on, exploited, or manipulated,\n- Diminished competency resulting from being disabled, immobilized, tricked,\nweakened, trapped, mislead, thwarted goals, opposed, sabotage, or let down.\n- Diminished resources resulting from being defrauded, robbed, cheated,\nevicted, or being deprived of privileges, or rights,\n- Having safety or security reduced by intimidation or threat,\n- Dismissing, discounting, or silencing your story,\n- Being treated as an equal by a lower stature person.\nThe Paradox of Humiliation\nAn insult usually hurts, but it is important to resolve in your own\nmind, based on evidence, why the insult hurts. What\nloss does it represent to you? Decide if the insult:\n- is an unjustified attack that does not decrease your stature, diminish your\nself-image, nor tarnish your public image or reputation, or\n- is justified and has diminished your public image or reputation, or\n- is justified and has diminished or revised your self-image.\nBegin the analysis by deciding if the insult is based on information\nthat accurately represents you. Then reflect and consider if your\nimage accurately represents your stature. If you decide the insult is unjustified\nthen you can simply ignore it (“don't take the bait”) or you can describe why it\nis unfair and ask your offender for an\napology. If your public image exceeds your stature, then\nthe insult may a justifiable retaliation for your arrogance and\nit may contain an important message you can learn from. If the insult is\njustified it may cause you to feel\nshame and then lead you to revise your\nbetter align it with your stature. The insult is never\njustified if it is an attempt to reduce your stature below the threshold of human\nPublic Image, Self-Image, Stature, and Revenge\nFor an insult to diminish your public image, the\npublic has to believe it is true. For an insult to diminish your\nself-image or self-esteem, you have to believe it is\ntrue. An insult cannot diminish your stature because\nyour self-image is not your self. An insult may cause you to reassess your\nself-image or self-esteem.\nRevenge is often sought as a remedy for\nhumiliation; perhaps using the phrase “protecting honor” as justification. But\nrevenge cannot be an effective remedy for humiliation, because it does nothing\nto increase your stature.\nHumiliation is more demeaning and hurtful than “taking offense” at something.\n“Taking offense” is cognitive; you have questioned, disagreed with, or attacked\nmy beliefs and perhaps my values. We disagree, and I\nthink you are wrong. Offense is intellectual; it is about what I think.\n“Humiliation” is visceral; you have attacked me, my being, my\nself, and made me feel foolish about who I am. The attack is personal and\ncredible enough that you have caused me to doubt my own worth, and thereby\ninduced my shame. Humiliation is existential; it is\nabout who I am.\nHumiliation has been linked to academic failure, low\nself-esteem, social isolation,\nconflict, delinquency, abuse, discrimination,\ndepression, learned helplessness, social\ndisruption, torture, and even death. People in power use humiliation as a form\nof social control; it is a common tool of oppression. The fear of humiliation is\nalso a powerful motivating force.\nAlthough shame and humiliation are\nhuman universals, the particular circumstances\nand events that cause humiliation can vary greatly from one culture to the next.\nAn event that is benign in one culture may cause great offense, shame, and\nhumiliation in another. For example:\n- Under Islamic law a woman who spends time alone with an unrelated man\nbrings great shame to her family.\nVictims of humiliation may be able to achieve resolution through either of\ntwo paths. The first is to reappraise the\nhumiliating experience in some way that acknowledges the victim's strength and ability\nto cope with a difficult situation. This approach\nincreases self-confidence and diminishes the fear of humiliation. The second\npath is to leave the degrading environment and find a more appreciative\n- “The most dangerous men on earth are those who are\nafraid they are wimps.” ~ James Gilligan\n- “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” ~\n- “The truly humble person cannot be humiliated.” ~ Donald Klein\n- “The fear of humiliation appears to be one of the most powerful\nmotivators in individual and collective human behavior.” ~ Donald Klein\n- “Persistent humiliation robs you of the vantage of rebellion.” ~ M.\n- “Ridicule is man's most potent weapon.” ~\n- “The difference between how a person treats the powerless versus the\npowerful is as good a measure of human character as I know.” ~ Robert I.\n- “When you dismiss my story you dismiss who I am; you diminish me.” ~\nLeland R. Beaumont\nOn Apology, by Aaron Lazare\nSomebodies and Nobodies: Overcoming the Abuse of Rank, by Robert W. Fuller\nViolence, by James\nThe No Asshole Rule,\nby Robert I. Sutton\nThreatened Egotism to Violence and Aggression: The Dark Side of High\nSelf-Esteem, Psychology Review, 1996, Vol. 103, No. 1, 5-33, by\nRoy F. Baumeister, Laura Smart, Joseph M. Boden\nHumiliation and Assistance: Telling the Truth About Power, Telling a\nNew Story, by Linda M. Hartling, Wellesley College\nThe Humiliation Dynamic,\nDonald C. Klein, Ph.D., The Union Institute\nHumiliation: Assessing the Specter of Derision, Degradation, and\nDebasement, Linda M. Hartling (1995) Doctoral\ndissertation. Cincinnati, OH: Union Institute Graduate School."}
{"text": "January 18, 1813\nJoseph Farwell Glidden: The Father of Barbed Wire\nJoseph Farwell Glidden was born on January 18, 1813, and became known as the \"Father of Barbed Wire.\" In 1874, Glidden was issued patent #157,124 for the first wire technology that was capable of restraining cattle. While his barbed wire was neither the first nor the last, it was ruled the best after a three year legal battle."}
{"text": "By Margaret Southern\nFor many people in the United States, food comes from the grocery store. Most Americans would be hard pressed to determine the real origins of much of the food we eat. But residents of the Cayos Cochinos islands off the northern coast of Honduras know exactly where their food comes from: the ocean outside their doors.\nHere, it’s not just their stomachs that rely on the bounty of the ocean—it’s almost their entire economy. But overfishing and industrial fishing continues to put pressure on their marine resources. The Nature Conservancy is working with partners and locals to protect their reefs through education, conservation and income-generating projects.\nIn 2007, the Conservancy and the Cayos Cochinos Foundation identified almost 20 income-generating projects with the goal of increasing income for households that depend heavily on the reef.\nOne of these projects was the construction of a small tourist complex managed by the East End community. The community hopes to attract tourists with two eco-friendly cabins, which were built with outside funding, and an ocean-view restaurant serving traditional Garifuna meals, funded by the Conservancy. The Conservancy is connecting the community with tourism service providers to promote best practices and ensure the protection of conservation targets.\nThe Cayos Cochinos Foundation, along with the Conservancy and other groups, has also worked with the communities to establish management plans that encourage no-take zones and the construction of artificial reefs that serve as nurseries for small fish. And through other partnerships, laws have been passed that will eventually prohibit industrial fishing around the marine protected area.\nAll of these initiatives are important in creating sustainability in the reefs and communities of Cayos Cochinos. According to Francisco Velasquez, a school teacher in East End, if it weren’t for the Conservancy, they wouldn’t still be living on that island.\n“Our livelihood depends on fishing, but in the past large ships would come in and sweep the whole ocean clear of fish. There was nothing left for us to eat,” Velasquez said. “But now with the conservation of this area the fish are returning, and through the tourism project we are creating new solutions to increase our income and improve our lives.”\nIn Cayos Cochinos, these projects would not have been possible without Anthony Ives. A former San Francisco stock trader who at one point was managing 50 billion dollars for the state of California, Ives found his way to Honduras after Sept. 11 through the Peace Corps. He created the Foundation Heart Ventures-Grupo de Apoyo al Desarollo (IHV-GAD) to have a focus on education, conservation and job creation, with the idea that it is not possible to separate the three objectives.\n“We have found that an integrated approach is much more sustainable, and we’re very happy that the Conservancy shares our long-term vision to sustainable conservation,” Ives said. “We hope to convince other organizations that through an integrated approach that involves education, we can achieve sustainable development while focusing on the environment.”January 03, 2011"}
{"text": "Docs On Call: Blogs\nMultiple Sclerosis in Children\nStory Updated: Feb 1, 2013\nA new study suggests obese girls may be at increased risk for multiple sclerosis.\nResearchers in California identified 75 children, aged 2 to 18, who had been diagnosed with MS. Records of body mass index before symptoms appeared were also accessed.\nThe children with MS were then compared to more than 900-thousand children without the disease.\nAll were grouped by weight - normal, overweight, moderately obese or extremely obese.\nNearly 51-percent of the children with MS were overweight or obese, compared to 37-percent of the children who did not have MS.\nThe risk of developing MS was more than 1-and-half times higher for overweight girls compared to normal weight girls nearly 1-point-8 times higher in moderately obese girls- and nearly four times higher in extremely obese girls.\nThe same association was not found in boys.\nOnce considered rare in children, multiple sclerosis\nhas become more common, especially in teenage girls. Researchers say an increase in childhood obesity may be one cause.\nI'm Dr. Cindy Haines of HealthDay TV with the news doctors are reading health news for healthier living."}
{"text": "1938 Buick Y Job\nConcept cars have been a mainstay of automotive design and marketing for more than a century. While Henry Leland's Osceola is considered the world's first concept car that actually made it into production, the 1938 Buick Y Job is another early example of a true concept car.\nBuilt under the direction of General Motors' first design director, Harley Earl, the Y-Job was never intended for production but instead foreshadowed the styling and engineering cues Earl and his team hoped to use on future GM vehicles. In its day, the Y-Job earned praise for its modern style that included integrated fenders, hidden headlamps, and no running boards. The positive reaction helped several of its design cues to make it into production, including the stubby tail fins that would appear on the iconic 1948 Cadillacs and the grille design that continues to influence Buick design.\nAlthough the Y-Job didn't make production, it remains an example of the good a concept car can do for a company and the industry. We can't help but wonder what would have happened, though, if Buick put the Y-Job into production. The company would have been in an even better position postwar."}
{"text": "China has worked actively and seriously to tackle global climate change and build capacity to respond to it. We believe that every country has a stake in dealing with climate change and every country has a responsibility for the safety of our planet. China is at a critical stage of building a moderately prosperous society on all fronts, and a key stage of accelerated industrialization and urbanization. Yet, despite the huge task of developing the economy and improving people’s lives, we have joined global actions to tackle climate change with the utmost resolve and a most active attitude, and have acted in line with the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities established by the United Nations. China voluntarily stepped up efforts to eliminate backward capacity in 2007, and has since closed a large number of heavily polluting small coal-fired power plants, small coal mines and enterprises in the steel, cement, paper-making, chemical and printing and dyeing sectors. Moreover, in 2009, China played a positive role in the success of the Copenhagen conference on climate change and the ultimate conclusion of the Copenhagen Accord. In keeping with the requirements of the Copenhagen Accord, we have provided the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change with information on China’s voluntary actions on emissions reduction and joined the list of countries supporting the Copenhagen Accord.\nThe targets released by China last year for greenhouse gas emissions control require that by 2020, CO2 emissions per unit of GDP should go down by 40% - 45% from the 2005 level, non-fossil energy should make up about 15% of primary energy consumption, and forest coverage should increase by 40 million hectares and forest stock volume by 1.3 billion cubic meters, both from the 2005 level. The measure to lower energy consumption alone will help save 620 million tons of standard coal in energy consumption in the next five years, which will be equivalent to the reduction of 1.5 billion tons of CO2 emissions. This is what China has done to step up the shift in economic development mode and economic restructuring. It contributes positively to Asia’s and the global effort to tackle climate change.\nLadies and Gentlemen,\nGreen and sustainable development represents the trend of our times. To achieve green and sustainable development in Asia and beyond and ensure the sustainable development of resources and the environment such as the air, fresh water, ocean, land and forest, which are all vital to human survival, we countries in Asia should strive to balance economic growth, social development and environmental protection. To that end, we wish to work with other Asian countries and make further efforts in the following six areas.\nFirst, shift development mode and strive for green development. To accelerate the shift in economic development mode and economic restructuring provides an important precondition for our efforts to actively respond to climate change, achieve green development and secure the sustainable development of the population, resources and the environment. It is the shared responsibility of governments and enterprises of all countries in Asia and around the world. We should actively promote a conservation culture and raise awareness for environmental protection. We need to make sure that the concept of green development, green consumption and a green lifestyle and the commitment to taking good care of Planet Earth, our common home are embedded in the life of every citizen in society.\nSecond, value the importance of science and technology as the backing of innovation and development. We Asian countries have a long way to go before we reach the advanced level in high-tech-powered energy consumption reduction and improvement of energy and resource efficiency. Yet, this means we have a huge potential to catch up. It is imperative for us to quicken the pace of low-carbon technology development, promote energy efficient technologies and raise the proportion of new and renewable energies in our energy mix so as to provide a strong scientific and technological backing for green and sustainable development of Asian countries. As for developed countries, they should facilitate technology transfer and share technologies with developing countries on the basis of proper protection of intellectual property rights.\nThird, open wider to the outside world and realize harmonious development. In such an open world as ours, development of Asian countries and development of the world are simply inseparable. It is important that we open our markets even wider, firmly oppose and resist protectionism in all forms and uphold a fair, free and open global trade and investment system. At the same time, we should give full play to the role of regional and sub-regional dialogue and cooperation mechanisms in Asia to promote harmonious and sustainable development of Asia and the world.\nFourth, strengthen cooperation and sustain common development. Pragmatic, mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation is a sure choice of all Asian countries if we are to realize sustainable development. No country could stay away from or manage to meet on its own severe challenges like the international financial crisis, climate change and energy and resources security. We should continue to strengthen macro-economic policy coordination and vigorously promote international cooperation in emerging industries, especially in energy conservation, emissions reduction, environmental protection and development of new energy sources to jointly promote sustainable development of the Asian economy and the world economy as a whole.\nFifth, work vigorously to eradicate poverty and gradually achieve balanced development. A major root cause for the loss of balance in the world economy is the seriously uneven development between the North and the South. Today, 900 million people in Asia, or roughly one fourth of the entire Asian population, are living below the 1.25 dollars a day poverty line. We call for greater efforts to improve the international mechanisms designed to promote balanced development, and to scale up assistance from developed countries to developing countries, strengthen South-South cooperation, North-South cooperation and facilitate attainment of the UN Millennium Development Goals. This will ensure that sustainable development brings real benefits to poor regions, poor countries and poor peoples.\nSixth, bring forth more talents to promote comprehensive development. The ultimate goal of green and sustainable development is to improve people’s living environment, better their lives and promote their comprehensive development. Success in this regard depends, to a large extent, on the emergence of talents with an innovative spirit. We need to build institutions, mechanisms and a social environment to help people bring out the best of their talents, and to intensify education and training of professionals of various kinds. This will ensure that as Asia achieves green and sustainable development, our people will enjoy comprehensive development.\nLadies and Gentlemen,\nWe demonstrated solidarity as we rose up together to the international financial crisis in 2009. Let us carry forward this great spirit, build up consensus, strengthen unity and cooperation and explore a path of green and sustainable development. This benefits Asia. It benefits the world, too.\nIn conclusion, I wish this annual conference of the Boao Forum for Asia a complete success."}
{"text": "There is new scientific evidence to support the time-honored advice to students cramming for exams to get themselves a good night's sleep after studying.\nResearchers who analyzed brain activity in sleeping volunteers who had learned to navigate through a computer-generated virtual town have discovered evidence that spatial memories are consolidated during deep sleep.\nAlso, the researchers say that they have shown for the first time that the activity level in the brain's learning center, the hippocampus, correlates with the improvement in memory performance when the subjects are tested the next day.\nAccording to Philippe Peigneux and his colleagues, \"A growing body of experimental evidence shows the influence of sleep on the consolidation of recent memory traces. The underlying hypothesis posits that the information that is acquired during wakefulness is actively altered, restructured, and strengthened during sleep.\"\nHowever, they said, exploring this consolidation process was difficult because of the complexities of both sleep and memory. For example, sleep consists of two major stages -- rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and non rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. Evidence from animal studies of learning and sleep indicated that spatial memories seem to be replayed in the hippocampus during the deep \"slow wave sleep\" (SWS) during the NREM sleep stage.\nPeigneux and his colleagues explored the memory consolidation process by asking volunteers to learn the layout of a virtual town that the researchers adapted from a popular computer game. They then tested the subjects on their knowledge of the town by challenging them to quickly find routes through the town to specific locations.\nThe researchers divided the subjects into three experimental groups:\n- one that underwent training in the virtual town and whose brains were scanned during testing while they were awake;\n- one that underwent training and testing and whose brains were then scanned during sleep;\n- one that did not undergo any training and whose brains were scanned.\nThe researchers measured the subjects' brain activity using positron emission tomography (PET) to measure blood flow in the subjects' brain regions. In PET, test subjects receive a harmless dose of radioactive tracer, and their brains are scanned as the tracer infuses through the brain. Blood flow through specific brain structures constitutes a measure of activity in that structure.\nThe researchers found that the first group -- compared to the non-trained group -- showed greater activity in their hippocampus and an adjacent learning-related region as they took the route tests, with greater activity correlated with better performance. The group scanned during sleep after testing also showed greater hippocampal brain activity during sleep, compared to the non-trained group.\nImportantly, when the researchers compared the hippocampal activity during SWS sleep in the trained group and the non-trained group, they found that the first group showed higher activity.\nNext, the researchers tested the trained group after their sleep session and compared their performance with the brain activity measured during sleep. They found that the higher the gain in post-sleep performance, the higher had been their NREM brain activity during sleep. No such correlation was found in REM brain activity.\nTo ensure that they were, indeed, measuring brain activity due to spatial processing, Peigneux and his colleagues also compared brain activity data from the spatially trained group with data from a fourth group that had only taken a reaction time test. In that test, the subjects' brains were scanned as they pressed a key as fast and accurately as possible corresponding to the location of a dot on a computer screen.\nThus, the data from the fourth group allowed the researchers to distinguish brain activity changes due to spatial processing from those due to general mental processing. The researchers' comparisons of the brain activity in the groups confirmed that the hippocampal activity they detected was due to spatial processing.\n\"Our results provide critical evidence that spatial memory traces are processed during NREM sleep in humans,\" wrote the scientists. \"Moreover, the hippocampal activity during sleep is shown to correlate with the improvement in memory performance on the next day. To the extent of our knowledge, this effect has not yet been reported in the animal hippocampus.\"\nSource: Eurekalert & othersLast reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 21 Feb 2009\nPublished on PsychCentral.com. All rights reserved.\nHope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul.\n-- Emily Dickinson"}
{"text": "Discovered in 1988, the Roman Hippodrome in Beirut is situated in Wadi Abou Jmil, next to the newly renovated Jewish Synagogue in Downtown Beirut. This monument, dating back for thousands of years, now risks to be destroyed.\nThe hippodrome is considered, along with the Roman Road and Baths, as one of the most important remaining relics of the Byzantine and Roman era. It spreads over a total area of 3500 m2.\nRequests for construction projects in the hippodrome’s location have been ongoing since the monument’s discovery but were constantly refused by former ministers of culture of which we name Tarek Metri, Tamam Salam and Salim Warde. In fact, Tamam Salam had even issued a decree banning any work on the hippodrome’s site, effectively protecting it by law. Salim Warde did not contest the decree. Current minister of culture Gabriel Layoun authorized constructions to commence.\nWhen it comes to ancient sites in cities that have lots of them, such as Beirut, the current adopted approach towards these sites is called a “mitigation approach” which requires that the incorporation of the monuments in modern plans does not affect those monuments in any way whatsoever. The current approval by minister Layoun does not demand such an approach to be adopted. The monument will have one of its main walls dismantled and taken out of location. Why? to build a fancy new high-rise instead. Minister Layoun sees nothing wrong with this. In fact, displacing ruins is never done unless due to some extreme circumstances. I highly believe whatever Solidere has in store for the land is considered an “extreme circumstance.”\nThe Roman Hippodrome in downtown Beirut is considered as one of the best preserved not only in Lebanon, but in the world. It is also the fifth to be discovered in the Middle East. In fact, a report (Arabic) by the General Director of Ruins in Lebanon, Frederick Al Husseini, spoke about the importance of the monument as one that has been talked about in various ancient books. It has also been correlated with Beirut’s infamous ancient Law School. He speaks about the various structures that are still preserved and only needing some restoration to be fully exposed. He called the monument as a highly important site for Lebanon and the world and is one of Beirut’s main facilities from the Byzantine and Roman eras, suggesting to work on preserving and making this site one of Beirut’s important cultural and touristic locations. His report dates back from 2008.\nMP Michel Aoun, the head of the party of which Gabriel Layoun is part, defended his minsiter’s position by saying that: “there are a lot of discrepancies between Solidere and us. Therefore, a minister from our party cannot be subjected to Solidere. Minister Layoun found a way, which is adopted internationally, to incorporate ancient sites with newer ones… So I hope that media outlets do not discuss this issue in a way that would raise suspicion.”\nWith all due respect to Mr. Aoun and his minister but endangering Beirut’s culture to strip away even more of the identity that makes it Beirut is not something that should concern him or Solidere. What’s happening is a cultural crime to the entirety of the Lebanese population, one where the interests of meaningless politicians becomes irrelevant. Besides, for a party that has been anti-Solidere for years, I find it highly hypocritical that they are allowing Solidere to dismantle the Roman Hippodrome.\nThe conclusion is: never has a hippodrome been dismantled and displaced in any parts of the world. Beirut’s hippodrome will effectively become part of the parking of the high-rise to be built in its place. No mitigation approach will be adopted here. It is only but a diversion until people forget and plans go well underway in secrecy. But the time for us to be silent about this blatant persecution of our history cannot continue.\nIf there’s anything that we can do is let the issue propagate as much as we can. There shouldn’t be a Lebanese person in the 10452 km2 that remains clueless about any endangered monument for that matter. Sadly enough, this goes beyond the hippodrome. We have become so accustomed to the reality of it that we’ve become very submissive: the ancient Phoenician port is well behind us, there are constructions around the ancient Phoenician port of Tyre and the city itself risks of being removed off UNESCO’s list for Cultural Heritage Sites.\nThe land on which ancient monuments are built doesn’t belong to Solidere, to the Ministry of Culture or to any other contractor – no matter how much they’ve paid to buy it. It belongs to the Lebanese people in their entirety. When you realize that of the 200 sites uncovered at Solidere, those that have remained intact can be counted with the fingers of one hand, the reality becomes haunting. It’s about time we rise to our rights. Beirut’s hippodrome will not be destroyed."}
{"text": "The effect of monocular depth cues on the detection of moving objects by a moving observer\nAs observers move through the environment, they must detect moving objects. Previously, we showed that observers can use 2D image speed to detect moving objects in the radial optic flow field generated by a moving observer. However, a difference in image speed may signal either a moving object or a depth difference between stationary objects. Adding depth information may remove this ambiguity. We tested observers' ability to detect a moving object in scenes that contained increasingly salient monocular depth cues. We simulated observer motion in a straight line at a speed of 3 m/sec toward a scene that consisted of a textured ground plane with 8 objects located 12 m from the observer. In two conditions the objects were featureless red disks (diameter: 0.4 m) located on the horizontal midline that were either separate from the ground plane (condition 1) or connected to it with a thin line, giving a cue to distance (condition 2). In condition 3, the objects were textured blocks (width: 0.55 m; height: 1.6 m) located on the ground plane, giving further cues to depth. In half the trials one object moved faster (or slower) than the other objects in the scene. The speed differences ranged from 10% to 100% of the image speed of non-targets. Each trial lasted 1 sec. Observers indicated with a key press whether or not the scene contained a moving object. Thresholds were computed by fitting the data with a sigmoidal curve and determining the percent speed difference that led to 75% accuracy. For the 6 subjects tested, the results show a significant effect of scene condition, with average threshold speed changes of 43%, 37% and 25% for conditions 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Thus, monocular depth cues aid the detection of moving objects by moving observers."}
{"text": "Basics: What is the GRE®?\nThe Graduate Record Examination (GRE®) is a standardized test used by graduate programs to help determine who gets in and who receives grants and fellowships. The exam comes in two types: the general exam, which covers a range of non-specific skills developed over a long period of time and years of schooling, and the subject tests, which test depth of knowledge in eight different fields. Worldwide, about half a million people take the general test each year, while a much smaller number takes the subject exams.\nThe general test is computer-based and consists of three sections, verbal, quantitative, and analytical writing. Verbal and quant are each scored on a scale of 130-170, in 1-point increments, plus a percentile rank. The writing section is scored on a scale of 0-6, in half-point increments. The test does not cover specifics in any field of study, but rather a set of skills thought to be important for prospective grad students.\nThe subject tests, on the other hand, are paper-based and administered 3 times a year. Unlike the general test, the subject test assumes extensive knowledge. Tests cover the following areas: Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology; Biology; Chemistry; Computer Science; Literature in English; Mathematics; Physics; and Psychology. To determine whether you should take the general test or one of these subject-specific exams, you’ll need to check with the programs where you’re applying. For any field without a subject test, you’ll take the general exam.\nNext Basics article: GRE® Test Format"}
{"text": "Forty years ago, the Navajo Nation and Southern Ute tribes languished side by side, mired in high unemployment and poverty.\nToday, worth billions, the Southern Ute Indian Tribe is one of the richest in the United States, while the Navajo still suffer as one of the most impoverished communities in the country.\nThe difference? Energy.\nWhile the Southern Utes have natural gas, the Navajo Nation has coal, which has for decades been extracted to feed various large-scale power plants, including in the Four Corners. But that revenue has come under threat by tightening air-quality regulations. At the same time, natural gas, a cleaner fuel source for generating electricity, has grown cheaper and more abundant because of hydraulic fracturing.\nThe shift has left Navajo leaders in a quandary: either continue investing in coal in the hopes it will remain a significant fuel source, or cut their losses and choose another investment.\nThe tribe is staking its future on coal.\nThe Navajo Nation is in negotiations to buy the Navajo Mine from BHP Billiton in 2016 when BHP's lease expires.\nOpponents say all the deal will do is saddle the tribe with a huge environmental cleanup. Tribal leaders say coal is a viable fuel source, and buying the Navajo Mine will save jobs and provide a foundation for the tribe to build a formidable energy portfolio similar to the Southern Utes.\nTribal leaders' plans will have far-reaching effects, not only for members – some of whom still live without electricity or plumbing – but also for residents throughout the region, who have seen haze cloud their views and threaten their health.\n“We see how Southern Ute is using natural resources to advantage the tribe. We think they're doing well as far as adapting with the times,” said Navajo member Dailan Long, whose family lives near the Navajo Mine that is close to Fruitland on Navajo land.\n“I definitely see a much older mind-set managing our economy, which has gotten us to the point where we are now. I think they (the Navajo leaders) could take a much more rational and logical approach to energy alternatives,” said Long, who formerly worked for Diné Citizens Against Ruining Our Environment, a Navajo environmental-activist organization.\nThe fossil fuel of the future\nDust billows at the Navajo Mine as a dragline excavator scoops dirt into its bucket and transfers it into a pile nearby, exposing coal for a bulldozer to grab.\nWorkers pour an ammonium-nitrate fuel-oil mixture into holes dug into the side of the mine to later blow up sections to reveal more coal in its depths.\nThe coal mine accounted for $53.6 million in direct revenue in 2012, about $110 million when taking into account lease and royalty revenue.\nThe 33,000-acre surface mine supplies the Four Corners Power Plant, about nine miles north, with about 8 million tons of coal a year.\nBHP and Arizona Public Service approached Navajo Nation this summer about buying the Navajo Mine after the two entities failed to reach an agreement over coal prices, said Erny Zah, spokesman for the Navajo Nation president.\nUnder the preliminary negotiations, the tribe would give any federal and state tax revenue to BHP until 2016, when BHP's lease ends to pay for the mine, Zah said.\nIt's unclear who would take on the legal liabilities associated with eventual mandatory cleanup of the mine. The Navajo Nation emphatically says the tribe will not be responsible, and BHP says the issue is still part of the negotiations.\nGoing against the national energy tide\nWhile global demand for coal remains high, coal production in the United States dropped about 7 percent in 2012, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Coal still provided 42 percent of the nation's electricity in 2011, but just four years ago, it was providing nearly half.\n“If we're talking about coal development and revenue as a major source of funding for the tribe, why didn't they negotiate this (sale) decades ago?” Long said.\nHe believes BHP wants to walk away from the cleanup responsibilities and leave the tribe with the bill.\n“I think that it's definitely an exit strategy on behalf of BHP,” he said.\nIn contrast, the Southern Utes have focused on energy sources that will likely grow.\nIn 2008, the Southern Utes formed a separate company to manage its new-energy investments that include wind farms and biofuel projects.\nThe U.S. Energy Information Administration expects coal power to decline to 35 percent of total American electricity generation by 2040. Natural gas is expected to generate 30 percent of the nation's electricity within three decades.\nNavajo Nation tribal officials acknowledge the new energy realities and have invested in alternatives, especially natural gas. Oil and gas contributed $48 million in revenue to the tribe in 2012.\nThe tribe also has invested in an 850-megawatt wind farm.\nBut coal will nonetheless remain the centerpiece of Navajo Nation's energy portfolio moving forward.\n“We want to make sure coal is part of the picture for at least another couple of decades, if not longer,” Zah said.\nBut tightening environmental regulations that shutter coal-fired power plants could further strangle coal production.\nMike Eisenfeld and other environmental activists don't anticipate the Four Corners Power Plant will remain open for more than 10 years, as federal scrutiny of its environmental impact increases.\n“I don't think they're sustainable now, and the sooner we figure out a transition plan to wean ourselves from big coal plants the better,” said Eisenfeld, New Mexico energy coordinator for the San Juan Citizen's Alliance.\nAPS is decommissioning its three oldest generating units at the Four Corners Power Plant rather than install new equipment to meet EPA regulations. This will result in a 30 percent reduction in production at Navajo Mine and layoffs at both the mine and power plant.\nFor a tribe with a roughly 50 percent unemployment rate and more than 50 percent of its members living below the poverty level, the closure will be a painful blow.\n“One of the reasons we're exploring the possibility of taking over Navajo Mine is we're looking at saving jobs at the mine and also at the power plant because one cannot exist without the other,” Zah said.\nIf the power plant closes, Navajo Mine may have to shut its doors. This was the fate of the Black Mesa Mine in 2006 after the Mohave Generating Station, near Laughlin, Nev., which it supplied, shut down.\nNavajo Nation's other plans to secure a future for its coal haven't been met with much success.\nIn 2003, The Navajo Nation proposed a new coal-fired power plant called the Desert Rock Energy Project, which would be supplied by an expanded Navajo Mine.\nUnder the project, international energy developer Sithe Global Power would have built a new 1,500-megawatt power plant on Navajo land about 25 miles outside Farmington. The plant would have been among the largest in the country, and it would have provided electricity for 1.5 million customers.\nThe tribe heralded the power plant as an economic victory, saying it would provide 400 jobs at the Desert Rock power plant, 200 additional jobs at Navajo Mine and $50 million in annual revenue – almost half of Navajo Nation's current total coal revenue.\nThe EPA approved Desert Rock in 2008 and touted it as “state-of-the-art,” but the agency reconsidered the project's air permit after New Mexico joined environmental groups in appealing the EPA's initial approval. In 2009, the EPA reversed its decision and revoked the air permit.\nFor the Navajos, losing the project was a crushing blow.\n“(Navajo Nation) viewed Desert Rock as a huge economic opportunity,” said Tom Shipps, an Indian law lawyer who works for Colorado's Southern Ute tribe. “The technology employed at Desert Rock could have been great improvements. Concerns about the environment drove a lot of the criticism, especially around here.”\nThe project remains in the back of tribal leader's minds, Zah said. One idea is to convert it to a natural-gas plant.\nStill, the question of what to do with the Navajo Mine would remain if a new power plant were to run on natural gas.\nIn the meantime, coal is the focus of the tribe's energy strategy.\nBHP gives a qualified endorsement of that strategy.\n“Coal will continue to be an important part of meeting the energy needs of the U.S.,” Norman Benally, spokesperson for BHP, said. “Granted there are mandates coming from the EPA that are limiting the use of coal and in some areas shutting down power plants that generate electricity. But we believe coal will be part of the energy portfolio, though limited, until such time that renewable energies have or will become viable.”"}
{"text": "A surprising amount of what we think we know about the brain comes from neuropsychology; famous case studies such as HM have informed theories of memory so that they include short and long term storage, which are separable, and so on. These case studies can have a profound effect on research; my favourite story, though, was about a memory researcher who had a skiing accident and temporarily developed retrograde amnesia - he couldn't remember anything except that there was this guy in Connecticut (HM) who couldn't remember things either!\nI always enjoyed classes in neuropsychology; the case studies are always fascinating. But they are deeply limited in what they can actually tell us about the brain. First, they are typically single patient case studies, which restricts how general the conclusions are. Second, they are data from damaged brains; the fairly linear assumption that some localised function has been subtracted out is simply not true, and the damage will have had complex effects on distributed functional networks.Third, the damage is never straight-forward, because these almost all come from accidents or strokes (HM's surgery being a rare example of more detail being known). This has not stopped the field being very excited by these cases, though, and from basing a lot of theory on these patterns of deficits.\nIn movement research, the most famous neuropsychology case study is Patient DF She suffered bilateral damage along the ventral stream of visual processing (James et al, 2003). The effect was visual form agnosia: she is able to control her actions with respect to objects, but cannot describe or recognise these objects verbally. Crucially, her accident did not damage her parietal lobe; specifically, the dorsal stream of visual processing was left intact. These two streams are well defined anatomical pathways leading out of primary visual cortex, and were first described by Ungerleider & Mishkin, 1982). DF's pattern of deficits led Mel Goodale and David Milner (Goodale & Milner, 1992) to suggest functional roles for these streams. The ventral stream, they suggested, was for perception - things like object and scene recognition. The dorsal stream, in contrast, was for perception-for-action, and used visual information for the online control of action. This perception-action hypothesis has been hugely dominant in the field, and the theory rests heavily on DF's shoulders.\nRecently, Thomas Schenk (2012a) published some data which claims to show that DF's visually guided reaching is not normal if she doesn't have access to haptic feedback about the object. His data suggests that the only reason she succeeds at reaching while failing judgment tasks is that haptic information is only normally available in the former case. If correct, this is actually quite a shot across the bow of the perception vs perception-for-action work; naturally Goodale and Milner don't buy it, and have published a reply to which Schenk has then replied.\nI like seeing these arguments happen in the literature; but to be honest, the time scale is too slow. Schenk publishes, then Milner et al get to reply and Schenk gets right of reply to that. They may or may not iterate again and it's always left as 'we agree to disagree'. But these critiques have answers, and I think a blog comment feed might be the right place to work through the various cycles of suggestions and rebuttals until the obviously wrong things have been weeded out. It would also provide a place for other interested parties to weigh in. So if Schenk, Milner and Goodale (and anyone else!) feel like using the comments for this post or another made to purpose to bang around ideas until an obvious experiment or analysis pops out, please feel free!\nSchenk (2012a): Patient DF and haptic feedback\nThe classic result from DF that inspired the Goodale and Milner account has two parts (a dissociation). When DF is asked to reach for an object, she can do so well and she shows appropriate pre-shaping of her hand which scales correctly with the size of the object. This suggests she has intact visual perception-for-action. However, if you ask her to judge the size of the object without reaching for it, she cannot do it; she has selectively impaired visual perception. Schenk ran the following experiments on DF and to demonstrate that her unimpaired reaching is not because of intact visual perception-for-action, but rather because of haptic feedback from real objects.\n'Perception': these are the tasks DF typically fails due to her visual form agnosia, and she fails them here too.\n- Size discrimination: Choose the largest of two objects\n- Manual estimation: Judge the size of an object by shaping your hand correctly\n- Standard grasping: Reach to grasp an object in the mirror and there is actually an object there (vision + haptic information match)\n- Grasping without haptic feedback: Reach for the reflection but there is no actual object there.\n- Grasping with intermittent haptic feedback: there was an object present on half the trials; these were scattered randomly throughout the session and a light cued participants when the object would be present.\n- Grasping with dissociated positions: participants saw an object in the middle location, were asked to reach for an object at the far position, and there was a real object there.\n|Figure 1. Grip performance for controls (open circles) and DF (red diamonds).|\nMilner, Ganel & Goodale (2012)\nUnsurprisingly, Milner et al (2012) do not agree that these data cast doubt on the perception-action hypothesis about the function of the dorsal and ventral streams. They make the following criticisms:\n- They suggest that \"so-called 'haptic feedback'\" (to quote the paper) from trial n could only inform a reach on trial n+1 if the objects were the same size in both trials; object size was randomised across trials, however.\n- They then claim that Schenk's interpretation means he thinks DF's reaches are prepared on the basis of previous haptic, rather than current visual information. Therefore, they suggest, Schenk must make 'the inescapable prediction' that a reach on trial n+1 should be appropriate for what happened on trial n, regardless of what is presented on trial n+1.They allow that there may be some 'minor intrusion' of haptic information from previous trials.\nAgain unsurprisingly, Schenk (2012b) does not agree with Milner et al's evaluation.\n- He claims that the Milner et al critique assumes that prehension requires the visual computation of an object's size. He then cites recent work by Smeets & Brenner (1999) who claimed to show that prehension involves the independent targeting of the thumb and forefinger, and thus you don't need object size.\n- He then suggests that DF is generally able to reach successfully because she has access to the necessary egocentric information (in hand-centred coordinates) about the location of object edges. This information requires regular calibration (Bingham et al, 2007) to remain accurate.\n- He therefore predicts that if DF has egocentric information about the object, and this information has been calibrated recently, she can reach successfully, otherwise she fails. His 2012a data then support this pattern.\n- Regarding the pantomime problem: Schenk tested this in Task 5 with the trials with no objects. DF knew there would be no object on these trials (the light cue) but still produced normal reaches because of the calibration on other trials.\nThere is a lot that is weird about the replies. Milner et al make some odd claims, and Schenk goes to strange places in his defence. Let's address those first.\n1. \"So-called 'haptic feedback'\"\nMilner et al want to keep claiming that DF reaches on the basis of current visual information, and not on the basis of previous haptic information. But there's a problem for them - this is the claim Schenk's data actually refutes! So they make an odd move, and simply claim that earlier haptic information does not affect reaches, and that even if it could, it won't here because the size changes from trial to trial.\nHowever, Coats, Bingham & Mon-Williams (2008) have demonstrated (using a mirror rig similar to Schenk's) that if you systematically change the size of the grasped object while leaving the visual object the same size, people happily recalibrate their reach actions and change their grip apertures. Bingham et al (2007) have also shown that even occasional calibration allows stable reach behaviour to persist; calibration lasts some time. So even when the visual size remains unchanged, people's grip behaviour reflects the haptic calibration of the visual perception of size and if this calibration changes, so does grip.\nMilner et al's second point - that haptic feedback can't help because the object size changes randomly - is actually addressed by Schenk's control data, which shows that neurologically intact people can happily scale their grips appropriately under these conditions (albiet slightly more noisily).\n2. Reaching and the need for visual size\nSchenk centres his reply on the idea that Milner et al assume you need to compute (or perceive) the size of objects in order to scale your grasp. He then cites Smeets & Brenner (1999) who claim that instead, you simply control your thumb and forefinger independently and bring them into alignment with the edges of the object.\nThe problem here is that Smeets & Brenner's work is highly controversial, and in fact more recent work from Mon-Williams & Bingham (2011) tested the predictions of this account in great detail and found no support for this claim. Instead, they showed that the unit of control is an opposition axis (Iberall, Bingham & Arbib, 1986). This is the space between the thumb and forefinger, and Mon-Williams & Bingham (2011) demonstrated that prehension is about aligning this space with the object. You do still therefore need to perceive object size, specifically the maximum object extent. I'll blog this paper in more detail sometime, it is a master class in affordance research.\nI think Schenk had it basically right in the first paper; the explanation for his data is that in tasks 3 and 5, DF has sufficient access to haptic information about the object's size to allow her to bypass her visual perceptual deficit. She can therefore successfully reach to grasp. In all other tasks, she can't go round the problem and she fails. This suggests that her visual deficit is not simply restricted to 'perception'; the visual system involves both anatomical streams working in concert and these are not functionally independent of each other. What Schenk needs to do is treat haptic information as perceptual information for size in it's own right, not simply feedback or an 'egocentric cue'. DF has unimpaired access to this information and when it's available, she can reach-to-grasp.\nBingham, G. P., Coats, R., & Mon-Williams, M. (2007). Natural prehension in trials without haptic feedback but only when calibration is allowed. Neuropsychologia, 45, 288 –294. Download\nCoats, R., Bingham, G.P. & Mon-Williams, M. (2008). Calibrating grasp size and reach distance: Interactions reveal integral organization in reaching-to-grasp movements. Experimental Brain Research, 189, 211-220. Download\nGoodale, M. A., Jakobson, L. S., & Keillor, J.M. (1994). Differences in the visualcontrol of pantomimed and natural grasping movements. Neuropsychologia, 32(1), 1159-1178.\nGoodale, M. A., & Milner, A. D. (1992). Separate visual pathways for perception and action. Trends in Neuroscience, 15(1), 20 –25. Download\nIberall, T., Bingham, G. P., & Arbib, M. A. (1986). Opposition space as a structuring concept for the analysis of skilled hand movements. In: Heuer H, From C (eds) Experimental Brain Research Series 15. Springer, Berlin, pp 158–173. Download\nJames, T.W., Culham, J., Humphrey, G.K., Milner, A.D, & Goodale, M.A. (2003). Ventral occipital lesions impair object recognition but not object-directed grasping: an fMRI study. Brain 126, 2463–2475. Download\nMilner, A., Ganel, T., & Goodale, M. (2012). Does grasping in patient D.F. depend on vision? Trends in Cognitive Sciences DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2012.03.004\nMon-Williams, M. & Bingham, G.P. (2011). Discovering affordances that determine the spatial structure of reach-to-grasp movements. Experimental Brain Research, 211(1), 145-160. Download\nSchenk, T. (2012a). No Dissociation between Perception and Action in Patient DF When Haptic Feedback is Withdrawn. Journal of Neuroscience, 32 (6), 2013-2017 DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3413-11.2012\nSchenk, T. (2012b). Response to Milner et al.: Grasping uses vision and haptic feedback Trends in Cognitive Sciences DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2012.03.006\nSmeets, J.B.J., & Brenner, E. (1999). A new view on grasping. Motor Control, 3, 237-231. Download\nUngerleider, L.G., & Mishkin, M. (1982). Two cortical visual systems. In Analysis of Visual Behavior (Ingle DJ, Goodale MA, Mansfield RJ, eds). Cambridge, MA: MIT."}
{"text": "Cougar sightings in Louisiana not that long ago were considered figments of the imagination of spooked hunters, hikers and others in the outdoors.\nA citizen sent LDWF a trail camera picture taken Aug. 13, 2011. LDWF Large Carnivore Program Manager Maria Davidson and biologist Brandon Wear conducted a site investigation that confirmed the authenticity of the photograph.\n“It is quite possible for this animal to be captured on other trail cameras placed at deer bait sites,” Davidson said. “Deer are the primary prey item for cougars; therefore, they are drawn to areas where deer congregate.”\nIt is unlikely this cougar will remain in any one area longer than it would take to consume a kill. Cougars do not prefer to eat spoiled meat and will move on as soon as the Louisiana heat and humidity take its toll on the kill.\n“It is impossible to determine if the animal in the photograph is a wild, free-ranging cougar, or an escaped captive,” Davidson added. “Although it is illegal to own a cougar in Louisiana, it is possible that there are some illegally held ‘pets’ in the state.”\nLDWF has documented several occurrences since 2002. The first cougar sighting was in 2002 by an employee at Lake Fausse Point State Park. That sighting was later confirmed with DNA analysis from scat found at the site.\nThree trail camera photos were taken of a cougar in Winn, Vernon and Allen parishes in 2008. Subsequently on Nov. 30, 2008, a cougar was shot and killed in a neighborhood by Bossier City Police Department.\nThe mountain lion, cougar, panther or puma are names that all refer to the same animal. Their color ranges from lighter tan to brownish grey. The only species of big cats that occur as black are the jaguar and leopard. Jaguars are native to South America and leopards are native to Africa. Both species can occur as spotted or black, although in both cases the spotted variety is much more common. Although LDWF receives numerous calls about black panthers, there has never been a documented case of a black cougar anywhere in North America.\nThe vast majority of these reports received by LDWF cannot be verified due to the very nature of a sighting. Many of the calls are determined to be cases of mistaken identity, with dog tracks making up the majority of the evidence submitted by those reporting cougar sightings. Other animals commonly mistaken for cougars are bobcats and house cats, usually seen from a distance or in varying shades of light.\nThe significant lack of physical evidence indicates that Louisiana does not have an established, breeding population of cougars. In states that have verified small populations of cougars, physical evidence can readily be found in the form of tracks, cached deer kills, scat and road kills.\nThe recent sightings of cougars in Louisiana are believed to be young animals dispersing from existing populations. An expanding population in Texas can produce dispersing individual cougars that move into suitable habitat in Louisiana. Young males are known to disperse from their birthplace and travel hundreds of miles seeking their own territories.\nCougars that occur in Louisiana are protected under state and federal law. Penalties for taking a cougar in Louisiana may include up to one year in jail and/or a $100,000 fine. Anyone with any information regarding the taking of a cougar should call the Operation Game Thief hotline at 1-800-442-2511. Callers may remain anonymous and may receive a cash reward."}
{"text": "by Gerry Everding\nSt. Louis MO (SPX) Feb 12, 2013\nNominated early this year for recognition on the UNESCO World Heritage List, which includes such famous cultural sites as the Taj Mahal, Machu Picchu and Stonehenge, the earthen works at Poverty Point, La., have been described as one of the world's greatest feats of construction by an archaic civilization of hunters and gatherers.\nNow, new research in the current issue of the journal Geoarchaeology, offers compelling evidence that one of the massive earthen mounds at Poverty Point was constructed in less than 90 days, and perhaps as quickly as 30 days - an incredible accomplishment for what was thought to be a loosely organized society consisting of small, widely scattered bands of foragers.\n\"What's extraordinary about these findings is that it provides some of the first evidence that early American hunter-gatherers were not as simplistic as we've tended to imagine,\" says study co-author T.R. Kidder, PhD, professor and chair of anthropology in Arts and Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis.\n\"Our findings go against what has long been considered the academic consensus on hunter-gather societies - that they lack the political organization necessary to bring together so many people to complete a labor-intensive project in such a short period.\"\nCo-authored by Anthony Ortmann, PhD, assistant professor of geosciences at Murray State University in Kentucky, the study offers a detailed analysis of how the massive mound was constructed some 3,200 years ago along a Mississippi River bayou in northeastern Louisiana.\nBased on more than a decade of excavations, core samplings and sophisticated sedimentary analysis, the study's key assertion is that Mound A at Poverty Point had to have been built in a very short period because an exhaustive examination reveals no signs of rainfall or erosion during its construction.\n\"We're talking about an area of northern Louisiana that now tends to receive a great deal of rainfall,\" Kidder says. \"Even in a very dry year, it would seem very unlikely that this location could go more than 90 days without experiencing some significant level of rainfall. Yet, the soil in these mounds shows no sign of erosion taking place during the construction period. There is no evidence from the region of an epic drought at this time, either.\"\nPart of a much larger complex of earthen works at Poverty Point, Mound A is believed to be the final and crowning addition to the sprawling 700-acre site, which includes five smaller mounds and a series of six concentric C-shaped embankments that rise in parallel formation surrounding a small flat plaza along the river. At the time of construction, Poverty Point was the largest earthworks in North America.\nBuilt on the western edge of the complex, Mound A covers about 538,000 square feet [roughly 50,000 square meters] at its base and rises 72 feet above the river. Its construction required an estimated 238,500 cubic meters - about eight million bushel baskets - of soil to be brought in from various locations near the site. Kidder figures it would take a modern, 10-wheel dump truck about 31,217 loads to move that much dirt today.\n\"The Poverty Point mounds were built by people who had no access to domesticated draft animals, no wheelbarrows, no sophisticated tools for moving earth,\" Kidder explains. \"It's likely that these mounds were built using a simple 'bucket brigade' system, with thousands of people passing soil along from one to another using some form of crude container, such as a woven basket, a hide sack or a wooden platter.\"\nTo complete such a task within 90 days, the study estimates it would require the full attention of some 3,000 laborers. Assuming that each worker may have been accompanied by at least two other family members, say a wife and a child, the community gathered for the build must have included as many as 9,000 people, the study suggests.\n\"Given that a band of 25-30 people is considered quite large for most hunter-gatherer communities, it's truly amazing that this ancient society could bring together a group of nearly 10,000 people, find some way to feed them and get this mound built in a matter of months,\" Kidder says.\nSoil testing indicates that the mound is located on top of land that was once low-lying swamp or marsh land - evidence of ancient tree roots and swamp life still exists in undisturbed soils at the base of the mound. Tests confirm that the site was first cleared for construction by burning and quickly covered with a layer of fine silt soil. A mix of other heavier soils then were brought in and dumped in small adjacent piles, gradually building the mound layer upon layer.\nAs Kidder notes, previous theories about the construction of most of the world's ancient earthen mounds have suggested that they were laid down slowly over a period of hundreds of years involving small contributions of material from many different people spanning generations of a society. While this may be the case for other earthen structures at Poverty Point, the evidence from Mound A offers a sharp departure from this accretional theory. Kidder's home base in St.\nLouis is just across the Mississippi River from one of America's best known ancient earthen structures, the Monk Mound at Cahokia, Ill. He notes that the Monk Mound was built many centuries later than the mounds at Poverty Point by a civilization that was much more reliant on agriculture, a far cry from the hunter-gatherer group that built Poverty Point. Even so, Mound A at Poverty Point is much larger than almost any other mound found in North America; only Monk's Mound at Cahokia is larger.\n\"We've come to realize that the social fabric of these socieites must have been much stronger and more complex that we might previously have given them credit. These results contradict the popular notion that pre-agricultural people were socially, politically, and economically simple and unable to organize themselves into large groups that could build elaborate architecture or engage in so-called complex social behavior,\" Kidder says.\n\"The prevailing model of hunter-gatherers living a life 'nasty, brutish and short' is contradicted and our work indicates these people were practicing a sophisticated ritual/religious life that involved building these monumental mounds.\"\nWashington University in St. Louis\nAll About Human Beings and How We Got To Be Here\n|The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2012 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement|"}
{"text": "Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia\n- n. A sea-duck of the subfamily Fuligulinœ and genus Clangula; a garrot. The common goldeneye is C. glaucion or C. clangula of Europe and Americn. Barrow's goldeneye is the Rocky Mountain garrot, C. barrovi. See cut under\n- n. A fish, Hyodon chrysopsis, having a large eye with yellow iris. —\n- n. One of various neuropterous insects of the genus Chrysopa: so called in allusion to their golden or bronze-colored eyes. The larvæ are often called aphis-lions. Also called golden-eyed fly.\n- n. Melithreptus lunulatus, a small species of honey-eater.\nGNU Webster's 1913\n- n. (Zoöl.) A duck (Glaucionetta clangula), found in Northern Europe, Asia, and America. The American variety (var. Americana) is larger. Called\nwhistler, garrot, gowdy, pied widgeon, whiteside, curre, and doucker. Barrow's golden-eye of America (Glaucionetta Islandica) is less common.\n- n. a variety of green lacewing\n- n. large-headed swift-flying diving duck of Arctic regions\n“One winter day, in prowling along the beach, I approached the spot where a day or two before I had been shooting whistlers (golden-eye ducks) over decoys.”\n“The software can also automatically detect and remove red - and golden-eye defects.”\n“OptiML Red-Eye uses embedded image processing automatically detects and corrects red- and golden-eye imperfections without the need for a PC or editing software.”\n“The CMC golden-eye team comprises 15 people who look primarily at HD services and evaluate video quality in six categories of digital defects on a scale of one to five (one being unwatchable and five being spectacular).”\n“In addition, Comcast is working to establish local golden-eye programs in at least two markets.”\n“My two dogs are part wolf … they have that golden-eye of the wolf and the sharp nose … those animals look very much like two of my best friends … plwalsh: I'm glad it wasn't just us who saw the poor editing.”\n‘golden-eye’ hasn't been added to any lists yet.\nLooking for tweets for golden-eye."}
{"text": "By Pauline Hammerbeck\nIt's been a doozy of a wildfire season (Colorado's most destructive ever), leaving homeowners wondering what safety measures they can put in place to stave off flames in the event of a fire in their own neighborhood.\nLandscaping, it turns out, can be an important measure in wildfire protection.\nBut fire-wise landscaping isn't just something for those dwelling on remote Western hilltops. Brush, grass and forest fires occur nearly everywhere in the United States, says the National Fire Protection Association. Here's how your landscaping can help keep you safe.\nCreate 'defensible' space\nMost homes that burn during a wildfire are ignited by embers landing on the roof, gutters, and on decks and porches. So your first point of action should be creating a defensible space, a buffer zone around your home, to reduce sources of fuel.\nStart by keeping the first 3 to 5 feet around your home free of all flammable materials and vegetation: plants, shrubs, trees and grasses, as well as bark and other organic mulches should all be eliminated (a neat perimeter of rock mulch or a rock garden can be a beautiful thing). Maintenance is also important:\n- Clear leaves, pine needles and other debris from roofs, gutters and eaves\n- Cut back tree branches that overhang the roof\n- Clear debris from under decks, porches and other structures\nMoving farther from the house, you might consider adding hardscaping - driveways, patios, walkways, gravel paths, etc. These features add visual interest, but they also maintain a break between vegetation and your home in the event of a fire. Some additional tasks to consider in the first 100 feet surrounding your home:\n- Thin out trees and shrubs (particularly evergreens) within 30 feet\n- Trim low tree branches so they're a minimum of 6 feet off the ground\n- Mow lawn regularly and dispose of clippings and other debris promptly\n- Move woodpiles to a space at least 30 feet from your home\nUse fire-resistant plants\nPopulating your landscape with plants that are resistant to fire can also be an important tactic. Look for low-growing plants that have thick leaves (a sign that they hold water), extensive root systems and the ability to withstand drought.\nThis isn't as limiting as it sounds. Commonly used hostas, butterfly bushes and roses are all good choices. And there are plenty of fire-resistant plant lists to give you ideas on what to pick.\nWhere and how you plant can also have a dramatic effect on fire behavior. The plants nearest your home should be smaller and more widely spaced than those farther away.\nBe sure to use a variety of plant types, which reduces disease and keeps the landscape healthy and green. Plant in small clusters - create a garden island, for instance, by surrounding a group of plantings with a rock perimeter - and use rock mulch to conserve moisture.\nMaintain accessible water sources\nWildfires present a special challenge to local fire departments, so it's in your interest to be able to access or maintain an emergency water supply - particularly if you're in a remote location.\nAt a minimum, keep 100 feet of garden hose attached to a spigot (if your water comes from a well, consider an emergency generator to operate the pump during a power failure). But better protection can come from the installation of a small pond, cistern or, if budget allows, a swimming pool.\nGood planning and a bit of elbow grease have a big hand in wildfire safety. In a year with record heat and drought, looking over your landscape with a firefighter's eye can offer significant peace of mind.\n- Are You Properly Insured for Your Real Estate?\n- The Ins and Outs of Homeowner's Insurance\n- Tips for Fire Safety in Your Home\nGuest blogger Pauline Hammerbeck is an editor for the Allstate Blog, which helps people prepare for the unpredictability of life.\nNote: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or position of Zillow."}
{"text": "Long Term Player Development\nWhat is LTPD?\nLong Term Player Development (LTPD) is a systemic approach being developed and adopted by Golf Canada in partnership with the Canadian Professional Golfers’ Association to maximize a participant's potential and involvement in our sport. The LTPD framework aims to define optimal training, competition and recovery throughout an athlete's career to enable him / her to reach his / her full potential in golf and as an athlete. Tailoring a child's sports development program to suit basic principles of growth and maturation, especially during the 'critical' early years of their development, enables him / her to:\n- Reach full potential\n- Increase lifelong participation in golf and other physical activities\nThe LTPD model is split into stages in which a player will move from simple to more complex skills and from general to golf related skills. For example, a beginner may start by learning basic swinging actions and then once this has been mastered he / she will progress onto more advanced skills.\nThis framework will set out recommended training sequences and skills developments for the participant from the Active Start stage (6 and under) to the Active for Live Stage (adult recreational). It will address the physical, mental, emotional and technical needs of the athlete as they pass through each stage of development.\nWhere has it come from?\nA combination of recent research and the knowledge of coaches from around the world are being used to write the LTPD model. The program will be sport-science supported and based on the best data and research available. Our work will be based on the work of Canadian sport scientists, such as Istvan Bayyi, and focuses on key, common principles of individual development, which many sports organizations consider good practice in long-term planning for athletes.\nMany leading sports stars have also attributed part of their success to participating in different sports and activities at a young age by giving them a wider base of sports skills. Our goal will be to develop our players to their maximum potential by training and enhancing all the athletic skills that contribute to their success.\nWhat will this mean for your child?\nDuring your child's first few years of golf, the emphasis will be on physical literacy. Time should be spent learning the ABC's of athleticism (Agility, Balance, Coordination and Speed) to teach them how to control his / her own bodies. For this reason, your child may take part in exercises that do not look relevant to golf but are supporting their development. Games and other sports will teach your child to throw the ball (basic hitting actions), catch it (hand-eye coordination), and run properly. At each stage the child will be trained in the optimal systems and programs to maximize his / her potential as a golfer and as a long-term participant in sport.\nWhat has this got to do with golf?\nIt is thought that taking part in golf-specific training too early can lead to an early drop out rate, create muscle imbalances and also neglect teaching the fundamental skills needed for most sports. In fact, research shows that early specialization in most late maturing sports results in these outcomes.\nResearch has also shown that it is during childhood that people are best at learning physical skills. For this reason we are advising coaches and parents to teach transferable skills first that will allow your child to become proficient in a number of different sports and therefore increase their chances of being physically active throughout their lifetime.\nWho else is using LTPD?\nThe Council of Federal, Provincial and Territorial Ministers responsible for Sport have endorsed and established the goal of the implementation of a Long Term Athlete Development program throughout the sport community in Canada. Sport Canada has been working with National Sport Organizations to development sport-specific programs according to an overall framework established by an expert group of sport scientists.\nTo date, over 57 sports in Canada have started the process of designing and putting into place LTAD programs. There has been a sharing of best practices among resource personnel and National bodies and the overall program is gaining momentum.\nGolf Canada is in the second wave of sports to start the LTPD process and is following closely the work of such groups as Rowing Canada, Athletics Canada, Speedskating Canada and Soccer to create the best opportunities for all children.\nVarious national sporting groups in the UK and Ireland are approximately 18 months ahead of their Canadian counterparts in the development of LTPD programs and we are using their experiences and best practices in process development to ensure we have the most comprehensive and effective system possible.\nWhere will Golf's LTPD model come from?\nWe will be consulting with a wide range of coaches, sports scientists and experienced volunteers from across Canada to represent the views of the whole golf community. Their knowledge and expertise will be used as input to form the LTPD framework for golf in Canada. We will be assisted in this process by the LTPD Resource paper and research of the expert group, in particular Stephen Norris (see www.ltad.ca for resource paper).\nIn developing this model and framework, Golf Canada is currently in the process of reviewing our programs in line with LTPD principles. Our competition program, coach education system, elite play structure and development initiatives will all evolve to be consistent with the principles established within this underpinning model.\nOne of the principles to be adopted will be a continuous improvement regime where the system will be benchmarked against the most current developmental principles and upgraded regularly. It will be a living document that provides a planning framework to enable us to always deliver the most appropriate training.\nGolf Canada LTPD resources\nGolf Canada will continually update this section to provide access to the most current materials and programs as they are developed.\nWe will add a range of LTPD resources designed to help all Coaches, Teachers, Players and Parents understand the stages that each player goes through and also the training principles and activities at each stage.\nPlease click here to download complete LTPD Guide (2.13 MB)"}
{"text": "Upland Bird Regional Forecast\nWhen considering upland game population levels during the fall hunting season, two important factors impact population change. First is the number of adult birds that survived the previous fall and winter and are considered viable breeders in the spring. The second is the reproductive success of this breeding population. Reproductive success consists of nest success (the number of nests that successfully hatched) and chick survival (the number of chicks recruited into the fall population). For pheasant and quail, annual population turnover is relatively high; therefore, the fall population is more dependent on reproductive success than breeding population levels. For grouse (prairie chickens), annual population turnover is not as rapid although reproductive success is still the major population regulator and important for good hunting. In the following forecast, breeding population and reproductive success of pheasants, quail, and prairie chickens will be discussed. Breeding population data were gathered during spring breeding surveys for pheasants (crow counts), quail (whistle counts), and prairie chickens (lek counts). Data for reproductive success were collected during late summer roadside surveys for pheasants and quail. Reproductive success of prairie chickens cannot be easily assessed using the same methods because they generally do not associate with roads like the other game birds.\nKansas experienced extreme drought this past year. Winter weather was mild, but winter precipitation is important for spring vegetation, which can impact reproductive success, and most of Kansas did not get enough winter precipitation. Pheasant breeding populations showed significant reductions in 2012, especially in primary pheasant range in western Kansas. Spring came early and hot this year, but also included fair spring moisture until early May, when the precipitation stopped, and Kansas experienced record heat and drought through the rest of the reproductive season. Early nesting conditions were generally good for prairie chickens and pheasants. However, the primary nesting habitat for pheasants in western Kansas is winter wheat, and in 2012, Kansas had one of the earliest wheat harvests on record. Wheat harvest can destroy nests and very young broods. The early harvest likely lowered pheasant nest and early brood success. The intense heat and lack of rain in June and July resulted in a decrease in brooding cover and insect populations, causing lower chick survival for all upland game birds.\nBecause of drought, all counties in Kansas were opened to Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) emergency haying or grazing. CRP emergency haying requires fields that are hayed to leave at least 50 percent of the field in standing grass cover. CRP emergency grazing requires 25 percent of the field (or contiguous fields) to be left ungrazed or grazing at 75-percent normal stocking rates across the entire field. Many CRP fields, including Walk In Hunting Areas (WIHA), may be affected across the state. WIHA property is privately-owned land open to the public for hunting access. Kansas has more than one million acres of WIHA. Often, older stands of CRP grass are in need of disturbance, and haying and grazing can improve habitat for the upcoming breeding season, and may ultimately be beneficial if weather is favorable.\nDue to continued drought, Kansas will likely experience a below-average upland game season this fall. For those willing to hunt hard, there will still be pockets of decent bird numbers, especially in the northern Flint Hills and northcentral and northwestern parts of the state. Kansas has approximately 1.5 million acres open to public hunting (wildlife areas and WIHA combined). The regular opening date for the pheasant and quail seasons will be Nov. 10 for the entire state. The previous weekend will be designated for the special youth pheasant and quail season. Youth participating in the special season must be 16 years old or younger and accompanied by a non-hunting adult who is 18 or older. All public wildlife areas and WIHA tracts will be open for public access during the special youth season. Please consider taking a young person hunting this fall, so they might have the opportunity to develop a passion for the outdoors that we all enjoy.\nPHEASANT – Drought in 2011 and 2012 has taken its toll on pheasant populations in Kansas. Pheasant breeding populations dropped by nearly 50 percent or more across pheasant range from 2011 to 2012 resulting in fewer adult hens in the population to start the 2012 nesting season. The lack of precipitation has resulted in less cover and insects needed for good pheasant reproduction. Additionally, winter wheat serves as a major nesting habitat for pheasants in western Kansas, and a record early wheat harvest this summer likely destroyed many nests and young broods. Then the hot, dry weather set in from May to August, the primary brood-rearing period for pheasants. Pheasant chicks need good grass and weed cover and robust insect populations to survive. Insufficient precipitation and lack of habitat and insects throughout the state’s primary pheasant range resulted in limited production. This will reduce hunting prospects compared to recent years. However, some good opportunities still exist to harvest roosters in the sunflower state, especially for those willing to work for their birds. Though the drought has taken its toll, Kansas still contains a pheasant population that will produce a harvest in the top three or four major pheasant states this year.\nThe best areas this year will likely be pockets of northwest and northcentral Kansas. Populations in southwest Kansas were hit hardest by the 2011-2012 drought (72 percent decline in breeding population), and a very limited amount of production occurred this season due to continued drought and limited breeding populations.\nQUAIL – The bobwhite breeding population in 2012 was generally stable or improved compared to 2011. Areas in the northern Flint Hills and parts of northeast Kansas showed much improved productivity this year. Much of eastern Kansas has seen consistent declines in quail populations in recent decades. After many years of depressed populations, this year’s rebound in quail reproduction in eastern Kansas is welcomed, but overall populations are still below historic averages. The best quail hunting will be found throughout the northern Flint Hills and parts of central Kansas. Prolonged drought undoubtedly impacted production in central and western Kansas.\nPRAIRIE CHICKEN – Kansas is home to greater and lesser prairie chickens. Both species require a landscape of predominately native grass. Lesser prairie chickens are found in westcentral and southwestern Kansas in native prairie and nearby stands of native grass within the conservation reserve program (CRP). Greater prairie chickens are found primarily in the tallgrass and mixed-grass prairies in the eastern one-third and northern one-half of the state.\nThe spring prairie chicken lek survey indicated that most populations remained stable or declined from last year. Declines were likely due to extreme drought throughout 2011. Areas of northcentral and northwest Kansas fared the best, while areas in southcentral and southwest Kansas experienced the sharpest declines where drought was most severe. Many areas in the Flint Hills were not burned this spring due to drought. This resulted in far more residual grass cover for much improved nesting conditions compared to recent years. There have been some reports of prairie chickens broods in these areas, and hunting will likely be somewhat improved compared to recent years.\nBecause of recent increases in prairie chicken (both species) populations in northwest Kansas, regulations have been revised this year. The early prairie chicken season (Sept. 15-Oct. 15) and two-bird bag limit has been extended into northwest Kansas. The northwest unit boundary has also been revised to include areas north of U.S. Highway 96 and west of U.S. Highway 281. Additionally, all prairie chicken hunters are now required to purchase a $2.50 prairie chicken permit. This permit will allow KDWPT to better track hunters and harvest, which will improve management activities. Both species of prairie chicken are of conservation concern and the lesser prairie chicken is a candidate species for federal listing under the Endangered Species Act.\nThis region has 11,809 acres of public land and 339,729 acres of WIHA open to hunters this fall.\nPheasant – Spring breeding populations declined almost 50 percent from 2011 to 2012, reducing fall population potential. Early nesting conditions were decent due to good winter wheat growth, but early wheat harvest and severe heat and drought through the summer reduced populations. While this resulted in a significant drop in pheasant numbers, the area will still have the highest densities of pheasants this fall compared to other areas in the state. Some counties — such as Graham, Rawlins, Decatur, and Sherman — showed the relatively-highest densities of pheasants during summer brood surveys. Much of the cover will be reduced compared to previous years due to drought and resulting emergency haying and grazing in CRP fields. Good hunting opportunities will also be reduced compared to recent years, and harvest will likely be below average.\nQuail – Populations in this region have been increasing in recent years although the breeding population had a slight decline. This area is at the extreme northwestern edge of bobwhite range in Kansas, and densities are relatively low compared to central Kansas. Some counties — such as Graham, Rawlins, and Decatur — will provide hunting opportunities for quail.\nPrairie Chicken – Prairie chicken populations have expanded in both numbers and range within the region over the past 20 years. The better hunting opportunities will be found in the central and southeastern portions of the region in native prairies and nearby CRP grasslands. Spring lek counts in that portion of the region were slightly depressed from last year and nesting conditions were only fair this year. Extreme drought likely impaired chick survival.\nThis region has 75,576 acres of public land and 311,182 acres of WIHA open to hunters this fall.\nPheasant – The Smoky Hills breeding population dropped about 40 percent from 2011 to 2012, reducing overall fall population potential. While nesting conditions were fair due to good winter wheat growth, the drought and early wheat harvest impacted the number of young recruited into the fall population. Certain areas had decent brood production, including portions of Mitchell, Rush, Rice, and Cloud counties. Across the region, hunting opportunities will likely be below average and definitely reduced from recent years. CRP was opened to emergency haying and grazing, reducing available cover.\nQuail – Breeding populations increased nearly 60 percent from 2011 to 2012, increasing fall population potential. However, drought conditions were severe, likely impairing nesting and brood success. There are reports of fair quail numbers in certain areas throughout the region. Quail populations in northcentral Kansas are naturally spotty due to habitat characteristics. Some areas, such as Cloud County, showed good potential while other areas in the more western edges of the region did not fare as well.\nPrairie Chicken – Greater prairie chickens occur throughout the Smoky Hills in large areas of native rangeland and some CRP. This region includes some of the highest densities and greatest hunting opportunities in the state for greater prairie chickens. Spring counts indicated that numbers were stable or slightly reduce from last year. Much of the rangeland cover is significantly reduced due to drought, which likely impaired production, resulting in reduced fall hunting opportunities..\nThis region has 60,559 acres of public land and 54,170 of WIHA open to hunters this fall.\nPheasant – Spring crow counts this year showed a significant increase in breeding populations of pheasants. While this increase is welcome, this region was nearing all-time lows in 2011. Pheasant densities across the region are still low, especially compared to other areas in western Kansas. Good hunting opportunities will exist in only a few pockets of good habitat.\nQuail – Breeding populations stayed relatively the same as last year, and some quail were detected during the summer brood survey. The long-term trend for this region has been declining, largely due to unfavorable weather and degrading habitat. This year saw an increase in populations. Hunting opportunities for quail will be improved this fall compared to recent years in this region. The best areas will likely be in Marshall and Jefferson counties.\nPrairie Chickens – Very little prairie chicken range occurs in this region, and opportunities are limited. The best areas are in the western edges of the region, in large areas of native rangeland.\nThis region has 80,759 acres of public land and 28,047 acres of WIHA open to hunters this fall.\nPheasant – This region is outside the primary pheasant range and has very limited hunting. A few birds can be found in the northwestern portion of the region.\nQuail – Breeding populations were relatively stable from 2011 to 2012 for this region although long term trends have been declining. In the last couple years, the quail populations throughout much of the region have been on the increase. Specific counties that showed relatively higher numbers are Coffey, Osage, and Wilson. However, populations remain far below historic levels across the bulk of the region due to extreme habitat degradation.\nPrairie Chicken – Greater prairie chickens occur in the central and northwest parts of this region in large areas of native rangeland. Breeding population densities were up nearly 40 percent from last year, and opportunities may increase accordingly. However, populations have been in consistent decline over the long term. Infrequent fire frequency has resulted in woody encroachment of native grasslands in the area, gradually reducing the amount of suitable habitat.\nThis region has 128,371 acres of public land and 63,069 acres of WIHA open to hunters this fall.\nPheasant – This region is on the eastern edge of pheasant range in Kansas and well outside the primary range. Pheasant densities have always been relatively low throughout the Flint Hills. Spring breeding populations were down nearly 50 percent, and reproduction was limited this summer. The best pheasant hunting will be in the northwestern edge of this region in Marion and Dickinson counties.\nQuail – This region contains some of the highest densities of bobwhite in Kansas. The breeding population in this region increased 25 percent compared to 2011, and the long-term trend (since 1998) has been stable do to steadily increasing populations over the last four or five years. High reproductive success was reported in the northern half of this region, and some of the best opportunities for quail hunting will be found in the northern Flint Hills this year. In the south, Cowley County showed good numbers of quail this summer.\nPrairie Chickens – The Flint Hills is the largest intact tallgrass prairie left in North America. It has served as a core habitat for greater prairie chickens for many years. Since the early 1980s, inadequate range burning frequencies have consistently reduced nest success in the area, and prairie chicken numbers have been declining as a result. Because of the drought this spring, many areas that are normally burned annually were left unburned this year. This left more residual grass cover for nesting and brood rearing. There are some good reports of prairie chicken broods, and hunting opportunities will likely increase throughout the region this year.\nThis region has 19,534 acres of public land and 73,341 acres of WIHA open to hunters this fall.\nPheasant – The breeding population declined about 40 percent from 2011 to 2012. Prolonged drought for two years now and very poor vegetation conditions resulted in poor reproductive success this year. All summer indices showed a depressed pheasant population in this region, especially compared to other regions. Some of the relatively better counties in this area will be Reno, Pawnee, and Pratt although these counties have not been immune to recent declines. There will likely few good hunting opportunities this fall.\nQuail – The breeding population dropped over 30 percent this year from 2011 although long term trends (since 1998) have been stable in this region. This region generally has some of the highest quail densities in Kansas, but prolonged drought and reduced vegetation have caused significant declines in recent years. Counties such as Reno, Pratt, and Stafford will likely have the best opportunities in the region. While populations may be down compared to recent years, this region will continue to provide fair hunting opportunities for quail.\nPrairie Chicken – This region is almost entirely occupied by lesser prairie chickens. The breeding population declined nearly 50 percent from 2011 to 2012. Reproductive conditions were not good for the region due to extreme drought and heat for the last two years, and production was limited. The best hunting opportunities will likely be in the sand prairies south of the Arkansas River.\nThis region has 2,904 acres of public land and 186,943 acres of WIHA open to hunters this fall.\nPheasant – The breeding population plummeted more than 70 percent in this region from 2011 to 2012. Last year was one of the worst on record for pheasant reproduction. However, last fall there was some carry-over rooster (second-year) from a record high season in 2010. Those carry-over birds are mostly gone now, which will hurt hunting opportunities this fall. Although reproduction was slightly improved from 2011, chick recruitment was still fair to below average this summer due to continued extreme drought conditions. Moreover, there were not enough adult hens in the population yet to make a significant rebound. Generally, hunting opportunity will remain well below average in this region. Haskell and Seward counties showed some improved reproductive success, especially compared to other counties in the region.\nQuail – The breeding population in this region tends to be highly variable depending on available moisture and resulting vegetation. The region experienced an increase in breeding populations from 2011 to 2012 although 2011 was a record low for the region. While drought likely held back production, the weather was better than last year, and some reproduction occurred. Indices are still well below average for the region. There will be some quail hunting opportunities in the region although good areas will be sparse.\nPrairie Chicken – While breeding populations in the eastern parts of this region were generally stable or increasing, areas of extreme western and southwest portions (Cimarron National Grasslands) saw nearly 30-percent declines last year and 65 percent declines this year. Drought remained extreme in this region, and reproductive success was likely very low. Hunting opportunities in this region will be extremely limited this fall."}
{"text": "Oil & Natural Gas Projects\nTransmission, Distribution, & Refining\nMultispectral and Hyperspectral Remote Sensing Techniques for Natural Gas Transmission Infrastructure Systems\nThe goal is to help maintain the nation's natural gas transmission infrastructure through the timely and effective detection of natural gas leaks through evaluation of geobotanical stress signatures.\nThe remote sensing techniques being developed employ advanced spectrometer systems that produce visible and near infrared reflected light images with spatial resolution of 1 to 3 meters in 128 wavelength bands. This allows for the discrimination of individual species of plants as well as geological and man-made objects, and permits the detection of biological impacts of methane leaks or seepages in large complicated areas. The techniques employed do not require before-and-after imagery because they use the spatial patterns of plant species and health variations present in a single image to distinguish leaks. Also, these techniques should allow discrimination between the effects of small leaks and the damage caused by human incursion or natural factors such as storm run off, landslides and earthquakes. Because plants in an area can accumulate doses of leaked materials, species spatial patterns can record time-integrated effects of leaked methane. This can be important in finding leaks that would otherwise be hard to detect by direct observation of methane concentrations in the air.\nThis project is developing remote sensing methods of detecting, discriminating, and mapping the effects of natural gas leaks from underground pipelines. The current focus is on the effects that the increased methane soil concentrations, created by the leaks, will have on plants. These effects will be associated with extreme soil CH4 concentrations, plant sickness, and even death. Similar circumstances have been observed and studied in the effects of excessive CO2soil concentrations at Mammoth Mountain near Mammoth Lakes California, USA. At the Mammoth Mountain site, the large CO2 soil concentrations are due to the volcanic rumblings of the magma still active below Mammoth Mountain. At more subtle levels this research has been able to map, using hyperspectral air borne imagery, the tree plant stress over all of the Mammoth Mountain. These plant stress maps match, and greatly extend into surrounding regions, the on-ground CO2 emission mapping done by the USGS in Menlo Park, California.\nIn addition, vegetation health mapping along with altered mineralization mapping at Mammoth Mountain does reveal subtle hidden faults. These hidden faults are pathways for potential CO2 leaks, at least near the surface, over the entire region. The methods being developed use airborne hyperspectral and multi-spectral high-resolution imagery and very high resolution (0.6 meter) satellite imagery. The team has identified and worked with commercial providers of both airborne hyperspectral imagery acquisitions and high resolution satellite imagery acquisitions. Both offer competent image data post processing, so that eventually, the ongoing surveillance of pipeline corridors can be contracted for commercially. Current work under this project is focused on detecting and quantifying natural gas pipeline leaks using hyperspectral imagery from airborne or satellite based platforms through evaluation of plant stress.\nLawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) – project management and research products\nNASA – Ames – Development of UAV platform used to carry hyperspectral payload\nHyVista Corporation– Development and operation of the HyMap hyperspectral sensor\nLivermore, CA 94511\nThe use of geobotanical plant stress signatures from hyperspectral imagery potential offers a unique means of detecting and quantifying the existence of natural gas leaks from the U.S. pipeline infrastructure. The method holds the potential to cover large expanses of pipeline with minimal man effort thus reducing the potential likelihood that a leak would go undetected. By increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of leak detection, the amount of gas leaked from a site can be reduced resulting in decreased environmental impact from fugitive emissions of gas, increased safety and reliability of gas delivery and increase in overall available gas; as less product is lost from the lines.\nThe method chosen for testing these techniques was to image the area surrounding known gas pipeline leaks. After receiving notice and location information for a newly discovered leak from research collaborator Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), researchers determined the area above the buried pipeline to be scanned, including some surrounding areas thought to be outside the influence of any methane that might percolate to within root depth of the surface. Flight lines were designed for the airborne acquisition program and researchers used a geographic positioning system (GPS) and digital cameras to visually record the soils, plants, minerals, waters, and manmade objects in the area while the airborne imagery was acquired. After the airborne imagery set for all flight lines was received (including raw data, data corrected to reflectance including atmospheric absorptions, and georectification control files), the data was analyzed using commercial computer software (ENVI) by a team of researchers at University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), and one of the acquisition contractors.\n- Created an advanced Geographic Information System (GIS) that will be able provide dynamic integration of airborne imagery, satellite imagery, and other GIS information to monitor pipelines for geobotanical leak signatures.\n- Used the software to integrate hyperspectral imagery, high resolution satellite imagery, and digital elevation models of the area around a known gas leak to determine if evidence of the leak could be resolved.\n- Helped develop hyperspectral imagery payload for use on an unmanned aerial vehicle developed by NASA-Ames.\n- Participated in DOE-NETL sponsored natural gas pipeline leak detection demonstration in Casper, Wyoming on September 13-17, 2004. Using both the UAV hyperspectral payload (~1000 ft), and Hyvista hyperspectral platform (~5000 ft) to survey for plant stress.\nResearchers used several different routines available within the ENVI program suite to produce “maps” of plant species types, plant health within species types, soil types, soil conditions, water bodies, water contents such as algae or sediments, mineralogy of exposed formations, and manmade objects. These maps were then studied for relative plant health patterns, altered mineral distributions, and other categories. The researchers then returned to the field to verify and further understand the mappings, fine-tune the results, and produce more accurate maps. Since the maps are georectified and the pixel size is 3 meters, individual objects can all be located using the maps and a handheld GPS.\nThese detailed maps show areas of existing anomalous conditions such as plant kills and linear species modifications caused by subtle hidden faults, modifications of the terrain due to pipeline work or encroachment. They are also the “baseline” that can be used to chart any future changes by re-imaging the area routinely to monitor and document any effects caused by significant methane leakage.\nThe sensors used for image acquisition are hyperspectral scanners, one of which provides 126 bands across the reflective solar wavelength region of 0.45 – 2.5 nm with contiguous spectral coverage (except in the atmospheric water vapor bands) and bandwidths between 15 – 20 nm. This sensor operates on a 3-axis gyro-stabilized platform to minimize image distortion due to aircraft motion and provides a signal to noise ratio >500:1. Geo-location and image geo-coding is achieved with an-on board Differential GPS (DGPS) and an integrated IMU (inertial monitoring unit).\nDuring a DOE – NETL sponsored natural gas leak detection demonstration at the National Petroleum Reserve 3 (NPR3) site of the Rocky Mountain Oilfield Testing Center (RMOTC) outside of Casper, Wyoming, the project utilized hyperspectral imaging of vegetation to sense plant stress related to the presence of natural gas on a simulated pipeline using actual natural gas releases. The spectral signature of sunlight reflected from vegetation was used to determine vegetation health. Two different platforms were used for imaging the virtual pipeline path: a Twin Otter aircraft flying at an altitude of about 5,000 feet above ground level that imaged the entire site in strips, and an unmanned autonomous vehicle (UAV) flying at an altitude of approximately 1,000 feet above ground level that imaged an area surrounding the virtual pipeline.\nThe manned hyperspectral imaging took place on two days. Wednesday, September 9 and Wednesday, September 15. The underground leaks were started on August 30. This was done to allow time for the methane from the leaks to saturate the soils and produce plant stress by excluding oxygen from the plant root systems. On both days, the entire NPR3-RMOTC site was successfully imaged.\nAt that time of year, the vegetation at NPR3-RMOTC was largely in hibernation. The exception was in the gullies where there was some moisture. Therefore, the survey looked for unusually stressed plant “patches” in the gullies as possible leak points. Several spots were found in the hyperspectral imagery that had the spectral signature typical of sick vegetation that were several pixels in diameter in locations in the gullies or ravines along the virtual pipeline route. Due to the limited vegetation along the test route the successful detection of natural gas leaks through imaging of plant stress was limited in success. The technique did demonstrate an ability to show plant stress in areas near leak sites but was less successful in determining general leak severity based on those results. In areas with much denser vegetation coverage and less dormant plant life the method still shows promise.\n| Airborne hyperspectral imagery unit - close-up\n|| Airborne hyperspectral imagery unit - on plane\nOverall results from the DOE-NETL sponsored natural gas leak detection demonstration can be found in the demonstration final report [PDF-7370KB] .\nCurrent Status and Remaining Tasks:\nAll work under this project has been completed.\nProject Start: August 13, 2001\nProject End: December 31, 2005\nDOE Contribution: $966,900\nPerformer Contribution: $0\nNETL – Richard Baker (email@example.com or 304-285-4714)\nLLNL – Dr. William L. Pickles (firstname.lastname@example.org or 925-422-7812)\nDOE Leak Detection Technology Demonstration Final Report [PDF-7370KB]\nDOE Fossil Energy Techline: National Labs to Strengthen Natural Gas Pipelines' Integrity, Reliability\nStatus Assessment [PDF-26KB]"}
{"text": "Notes on the Bible, by Albert Barnes, , at sacred-texts.com\nNow the word of the Lord - , literally, \"And, ...\" This is the way in which the several inspired writers of the Old Testament mark that what it was given them to write was united onto those sacred books which God had given to others to write, and it formed with them one continuous whole. The word, \"And,\" implies this. It would do so in any language, and it does so in Hebrew as much as in any other. As neither we, nor any other people, would, without any meaning, use the word, And, so neither did the Hebrews. It joins the four first books of Moses together; it carries on the history through Joshua, Judges, the Books of Samuel and of the Kings. After the captivity, Ezra and Nehemiah begin again where the histories before left off; the break of the captivity is bridged over; and Ezra, going back in mind to the history of God's people before the captivity, resumes the history, as if it had been of yesterday, \"And in the first year of Cyrus.\" It joins in the story of the Book of Ruth before the captivity, and that of Esther afterward. At times, even prophets employ it, in using the narrative form of themselves, as Ezekiel, \"and it was in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, and I was in the captivity by the river of Chebar, the heavens opened and I saw.\" If a prophet or historian wishes to detach his prophecy or his history, he does so; as Ezra probably began the Book of Chronicles anew from Adam, or as Daniel makes his prophecy a whole by itself. But then it is the more obvious that a Hebrew prophet or historian, when he does begin with the word, \"And,\" has an object in so beginning; he uses an universal word of all languages in its uniform meaning in all language, to join things together.\nAnd yet more precisely; this form, \"and the word of the Lord came to - saying,\" occurs over and over again, stringing together the pearls of great price of God's revelations, and uniting this new revelation to all those which had preceded it. The word, \"And,\" then joins on histories with histories, revelations with revelations, uniting in one the histories of God's works and words, and blending the books of Holy Scripture into one divine book.\nBut the form of words must have suggested to the Jews another thought, which is part of our thankfulness and of our being Act 11:18, \"then to the Gentiles also hath God given repentance unto life.\" The words are the self-same familiar words with which some fresh revelation of God's will to His people had so often been announced. Now they are prefixed to God's message to the pagan, and so as to join on that message to all the other messages to Israel. Would then God deal thenceforth with the pagan as with the Jews? Would they have their prophets? Would they be included in the one family of God? The mission of Jonah in itself was an earnest that they would, for God. Who does nothing fitfully or capriciously, in that He had begun, gave an earnest that He would carry on what He had begun. And so thereafter, the great prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, were prophets to the nations also; Daniel was a prophet among them, to them as well as to their captives.\nBut the mission of Jonah might, so far, have been something exceptional. The enrolling his book, as an integral part of the Scriptures, joining on that prophecy to the other prophecies to Israel, was an earnest that they were to be parts of one system. But then it would be significant also, that the records of God's prophecies to the Jews, all embodied the accounts of their impenitence. Here is inserted among them an account of God's revelation to the pagan, and their repentance. \"So many prophets had been sent, so many miracles performed, so often had captivity been foreannounced to them for the multitude of their sins. and they never repented. Not for the reign of one king did they cease from the worship of the calves; not one of the kings of the ten tribes departed from the sins of Jeroboam? Elijah, sent in the Word and Spirit of the Lord, had done many miracles, yet obtained no abandonment of the calves. His miracles effected this only, that the people knew that Baal was no god, and cried out, \"the Lord He is the God.\" Elisha his disciple followed him, who asked for a double portion of the Spirit of Elijah, that he might work more miracles, to bring back the people.\nHe died, and, after his death as before it, the worship of the calves continued in Israel. The Lord marveled and was weary of Israel, knowing that if He sent to the pagan they would bear, as he saith to Ezekiel. To make trial of this, Jonah was chosen, of whom it is recorded in the Book of Kings that he prophesied the restoration of the border of Israel. When then he begins by saying, \"And the word of the Lord came to Jonah,\" prefixing the word \"And,\" he refers us back to those former things, in this meaning. The children have not hearkened to what the Lord commanded, sending to them by His servants the prophets, but have hardened their necks and given themselves up to do evil before the Lord and provoke Him to anger; \"and\" therefore \"the word of the Lord came to Jonah, saying, Arise and go to Nineveh that great city, and preach unto her,\" that so Israel may be shewn, in comparison with the pagan, to be the more guilty, when the Ninevites should repent, the children of Israel persevered in unrepentance.\"\nJonah the son of Amittai - Both names occur here only in the Old Testament, Jonah signifies \"Dove,\" Amittai, \"the truth of God.\" Some of the names of the Hebrew prophets so suit in with their times, that they must either have been given them propheticly, or assumed by themselves, as a sort of watchword, analogous to the prophetic names, given to the sons of Hosea and Isaiah. Such were the names of Elijah and Elisha, \"The Lord is my God,\" \"my God is salvation.\" Such too seems to be that of Jonah. The \"dove\" is everywhere the symbol of \"mourning love.\" The side of his character which Jonah records is that of his defect, his want of trust in God, and so his unloving zeal against those, who were to be the instruments of God against his people. His name perhaps preserves that character by which he willed to be known among his people, one who moaned or mourned over them.\nArise, go to Nineveh, that great city - The Assyrian history, as far as it has yet been discovered, is very bare of events in regard to this period. We have as yet the names of three kings only for 150 years. But Assyria, as far as we know its history, was in its meridian. Just before the time of Jonah, perhaps ending in it, were the victorious reigns of Shalmanubar and Shamasiva; after him was that of Ivalush or Pul, the first aggressor upon Israel. It is clear that this was a time Of Assyrian greatness: since God calls it \"that great city,\" not in relation to its extent only, but its power. A large weak city would not have been called a \"great city unto God\" Jon 3:3.\nAnd cry against it - The substance of that cry is recorded afterward, but God told to Jonah now, what message he was to cry aloud to it. For Jonah relates afterward, how he expostulated now with God, and that his expostulation was founded on this, that God was so merciful that He would not fulfill the judgment which He threatened. Faith was strong in Jonah, while, like Apostles \"the sons of thunder,\" before the Day of Pentecost, he knew not\" what spirit he was of.\" Zeal for the people and, as he doubtless thought, for the glory of God, narrowed love in him. He did not, like Moses, pray Exo 32:32, \"or else blot me also out of Thy book,\" or like Paul, desire even to be \"an anathema from Christ\" Rom 9:3 for his people's sake, so that there might be more to love his Lord. His zeal was directed, like that of the rebuked Apostles, against others, and so it too was rebuked. But his faith was strong. He shrank back from the office, as believing, not as doubting, the might of God. He thought nothing of preaching, amid that multitude of wild warriors, the stern message of God. He was willing, alone, to confront the violence of a city of 600,000, whose characteristic was violence. He was ready, at God's bidding, to enter what Nahum speaks of as a den of lions Nah 2:11-12; \"The dwelling of the lions and the feeding-place of the young lions, where the lion did tear in pieces enough for his whelps, and strangled for his lionesses.\" He feared not the fierceness of their lion-nature, but God's tenderness, and lest that tenderness should be the destruction of his own people.\nTheir wickedness is come up before Me - So God said to Cain, Gen 4:10. \"The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto Me from the ground:\" and of Sodom Gen 18:20 :21, \"The cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, because their sin is very grievous; the cry of it is come up unto Me.\" The \"wickedness\" is not the mere mass of human sin, of which it is said Jo1 5:19, \"the whole world lieth in wickedness,\" but evil-doing toward others. This was the cause of the final sentence on Nineveh, with which Nahum closes his prophecy, \"upon whom hath not thy wickedness passed continually?\" It bad been assigned as the ground of the judgment on Israel through Nineveh Hos 10:14-15. \"So shall Bethel do unto you, on account of the wickedness of your wickedness.\" It was the ground of the destruction by the flood Gen 6:5. \"God saw that the wickedness of man was great upon the earth.\" God represents Himself, the Great Judge, as sitting on His Throne in heaven, Unseen but All-seeing, to whom the wickedness and oppressiveness of man against man \"goes up,\" appealing for His sentence against the oppressor. The cause seems ofttimes long in pleading. God is long-suffering with the oppressor too, that if so be, he may repent. So would a greater good come to the oppressed also, if the wolf became a lamb. But meanwhile, \" every iniquity has its own voice at the hidden judgment seat of God.\" Mercy itself calls for vengeance on the unmerciful.\nBut (And) Jonah rose up to flee ... from the presence of the Lord - literally \"from being before the Lord.\" Jonah knew well, that man could not escape from the presence of God, whom he knew as the Self-existing One, He who alone is, the Maker of heaven, earth and sea. He did not \"flee\" then \"from His presence,\" knowing well what David said Psa 139:7, Psa 139:9-10, \"whither shall I go from Thy Spirit, or whither shall I flee from Thy presence? If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there shall Thy hand lead me and Thy right hand shall hold me.\" Jonah fled, not from God's presence, but from standing before him, as His servant and minister. He refused God's service, because, as he himself tells God afterward Jon 4:2, he knew what it would end in, and he misliked it.\nSo he acted, as people often do, who dislike God's commands. He set about removing himself as far as possible from being under the influence of God, and from the place where he \"could\" fulfill them. God commanded him to go to Nineveh, which lay northeast from his home; and he instantly set himself to flee to the then furthermost west. Holy Scripture sets the rebellion before us in its full nakedness. \"The word of the Lord came unto Jonah, go to Nineveh, and Jonah rose up;\" he did something instantly, as the consequence of God's command. He \"rose up,\" not as other prophets, to obey, but to disobey; and that, not slowly nor irresolutely, but \"to flee, from\" standing \"before the Lord.\" He renounced his office. So when our Lord came in the flesh, those who found what He said to be \"hard sayings,\" went away from Him, \"and walked no more with Him\" Joh 6:66. So the rich \"young man went away sorrowful Mat 19:22, for he had great possessions.\"\nThey were perhaps afraid of trusting themselves in His presence; or they were ashamed of staying there, and not doing what He said. So men, when God secretly calls them to prayer, go and immerse themselves in business; when, in solitude, He says to their souls something which they do not like, they escape His Voice in a throng. If He calls them to make sacrifices for His poor, they order themselves a new dress or some fresh sumptuousness or self-indulgence; if to celibacy, they engage themselves to marry immediately; or, contrariwise, if He calls them not to do a thing, they do it at once, to make an end of their struggle and their obedience; to put obedience out of their power; to enter themselves on a course of disobedience. Jonah, then, in this part of his history, is the image of those who, when God calls them, disobey His call, and how He deals with them, when he does not abandon them. He lets them have their way for a time, encompasses them with difficulties, so that they shall \"flee back from God displeased to God appeased.\"\n\"The whole wisdom, the whole bliss, the whole of man lies in this, to learn what God wills him to do, in what state of life, calling, duties, profession, employment, He wills him to serve Him.\" God sent each one of us into the world, to fulfill his own definite duties, and, through His grace, to attain to our own perfection in and through fulfilling them. He did not create us at random, to pass through the world, doing whatever self-will or our own pleasure leads us to, but to fulfill His will. This will of His, if we obey His earlier calls, and seek Him by prayer, in obedience, self-subdual, humility, thoughtfulness, He makes known to each by His own secret drawings, and, in absence of these, at times by His Providence or human means. And then , \"to follow Him is a token of predestination.\" It is to place ourselves in that order of things, that pathway to our eternal mansion, for which God created us, and which God created for us.\nSo Jesus says Joh 10:27-28, \"My sheep hear My voice and I know them, and they follow Me, and I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My Hand.\" In these ways, God has foreordained for us all the graces which we need; in these, we shall be free from all temptations which might be too hard for us, in which our own special weakness would be most exposed. Those ways, which people choose out of mere natural taste or fancy, are mostly those which expose them to the greatest peril of sin and damnation. For they choose them, just because such pursuits flatter most their own inclinations, and give scope to their natural strength and their moral weakness. So Jonah, disliking a duty, which God gave him to fulfill, separated himself from His service, forfeited his past calling, lost, as far as in him lay, his place among \"the goodly fellowship of the prophets,\" and, but for God's overtaking grace, would have ended his days among the disobedient. As in Holy Scripture, David stands alone of saints, who had been after their calling, bloodstained; as the penitent robber stands alone converted in death; as Peter stands singly, recalled after denying his Lord; so Jonah stands, the one prophet, who, having obeyed and then rebelled, was constrained by the overpowering providence and love of God, to return and serve Him.\n\"Being a prophet, Jonah could not be ignorant of the mind of God, that, according to His great Wisdom and His unsearchable judgments and His untraceable and incomprehensible ways, He, through the threat, was providing for the Ninevites that they should not suffer the things threatened. To think that Jonah hoped to hide himself in the sea and elude by flight the great Eye of God, were altogether absurd and ignorant, which should not be believed, I say not of a prophet, but of no other sensible person who had any moderate knowledge of God and His supreme power. Jonah knew all this better than anyone, that, planning his flight, he changed his place, but did not flee God. For this could no man do, either by hiding himself in the bosom of the earth or depths of the sea or ascending (if possible) with wings into the air, or entering the lowest hell, or encircled with thick clouds, or taking any other counsel to secure his flight.\nThis, above all things and alone, can neither be escaped nor resisted, God. When He willeth to hold and grasp in His Hand, He overtaketh the swift, baffleth the intelligent, overthroweth the strong, boweth the lofty, tameth rashness, subdueth might. He who threatened to others the mighty Hand of God, was not himself ignorant of nor thought to flee, God. Let us not believe this. But since he saw the fall of Israel and perceived that the prophetic grace would pass over to the Gentiles, he withdrew himself from the office of preaching, and put off the command.\" \"The prophet knoweth, the Holy Spirit teaching him, that the repentance of the Gentiles is the ruin of the Jews. A lover then of his country, he does not so much envy the deliverance of Nineveh, as will that his own country should not perish. - Seeing too that his fellow-prophets are sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, to excite the people to repentance, and that Balaam the soothsayer too prophesied of the salvation of Israel, he grieveth that he alone is chosen to be sent to the Assyrians, the enemies of Israel, and to that greatest city of the enemies where was idolatry and ignorance of God. Yet more he feared lest they, on occasion of his preaching, being converted to repentance, Israel should be wholly forsaken. For he knew by the same Spirit whereby the preaching to the Gentiles was entrusted to him, that the house of Israel would then perish; and he feared that what was at one time to be, should take place in his own time.\" \"The flight of the prophet may also be referred to that of man in general who, despising the commands of God, departed from Him and gave himself to the world, where subsequently, through the storms of ill and the wreck of the whole world raging against him, he was compelled to feel the presence of God, and to return to Him whom he had fled. Whence we understand, that those things also which men think for their good, when against the will of God, are turned to destruction; and help not only does not benefit those to whom it is given, but those too who give it, are alike crushed. As we read that Egypt was conquered by the Assyrians, because it helped Israel against the will of God. The ship is emperiled which had received the emperiled; a tempest arises in a calm; nothing is secure, when God is against us.\"\nTarshish - , named after one of the sons of Javan, Gen 10:4. was an ancient merchant city of Spain, once proverbial for its wealth (Psa 72:10. Strabo iii. 2. 14), which supplied Judaea with silver Jer 10:9, Tyre with \"all manner of riches,\" with iron also, tin, lead. Eze 27:12, Eze 27:25. It was known to the Greeks and Romans, as (with a harder pronunciation) Tartessus; but in our first century, it had either ceased to be, or was known under some other name. Ships destined for a voyage, at that time, so long, and built for carrying merchandise, were naturally among the largest then constructed. \"Ships of Tarshish\" corresponded to the \"East-Indiamen\" which some of us remember. The breaking of \"ships of Tarshish by the East Wind\" Psa 48:7 is, on account of their size and general safety, instanced as a special token of the interposition of God.\nAnd went down to Joppa - Joppa, now Jaffa (Haifa), was the one well-known port of Israel on the Mediterranean. There the cedars were brought from Lebanon for both the first and second temple Ch2 3:16; Ezr 2:7. Simon the Maccabee (1 Macc. 14:5) \"took it again for a haven, and made an entrance to the isles of the sea.\" It was subsequently destroyed by the Romans, as a pirate-haven. (Josephus, B. J. iii. 9. 3, and Strabo xvi. 2. 28.) At a later time, all describe it as an unsafe haven. Perhaps the shore changed, since the rings, to which Andromeda was tabled to have been fastened, and which probably were once used to moor vessels, were high above the sea. Perhaps, like the Channel Islands, the navigation was safe to those who knew the coast, unsafe to others. To this port Jonah \"went down\" from his native country, the mountain district of Zabulon. Perhaps it was not at this time in the hands of Israel. At least, the sailors were pagan. He \"went down,\" as the man who fell among the thieves, is said to \"have gone down from Jerusalem to Jericho.\" Luk 10:30. He \"went down\" from the place which God honored by His presence and protection.\nAnd he paid the fare thereof - Jonah describes circumstantially, how he took every step to his end. He went down, found a strongly built ship going where he wished, paid his fare, embarked. He seemed now to have done all. He had severed himself from the country where his office lay. He had no further step to take. Winds and waves would do the rest. He had but to be still. He went, only to be brought back again.\n\"Sin brings our soul into much senselessness. For as those overtaken by heaviness of head and drunkenness, are borne on simply and at random, and, be there pit or precipice or whatever else below them, they fall into it unawares; so too, they who fall into sin, intoxicated by their desire of the object, know not what they do, see nothing before them, present or future. Tell me, Fleest thou the Lord? Wait then a little, and thou shalt learn from the event, that thou canst not escape the hands of His servant, the sea. For as soon as he embarked, it too roused its waves and raised them up on high; and as a faithful servant, finding her fellow-slave stealing some of his master's property, ceases not from giving endless trouble to those who take him in, until she recover him, so too the sea, finding and recognizing her fellow-servant, harasses the sailors unceasingly, raging, roaring, not dragging them to a tribunal but threatening to sink the vessel with all its unless they restore to her, her fellow-servant.\"\n\"The sinner \"arises,\" because, will he, nill he, toil he must. If he shrinks from the way of God, because it is hard, he may not yet be idle. There is the way of ambition, of covetousness, of pleasure, to be trodden, which certainly are far harder. 'We wearied ourselves (Wisdom 5:7),' say the wicked, 'in the way of wickedness and destruction, yea, we have gone through deserts where there lay no way; but the way of the Lord we have not known.' Jonah would not arise, to go to Nineveh at God's command; yet he must needs arise, to flee to Tarshish from before the presence of God. What good can he have who fleeth the Good? what light, who willingly forsaketh the Light? \"He goes down to Joppa.\" Wherever thou turnest, if thou depart from the will of God, thou goest down. Whatever glory, riches, power, honors, thou gainest, thou risest not a whit; the more thou advancest, while turned from God, the deeper and deeper thou goest down. Yet all these things are not had, without paying the price. At a price and with toil, he obtains what he desires; he receives nothing gratis, but, at great price purchases to himself storms, griefs, peril. There arises a great tempest in the sea, when various contradictory passions arise in the heart of the sinner, which take from him all tranquility and joy. There is a tempest in the sea, when God sends strong and dangerous disease, whereby the frame is in peril of being broken. There is a tempest in the sea, when, thro' rivals or competitors for the same pleasures, or the injured, or the civil magistrate, his guilt is discovered, he is laden with infamy and odium, punished, withheld from his wonted pleasures. Psa 107:23-27. \"They who go down to the sea of this world, and do business in mighty waters - their soul melteth away because of trouble; they reel to and fro and stagger like a drunken man, and all their wisdom is swallowed up.\"\nBut (And) the Lord sent out - (literally 'cast along'). Jonah had done his all. Now God's part began. This He expresses by the word, \"And.\" Jonah took \"his\" measures, \"and\" now God takes \"His.\" He had let him have his way, as He often deals with those who rebel against Him. He lets them have their way up to a certain point. He waits, in the tranquility of His Almightiness, until they have completed their preparations; and then, when man has ended, He begins, that man may see the more that it is His doing . \"He takes those who flee from Him in their flight, the wise in their counsels, sinners in their conceits and sins, and draws them back to Himself and compels them to return. Jonah thought to find rest in the sea, and lo! a tempest.\" Probably, God summoned back Jonah, as soon as he had completed all on his part, and sent the tempest, soon after he left the shore.\nAt least, such tempests often swept along that shore, and were known by their own special name, like the Euroclydon off Crete. Jonah too alone had gone down below deck to sleep, and, when the storm came, the mariners thought it possible to put back. Josephus says of that shore, \"Joppa having by nature no haven, for it ends in a rough shore, mostly abrupt, but for a short space having projections, i. e., deep rocks and cliffs advancing into the sea, inclining on either side toward each other (where the traces of the chains of Andromeda yet shown accredit the antiquity of the fable,) and the north wind beating right on the shore, and dashing the high waves against the rocks which receive them, makes the station there a harborless sea. As those from Joppa were tossing here, a strong wind (called by those who sail here, the black north wind) falls upon them at daybreak, dashing straightway some of the ships against each other, some against the rocks, and some, forcing their way against the waves to the open sea, (for they fear the rocky shore ...) the breakers towering above them, sank.\"\nThe ship was like - (literally 'thought') To be broken Perhaps Jonah means by this very vivid image to exhibit the more his own dullness. He ascribes, as it were, to the ship a sense of its own danger, as she heaved and rolled and creaked and quivered under the weight of the storm which lay on her, and her masts groaned, and her yard-arms shivered. To the awakened conscience everything seems to have been alive to God's displeasure, except itself.\nAnd cried, every man unto his God - They did what they could. \"Not knowing the truth, they yet know of a Providence, and, amid religious error, know that there is an Object of reverence.\" In ignorance they had received one who offended God. And now God, \"whom they ignorantly worshiped\" Act 17:23, while they cried to the gods, who, they thought, disposed of them, heard them. They escaped with the loss of their wares, but God saved their lives and revealed Himself to them. God hears ignorant prayer, when ignorance is not willful and sin.\nTo lighten it of them - , literally \"to lighten from against them, to lighten\" what was so much \"against them,\" what so oppressed them. \"They thought that the ship was weighed down by its wonted lading, and they knew not that the whole weight was that of the fugitive prophet.\" \"The sailors cast forth their wares,\" but the ship was not lightened. For the whole weight still remained, the body of the prophet, that heavy burden, not from the nature of the body, but from the burden of sin. For nothing is so onerous and heavy as sin and disobedience. Whence also Zechariah Zac 5:7 represented it under the image of lead. And David, describing its nature, said Psa 38:4, \"my wickednesses are gone over my head; as a heavy burden they are too heavy for me.\" And Christ cried aloud to those who lived in many sins, Mat 11:28. \"Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will refresh you.\"\nJonah was gone down - , probably before the beginning of the storm, not simply before the lightening of the vessel. He could hardly have fallen asleep \"then.\" A pagan ship was a strange place for a prophet of God, not as a prophet, but as a fugitive; and so, probably, ashamed of what he had completed, he had withdrawn from sight and notice. He did not embolden himself in his sin, but shrank into himself. The conscience most commonly awakes, when the sin is done. It stands aghast as itself; but Satan, if he can, cuts off its retreat. Jonah had no retreat now, unless God had made one.\nAnd was fast asleep - The journey to Joppa had been long and hurried; he had \"fled.\" Sorrow and remorse completed what fatigue began. Perhaps he had given himself up to sleep, to dull his conscience. For it is said, \"he lay down and was fast asleep.\" Grief produces sleep; from where it is said of the apostles in the night before the Lord's Passion, when Jesus \"rose up from prayer and was come to His disciples, He found them sleeping for sorrow\" Luk 22:45 . \"Jonah slept heavily. Deep was the sleep, but it was not of pleasure but of grief; not of heartlessness, but of heavy-heartedness. For well-disposed servants soon feel their sins, as did he. For when the sin has been done, then he knows its frightfulness. For such is sin. When born, it awakens pangs in the soul which bare it, contrary to the law of our nature. For so soon as we are born, we end the travail-pangs; but sin, so soon as born, rends with pangs the thoughts which conceived it.\" Jonah was in a deep sleep, a sleep by which he was fast held and bound; a sleep as deep as that from which Sisera never woke. Had God allowed the ship to sink, the memory of Jonah would have been that of the fugitive prophet. As it is, his deep sleep stands as an image of the lethargy of sin . \"This most deep sleep of Jonah signifies a man torpid and slumbering in error, to whom it sufficed not to flee from the face of God, but his mind, drowned in a stupor and not knowing the displeasure of God, lies asleep, steeped in security.\"\nWhat meanest thou? - or rather, \"what aileth thee?\" (literally \"what is to thee?\") The shipmaster speaks of it (as it was) as a sort of disease, that he should be thus asleep in the common peril. \"The shipmaster,\" charged, as he by office was, with the common weal of those on board, would, in the common peril, have one common prayer. It was the prophet's office to call the pagan to prayers and to calling upon God. God reproved the Scribes and Pharisees by the mouth of the children who \"cried Hosanna\" Mat 21:15; Jonah by the shipmaster; David by Abigail; Sa1 25:32-34; Naaman by his servants. Now too he reproves worldly priests by the devotion of laymen, sceptic intellect by the simplicity of faith.\nIf so be that God will think upon us - , (literally \"for us\") i. e., for good; as David says, Psa 40:17. \"I am poor and needy, the Lord thinketh upon\" (literally \"for\") \"me.\" Their calling upon their own gods had failed them. Perhaps the shipmaster had seen something special about Jonah, his manner, or his prophet's garb. He does not only call Jonah's God, \"thy\" God, as Darius says to Daniel \"thy God\" Dan 6:20, but also \"the God,\" acknowledging the God whom Jonah worshiped, to be \"the God.\" It is not any pagan prayer which he asks Jonah to offer. It is the prayer of the creature in its need to God who can help; but knowing its own ill-desert, and the separation between itself and God, it knows not whether He will help it. So David says Psa 25:7, \"Remember not the sins of my youth nor my transgressions; according to Thy mercy remember Thou me for Thy goodness' sake, O Lord.\"\n\"The shipmaster knew from experience, that it was no common storm, that the surges were an infliction borne down from God, and above human skill, and that there was no good in the master's skill. For the state of things needed another Master who ordereth the heavens, and craved the guidance from on high. So then they too left oars, sails, cables, gave their hands rest from rowing, and stretched them to heaven and called on God.\"\nCome, and let us cast lots - Jonah too had probably prayed, and his prayers too were not heard. Probably, too, the storm had some unusual character about it, the suddenness with which it burst upon them, its violence, the quarter from where it came, its whirlwind force . \"They knew the nature of the sea, and, as experienced sailors, were acquainted with the character of wind and storm, and had these waves been such as they had known before, they would never have sought by lot for the author of the threatened wreck, or, by a thing uncertain, sought to escape certain peril.\" God, who sent the storm to arrest Jonah and to cause him to be cast into the sea, provided that its character should set the mariners on divining, why it came. Even when working great miracles, God brings about, through man, all the forerunning events, all but the last act, in which He puts forth His might. As, in His people, he directed the lot to fall upon Achan or upon Jonathan, so here He overruled the lots of the pagan sailors to accomplish His end. \" We must not, on this precedent, immediately trust in lots, or unite with this testimony that from the Acts of the Apostles, when Matthias was by lot elected to the apostolate, since the privileges of individuals cannot form a common law.\" \"Lots,\" according to the ends for which they were cast, were for:\ni) The lot for dividing is not wrong if not used,\n1) \"without any necessity, for this would be to tempt God:\"\n2) \"if in case of necessity, not without reverence of God, as if Holy Scripture were used for an earthly end,\" as in determining any secular matter by opening the Bible:\n3) for objects which ought to be decided otherwise, (as, an office ought to be given to the fittest:)\n4) in dependence upon any other than God Pro 16:33. \"The lot is cast into the lap, but the whole disposing of it is the Lord's.\" So then they are lawful \"in secular things which cannot otherwise be conveniently distributed,\" or when there is no apparent reason why, in any advantage or disadvantage, one should be preferred to another.\" Augustine even allows that, in a time of plague or persecution, the lot might be cast to decide who should remain to administer the sacraments to the people, lest, on the one side, all should be taken away, or, on the other, the Church be deserted.\nii.) The lot for consulting, i. e., to decide what one should do, is wrong, unless in a matter of mere indifference, or under inspiration of God, or in some extreme necessity where all human means fail.\niii.) The lot for divining, i. e., to learn truth, whether of things present or future, of which we can have no human knowledge, is wrong, except by direct inspiration of God. For it is either to tempt God who has not promised so to reveal things, or, against God, to seek superhuman knowledge by ways unsanctioned by Him. Satan may readily mix himself unknown in such inquiries, as in mesmerism. Forbidden ground is his own province.\nGod overruled the lot in the case of Jonah, as He did the sign which the Philistines sought . \"He made the heifers take the way to Bethshemesh, that the Philistines might know that the plague came to them, not by chance, but from Hilmself\" . \"The fugitive (Jonah) was taken by lot, not by any virtue of the lots, especially the lots of pagan, but by the will of Him who guided the uncertain lots\" \"The lot betrayed the culprit. Yet not even thus did they cast him over; but, even while such a tumult and storm lay on them, they held, as it were, a court in the vessel, as though in entire peace, and allowed him a hearing and defense, and sifted everything accurately, as men who were to give account of their judgment. Hear them sifting all as in a court - The roaring sea accused him; the lot convicted and witnessed against him, yet not even thus did they pronounce against him - until the accused should be the accuser of his own sin. The sailors, uneducated, untaught, imitated the good order of courts. When the sea scarcely allowed them to breathe, whence such forethought about the prophet? By the disposal of God. For God by all this instructed the prophet to be humane and mild, all but saying aloud to him; 'Imitate these uninstructed sailors. They think not lightly of one soul, nor are unsparing as to one body, thine own. But thou, for thy part, gavest up a whole city with so many myriads. They, discovering thee to be the cause of the evils which befell them, did not even thus hurry to condemn thee. Thou, having nothing whereof to accuse the Ninevites, didst sink and destroy them. Thou, when I bade thee go and by thy preaching call them to repentance, obeyedst not; these, untaught, do all, compass all, in order to recover thee, already condemned, from punishment.'\"\nTell us, for whose cause - Literally \"for what to whom.\" It may be that they thought that Jonah had been guilty toward some other. The lot had pointed him out. The mariners, still fearing to do wrong, ask him thronged questions, to know why the anger of God followed him; \"what\" hast thou done \"to whom?\" \"what thine occupation?\" i. e., either his ordinary occupation, whether it was displeasing to God? or this particular business in which he was engaged, and for which he had come on board. Questions so thronged have been admired in human poetry, Jerome says. For it is true to nature. They think that some one of them will draw forth the answer which they wish. It may be that they thought that his country, or people, or parents, were under the displeasure of God. But perhaps, more naturally, they wished to \"know all about him,\" as people say. These questions must have gone home to Jonah's conscience. \"What is thy business?\" The office of prophet which he had left. \"Whence comest thou?\" From standing before God, as His minister. \"What thy country? of what people art thou?\" The people of God, whom he had quitted for pagan; not to win them to God, as He commanded; but, not knowing what they did, to abet him in his flight.\nWhat is thine occupation? - They should ask themselves, who have Jonah's office to speak in the name of God, and preach repentance . \"What should be thy business, who hast consecrated thyself wholly to God, whom God has loaded with daily benefits? who approachest to Him as to a Friend? \"What is thy business?\" To live for God, to despise the things of earth, to behold the things of heaven,\" to lead others heavenward.\nJonah answers simply the central point to which all these questions tended:\nI am an Hebrew - This was the name by which Israel was known to foreigners. It is used in the Old Testament, only when they are spoken of by foreigners, or speak of themselves to foreigners, or when the sacred writers mention them in contrast with foreigners . So Joseph spoke of his land Gen 40:15, and the Hebrew midwives Exo 1:19, and Moses' sister Exo 2:7, and God in His commission to Moses Exo 3:18; Exo 7:16; Exo 9:1 as to Pharaoh, and Moses in fulfilling it Exo 5:3. They had the name, as having passed the River Euphrates, \"emigrants.\" The title might serve to remind themselves, that they were \"strangers\" and \"pilgrims,\" Heb 11:13. whose fathers had left their home at God's command and for God , \"passers by, through this world to death, and through death to immortality.\"\nAnd I fear the Lord - , i. e., I am a worshiper of Him, most commonly, one who habitually stands in awe of Him, and so one who stands in awe of sin too. For none really fear God, none fear Him as sons, who do not fear Him in act. To be afraid of God is not to fear Him. To be afraid of God keeps men away from God; to fear God draws them to Him. Here, however, Jonah probably meant to tell them, that the Object of his fear and worship was the One Self-existing God, He who alone is, who made all things, in whose hands are all things. He had told them before, that he had fled \"from being before Yahweh.\" They had not thought anything of this, for they thought of Yahweh, only as the God of the Jews. Now he adds, that He, Whose service he had thus forsaken, was \"the God of heaven, Who made the sea and dry land,\" that sea, whose raging terrified them and threatened their lives. The title, \"the God of heaven,\" asserts the doctrine of the creation of the heavens by God, and His supremacy.\nHence, Abraham uses it to his servant Gen 24:7, and Jonah to the pagan mariners, and Daniel to Nebuchadnezzar Dan 2:37, Dan 2:44; and Cyrus in acknowledging God in his proclamation Ch2 36:23; Ezr 1:2. After his example, it is used in the decrees of Darius Ezr 6:9-10 and Artaxerxes Ezr 7:12, Ezr 7:21, Ezr 7:23, and the returned exiles use it in giving account of their building the temple to the Governor Ezr 5:11-12. Perhaps, from the habit of contact with the pagan, it is used once by Daniel Dan 2:18 and by Nehemiah Neh 1:4-5; Neh 2:4, Neh 2:20. Melchizedek, not perhaps being acquainted with the special name, Yahweh, blessed Abraham in the name of \"God, the Possessor\" or \"Creator of heaven and earth\" Gen 14:19, i. e., of all that is. Jonah, by using it, at once taught the sailors that there is One Lord of all, and why this evil had fallen on them, because they had himself with them, the renegade servant of God. \"When Jonah said this, he indeed feared God and repented of his sin. If he lost filial fear by fleeing and disobeying, he recovered it by repentance.\"\nThen were the men exceedingly afraid - Before, they had feared the tempest and the loss of their lives. Now they feared God. They feared, not the creature but the Creator. They knew that what they had feared was the doing of His Almightiness. They felt how awesome a thing it was to be in His Hands. Such fear is the beginning of conversion, when people turn from dwelling on the distresses which surround them, to God who sent them.\nWhy hast thou done this? - They are words of amazement and wonder. Why hast thou not obeyed so great a God, and how thoughtest thou to escape the hand of the Creator ? \"What is the mystery of thy flight? Why did one, who feared God and had revelations from God, flee, sooner than go to fulfill them? Why did the worshiper of the One true God depart from his God?\" \"A servant flee from his Lord, a son from his father, man from his God!\" The inconsistency of believers is the marvel of the young Christian, the repulsion of those without, the hardening of the unbeliever. If people really believed in eternity, how could they be thus immersed in things of time? If they believed in hell, how could they so hurry there? If they believed that God died for them, how could they so requite Him? Faith without love, knowledge without obedience, conscious dependence and rebellion, to be favored by God yet to despise His favor, are the strangest marvels of this mysterious world.\nAll nature seems to cry out to and against the unfaithful Christian, \"why hast thou done this?\" And what a why it is! A scoffer has recently said so truthfully : \"Avowed scepticism cannot do a tenth part of the injury to practical faith, that the constant spectacle of the huge mass of worldly unreal belief does.\" It is nothing strange, that the world or unsanctified intellect should reject the Gospel. It is a thing of course, unless it be converted. But, to know, to believe, and to DISOBEY! To disobey God, in the name of God. To propose to halve the living Gospel, as the woman who had killed her child Kg1 3:26, and to think that the poor quivering remnants would be the living Gospel anymore! As though the will of God might, like those lower forms of His animal creation, be divided endlessly, and, keep what fragments we will, it would still be a living whole, a vessel of His Spirit! Such unrealities and inconsistencies would be a sore trial of faith, had not Jesus, who (cf. Joh 2:25), \"knew what is in man,\" forewarned us that it should be so. The scandals against the Gospel, so contrary to all human opinion, are only all the more a testimony to the divine knowledge of the Redeemer.\nWhat shall we do unto thee? - They knew him to be a prophet; they ask him the mind of his God. The lots had marked out Jonah as the cause of the storm; Jonah had himself admitted it, and that the storm was for \"his\" cause, and came from \"his\" God . \"Great was he who fled, greater He who required him. They dare not give him up; they cannot conceal him. They blame the fault; they confess their fear; they ask \"him\" the remedy, who was the author of the sin. If it was faulty to receive thee, what can we do, that God should not be angered? It is thine to direct; ours, to obey.\"\nThe sea wrought and was tempestuous - , literally \"was going and whirling.\" It was not only increasingly tempestuous, but, like a thing alive and obeying its Master's will, it was holding on its course, its wild waves tossing themselves, and marching on like battalions, marshalled, arrayed for the end for which they were sent, pursuing and demanding the runaway slave of God . \"It was going, as it was bidden; it was going to avenge its Lord; it was going, pursuing the fugitive prophet. It was swelling every moment, and, as though the sailors were too tardy, was rising in yet greater surges, shewing that the vengeance of the Creator admitted not of delay.\"\nTake me up, and cast me into the sea - Neither might Jonah have said this, nor might the sailors have obeyed it, without the command of God. Jonah might will alone to perish, who had alone offended; but, without the command of God, the Giver of life, neither Jonah nor the sailors might dispose of the life of Jonah. But God willed that Jonah should be cast into the sea - where he had gone for refuge - that (Wisdom 11:16) wherewithal he had \"sinned, by the same also he might be punished\" as a man; and, as a prophet, that he might, in his three days' burial, prefigure Him who, after His Resurrection, should convert, not Nineveh, but the world, the cry of whose wickedness went up to God.\nFor I know that for my sake - o \"In that he says, \"I know,\" he marks that he had a revelation; in that he says, \"this great storm,\" he marks the need which lay on those who cast him into the sea.\"\nThe men rowed hard - , literally \"dug.\" The word, like our \"plowed the main,\" describes the great efforts which they made. Amid the violence of the storm, they had furled their sails. These were worse than useless. The wind was off shore, since by rowing alpine they hoped to get back to it. They put their oars well and firmly in the sea, and turned up the water, as men turn up earth by digging. But in vain! God willed it not. The sea went on its way, as before. In the description of the deluge, it is repeated Gen 7:17-18, \"the waters increased and bare up the ark, and it was lifted up above the earth; the waters increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark went upon the face of the waters.\" The waters raged and swelled, drowned the whole world, yet only bore up the ark, as a steed bears its rider: man was still, the waters obeyed. In this tempest, on the contrary, man strove, but, instead of the peace of the ark, the burden is, the violence of the tempest; \"the sea wrought and was tempestuous against them\" . \"The prophet had pronounced sentence against himself, but they would not lay hands upon him, striving hard to get back to land, and escape the risk of bloodshed, willing to lose life rather than cause its loss. O what a change was there. The people who had served God, said, Crucify Him, Crucify Him! These are bidden to put to death; the sea rageth; the tempest commandeth; and they are careless its to their own safety, while anxious about another's.\"\nWherefore (And) they cried unto the Lord - \"They cried\" no more \"each man to his god,\" but to the one God, whom Jonah had made known to them; and to Him they cried with an earnest submissive, cry, repeating the words of beseeching, as men, do in great earnestness; \"we beseech Thee, O Lord, let us not, we beseech Thee, perish for the life of this man\" (i. e., as a penalty for taking it, as it is said, Sa2 14:7. \"we will slay him for the life of his brother,\" and, Deu 19:21. \"life for life.\") They seem to have known what is said, Gen 9:5-6. \"your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man. Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed, for in the image of God made He man\" , \"Do not these words of the sailors seem to us to be the confession of Pilate, who washed his hands, and said, 'I am clean from the blood of this Man?' The Gentiles would not that Christ should perish; they protest that His Blood is innocent.\"\nAnd lay not upon us innocent blood - innocent as to them, although, as to this thing, guilty before God, and yet, as to God also, more innocent, they would think, than they. For, strange as this was, one disobedience, their whole life, they now knew, was disobedience to God; His life was but one act in a life of obedience. If God so punishes one sin of the holy Pe1 4:18, \"where shall the ungodly and sinner appear?\" Terrible to the awakened conscience are God's chastenings on some (as it seems) single offence of those whom He loves.\nFor Thou, Lord, (Who knowest the hearts of all men,) hast done, as it pleased Thee - Wonderful, concise, confession of faith in these new converts! Psalmists said it, Psa 135:6; Psa 115:3. \"Whatsoever God willeth, that doeth He in heaven and in earth, in the sea and in all deep places.\" But these had but just known God, and they resolve the whole mystery of man's agency and God's Providence into the three simple words , as (Thou) \"willedst\" (Thou) \"didst.\" \"That we took him aboard, that the storm ariseth, that the winds rage, that the billows lift themselves, that the fugitive is betrayed by the lot, that he points out what is to be done, it is of Thy will, O Lord\" . \"The tempest itself speaketh, that 'Thou, Lord, hast done as Thou willedst.' Thy will is fulfilled by our hands.\" \"Observe the counsel of God, that, of his own will, not by violence or by necessity, should he be cast into the sea. For the casting of Jonah into the sea signified the entrance of Christ into the bitterness of the Passion, which He took upon Himself of His own will, not of necessity. Isa 53:7. \"He was offered up, and He willingly submitted Himself.\" And as those who sailed with Jonah were delivered, so the faithful in the Passion of Christ. Joh 18:8-9. \"If ye seek Me, let these go their way, that the saying might be fulfilled which\" Jesus spake, 'Of them which Thou gavest Me, I have lost none. '\"\nThey took up Jonah - o \"He does not say, 'laid hold on him', nor 'came upon him' but 'lifted' him; as it were, bearing him with respect and honor, they cast him into the sea, not resisting, but yielding himself to their will.\"\nThe sea ceased (literally \"stood\") from his raging - Ordinarily, the waves still swell, when the wind has ceased. The sea, when it had received Jonah, was hushed at once, to show that God alone raised and quelled it. It \"stood\" still, like a servant, when it had accomplished its mission. God, who at all times saith to it Job 38:11, \"Hitherto shalt thou come and no further, and here shall thy proud waves be stayed,\" now unseen, as afterward in the flesh Mat 8:26, \"rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm\" . \"If we consider the errors of the world before the Passion of Christ, and the conflicting blasts of diverse doctrines, and the vessel, and the whole race of man, i. e., the creature of the Lord, imperiled, and, after His Passion, the tranquility of faith and the peace of the world and the security of all things and the conversion to God, we shall see how, after Jonah was cast in, the sea stood from its raging\" . \"Jonah, in the sea, a fugitive, shipwrecked, dead, sayeth the tempest-tossed vessel; he sayeth the pagan, aforetime tossed to and fro by the error of the world into divers opinions. And Hosea, Amos, Isaiah, Joel, who prophesied at the same time, could not amend the people in Judaea; whence it appeared that the breakers could not be calmed, save by the death of (Him typified by) the fugitive.\"\nAnd the men feared the Lord with a great fear - because, from the tranquility of the sea and the ceasing of the tempest, they saw that the prophet's words were true. This great miracle completed the conversion of the mariners. God had removed all human cause of fear; and yet, in the same words as before, he says, \"they feared a great fear;\" but he adds, \"the Lord.\" It was the great fear, with which even the disciples of Jesus feared, when they saw the miracles which He did, which made even Peter say, Luk 5:8. \"Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.\" Events full of wonder had thronged upon them; things beyond nature, and contrary to nature; tidings which betokened His presence, Who had all things in His hands. They had seen \"wind and storm fulfilling His word\" Psa 148:8, and, forerunners of the fishermen of Galilee, knowing full well from their own experience that this was above nature, they felt a great awe of God. So He commanded His people, \"Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God Deu 6:13, for thy good always\" Deu 6:24.\nAnd offered a sacrifice - Doubtless, as it was a large decked vessel and bound on a long voyage, they had live creatures on board, which they could offer in sacrifice. But this was not enough for their thankfulness; \"they vowed vows.\" They promised that they would do thereafter what they could not do then ; \"that they would never depart from Him whom they had begun to worship.\" This was true love, not to be content with aught which they could do, but to stretch forward in thought to an abiding and enlarged obedience, as God should enable them. And so they were doubtless enrolled among the people of God, firstfruits from among the pagan, won to God Who overrules all things, through the disobedience and repentance of His prophet. Perhaps, they were the first preachers among the pagan, and their account of their own wonderful deliverance prepared the way for Jonah's mission to Nineveh.\nNow the Lord had (literally \"And the Lord\") prepared - Jonah (as appears from his thanksgiving) was not swallowed at once, but sank to the bottom of the sea, God preserving him in life there by miracle, as he did in the fish's belly. Then, when the seaweed was twined around his head, and he seemed to be already buried until the sea should give up her dead, \"God prepared the fish to swallow Jonah\" . \"God could as easily have kept Jonah alive in the sea as in the fish's belly, but, in order to prefigure the burial of the Lord, He willed him to be within the fish whose belly was as a grave.\" Jonah, does not say what fish it was; and our Lord too used a name, signifying only one of the very largest fish. Yet it was no greater miracle to create a fish which should swallow Jonah, than to preserve him alive when swallowed . \"The infant is buried, as it were, in the womb of its mother; it cannot breathe, and yet, thus too, it liveth and is preserved, wonderfully nurtured by the will of God.\" He who preserves the embryo in its living grave can maintain the life of man as easily without the outward air as with it.\nThe same Divine Will preserves in being the whole creation, or creates it. The same will of God keeps us in life by breathing this outward air, which preserved Jonah without it. How long will men think of God, as if He were man, of the Creator as if He were a creature, as though creation were but one intricate piece of machinery, which is to go on, ringing its regular changes until it shall be worn out, and God were shut up, as a sort of mainspring within it, who might be allowed to be a primal Force, to set it in motion, but must not be allowed to vary what He has once made? \"We must admit of the agency of God,\" say these men when they would not in name be atheists, \"once in the beginning of things, but must allow of His interference as sparingly as may be.\" Most wise arrangement of the creature, if it were indeed the god of its God! Most considerate provision for the non-interference of its Maker, if it could but secure that He would not interfere with it for ever! Acute physical philosophy, which, by its omnipotent word, would undo the acts of God! Heartless, senseless, sightless world, which exists in God, is upheld by God, whose every breath is an effluence of God's love, and which yet sees Him not, thanks Him not, thinks it a greater thing to hold its own frail existence from some imagined law, than to be the object of the tender personal care of the Infinite God who is Love! Poor hoodwinked souls, which would extinguish for themselves the Light of the world, in order that it may not eclipse the rushlight of their own theory!\nAnd Jonah was in the belly of the fish - The time that Jonah was in the fish's belly was a hidden prophecy. Jonah does not explain nor point it. He tells the fact, as Scripture is accustomed to do so. Then he singles out one, the turning point in it. Doubtless in those three days and nights of darkness, Jonah (like him who after his conversion became Paul), meditated much, repented much, sorrowed much, for the love of God, that he had ever offended God, purposed future obedience, adored God with wondering awe for His judgment and mercy. It was a narrow home, in which Jonah, by miracle, was not consumed; by miracle, breathed; by miracle, retained his senses in that fetid place. Jonah doubtless, repented, marveled, adored, loved God. But, of all, God has singled out this one point, how, out of such a place, Jonah thanked God. As He delivered Paul and Silas from the prison, when they prayed with a loud voice to Him, so when Jonah, by inspiration of His Spirit, thanked Him, He delivered him.\nTo thank God, only in order to obtain fresh gifts from Him, would be but a refined, hypocritical form of selfishness. Such a formal act would not be thanks at all. We thank God, because we love Him, because He is so infinitely good, and so good to us, unworthy. Thanklessness shuts the door to His personal mercies to us, because it makes them the occasion of fresh sins of our's. Thankfulness sets God's essential goodness free (so to speak) to be good to us. He can do what He delights in doing, be good to us, without our making His Goodness a source of harm to us. Thanking Him through His grace, we become fit vessels for larger graces . \"Blessed he who, at every gift of grace, returns to Him in whom is all fullness of graces; to whom when we show ourselves not ungrateful for gifts received, we make room in ourselves for grace, and become meet for receiving yet more.\" But Jonah's was that special character of thankfulness, which thanks God in the midst of calamities from which there was no human exit; and God set His seal on this sort of thankfulness, by annexing this deliverance, which has consecrated Jonah as an image of our Lord, to his wonderful act of thanksgiving."}
{"text": "(Water on the Brain)\n|Copyright © Nucleus Medical Media, Inc.|\n- An excess of CSF is produced (rare)\n- A blockage that doesn't allow CSF to drain properly (more commonly)\n- Brain tumors\n- Cancer in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)\n- Swelling in the CSF (such as sarcoidosis)\n- Cysts in the brain\n- Malformations of the brain, such as:\n- Brain injuries\n- Infections of the brain or the meninges can be caused by a number of agents including bacteria, mycobacteria, fungus, viruses, and parasites, such as:\n- Problems with the blood vessel in the brain\n- Bleeding into the brain or CSF space\n- Headache (often worse when lying down or upon first awakening in the morning or with straining)\n- Nausea / Vomiting\n- Problems with balance\n- Difficulty walking\n- Poor coordination\n- Personality changes\n- Memory problems\n- Dementia in the elderly\n- Coma and death\n- Slow development\n- Loss of developmental milestones—no longer able to do activities they once could do\n- Bulging fontanelle (soft spot on the head)\n- Large head circumference\n- Shunt placement (ventriculoperitoneal shunt)—a shunt (a tube placed into the brain) allows excess CSF to drain into another area, usually the abdomen. Sometimes a temporary extraventricular drain (EVD) is placed.\n- Third ventriculostomy—a hole is created in an area of the brain. It allows the CSF to flow out of the area where it is building up.\n- Removal of the obstruction of CSF flow. For example: removal of tumor or cyst\n- Lumbar puncture (spinal tap)—This involves the insertion of a needle between the back bones in the back to remove excess CSF.\n- Medicines—In some cases, medicines, such as acetazolamide (Diamox) and furosemide (Lasix), may decrease the production of CSF.\n- Other medicines such as steroids or mannitol may decrease swelling around lesions that are causing obstruction of CSF flow.\n- Get regular prenatal care.\n- Keep your child’s vaccines up to date.\n- Protect yourself or your child from head injuries.\nToxoplasmosis—foodborne illness that may be prevented by:\n- Carefully cook meat and vegetables.\n- Correctly clean contaminated knives and cutting surfaces.\n- Avoid handling cat litter, or wear gloves when cleaning the litter box.\n- Cytomegalovirus (CMV)—talk to your doctor about identifying CMV in pregnancy\n- Lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCV) from pet rodents (mice, rats, hamsters)—avoid rodent contact during pregnancy\n- Viruses that cause chickenpox or mumps—can be prevented with vaccinations\nAmerican Neurological Association http://www.aneuroa.org/\nHydrocephalus Foundation, Inc. http://www.hydrocephalus.org/\nNational Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke http://www.ninds.nih.gov/\nHealth Canada http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/\nSpina Bifida and Hydrocephalus Association of Canada http://www.sbhac.ca/\nGoetz CG. Textbook of Clinical Neurology. 3rd ed. Philadelphia, PA: WB Saunders Company; 2007.\nHydrocephalus in adults. EBSCO DynaMed website. Available at: http://www.ebscohost.com/dynamed/what.php . Updated May 25, 2012. Accessed September 20, 2012.\nHydrocephalus in children. EBSCO DynaMed website. Available at: http://www.ebscohost.com/dynamed/what.php . Updated May 21, 2012. Accessed September 20, 2012.\nHydrocephalus fact sheet. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke website. Available at: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/hydrocephalus/detail%5Fhydrocephalus.htm . Updated December 16, 2011. Accessed September 20, 2012.\nKliegman R, Behrman RE, Jenson HB, Stanton BF. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 18th ed. Philadelphia, PA: WB Saunders Company; 2007.\n- Reviewer: Rimas Lukas, MD\n- Review Date: 09/2012 -\n- Update Date: 00/93/2012 -\nThis content is reviewed regularly and is updated when new and relevant evidence is made available. This information is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider prior to starting any new treatment or with questions regarding a medical condition.\nCopyright © EBSCO Publishing\nAll rights reserved."}
{"text": "Malheur Cave, 13 miles east of Princeton, is 3,000 feet long, and the height varies from 8 feet near the entrance to a maximum of 20 feet far back in the cave. An underground lake fills the lower end of the cave, and fluctuation can cause the water to raise within 1,000 feet of the entrance.\nThe Masons, Robert Burns Masonic Lodge No. 97, used this cave extensively for ceremonies and other functions. The curious come on a year-round basic, the kids for fun, the scientists for answers to long-time questions, and the cavers, just to meet or visit an old friend. The Masons own the cave, but have left it open to whoever wishes to cool off on a hot summer day, explore its many wonders and paddle its waters, just as it was done decades ago\nAfter passing under the low, arching entrance, the passage opens to a wide expanse of level dirt floor. The walking passage eventually reaches two rows of wooden beachers used by the Masons. After passing the cement platform, the passage begins to get more muddy and filled with boulders of breakdown from the ceiling. The point where the passage turns to water depends on the time of year and the level of the adjacent reservoir. Beneath the waters is a submerged boat and soon the waters reach to the ceiling of the passage. Divers have plumbed to the end of the cave."}
{"text": "Using Command Line using Visual C++ 2008\n- Select Start >> All Programs >> Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 Express Edition >> Visual Studio Tools >> Visual Studio 2008 Command Prompt (Run with administrator privileges)\n- Once you are in the command line, you can use any editor such as edit to write a C program.\nC:> edit myprogram.c\n- After written the program, to compile it, issue the command cl\nC:> cl myprogram.c\n- During the compilation and linking, myprogram.obj and myprogram.exe will be created.\n- To run the program:\nUsing Visual C++ 2008 IDE\n- Create an empty project by select File >> New >> Project. Select General >> Empty Project and type in the project name.\n- Under folder Source, right-click Select Add >> New Item.\n- Under Code, Select C++ File (.cpp), however, when you type in the name use a program name with extension .c, such as myprog.c and click Add\n- You can program to type your C program. Click Save icon to save your file.\n- To compile the program select Build >> Compile (Ctrl+F7).\n- Please note that you cannot run the program until you have build solution.\n- To build solution select Build >> Build Solution (F7)\n- Running the program:\n- Select Debug >> Start without debugging (Ctrl+F5)\n- For any runtime error, you can debug the program as follows:\n- Select Debug >> Start debugging (F5)\n- Please note that during debugging, the program will show and close the console display immediately.\n- To see the console display, you must run without debugging.\n- The problem using Visual Studio is that many files will be created even for a simple program. All files are created inside the project folder.\n- Under the project name of your program, the source code and object file is located at sub folder similar to your project name, the executable file is under sub folder debug.\nUsing Borland C++ Compiler Command Line Tools\n- Installing and running the Command Line Tools\n- Run freecommandlinetools.exe; choose the drive and folder into which you want to install the free C++Builder 5 command line tool development system.\n- From the bin directory of your installation: Add “c:\\Borland\\Bcc55\\bin” to the existing path\n- Create a bcc32.cfg file which will set the compiler options for the Include and Lib paths (-I and –L switches to compiler) by adding these lines:\n- Create an ilink32.cfg file which will set the linker option for the Lib path by adding this line:\n- Compiling the program:"}
{"text": "On September 19, the Cary Institute hosted a one-day conference on the impacts of tropical storms Irene and Lee on the Hudson River. Organized by the Hudson River Environmental Society, with leadership from Cary's Stuart Findlay, the forum examined how the river and estuary responded to the storms, which dropped an estimated 12-18 inches of rainfall throughout the Hudson Valley and Catskill regions. Topics included dredging, sediment transport, water quality, impacts to fish, and future management practices.\nIn late October, Gary Lovett will present his assessment of the health of the Catskill Forest at the second Catskill Environmental Research & Monitoring Conference (CERM). The forum brings together research on the region, to better understand the effects of extreme weather, air pollution, invasive species, biodiversity loss, and habitat fragmentation. The Catskills provide the majority of New York City's drinking water supply; CERM forums help coordinate research and identify research agendas to protect these resources.\nIn November, Cary Institute will hold a two-day conference examining the effects of climate change on plant, animal, and microbial species. The invitation-only event is being organized by Richard Ostfeld, Shannon LaDeau, and Amy Angert (University of British Columbia). With more than 50 invited experts, the conference's goal is to identify tools that will help lessen the negative effects of climate change on biodiversity, disease risk, extinction, and ecosystem function."}
{"text": "In our Torah portion this week, it is written that Jacob \"came to a certain place and stayed there that night\" (Gen. 28:11). The Hebrew text, however, indicates that Jacob did not just happen upon a random place, but rather that \"he came to the place\" -- vayifga bamakom (וַיִּפְגַּע בַּמָּקוֹם). The sages therefore wondered why the Torah states bamakom, \"the place,\" rather than b'makom, \"a place\"? Moreover, the verb translated \"he came\" is yifga (from paga': פָּגַע), which means to encounter or to meet, suggesting that Jacob's stop was a divine appointment.\nThe Hebrew word makom (\"place\") comes from the verb kum (קוּם), meaning \"to arise,\" and in Jewish tradition, ha-makom became a Name for God. The early sages therefore interpreted the verse to mean that Jacob actually had his dream while in Jerusalem rather than in Bethel... Indeed, the Talmud identifies \"the place\" Jacob encountered as Mount Moriah - the location of the Akedah - based on the language used in Genesis 22:4: \"On the third day, Abraham raised his eyes and saw the place (הַמָּקוֹם) in the distance\" (Sanhedrin 95b, Chulin 91b). If that is the case (i.e., if Jacob had been miraculously transported south from the mountains of Bet El to what would later be called Jerusalem), then Jacob's dream of the ladder would have functioned as a revelation of the coming glory of the resurrected Messiah - the Promised Seed whom Isaac foreshadowed and through whom all the families of the earth would be blessed. It was Yeshua, the Angel of the LORD, who came to \"descend\" (as the Son of Man) and to \"rise\" (as the resurrected LORD) to be our mediator before God (see John 1:47-51). Perhaps the Talmud makes the claim that Jacob's vision occurred in Jerusalem because Bethel later became the site for one of two idolatrous shrines (i.e., the golden calves at Bethel and Dan) established by King Jeroboam of the Northern Kingdom which he set up to discourage worship at Solomon's Temple in the City of Jerusalem (see 1 Kings 12:28-29).\nAt any rate, the Hebrew word for \"intercessor\" (i.e., mafgia: מַפְגִּיעַ) comes from the same verb (paga') mentioned in our verse. Yeshua is our Intercessor who makes \"contact\" with God on our behalf. Through His sacrifice for our redemption upon the cross (i.e., his greater Akedah), Yeshua created a meeting place (paga') between God and man. Therefore we see the later use of paga' in Isaiah 53:6, \"...the Lord laid on him (i.e., hifgia bo: הִפְגִּיעַ בּוֹ) the iniquity of us all,\" indicating that our sins \"fell\" on Yeshua as He made intercession for us (i.e., yafgia: יַפְגִּיעַ) for us (Isa. 53:12). Because of Yeshua, God touches us and we are able to touch God... And today, our resurrected LORD \"ever lives to make intercession (paga') for us\" (Heb. 7:25). He is still touched by our need and sinful condition (Heb. 4:15).\nכֻּלָּנוּ כַּצּאן תָּעִינוּ אִישׁ לְדַרְכּוֹ פָּנִינוּ\nוַיהוָה הִפְגִּיעַ בּוֹ אֵת עֲוֹן כֻּלָּנוּ\nkul·la·nu katz·on ta·i·nu, ish le·dar·ko pa·ni·nu\nvadonai hif·gi·a bo, et a·von kul·la·nu\n\"All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned each to his own way;\nbut the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.\"\nPaga' is also a term for warfare or violent meetings, and this alludes to the collision between the powers of hell and the powers of heaven in the outworking of God's plan of redemption: \"... he (i.e., the Savior/Messiah) will crush your head (ראשׁ), and you (i.e., the serpent/Satan) will crush his heel (עָקֵב).\" This was the original prophecy of redemption, an encounter with evil that would provide atonement and retribution (see the \"Gospel in the Garden\"). Rabbi Yechezkel Levenstein, the mashgiach of Ponevezh, points out that the entire future of the Jewish people hinged on the vision given to Jacob - and in Jacob's response to it. Had he been prevented to return (i.e., through Laban's schemes to keep him in Charan), the Jewish people would have become enslaved and assimilated into the people of Aram, and ultimately the Messiah Himself would not have been born. Laban, then, embodied the desire of Satan to thwart the coming of the Promised Seed, and therefore he may be compared to Pharaoh, who likewise tried to enslave Israel in Egypt...\nAs I mentioned in my additional commentary on parashat Balak, Laban's worship of the serpent (nachash) led him to become one of the first enemies of the Jewish people (see \"The Curses of Laban\"). He tried to make Jacob a slave from the beginning, later claiming that all his descendants and possessions belonged to him (Gen. 31:43). After Jacob escaped from his clutches, Laban had a son named Beor (בְּעוֹר) who became the father of the wicked prophet Balaam (בִּלְעָם). In other words, the \"cursing prophet\" Balaam was none other than the grandson of diabolical Laban. Here is a diagram to help you see the relationships:\nIn Jewish tradition, Laban (the patriarch of Balaam) is regarded as even more wicked than the Pharaoh who enslaved the Jews in Egypt. This enmity is enshrined during the Passover Seder when we recall Laban's treachery as the one who \"sought to destroy our father, Jacob.\" Spiritually understood, Laban's hatred of Jacob (i.e., Israel) was intended to eradicate the Jewish nation at the very beginning. Had Laban succeeded, Israel would have been assimilated and disappeared from history, and more radically, God's plan for the redemption of humanity through the Promised Seed would have been overturned....\nThankfully, Jacob was enabled by God's grace to overcome Laban and to return to the Promised Land, and even more thankfully, the Messiah was able to crush the rule of Satan through His atoning sacrifice and resurrection at Moriah. Yeshua, our ascended LORD, is ha-makom - the place where we encounter the Living God....\nThe authority and reign of Satan has been gloriously vanquished by Yeshua our Savior, blessed be He, though there is coming a time of judgment for all who dwell upon the earth. The time immediately preceding the appearance of the Messiah will be a time of testing in which the world will undergo various forms of tribulation, called chevlei Mashiach (חֶבְלֵי הַמָּשִׁיחַ) - the \"birth pangs of the Messiah\" (Sanhedrin 98a; Ketubot, Bereshit Rabbah 42:4, Matt. 24:8). Some say the birth pangs are to last for 70 years, with the last 7 years being the most intense period of tribulation -- called the \"Time of Jacob's Trouble\" / עֵת־צָרָה הִיא לְיַעֲקב (Jer. 30:7). The climax of the \"Great Tribulation\" (צָרָה גְדוֹלָה) is called the great \"Day of the LORD\" (יוֹם־יהוה הַגָּדוֹל) which represents God's wrath poured out upon a rebellious world system. On this fateful day, the LORD will terribly shake the entire earth (Isa. 2:19) and worldwide catastrophes will occur. \"For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?\" (Rev. 6:17). The prophet Malachi likewise says: \"'Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire,' says the LORD Almighty. 'Not a root or a branch will be left to them'\" (Mal. 4:1). Only after the nations of the world have been judged will the Messianic kingdom (מַלְכוּת הָאֱלהִים) be established upon the earth. Yeshua will return to Jerusalem to establish His glorious kingdom (as foretold by the prophets) and then \"all Israel will be saved.\" The Jewish people will finally understand that Mashiach ben Yosef (the Suffering Servant) and Mashiach ben David (the anointed King of Israel) are one and the same... The 1,000 year reign of King Messiah will then commence (Rev. 20:4).\nPresently our responsibility is to come to \"the place\" (ha-makom) where God's work of redemption was completed - that is, to the Cross of Yeshua. There we turn to God in repentance (teshuvah) and consign our sins to the judgment borne for us through Yeshua's sacrifice as our kapporah (atonement). By faith we understand that the resurrected Savior is forever ha-makom, \"the place\" where God meets with us, and we learn to abide in His gracious Presence by means of the Holy Spirit. We cease striving to justify ourselves (i.e., by virtue of works), but instead receive God's love and Spirit into our hearts. This means that we will study the Scriptures (truth), obey the Torah of Yeshua and His emissaries, and share the good message of God's redemption with a lost and dying world...\nWe are fast approaching, however, the prophesied \"End of Days\" (acharit hayamim), when the LORD will return to earth to \"settle accounts\" with its inhabitants (including those who profess to obey Him). We do not have much more time, chaverim. We must encourage people to call upon the LORD for salvation before it is too late...\nכִּי־כֵן אהֵב אֱלהִים אֶת־הָעוֹלָם\nעַד־אֲשֶׁר נָתַן בַּעֲדוֹ אֶת־בְּנוֹ אֶת־יְחִידוֹ\nוְכָל־הַמַּאֲמִין בּוֹ לא־יאבַד\nכִּי בוֹ יִמְצָא חַיֵּי עוֹלָם׃\nki-khen o·hev E·lo·him et-ha·o·lam,\nad-a·sher na·tan ba·a·do et-be·no et-ye·chi·do,\nve·khol-ha·ma·a·min bo, lo-yo·vad\nki vo yim·tza cha·yei o·lam\n\"For God so loved the world that he gave his only and unique Son,\nso that whoever trusts in Him should not be destroyed, but have eternal life\"\nHebrew Study Card"}
{"text": "The Appalachian Mountain range is nearly 1,500 miles long stretching from the southeast corner of Canada to Alabama. The Cumberland Gap, a natural break in the range near the eastern borders of Kentucky and Tennessee, is now a paved highway known as US 25E. A section of US 25E that now passes through a tunnel underneath the mountain is called the Cumberland Gap Tunnel.\nCars and trucks have replaced Conestoga wagons, but the route, now a paved highway, still offered challenges to travelers. The steep grade and sharp turns of US 25E were the cause of many traffic accidents. So many, in fact, that the 2.3-mile stretch of highway earned the unfortunate nickname, “Massacre Mountain.”\nTo make the route safer, a section of US 25E was relocated under the mountain by constructing a tunnel. This also helped restore the appearance of the mountain to the way it looked in the late 1700s, in the days of Daniel Boone.\nThe Cumberland Gap Tunnel passes through a large limestone formation within the Cumberland Mountain. Limestone, made of the mineral calcite, is slightly soluble in water. When rainwater seeps through cracks and between layers of limestone, it dissolves some of the calcite it contacts. Bit by bit, the flowing water removes calcite and the cracks grow larger, eventually forming caves. The resulting cave system is a natural conduit for underground water flow.\nWhere the tunnel passed through a cavern, concrete was poured to form an artificial ceiling structure. This, of course, blocked the water flow. The cavern, which runs almost perpendicular to the tunnel, was kept in a nearly natural state by allowing the water flow to continue its normal course through a conduit five feet in diameter built under the roadway. There is also a passageway constructed above the tunnel to allow for air and water movement. Thus, the cave system continues to function as a natural drainage system.\nEngineers designed an additional drainage system to collect percolating groundwater that hits the impervious tunnel walls. This system includes a manmade streambed parallel to the tunnel, running beneath the roadbed from end to end.\nThe streambed is made of limestone gravel, and water flows between and around these gravel particles. When groundwater percolates through limestone rock layers before reaching the gravel bed, that drainage water is already saturated with calcium carbonate (the chemical name for calcite) and does not dissolve calcite from the gravel. Without loss from dissolving, loss of gravel caused by abrasion and erosion occurs at a slow and predictable rate.\nHowever, most of Cumberland Mountain is made of rock other than limestone, such as sandstone, shale, and siltstone. This means that much of the water entering the tunnel’s drainage system is not already saturated with calcium carbonate and does dissolve gravel material. Similar to the way the cave system developed long ago in the limestone formation within Cumberland Mountain, the artificial streambed is gradually washing away. During the first ten years of the tunnel’s existence, enough gravel matter was removed to cause the roadway above to sag and need repair. As of 2009, a long-term solution had not yet been determined.\nTo learn about the construction of a different kind of tunnel, one that went underwater, check out Building the Channel Tunnel.\nFor more information about the movement of plates in Earth's crust, check out Mountain Maker, Earth Shaker."}
{"text": "Wondering what to do with that dead cow in your backyard or those dead batteries in your flashlight?\nThe Center for the Development of Recycling—a partnership between San Jose State University’s Environmental Studies Department and Santa Clara County—has an online tool to guide you on how and where to recycle anything from the dead cow and batteries to painted or stained wood waste and everything in between.\nNov. 15 is America Recycles Day so take part in it and use the tool if you find one of the few materials the City of Milpitas does not accept. The tool is easy to use: Scroll the list of materials to find the one you wish to recycle, click on it and it will move to a box on the right. When you have your list complete fill in your ZIP code and click on the “find results” button.\nIt will return a list of companies that accept the specific material, the company's location and/or phone number, website links, whether the material can be picked up or dropped off, and other useful information.\nBatteries, for example, are accepted at several places in and around Milpitas. That dead cow is a little trickier. Four places accept dead cows and two of them have restrictions on the cow’s age.\nRecycling is something that can be embraced as a lifetime commitment. Think the three Rs—reduce, reuse and recycle.\nOne way to reduce is to stop junk mail from being delivered to your home. The Bay Area Outreach Coalition offers a stop junk mail kit (see the attached PDF for more detail or visit www.stopjunkmail.org) to get rid of those annoying catalogs, ads, promotional materials and other unwanted mail that winds up in your recycle bin.\nAmerica Recycle Day includes events such as the one at GreenMouse Recycling in San Jose that is hosting a three-day recycle-athon between Nov. 15 and 17 with a goal of recycling 25,000 pounds of electronic waste. Recycle something with a screen, such as a laptop, monitor, television or cell phone, and recieve a Starbucks gift card. Then take that Starbucks gift card and a friend to the nearest store and take advantage of the 2-for-1 offer going on. It's a win-win!"}
{"text": "Sign up for our newsletter\nGardening in the Rainy Zone.\nPronounced: AL-lee-um ka-ra-tah-vee-EN-see\nSunset zones 1-24.\nUSDA zones: 5-9.\nHeat zones: 9-5.\nHeight: 4-10 inches (10-25 cm).\nTwo to three-inch diameter spherical umbel of 50 or more, flowers on a 6-inch stem.\nJust above ground level the thick, leathery, pleated, 6-inch long leaves. 'Ivory White' has a pale, pewter tone.\nFull sun to partial shade.\nDry, well-drained, ordinary garden soil.\nRemove offsets in autumn and plant.\nPests and Diseases:\nBulb rot can occur during our damp conditions of fall through spring. Onion fly and thrips may be a problem.\nRainy Side Notes\nAllium karataviense is a spunky plant with a large flower globe. It is a dwarf ornamental onion compared to the giant species in the Melanocrommyum group of alliums, in which it belongs. It grows exceptionally well in our Mediterranean climate, as the plants go dormant by the time our annual drought comes around. Some gardeners grow the species and its cultivars because it has the most attractive foliage in the entire genus. Its horizontal, long, leathery, pleated foliage is green with a striking purple cast. As the blossom first opens, it is nestled on top of the attractive foliage; the flowering stems continue to grow. It pushes the large, spherical umbels up and away from the leaves as they begin to look shabby. When you plant bulbs en masse in a garden bed or container, use companion perennials that are late in filling out, or annuals to fill in any bare soil the bulb's dormant state leaves behind.\nSensitive to excess moisture, these alliums are prone to rot, so grow them in well-drained soil in the ground or in deep containers with excellent drainage. Some A. karataviense cultivars available are 'Ivory Queen', 'Lucky' and 'Red Globe'.\nPhotographed in author's garden."}
{"text": "Imprint training pioneer Dr. Robert Miller debunks some of the common misconceptions about this useful foal handling technique.\nThe technique of imprinting has been used to help train foals for more than 50 years, but common misconceptions about what it means to imprint young horses still exist. While recent years have seen more and more owners and trainers fully commit to properly using this valuable foal handling procedure, a few basic misunderstandings still remain that prevent those who attempt to apply imprint training techniques from achieving the results that they desire.\nPhoto by Megan Parks\nDr. Robert Miller, one of the pioneering practitioners of equine imprint training, believes that proper implementation of imprint training principles make a horse more trainable and easier to handle, but only if it is done correctly and completely—and only if the person performing the technique is realistic about exactly what the process is meant to achieve.\n“You’re not going to change [a foal’s] personality,” Miller says. “Energetic will be energetic. Lazy will be lazy. Highly reactive will be highly reactive. Indifferent will be indifferent. Intelligent will be intelligent. But what [imprinting] does is, if you do it right after they are born, before any other learning goes in—you build a foundation.”\nUnderstanding what that foundation is meant to support is the key to getting the long-term results that proper imprint training can provide.\n“You’re not imprint training the body,” Miller says. “You’re imprint training the mind.”\nIn the wild, horse have always been prey animals and, therefore, a foal must be able to get to its feet within an hour after birth and run with its herd as a means of self defense. This history means that even domesticated horses are born with a healthy paranoia of just about everything. Fear is the natural first response a horse feels to new stimuli. They have to learn not to fear people, objects and even other animals.\nIt is almost impossible to teach a horse anything if his focus is on self preservation.\n“It applies to us, too,” Miller says. “If we are preparing to take a test, and we’re really scared, our learning ability isn’t nearly as great as if we are laid back and relaxed and can think things out.”\nFear and anxiety interfere with the learning procedure because, in any animal, it increases the primary defensive behavior.\n“In some species, [the defensive behavior] is to fight, so fear will precipitate an attack,” Miller explains. “But in the horse, fear usually precipitates flight or the desire for flight.\n“In the horse—and this is only true in the horse and not dogs, cattle or people—control of the feet controls the mind. When you control the animal’s primary defense, you control the mind. In wolves, it’s control of the muzzle. In the human being, it’s control of the hands. In horses, it’s control of the feet. Every school of horsemanship has relied upon [this concept] even if they didn’t understand why it worked.”\nThe main goal of all imprint training is to minimize the fear responses that can keep a horse from learning.\n“If we don’t have the fear, the horse isn’t thinking about running away,” Miller says. “Instead, the horse is paying attention and subject to quick learning.”\nIt is important to Miller that people understand that imprinting and training are two different things—a fact that he believes sometimes gets overlooked.\n“Imprinting is a visual memorization of what the foal sees moving around it, and it triggers an instinct to trust and to follow,” Miller says. “Training is learning by reinforcement. The only reason I called the process Imprint Training is because it’s training during the imprint period.”\nIn nature, a foal imprints on its mother and the other members of its herd, serving to protect the foal against predators in the wild. However, foals can also imprint on a variety of other creatures, too.\n“In domestication, it can be a human, or a dog or a piece of machinery,” Miller says. “Anything that moves, the foal will be imprinted upon it and tend to want to go to it and be near it and trust it.”\nIt is this inherent trust that Miller uses to teach the newborn foal that the world isn’t nearly as scary as it would otherwise believe it to be.\n“In an hour to hour and a half, I can get so much done with a foal,” he says. “It’s a great time saver.”\nDoing It Right\nMiller often regrets calling the process Imprint Training because people confuse the meaning of term.\n“I often have people come up to me and say, ‘I imprinted my horse when he was 6 months of age,’ or it was an 18 month old,” he says. “They don’t understand that imprinting only occurs in the horse [immediately after birth].\n“It’s not that way with all species. Dogs, for example, imprint between 6 and 7 weeks of age. But that is a different species. They are not precocial. They are helpless as babies, just like humans. Whereas in the precocial species like horses, the ones who must be able to run from danger by the time they are one hour of age, the imprinting begins in the hour after birth.”\nTo Miller, the advantages of imprint training are that it happens very quickly, you don’t have to rely on or undo any previous negative learning, and since the foal is already down and has yet to stand, you can prepare a foal for most of what it needs to know for the rest of its life in about an hour.\nDuring that time, Miller touches literally every part of the foal—from nose to tail and from ears to hooves—with the goal of habituating [making it comfortable with and unafraid of] common loud or frightening sounds or movements that can spook a horse, being touched in the areas that will be handled during farriery and during veterinary examinations of every body opening, as well as pressure in the saddle area. Teaching foals not to fear pressure in the girth area is usually saved for the second session when they are already on their feet.\n“You remove the anxiety, the fear,” Miller says, “and they are quicker to learn other things.”\nThe mistake most people make when imprint training is that they don’t do enough at the right times, either during the first session when the foal has yet to stand, or during subsequent training sessions when the foal is on its feet.\n“I poll every audience that I speak to,” Miller says, “and what I’ve learned from doing this over the last four decades is the two most common mistakes are rushing the training and failing to follow up after the first session.”\nMiller says it is almost always men who make the mistake of rushing the first session of imprint training.\n“They are usually working for a ranch or farm,” he says, “and they show them my video and tell them they want them to do this with their foals, and they rush it.”\nFor example, when Miller is habituating a foal to having his feet touched, he taps the bottom of each hoof with his hand 100 times to ensure that he’s tapping long enough for the foal’s initial fear response to the touch to wear off and he learns that having his foot touched isn’t something to be afraid of.\n“Men will often tap the hoof 5-10 times and quit,” Miller says, “and what they’ve taught the foal to do is to fear that touch. They have failed to habituate by stopping during the fear and flight period in the foal’s mind.”\nBy doing this, they have actually sensitized the foal to fear of having its feet touched, and the next day, the person can’t get anywhere near them to continue the second phase of the training.\n“Whereas the foals I do, you can touch them anywhere on their body the next day,” Miller says. “Women just love this part of the training because of the intimacy of it.”\nConversely, Miller states it is almost always women who fail to complete imprint training after the first session.\n“They do the birth session, but they don’t do sessions two through seven when the foal is on its feet, which is where you get their respect,” he says of the sessions where the foal is habituated to a variety of body pressure and movement cues, as well as leading and tying.\n“I ask them ‘Why didn’t you do it?’ and the answer is always the same. ‘He didn’t like it, so I didn’t do it.’ They often admit that they got bad results, but claim to know what they did wrong.”\nThe Lessons Transfer\nWhile one of the major complaints about imprint training is that the foal will only respond to the person he imprinted upon, Miller doesn’t believe this to be the case. The foal may be slightly more responsive to that individual, but if that person imprint trains the foal properly, anyone who handles that horse in the future will have an easier time than if the horse had never received imprint training.\nMiller admits that the trust an imprinted animal gains in its imprinter doesn’t transfer directly to all other humans. However, it does prepare them for what other people may do with them and makes the horse’s transition to the new handler’s style easier and faster.\n“Say you have an individual sacking out a colt who has never been ridden with a blanket, and he stands perfectly happy while everything happens,” Miller says. “If a stranger comes along with a blanket, he’s going to react with fear to the stranger, but once he’s past that and the blanket begins, the attitude is, ‘Oh, I remember,’ and the horse relaxes.\n“As far as their future talent on the racetrack, as a jumping horse, as a roping horse or a barrel horse, imprint training doesn’t interfere. It actually enhances it because you remove most of the fear factors [that can interfere with learning]. If a foal has learned to be unafraid of a human presence and being touched on any part of its body, and now you want to make a rope horse out of it, it’s not going to get all boogered when the rope drags on the ground beside it or you throw it out in front of him. I wouldn’t say it improves performance, but it enhances learning.”\nThe same basic principle applies to imprint training a young horse to be relaxed in a stall area around other horses, in your training pen and especially when approaching what some horses consider to be a scary object—a barrel. Once a horse is hauled to a show, the environment may be different and cause anxiety temporarily, but the similarity of the situation to what they’ve experienced before will help the horse relax and perform to the best of its ability faster.\nAlthough imprint training doesn’t affect a horse’s personality, it will help more reactive horses become more handlable. A highly reactive individual will still remain flighty, but if you’ve de-sensitized him to the everyday things he might spook at—which interferes with what you’re trying to teach them at any point—it helps him learn what you’re teaching faster.\nRespect, Not Fear\nImprint training has gained wide acceptance over the last 25 years, but there are still some trainers who object to the technique. Many object for a one primary reason—they believe that since imprinting lessens a horse’s fears, it makes the horse much harder for anyone who didn’t imprint that horse to control.\n“The objective in training horses should be 100 percent respect and zero percent fear,” Miller states. “Some people think you’ve got to show them who’s boss. You’ve got to show a horse who’s the leader, but you don’t have to show them who’s boss, which infers fear of the boss. It’s not necessary to be able to control the horse.”\nThe idea that fear of humans is necessary to maintain control of a horse and to get it to do what you want it to do ignores a fact that practitioners of natural horsemanship have known for decades—if you really want your horse to want to work for you, fear can’t be part of the equation.\nFor Miller, the goal of imprint training is to get the horse to see the human as a herd leader and be submissive to his or her requests as a result. You don’t want a horse to fear you, but depend on you for leadership and guidance. When done correctly, imprint training enhances a horse’s relationship with all humans. All it takes is putting in the effort to achieve the results you want instead of looking for a quick, fear-based fix.\nAccording to Miller, in wild mustang herds, the leader is most often the oldest mare, which indicates that physical strength has nothing to do with gaining the respect of the horse or achieving leadership. The stallion, who many would perceive as the natural choice to be the leader, runs in back and chases the stragglers to get them to keep up with the leading mare, serving as more of a guardian for the herd than a leader of it.\n“There are still some trainers that object to [imprint training], and there are still trainers who do it improperly and criticize the technique,” Miller says. “Any training technique ever devised, if you don’t do them correctly, you can’t expect good results.\n“I hear people say, ‘I did my colt Parelli style,’ or, ‘I did my colt Kurt Pate style, and it didn’t do any good.’ Well, they didn’t do it correctly because they are very good training techniques. They blame the technique rather than themselves.”\nBut as with any training program, in the end, you and your horse will get out of it what you put into it. After 50 years of teaching and practicing the techniques of imprint training, Miller believes that if it is done properly, it will absolutely make a difference in the teachability and overall confidence and happiness of the horse.\n“Simply put, imprint training works,” Miller says emphatically. “It works consistently and very, very effectively.\n“The foal respects the mare, but is also bonded to her and trusts her. We can get exactly the same thing, trust combined with respect.”\nDr. Robert Miller graduated from Colorado State University and settled in Thousand Oaks, Calif., where he founded the Conejo Valley Veterinary Clinic. He retired in 1987 after 31 years as a renowned veterinarian and expert in ethology (the study of animal behavior) in order to devote his full time to the teaching of equine behavior and to support the revolution in horsemanship that began in the Western United States in the late 20th Century and is now a worldwide phenomenon.\nHe is best known for his scientifically based system of training newborn foals, called imprint training, which is now in use all over the world. He has authored several books, including Imprint Training of the Newborn Foal, and has been on the editorial staff of several veterinary practice and horse industry magazines."}
{"text": "This article published by Yongyut Trisurat, Anak Pattanavibool, George A. Gale and David H. Reed in CSIRO Publishing. Wildlife Research. 2010, 37, 401-412, demonstrates how the CAP principles helped assess wildlife population viability for multiple species in the Western Forest Complex in Thailand. If you wish to request a copy of the article, please contact Yongyut Trisurat (email@example.com).\nContext. Assessing the viability of animal populations in the wild is difficult or impossible, primarily because of limited data. However, there is an urgent need to develop methods for estimating population sizes and improving the viability of target species.\nAims. To define suitable habitat for sambar (Cervus unicolor), banteng (Bos javanicus), gaur (Bos gaurus), Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) and tiger (Panthera tigris) in the Western Forest Complex, Thailand, and to assess their current status as well as estimate how the landscape needs to be managed to maintain viable populations.\nMethods. The present paper demonstrates a method for combining a rapid ecological assessment, landscape indices, GIS-based wildlife-habitat models, and knowledge of minimum viable population sizes to guide landscape-management decisions and improve conservation outcomes through habitat restoration.\nKey results. The current viabilities for gaur and elephant are fair, whereas they are poor for tiger and banteng. However, landscape quality outside the current distributions was relatively intact for all species, ranging from moderate to high levels of connectivity. In addition, the population viability for sambar is very good under the current and desired conditions.\nConclusions. If managers in this complex wish to upgrade the viabilities of gaur, elephant, tiger and banteng within the next 10 years, park rangers and stakeholders should aim to increase the amount of usable habitat by ~2170 km2 or 17% of existing suitable habitats. The key strategies are to reduce human pressures, enhance ungulate habitats and increase connectivity of suitable habitats outside the current distributions.\nImplications. The present paper provides a particularly useful method for managers and forest-policy planners for assessing and managing habitat suitability for target wildlife and their population viability in protected-area networks where knowledge of the demographic attributes (e.g. birth and death rates) of wildlife populations are too limited to perform population viability analysis."}
{"text": "Mon 20 Jul 2009\nAs far as scary-looking fish go, the adult sea lamprey is right up there with the sharks. It’s about 3 feet long, with concentric rings of teeth inside a jawless, suction-cup mouth. After trapping its prey by sucking, the lamprey scrapes off the skin using a tooth at the end of its tongue, and then sucks out the blood. Since the lamprey has good taste in fish – preferring trout, salmon, bass –it’s the target of a federal lampricide program in the Great Lakes region, where it has nearly devoured some of these stocks.\nBut no creature is all bad. “The lamprey has a really beautiful spinal cord,” says Ona Bloom, an MBL Research Fellow from The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research. Together with Jennifer Morgan (Univ. of Texas at Austin) and David Parker (Univ. of Cambridge), who are recipients of an MBL sponsored Albert and Ellen Grass Faculty Research Grant, Bloom and her colleagues are studying the lamprey’s remarkable ability to recover from severe spinal cord injury. “We have been talking for years about collaborating on these studies,” says Bloom. “ The MBL gives us a wonderful opportunity to do that.”\nOne of the most primitive of living vertebrates, the sea lamprey is a good animal in which to analyze the acute response to spinal cord injury, which is Bloom’s focus, and how the nervous system functions are restored, which interests Morgan and Parker. “We want to understand the differences between the robust recovery in lampreys and how that contrasts with what happens in humans with spinal cord injury,” says Morgan. “If we can understand processes in the lamprey that contribute to recovery, then we can see if those processes can promote better recovery in higher vertebrates.”"}
{"text": "- Types of home dialysis\n- Daily HHD\n- Nocturnal HHD\n- Standard HHD\n- News & events\n- Message boards\n- For professionals\n- About us\n...everything you need to know about doing dialysis at home.\nHere we present a chronological tour of dialysis from the beginning.\nAll photos by Jim Curtis; descriptions courtesy of Baxter.\nThe first practical artificial kidney was developed during World War II by the Dutch physician Willem Kolff. The Kolff kidney used a 20-meter long tube of cellophane sausage casing as a dialyzing membrane. The tube was wrapped around a slatted wooden drum. Powered by an electric motor, the drum revolved in a tank filled with dialyzing solution. The patient’s blood was drawn through the cellophane tubing by gravity as the drum revolved. Toxic molecules in the blood diffused through the tubing into the dialyzing solution. Complete dialysis took about six hours. The Kolff kidney effectively removed toxins from the blood, but because it operated at low pressure, it was unable to remove excess fluid from the patient’s blood. Modern dialysis machines are designed to filter out excess fluid while cleansing the blood of wastes.\nBlood was drained from the patient into a sterile container. Anticlotting drugs were added, and the filled container was hung on a post above the artificial kidney and connected to the cellulose acetate tubing that was wound around the wooden drum. A motor turned the drum, pulling the blood through the tubing by gravity.\nThe tank underneath the drum was filled with dialyzing fluid. As the blood-filled tubing passed through this fluid, waste products from the blood diffused through the tubing into the dialyzing fluid. The cleansed blood collected in a second sterile container at the other end of the machine. When all of the blood had passed through the machine, this second container was raised to drain the blood back into the patient.\nGeorge Thorn, MD, of the Peter Bent Hospital in Boston, MA, invited Willem Kolff, MD, to meet with Carl Walters, MD, and John Merrill, MD, to redesign and modify the original Kolff Rotating Drum Kidney. The artificial kidney was to be used to support the first proposed transplant program in the United States. This device was built by Edward Olson, an engineer, who would produce over forty of these devices, which were shipped all over the world.\nCellulose acetate tubular membrane, the same type of membrane that is used as sausage casing, was wrapped around the drum and connected to latex tubing that would be attached to the patient’s bloodstream. The drum would be rotating in the dialyzing fluid bath that is located under the drum.\nThe patient’s blood was propelled through the device by the “Archimedes screw principle” and a pulsatile pump. A split coupling was developed to connect the tubing to the membrane, a component necessary to prevent the tubing and membrane from twisting. This connection is at the inlet and outlet of the rotating drum.\nThe membrane surface area could be adjusted by increasing or decreasing the number of wraps of tubing. The Plexiglas™ hood was designed to control the temperature of the blood. The cost of this device was $5,600 in 1950.\nMurphy WP Jr., Swan RC Jr., Walter CW, Weller JM, Merrill JP. Use of an artificial kidney. III. Current procedures in clinical hemodialysis. J Lab Clin Med. 1952 Sep; 40(3): 436-44.\nLeonard Skeggs, PhD, and Jack Leonards, MD, developed the first parallel flow artificial kidney at Case Western Reserve in Cleveland, OH. The artificial kidney was designed to have a low resistance to blood flow and to have an adjustable surface area.\nTwo sheets of membrane are sandwiched between two rubber pads in order to reduce the blood volume and to ensure uniform distribution of blood across the membrane to maximize efficiency. Multiple layers were utilized. The device required a great deal of time to construct and it often leaked. This was corrected by the use of bone wax to stop the leak.\nThe device had a very low resistance to blood flow and it could be used without a blood pump. If more than one of these units were used at a time, a blood pump was required. Skeggs was able to remove water from the blood in the artificial kidney by creating a siphon on the effluent of the dialyzing fluid. This appears to be the first reference to negative pressure dialysis.\nThis technology was later adapted by Leonard Skeggs to do blood chemistries. It was called the SMA 12-60 Autoanalyzer.\nThis artificial kidney was developed to reduce the amount of blood outside of the body and to eliminate the need for pumping the blood through the device.\nGuarino used cellulose acetate tubing. The dialyzing fluid was directed inside the tubing and the blood, entering the device from the top, cascading down the membrane. The metal tubing inside the membrane gave support to the membrane.\nThe artificial kidney ahd a very low blood volume, but it had limited use because there was concern regarding the possibility of the dialyzing fluid leaking into the blood.\nVon Garrelts had constructed a dialyzer in 1948 by wrapping a cellulose acetate membrane around a core. The layers of membrane were separated by rods. It was very bulky and weighed over 100 pounds.\nWilliam Inouye, MD, took this concept and miniaturized it by wrapping the cellulose acetate tubing around a beaker and separating the layers with fiberglass screening. He placed this “coil” in a Presto Pressure Cooker in order to enclose it and control the temperature. In addition, he made openings in the pot for the dialyzing fluid. With the use of a vacuum on the dialysate leaving the pot, he was able to draw the excess water out of the patient’s blood. A blood pump was required to overcome resistance within the device.\nThis device was used clinically and when it was used in a closed circuit, the exact amount of fluid removed could be determined.\nInouye WY, Engelberg J. A simplified artificial dialyzer and ultrafilter. Surg Forum. Proceedings of the Forum Sessions, Thirty-ninth Clinical Congress of the American College of Surgeons, Chicago, Illinois, October, 1953; 4: 438-42.\nHome Dialysis Central is made possible through the generous annual contributions of our Corporate Sponsors. Learn more about becoming a Corporate Sponsor."}
{"text": "- Historic Sites\nHistory As A Cure\nDecember 1956 | Volume 8, Issue 1\nNot long ago two teen-age boys in New York City got into trouble with the law. The police laid hands on them as juvenile delinquents, and in due course the boys appeared in court. Judge J. Randall Creel, of Magistrates’ Court, faced the tough problem that confronts jurists in such cases: should he send the boys off to jail forthwith, or should he see whether they might not be able to straighten themselves out? He decided on the latter course, and in looking for a means of rehabilitation he selected an unusual instrument: American history.\nHe gave these high school youngsters a historical research job to do.\nThey should forthwith (he told them) make a study of the Battle of Long Island—an important struggle in the Revolutionary War, in which General Washington’s army narrowly escaped destruction when the British commander, General Howe, landed an overpowering force on Long Island late in August of 1776. They would find, he suggested, that utter disaster for the American cause was averted because of a valiant rear-guard action fought by a regiment of the Maryland line. Let them, therefore, go to the sources and find out all they could about this action; having done this, each boy must submit a paper, describing what had happened, citing his sources, and bringing out what the gallant stand of the embattled Marylanders meant to future generations of Americans. By the jobs they did he would determine whether or not they had reinstated themselves as reliable junior members of their community.\nThe boys went to work, and eventually they presented their papers. They had done a good deal of hard work. They had traced the movements of the different troops engaged. They had run down the historic markers which (largely ignored by present-day citizens) show where the actions took place. They had found out all they could about the gallant old Maryland battalion, and they had gone to the trouble of listing the names and ranks of all the Marylanders who were killed or captured in the fight. And it seems that this excursion into American history had been a powerful medicine for good. These boys learned something—about their own home city (for they live in Brooklyn, and the battle they investigated had been fought along what are now the familiar streets and squares and parks of their own neighborhood), about the price a former generation had to pay for American freedom and happiness, and about the way in which boys of their own age, long ago, met a profound challenge.\nSpecifically: in their research into the history of the Battle of Long Island, these boys learned that a spirited rear-guard action by a regiment of Maryland soldiers—the 5th Maryland Infantry, under Colonel William Smallwood—had kept the American defeat from becoming a complete, irremediable disaster. The Marylanders fought a delaying action which enabled the bulk of Washington’s army to get away. Four or five hundred of them charged a British strong point, losing more than half of their numbers and going down at last to bloody defeat, but gaining the important fragments of time that enabled the beaten Continental army to get away clean and live to fight another day.\nThey found out that the Maryland soldiers who saved the day were simply boys like themselves. They dug out the old muster rolls, which gave each man’s name and age. Down the long columns, in faded archaic script, were the scanty records of boys who dared everything and gave everything more than a century and a half ago—and most of them turned out to be lads of eighteen or nineteen. This probably meant that they were even younger than that; boys usually add a year or two to their ages when they enlist in wartime. The Marylanders, in other words, were early teen-agers, who faced up to something big before they had got out of adolescence simply because youth wants nothing in all the world so much as the chance to respond to a real challenge. Life was good to them; it gave them the challenge, they met it—and today, as a direct result, we have an American nation.\nOne of the two boys, writing about the battle, expressed himself like this:\n“If the youth of today is not conscious of the historical background of Long Island, the battle I will now unfold will make him so. I will, therefore, endeavor to show you what today’s youth could and should be capable of as compared to those who fought to preserve their rights as individuals. … It was merely lads of seventeen and eighteen who fought and died making this supreme sacrifice in defense of the preservation of the American Army and their fight for independence.”\nThe other boy, carried away by the story of the fight, found himself writing in the best vein of the military historian:\n”…Thrice again these brave young Marylanders charged upon the house, once driving the gunners from their pieces within its shadow; but numbers overwhelmed them, and for twenty minutes the fight was terrible. Washington, Putnam and other General Officers who witnessed it … saw the overwhelming force with which their brave compatriots were contending, and held their breath in suspense and fear.… Washington wrung his hands, in the intensity of his emotion, and exclaimed: ‘Good God, what brave fellows I must this day lose!’”"}
{"text": "A POTENTIALLY deadly and virulent bug that attacks the gut may soon be treated with the most stomach-churning of remedies.\nA study published on Thursday in The New England Journal of Medicine has found transplanting human faeces into people with the superbug Clostridium difficile provided an almost universal cure for the condition - far outperforming traditional antibiotic treatment.\nFaecal microbiota transplantation is thought to work by replacing the healthy bacteria in the gut that have been wiped out by antibiotics. For the past 20 years an Australian, Thomas Borody, has pioneered the treatment, although its use has been traced back thousands of years.\n''This study is monumental,'' Professor Borody said.\nThe research found nearly 94 per cent of patients given the transplantation one or two times recovered, compared to only 30 per cent of the group given the antibiotic vancomycin.\nThe study was then stopped early by an ethics committee on the ground that it would be unethical not to offer all patients the transplants.\nProfessor Borody said C. difficile, which has ravaged the US, killing 30,000 people each year, was spreading to Australia, although no one could be sure how common it was as health departments did not routinely test for it.\n''In Sydney we have had about 15 deaths that we know of … in the past year and a half,'' he said.\nJust as people now donate blood, in future donors may be called on to give stools.\nAt present the faeces is inserted into the recipient using colonoscopy or nasal tube but researchers are developing a less off-putting method.\n''The future of this FMT is filtered bacteria, washed, frozen and put in a capsule, which we lovingly call a 'crapsule','' said Professor Borody, from the Centre for Digestive Diseases and the University of Technology, Sydney.\nThe clinical associate dean at the St George Hospital clinical school at the University of NSW, Michael Grimm, said trying to find appropriate donors could be difficult.\n''We are just starting now to grapple with the bacteria in the gut; it's an impossible soup to analyse,'' Professor Grimm said.\n''What potential pathogens are in there that might not have been pathogenic to the host but could become pathogenic to the recipient, are really unknown.''"}
{"text": "2. Physical Activity\nTwenty-four RCT articles were reviewed for the effect of physical activity on weight loss, abdominal fat (measured by waist circumference), and changes in cardiorespiratory fitness (VO2 max). Thirteen articles were deemed acceptable (346, 363, 365, 369, 375, 401, 404, 406, 432, 434, 445-447). Only one of these RCTs compared different intensities and format with a control group, although the goal was to increase physical activity and not specifically to produce weight loss (401). Results from this trial were subsequently reported after 2 years, but these no longer included the control group (447). One additional study did not have a no-treatment control group but compared three active treatment groups with each other: diet only, exercise only, and combination exercise plus diet (448).\nMost RCTs described the type of physical activity as cardiovascular endurance activities in the form of aerobic exercise such as aerobic dancing, brisk walking, jogging, running, riding a stationary bicycle, swimming, and skiing, preceded and followed by a short session of warmup and cool-down exercises. Some physical activity programs also included unspecified dynamic calisthenic exercises (363, 369, 406, 446).\nThe intensity of the physical activity was adapted to each individual and varied from 60 to 85 percent of the individual's estimated maximum heart rate, or was adjusted to correspond to approximately 70 percent of maximum aerobic capacity (VO2 max). The measure of physical fitness included VO2 max. The frequency of physical activity varied from three to seven sessions a week and the length of the physical activity session ranged from 30 to 60 minutes. Some physical activity programs were supervised, and some were home-based. Adherence to the prescribed physical activity program was recorded and reported in some studies and not mentioned in others. Most studies did not estimate the caloric expenditure from the physical activity or report calorie intake. The duration of the intervention varied from 16 weeks to 1 year; six articles reported on trials that lasted at least 1 year (346, 363, 375, 401, 406, 432).\nRationale: Twelve RCT articles examined the effects of physical activity, consisting primarily of aerobic exercise, on weight loss compared to controls (346, 363, 365, 369, 375, 401, 404, 406, 432, 434, 445, 446). Ten of the 12 RCT articles reported a mean weight loss of 2.4 kg (5.3 lb) (or 2.4 percent of weight) (363, 369, 375, 406, 419, 432, 434) or a mean reduction in BMI of 0.7 kg/m2 (2.7 percent reduction) (346, 365, 401) in the exercise group compared to the control group. In three of these ten studies, the weight loss was < 2 percent of body weight (< 2 kg) (4.4 lb) (369, 375, 434). In contrast, two RCTs showed no benefit on weight from exercise, reporting weight gain in the exercise group compared to the control group (445, 446). In one of these studies, the control group received only diet advice but nevertheless lost 9 kg (19.8 lb), whereas the exercise group lost only 7 kg (15.4 lb) (445). In the second study, there was a total of only 10 participants, all having noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, and the control group lost 3 kg (6.6 lb) whereas the exercise group lost only 2 kg (4.4 lb) (446). A meta-analysis of 28 publications of the effect on weight loss of exercise compared to diet or control groups showed that aerobic exercise alone produces a modest weight loss of 3 kg (6.6 lb) in men and 1.4 kg (3.1 lb) in women compared to controls (449).\nTen articles reported on RCTs that had a diet-only group in addition to an exercise-only group (346, 363, 365, 369, 375, 406, 432, 434, 445, 448). In every case except one (365),the exercise-only group did not experience as much weight loss as the diet-only group. The diet-only group produced approximately 3 percent, or 3 kg (6.6 lb), greater weight loss than the exercise-only group.\nNo single study examined the length of the intervention in relation to the weight loss outcome. Only one study compared the effect on maximum oxygen uptake of different intensities and formats of physical activity over a 1-year follow-up (401) and 2-year follow-up period (447). Better adherence over 1 year was found if the exercise was performed at home rather than in a group setting, regardless of the intensity level. Subsequently, the different exercise groups were compared with each other over the longer term (2 years), and better long-term adherence was found in the higher intensity home-based exercise group compared to the lower intensity home-based or higher intensity group-based exercise groups (447).\nThe question of whether physical activity enhances long-term maintenance of weight loss has not been formally examined in RCTs. Examination of long-term weight loss maintenance produced by physical activity interventions compared with diet-only interventions cannot easily be compared between RCTs because of numerous differences between studies with respect to design, sample size, intervention content and delivery, and characteristics of the study population samples. However, a number of analyses of observational and post hoc analyses of intervention studies have examined whether physical activity has a beneficial effect on weight. Cross-sectional studies have generally shown that physical activity is inversely related to body weight (450-454) and rate of weight gain with age (455). Longitudinal studies with 2 to 10 years of follow-up results have observed that physical activity is related to less weight gain over time (456-459), less weight gain after smoking cessation in women (460), and weight loss over 2 years (461). In addition, post hoc analyses of several weight loss intervention studies reported that physical activity was a predictor of successful weight loss (454, 462, 463). The results of these RCTs showed that physical activity produces only modest weight loss and observational analyses from other studies suggest that physical activity may play a role in long-term weight control and/or maintenance of weight loss.\nRationale: Only three RCTs testing the effect of physical activity on weight loss also had measures of abdominal fat as assessed by waist circumference (365, 369, 375). One study demonstrated that physical activity reduced waist circumference compared with the control group (365), and another study showed a small effect on waist circumference (0.9 cm) in men but not women (375). One study in men showed a small increase in waist circumference (369). Weight loss was modest in all of these studies. These studies were not designed to test the effects of physical activity on abdominal fat independent of weight loss.\nHowever, large studies in Europe (464), Canada (453), and the United States (465-468) reported that physical activity has a favorable effect on body fat distribution. These studies showed an inverse association between energy expenditure through physical activity and several indicators of abdominal obesity, such as waist circumference and waist-to-hip and waist-to-thigh circumference ratios.\nRationale: Eleven RCT articles testing the effect of physical activity alone on weight loss in men and women also included measures of cardiorespiratory fitness, as measured by maximal oxygen uptake (VO2 max) (346, 363, 369, 375, 401, 404, 406, 432, 434, 445, 446). All 11 showed that physical activity increased maximum oxygen uptake in men and women in the exercise groups by an average of 14 percent (ml/kg body weight) to 18 percent (L/min). Even in studies with modest weight loss (< 2 percent), physical activity increased VO2 max by an average of 12 percent (L/min) to 16 percent (ml/kg) (369, 375, 434).\nOne study that compared different formats and intensities of physical activity on VO2 max reported that improvement in VO2 max was related to adherence to the physical activity regime. In that study, the lower intensity program was equally effective on VO2 max as a higher intensity program, largely as a result of different levels of adherence (401).\nThe results of the RCTs strongly demonstrate that physical activity increases cardiorespiratory fitness in overweight and obese individuals."}
{"text": "Source: The Pennsylvania Center for the Book\nDate: Summer 2010\nByline: Jim Byrne\nThe Philadelphia Lazaretto: A Most Unloved Institution\nIn mid-July 1800, the U.S.S. Ganges, on the U.S. Navy’s earliest warships, encountered two American schooners, the Phebe and the Prudent, while navigating the Straits of Florida. These schooners held neither sugar cane nor corn but rather human cargo, 134 chained captives from West Africa to be exact, doomed for delivery to a notorious slave trader in Havana, Cuba. Commissioned with enforcing the newly-passed Federal Slave Trade Act that prohibited the transport of slaves by U.S. ships, Ganges Captain John Mullowny seized the Phebe and the Prudent, assigned prize crews to man both ships, and commanded them to sail north for Philadelphia. After a 1,500 mile, month long trip up the eastern coast of the United States, the crews arrived at the confluence of the Schuylkill and Delaware rivers with their recently confiscated cargo. Emaciated, exposed, and, surely disoriented, the scores of African survivors disembarked on Province Island, home to the Marine Hospital, a.k.a. the Philadelphia Lazaretto.\n“The Ganges Africans” — the name bestowed upon them after many were given the surname Ganges — were part of one of the first slave trade violation cases confronted by the newly-established Federal judicial system. Their story exemplifies the ideological clashes that were occurring in the young nation and that would eventually boil over into the Civil War. Interestingly enough, at least two of the Ganges Africans would have extended stays in the Philadelphia area. One of them would become an indentured servant to Thomas Egger, the last quarantine master of the “old” Lazaretto on Province Island and the first one of the “new” Lazaretto in Tinicum Township, Delaware County. A second of the slaves was indentured to farmer Thomas Smith who had sold the property for the new facility to the Philadelphia Board of Health.\nMoreover, their story reflects in miniature the history of the Philadelphia Lazaretto itself: integral to our nation’s demographic and political landscape and yet often overlooked. Stories like those of the Ganges Africans and the thousands of others who remain little-known or whose tales are untold are the reasons University of Pennsylvania historian David Barnes calls the Philadelphia Lazaretto a place “even rarer and more precious than New York’s [Ellis Island].”\nLazaretto seems an unusual name for a hospital in the American colonies. As it turns out, however, the word would become a common English term for isolation facilities and quarantine hospitals, ceasing to be a proper noun at all. As one might think, the term derives from the Italian, but its exact provenance is not completely clear. One theory holds that in 16th century Venice, the name of a local hospital, the Nazaretto, was combined with the name of Lazarus the Beggar from the New Testament. Professor Barnes notes that this theory is less plausible than the simpler, and generally accepted, thought isolation wards and quarantines came to be named for Lazarus the Beggar, patron saint of lepers. Regardless of its origin, it started to be applied to the “old” facility on Province Island built in 1743, though it was still referred to the Marine Hospital. The “new” Lazaretto, however, would never be called anything else.\nAt the end of the 18th century, politicians and doctors throughout the United States were passionately debating public health and quarantine issues, much as members of those same two professions debate health care policy today.\nThousands were falling victim to the effects of infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and yellow fever. The issue came to a head in 1793 after futile attempts to quarantine all ships arriving at the port of Philadelphia failed. A yellow fever epidemic of calamitous proportions broke out throughout the city. Within two months, the nation’s largest city and political and economic capital, lost more than a quarter of its population. Approximately 10% perished from yellow fever and another 17% fled the city.\nAfter the 1793 epidemic, the city created a Board of Health to oversee conditions in the city. It found, among other things, that the old quarantine facility had failed terribly in preventing the propagation of yellow fever and other infectious diseases. Many authorities blamed this failure on its location only a few miles from the most densely populated parts of the city and thu, facilitating the interaction between infected patients and residents. Determined to prevent another calamity, The Board of Health constructed a new lazaretto ten miles south of Philadelphia in the isolated, uninhabited marshlands of Tinicum Township, Delaware County.\nConstruction of the Philadelphia Lazaretto finished in 1801, almost a century before the building of New York’s Ellis Island and San Francisco’s Angel Island. Upon completion, the Lazaretto was the first of its kind. It was a complex — both stately and state of the art — that, as The Philadelphia Public Ledger said in 1879, “might be mistaken for [the grounds of a] wealthy country gentleman....were it not for the yellow Quarantine flag.”\nThe central figure of the ten acre campus was the main hospital, an august Georgian, double-brick building that could house upwards of 200 patients at a given time. The campus also included the following: the Dutch hospital which was added in 1805 and was primarily used to house German immigrants afflicted with smallpox; the dead-house which was used for incinerating infected patients’ belongings; the barge houses which served as the waiting and sleeping quarters of the bargemen on duty during quarantine season; the residences of the chief physician and the quarantine master; and the government warehouse which stored the goods and merchandise of the quarantined vessels. These facilities and the sheer size of the campus made the Philadelphia Lazaretto a state-of-the-art hospital in comparison to its contemporaries. Remarkably, more than two centuries after their construction, the main hospital building and several other buildings remain intact and are rather well preserved.\nDuring its years of operation from 1801 to 1893, the Philadelphia Lazaretto was certainly neither revered nor loved. As a matter of fact, sailors, merchants, and newly arriving immigrants dreaded and abhorred the sight of its flag — a yellow banner. It was, as University of Pennsylvania professor and the Philadelphia Lazaretto’s de facto historian David Barnes calls it, a most unloved institution. During the hospital’s near century of operation, the Philadelphia Lazaretto’s staff inspected and quarantined hundreds of thousands of merchant ships, much to the chagrin of businessmen and sailors. The hours, days, or even months at the Lazaretto meant the spoiling or confiscation of cargo and, in turn, the loss of significant capital. In addition to the loss of the merchants’ cargo, the Philadelphia Lazaretto was also the site at which sailors and immigrants perished. Many immigrants, much like the “Ganges Africans,” took their first steps on American soil. According to various estimates, a thirst of all Americans have an ancestor whose first contact with the New World was at the Lazaretto.\nAfter closing its doors as a quarantine station in 1893, the site and the buildings went through several transformations. The Philadelphia Athletic Club purchased the site and renamed it the Orchard Club. The Orchard Club was a summer get-away for wealthy Philadelphians who used its prime waterfront location for leisure and recreation. There were several athletic clubs whos sponsored baseball teams during this era, and some even played their games on the grounds of the Lazaretto. These were not, however, the forerunners of the American League’s Philadelphia Athletics. After the closing of the Orchard Club, Colonel Robert Edward Glendinning — a substantial contributor to wartime aviation in the First World War — and George C. Thomas opened the Essington School of Flying in 1913. It was the state’s first water flying school and one of the first in the world.\nSadly, today the Philadelphia Lazaretto lies, mostly forgotten, in the same marshlands of Tinicum Township, Delaware County. Were it not for the tireless lobbying of a group of hard-working activists, the site may well have been destroyed. Though a township firestation was recently build on the northern half of the Lazaretto site, there is still much worthy of preservation. Similar projects, like New York’s restored Ellis Island and San Francisco’s Angel Island (in process), have given voice to the thousands and hundreds of thousands who came to these shores. The Friends of the Lazaretto and others are working hard to ensure that the rest of the site will stand as testament to the immigrants who landed in Philadelphia."}
{"text": "Mount Desert Rock\nAbout 20 miles southeast of Mount Desert Island, this is one of the most remote and lonely lights. Even mild storms scour the island, denuding it of anything not firmly secured, and frequently submerge it entirely. Yet each spring keepers transported soil from the mainland, tucking it into crevices on this otherwise barren rock in hopes of cultivating flowers and vegetables. For a few months in summer and early fall, the rock became a colorful garden in the middle of the sea. But late fall and winter storms always washed it all away. It's a challenge to see this lighthouse, even from a boat, but whale-watching cruises from Bar Harbor sometimes pass by.\nMount Desert Rock Lighthouse was built in 1830."}
{"text": "CNY - 中國元，人民幣\n最常用 CNY 交叉匯率\n為什麼您對 CNY 感興趣？\nEarly Currency in China\nWith a history of over 3000 years, Chinese currency existed in both Ancient and Imperial China. In 1914, the Silver Dollar was established as the official currency of the Republic of China, with copper, fen, and nickel coins being added in the 1930s. During this time silver appreciated in value, and China could no longer retain the silver standard. In 1935, a new currency known as Fǎbì, was issued.\nIntroduction of the Gold Yuan and Chinese Yuan Renminbi\nThe Gold Yuan replaced the Fǎbì in 1948 at a rate of 1 Gold Yuan to 3 million Yuan Fǎbì. That same year, the Yuan Renminbi (often called RMB) was introduced as a way to help stabilize the Communist held areas of mainland China. In 1955, a re-evaluation took place and a new Yuan Renminbi was introduced at a rate of 1 new Yuan to 10,000 old Yuan.\nThe Renminbi in Foreign Exchange\nDuring the command economy, the Chinese Yuan Renminbi was set to unrealistic exchange values and as a result, severe currency guidelines were put in place. When China's economy opened in 1978, the Yuan Renminbi was only used domestically and foreigners used exchange certificates; this led to a powerful black market. From 1997 to 2005, the Chinese government pegged the Chinese Yuan Renminbi to the US Dollar at approximately 8.3 CNY to 1 USD. In 2005, a flexible mechanism of exchange rates was phased in, with the RMB being re-evaluated to 8.1 Renminbi per US dollar. The Chinese government launched a pilot program in 2009, allowing some businesses in Guangdong and Shanghai to execute business and trade transactions with counterparties in Hong Kong, Macau, and select nations. The program has since expanded to all areas of China and all international counterparties. China has also made agreements with Australia, Japan, Thailand, Russia, and Vietnam to allow for direct currency trade, instead of converting to the US Dollar. As a managed float, the Renminbi's value is determined by a basket of foreign currencies.\n- AP chief says phone probe makes news sources reluctant to talk\n- UPDATE 2-UAE economy grows at fastest rate since 2006\n- UK lawmakers consider probe into transparency of mining firms\n- Corporate debt abuse claims prompt Israeli review\n- Glance-REFILE-PRESS DIGEST - Sunday British business - May 19\n- German minister calls EU move on China solar 'grave mistake'"}
{"text": "Protractors - Innovation\nWhile only one patent model for a protractor survives in the Smithsonian collections—from an inventor with a colorful personal history—several of the other objects also provide examples of technical innovation. For instance, some are manufactured versions of patented inventions. Others were named for the person with whom they were associated, even if that engineer or craftsman laid no claim to designing that protractor.\n\"Protractors - Innovation\" showing 1 items.\n- This brass semicircular protractor is divided by single degrees and marked by tens from 10° to 90° to 10°. It is attached with metal screws to a set of brass parallel rules. Brass S-shaped hinges connect the rules to each other. The bottom left screw on the parallel rules does not attach to the bottom piece. A rectangular brass arm is screwed to the center of the protractor. A thin brass piece screwed to the arm is marked with a small arrow for pointing to the angle markings. The protractor is stored in a wooden case, which also contains a pair of metal dividers (5-1/4\" long).\n- The base of the protractor is signed: L. Dod, Newark. Lebbeus Dod (1739–1816) manufactured mathematical instruments in New Jersey and is credited with inventing the \"parallel rule protractor.\" He served as a captain of artillery during the Revolutionary War, mainly by making muskets. His three sons, Stephen (1770–1855), Abner (1772–1847), and Daniel (1778–1823), were also noted instrument and clock makers. The family was most associated with Mendham, N.J. (where a historic marker on N.J. Route 24 indicates Dod's house), but Dod is known to have also lived at various times in Newark.\n- ID number MA*310890 is a similar protractor and parallel rule.\n- References: Bethuel Lewis Dodd and John Robertson Burnet, \"Biographical Sketch of Lebbeus Dod,\" in Genealogies of the Male Descendants of Daniel Dod . . . 1646–1863 (Newark, N.J., 1864), 144–147; Alexander Farnham, \"More Information About New Jersey Toolmakers,\" The Tool Shed, no. 120 (February 2002), http://www.craftsofnj.org/Newjerseytools/Alex%20Farnham%20more%20Jeraey%20Tools/Alex%20Farnham.htm; Deborah J. Warner, “Surveyor's Compass,” National Museum of American History Physical Sciences Collection: Surveying and Geodesy, http://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/surveying/object.cfm?recordnumber=747113; Peggy A. Kidwell, \"American Parallel Rules: Invention on the Fringes of Industry,\" Rittenhouse 10, no. 39 (1996): 90–96.\n- date made\n- late 1700s\n- Dod, Lebbeus\n- ID Number\n- accession number\n- catalog number\n- Data Source\n- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center"}
{"text": "Philippa Ryan, Scientist, British Museum\nArchaeobotany is the study of ancient plant remains, and I joined the field team at Amara West in Sudan earlier this year to collect samples for archaeobotanical analysis. Charred plant materials were retrieved on-site from sediments through dry-sieving and flotation. These samples were subsequently brought back to the British Museum for further sorting and identification.\nAt the moment I am analysing the charred seeds and fruits with Caroline Cartwright, who is also analysing the wood charcoal. The macroscopic plant remains are analysed using both a stereo microscope and a SEM (scanning electron microscope). Charred remains found so far include cereal grains (wheat and barley) and crop-processing waste, fruits such as figs and a wide range of wild plants.\nI am also processing sediment samples to extract phytoliths (microscopic plant remains), which are formed when soluble silica taken up in groundwater by plants is deposited within and between certain plant cells. These silicified cells are found within many different plant families such as grasses (which include cereals), sedges and palms.\nPhytoliths are difficult to identify, but have the advantage of surviving in both charred and non-charred contexts, so we can learn about the presence and use of plants in areas where seeds and grains don’t survive.\nAt the moment, I am processing sediments to extract phytoliths, which includes the removal of carbonates, clays, organics, other remaining non-siliceous material through heavy liquid flotation, and finally mounting dried phytoliths onto slides. Phytoliths are then identified and counted using an optical (light) microscope.\nAnalysis of these different types of plant remains helps us learn about the past uses of plants at Amara West in day-to-day life, such as for food, fuel and animal fodder. I am also looking at the distributions of seeds and phytoliths across the site to examine locations of plant based activities such as food processing, as well as whether there are any differences in diet between poorer and richer households, or across the history of the site.\nPlant remains can also help to provide information about the nearby vegetation, for instance the types of grasses, wetland plants and trees that grew near the ancient town."}
{"text": "Many of us are inclined not to talk about things that upset us. We try to put a lid on our feelings and hope that saying nothing will be for the best. But not talking about something doesnt mean we arent communicating. Children are great observers. They read messages on our faces and in the way we walk or hold our hands. We express ourselves by what we do, by what we say, and by what we do not say.\nWhen we avoid talking about something that is obviously upsetting, children often hesitate to bring up the subject or ask questions about it. To a child, avoidance can be a message - If Mummy and Daddy cant talk about it, it really must be bad, so I better not talk about it either. In effect, instead of protecting our children by avoiding talk, we sometimes cause them more worry and also keep them from telling us how they feel.\nOn the other hand, it also isnt wise to confront children with information that they may not yet understand or want to know. As with any sensitive subject, we must seek a delicate balance that encourages children to communicate - a balance that lies somewhere between avoidance and confrontation, a balance that isnt easy to achieve. It involves:\n- trying to be sensitive to their desire to communicate when theyre ready\n- trying not to put up barriers that may inhibit their attempts to communicate\n- offering them honest explanations when we are obviously upset\n- listening to and accepting their feelings\n- not putting off their questions by telling them they are too young\n- trying to find brief and simple answers that are appropriate to their questions; answers that they can understand and that do not overwhelm them with too many words.\nPerhaps most difficult of all, it involves examining our own feelings and beliefs so that we can talk to them as naturally as possible when the opportunities arise.\nNot Having All the Answers\nWhen talking with children, many of us feel uncomfortable if we dont have all the answers. Young children, in particular, seem to expect parents to be all knowing - even about death. But death, the one certainty in all life, if lifes greatest uncertainty. Coming to terms with death can be a lifelong process. We may find different answers at different stages of our lives, or we may always feel a sense of uncertainty and fear. If we have unresolved fears and questions, we may wonder how to provide comforting answers for our children.\nWhile not all our answers may be comforting, we can share what we truly believe. Where we have doubts, an honest, I just dont know the answer to that one, may be more comforting than an explanation which we dont quite believe. Children usually sense our doubts. White lies, no matter how well intended, can create uneasiness and distrust. Besides, sooner, or later, our children will learn that we are not all knowing, and maybe we can make that discovery easier for them if we calmly and matter-of-factly tell them we dont have all the answers. Our non-defensive and accepting attitude may help them feel better about not knowing everything also.\nIt may help to tell our children that different people believe different things and that not everyone believes as we do, e.g., some people believe in an afterlife; some do not. By indicating our acceptance and respect for others beliefs, we may make it easier for our children to choose beliefs different from our own but more comforting to them.\nLast reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 26 Aug 2010\nPublished on PsychCentral.com. All rights reserved.\nNobody can make you feel inferior without your consent.\n-- Eleanor Roosevelt"}
{"text": "WebMD Medical News\nBrenda Goodman, MA\nLaura J. Martin, MD\nOct. 3, 2011 -- Children who are overweight compared to their peers are nearly three times more likely to have high blood pressure, a new study shows.\nThe study, published in the journal Hypertension, followed 1,111 school-aged children in Indiana for an average of four years.\nTwice each year, researchers visited schools to take blood pressure measurements and record the kids’ heights and weights.\nAbout 40% of the children in the study were above the 85th percentile on growth charts for their height and weight. When children are above the 85th percentile, doctors consider them to be overweight.\nAmong the overweight kids, 14% had blood pressure that was higher than normal, while only 5% of normal-weight kids had elevated blood pressure.\nThe study also found that extra pounds are especially dangerous for kids who are already big.\n\"For an overweight and obese child, if you increase your BMI [body mass index] percentile a little bit, that would increase your blood pressure strongly,\"says researcher Wanzhu Tu, PhD. Tu is a research scientist at Regenstrief Institute and professor of biostatistics at Indiana University School of Medicine, both in Indianapolis.\n\"In the same way,\" Tu says, for just a little bit of weight loss \"you could benefit greatly in terms of blood pressure.\"\nThe risks of overweight were the same, regardless of the child’s sex or race. About 42% of the kids in the study were black.\nPediatricians say the study is wake-up call.\n\"We’ve tended to look at the overweight category as a lower-risk category,\" says Stephen R. Daniels, MD, PhD, chairman of the department of pediatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Denver. He was not involved in the research.\n\"This suggests to me that we really need to worry about kids who are in that overweight category,\" says Daniels, who is also pediatrician-in-chief at Colorado Children’s Hospital.\nOther experts say the findings are concerning because having high blood pressure has been shown to set kids up for health complications.\nNot only are children with high blood pressure much more likely to turn into adults who have high blood pressure, but newer studies have shown that kids can get the same kinds of organ damage -- to the heart, blood vessels, and kidneys -- that doctors once thought was only a problem for adults with the condition.\nOne study even found that kids with high blood pressure have subtle changes in the brain area that controls attention, problem solving, and working memory.\n\"For physicians, we have to take much more seriously this concept of the childhood origins of adult diseases and look beyond the weight and beyond the blood pressure level because we’re finding more evidence, subtle evidence, of injury,\" says Bonita Falkner, MD, professor of medicine and pediatrics at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia.\n\"So it’s not going to be a risk that’s going to be in the future. It’s a risk that’s now,\" says Falkner, who wrote an editorial on the study, but was not involved in the research.\n\"It jacks up the concern about preventing childhood obesity and also not waiting until they are obese,\" she tells WebMD. \"Even overweight can be problematic for children.\"\nSOURCES:Tu, W. Hypertension, November 2011.Falkner, B. Hypertension, November 2011.Wanzhu Tu, PhD, research scientist, Regenstrief Institute; professor of biostatistics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis.Stephen R. Daniels, MD, PhD, chairman, department of pediatrics, University of Colorado School of Medicine; pediatrician-in-chief, Colorado Children’s Hospital, Denver.Bonita Falkner, MD, professor of medicine and pediatrics, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia.\nHere are the most recent story comments.View All\nThe views expressed here do not necessarily represent those of abc24 News\nThe Health News section does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information."}
{"text": "Viator,Vol. 37 (2006)\nIn 772, shortly after annexing his brother’s share of the Frankish kingdom, Charlemagne launched his first campaign against the Saxons. “No war taken up by the Frankish people was ever longer, harder or more dreadful,” wrote Einhard almost half a century later. For more than three decades (from 772 until 804) Charlemagne and his army were occupied with a bloody and protracted attempt to pacify and subdue the Saxons.\nA standard textbook narrative of the Saxon wars would go roughly like this: Charlemagne’s successful raid into Saxony in 772 opened the first phase of the Saxon wars. The reasons behind it are not at all clear. The so-called Annales regni Francorum, that is, the supposedly official court-based Frankish history, simply state that from Worms, where Charlemagne had held an assembly, he marched into Saxony. No Saxon rebellion or any other Saxon aggression are mentioned in connection with the Frankish attack, and it seems that once Charlemagne had managed to pacify Aquitaine, he decided to finish the job his father had already started in Saxony. Following the capture of Eresburg, Charlemagne and his army continued northwards, destroying on their way the enigmatic Irminsul. Charlemagne would have liked to continue his campaign in Saxony, but a desperate call for help from the pope forced him to leave Saxony and head southwards. The Saxon reaction was not late in coming. When Charlemagne and the Frankish army were busy in Italy, the Saxons invaded Hesse, plundering and destroying everything on their way."}
{"text": "Table of Contents Image Captions\n1. \"Minnehaha Falls\"|\nFloral home; or, First years of Minnesota. Early sketches, later settlements, and further developments, by Harriet E. Bishop (New York, 1857).\nBibliographic Information | Page Image Viewer (Viewer linked to image 152)\n2. \"Chief Little Crow\"\n3. \"Henry Belland, Voyageur\"\n4. \"Fort Mackinac in 1905: Photograph from pasture southwest of the fort, between\nthe village and the Grand Hotel\"\n5. \"Jefferson's Plan, 1784\"|\nCollections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, Volume 11 (1888): 452-61.\nBibliographic Information | Page Image Viewer (Viewer linked to image 470)\n6. \"This drawing by John T. McCutcheon appeared when Battle Creek was booming wheat flakes and cereal stocks. W. K. Kellogg liked the cartoon so much that he reproduced it later in a cornflake advertisement. The building in the background was the Sanitas food factory.\"\n7. \"Men of the Red Underground\"\n8. \"The morning milk lunch for under-nourished school children, in an elementary school kitchen. Movement started in 1916\"\nThe History of the Upper Midwest: An Overview"}
{"text": "Fracking is short for ‘hydraulic fracturing,’ a term used to describe the process of pumping millions of gallons of pressurized water, sand and chemicals down a newly drilled well to blast out the surrounding shale rock and gas.\nIt’s a relatively new technique that‘s made shale gas more popular in recent years. For a long time, shale gas — a natural gas that’s embedded in ancient rocks known as shale — was deemed as being not worth the trouble by drilling companies because it was so difficult to recover. The gas is embedded in rocks and the best way to get it out is to drill in sideways, which only became possible in the 1980s and 1990s as the gas industry improved its directional drilling technology. Later, technological advances that let drillers use more water pressure made fracking into an economically viable option for obtaining shale gas from the rocks.\nRead more about 'fracking'\nShale is scattered throughout the United States. The two hottest shale sites in America right now are the Barnett Shale in Texas and the Marcellus shale, which is buried beneath seven states and part of Lake Erie. Other large shale deposits are located in Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Wyoming.\nDespite its potential, though, a movement has welled up lately to block the shale gas boom. Some critics say embracing natural gas so heartily will slow the rise of renewable energy, but the biggest beef with shale isn't as much about its gas — it's about how we get it out of the ground. Shale gas would likely still be a novelty fuel without modern advances in hydraulic fracturing, yet the need for fracking is also starting to seem like it could be shale's fatal flaw. The practice has sparked major environmental and public heath concerns near U.S. gas fields, from diesel fuel and unidentified chemicals in groundwater to methane seeping out of sink faucets and even blowing up houses."}
{"text": "The Lancet Infectious Diseases, Volume 9, Issue 7\n, Page 401, July 2009\ndoi:10.1016/S1473-3099(09)70162-8Cite or Link Using DOI\nSwine-origin influenza A H1N1 update\nAs swine-origin influenza A H1N1 continues to spread through the world, with cases in Asia and Africa, WHO is now debating whether to declare a pandemic.\nSince the start of May, the number of H1N1 cases has risen from fewer than 3000 to over 20 000. As of June 8, 25 288 people had been infected, of whom 139 have died.\nA key concern was the spread of the virus to developing countries, which will struggle to contain the virus. Africa's first infection was in a young girl travelling back to Egypt fro ...\nThis article is made available free of charge, as a service to our users.\nPlease login to access the full article, or register if you do not yet have a username and password.\nAlready Registered? Please Login\nNew to TheLancet.com?\nTheLancet.com is the online home of:\n- The Lancet\n- The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology\n- The Lancet Infectious Diseases\n- The Lancet Neurology\n- The Lancet Oncology\n- The Lancet Respiratory Medicine\nPlease register to access selected articles for free, personalize and interact with this site. Registration is free, takes no more than two minutes, and offers you many benefits."}
{"text": "I am trying to understand what is the difference between TCP Half Open Connection and TCP Half closed connection can any one tell what exactly are they?\nWhen TCP establishes a connection, it is considered guaranteed since there is a handshake that takes place:\nAt that point the connection is established, and data begins to flow. In contrast, a UDP packet is not guaranteed, and is just sent in the hopes it gets there.\nOfficially, according to the RFC's, a half-open TCP connection is when one side of the established connection has crashed, and did not send notification that the connection was ending. This is not the common usage today.\nUnofficially, if can refer to an embryonic connection, which is a connection in the process of being established.\nHalf-closed is the opposite of that unofficial definition. It is a state somewhere in the middle where the computers are tearing down the established connection."}
{"text": "|A tamarin rock star |\n(photographed by Ltshears at Wikimedia)\nOur moods change when we hear music, but not all music affects us the same way. Slow, soft, higher-pitched, melodic songs soothe us; upbeat classical music makes us more alert and active; and fast, harsh, lower-pitched, dissonant music can rev us up and stress us out. Why would certain sounds affect us in specific emotional ways? One possibility is because of an overlap between how we perceive music and how we perceive human voice. Across human languages, people talk to their babies in slower, softer, higher-pitched voices than they speak to adults. And when we’re angry, we belt out low-pitched growly tones. The specific vocal attributes that we use in different emotional contexts are specific to our species… So what makes us so egocentric to think that other species might respond to our music in the same ways that we do?\n|A serene tamarin ponders where he placed |\nhis smoking jacket (photographed by\nMichael Gäbler at Wikimedia)\nCotton-top tamarins are squirrel-sized monkeys from northern Colombia that are highly social and vocal. As in humans (and pretty much every other vocalizing species studied), they tend to make higher-pitched tonal sounds when in friendly states and lower-pitched growly sounds when in aggressive states. But tamarin vocalizations have different tempos and pitch ranges than our tempos and pitch ranges.\nChuck and David musically analyzed recorded tamarin calls to determine the common attributes of the sounds they make when they are feeling friendly or when they are aggressive or fearful. Then they composed music based on these attributes, essentially creating tamarin happy-music and tamarin death metal. They also composed original music based on human vocal attributes. They played 30-second clips of these different music types to pairs of tamarins and measured their behavior while the song was being played and for the first 5 minutes after it had finished. They compared these behavioral measures to the tamarins’ behavior during baseline periods (time periods not associated with the music sessions).\nAn example of happy tamarin music (Copyright by David Teie and available through Biology Letters) can be found here.\nAn example of aggressive tamarin music (Copyright by David Teie and available through Biology Letters) can be found here.As the researchers had predicted, tamarins were much more affected by tamarin music than by human music. Happy tamarin music seemed to calm them, causing the tamarins to move less and eat and drink more in the 5 minutes after the music stopped. Compared to the happy tamarin music, the aggressive tamarin music seemed to stress them out, causing the tamarins to move more and show more anxious behaviors (like bristling their fur and peeing) after the music stopped.\nThe tamarins also showed lesser reactions to the human music. They showed less anxious behavior after the happy human music played and moved less after the aggressive human music played. So, human voice-based music also affected the tamarins to some degree, but not as strongly. This may be because there are some aspects of how we communicate emotions with our voice that are the same in tamarins. (How did the tamarin music make you feel?)\nCan you imagine what we could do with this idea of species-specific music? Well, David and Chuck did! They have since developed music for cats using similar techniques. Although they're still working on the paper, they have said that the cats prefered and were more calmed by cat music compared to human music. You can find samples and get your own copies here.\nWe often think of vocal signals conveying messages in particular sounds, like words and sentences. But calls seem to do much more than that, making the emotions and behaviors of those listening resemble the emotions of those calling.\nWant to know more? Check this out:\nSnowdon, C., & Teie, D. (2009). Affective responses in tamarins elicited by species-specific music Biology Letters, 6 (1), 30-32 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2009.0593"}
{"text": "The Edupunks' Guide: How to Do Research Online\nIt’s the best of times and the worst of times to be a learner. College tuition has doubled in the past decade, while the options for learning online and independently keep expanding. Anya Kamenetz's new free ebook The Edupunks’ Guide is all about the many paths that learners are taking in this new world, and we're running excerpts from the book all week. We're also asking GOOD readers to doodle your learning journey and submit the result by Sunday, September 11.\nThere’s been a revolution in the way people spread knowledge. Sharing information openly over the Internet is way cheaper than purchasing it commercially in dead-tree format, and often the learning that happens this way is faster, more up-to-date, and more relevant to our immediate needs. A simple example is learning to make pizza. A few years ago, you may have had to take a class or at least buy a cookbook. Today you can put “how to make a pizza” into YouTube and within minutes, you’re watching a video that shows you how to fling the dough!\nMore and more people around the world are building on this knowledge revolution to explore new modes of learning and to transform what we mean by “education.”\nFor many, the first step in an online learning journey is a simple Google search.\n- Start with Google, the most-used search engine on the web. Put your phrase in quotes to return pages with the exact words, like this: “African-American history”\n- Search on Wikipedia to get an overview of the topic. Follow the links to an article’s sources at the bottom of the page.\n- Google Scholar will give you scholarly journal articles and other verified sources of information.\n- An online archive like The Internet Archive may offer original source material.\n- YouTube is good for videos—a quick entry into a topic. Or just Google your phrase and the word “video.”\n- For news stories, try Google News\n- For links on news, trends, and up-to-the-minute happenings, you can search Twitter with a hashtag, like this: #americanidol.\n- Try posting your question to a site like OpenStudy or WikiAnswers.\n- Put in your search terms plus the word “forum” or “blog” to see what ideas other people have discussed on message boards or on blogs.\nA successful online research session will leave you with 20 open tabs or windows at the top of your screen. Follow your curiosity, but keep track of the links you’re following in an email draft, Word document, or an application like Evernote or Diigo so you can consult them later.\nTop Free Learning Resources Online\nEuropeana: A digital library with 4.6 million items from libraries, archives, museums and other institutions across Europe. Read Charles Darwin’s letters or listen to Pavarotti singing Verdi.\nThe Internet Archive: A vast nonprofit digital library of Internet sites and other cultural artifacts—video, audio, texts, and live music.\nKhan Academy: The Khan Academy has over 2000 videos covering basic math through calculus and trigonometry, physics, biology, chemistry, banking, finance, and statistics. The videos are short—5 to 15 minutes long—simple, and entertaining. They’re all made by Sal Khan, a 33-year-old former hedge fund analyst who started making them to help tutor his young cousins.\nLearnFree: 750 free lessons on basic computer skills, reading and math.\nLibrary.nu: Half a million free books. May not be exactly legal. Browse at your own risk.\nMIT Open Courseware: The oldest open courseware site, with 1,900 courses on everything from history to physics. A favorite for science and math.\nOpenCulture: A well-edited blog and site chronicling “the best” cultural and educational media on the web. They have lists of free online courses from top universities and free language lessons.\nOpen Learning Initiative: The Open Learning Initiative at Carnegie Mellon has 13 free complete courses in topics ranging from physics to logic to French. The courses are highly interactive, using video, animations, and lots of embedded quizzes and assessments so you know how you’re doing. The site requires a signup and sometimes you may have to download some software.\nOpen Textbooks: A catalog of open textbooks that are free to read online.\nQuia: On Quia, you can create your own games and quizzes to test yourself, or take thousands of quizzes—flashcards, matching games, word searches—that other students and teachers have created for the ultimate study guide.\nSaylor Foundation: Saylor lists 241 original courses on the site, for which the material comes from around the web.\nScribd: Scribd is a place to find free books and presentations on almost any topic, uploaded and shared by the authors.\nSlideshare: Slideshare is a collection of free PowerPoint presentations, sometimes with audio. It’s a good place to learn about up-to-date topics like design, technology, and music.\nTED: TED (for Technology, Entertainment, Design) has an excellent collection of 300-plus short video lectures by scientists, authors, artists, political figures, and more. Browsing the site is sure to be enlightening and can give you clues about fields you might want to study, like behavioral economics or biophysics.\nTextbook Revolution: A student-run site with links and reviews to textbooks and other educational resources. Many are available free as PDFs, viewable online as ebooks, or websites containing course materials. You can also use the site to find descriptions of books that aren’t free, and find where they may be cheaper.\nWikiversity: Wikiversity has a wide variety of multimedia course materials. Courses are run through the site, meaning students at universities create and publish course modules for other students’ use. Like Wikipedia, you can participate in the community by editing course material (a great way to test and expand your own knowledge) or by joining discussions in the “Colloquium” section.\nYouTube and YouTube EDU: Don’t forget to search YouTube for lectures and presentations on any topic you find interesting. YouTube EDU contains content that’s been tagged “education,” which may include quirky things like Tina Fey’s 2011 book talk at Google."}
{"text": "Simple technique appears to be safe and effective, review suggests\nBy Robert Preidt\nMONDAY, Oct. 15 (HealthDay News) -- A technique called the \"mother's kiss\" is a safe and effective way to remove foreign objects from the nostrils of young children, according to British researchers.\nIn the mother's kiss, a child's mother or other trusted adult covers the child's mouth with their mouth to form a seal, blocks the clear nostril with their finger, and then blows into the child's mouth. The pressure from the breath may expel the object in the blocked nostril.\nBefore using it, the adult should explain the technique to the child so that he or she is not frightened. If the first attempt is unsuccessful, the technique can be tried several times, according to a review published in the current issue of the CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).\nFor their report, researchers in Australia and the United Kingdom examined eight case studies in which the mother's kiss was used on children aged 1 to 8 years.\n\"The mother's kiss appears to be a safe and effective technique for first-line treatment in the removal of a foreign body from the nasal cavity,\" Dr. Stephanie Cook, of the Buxted Medical Centre in England, and colleagues concluded. \"In addition, it may prevent the need for general anesthesia in some cases.\"\nFurther research is needed to compare various positive-pressure techniques and test how effective they are in different situations where objects are in various locations and have spent different lengths of time in the nasal passages, the researchers noted in a journal news release.\nThe U.S. National Library of Medicine has more about foreign objects in the nose.\nSOURCE: CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal), news release, Oct. 15, 2012\nCopyright © 2012 HealthDay. All rights reserved. URL:http://www.healthscout.com/template.asp?id=669525"}
{"text": "Some unknown terrible person shot a defenseless pilot whale last month, leaving it to swim the Atlantic in agony for weeks before it finally beached itself on the New Jersey shore and died. Authorities are still looking for the shooter. The bullet wound caused a fulminant infection in the whale’s jaw that prevented it from eating, so it basically starved to death. This was determined during a necropsy, an autopsy for animals.\nAlong with sympathy for the poor creature, this debacle aroused an interesting question: How does one autopsy a whale? With four-ton meat hooks, whaling knives and bone saws, actually. Michael Moore, a veterinarian and whale biologist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, does it all the time.\nMoore spends much of his time studying North Atlantic right whales, an endangered species whose name derives from whalers’ adage that these were the “right whales” to hunt, because they’re easy to spot and float when they die. They’re no longer hunted for their oil, but they are entangled in fishing lines and injured in ship collisions, often suffering for a great while and also succumbing to starvation. “It’s the most egregious animal welfare issue globally at this time,” in Moore’s words. But protecting them requires understanding how they died, and to do this Moore must take them apart, studying their broken bones and lobster net-tangled flukes to determine their exact causes of death.In partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Moore deploys on-call, toting a case full of knives to examine right whales that have beached or are floating in the open ocean. Right whales are baleen whales and at least two orders of magnitude bigger than the toothed pilot whale that was shot, so in most cases, they must be examined right where they‘re found — that means on the beach. They either beach themselves and die there, or they’re towed to shore once they have been located at sea.\nMoore and other rubber-suited biologists work amid 120,000 pounds of slick black-and-red whale flesh, clambering over and through the carcass to find out what went wrong. Time is of the essence, because the longer they wait, the more the animal’s internal organs break down, making it difficult to determine how it died.\nMoore uses a Japanese whaling hook, which is useful for pulling back sheets of blubber to get at the animal’s internal organs. He carries a bone saw — formerly his mother’s — to get through jaws and vertebrae to find the location of a fatal injury. He’s even visited indigenous Alaskan tribes to study their ancestral whale processing techniques.\nThe pilot whale that died was small, so it was trucked to a necropsy facility at the the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine, N.J., down the shore north of Atlantic City. It weighed about 740 pounds when it beached, quite gaunt for an animal that should normally weigh more than a ton. Researchers knew something was seriously wrong, but they had to perform a necropsy to determine what it was.\nThe creatures are brought in on trucks and hoisted into the facility on chains rigged to the ceiling, attached to four-ton-rated meat hooks. They lay on negative-pressure steel tables, the same types used in human autopsy procedures, which suck out odors and pathogens as the biologists get to work. The lab also contains deep freezers for stringing up deceased animals; it harbors an overwhelming odor of chemical and organic substances. (It’s somewhat legendary at WHOI that Moore lost his sense of smell while in veterinary school, which he says enables him to get literally inside a rotting animal carcass without losing his lunch or his cool.)\nThe 11-foot-long pilot whale died shortly after authorities reached its side on the beach on Sept. 24. But it wasn’t until a necropsy a couple weeks later that they knew what happened. The bullet entered near its blow hole, but the wound had closed and faded a bit, suggesting it had been shot about a month prior. The .30-caliber round lodged in its jaw, causing the infection.\n“This poor animal literally starved to death,” said Bob Schoelkopf, co-director of the Marine Mammal Stranding Center, in an interview with the AP. “It was wandering around and slowly starving to death because of the infection. Who would do that to an innocent animal?”\nThat question is now in the hands of the authorities. For biologists like Moore and Schoelkopf, necropsies can at least answer the question of how. Why, of course, is something else entirely.\nFive amazing, clean technologies that will set us free, in this month's energy-focused issue. Also: how to build a better bomb detector, the robotic toys that are raising your children, a human catapult, the world's smallest arcade, and much more."}
{"text": "Narrator: This is Science Today. A new air sampler, which can effectively trap and evaluate fine particle pollutants in both their solid and gas phases has been developed by scientist Lara Gundel of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. This sampler can greatly impact future EPA air quality standards and lead to a definitive understanding of how pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and pesticides, affect our health.\nGundel: I guess the innovations we made were a way to separate the gases and particles accurately and then to be able to collective measure particles and the gases separately and accurately.\nNarrator: Gundel achieved this by coating an inner tube of roughened glass inside the filter with sticky resin beads, which were finely ground up until their pores were small enough to trap gas particles.\nGundel: We quickly decided that this new technology that we had, these new kinds of sampler designs, could be used in outdoor air, in general atmospheric questions.\nNarrator: Gundel is currently collaborating with other scientists and the EPA to test this sampler at various sites across the country. For Science Today, I'm Larissa Branin."}
{"text": "The atlas of climate change: mapping the world's greatest challenge\nUniversity of California Press\n, 2007 - Science\n- 112 pages\nToday's headlines and recent events reflect the gravity of climate change. Heat waves, droughts, and floods are bringing death to vulnerable populations, destroying livelihoods, and driving people from their homes.\nRigorous in its science and insightful in its message, this atlas examines the causes of climate change and considers its possible impact on subsistence, water resources, ecosystems, biodiversity, health, coastal megacities, and cultural treasures. It reviews historical contributions to greenhouse gas levels, progress in meeting international commitments, and local efforts to meet the challenge of climate change.\nWith more than 50 full-color maps and graphics, this is an essential resource for policy makers, environmentalists, students, and everyone concerned with this pressing subject.\nThe Atlas covers a wide range of topics, including:\n* Warning signs\n* Future scenarios\n* Vulnerable populations\n* Renewable energy\n* Emissions reduction\n* Personal and public action\nCopub: Myriad Editions"}
{"text": "Classroom Strategies for Students with Disabilities\nThis information is intended as a guide to assist students with disabilities in understanding and coping with their particular disability and its characteristics. Because every person and disability is unique, it is important to keep individual qualities and characteristics in mind when evaluating the usefulness of this information for a particular person in a particular circumstance. For additional information regarding these topics, please contact the Counselor/Coordinator of Student Accommodations.\nDifficulty paying attention or concentrating on one task for an extended period of time\nDifficulty hearing or processing/understanding what is heard.\nTotal loss of sight\nTotal loss of hearing\nDifficulty expressing oneself in spoken or written form\nDifficulty controlling hand, eye or other muscles that aid in the perception and expression of information\nDifficulty understanding/interpreting what one hears or reads\nDifficulty remembering information\nDifficulty seeing or processing/understanding what is seen\nFor additional information please contact the Counselor/Coordinator of Student Accommodations at 217/234-5259 or email Jordan Hicks at email@example.com"}
{"text": "Sustainability and Renewable Merino\nWool runs on grass\nThe primary inputs for wool production are water, sunshine and fertile soils to grow grass – the primary diet of sheep.\nAs such merino production inherently has the potential of being fully sustainable providing it is operated within the carrying capacity of the ecosystem.\nThey must operate, or be in the process of implementing, a grazing management strategy based on long term sustainability.\nThe management system must embrace holistic farming principals with the goal of developing a resilient ecosystem that can regenerate, withstand stress and rebuild itself when necessary.\nThis goal should be to aim for 100% ground cover all year, with a focus on perennial grasses to regenerate the ecology and increase biodiversity.\nHolistic farming principles include:\n- Clear goals for the people involved\n– Clear goals for the land in use\n– Clear goals for the business\n- Clear goals for the management of livestock\nThe management process should involve:\n- Reviewing these strategies regularly\n– Making decision with these goals in mind\n– Monitoring the health of your land, your business and the people involved"}
{"text": "ingredients & lore\nblended with decaf ceylon tea, natural peach flavor, marigold flowers, apple pieces and apricots\nCultivation of peaches began in China as early as 2000BC. The winds of trade brought peaches to Greece and Persia, where they were instantly accepted. The juicy fruit was also a big hit with the Romans, who cultivated it throughout the empire. From Italy, peaches made the leap across the Atlantic, where early settlers planted them throughout the East Coast. Soon they were so plentiful, local botanists thought of them as native fruits."}
{"text": "OFF THE CHARTS\nOil supply rising, but demand may more than keep pace\nPublished: Saturday, November 24, 2012 at 4:36 p.m.\nLast Modified: Saturday, November 24, 2012 at 4:36 p.m.\nIt used to be taken for granted that as economies grew, they would use more oil. That was a major reason cited in warnings that the world would run out of oil, particularly if standards of living rose in developing countries.\nWell, standards of living are improving in developing countries, but the dire forecasts now appear to be wrong. In part that is because new discoveries and improving technologies have increased the amount of oil that can be produced. It also reflects conservation, in part, as cars become more efficient and as other steps are taken to reduce oil use.\nThe International Energy Agency, in its 2012 World Energy Outlook, released last week, forecast that U.S. oil production, which began to rise in 2009 after decades of decline, would continue rising through at least 2020, when it could be about as high as it was in 1970, the year of peak production.\nAt the same time it forecast that by 2035, U.S. oil consumption, which peaked in 2005, could decline to levels not seen since the 1960s, depending on how much conservation is encouraged.\nThe IEA report also forecast that by around 2020, the United States could surpass Saudi Arabia as the world's largest oil producer, and that while the country was not likely to become a net exporter of oil, the North American continent as a whole could be by around 2030.\nBut despite declining demand in some countries that historically were heavy users of oil, the world demand for oil seems likely to continue to rise. The IEA forecast that global energy demand – including demand for energy produced by other sources – is likely to rise by 35 percent by 2035, with a large part of the increase coming from China and India.\nIn 1969, the United States consumed a third of the oil used in the world, while China used less than 1 percent. Last year the U.S. share was less than 22 percent, while the Chinese accounted for 11 percent. The IEA forecasts that by 2030, the U.S. share could be less than the Chinese one.\nBy 2035, U.S. consumption of oil is expected to be as much as one-third less than it was last year. In China, oil consumption is expected to be up as much as two-thirds from the 2011 level, and India's is predicted to more than double.\nReader comments posted to this article may be published in our print edition. All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged."}
{"text": "Aswan High Dam on the Nile River\nAswan-- On 15 January 1971, Egypt celebrated the completion of the High Dam, whose funding was the center of a Cold War dispute that led to the 1956 Suez War. Located on the Upper Nile, around 1000km downstream from Cairo, the gigantic mountain of concrete and steel is among the 20th century's most elaborate engineering work. Aswan High Dam on the Nile River is located at the north end of Lake Nasser.\nThe construction of the High Dam began in 1960, and it was officially inaugurated ten years later, at a cost of US$1 billion, much of which was provided by the former Soviet Union. The dam stores 160 billion cubic meters of water, and the reservoir behind it, named Lake Nasser, stretches some 350km into Egypt and 150km into Sudan. It is a symbol for Egyptians patience and challenge.\nThe Suez Crisis began on 26 July 1956 when Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalised the Suez Canal. The move was in response to a decision by the United States and Britain to withdraw finance for the Aswan High Dam - a massive project to bring water to the Nile valley and electricity to develop Egypt's industry - because of Egypt's political and military ties to the Soviet Union.\nThe world-famous High Dam was an engineering miracle when it was built in the 1960s. Today it provides irrigation and electricity for the whole of Egypt and, together with the old Aswan Dam, 6km downriver, wonderful views for visitors. From the top of the two mile-long High Dam you can gaze across Lake Nasser, the huge reservoir created when it was built to Kalabsha temple in the south and the huge power station to the north.\nThe story of the High Dam was a tale of a nation, hikayit sha‘b, as Abdel Halim Hafiz chanted in an iconic song from the Nasserist period.\nThis nation lived under the yoke of British colonialism for over 70 years. After gaining independence, Egypt's revolutionary president, Colonel Gamal Abdel Nasser, approached the World Bank to finance the construction of a dam on the Nile, a vital step towards economic development. The World Bank refused. In an audacious challenge to old and new imperialism, Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal in 1956 to acquire funding for the project. The struggling nation heroically endured subsequent military assaults and a trade embargo. The dam was eventually built.\nThe story of the High Dam at Aswan is indeed the tale of this nation. The stages of its history chronicle critical transformations in Egyptian history at large. During the last half century, the dam moved from being a celebrated monument to Egyptian independence to a forgotten barrage deep in the country's south. It was a state-engineered tool of anti-imperialist propaganda, whose splendor faded away with the downfall and fundamental reversion of the anti-imperial project.\nIn other words Egypt had monopoly of the waters. On behalf of its colonial possessions - Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda - Britain, which was primarily concerned with the Suez Canal and the passage to India, signed away their most precious resource.\nEgypt had the right to veto any project along the Nile and full rights of inspection.\nIn 1959, this deal was overtaken by a new agreement between Egypt and Sudan splitting the waters 75 per cent to 25 per cent and guaranteeing Cairo \"full control of the river\".\nThe results of this control are nowhere more clearly seen than at Lake Nasser, a man-made reservoir 550km-long, created when Egypt completed the Aswan high dam. The country's largest engineering project took six years to build and another five years to fill.\nSome 55.5 billion cu m of water gush from the Aswan dam into Egypt annually. It has enabled Cairo to regulate the life-giving annual flood, to irrigate its otherwise parched landscape, and at the point it was finished supplied half the country's electricity needs.\nNasser was in need of a success, a success to rival that of the Suez Canal, which is a 190 km-long man-made waterway linking the Mediterranean with the Red Sea. The French dug the Suez Canal 97 years before Nasser took the decision to nationalize it. Nasser took the decision to nationalize the Suez Canal just two years before it was supposed to revert back to Egyptian control. This was used as justification by three countries [Britain, France and Israel] to launch a tripartite strike against Egypt. The President's decision to cancel the contract just two years before its expiry date made it seem like Nasser was seeking a popular confrontation.\nThe difference is that the Aswan High Dam is a success story, whereas the Suez Canal was a story of conflict. The High Dam is a witness of the history of Egypt's relationship with the Soviet Union, which continued throughout Nasser's rule. The Aswan High Dam is considered to be the most important construction of the Nasser regime.\nAbu Simbel, Egypt — In the 1960s, rising waters from a new dam threatened to submerge the temples and monuments of Nubia, the ancient home of black pharaohs in Egypt's far south. To preserve them, the antiquities were dismantled, moved and reconstructed. Today, most of the surviving monuments can be seen only from the lake created by the waters that nearly destroyed them.\nA short flight from Aswan is Abu Simbel and the Great Temple of Ramses II, and the gods of creation and light, Ptah, Amen and Heru-khuti is the most iconic Ancient Egyptian sight after the Pyramids. The temple has four massive statues of Ramses II and the gods Ra-Horakhty, Amun and Ptah at its entrance. Beyond lie two pillared halls and the sacred sanctuary. Every wall and ceiling is a storybook art gallery of this extraordinary pharaoh's life. (He lived to 90 and is said to have fathered more than 200 children).\nKnow more details about Visiting Temples of Ramses II at Abu Simbel, Aswan\nConstruction of the high dam was an enormous national project that every Egyptian contributed to. Nubians in particular sacrificed their possessions, including 45 Nubian villages lying on 300 square kilometers of land and one million palm trees. They were moved from a paradise on the banks of the Nile. These treasures are all submerged under water now. Along with the loss of the land, there was also the loss of heritage, values, memories and lifestyle, and, above all proximity to the water, the primary source of life.\nFor More Information Visit: Aswan Tourism and Tourist Information\nCruise ships on Egypt's Lake Nasser visit the ancient temples of Nubia's black pharaohs:\nThe Aswan High Dam: A Political Witness: http://aawsat.com/english/news.asp?section=2&id=19640\nMemories of a high dam: http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/news/memories-dam-high-dam%E2%80%A6\nSuez Crisis: Key players: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/5195582.stm\nNile deal brings countries to boiling point over water: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10648772"}
{"text": "|Met proto-oncogene (hepatocyte growth factor receptor)|\nCrystallographic structure of MET. PDB rendering based on 1r0p.\n|External IDs||ChEMBL: GeneCards:|\n|RNA expression pattern|\nc-Met (MET or MNNG HOS Transforming gene) is a proto-oncogene that encodes a protein known as hepatocyte growth factor receptor (HGFR). The hepatocyte growth factor receptor protein possesses tyrosine-kinase activity. The primary single chain precursor protein is post-translationally cleaved to produce the alpha and beta subunits, which are disulfide linked to form the mature receptor.\nMET is a membrane receptor that is essential for embryonic development and wound healing. Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is the only known ligand of the MET receptor. MET is normally expressed by cells of epithelial origin, while expression of HGF is restricted to cells of mesenchymal origin. Upon HGF stimulation, MET induces several biological responses that collectively give rise to a program known as invasive growth.\nAbnormal MET activation in cancer correlates with poor prognosis, where aberrantly active MET triggers tumor growth, formation of new blood vessels (angiogenesis) that supply the tumor with nutrients, and cancer spread to other organs (metastasis). MET is deregulated in many types of human malignancies, including cancers of kidney, liver, stomach, breast, and brain. Normally, only stem cells and progenitor cells express MET, which allows these cells to grow invasively in order to generate new tissues in an embryo or regenerate damaged tissues in an adult. However, cancer stem cells are thought to hijack the ability of normal stem cells to express MET, and thus become the cause of cancer persistence and spread to other sites in the body.\nMET proto-oncogene (GeneID: 4233) has a total length of 125,982 bp, and it is located in the 7q31 locus of chromosome 7. MET is transcribed into a 6,641 bp mature mRNA, which is then translated into a 1,390 amino-acid MET protein.\nMET is a receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) that is produced as a single-chain precursor. The precursor is proteolytically cleaved at a furin site to yield a highly glycosylated extracellular α-subunit and a transmembrane β-subunit, which are linked together by a disulfide bridge.\n- Region of homology to semaphorins (Sema domain), which includes the full α-chain and the N-terminal part of the β-chain\n- Cysteine-rich MET-related sequence (MRS domain)\n- Glycine-proline-rich repeats (G-P repeats)\n- Four immunoglobulin-like structures (Ig domains), a typical protein-protein interaction region.\nA Juxtamembrane segment that contains:\n- a serine residue (Ser 985), which inhibits the receptor kinase activity upon phosphorylation\n- a tyrosine (Tyr 1003), which is responsible for MET polyubiquitination, endocytosis, and degradation upon interaction with the ubiquitin ligase CBL\n- Tyrosine kinase domain, which mediates MET biological activity. Following MET activation, transphosphorylation occurs on Tyr 1234 and Tyr 1235\n- C-terminal region contains two crucial tyrosines (Tyr 1349 and Tyr 1356), which are inserted into the multisubstrate docking site, capable of recruiting downstream adapter proteins with Src homology-2 (SH2) domains. The two tyrosines of the docking site have been reported to be necessary and sufficient for the signal transduction both in vitro.\nMET signaling pathway \nMET activation by its ligand HGF induces MET kinase catalytic activity, which triggers transphosphorylation of the tyrosines Tyr 1234 and Tyr 1235. These two tyrosines engage various signal transducers, thus initiating a whole spectrum of biological activities driven by MET, collectively known as the invasive growth program. The transducers interact with the intracellular multisubstrate docking site of MET either directly, such as GRB2, SHC, SRC, and the p85 regulatory subunit of phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase (PI3K), or indirectly through the scaffolding protein Gab1\nTyr 1349 and Tyr 1356 of the multisubstrate docking site are both involved in the interaction with GAB1, SRC, and SHC, while only Tyr 1356 is involved in the recruitment of GRB2, phospholipase C γ (PLC-γ), p85, and SHP2.\nGAB1 is a key coordinator of the cellular responses to MET and binds the MET intracellular region with high avidity, but low affinity. Upon interaction with MET, GAB1 becomes phosphorylated on several tyrosine residues which, in turn, recruit a number of signalling effectors, including PI3K, SHP2, and PLC-γ. GAB1 phosphorylation by MET results in a sustained signal that mediates most of the downstream signaling pathways.\nActivation of signal transduction \nMET engagement activates multiple signal transduction pathways:\n- The RAS pathway mediates HGF-induced scattering and proliferation signals, which lead to branching morphogenesis. Of note, HGF, differently from most mitogens, induces sustained RAS activation, and thus prolonged MAPK activity.\n- The PI3K pathway is activated in two ways: PI3K can be either downstream of RAS, or it can be recruited directly through the multifunctional docking site. Activation of the PI3K pathway is currently associated with cell motility through remodeling of adhesion to the extracellular matrix as well as localized recruitment of transducers involved in cytoskeletal reorganization, such as RAC1 and PAK. PI3K activation also triggers a survival signal due to activation of the AKT pathway.\n- The STAT pathway, together with the sustained MAPK activation, is necessary for the HGF-induced branching morphogenesis. MET activates the STAT3 transcription factor directly, through an SH2 domain.\n- The beta-catenin pathway, a key component of the Wnt signaling pathway, translocates into the nucleus following MET activation and participates in transcriptional regulation of numerous genes.\nRole in development \nDuring embryonic development, transformation of the flat, two-layer germinal disc into a three-dimensional body depends on transition of some cells from an epithelial phenotype to spindle-shaped cells with motile behaviour, a mesenchymal phenotype. This process is referred to as epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Later in embryonic development, MET is crucial for gastrulation, angiogenesis, myoblast migration, bone remodeling, and nerve sprouting among others. MET is essential for embryogenesis, because MET -/- mice die in utero due to severe defects in placental development. Furthermore, MET is required for such critical processes as liver regeneration and wound healing during adulthood.\nTissue distribution \nMET is normally expressed by epithelial cells. However, MET is also found on endothelial cells, neurons, hepatocytes, hematopoietic cells, and melanocytes. HGF expression is restricted to cells of mesenchymal origin.\nTranscriptional control \nMET transcription is activated by HGF and several growth factors. MET promoter has four putative binding sites for Ets, a family of transcription factors that control several invasive growth genes. ETS1 activates MET transcription in vitro. MET transcription is activated by hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF1), which is activated by low concentration of intracellular oxygen. HIF1 can bind to one of the several hypoxia response elements (HREs) in the MET promoter. Hypoxia also activates transcription factor AP-1, which is involved in MET transcription.\nRole in cancer \nMET pathway plays an important role in the development of cancer through:\n- angiogenesis (sprouting of new blood vessels from pre-existing ones to supply a tumor with nutrients);\n- scatter (cells dissociation due to metalloprotease production), which often leads to metastasis.\nCoordinated down-regulation of both MET and its downstream effector extracellular signal-regulated kinase 2 (ERK2) by miR-199a* may be effective in inhibiting not only cell proliferation but also motility and invasive capabilities of tumor cells.\nInteraction with tumour suppressor genes \nPTEN (phosphatase and tensin homolog) is a tumor suppressor gene encoding a protein PTEN, which possesses lipid and protein phosphatase-dependent as well as phosphatase-independent activities. PTEN protein phosphatase is able to interfere with MET signaling by dephosphorylating either PIP3 generated by PI3K, or the p52 isoform of SHC. SHC dephosphorylation inhibits recruitment of the GRB2 adapter to activated MET.\nCancer therapies targeting HGF/MET \nSince tumor invasion and metastasis are the main cause of death in cancer patients, interfering with MET signaling appears to be a promising therapeutic approach. A comprehensive list of HGF and MET targeted experimental therapeutics for oncology now in human clinical trials can be found here.\nMET kinase inhibitors \nKinase inhibitors are low molecular weight molecules that prevent ATP binding to MET, thus inhibiting receptor transphosphorylation and recruitment of the downstream effectors. The limitations of kinase inhibitors include the facts that they only inhibit kinase-dependent MET activation, and that none of them is fully specific for MET.\n- K252a (Fermentek Biotechnology) is a staurosporine analogue isolated from Nocardiopsis sp. soil fungi, and it is a potent inhibitor of all receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs). At nanomolar concentrations, K252a inhibits both the wild type and the mutant (M1268T) MET function.\n- SU11274 (SUGEN) specifically inhibits MET kinase activity and its subsequent signaling. SU11274 is also an effective inhibitor of the M1268T and H1112Y MET mutants, but not the L1213V and Y1248H mutants. SU11274 has been demonstrated to inhibit HGF-induced motility and invasion of epithelial and carcinoma cells.\n- PHA-665752 (Pfizer) specifically inhibits MET kinase activity, and it has been demonstrated to represses both HGF-dependent and constitutive MET phosphorylation. Furthermore, some tumors harboring MET amplifications are highly sensitive to treatment with PHA-665752.\n- ARQ197 (ArQule) is a promising selective inhibitor of MET, which entered a phase 2 clinical trial in 2008.\n- Foretinib (XL880, Exelixis) targets multiple receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) with growth-promoting and angiogenic properties. The primary targets of foretinib are MET, VEGFR2, and KDR. Foretinib has completed a phase 2 clinical trials with indications for papillary renal cell carcinoma, gastric cancer, and head and neck cancer.\n- SGX523 (SGX Pharmaceuticals) specifically inhibits MET at low nanomolar concentrations.\n- MP470 (SuperGen) is a novel inhibitor of c-KIT, MET, PDGFR, Flt3, and AXL. Phase I clinical trial of MP470 had been announced in 2007.\nHGF inhibitors \nSince HGF is the only known ligand of MET, formation of a HGF:MET complex blocks MET biological activity. For this purpose, truncated HGF, anti-HGF neutralizing antibodies, and an uncleavable form of HGF have been utilized so far. The major limitation of HGF inhibitors is that they block only HGF-dependent MET activation.\n- NK4 competes with HGF as it binds MET without inducing receptor activation, thus behaving as a full antagonist. NK4 is a molecule bearing the N-terminal hairpin and the four kringle domains of HGF. Moreover, NK4 is structurally similar to angiostatins, which is why it possesses anti-angiogenic activity.\n- Neutralizing anti-HGF antibodies were initially tested in combination, and it was shown that at least three antibodies, acting on different HGF epitopes, are necessary to prevent MET tyrosine kinase activation. More recently, it has been demonstrated that fully human monoclonal antibodies can individually bind and neutralize human HGF, leading to regression of tumors in mouse models. Two anti-HGF antibodies are currently available: the humanized AV299 (AVEO), and the fully human AMG102 (Amgen).\n- Uncleavable HGF is an engineered form of pro-HGF carrying a single amino-acid substitution, which prevents the maturation of the molecule. Uncleavable HGF is capable of blocking MET-induced biological responses by binding MET with high affinity and displacing mature HGF. Moreover, uncleavable HGF competes with the wild-type endogenous pro-HGF for the catalytic domain of proteases that cleave HGF precursors. Local and systemic expression of uncleavable HGF inhibits tumor growth and, more importantly, prevents metastasis.\nDecoy MET \nDecoy MET refers to a soluble truncated MET receptor. Decoys are able to inhibit MET activation mediated by both HGF-dependent and independent mechanisms, as decoys prevent both the ligand binding and the MET receptor homodimerization. CGEN241 (Compugen) is a decoy MET that is highly efficient in inhibiting tumor growth and preventing metastasis in animal models.\nImmunotherapy targeting MET \nDrugs used for immunotherapy can act either passively by enhancing the immunologic response to MET-expressing tumor cells, or actively by stimulating immune cells and altering differentiation/growth of tumor cells.\nPassive immunotherapy \nAdministering monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) is a form of passive immunotherapy. MAbs facilitate destruction of tumor cells by complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC) and cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC). In CDC, mAbs bind to specific antigen, leading to activation of the complement cascade, which in turn leads to formation of pores in tumor cells. In ADCC, the Fab domain of a mAb binds to a tumor antigen, and Fc domain binds to Fc receptors present on effector cells (phagocytes and NK cells), thus forming a bridge between an effector and a target cells. This induces the effector cell activation, leading to phagocytosis of the tumor cell by neutrophils and macrophages. Furthermore, NK cells release cytotoxic molecules, which lyse tumor cells.\n- DN30 is monoclonal anti-MET antibody that recognizes the extracellular portion of MET. DN30 induces both shedding of the MET ectodomain as well as cleavage of the intracellular domain, which is successively degraded by proteasome machinery. As a consequence, on one side MET is inactivated, and on the other side the shed portion of extracellular MET hampers activation of other MET receptors, acting as a decoy. DN30 inhibits tumour growth and prevents metastasis in animal models.\n- OA-5D5 is one-armed monoclonal anti-MET antibody that was demonstrated to inhibit orthotopic pancreatic and glioblastoma tumor growth and to improve survival in tumor xenograft models. OA-5D5 is produced as a recombinant protein in Escherichia coli. It is composed of murine variable domains for the heavy and light chains with human IgG1 constant domains. The antibody blocks HGF binding to MET in a competitive fashion.\nActive immunotherapy \nActive immunotherapy to MET-expressing tumors can be achieved by administering cytokines, such as interferons (IFNs) and interleukins (IL-2), which triggers non-specific stimulation of numerous immune cells. IFNs have been tested as therapies for many types of cancers and have demonstrated therapeutic benefits. IL-2 has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of renal cell carcinoma and metastatic melanoma, which often have deregulated MET activity.\nSee also \n- Bottaro DP, Rubin JS, Faletto DL, Chan AM, Kmiecik TE, Vande Woude GF, Aaronson SA (February 1991). \"Identification of the hepatocyte growth factor receptor as the met proto-oncogene product\". Science 251 (4995): 802–4. doi:10.1126/science.1846706. PMID 1846706.\n- Galland F, Stefanova M, Lafage M, Birnbaum D (1992). \"Localization of the 5' end of the MCF2 oncogene to human chromosome 15q15----q23\". Cytogenet. Cell Genet. 60 (2): 114–6. doi:10.1159/000133316. PMID 1611909.\n- Cooper CS (January 1992). \"The met oncogene: from detection by transfection to transmembrane receptor for hepatocyte growth factor\". Oncogene 7 (1): 3–7. PMID 1531516.\n- \"Entrez Gene: MET met proto-oncogene (hepatocyte growth factor receptor)\".\n- Gentile A, Trusolino L, Comoglio PM (March 2008). \"The Met tyrosine kinase receptor in development and cancer\". Cancer Metastasis Rev. 27 (1): 85–94. doi:10.1007/s10555-007-9107-6. PMID 18175071.\n- Birchmeier C, Birchmeier W, Gherardi E, Vande Woude GF (December 2003). \"Met, metastasis, motility and more\". Nat. Rev. Mol. Cell Biol. 4 (12): 915–25. doi:10.1038/nrm1261. PMID 14685170.\n- Gandino L, Longati P, Medico E, Prat M, Comoglio PM (January 1994). \"Phosphorylation of serine 985 negatively regulates the hepatocyte growth factor receptor kinase\". J. Biol. Chem. 269 (3): 1815–20. PMID 8294430.\n- Peschard P, Fournier TM, Lamorte L, Naujokas MA, Band H, Langdon WY, Park M (November 2001). \"Mutation of the c-Cbl TKB domain binding site on the Met receptor tyrosine kinase converts it into a transforming protein\". Mol. Cell 8 (5): 995–1004. doi:10.1016/S1097-2765(01)00378-1. PMID 11741535.\n- Ponzetto C, Bardelli A, Zhen Z, Maina F, dalla Zonca P, Giordano S, Graziani A, Panayotou G, Comoglio PM (April 1994). \"A multifunctional docking site mediates signaling and transformation by the hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor receptor family\". Cell 77 (2): 261–71. doi:10.1016/0092-8674(94)90318-2. PMID 7513258.\n- Maina F, Casagranda F, Audero E, Simeone A, Comoglio PM, Klein R, Ponzetto C (November 1996). \"Uncoupling of Grb2 from the Met receptor in vivo reveals complex roles in muscle development\". Cell 87 (3): 531–42. doi:10.1016/S0092-8674(00)81372-0. PMID 8898205.\n- Abounader R, Reznik T, Colantuoni C, Martinez-Murillo F, Rosen EM, Laterra J (December 2004). \"Regulation of c-Met-dependent gene expression by PTEN\". Oncogene 23 (57): 9173–82. doi:10.1038/sj.onc.1208146. PMID 15516982.\n- Pelicci G, Giordano S, Zhen Z, Salcini AE, Lanfrancone L, Bardelli A, Panayotou G, Waterfield MD, Ponzetto C, Pelicci PG (April 1995). \"The motogenic and mitogenic responses to HGF are amplified by the Shc adaptor protein\". Oncogene 10 (8): 1631–8. PMID 7731718.\n- Weidner KM, Di Cesare S, Sachs M, Brinkmann V, Behrens J, Birchmeier W (November 1996). \"Interaction between Gab1 and the c-Met receptor tyrosine kinase is responsible for epithelial morphogenesis\". Nature 384 (6605): 173–6. doi:10.1038/384173a0. PMID 8906793.\n- Furge KA, Zhang YW, Vande Woude GF (November 2000). \"Met receptor tyrosine kinase: enhanced signaling through adapter proteins\". Oncogene 19 (49): 5582–9. doi:10.1038/sj.onc.1203859. PMID 11114738.\n- Gual P, Giordano S, Anguissola S, Parker PJ, Comoglio PM (January 2001). \"Gab1 phosphorylation: a novel mechanism for negative regulation of HGF receptor signaling\". Oncogene 20 (2): 156–66. doi:10.1038/sj.onc.1204047. PMID 11313945.\n- Gual P, Giordano S, Williams TA, Rocchi S, Van Obberghen E, Comoglio PM (March 2000). \"Sustained recruitment of phospholipase C-gamma to Gab1 is required for HGF-induced branching tubulogenesis\". Oncogene 19 (12): 1509–18. doi:10.1038/sj.onc.1203514. PMID 10734310.\n- O'Brien LE, Tang K, Kats ES, Schutz-Geschwender A, Lipschutz JH, Mostov KE (July 2004). \"ERK and MMPs sequentially regulate distinct stages of epithelial tubule development\". Dev. Cell 7 (1): 21–32. doi:10.1016/j.devcel.2004.06.001. PMID 15239951.\n- Marshall CJ (January 1995). \"Specificity of receptor tyrosine kinase signaling: transient versus sustained extracellular signal-regulated kinase activation\". Cell 80 (2): 179–85. doi:10.1016/0092-8674(95)90401-8. PMID 7834738.\n- Graziani A, Gramaglia D, Cantley LC, Comoglio PM (November 1991). \"The tyrosine-phosphorylated hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor receptor associates with phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase\". J. Biol. Chem. 266 (33): 22087–90. PMID 1718989.\n- Boccaccio C, Andò M, Tamagnone L, Bardelli A, Michieli P, Battistini C, Comoglio PM (January 1998). \"Induction of epithelial tubules by growth factor HGF depends on the STAT pathway\". Nature 391 (6664): 285–8. doi:10.1038/34657. PMID 9440692.\n- Monga SP, Mars WM, Pediaditakis P, Bell A, Mulé K, Bowen WC, Wang X, Zarnegar R, Michalopoulos GK (April 2002). \"Hepatocyte growth factor induces Wnt-independent nuclear translocation of beta-catenin after Met-beta-catenin dissociation in hepatocytes\". Cancer Res 7 (62): 2064–71. ISSN 0008-5472. PMID 11929826.\n- Gude NA, Emmanuel G, Wu W, Cottage CT, Fischer K, Quijada P, Muraski JA, Alvarez R, Rubio M, Schaefer E, Sussman MA (May 2008). \"Activation of Notch-mediated protective signaling in the myocardium\". Circ. Res. 102 (9): 1025–35. doi:10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.107.164749. PMID 18369158.\n- \"he fields of HGF/c-Met involvement\". HealthValue. Retrieved 2009-06-13.\n- Boccaccio C, Comoglio PM (August 2006). \"Invasive growth: a MET-driven genetic programme for cancer and stem cells\". Nat. Rev. Cancer 6 (8): 637–45. doi:10.1038/nrc1912. PMID 16862193.\n- Birchmeier C, Gherardi E (October 1998). \"Developmental roles of HGF/SF and its receptor, the c-Met tyrosine kinase\". Trends Cell Biol. 8 (10): 404–10. doi:10.1016/S0962-8924(98)01359-2. PMID 9789329.\n- Uehara Y, Minowa O, Mori C, Shiota K, Kuno J, Noda T, Kitamura N (February 1995). \"Placental defect and embryonic lethality in mice lacking hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor\". Nature 373 (6516): 702–5. doi:10.1038/373702a0. PMID 7854453.\n- Shirasaki F, Makhluf HA, LeRoy C, Watson DK, Trojanowska M (December 1999). \"Ets transcription factors cooperate with Sp1 to activate the human tenascin-C promoter\". Oncogene 18 (54): 7755–64. doi:10.1038/sj.onc.1203360. PMID 10618716.\n- Gambarotta G, Boccaccio C, Giordano S, Andŏ M, Stella MC, Comoglio PM (November 1996). \"Ets up-regulates MET transcription\". Oncogene 13 (9): 1911–7. PMID 8934537.\n- Pennacchietti S, Michieli P, Galluzzo M, Mazzone M, Giordano S, Comoglio PM (April 2003). \"Hypoxia promotes invasive growth by transcriptional activation of the met protooncogene\". Cancer Cell 3 (4): 347–61. doi:10.1016/S1535-6108(03)00085-0. PMID 12726861.\n- \"HGF/c-Met and cancer\". HealthValue. Retrieved 2009-06-13.\n- Kim S, Lee UJ, Kim MN, et al. (June 2008). \"MicroRNA miR-199a* regulates the MET proto-oncogene and the downstream extracellular signal-regulated kinase 2 (ERK2)\". J. Biol. Chem. 283 (26): 18158–66. doi:10.1074/jbc.M800186200. PMID 18456660.\n- Maehama T, Dixon JE (May 1998). \"The tumor suppressor, PTEN/MMAC1, dephosphorylates the lipid second messenger, phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate\". J. Biol. Chem. 273 (22): 13375–8. doi:10.1074/jbc.273.22.13375. PMID 9593664.\n- Morris MR, Gentle D, Abdulrahman M, Maina EN, Gupta K, Banks RE, Wiesener MS, Kishida T, Yao M, Teh B, Latif F, Maher ER (June 2005). \"Tumor suppressor activity and epigenetic inactivation of hepatocyte growth factor activator inhibitor type 2/SPINT2 in papillary and clear cell renal cell carcinoma\". Cancer Res. 65 (11): 4598–606. doi:10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-04-3371. PMID 15930277.\n- Morotti A, Mila S, Accornero P, Tagliabue E, Ponzetto C (July 2002). \"K252a inhibits the oncogenic properties of Met, the HGF receptor\". Oncogene 21 (32): 4885–93. doi:10.1038/sj.onc.1205622. PMID 12118367.\n- Berthou S, Aebersold DM, Schmidt LS, Stroka D, Heigl C, Streit B, Stalder D, Gruber G, Liang C, Howlett AR, Candinas D, Greiner RH, Lipson KE, Zimmer Y (July 2004). \"The Met kinase inhibitor SU11274 exhibits a selective inhibition pattern toward different receptor mutated variants\". Oncogene 23 (31): 5387–93. doi:10.1038/sj.onc.1207691. PMID 15064724.\n- Wang X, Le P, Liang C, Chan J, Kiewlich D, Miller T, Harris D, Sun L, Rice A, Vasile S, Blake RA, Howlett AR, Patel N, McMahon G, Lipson KE (November 2003). \"Potent and selective inhibitors of the Met [hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF) receptor] tyrosine kinase block HGF/SF-induced tumor cell growth and invasion\". Mol. Cancer Ther. 2 (11): 1085–92. PMID 14617781.\n- Christensen JG, Schreck R, Burrows J, Kuruganti P, Chan E, Le P, Chen J, Wang X, Ruslim L, Blake R, Lipson KE, Ramphal J, Do S, Cui JJ, Cherrington JM, Mendel DB (November 2003). \"A selective small molecule inhibitor of c-Met kinase inhibits c-Met-dependent phenotypes in vitro and exhibits cytoreductive antitumor activity in vivo\". Cancer Res. 63 (21): 7345–55. PMID 14612533.\n- Smolen GA, Sordella R, Muir B, Mohapatra G, Barmettler A, Archibald H, Kim WJ, Okimoto RA, Bell DW, Sgroi DC, Christensen JG, Settleman J, Haber DA (February 2006). \"Amplification of MET may identify a subset of cancers with extreme sensitivity to the selective tyrosine kinase inhibitor PHA-665752\". Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 103 (7): 2316–21. doi:10.1073/pnas.0508776103. PMC 1413705. PMID 16461907.\n- Matsumoto K, Nakamura T (April 2003). \"NK4 (HGF-antagonist/angiogenesis inhibitor) in cancer biology and therapeutics\". Cancer Sci. 94 (4): 321–7. doi:10.1111/j.1349-7006.2003.tb01440.x. PMID 12824898.\n- Cao B, Su Y, Oskarsson M, Zhao P, Kort EJ, Fisher RJ, Wang LM, Vande Woude GF (June 2001). \"Neutralizing monoclonal antibodies to hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF) display antitumor activity in animal models\". Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 98 (13): 7443–8. doi:10.1073/pnas.131200498. PMC 34688. PMID 11416216.\n- Burgess T, Coxon A, Meyer S, Sun J, Rex K, Tsuruda T, Chen Q, Ho SY, Li L, Kaufman S, McDorman K, Cattley RC, Sun J, Elliott G, Zhang K, Feng X, Jia XC, Green L, Radinsky R, Kendall R (February 2006). \"Fully human monoclonal antibodies to hepatocyte growth factor with therapeutic potential against hepatocyte growth factor/c-Met-dependent human tumors\". Cancer Res. 66 (3): 1721–9. doi:10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-05-3329. PMID 16452232.\n- Mazzone M, Basilico C, Cavassa S, Pennacchietti S, Risio M, Naldini L, Comoglio PM, Michieli P (November 2004). \"An uncleavable form of pro–scatter factor suppresses tumor growth and dissemination in mice\". J. Clin. Invest. 114 (10): 1418–32. doi:10.1172/JCI22235. PMC 525743. PMID 15545993.\n- Michieli P, Mazzone M, Basilico C, Cavassa S, Sottile A, Naldini L, Comoglio PM (July 2004). \"Targeting the tumor and its microenvironment by a dual-function decoy Met receptor\". Cancer Cell 6 (1): 61–73. doi:10.1016/j.ccr.2004.05.032. PMID 15261142.\n- Reang P, Gupta M, Kohli K (2006). \"Biological Response Modifiers in Cancer\". MedGenMed 8 (4): 33. PMC 1868326. PMID 17415315.\n- Petrelli A, Circosta P, Granziero L, Mazzone M, Pisacane A, Fenoglio S, Comoglio PM, Giordano S (March 2006). \"Ab-induced ectodomain shedding mediates hepatocyte growth factor receptor down-regulation and hampers biological activity\". Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 103 (13): 5090–5. doi:10.1073/pnas.0508156103. PMC 1458799. PMID 16547140.\n- Jin H, Yang R, Zheng Z, Romero M, Ross J, Bou-Reslan H, Carano RA, Kasman I, Mai E, Young J, Zha J, Zhang Z, Ross S, Schwall R, Colbern G, Merchant M (June 2008). \"MetMAb, the one-armed 5D5 anti-c-Met antibody, inhibits orthotopic pancreatic tumor growth and improves survival\". Cancer Res. 68 (11): 4360–8. doi:10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-07-5960. PMID 18519697.\n- Martens T, Schmidt NO, Eckerich C, Fillbrandt R, Merchant M, Schwall R, Westphal M, Lamszus K (October 2006). \"A novel one-armed anti-c-Met antibody inhibits glioblastoma growth in vivo\". Clin. Cancer Res. 12 (20 Pt 1): 6144–52. doi:10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-05-1418. PMID 17062691.\n- Comoglio, P M (1993). \"Structure, biosynthesis and biochemical properties of the HGF receptor in normal and malignant cells\". EXS (SWITZERLAND) 65: 131–65. ISSN 1023-294X. PMID 8380735.\n- Naldini, L; Weidner K M, Vigna E, Gaudino G, Bardelli A, Ponzetto C, Narsimhan R P, Hartmann G, Zarnegar R, Michalopoulos G K (Oct. 1991). \"Scatter factor and hepatocyte growth factor are indistinguishable ligands for the MET receptor\". EMBO J. (ENGLAND) 10 (10): 2867–78. ISSN 0261-4189. PMC 452997. PMID 1655405.\n- Petrelli, Annalisa; Gilestro Giorgio F, Lanzardo Stefania, Comoglio Paolo M, Migone Nicola, Giordano Silvia (Mar. 2002). \"The endophilin-CIN85-Cbl complex mediates ligand-dependent downregulation of c-Met\". Nature (England) 416 (6877): 187–90. doi:10.1038/416187a. ISSN 0028-0836. PMID 11894096.\n- Ng, Cherlyn; Jackson Rebecca A, Buschdorf Jan P, Sun Qingxiang, Guy Graeme R, Sivaraman J (Mar. 2008). \"Structural basis for a novel intrapeptidyl H-bond and reverse binding of c-Cbl-TKB domain substrates\". EMBO J. (England) 27 (5): 804–16. doi:10.1038/emboj.2008.18. PMC 2265755. PMID 18273061.\n- Grisendi, S; Chambraud B, Gout I, Comoglio P M, Crepaldi T (Dec. 2001). \"Ligand-regulated binding of FAP68 to the hepatocyte growth factor receptor\". J. Biol. Chem. (United States) 276 (49): 46632–8. doi:10.1074/jbc.M104323200. ISSN 0021-9258. PMID 11571281.\n- Davies, G; Jiang W G, Mason M D (Apr. 2001). \"HGF/SF modifies the interaction between its receptor c-Met, and the E-cadherin/catenin complex in prostate cancer cells\". Int. J. Mol. Med. (Greece) 7 (4): 385–8. ISSN 1107-3756. PMID 11254878.\n- Ponzetto, C; Zhen Z, Audero E, Maina F, Bardelli A, Basile M L, Giordano S, Narsimhan R, Comoglio P (Jun. 1996). \"Specific uncoupling of GRB2 from the Met receptor. Differential effects on transformation and motility\". J. Biol. Chem. (UNITED STATES) 271 (24): 14119–23. doi:10.1074/jbc.271.24.14119. ISSN 0021-9258. PMID 8662889.\n- Liang, Q; Mohan R R, Chen L, Wilson S E (Jul. 1998). \"Signaling by HGF and KGF in corneal epithelial cells: Ras/MAP kinase and Jak-STAT pathways\". Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci. (UNITED STATES) 39 (8): 1329–38. ISSN 0146-0404. PMID 9660480.\n- Wang, Dakun; Li Zaibo, Messing Edward M, Wu Guan (Sep. 2002). \"Activation of Ras/Erk pathway by a novel MET-interacting protein RanBPM\". J. Biol. Chem. (United States) 277 (39): 36216–22. doi:10.1074/jbc.M205111200. ISSN 0021-9258. PMID 12147692.\n- Hiscox S, Jiang WG (1999). \"Association of the HGF/SF receptor, c-met, with the cell-surface adhesion molecule, E-cadherin, and catenins in human tumor cells.\". Biochem Biophys Res Commun 261 (2): 406–11. doi:10.1006/bbrc.1999.1002. PMID 10425198.\nFurther reading \n- Peruzzi B, Bottaro DP (2006). \"Targeting the c-Met signaling pathway in cancer\". Clin. Cancer Res. 12 (12): 3657–60. doi:10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-06-0818. PMID 16778093.\n- Birchmeier C, Birchmeier W, Gherardi E, Vande Woude GF (December 2003). \"Met, metastasis, motility and more\". Nat. Rev. Mol. Cell Biol. 4 (12): 915–25. doi:10.1038/nrm1261. PMID 14685170.\n- Zhang YW, Vande Woude GF (February 2003). \"HGF/SF-met signaling in the control of branching morphogenesis and invasion\". J. Cell. Biochem. 88 (2): 408–17. doi:10.1002/jcb.10358. PMID 12520544.\n- Paumelle R, Tulasne D, Kherrouche Z, Plaza S, Leroy C, Reveneau S, Vandenbunder B, Fafeur V, Tulashe D, Reveneau S (April 2002). \"Hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor activates the ETS1 transcription factor by a RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK signaling pathway\". Oncogene 21 (15): 2309–19. doi:10.1038/sj.onc.1205297. PMID 11948414.\n- Comoglio PM (1993). \"Structure, biosynthesis and biochemical properties of the HGF receptor in normal and malignant cells\". EXS 65: 131–65. PMID 8380735.\n- Maulik G, Shrikhande A, Kijima T, et al. (2002). \"Role of the hepatocyte growth factor receptor, c-Met, in oncogenesis and potential for therapeutic inhibition\". Cytokine Growth Factor Rev. 13 (1): 41–59. doi:10.1016/S1359-6101(01)00029-6. PMID 11750879.\n- Ma PC, Maulik G, Christensen J, Salgia R (2004). \"c-Met: structure, functions and potential for therapeutic inhibition\". Cancer Metastasis Rev. 22 (4): 309–25. doi:10.1023/A:1023768811842. PMID 12884908.\n- Knudsen BS, Edlund M (2004). \"Prostate cancer and the met hepatocyte growth factor receptor\". Adv. Cancer Res. Advances in Cancer Research 91: 31–67. doi:10.1016/S0065-230X(04)91002-0. ISBN 978-0-12-006691-9. PMID 15327888.\n- Dharmawardana PG, Giubellino A, Bottaro DP (2005). \"Hereditary papillary renal carcinoma type I\". Curr. Mol. Med. 4 (8): 855–68. doi:10.2174/1566524043359674. PMID 15579033.\n- Kemp LE, Mulloy B, Gherardi E (2006). \"Signalling by HGF/SF and Met: the role of heparan sulphate co-receptors\". Biochem. Soc. Trans. 34 (Pt 3): 414–7. doi:10.1042/BST0340414. PMID 16709175.\n- Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-met at the US National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)\n- UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot entry P08581: MET_HUMAN, ExPASy (Expert Protein Analysis System) proteomics server of the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (SIB)\n- A table with references to significant roles of MET in cancer"}
{"text": "A transportation study by engineering researchers reveals that different speed limits for cars and large trucks on rural, interstate highways can compromise safety.\n“We found that speed variation and vehicle interactions have a direct impact on highway safety,” said Steven Johnson, professor of industrial engineering with the Mack Blackwell Transportation Center. “Data from previous studies and simple logic say that a higher number of interactions among vehicles increases the chances that accidents will occur.”\nJohnson reported this finding in Cost-Benefit Evaluation of Heavy Truck-Automobile Speed Differentials on Rural Interstate Highways, a study of speed limits and car-versus-large-truck speed differentials on rural, interstate highways. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation, commercial trucking companies and private fleets, the study will help regulatory agencies and trucking-company decision-makers establish policies regarding speed limits and differentials for both heavy trucks and automobiles.\nAfter examining existing literature on speed limits, Johnson and graduate student Naveen Pawar measured the speeds of heavy trucks and automobiles in five states. Speed-limit configurations ranged from a uniform 75 mph for cars and heavy trucks to 65 mph for automobiles and 55 mph for trucks. The researchers also analyzed speed, accident and maintenance data and interviewed truck drivers, safety and maintenance managers of commercial trucking companies and original equipment manufacturers of trucks, tires and engines.\nThere is a caveat to their findings: vehicle dynamics, such as braking and maneuvering, improve on slower-moving trucks.\n“People argue that heavy trucks require longer braking distances for any given speed, and lower truck speeds help equalize the stopping distance,” Johnson said. “On the other hand, opponents of lower truck speed limits have suggested that the differential speeds increase speed variance and therefore have a negative impact on highway safety. Our research demonstrates that it is likely that both of these arguments are correct.”\nSee Johnson’s report at www.mackblackwell.org/web/research/final-reports.htm."}
{"text": "Aleutian lowArticle Free Pass\nAleutian low, large atmospheric low-pressure (cyclonic) centre that frequently exists over the Aleutian Islands region in winter and that shifts northward and almost disappears in summer. Although the Aleutian low is associated with smaller eastward-moving low- and high-pressure centres, the region’s average pressure is low. It is the source region of the maritime polar air masses that influence the climate of the western U.S. The low-pressure centres that persist in the higher latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere consist of the Aleutian low and the Icelandic low.\nWhat made you want to look up \"Aleutian low\"? Please share what surprised you most..."}
{"text": "Mersen, Treaty of\nMersen, Treaty of, 870, redivision of the Carolingian empire by the sons of Louis I, Charles the Bald (later Charles II) of the West Franks (France) and Louis the German of the East Franks (Germany), signed at Mersen (Dutch Meersen ), now in the Netherlands. The treaty superseded the tripartite division of the empire in 843 (see Verdun, Treaty of). It divided the kingdom of Lotharingia between Charles and Louis, following the death (869) of their nephew, Lothair, king of Lotharingia. France obtained the territories roughly corresponding to the modern Netherlands, Belgium, and Lorraine and Germany received Alsace and the left bank of the Lower Rhine. The borders established did not last long.\nThe Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.\nMore on Treaty of Mersen from Infoplease:\nSee more Encyclopedia articles on: German History"}
{"text": "05/10/2012 - Americans love economic mobility. It’s kind of a founding myth for us: We see ourselves as having broken free from rigid, aristocratic Europe to form a meritocracy that guaranteed a chance to move up in the world. Though there has been much talk lately about rising income inequality in the United States, what has worried pundits on both the left and the right has been recent reports that Americans aren’t as economically mobile as citizens in other Western nations.\nThe Pew Economic Mobility Project has been studying this phenomenon, and is out with a new report examining which regions in America are the most and least mobile. Researchers looked at Americans ages 35 to 39 and then examined their incomes ten years later. The study covered the time period between 1978 and 2007, and tackled three different measures of income mobility: absolute mobility (as measured by inflation-adjusted income growth over time), and relative upward and downward mobility — i.e. movement up or down the socio-economic ladder. In other words, are Americans born poor becoming rich and vice-versa?\nInterestingly enough, geographic mobility doesn’t appear have a large effect on economic mobility. That is, it doesn’t matter if you’re born in Maryland or you move there – you’re more likely move up the economic ladder either way. According to Erin Currier, Project Manager of the Pew Economic Mobility Project, individuals who do move states do have better economic mobility, but more than two-thirds of Americans stay in their birth state for the remainder of their lives. Therefore, “Geographic mobility might help an individuals’ economic mobility, [but] it’s not really driving state-level findings as a whole.”\nSo why are some states more economically mobile than others? This study doesn’t seek to specifically address the causes of relative mobility between states, but there are some important factors that the Economic Mobility Project has found are essential to promoting economic mobility overall, and these include things like like “educational attainment, savings and asset building, and neighborhood poverty during childhood,” according to Currier.\nRead the full article, Which States Have the Most Economic Mobility?, on Time's website."}
{"text": "Subfertility, a condition in which a person is less fertile than average but still capable of contributing to a pregnency, affects about one in 20 men. Up to 80 percent of subfertility could be due to sperm damage caused by oxidative stress or harmful particles produced by a person's own body.\nWhile infertility has historically been seen as a woman's problem, male infertility is present in up to half of infertile couples.\nVaricocele, a condition in which a man has varicose veins in the scrotum, is the most common cause of male subfertility. Other causes include hormonal disorders, problems with quantity and motility of sperm, infections, obesity, drug use and exposure to radiation and chemotherapy. Depending on the condition, male infertility and subfertility can be treated with surgery, hormone therapy and assisted reproductive technologies.\nWhile, as we've seen, some doctors dismissed the link between antioxidants and fertility, others said they were not surprised by the results because healthy nutrition and lifestyle are already recommended for couples planning to conceive.\nDr. Jeanne O'Brien, associate professor of urology at University of Rochester Medical Center, is one of those doctors. O'Brien said she routinely suggests that her patients take antioxidants if they want a baby. She also recommends decreasing alcohol consumption, smoking cessation, exercising and stress reduction.\n\"I tell them the antioxidants may help and certainly don't harm them at the recommended dosages,\" said O'Brien. \"I believe it is the lifestyle changes and increased health awareness that accompanies antioxidant consumption that may make a difference in terms of increased fertility.\"\nO'Brien said antioxidants are never her sole recommendations. \"There are always additional factors, testing, medication or alternatives offered in conjunction with them,\" O'Brien said.\n\"I use antioxidants for select men with impaired semen quality and demonstration of elevated oxidative stress, which is manifest by increased levels of reactive oxygen species,\" said Kim. \"However, I do not assess for oxidative stress if identifiable causes of male infertility are present. In clinical practice, improvements in pregnancy and live birth rates are certainly not as robust as suggested by the Cochrane review.\"\nAnd Kim warns that, despite the hype around antioxidant supplements, they should not be consumed without a watchful eye. For example, excessive consumption of Vitamin E, or more than 400 units per day, has been shown to have possible negative cardiac and vascular effects.\n\"Although generally considered safe in moderation, numerous large-scale studies have indicated that many supplemental antioxidants can actually be detrimental to overall health, said Kim. \"With an understanding of these caveats, an assessment of the severity of male factor infertility, and very modest expectations of possible benefit, a man could try antioxidants before attempting assisted reproduction.\""}
{"text": "Technology in the Classroom\nAssistive Word Processing\nAssistive technology to support writing includes special software as well as inexpensive word processors.\nUsing a Pen Scanner\nPen scanners, handheld scanner and Iris Pens\nEffective Use of Switches\nAugmentative or Alternative Communication\nAugmentative or Alternative Communication or AAC. Picture symbol systems, symbol boards, voice output etc.\nWord Q - Predictive Software Application\nThis application makes Dyslexic students want to write! Find out what all the excitement is when language delayed or impaired students use Word Q.\nAn extensive search database for those people looking for information on assistive products for people with disabilities.\nAssistive Technology Solutions\nThis site offers a list of solutions and devices that make accessing the computer easier for students with disabilities.\nAssisitive Technology Tools\nA great site dedicated to enhancing the lives of children and adults with disabilities using the latest assistive technology.\nCommunicating with Technology\nFind out about synthetic speech systems, speech to text and screen readers. Great for the visually or hearing impaired student.\nA Language Arts Lesson Plan on Summarizing Text\nA lesson plan for teachers to use technology and students' interest in texting to reinforce summarizing skills and to increase reading comprehension. This lesson plan is aimed toward high school students.\nTips for Using a Smart Board in the Special Education Classroom\nSmart Boards are fun tools for children with disabilities, working like giant touch screens.\nIEPgoals.net Is a New Site Offering Support for Goal Writing\nIEPgoals.net, a new website, provides goal writing guidance, especially useful for early intervention and children on the autistic spectrum disorder."}
{"text": "In the summer of 2007, shoppers at some food co-ops in the upper Midwest encountered a new label on their produce: “Local Fair Trade.” Seasonal staples such as cucumbers, squash, and broccoli were the first to don the label, a large, hard-to-miss sticker symbolizing the union of two approaches to sustainable food: eating food grown locally, and purchasing food traded fairly.\nWe’ve gotten used to a variety of labels on our food. There’s “organic,” which used to connote ideas like “pure” and “natural” but these days technically means food certified as organic by the USDA (if domestically produced) or by the food’s country of origin. “Local” usually means food grown or produced within a few hundred miles of its selling location. And “fair trade” is seen most commonly on popular imports such as coffee and chocolate; the label means that the food’s growers or producers were paid a decent wage.\nSo what does “local fair trade” mean? According to Erik Esse, the director of the Minneapolis-based Local Fair Trade Network, the label is an attempt to answer a question: “How can the principles of fair trade, which have effectively moved many farmers and workers in the developing world out of poverty and towards self-sufficiency, work here in the U.S., where our farmworkers are having some of the same problems?”\nAt the heart of the local or “domestic fair trade” label is the idea of fair and equitable relationships. The label can be applied to food grown in the U.S. under a set of guidelines, including a living wage and an emphasis on fair and healthy living conditions. The product of nearly a decade of careful planning, the domestic fair-trade label is an effort to incorporate social-justice awareness into our burgeoning efforts to eat foods that have been cleanly and sustainably produced.\nAs the fair-trade movement (both international and domestic) wants everyone to understand, the local people behind the food we eat deserve sustainability, too. The USDA’s national organic standards guarantee that organically certified food is not genetically modified and is grown without petroleum-based fertilizers or synthetic chemicals. But the standards have nothing to say about the people who produce the food. This fact appalls those who work closely with farmworkers, including Richard Mandelbaum of El Comité de Apoyo a los Trabajadores Agrícolas (CATA), a migrant-farmworker organization based in New Jersey.\n“Organic standards include all sorts of rules about how livestock needs to be treated, but absolutely none for the human beings that are on the farm,” says Mandelbaum.\nThe Local Fair Trade Network’s Esse isn’t sure that enough consumers are paying attention to those human beings, either. “The way stores like to put up pictures of happy farmers these days — that’s in some ways great, in that it’s identifying that there’s a person growing their food,” he says. “But in some ways, those smiles mask the fact of how little money they get paid and how hard their lives are.”\nAlthough some organic farms in the U.S. opt to pay their workers a living wage, as well as provide vacation days and access to health care, many do none of those things. Small-scale organic farmers, who often live hand-to-mouth themselves, rarely have the budget to do so. And most large, industrial-sized organic farms rely on hundreds if not thousands of underpaid migrant workers, in much the same way that conventional farms and food processors do.\nAccording to a 2005 survey report from the University of California, Davis, the majority of the 188 California organic farms surveyed did not pay a living wage or provide medical or retirement plans. And despite the nationwide boom in organic food — the industry was worth more than $17 billion by the end of 2006 — the wealth has not trickled down. While the absence of synthetic pesticides (and the health impacts that accompany them) can be a draw to some workers, most employees on organic farms earn no more than those on conventional ones.\nAcross the country, three to five million people labor every year on farms and in factories, planting, cultivating, harvesting, and processing fresh produce and other agricultural products. Their lives are anything but easy. According to the National Agricultural Workers Survey, 61 percent of farmworkers live in poverty. In recent years, their median income has not kept up with inflation: for individual farmworkers, the median annual income is now $7,500, while for farmworker households, the median annual income is less than $10,000. (The overall U.S. median household income, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, is more than $48,000.) It is also estimated that between 72 and 78 percent of farmworker households have no health insurance.\nToday’s domestic fair-trade movement dates back as far as 1999, when CATA, along with Rural Advancement Foundation International-USA (RAFI-USA) and several other partners, argued for an inclusion of labor issues in the federal organic standards.\n“When it became clear that the issues of social justice and fairness would not be incorporated into the federal [organic standards],” says RAFI’s Michael Sligh, “that really triggered our work to look at opportunities to make that additional claim to the marketplace.”\nThe result was something called the Agricultural Justice Project (AJP), a group that set to work devising a separate set of standards that would cover both equity for the small-scale farmer as well as fair working conditions for farmworker. But not everyone was convinced.\n“When we first started out, it wasn’t uncommon to get a shrug from those in the organic/sustainable community, with responses like, ‘I’m not sure why you’re focused on this,’” says CATA’s Mandelbaum. “But in the last two years, we’ve seen that consumers are increasingly dissatisfied with anonymous products, and really want to know how their food is made — environmentally of course, but also increasingly socially.”\nIn 2005, the Agricultural Justice Project, along with the international fair-trade organization Equal Exchange and several domestic farmer cooperatives, held the first meeting of the Domestic Fair Trade Working Group (now renamed the Domestic Fair Trade Association). By 2006, it became clear that the best place to pilot a domestic fair-trade label was the Minnesota/Wisconsin area.\nAccording to Erik Esse, whose Local Fair Trade Network is the Minneapolis-based arm of the movement, there are around 40 food co-ops in Minnesota and more than 25 in Wisconsin. “The fact that consumer cooperatives are so key to the area,” he says, “as opposed to the corporate natural-food-store model, means we have a background that lends to embracing fair trade. [The customers] already believe in democracy and in consumer activism.”\nBy early 2007, four small farms in the upper Midwest had been chosen to participate in the Domestic Fair Trade Working Group’s pilot project, along with two food co-ops in the Minneapolis area. All the farms involved were closely audited, including their business practices and employee policies. And they pledged to, among other things, “1) Respect workers’ freedom of association and right to collective bargaining, 2) Provide adequate health and safety protections, including access to adequate medical care, information on potential hazards, and using the least toxic methods available, and 3) Pay a living wage.”\nEsse points out that although small-scale farmers and farmworkers are often in similar financial situations, there is still some tension between the two groups. “Farmers don’t always want to stir the pot,” he says. “We often hear, ‘Things are going fine; why would I want to bring this up?’”\nRufus Hauke, of Keewaydin Farms in Viola, Wisconsin, does want to stir the pot. He’s a produce farmer participating in the pilot project who, along with his brother, decided to remake the family farm according to a vision for what he calls “the next evolution of food.” Although he has only a few employees, Hauke was excited to offer them the paperwork and training necessary to help get the first Keewaydin Fair Trade growing season off the ground.\nCulinate’s features address the practical challenges and joys of food.\nWant more? Comb the archives.\nFlatbreads from around the continent\nBeyond a supporting role\nThe great Sicilian-Neapolitan kitchen rivalry\nFive ideas each month for eating better"}
{"text": "Subscribe Free! to the DigiFreq Pro Audio and Music Technology Newsletter\nNumerous studies, including one released last month by University of Louisville researchers, indicate that learning to play the piano as a preschooler sets a child up for later academic success. And now \"Piano For Preschoolers\" has introduced a new way for parents to teach their children the piano - complete with a Casio(R) keyboard.\nDeveloped by Angie Crellin, a mother of two who has studied the piano for over 30 years, \"Piano For Preschoolers\" uses color-coded notes printed on a traditional musical staff to teach songs preschoolers already love, like \"Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.\" A corresponding color strip sits behind the piano's keys and guides the child to the correct key for each note.\nCrellin came up with the \"Piano For Preschoolers\" concept when her son, a preschooler at the time, expressed interest in playing the piano. Crellin's daughter had done the same several years before, but she had quickly lost interest once Crellin introduced popular beginning piano books to the lessons. Not wanting the same thing to happen with her son, Crellin decided to create a program that was fun for children and easy for parents to teach. Hundreds of hours of research later, she had \"Piano For Preschoolers.\"\n\"The results were amazing,\" said Crellin. \"My son loved playing real songs he recognized and couldn't wait to learn more. But the truly remarkable thing was that my preschool son started helping my second-grade daughter with her math homework.\"\nCrellin's results correspond to those obtained by Dr. Frances Rauscher of the University of Wisconsin and Dr. Gordon Shaw of the University of California. The researchers, who have long studied the connection between math and music, compared the effects of musical and nonmusical training on preschoolers' intellectual development. They found that preschoolers who received piano or keyboard training performed 34% higher on tests measuring spatial-temporal ability than did other preschoolers. Those who received piano or keyboard training could think in pictures and see the pictures moving or changing shape over time - a crucial skill for later success in mathematics, science and engineering.\nBut the pint-sized students of \"Piano For Preschoolers\" don't care about all that. Most are just having fun playing for rapt audiences of parents and grandparents.\n\"The 'Piano For Preschoolers' program really seems to be boosting children's self-confidence,\" said Crellin. \"Customers report their preschoolers are practicing the piano with no prompting from the parents. And that's really the key. No four-year-old will stay motivated to learn if she isn't having fun.\"\nThe entire \"Piano For Preschoolers\" system is $129.95 plus shipping. It includes: a music book of 17 familiar songs written in color-coded notes; the durable color strip to set behind the piano keys; a parent/teacher guide with step-by-step instructions for each lesson; and a free Casio(R) SA-75 electronic keyboard.\nFor more information: www.pianoforpreschoolers.com"}
{"text": "Big Leap Forward in Understanding Genetics Underlying Prevalent Diseases\nThe Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium (WTCCC), a collaboration of 24 leading human geneticists analyzing thousands of DNA samples from patients suffering prevalent human diseases, have announced breakthrough research findings. Hailed as a \"...new chapter in medical science...\", genetic variants have been found for:\n- Crohn's disease\n- coronary heart disease\n- rheumatoid arthritis\n- Type I and Type II diabetes\nSome of the fascinating findings:\n- Type I Diabetes and Crohn's disease share a common gene, suggesting similar biological pathways!\n- An obesity gene as well as three new genes linked to Type II Diabetes\n- The WTCCC used gene chip technology, which is not unlike microchip technology, enabling scientists to scan hundreds of thousands of DNA markers at once.\nThank you jurvetson for use of photo Playing with DNA featuring James Watson!\nRecent Blog Posts"}
{"text": "A view can become a page or a block. There is no difference in work between a page and a block. A page needs a path to display the page. A block is assigned to a region to display the page. There might be a few seconds different to set them up. After that, you can blocks in far more ways than usually shown in tutorials.\nBlocks have their uses including constructing complex pages. The content of a page is usually the content of a node in the content region. A view replaces the node to display a list or some other small variation of content.\nNext you are asked to make the view more complicated. You scratch your head. What you really need is a collection of views displaying different content. You could use panels and a bunch of other complex approaches. Think about the format again.\nIf you want a list of different views. You can make each one a block then place them one after the other down the page. Consider a shop.\nA shop might list the top selling product in each category with a view sorted by category. The marketing manager then asks for the categories in a different order. The CEO wants some categories to list the top three. The product manager wants one category to list only one product but all the colours for the product.\nYou could make each category a separate view with each view in a block. Each view can have different criteria. You can give your CEO, sales manager, and marketing manager access to the block admin page and let them fight over the sequence of the blocks.\nWhat method do you use to determine when to use multiple views?\nUse the one view when you list data one set of data. Use multiple views when people want different data selection. For example, some product categories have colours but not all product categories. Some product categories have multiple packs but not all product categories.\nIf the one list has to be by category then colour or pack size and all the products use the same content type, you could use one view to sort by category then colour then pack size. There will be no overlap or conflict or missing data.\nThe same list becomes more complicated when each product category has a different content type and each content type has a different set of attributes. You might be able to product one list in one view but it will be sensitive to change and management will want change. Start with two views or more views stacked as blocks to form one list.\nAnother example is a book shop where novels have different descriptions and content types compared to other books. Cook books may have a special content type to allow listing by food type, country, major ingredients, and the reality television show paying for the cook book.\nIf the data is exactly the same for each view but the display is different, consider multiple displays on one view. The technique is described in another page. you make the first view a page to list the data and validate your data selection. You then add some displays to create the blocks. Each display might vary by as little as selecting a different content type.\nTop ten lists are popular and soon take up too much space. People start talking about variations. Perhaps the top three items, including teasers, followed by the next seven without teasers."}
{"text": "As a developmental pathway towards autonomy and dexterity in robot in-hand manipulation, HANDLE is a Large Scale IP project coordinated by the university Pierre and Marie Curie of Paris and include a consortium formed by nine partners from six EU countries: France, UK, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, and Germany.\nThe TACO project aims at enhancing the abilities of service robots by improving the sensing system with real 3D foveation properties and to increase their ability to interact with their natural environment in a more natural and human-like way.\nThe PV-Servitor project focuses on concepts for a fully autonomous cleaning robot for ground mounted large scale photovoltaic power plants consisting of 100 kW and over.\nSTIFF-FLOP is researching how to take some of the new capabilities in soft robotics and apply them to the development of tools for endoscopic surgery. This project takes inspiration from octopus tentacles for the design of flexible soft robots.\nDEXDEB is researching meat deboning. Taking apart an animal carcass to produce high-quality pieces of meat is a skilled but unpleasant and dangerous task. In DEXDEB we are looking at two designs of robotic hand and using them as the “left hand” that pulls at the meat, while a human operator slices the meat with a knife held in their right hand. This will provide DEXDEB with a baseline for doing more complex human-robot interaction work later.\nHYFLAM is investigating the role of robotics in biosafety level 3 and 4 laboratories. Working with a UK Government lab and Hamburg University, HYFLAM is looking at a range of skilled tasks and investigating whether a robotic hand can perform them, and how well it performs them when working with software like that developed in HANDLE. This could lead to a new generation of robotic systems for hazardous lab work."}
{"text": "Is it scientific fact that acid stabilizes meringue or is this a fallacy? If so does anyone know actually why and are there any other substances that do this well also?\nAcids allow more air to be beaten into a meringue. In order to make meringue, the proteins in egg white must be denatured. In their natural state, the proteins are curled up into tightly packed balls. When the egg is beaten, they uncoil into long strands.\nThese strands then begin to coagulate, or join together, with the help of the sugar you add. The air you whisk in gets trapped between these joining strands, giving the meringue its characteristic light texture.\nAcid delays coagulation, which means that there is more time for air to get trapped in amongst the proteins, resulting in a lighter meringue.\nThe acids usually added to meringue are white wine vinegar, lemon juice, or cream of tartar. Fresh eggs are more acidic than old ones, so these help too.\nSome cooks use copper bowls to make meringue, because copper ions from the bowl bind to a particular protein (conalbumin) and strengthen it.\n|show 3 more comments|\nI have made two separate meringue mixtures side by side: one with vinegar and one without. In my experience it makes no difference to the final outcome provided that you add the sugar really slowly (a tablespoon at a time) and not too early. If this is done correctly then there is no need to add an acid."}
{"text": "International Women’s Day (IWD) was founded in 1910 in order to confront the great inequalities women faced in the labor force and society as a whole. Unfortunately, one hundred years later, women still make up a majority of the world’s poor.\nWomen’s wages in the U.S. are only 76% of men’s, but the disparity of long-term earnings between men and women is far worse. A study comparing total earnings between 1983 and 1998 showed women averaging just 38% of men’s wages (Institute for Women’s Policy Research, 2004).\nIn large part, this is because 80% of American women under 40 are mothers, according to the U.S. census. Without adequate paid maternity leave, mothers are frequently forced to quit stable jobs and disrupt career plans. Add to that $611 in average monthly childcare costs (U.S. Department of Labor), which is more than two weeks pay at the federal minimum wage.\nEighty-seven percent of single parent households are headed by women and of those 37% are in poverty (Association for Women’s Rights and Development). Once a family falls into poverty it is astoundingly hard for them to escape. Sixty percent of families that are in the bottom fifth of income remain there a decade later (Association for Women’s Rights and Development).\nThe impact of the financial crisis, however, is worldwide. Of the 1.5 million people living on a dollar or less per day, 70% are women (UN.org). Forced into the factories with the worst working conditions, women make up 90% of the world’s sweatshop labor (Women Thrive Worldwide). Often being laid off, these women are accustomed to making 13 cents to one dollar per hour (Powell and Skarbek 2004). Forced to work, women are less likely to attend school or leave the home before marriage. Seventy-seven million girls of primary school age worldwide are out of school, compared to only 55 million boys (The World Bank).\nWomen around the world are bound together by discrimination and economic servitude created by capitalism. Their work is devalued down to pennies, and often the largest use of their time - household labor - goes unpaid. IWD is a chance to remember and celebrate the struggles of women, which have won huge improvements in our lives. If women united internationally and with the wider struggles of working people to fight for equal rights, better working conditions, wages and stronger social services such as health care, child care and food support, we could collectively improve conditions for all."}
{"text": "Chile's economy is based on the export of minerals, which account for about half of the total value of exports. Copper is the nation's most valuable resource, and Chile is the world's largest producer. Agriculture is the main occupation of about 15% of the population; it accounts for about 6% of the national wealth, and produces less than half of the domestic needs. The Vale of Chile is the country's primary agricultural area; its vineyards are the basis of Chile's wine industry. Grapes, apples, pears, onions, wheat, corn, oats, peaches, garlic, asparagus, and beans are the chief crops. Livestock production includes beef and poultry. Sheep raising is the chief pastoral occupation, providing wool and meat for domestic use and for export. Fishing and lumbering are also important economic activities. Chile's industries largely process its raw materials and manufacture various consumer goods. The major products are copper and other minerals, processed food, fish meal, iron and steel, wood and wood products, transportation equipment, and textiles.\nThe dependence of the economy on copper prices and the production of an adequate food supply are two of Chile's major economic problems. Chile's main imports are petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, electrical and telecommunications equipment, industrial machinery, vehicles, and natural gas. In addition to minerals, it also exports fruit, fish and fish products, paper and pulp, chemicals, and wine. The chief trading partners are the United States, China, Brazil, Argentina, and South Korea.\nThe Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.\nMore on Chile Economy from Fact Monster:\nSee more Encyclopedia articles on: South American Political Geography"}
{"text": "| ||Minding Your Mind || |\nWhen Striving for Perfection Is a Problem\nLast Reviewed by Faculty of Harvard Medical School on May 4, 2012\nBy Howard LeWine, M.D.\nHarvard Medical School\nSome people can't live with the slightest imperfection. Their need to appear or be perfect perfectionism is so intense that it's exhausting if not painful.\nBut striving for perfection, while accepting that perfection rarely can be achieved, can lead to growth and development and a feeling of satisfaction. It can be a powerful motivator as long as it is based on reasonable standards and expectation. For example, the desire to have a perfect golf swing or tennis stroke can enhance the pleasure you take in these pursuits, whether you are an amateur or professional.\nPerfectionism is unproductive, however, when it is linked to excessively high standards and is driven by a fear of failure.\nBack to top\nTypes of Perfectionism\nPerfectionism comes in many forms:\n- Obsessive concern over mistakes\n- Setting excessively high personal standards\n- Perceiving parents as overly critical\n- Unreasonable doubts about ability to perform tasks\n- An over-emphasis on organization\n- Trying to live up to high expectations you're convinced other people, such as parents, have of you\n- Having high expectations of other people\nBut whatever form it takes, perfectionism can rob you of life's pleasures.\nBack to top\nThe Roots of Perfectionism\nIt may not be so easy to figure out where perfectionism comes from. For some, it is a part of their inborn temperament like perfect skin and teeth. Researchers have linked perfectionism to anxiety, depression and eating disorders. The trait of perfectionism is common among people with obsessive-compulsive disorders. Or it could be a response to having parents who expected too much from you. Maybe they never let you off the hook, even if you got 98 out of 100 on an exam.\nBack to top\nThe Role of Indirect Aggression\nWhat goes on outside the home is also a big factor in the development of perfectionism. For some women, perfectionism is a way to cope with indirect aggression, a term for the socially manipulative behaviors of the stereotypical \"mean girls\" that they may have experienced.\nA recent study published in the journal Aggressive Behavior supports the idea that perfectionism may develop in a social group and suggests that indirect aggression triggers it. The \"aggressor\" talks behind a person's back, gives someone the \"silent treatment,\" tells secrets, or is nice in private but rejecting in public to hide her hostility toward another.\nGirls and women tend to resort to this kind of social bullying because they are not encouraged or taught how to express aggressive or competitive feelings directly. They become aggressive in ways that can be easily concealed or denied.\nFor the study, researchers at McMaster University asked two groups of college-age women to fill out surveys about what types of verbal abuse, physical abuse and indirect aggression they had experienced in grades 3 through 12. They also asked the women to answer questions to gauge whether they were perfectionists.\nThe women who recalled experiencing indirect aggression in childhood were more likely to become perfectionists by the time they reached college. Verbal and physical abuse apparently was not linked to perfectionism.\nThe authors acknowledge that the study asked subjects to report on old experiences and that women who are perfectionistic might be more likely to recall past events in a negative way, no matter how they were treated in reality.\nEven so, the authors say that a victim of indirect aggression may without knowing it come to feel that being \"perfect\" is the only way to assert herself in social situations or maintain control. Thus, perfectionism becomes a way to cope with a threatening environment.\nBack to top\nMaking Perfectionism Work for You\nThere is a fine line between the positive aspects of striving to be perfect and perfectionism that can be detrimental. Striving to be perfect can be very positive as long as it:\n- Is realistic\n- Moves you forward\n- Helps you feel stronger\n- Gives you the satisfaction you deserve after all that hard work.\nPerfectionism becomes a problem when it makes you feel worse instead of better, or when your inability to be satisfied unless you are perfect realizing that it will always be out of reach causes suffering.\nYou can make perfectionism work for you. Here's how:\n- Look at and change unrealistic and self-destructive thought patterns with cognitive behavior therapy.\n- Understand how you became perfectionistic and ease up on unwarranted self-criticism. Psychodynamic therapy can help you do this.\n- If you do have one of the underlying disorders linked to perfectionism (obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety or depression), then a medication or psychotherapy may help by targeting the pressure coming from that source.\nConsult a mental health professional as a first step. The goal is to let go of the excessively high standards and find ways to cope with fears of failure. At the same time, you want to hold on to the positive force of striving for perfection.\nBack to top\nHoward LeWine, M.D. is chief editor of Internet Publishing, Harvard Health Publications. He is a clinical instructor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital. Dr. LeWine has been a primary care internist and teacher of internal medicine since 1978."}
{"text": "GNU Octave is a high-level language, primarily intended for numerical computations. It provides a convenient command line interface for solving linear and nonlinear problems numerically, and for performing other numerical experiments. It may also be used as a batch-oriented language. Octave has extensive tools for solving common numerical linear algebra problems, finding the roots of nonlinear equations, functions written in Octave's own language, or by using dynamically loaded modules written in C, C++, Fortran, or other languages.\nDonations to support the software can be made at https://my.fsf.org/donate/working-together/octave.\nDocumentationUser manual included; User FAQ included; Printed and online user manual available from http://www.network-theory.co.uk/octave/manual/\n- PARI GP\n- Octave-data smoothing\n- Octave-information theory\n- Octave-linear algebra\n- GNU Oflox\nThis is a GNU package:octave\nreleased on 31 May 2012\n|License||Verified by||Verified on||Notes|\n|GPLv2||Kelly Hopkins||6 December 2011|\n|GPLv3orlater||Kelly Hopkins||29 January 2010|\nLeaders and contributors\n|John W. Eaton||Maintainer|\nResources and communication\n|Developer||VCS Repository Webview||http://www.octave.org/hg/octave|\n|Required to build||GNU make|\n|Required to build||a recent version of g++|\n|Required to build||libstdc++|\n|Required to build||fortran|\nThis entry (in part or in whole) was last reviewed on 4 February 2012.\nPermission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the page “GNU Free Documentation License”.\nThe copyright and license notices on this page only apply to the text on this page. Any software described in this text has its own copyright notice and license, which can usually be found in the distribution itself."}
{"text": "Individual differences |\nMethods | Statistics | Clinical | Educational | Industrial | Professional items | World psychology |\nDevelopmental Psychology: Cognitive development · Development of the self · Emotional development · Language development · Moral development · Perceptual development · Personality development · Psychosocial development · Social development · Developmental measures\nBSID-III is the current version and is a standard series of measurements used primarily to assess the motor (fine and gross), language (receptive and expressive), and cognitive development of infants and toddlers, ages 0-3. This measure consists of a series of developmental play tasks and takes between 45 - 60 minutes to administer. Raw scores of successfully completed items are converted to scale scores and to composite scores. These scores are used to determine the child's performance compared with norms taken from typically developing children of their age (in months). The assessment is often used in conjunction with the Social-Emotional Adaptive Behavior Questionnaire. Completed by the parent or caregiver, this questionniare establishes the range of adaptive behaviors that the child can currently achieve and enables comparison with age norms.\n- Essentials of Bayley Scales of Infant Development II Assessment Maureen M. Black, Kathleen Matula. New York: John Wily, 1999. ISBN: 978-0-471-32651-9\n- \"Scales of Infant Development and Play-Based Assessment in Two-Year Old At-Risk Children\" Lisa Kelly-Vance, Howard Needelman, Kim Troia, Brigette Oliver Ryalls, University of Nebraska-Omaha, USA Developmental Disabilities Bulletin, Vol. 27 (1), 1999\n- \"Poor predictive validity of the Bayley Scales of Infant Development for cognitive function of extremely low birth weight children at school age.\" Hack M, Taylor HG, Drotar D, Schluchter M, Cartar L, Wilson-Costello D, Klein N, Friedman H, Mercuri-Minich N, Morrow M. Pediatrics. 2005 Aug;116(2):333-41."}
{"text": "Science Fair Project Encyclopedia\n|President of the|\nHistorically, Landes was part of Gascony. It was one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from parts of the provinces of Guyenne and Gascony.\n- Prefecture website (in French)\n- Conseil Général website (in French)\nLandes is also the name of a commune in the Charente-Maritime département, in France.\nThe contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details"}
{"text": "Scripture always speaks with absolute authority. It is as authoritative when it instructs us as it is when it commands us. It is as true when it tells the future as it is when it records the past. Although it is not a textbook on science, wherever it intersects with scientific data, it speaks with the same authority as when it gives us moral precepts. Although many have tried to set science against Scripture, science never has disproved one jot or tittle of the Bible--and it never will.\nIt is therefore a serious mistake to imagine that modern scientists can speak more authoritatively than Scripture on the subject of origins. Scripture is God's own eyewitness account of what happened in the beginning. When it deals with the origin of the universe, all science can offer is conjecture. Science has proven nothing that negates the Genesis record. In fact, the Genesis record answers the mysteries of science.\nA clear pattern for interpreting Genesis is given to us in the New Testament. If the language of early Genesis were meant to be interpreted figuratively, we could expect to see Genesis interpreted in the New Testament in a figurative sense. After all, the New Testament is itself inspired Scripture, so it is the Creator's own commentary on the Genesis record.\nWhat do we find in the New Testament? In every New Testament reference to Genesis, the events recorded by Moses are treated as historical events. And in particular, the first three chapters of Genesis are consistently treated as a literal record of historical events. The New Testament affirms, for example, the creation of Adam in the image of God (James 3:9).\nPaul wrote to Timothy, \"Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression\" (1 Timothy 2:13-14). In 1 Corinthians 11:8-9, he writes, \"Man is not from woman, but woman from man. Nor was man created for the woman, but woman for the man.\"\nPaul's presentation of the doctrine of original sin in Romans 5:12-20 depends on a historical Adam and a literal interpretation of the account in Genesis about how he fell. Furthermore, everything Paul has to say about the doctrine of justification by faith depends on that. \"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive\" (1 Corinthians 15:22). Clearly Paul regarded both the creation and fall of Adam as history, not allegory. Jesus Himself referred to the creation of Adam and Eve as a historical event (Mark 10:6). To question the historicity of these events is to undermine the very essence of Christian doctrine.\nMoreover, if Scripture itself treats the creation and fall of Adam as historical events, there is no warrant for treating the rest of the creation account as allegory or literary device. Nowhere in all of Scripture are any of these events handled as merely symbolic.\nIn fact, when the New Testament refers to creation, (e.g., Mark 13:19; John 1:3; Acts 4:24; 14:15; 2 Corinthians 4:6; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:2, 10; Revelation 4:11; 10:6; 14:7) it always refers to a past, completed event--an immediate work of God, not a still-occurring process of evolution. The promised New Creation, a running theme in both Old and New Testaments, is portrayed as an immediate fiat creation, too--not an eons-long process (Isaiah 65:17). In fact, the model for the New Creation is the original creation (cf. Romans 8:21; Revelation 21:1, 5).\nHebrews 11:3 even makes belief in creation by divine fiat the very essence of faith itself: \"By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.\" Creation ex nihilo is the clear and consistent teaching of the Bible."}
{"text": "The CEI is currently involved in many international space missions and projects.\nGaia: Gaia was adopted within the scientific programme of the European Space Agency (ESA) in October 2000. The mission aims to: measure the positions of ~1 billion stars both in our Galaxy and other members of the Local Group, with an accuracy down to 20 µas, perform spectral and photometric measurements of all objects, derive space velocities of the Galaxy's constituent stars using the stellar distances and motions, and create a three-dimensional structural map of the Galaxy. The gathered large datasets will provide astronomers with a wealth of information covering a wide range of research fields: from solar system studies, galactic astronomy, cosmology to general relativity. The CEI is involved in a number of different projects including modelling the CCDs designed for the Gaia mission to simulate the charge trapping effect of radiation damage, analysis of the BP/RP and RVS radiation campaign datasets and the development of the data processing pipeline.\nIXO: The International X-ray Observatory (IXO) is a new X-ray telescope with joint participation from NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and Japan's Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). This project supersedes both NASA's Constellation-X and ESA's XEUS mission concepts. IXO is a next-generation facility designed to examine three main areas: black holes and matter under extreme conditions, formation and evolution of galaxies, clusters and large scale structure, and the life cycles of matter and energy. The IXO optics will have 20 times more collecting area at 1 keV than any previous X-ray telescope. The focal plane instruments will deliver up to 100-fold increase in effective area for high resolution spectroscopy from 0.3-10 keV, deep spectral imaging from 0.2-40 keV over a wide field of view, unprecedented polarimetric sensitivity, and microsecond spectroscopic timing with high count rate capability. The CEI is currently developing instrumentation for the X-ray Grating Spectrometer (XGS) readout.\nEuclid: Euclid is a medium class mission candidate for launch in 2017 as part of the Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 programme and will spend five years in orbit at L2. The mission is a combination of two missions: the Dark UNiverse Explorer (DUNE) and the SPectroscopic All Sky Cosmic Explorer (SPACE). The primary goal is to study the dark universe by means of two main cosmological probes: the Weak Lensing (WL) technique which maps the distribution of dark matter and measures the properties of dark energy in the universe and the Baryonic Acoustic Oscillations (BAO) technique which uses the scales in the spatial and angular power spectra as \"standard rulers\" to measure the equation of state and rate of change of dark energy.\nThe CEI is working with a number of institutes, including ESA and Mullard Space Science Laboratory (MSSL) on the characterisation of the radiation effects to the Euclid CCDs. This work involves pre- and post-irradiation characterisation of the e2v CCD204s provided by ESA, based on the same architecture as the CCD203 which is proposed to be used onboard Euclid. A model of the CCD204 pixel structure is being created to explore the electron density for charge storage as a function of signal size and being used in CTE simulations under a variety of signal conditions to predict CTE effects at the mid and end of mission. The aim is to provide recommendations on CCD design modifications for improved radiation tolerance, device operation and shielding.\nChandrayaan-1 & 2: The Indian Space Research Organisation Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft was launched on the 22nd of October 2008. It spent nine months in a 100 km circular orbit around the Moon before communication was lost. During this time it surveyed the around 15 percent of the lunar surface providing a map of chemical characteristics and 3-dimensional topography. The spacecraft carried a number of instruments including a terrain mapping camera, infrared spectrometers, and the Chandrayaan-1 X-ray Spectrometer (C1XS). The C1XS instrument consisted of 24 e2v technologies CCD54 swept-charge device silicon X-ray detectors arranged in 6 modules that will carried out high quality X-ray spectroscopic mapping of the Moon using the technique of X-ray fluorescence in the energy range 0.5-10 keV.\nThe CEI was involved in performing the proton radiation damage assessment for the CCD54 devices recommending instrument shielding, operating temperature and operating potentials. The pre-flight characterisation of the 14 modules available for flight selection was also conducted recommending ten modules suitable for use in the instrument. The ESA space environment information system (SPENVIS) software was utilised to estimate the worse case end of life 10 MeV equivalent proton fluence, which was used to irradiate a number of CCD54 devices to investigate their post irradiation performance. The CEI continues to be involved in the instrument in an advisory role on the observed radiation effects to the CCD54 devices.\nChandrayaan-2 is the second Indian lunar mission, to be launched in 2014 into a 200 km polar orbit where is will use and test various new technologies. The spacecraft will include a number of instruments, one being the Chandrayaan-2 Large Area Soft X-ray Spectrometer (CLASS) instrument which is a continuation of the successful C1XS instrument. CLASS will map the abundance of major rock forming elements on the lunar surface, mapping elemental abundances with a nominal spatial resolution of 25 km. The instrument uses the second generation swept charge device, CCD236, and has a geometrical area three times that of C1XS which will allow for data collection at low levels of solar activity.\nThe CEI will provide assistance with the characterisation of the SCDs and an analysis of the impact of radiation damage on their performance. Initial studies have demonstrated a factor of two improvement in radiation hardness, further optimisation and a more detailed investigation into device performance is currently underway.\nUKube-1: The UK Space Agency is planning to launch their first cubesat later this year. The cubesat platform allows fast mission turnaround of small payloads, allowing more groups to be involved with the missions. After launch in late 2011, the satellite will spend 1 year in a low Earth orbit (~400km), with a view to operating for a further 2 years if successful.\nThe CEI has successfully bid for design and production of a single payload, working in tandem with Clydespace to develop a payload responsible for imaging of the Earth with narrow and wide field imagers. In addition the group plans to include an imager to monitor radiation damage effects on the 0.18µm CMOS sensors, which have been previously characterised on the ground. This is the first such instrument under total development by the group, and will provide ample training and expansion of knowledge of mission development within the group. Click Here to access the mission page for more information."}
{"text": "Yes, let's start with the basics:\nWhat are the typical mistakes people make with percentages?\nWhat is the margin of error in a poll?\nIt would be virtually impossible to conduct a poll on the entire voting population in the United States. Pollsters therefore question a sample of a population.\nWhat is the difference between causation and correlation?\nOne of the most common errors we find in the press is the confusion between correlation and causation in scientific and health-related studies.\nWhat does it mean for a result to be “statistically significant”?\nHow can we tell whether two events happen at the same time by chance, or for a reason?\nWhat is the difference between absolute and relative risk?\nWhich one tells you about the actual risk ?\nWhat is the difference between controlled, observational and case controlled studies?\nThere are advantages and disadvantages to each type, and an awareness of these differences makes for a savvier consumer of public health information.\nWhat are confounding factors and how do they affect studies?"}
{"text": "Volume 15, Number 2—February 2009\nReemergence of Human and Animal Brucellosis, Bulgaria\nBulgaria had been free from brucellosis since 1958, but during 2005–2007, a reemergence of human and animal disease was recorded. The reemergence of this zoonosis in the country highlights the importance of maintaining an active surveillance system for infectious diseases that will require full cooperation between public health and veterinary authorities.\nAccording to the World Health Organization (1), brucellosis is one of the most common zoonoses worldwide and is considered a reemerging infectious disease in many areas of the world. An estimated 500,000 new human cases occur annually worldwide (2). In Europe, 1,033 human brucellosis cases were reported in 2006 (3); data from a passive surveillance system were based on clinical findings, supported by epidemiologic criteria, and confirmed by serologic tests. Here we report the results of a survey performed in Bulgaria during 2005–2007, which has been considered free from Brucellosis melitensis and B. abortus disease since 1958 (4).\nIn Bulgaria, until 1998 serologic screening was mandatory for all cattle, sheep, and goats >12 months of age. Afterward, based on risk assessment, animal surveillance activities covered 100% of heads reared in municipalities along the borders with countries endemic for brucellosis such as Turkey, Greece, and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia; 50% of the animals reared in other municipalities of the regions bordering the aforementioned countries; and 25% of animals reared in the inner Bulgarian regions. Currently, an active surveillance system is in place for dairy factory employees and persons considered at risk after outbreaks in ruminants.\nDuring 2005–2007 (Figure 1), a total of 105 human cases of brucellosis were diagnosed among 2,054 persons who were tested on the basis of clinical suspicion or risky exposure. A human case of brucellosis was considered confirmed if results of serologic tests, such as ELISA or complement fixation test, were positive, in accordance with the World Health Organization case definition (5). Bacteria isolation and characterization had not been performed routinely.\nThe alert started in 2005 (Figure 1, panel A), when a case of brucellosis occurred in a Bulgarian migrant animal keeper working in Greece. Active surveillance of persons at risk was implemented, enabling detection of a total of 34 human cases of brucellosis. All cases were classified as imported cases; therefore, no supplemental active surveillance on animals was implemented. Additionally, during routine screening for at-risk workers, 3 other persons employed in a dairy factory were found to be seropositive. Due to the lack of traceability of the raw material used in the factory, it was not possible to trace the origin of the infection. At that time, there was no evidence of animal cases of brucellosis.\nDuring 2006 (Figure 1, panel B), a total of 10 cases of human brucellosis were reported from different regions of the country. According to anamnestic information, these case-patients had different sources of infection: 3 of the 10 were considered imported infections; 1 case-patient was diagnosed during hospitalization in Sicily (Italy), where the patient reported having eaten ricotta cheese, and 2 occurred in Bulgarian migrant animal keepers working in Greece. Concerning the origin of infection, epidemiologic data suggest that 5 of the 10 cases were related to occupational risk and the remaining to consumption of raw milk and milk derivates. Surveillance activities enabled detection of 10 animals (7 small ruminants and 3 cows) with positive serologic results; these animals were then killed and destroyed. During 2007 (Figure 1, panel C), a total of 58 human cases were identified. Of 58 cases, 54 were classified as autochthonous (i.e., acquired by imported animals found to be infected during regular veterinary surveillance). These cases were identified in a Bulgarian region bordering Greece and Turkey (Haskovo region).\nTwo other cases, which were also classified as autochthonous, were diagnosed in patients who stated they had consumed a risky product (i.e., raw milk handled without adherence to hygienic standards). The remaining 2 cases were classified as imported because they involved Bulgarian migrant animal keepers working in Greece. Active surveillance in place for animals found a total of 625 heads (618 small ruminants, 7 cows) with positive serologic results; all were killed and destroyed. Analagous with what we observed in humans, most of the infected animals were found in the Haskovo region. All animals found to be infected during surveillance activity were bred at the family farm, and their milk and dairy products were prepared and eaten without adherence to proper hygienic standards.\nOur data show that brucellosis is reemerging in Bulgaria (Figure 2). On the basis of information provided in this report, we can make several hypotheses regarding the causes of the resurgence of a previously controlled infection in a transitional, rapidly changing country.\nOverall, 105 human cases of human brucellosis were identified over a 3-year period. Of them, 84 cases (80%) were identified in persons at occupational risk. This finding suggests that when brucellosis is introduced into naive territories (i.e., those territories that were considered officially free of brucellosis), the primary source of infection for humans is direct contact with infected animals (i.e., exposure to abortion/delivery products) or domestic consumption of products produced on family farms (milk, raw cheese). However, environmental exposure can also occur, especially in infants and children, who are considered at lower risk for direct contact with potentially infected animals, as recently observed (6). This hypothesis appears to be consistent with the context of a naive setting, where preventive measures are not routinely implemented. Continuous health education and other strategies may contribute to reduce the circulation of human brucellosis in endemic areas (7).\nThe reemergence of brucellosis is not limited to Bulgaria but involves several countries in the Balkan region and even in the Caucasian region (P. Pasquali, unpub. data). This trend or reemergence has several explanations. First, due to socioeconomic changes, many countries in these regions are experiencing a dramatic increase of animal trade, animal movement, and occupational migration, which in turn may increase the risk for introduction and spread of infectious diseases, such as brucellosis, from other disease-endemic countries like Greece or Turkey (2). Second, the process that has characterized the change of the social and administrative organization since the collapse of the Soviet Union is far from being completed; the public health systems are still flawed in many countries. Finally, part of the increase may simply be that brucellosis is a complex disease, which has different cycles of expansion and regression.\nBefore drawing conclusions, we should mention 2 possible limitations of the study. First, samples from patients with positive serologic results were used for bacterial culture for brucellosis only if sample collection was properly timed; no culture positive case is available. Second, we cannot exclude the possibility that part of the increase in cases of brucellosis could be due to improved surveillance; in particular, temporal trends and geographic comparison might be, to some extent, affected by the intensity of screening activities. However, this increased surveillance is unlikely to bias the observed shift from imported to locally acquired cases.\nIn conclusion, this report shows how a disease such as brucellosis may increase its public health impact, particularly in transitional countries such as Bulgaria. Our findings emphasize the importance of the combination of health education and active surveillance systems for controlling infectious diseases and highlight the need for cooperation between public health officials and veterinary officers. Creating and improving capacity building are necessary to properly address issues that pose public health hazards.\nDr Russo is a physician at Sapienza University in Rome. His research interests are infectious diseases in resource-limited countries in the context of natural disasters.\nThe authors thank Massimo Amicosante and Luca Avellis for logistic support.\nThis work was conducted as part of a cooperative effort between Italy and Bulgaria, supported by the European Union.\n- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, World Organisation for Animal Health, and World Health Organization. Brucellosis in human and animals. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2006. WHO/CDS/EPR/2006.7 [cited 2009 Jan 7]. Available from http://www.who.int/entity/csr/resources/publications/Brucellosis.pdf\n- Pappas G, Papadimitriou P, Akritidis N, Christou L, Tsianos EV. The new global map of human brucellosis. Lancet Infect Dis. 2006;6:91–9.\n- European Food Safety Authority–European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. The community summary report on trends and sources of zoonoses, zoonotic agents, antimicrobial resistance and foodborne outbreaks in the European Union in 2006. EFSA Journal. 2007;2007:130 [cited 2009 Jan 5]. Available from http://www.efsa.europa.eu/cs/BlobServer/DocumentSet/Zoon_report_2006_en,0.pdf?ssbinary=true\n- Corbel MJ. Brucellosis: an overview. 1st international conference on emerging zoonoses (Jerusalem, Israel). Emerg Infect Dis. 1997;3:213–21.\n- Robinson A. Guidelines for coordinated human and animal brucellosis surveillance. Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; 2003. FAO Animal Production and Health Paper 156.\n- Makis AC, Pappas G, Galanakis E, Haliasos N, Siamopoulou A. Brucellosis in infant after familial outbreak. Emerg Infect Dis. 2008;14:1319–20.\n- Jelastopulu E, Bikas C, Petropoulos C, Leotsinidis M. Incidence of human brucellosis in a rural area in western Greece after the implementation of a vaccination programme against animal brucellosis. BMC Public Health. 2008;8:241.\nSuggested citation for this article: Russo G, Pasquali P, Nenova R, Alexandrov T, Ralchev S, Vullo V, et al. Reemergence of human and animal brucellosis, Bulgaria. Emerg Infect Dis [serial on the Internet]. 2009 Feb [date cited]. Available from http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/15/2/08-1025.htm"}
{"text": "Charles Heywood kept his cannon firing even as his ship sank.\nBorn in Waterville on Oct. 3, 1839, Heywood was commissioned a second lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps at New York City on April 5, 1858. Thirty-five months later he reported aboard the USS Cumberland, a 24-gun sloop of war then assigned to the Gosport Navy Yard in Portsmouth, Va.\nFearing the shipyard’s capture by Confederate militia, senior Navy officers ordered Gosport abandoned on April 20, 1861. After mining key installations with barrels of gunpowder, Heywood and his Marines lit the fuses and hastened aboard the USS Cumberland, already slipping seaward on the ebbing Elizabeth River.\nThe resulting explosions and fires caused significant damage, but Confederate engineers quickly repaired crucial machinery. They also raised the burned and scuttled USS Merrimac. Upon its hull arose an ironclad, the CSS Virginia. Measuring 263 feet in length and weighing 3,200 tons, the steam-engine ironclad mounted 10 massive cannons. The skipper was Capt. Franklin Buchanan.\nHe intended to sail into Hampton Roads and sink the Yankee warships stationed there. By the time Buchanan ordered his ship to sail on March 8, 1862, Heywood was a captain commanding the USS Cumberland’s Marine contingent.\nBrilliant late-winter sunshine and warm air engulfed Hampton Roads as the CSS Virginia stood downriver that Saturday. Buchanan had already selected his first target. “I am going to ram the Cumberland,” which was equipped with “the new rifled guns, the only ones in their whole fleet we have cause to fear,” he told Chief Engineer H. Ashton Ramsay. “The moment we are out in the Roads, I’m going to make right for her and ram her.”\nThat morning, the USS Cumberland lay moored some 300 yards off Newport News on the north shore of Hampton Roads. Aboard the Cumberland, Cmdr. William Radford had gone ashore, leaving Lt. George Morris, the executive officer, in command.\nAt noon, sailors on watch aboard the Cumberland “discovered three vessels under steam, standing down the Elizabeth River toward Sewell’s Point,” Morris wrote on March 9. One ship belched black smoke; Morris, Heywood, and other USS Cumberland officers could see the smoke without using their spyglasses.\nBuchanan’s underpowered ironclad steamed ponderously into Hampton Roads. After the CSS Virginia cleared Sewell’s Point about 1:30 p.m., Buchanan steered west to attack the USS Cumberland.\nAboard that ship, crewmen had already “double breeched the guns on the main deck, and cleared [the] ship for action,” Morris reported. He ordered the sloop pivoted on her anchor so that her starboard broadside would face the ironclad.\nAssigned to his ship’s after gun division, Heywood stood with his gun crews and watched as the Virginia approached. At 2 p.m. aboard the ironclad, Lt. Charles Simms fired the bow pivot gun, a 7-inch Brooke rifle.\nAccording to William C. Davis writing in “Duel Between the First Ironclads,” Simms’ cannon ball “screamed across the Roads and hit” the USS Cumberland “squarely, passing through the starboard-quarter rail” and hurling wood splinters into nearby Marines. After a Cumberland gun crew fired their ship’s forward 10-inch pivot gun and missed, Simms’ second shot exploded amidst that gun crew and killed all but two men.\n“Our firing became at once very rapid from the few guns we could bring to bear” as the ironclad “approached slowly,” recalled Master Moses Stuyvesant, who commanded the sloop’s after gun division. Simms’ pivot gun pounded the Cumberland; as shell fragments and wood splinters struck down sailors and Marines alike, Heywood’s crews fired their cannons through the dense smoke.\nAt approximately 2:30 p.m., Cumberland pilot A.B. Smith thought the approaching ironclad resembled “a huge half-submerged crocodile” with its “iron ram projecting, straight forward.”\nSteaming at 6 knots, the Virginia “stood on and struck us under the starboard fore channels” near the Cumberland’s bow, Morris reported. “She delivered her fire at the same time; the destruction was great. We returned the fire with solid shot with alacrity.”\nThe ironclad’s ram opened a hole about 7 feet across. Flooding with seawater, the USS Cumberland listed to starboard — and the ship’s weight bore the Virginia downward.\nThe ironclad was already reversing its engines as the tide pivoted the trapped Virginia alongside the sinking Cumberland. Then the ram broke off, freeing the ironclad from a potential watery grave. Buchanan backed his ship until it lay parallel to the Cumberland and only 20 feet away.\nCannons flashed and boomed for some 30 minutes as Heywood and his comrades heroically fought the Virginia amidst “a scene of carnage and destruction never to be recalled without horror,” Stuyvesant remembered. Blood and gore splattered across the main deck as Heywood shouted at sailors and Marines to drag wounded comrades to the ship’s port side.\nNow the sea lapped at the Cumberland’s main deck as the bowsprit disappeared into Hampton Roads. Gun crews kept firing until their cannons submerged. Stationed near the stern, Heywood worked his guns even as another cannon broke loose and lurched across the deck to crush a sailor.\n“At 3:35 [p.m.] the water had risen to the main hatchway, and the ship canted to port, and we delivered a parting fire, each man trying to save himself by jumping overboard,” Morris recalled. Acknowledging that severely wounded men taken below decks could only be left to drown, he credited specific officers for their coolness under fire.\n“I can only say in conclusion that all did their duty and we sunk with the American flag at the [mast] peak,” Morris closed his report.\nEven as the Cumberland’s deck sharply canted, Heywood remained with the aft guns. “The water began to swash over the upper deck, and still every unencumbered gun was hurling defiance at the foe,” wrote John S.C. Abbott in “The History of the Civil War in America, Vol. 1,” published in 1863.\n“The ship careened upon one side. The last gunner [Heywood], knee-deep in water, pulled the trigger of the last gun,” Abbott wrote. Then “the majestic frigate, with all her dead and all her wounded, sank like lead.”\nAnd Charles Heywood went overboard into Marine Corps lore.\nHis heroism went noticed. “I omitted to mention to you the gallant conduct of Lieutenant Charles Heywood … whose bravery upon the occasion of the fight with the Merrimack won my highest applause,” Morris wrote Navy Secretary Gideon Welles on April 12.\nHeywood received a brevet promotion to major after the battle. Of the 46 Marines aboard the USS Cumberland, 14 died. Another 107 sailors were killed aboard the sloop on March 8.\nThe next day, the Monitor fought the Virginia in Hampton Roads in history’s first ironclad-to-ironclad sea battle. Most history books still call the Virginia the “Merrimac.”\nHeywood would fight during another famous Civil War battle; he was commanding two gun crews aboard the USS Hartford at Mobile Bay, Ala. as Adm. David Farragut roared, “Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!” on Aug. 5, 1864. Within an hour, Heywood and Farragut traded shot and shell with another Confederate ironclad, the CSS Tennessee — commanded by Adm. Franklin Buchanan.\nThis time Buchanan lost and Heywood won.\nNamed the ninth Marine Corps commandant on Jan. 30, 1891, Charles Heywood instituted important changes to the corps’ mission and strength. Promoted to major general a year before his 1903 retirement, he died at Washington, D.C., on Feb. 26, 1915. His wife, Caroline Bacon, outlived him by 12 years.\nHeywood lies buried in Section 2, Lot 1115 at Arlington National Cemetery.\nBrian Swartz is the BDN special sections editor. An avid Civil War buff, he has extensively explored and photographed Civil War battlefields throughout the South. Swartz may be reached at email@example.com or visit his blog at http://maineatwar.bangordailynews.com."}
{"text": "\"One death is a tragedy. A million deaths is a statistic.\" -Joseph Stalin\nWhen figuring out how people will respond to a foreign tragedy, it comes down to three things: location, location, location.\nAnd TV cameras too.The September 11, 2001 homicide attacks\nkilled about 3,000 people yet it's had more impact on American politics and foreign policy than anything since World War II. And to the great extent that American foreign policy impacts the rest of the world, it had a huge impact on international affairs as well.\nWhile 3,000 is pretty big death toll for a single incident, there have been other wars and attacks with greater loss of life that had a relatively miniscule influence on American or international affairs. Why? Because those attacks didn't occur in the heart of New York City. The international response would've been significantly less if the attack had been launched in Kathmandu, Bogota or Algiers (in countries with homegrown terrorist problems).The Asian tsunami of 2004\nhad a devastating effect and cost an estimated 283,000 lives and over a million displaced. It generated an international response that was probably unprecedented in scale. As someone who regularly reads articles on underfunded international crisis appeals, I was heartened by the response to the tsunami. That it hit easily accessible coastal regions, including many tourist areas, made it easier to TV crews to get images. That Europeans and Americans were amongst the victims, if a tiny fraction, ensured that it got coverage in the western media.\nBut if I told you there was a conflict that has cost almost 15 times as many lives as the tsunami, could you name that crisis? If I told you there was a crisis that, in mortality terms, was the equivalent of a three 9/11s every week for the last 7 years\n, would you know which one I'm talking about?\nI bet few westerners could, even though it's by far the deadiest conflict of the last 60 years.\nThe war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire) is killing an estimated 38,000 people each month, according to the British medical journal The Lancet\n. And if not for the involvement of humanitarian non-governmental organizations and UN relief agencies, the toll would be much higher.Most of the deaths are not caused by violence but by malnutrition and preventable diseases after the collapse of health services, the study said\n, notes the BBC. Since the war began in 1998, some 4m people have died, making it the world's most deadly war since 1945, it said.\nA peace deal has ended most of the fighting but armed gangs continue to roam the east, killing and looting.\nThe political process in the DRC is slowly inching in the right direction. Voters in the country recently approved a new constitution\n, to replace the one imposed on it by the outgoing Belgian colonialists. EU officials praised the referendum as free and fair, probably the first truly open poll in the country's history. Elections are scheduled for June of this year.\nHowever, instability reigns in much of the country, particularly the east. And central government throughout the entireity of the country has never been strong in this gigantic country. There are 17,000 UN peacekeepers doing the best they can but the country's the size of Western Europe. (By contrast the Americans and British have ten times as many troops in Iraq, a country that's less than 1/5 the size of the DRC. And we know how many problems they're having there)\nAnd this shows why war should ALWAYS be a last resort. Most of the deaths have not been directly caused by war\n(bullet wounds, landmines, etc). Most of the deaths have been caused by factors provoked by war's instability and destruction. The destruction of all infrastructure like roads and medical clinics. The inability to get to sources of clean water. The fear of leaving the house to tend the fields or go to the market.\n38,000 people a month. If you get pissed off at Howard Dean or Pat Robertson, spare a little outrage for this.\nAnd maybe a few bucks.\nWANNA HELP? TAKE YOUR PICK\n-Doctors Without Borders\n-World Food Program\n-Catholic Relief Services"}
{"text": "There isn't a huge difference in the way residential homes are built in Japan compared to in the U.S., although the Japanese are more likely to invest in special earthquake engineering, particularly in commercial and higher-end residential buildings.\nHome builders in both Japan and the U.S. use a lot of wood-frame construction, which is flexible and tends to ride out a quake fairly well, said Heidi Faison, outreach director at the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center in Berkeley, Calif. But wood frame structures do have potential vulnerabilities in two key areas: the foundation and the wall that supports a crawl space, which is called a cripple wall.\nShe recommends home buyers hire an engineer to make sure the wood frame is bolted to the foundation. If a house has a crawl space underneath it or you need to climb a few steps to get up to the first floor, it likely is supported by a cripple wall, which can buckle in an earthquake. If you're in an earthquake-prone location, that space needs to be filled in with a solid material.\nGary Ehrlick, a structural engineer and program manager for Structural Codes & Standards at the National Association of Home Builders, outlines some other house features to consider:\n• Look at the garage, if the house has one. A large garage door opening or a lot of big windows on the first floor, that can create a soft story -- an open space without enough support to withstand violent shaking.\n• Brick veneer can present a major hazard if it's not attached well. Brick was a problem in the 6.3 magnitude temblor that struck New Zealand last month. \"It doesn't create as much of a hazard inside, but outside it can injure or kill,'' he said.\n• Houses built on a slope are often an issue. They need to be tied back well with footings. Also make sure the slope is stable. Liquefaction -- where saturated soil becomes liquid -- can be a problem and can occur when a building is located near a lake or river. In an earthquake, liquefaction can cause the ground to behave like quicksand, as seen in New Zealand and in the 1989 earthquake in Loma Prieta in the mountains of Santa Cruz, Calif.\nIn Japan, most of the damage was actually inflicted by the subsequent tsunami, just as most of the destruction in the San Francisco quake of 1906 was caused by fires that ripped through the city after gas lines were ruptured.\nA disaster's chain of events makes the preparation scenario a bit more complicated.\nThere is a growing interest in designing homes better able to survive a tsunami. The basic idea in tsunami design, as in flood-resistant construction is to get some of your structure up above the expected level of water, said Gary Ehrlick.\n\"In commercial structures they talk about vertical evacuation zones.'' Under this theory, the first floor, built out of concrete or steel, is strong enough to withstand the pressure of the water. The \"zone of refuge'' occupies the upper floors.\nAnother concept that came out of the earthquake/tsunami that leveled Banda Aceh, Indonesia, on Check out our gallery of Day in 2004 is a house where the first floor allows the wave to wash through it, destroying the walls but preserving the foundation. This would be a concrete frame with columns or wall segments in each corner of the house. The walls are panels made out of something light, like bamboo or wood. After a disaster, such panels would be easy to replace.\nCheck out our photo gallery of a tsunami-resistant home designed by Kazunori Fujimoto Architect & Associates:\nGallery: See Photos of Earthquake Proof Home\nMore on AOL Real Estate:\nFind out how to calculate mortgage payments.\nFind homes for sale in your area.\nFind foreclosures in your area.\nGet property tax help from our experts."}
{"text": "Tomorrow, in Philadelphia, Queen's University professor Arthur B. McDonald is scheduled to receive a half-share of the Benjamin Franklin Institute's annual physics prize. It is the latest in a long series of honours for Prof. McDonald, who was the director of the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO). As one of the oldest internationally recognized honours for research achievements, the Franklin Medal puts him on an altogether new plane, amidst what the French call les nobelisables.\nThe scientific prestige surrounding the SNO, which ceased collecting data in November of last year, is still growing. As an experiment, it performed exactly as promised, and in an environment of institutional cost-cutting, it did so at a cost (about $70-million) much lower than that required by other particle-physics projects around the world. For every plaudit the SNO receives, there are hundreds, perhaps thousands of Canadians eligible for a share of reflected glory. They ranged from the dozens of physicists who worked on the data-crunching, to the federal bureaucrats who recognized SNO's value and steered clear of it with their budget axes, to the executives at Inco who arranged to set aside space for the project a mile and a half down in the company's Creighton Mine. And let's not forget the miners, who went down into the pit with physicists every day, and during a 1997 strike allowed them to cross a picket line in order to continue their work.\nAll this was done in the name of hunting the elusive neutrino, a subatomic particle that has no electrical charge and that passes through almost all matter without being stopped or deflected. The existence of neutrinos had been predicted in 1930, and they were first detected in nature as early as 1956, but 40 more years of research had left scientists uncertain whether they possessed any mass. Meanwhile, the sun's interior, a naturally occurring fusion reactor, seemed to be producing only about one-half to one-third as many neutrinos as the so-called Standard Model of particle physics predicted.\nThe \"solar neutrino\" problem was a big one. It seemed that scientists would either be required to revise their existing inferential images of the sun's interior, or to do away with the Standard Model itself. For a while it seemed possible that the sun was a lot cooler on the inside than anyone had thought, a discovery that would have had consequences for the ultimate fate of the solar system. Fortunately, when physicists began looking for ways the Standard Model could be modified to allow for the mysteriously low rate of solar neutrino emissions, they realized that if neutrinos did have mass, they were capable of flipping freely in space between three different \"flavours\" --only one of which earlier neutrino observatories had been capable of observing.\nOn June 18, 2001, the SNO -- basically a giant tank of heavy water surrounded by cameras that could detect the \"flash\" created by a single neutrino penetrating to the Earth's core -- solved all of these problems with the release of just one batch of results. It turned out that neutrinos do have mass, that Earth is receiving all three types of neutrinos from the sun and that the total number agrees with established models. Nobel laureate John Bahcall described the discovery in 2004 as \"epochal\", \"revolutionary\" and the \"fingerprints on the smoking gun\" of the solar-neutrino problem.\nIn the future, the discoveries that the SNO made possible may be placed on a par with Ben Franklin's own research into electricity. Already \"neutrino astronomy\" is an important field; detectors like SNO will give astronomers early warning of the next supernova in our galactic neighbourhood. As the SNO's \"smoking gun\" showed, neutrino detection is like having an extra sense to work with when it comes to understanding the solar core. And futurists are spinning wild ideas for neutrinobased imaging and telecommunications -- ideas that now seem as far-fetched, but just as tempting, as alternating current would have been to Franklin."}
{"text": "By Rob Coppinger in London\nEuropean hypersonic civil transport project heats up as three concepts undergo trials\nAn aircraft capable of flying five times the speed of sound and reaching Sydney in between two and four hours from Brussels is the leading design in a €7 million European research project to find a hypersonic civilian airliner replacement to the supersonic Concorde.\nA Mach 5 civil transport aircraft designed by a UK team is leading a pack of three concepts undergoing preliminary studies for the three-year, €7 million ($9 million) European hypersonic research project, Long Term Advanced Propulsion Concepts and Technologies (LAPCAT).\nWith €4 million from the European Commission and the rest from industry, LAPCAT aims to develop a vehicle capable of travelling from Europe to Australia in 2-4h.\nOxfordshire-based Reaction Engine says its A2 (a Flight artist's impression of which is pictured above), meets take-off noise restrictions and is powered by hydrogen-fuelled turbine-based combine cycle (TBCC) engines.\nThe other two concepts are an EADS Mach 8 vehicle with rocket-based combined cycle propulsion and German aerospace research centre DLR’s kerosene-fuelled, TBCC-powered Mach 4 craft.\nLAPCAT is being co-ordinated by the European Space Agency for the EC. “Results so far show [the Mach 5 vehicle from Reaction Engines] can avoid later [technology] pitfalls and could travel from Brussels to Sydney,” says ESA’s LAPCAT project co-ordinator Johan Steelant. Criteria for vehicle evaluation include safety, ability to reach diversion airports, adaptability to different sonic boom restrictions and technological maturation. Steelant cites the heat exchangers in Reaction Engine’s Scimitar TBCC engine as being more advanced in their development.\nLater this month tests of an experimental engine intake will start at a DLR windtunnel facility. These should be followed by nozzle tests in July and eventually combustion chamber and combined intake, chamber and nozzle testing."}
{"text": "Matisse: Radical Invention, 1913-1917\nJuly 18–October 11, 2010\nMatisse conceived this \"souvenir of Morocco\" in 1912, stretched a canvas for it in 1913, and returned to the composition late in 1915, only to start again on a new canvas in early 1916. Black is the principal agent, at once simplifying, dividing, and joining the three zones of the canvas: the still life of melons and leaves on a gridded pavement, bottom left; the architecture with domed marabout, top left; and the figures, at right. Next to a seated Moroccan shown from behind, the large curving ocher shape and circular form derive from a reclining figure in the sketches. Above the shadowed archway, figures in profile may be discerned in the two windows: at right, the lower part of a seated man; at left, the upper part of a man with raised arms. Matisse built up the surface with thin layers of pigment, the color of the underlying layers modifying those on top. Painter Gino Severini reported that \"Matisse said . . . that everything that did not contribute to the balance and rhythm of [this] work, had to be eliminated . . . as you would prune a tree.\"\nMatisse developed this painting of what he described as “the terrace of the little cafe of the casbah” in the years following two visits to Morocco, in 1912 and 1913. As he worked on various studies he eliminated details he felt were extraneous to the painting’s overall balance. A balcony with a flowerpot and a mosque behind it are at upper left, at lower left is a still life of vegetables, and to the right is a man wearing a round turban, seen from behind. Matisse’s generous application of black paint helps unify the three sections of the painting across its abstract expanse.\nMatisse: Radical Invention, 1913–1917, July 18–October 11, 2010\nDirector, Glenn Lowry: Matisse first conceived this painting in 1912, while he was visiting Morocco. But he didn't actually start the canvas until early 1916. Once he did, he continued working on it—with great focus and concentration—through the fall.\nCurator, John Elderfield: The forms are difficult to decipher. I know some people who have thought that what Matisse says are melons and leaves are in fact the Moroccans, but Matisse is insistent that they are not. I think one can clearly see the figure whose back is towards us. And if we look at it carefully we can see that that figure's grown in size. To the right of it, that black area does seem to derive from drawings of an arched doorway with light hitting the bottom, but the top part is in shadow, leading into another architectural space. And the two elements at the top are ones which we can trace back to drawings he made in Morocco—the one at the right, of a sort of seated figure, and the one to the left, more puzzling, but somewhat amusingly, in one of the drawings—and he refers to this in his letter—is of a figure who has got his arms raised to look through binoculars. All that remains is the forearms and part of the body, and Matisse is quite happy to have carried it to that point of almost unintelligibility. But I don't think the painting asks us to be specific about these forms.\nCurator, Stephanie D’Alessandro: I don't think so either. I think there's a level of memory and recollection, and maybe even nostalgia with this picture.\nGlenn Lowry: One aspect of Morocco that stayed with Matisse was the harsh contrast between the midday sun and the shade, evoked here in the black background.\nConservator, Michael Duffy: You can see how it defines certain shapes. Particularly the shape in the middle, this curved shape, which is made up of ochre and white. The black edge on the left is painted over, so he actually defines the form further by overlaying the black paint. When you look closely at the black paint, you'll see that it covers areas of blue and pink underneath, and that gives the black a very warm color. And it's very typical of the way Matisse painted. Rather than blending his colors together, to achieve one color, he would typically layer colors, even black, over several layers, in order to build up a kind of rich, optical surface.\nMoMA Audio: Collection, 2008\nCurator Emeritus, John Elderfield: This painting was made in 1915–1916 and is a remembrance of visits that Matisse made to Morocco. And while the paintings made in Morocco are beautifully, limpidly colored, obviously the remembrance is rather of the great heat, of contrasts of color in the conditions of very bright light.\nThe Moroccans themselves are on the right on the terrace with their melons and gourds—the green and yellow forms at the left. We can see a figure with his back to us, and then, with more difficulty, figures in windows at the top. In the background is a mosque with a vase of blue and white flowers standing on the parapet.\nMatisse said that he put black in his pictures to simplify the composition. And indeed, through the teens and into the 1920s, he regularly puts in a little dosing of black to hold everything else in place. I think, unquestionably, he was thinking of shadow, and of the kind of stifling midday sun in North Africa. There is that element of renunciation of color and wanting to put in an element of real gravity in the composition. Its hard to imagine any other color doing it in that same way.\nThe Museum of Modern Art , MoMA Highlights, New York: The Museum of Modern Art, revised 2004, originally published 1999, p. 79\nThe Moroccans marvelously evokes tropical sun and heat even while its ground is an enveloping black, what Matisse called \"a grand black, . . . as luminous as the other colors in the painting.\" Utterly dense, this black evokes a space as tangible as any object, and allows a gravity and measured drama without the illusion of depth once necessary to achieve this kind of grandeur.\nThe painting, which Matisse described as picturing \"the terrace of the little café of the casbah,\" is divided into three: at the upper left, an architectural section showing a balcony with flowerpot and the dome of a mosque behind; a still life, of four green-leafed yellow melons at the lower left; and a figural scene in which an Arab sits with his back to us. To his right is an arched doorway, and windows above contain vestigial figures. The form to his left is hard to decipher, but has been interpreted as a man's burnoose and circular turban.\nDuring his visit to Morocco in 1912-13, Matisse had been inspired by African light and color. At the same time, he faced the challenge of Cubism, the leading avant-garde art movement of the period, and The Moroccans summarizes his memories of Morocco while also combining the intellectual rigor of Cubist syntax with the larger scale and richer palette of his own art.\nMatisse Picasso, February 13–May 19, 2003\nNarrator: In 1911 and again in 1912 Matisse traveled to Morocco. Three years later, he tapped those memories for this big souvenir picture, The Moroccans. By that time he was deeply involved in the Cubist vocabulary of reduced geometric form.\nCurator, John Elderfield: What it shows is on the upper left a mosque with a vase of flowers on the right hand side. In the bottom left is a pavement with melons with their green leaves. And at the right, more difficult to figure out, various figures who are presumably sitting on some sort of terrace outside a cafe in Tangier. One can I think clearly understand the figure with his back to us, with a white turban and, blue shirt. And to the right, what looks like the top of an archway in shadow.\nMatisse talked about the black as being a way of representing heat and light. And as one gets further south, one gets these very strong black and white contrasts. It's also trying to convey some of the sense of the intense light, and the almost tangible heat of Tangier.\nCurator, Kirk Varnedoe: Certainly Picasso must have looked intensely at a major picture like this, and learned from it a new vocabulary of Cubism, more highly abstracted, more monumental. When you compare The Moroccans to Picasso's Three Musicians of 1921...what leaps out at you are certain similarities—the use of black for example. But Picasso unlike Matisse is not a traveler. Picasso often said, \"If someone didn't come to the studio in the morning, I wouldn't have anything to paint in the afternoon.\"\nNarrator: The Three Musicians most likely represent the artist and his friends. Picasso himself is at the center, identified by the harlequin costume and guitar he often used as his symbols. To the right, the man dressed as a monk with a stylized beard is probably Picasso's friend the poet Max Jacob, who had entered a monastery after the First World War. And the large white figure with the clarinet may be another poet friend, Guillaume Apollinaire, who had died from war wounds.\nKirk Varnedoe: The picture has a kind of gravity, a kind of sadness or melancholy, which is played off by small and amusing details, like the tiny little zig zags that represent the hand on the notes of music, or the dog that lies under the table to the left. So you imagine the music being played. Is it syncopated like a kind of bright jazz, and on the other hand melancholy like a threnody? And when you compare this in its detail, then you sense how monumental the Matisse is by comparison, and how in a certain sense impersonal it is."}
{"text": "EARLY SPRING in the Lamar River Valley: several wolves chase elk while an interested grizzly bear awaits the outcome. Grizzlies can drive wolves off a kill; more often they scavenge after the wolves have eaten their fill. Image: DIANE HARGREAVES\nSeveral scrawny cottonwood trees do not usually generate much excitement in the world of ecology. But on a wind-whipped August afternoon in Yellowstone National Park's Lamar Valley, William J. Ripple, a professor of botany at Oregon State University, stands next to a 12-foot-high cottonwood tree and is quietly ecstatic. \"You can see the terminal bud scars,\" the bespectacled Ripple says, bending the limber tree over to show lines that mark a year's growth of a foot or more on the broom-handle-size trunk. \"You can see that elk haven't browsed it this year, didn't browse it last year and, in fact, haven't browsed it since 1998.\"\nRipple gestures at the sprawling mountain valley around us and points out that although numerous other cottonwoods dot the landscape, this knot of saplings comprises the only young ones--the rest of this part of the Lamar is a geriatric ward for trees. The stately specimens that grow in the valley bottom are 70 to 100 years old, and not a newcomer is in sight to take their place. On the hillside, aspen trees present a similar picture. Groves of elderly aspen tremble in the wind, but no sprouts push up in the understory."}
{"text": "Darfur’s people are a complex mosaic of between 40 and 90 ethnic groups, some of ‘African’ origin (mostly settled farmers), some Arabs. All Darfurians are Muslim. The Arabs began arriving in the 14th century and established themselves as mainly nomadic cattle and camel herders. Peaceful coexistence has been the norm, with inevitable disputes over resources between fixed and migratory communities resolved through the mediation of local leaders. For much of its history, the division between ‘Arab’ and ‘African’ has been blurred at best, with so much intermarriage that all Darfurians can claim mixed ancestry. Identities have been defined in different ways at different times, based on race, speech, appearance or way of life.\nAn Independent Sultanate\nAt the heart of Darfur is an extinct volcano in a mountainous area called Jebel Marra. Around it the land is famously fertile, and it was here that the earliest known inhabitants of Darfur lived – the Daju. Very little is known about them. The recorded history of Darfur begins in the 14th century, when the Daju dynasty was superseded by the Tunjur, who brought Islam to the region.\nDarfur existed as an independent state for several hundred years. In the mid-17th century, the Keyra Fur Sultanate was established, and Darfur prospered.\nIn its heyday in the 17th and 18th centuries the Fur Sultanate’s geographical location made it a thriving commercial hub, trading with the Mediterranean in slaves, ivory and ostrich feathers, raiding its neighbours and fighting wars of conquest in the surrounding region.\nDarfur under siege\nIn the mid-19th century, Darfur’s sultan was defeated by notorious slave trader Zubayr Rahma, who was in turn subjugated by the Ottoman Empire. At the time, this included Egypt and what is now northern Sudan. The collapse of the Keyra dynasty plunged Darfur into lawlessness. Roaming bandits and local armies preyed on vulnerable communities, and Islamic ‘Mahdist’ forces fighting British colonial control of the region sought to incorporate Darfur into a much larger Islamic republic. A period of almost constant war followed, until 1899 when the Egyptians – now under British rule – recognized Ali Dinar, grandson of one of the Keyra sultans, as Sultan of Darfur. This marked a de facto return to independence, and Darfur lived in peace for a few years.\nColonial ‘benign neglect’\nAli Dinar refused to submit to the wishes of either the French or the British, who were busy building their empires around his territory. Diplomatic friction turned into open warfare. Ali Dinar defied the British forces for six months, but was ambushed and killed, along with his two sons, in November 1916. In January 1917 Darfur was absorbed into the British Empire and became part of Sudan, making this the largest country in Africa.\nThe only aim of Darfur’s new colonial rulers was to keep the peace. Entirely uninterested in the region’s development (or lack thereof), no investment was forthcoming. In stark contrast to the north of Sudan, by 1935 Darfur had only four schools, no maternity clinic, no railways or major roads outside the largest towns. Darfur has been treated as an unimportant backwater, a pawn in power games, by its successive rulers ever since.\nIndependence brings war\nThe British reluctantly but peacefully granted Sudan independence in 1956. The colonialists had kept North and South Sudan separate, developing the fertile lands around the Nile Valley in the North, whilst neglecting the South, East and Darfur to the west. They handed over political power directly to a minority of northern Arab élites who, in various groupings, have been in power ever since. This caused the South to mutiny in 1955, starting the first North-South war. It lasted until 1972 when peace was signed under President Nimeiry. But the Government continually flouted the peace agreement. This, combined with its shift towards imposing radical political Islam on an unwilling people, and the discovery of oil, reignited conflict in the South in 1983.\nDarfur, meanwhile, became embroiled in the various conflicts raging around it: not just internal wars by the centre over its marginalized populations – many of the soldiers who fought for the Government against the South were Darfurian recruits – but also regional struggles. The use of Darfur by Libya’s Colonel Qadafhi as a military base for his Islamist wars in Chad promoted Arab supremacism, inflamed ethnic tensions, flooded the region with weaponry and sparked the Arab-Fur war (1987-89), in which thousands were killed and hundreds of Fur villages burned. The people’s suffering was exacerbated by a devastating famine in the mid-1980s, during which the Government abandoned Darfurians to their fate.\nBashir seizes power\nIn 1989 the National Islamic Front (NIF), led by General Omar al-Bashir, seized power in Sudan from the democratically elected government of Sadiq al Mahdi, in a bloodless coup. The NIF revoked the constitution, banned opposition parties, unravelled steps towards peace and instead proclaimed jihad against the non-Muslim South, regularly using ethnic militias to do the fighting. Although depending on Muslim Darfur for political support, the NIF’s programme of ‘Arabization’ further marginalized the region’s ‘African’ population.\nThe regime harboured several Islamic fundamentalist organizations, including providing a home for Osama bin Laden from 1991 until 1996, when the US forced his expulsion. Sudan was implicated in the June 1995 assassination attempt on Egyptian President Mubarak. Its support for terrorists and increasing international isolation culminated in a US cruise-missile attack on a Sudanese pharmaceutical factory in 1998, following terrorist bombings of the US embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam.\nThe Janjaweed: ‘counterinsurgency on the cheap’\nJanjaweed fighters, with their philosophy of violent Arab supremacism, were first active in Darfur in the Arab-Fur war in the late 1980s. Recruited mainly from Arab nomadic tribes, demobilized soldiers and criminal elements, the word janjaweed means ‘hordes’ or ‘ruffians’, but also sounds like ‘devil on horseback’ in Arabic. The ruthlessly opportunistic Sudanese Government first armed, trained and deployed them against the Massalit people of Darfur in 1996-98. This was an established strategy by which the Government used ethnic militias to fight as proxy forces for them. It allowed the Government to fight local wars cheaply, and also to deny it was behind the conflict, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.\nThe Comprehensive Peace Agreement\nWhen President George W Bush came to power in 2000, US policy shifted from isolationism to engagement with Sudan. After 11 September 2001 Bashir ‘fell into line’, started to co-operate with the US in their ‘war on terror’ and a peace process began in earnest in the South. After years of painstaking negotiations, and under substantial pressure from the US, in January 2005 a Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) was signed between the Government and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A), ending 21 years of bloody war which killed two million people, displaced another four million and razed southern Sudan to the ground.\nA surprisingly favourable deal for the South, the CPA included a power-sharing agreement leading up to a referendum on independence for the South in 2011, a 50-50 share of the profits from its lucrative oilfields, national elections in 2009, and 10,000 UN peacekeepers to oversee the agreement’s implementation. But the ‘comprehensive’ deal completely ignored Darfur, catalyzing the conflict that is currently engulfing the region.\nThe rebels attack\nRebellion had been brewing in marginalized, poverty-stricken Darfur for years. After decades in the political wilderness, being left out of the peace negotiations was the final straw. Inspired by the SPLA’s success, rebel attacks against Government targets became increasingly frequent as two main rebel groups emerged – the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). By early 2003 they had formed an alliance. Attacks on garrisons, and a joint attack in April on an airbase that reduced several Government planes and helicopters to ashes, were causing serious damage and running rings around the Sudanese army.\nFacing the prospect of its control over the entire country unravelling, in 2003 the Government decided to counterattack. Manipulating ethnic tensions that had flared up in Darfur around access to increasingly scarce land and water resources, they unleashed the Janjaweed to attack communities they claimed had links to the rebels.\nJulie Flint and Alex de Waal, Darfur: a Short History of a Long War, Zed Books, 2005; Ruth Iyob and Gilbert M. Khadiagala, Sudan: The Elusive Quest for Peace, Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2006; Douglas H. Johnson, The Root Causes of Sudan’s Civil Wars, Indiana University Press, 2006; Gerard Prunier, Darfur: The Ambiguous Genocide, Cornell University Press, 2007; www.wikipedia.org\nThis first appeared in our award-winning magazine - to read more, subscribe from just £7"}
{"text": "Evaluating Tagging Methods and Movement Patterns of Round Gobies\nThe round goby (Neogobius melanostomus) is an invasive fish species introduced in the St. Clair River in 1990 and is now found throughout the Great Lakes basin. Information on round goby movement and behavior is needed to understand their potential impact on the Great Lakes. Research on potential tagging methods and movement of round gobies is scant. We explored the use of marking round gobies with passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags in order to determine the effects of tagging on growth and mortality. In general, we found that the presence of a tag in the fish had no strong effect on growth or mortality. We also conducted a study on the movement patterns of round gobies in Muskegon Lake. Using PIT tagged fish we followed 48 round gobies enclosed in a 20x20-m block net for 22 days. Our goal was to determine the movement patterns of the gobies within the block net and examine the effects of various factors on these patterns. However, during the course the study, we found that the equipment used was not optimal for use with round gobies. Due to a high escape rate and low detection rate of fish, no conclusions could be surmised on round goby movement. Overall, we determined that although PIT tags do not strongly affect the growth or mortality of round gobies, the equipment available currently seems to be inadequate for tracking round gobies in shallow-water, lake habitats.\nFaculty Mentor: Carl Ruetz\nPage last modified July 14, 2009"}
{"text": "The Immigration History Research Center is home to thousands of feet of archival records that illuminate the immigrant experience, past and present. While these records are available to students and teachers for research in the University of Minnesota’s Andersen Library, exploring the archive from afar is as simple as connecting to the internet. The IHRC’s collection of digitized archival material provides a plethora of resources suitable for a variety of purposes, including the creation of curriculum for K-12 educators interested in migration history.\nWhat were characteristics of the immigrant experience? How did immigrants and refugees adjust to their new lives in the United States? Inversely, how did American citizens born in the United States react to the increased diversification of their communities, and learn to live with individuals from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds? Minnesota K-12 Academic Standards in Social Studies expect students of all grade levels to consider how immigrants and citizens alike participate in the civic lives of their communities, and to understand the steps that immigrants take to become United States citizens. Incorporating digitized archival material into lesson plans will provide opportunities for students to engage these questions, and prompt young people to begin considering the many types of common experiences that bring together people from all corners of the globe.\nIn the pages that follow, IHRC staff members have identified digitized images from the collections of the Ukrainian Folk Ballet of the Twin Cities; Immigration and Refugee Services of America; and the International Institute. Founded in 1919, the International Institute was established to provide various services for migrants who recently arrived to the United States. With branches in Minneapolis/Saint Paul, St. Louis, San Francisco, and other major U.S. cities, the International Institute continues to address the needs of the immigrants and refugees who settle in the United States.\nThe images have been organized thematically in order to initiate student discussion related to Minnesota K-12 Academic Standards and Benchmarks that address the study of migration. By incorporating these archival records into lesson plans, students will be able to think critically about the immigrant experience. Furthermore, working directly with primary sources will enable students to practice and develop research skills that will become increasingly important as they progress in their studies.\nEnglish language class\nTo discover more digital records for use in K-12 lesson plans, visit the IHRC’s portal for digital resources via the University of Minnesota’s UMedia Archive:http://ihrc.umn.edu/research/digitalsources.php\nClick here for additional resources.\nBack to the Spotlight on Selected Sources index page\nBack to all finding aids in IHRC VITRAGE."}
{"text": "The Basics of Home Canning\nI never missed the signs of summer coming to a close while I was growing up: shopping for school clothes, getting backpacks and pencils together...and the smell of boiling tomatoes, hot peppers, and pectin permeating the kitchen.\nWith eleven kids to care for, canning food was not only an event in my household, but a necessity. As soon as we saw the familiar sight of glass mason jars lining the kitchen cupboard, we knew it wouldn’t be long before we were recruited to pick tomatoes, peel peaches, or even pit cherries. Sometimes it seemed mom felt the need to can every living thing in our backyard (with the exception of the dog).\nBut those long days spent working and canning as a family built stronger relationships, even if it didn’t always build our food storage, like the time a fateful food fight left half our tomatoes on the ground instead of in the bottles.\nNo matter what produce you plan to stuff away into bottles for the winter, canning can be the ideal way to preserve those fresh foods from your garden or the local market and also provide one last activity to bring your family together before the summer ends.\nCanning requires some different utensils that you might not already have in your kitchen. Some of the necessary equipment includes: a boiling-water canner (or a big pot), mason-type jars (different sizes are available, wide-mouth jars are easiest to fill), lids and rings (you can only use the lids once), a jar lifter, and a candy thermometer.\nWashing and Sterilizing\nThis is an important step in the canning process in order to get rid of all bacteria that could contaminate your food. Wash canning jars, new lids, and metal rings in hot, soapy water or the dishwasher, and rinse them thoroughly. To sterilize the jars place them upright in the canner, cover them with hot water, and boil for 10 minutes. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions that come with your lids.\nFoods can be processed a number of different ways including: boiling-water, steam-pressure, and freezing. The recipes in this article follow the boiling-water process. To begin the boiling-water method, place a rack on the bottom of the pot to keep jars from touching the canner. Fill the canner half full with hot water and heat to 140º F for raw-packed foods, or 180º F for hot-packed foods. With the jars filled and capped, lower them into the canner with a jar lifter. Add more boiling water, if needed, so the water level is at least one inch above jar tops. Turn the heat to its highest position until water boils vigorously. Set a timer for the minutes required for processing food (according to the recipe).\nAdd more boiling water, if needed, to keep the water level above the jars. When jars have been boiled for the recommended time, turn off the heat and remove the canner lid. Using a jar lifter, remove the jars and place them on a towel, leaving at least one-inch spaces between the jars during cooling.Start Canning!\nIf you are trying to can for the first time, it would be best to start with fruit, because most use the boiling-water method. When selecting what fruits to can, select firm, ripe fruit.\nFruits are often canned in light sugar syrups. Depending on your desired taste, the amount of sugar in the syrup varies with fruits. For the recipes here, use a heaping 1/3 cup to 3/4 cup per quart of water. Place the sugar in a quart measuring pitcher and add cold water. Stir until the sugar is dissolved.\nThese are one of the most successfully canned of all foods. Wash and peel. Halve or quarter and cut out the cores. Boil gently in the syrup liquid for five minutes. Pack the hot pears in hot jars. Add the hot liquid, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Process for 20 minutes.\nDip peaches in boiling water and remove after a few seconds; slip off the skins. Cut the fruits in half and remove the pits. Place in a pan without crowding, cover with the desired liquid, and bring to a boil. Ladle the hot fruit into hot jars, packing the halves in layers, cut side down. Add the hot liquid, leaving a 1/2-inch headspace. Process for 20 minutes.\nTomatoesTomatoes are a canning favorite and can easily be canned using the boiling-water method. To peel tomatoes: Using a small knife, cut a small X in the bottom of the tomatoes; do not cut the flesh. Ease the tomatoes one by one into a pot of boiling water. Leave ripe tomatoes in for about 15 seconds, barely ripe tomatoes for twice as long. Lift them out with a slotted spoon and drop into a bowl of ice water. Pull off the skin with the tip of a knife.\nWash, peel, and cut tomatoes into halves. Put in a pan without crowding, add water to cover, and boil gently for five minutes. Pack the hot tomatoes in hot jars. Add salt to taste. Add the hot cooking liquid, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Process pints for 40 minutes in canner, quarts for 45 minutes.\nGet Yourself into a Jam\nPreserving jams can also be a rewarding and easy way to fill your food storage. Jams can be preserved through freezing or canning. For first-timers, frozen jam is generally easier to preserve, but below is also a good canned berry jam recipe for the adventurous.Strawberry Jam (frozen)\n2 cups crushed strawberries (1 qt.)\n4 cups granulated sugar\n1 box fruit pectin\nWash berries, remove stems, and crush. Measure the 2 cups of crushed berries into a large bowl. Measure the sugar into another bowl and then stir it into fruit. Set aside for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally.\nStir 1 box of fruit pectin and 3/4 cup water together in a small saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil on high heat, stirring constantly. Boil and stir for 1 minute, and remove from the heat. Stir the pectin mixture into the fruit mixture, stirring constantly until the sugar is completely dissolved and no longer grainy.\nPour quickly into clean plastic containers to within 1/2\" of the top. Wipe off the top edges of the containers and cover with the lids. Let stand at room temperature for 24 hours to set, and then refrigerate for immediate use or freeze. (Do not double this recipe; make one batch at a time.)\nBerry Jam (canned)\nPeel, core, and finely grate:\n8 ounces tart green apples\n- 2 pounds blackberries, blueberries, cranberries, elderberries, or raspberries (stemmed)\n- 1 tablespoon orange juice\n3 cups sugar\nCook together, crushing one-quarter of the berries that are in the pot, leaving the rest whole (but do not crush raspberries). Boil rapidly, stirring frequently, to the jelling point. This is the point preserves will jell once cooled; a good visual indicator is when, after boiling high and foamy in the pan, the mixture settles, and suddenly its surface is covered with furiously boiling small bubbles. You can also check using a thermometer. Jelling point is 8 to 10 degrees higher than the boiling point of water. Remove from the heat and skim off any foam before ladling into hot jars. Leave 1/4-inch headspace, and process for 10 minutes."}
{"text": "Winter Around the World:\nWhether you observe Yule, Christmas, Sol Invictus, or Hogmanay, the winter season is typically a time of celebration around the world. Traditions vary widely from one country to the next, but one thing they all have in common is the observance of customs around the time of the winter solstice. Here are some ways that residents of different countries observe the season.\nAlthought Australia is huge geographically, the population sits at under 20 million people. Many of them come from a blend of cultures and ethnic backgrounds, and celebration in December is often a mix of many different elements. Because Australia is in the southern hemisphere, December is part of the warm season. Residents still hhave Christmas trees, Father Christmas, Christmas Carols and gifts which are a familiar Christmas and gifts, as well as being visited by Father Christmas. Because it coincides with school holidays, it's not uncommon for Australians to celebrate the season on vacation away from home.\nIn China, only about two percent of the population observes Christmas as a religious holiday, although it is gaining in popularity as a commercial event. However, the main winter festival in China is New Year celebration that occurs at the end of January. Recently, it's become known as the Spring Festival, and is a time of gift-giving and feasting. A key aspect of the Chinese New Year is ancestor worship, and painings and portraits are brought out and honored in the family's home.\nIn Denmark, Christmas Eve dinner is a big cause for celebration. The most anticipated part of the meal is the traditional rice pudding, baked with a single almond inside. Whichever guest gets the almond in his pudding is guaranteed good luck for the coming year. Children leave out glasses of milk for the Juulnisse, which are elves that live in peoples' homes, and for Julemanden, the Danish version of Santa Claus.\nThe Finns have a tradition of resting and relaxing on Christmas Day. The night before, on Christmas Eve, is really the time of the big feast -- and leftovers are consumed the next day. On December 26, the day of St. Stephen the Martyr, everyone goes out and visits friends and relatives, weather permitting. One fun custom is that of Glogg parties, which involve the drinking of Glogg, a mulled wine made from Madeira, and the eating of lots of baked treats.\nChristmas was typically not a huge holiday in Greece, as it is in North America. However, the recognition of St. Nicholas has always been important, because he was the patron saint of sailors, among other things. Hearth fires burn for several days between December 25 and January 6, and a sprig of basil is wrapped around a wooden cross to protect the home from the Killantzaroi, which are negative spirits that only appear during the twelve days after Christmas. Gifts are exchanged on January 1, which is St. Basil's day.\nIndia's Hindu population typically observes this time of year by placing clay oil lamps on the roof in honor of the return of the sun. The country's Christians celebrate by decorating mango and banana trees, and adorning homes with red flowers, such as the poinsettia. Gifts are exchanged with family and friends, and baksheesh, or charity, is given to the poor and needy.\nIn Italy, there is the legend of La Befana, a kind old witch who travels the earth giving gifts to children. It is said that the three Magi stopped on their way to Bethlehem and asked her for shelter for a night. She rejected them, but later realized she'd been quite rude. However, when she went to call them back, they had gone. Now she travels the world, searching, and delivering gifts to all the children.\nIn Romania, people still observe an old fertility ritual which probably pre-dates Christianity. A woman bakes a confection called a turta, made of pastry dough and filled with melted sugar and honey. Before baking the cake, as the wife is kneading the dough, she follows her husband outdoors. The man goes from one barren tree to another, threatening to cut each down. Each time, the wife begs him to spare the tree, saying, \"Oh no, I am sure this tree will be as heavy with fruit next spring as my fingers are with dough today.\" The man relents, the wife bakes the turta, and the trees are spared for another year.\nIn Scotland, the big holiday is that of Hogmanay. On Hogmanay, which is observed on December 31, festivities typically spill over into the first couple of days of January. There's a tradition known as \"first-footing\", in which the first person to cross a home's threshold brings the residents good luck for the coming year -- as long as the guest is dark-haired and male. The tradition stems from back when a red- or blonde-haired stranger was probably an invading Norseman."}
{"text": "Pricing in the sky\nMany policy problems (from road congestion to water and electricity shortages) can be greatly improved through the proper application of a simple concept–pricing. In this USA Today article, Reason's Bob Poole explains how to apply pricing to air traffic control: By charging planes to use the most congested airports and airways, the system would give its customers economic incentives to reschedule flight times or choose less-congested airports without such charges. That easing of demand would provide breathing room to address the looming shortfalls in air-traffic-control capacity. All sorts of new technology can increase this capacity, both cross-country and on the approaches to airport runways. \"Synthetic vision\" systems can permit pilots to land at socked-in airports at nearly the same rate as in clear weather. So the air-traffic system need not break down just because Chicago has a bad-weather day. Other advanced technologies can reduce the size of the protective bubble needed around planes en route to keep them safely separated."}
{"text": "The eye of a hurricane passes over Grand Bahama Island in a\ndirection 60.0° north of west with a speed of 41.0 km/h. Three\nhours later, the course of the hurricane suddenly shifts due north,\nand its speed slows to 25.0 km/h. How far from Grand Bahama is the\nhurricane 4.50 h after it passes over the island?"}
{"text": "Lesson 1: Why Pray?\nThis first lesson of a series of three will introduce children to the importance of prayer in their daily lives.\nChristian Living, Knowing God, Listening, Prayer, Relationships\nAS KIDS ARRIVE (10 minutes)\nDisplay the following items on a table:\nTelephone Newspaper Letters & Envelopes Road Map Radio\nAs the children arrive, give them a sheet of paper and ask them to list what they think the items on the table have in common. Just before class starts let the kids know that all the things displayed on the table are used to communicate with each other. Today our lesson is about another way we communicate. More specifically, it is about how we communicate with God.\nOPENING PRAYER AND PRAISE (5 minutes)\nFurther info? Click here\nMEMORY WORK (12 minutes)\n\"You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart\" Jeremiah 29:13\nWrite the verse on the board. Say the verse together as a group several times. Then erase one word. Have the kids say the verse correctly again with the missing word. Then erase another word and say the verse again. Continue erasing words until the kids can say the entire verse without seeing the words.\nSCRIPTURE READING AND DISCUSSION (15 minutes)\nToday we will learn that prayer is communicating or talking with God. We may not be able to call God on the telephone or send Him a letter, but prayer is just as real as e-mail or newspapers. Why should we pray? Because it makes our relationship with God stronger. Could you imagine trying to have a best friend without communicating with them? Prayer is seeking God and His direction for our lives. Praying also helps keep us out of trouble. Jesus told us to pray, \"Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.\" (Matthew 26:41)\nRead James 5:13-16 (The Prayer of Faith)\nHave the kids find James 5:13-16 in their Bibles. Ask for a volunteer to read the passage, or if you prefer, read the passage to the children yourself.\n1. What is prayer? (Prayer is spiritual communication between ourselves and God.)\n2. Can you pray when you are in trouble? (Yes.)\n3. Can you pray when you are happy? (Yes.)\n4. What is another name for happy prayers? (Praises.)\n5. What are some of the examples of why to pray mentioned in James 5:13-16? (When you are in trouble, when you are happy, when you are sick, to show faith, for confession of sin, and to pray for others.)\n6. What else can we pray for? (Some examples include: Guidance, Protection, Strength, Wisdom.)\n7. Is the prayer of a righteous man powerful? Is it effective? (Yes the Bible tells us in James 5:16b that the prayers of the righteous are both powerful and effective.)\nCLASS EXERCISE (5 minutes)\nAnswers Without Speaking (Activity) Click here\nALTERNATE CLASS EXERCISE (5 minutes)\nSo Don't Worry (Activity) Click here\nAPPLICATION (2 minutes)\nWhy pray? It's simple, to talk with God and to get His direction for our lives. God is so good and will help us when we are happy, sad, sick or even when we're in trouble. God will give us wisdom, strength and understanding if we only ask Him. In fact God is willing to give us many good things as long as we ask for them in accordance to His Will. God answers our prayers with signs, the Holy Spirit and His Word, the Bible. When we pray our relationship with God grows.\nDid you ever see a human that thought he was a robot? If not, be sure to come back next week.\nCLOSING PRAYER (2 minutes)\nFurther info? Click here"}
{"text": "Constitution of Oregon: 2011 Version\nSec. 1. Election to accept or reject Constitution\n2. Questions submitted to voters\n3. Majority of votes required to accept or reject Constitution\n4. Vote on certain sections of Constitution\n5. Apportionment of Senators and Representatives\n6. Election under Constitution; organization of state\n7. Former laws continued in force\n8. Officers to continue in office\n9. Crimes against territory\n10. Saving existing rights and liabilities\n11. Judicial districts\nSection 1. Election to accept or reject Constitution. For the purpose of taking the vote of the electors of the State, for the acceptance or rejection of this Constitution, an election shall be held on the second Monday of November, in the year 1857, to be conducted according to existing laws regulating the election of Delegates in Congress, so far as applicable, except as herein otherwise provided.\nSection 2. Questions submitted to voters. Each elector who offers to vote upon this Constitution, shall be asked by the judges of election this question:\nDo you vote for the Constitution? Yes, or No.\nAnd also this question:\nDo you vote for Slavery in Oregon? Yes, or No.\nAnd in the poll books shall be columns headed respectively.\n“Constitution, Yes.” “Constitution, No\"\n“Slavery, Yes.\" “Slavery, No.\"\nAnd the names of the electors shall be entered in the poll books, together with their answers to the said questions, under their appropriate heads. The abstracts of the votes transmitted to the Secretary of the Territory, shall be publicly opened, and canvassed by the Governor and Secretary, or by either of them in the absence of the other; and the Governor, or in his absence the Secretary, shall forthwith issue his proclamation, and publish the same in the several newspapers printed in this State, declaring the result of the said election upon each of said questions. [Constitution of 1859; Amendment proposed by S.J.R. 7, 2001, and adopted by the people Nov. 5, 2002]\nSection 3. Majority of votes required to accept or reject Constitution. If a majority of all the votes given for, and against the Constitution, shall be given for the Constitution, then this Constitution shall be deemed to be approved, and accepted by the electors of the State, and shall take effect accordingly; and if a majority of such votes shall be given against the Constitution, then this Constitution shall be deemed to be rejected by the electors of the State, and shall be void.–\nSection 4. Vote on certain sections of Constitution. If this Constitution shall be accepted by the electors, and a majority of all the votes given for, and against slavery, shall be given for slavery, then the following section shall be added to the Bill of Rights, and shall be part of this Constitution:\n“Sec. ___ “Persons lawfully held as slaves in any State, Territory, or District of the United States, under the laws thereof, may be brought into this State, and such Slaves, and their descendants may be held as slaves within this State, and shall not be emancipated without the consent of their owners.”\nAnd if a majority of such votes shall be given against slavery, then the foregoing section shall not, but the following sections shall be added to the Bill of Rights, and shall be a part of this Constitution.\n“Sec. ___ There shall be neither slavery, nor involuntary servitude in the State, otherwise than as a punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted.” [Constitution of 1859; Amendment proposed by S.J.R. 7, 2001, and adopted by the people Nov. 5, 2002]\nNote: See sections 34 and 35 of Article I, Oregon Constitution.\nSection 5. Apportionment of Senators and Representatives. Until an enumeration of the inhabitants of the State shall be made, and the senators and representatives apportioned as directed in the Constitution, the County of Marion shall have two senators, and four representatives.\nLinn two senators, and four representatives.\nLane two senators, and three representatives.\nClackamas and Wasco, one senator jointly, and Clackamas three representatives, and Wasco one representative.\nYamhill one senator, and two representatives.\nPolk one senator, and two representatives.\nBenton one senator, and two representatives.\nMultnomah, one senator, and two representatives.\nWashington, Columbia, Clatsop, and Tillamook one senator jointly, and Washington one representative, and Washington and Columbia one representative jointly, and Clatsop and Tillamook one representative jointly.\nDouglas, one senator, and two representatives.\nJackson one senator, and three representatives.\nJosephine one senator, and one representative.\nUmpqua, Coos and Curry, one senator jointly, and Umpqua one representative, and Coos and Curry one representative jointly. [Constitution of 1859; Amendment proposed by S.J.R. 7, 2001, and adopted by the people Nov. 5, 2002]\nSection 6. Election under Constitution; organization of state. If this Constitution shall be ratified, an election shall be held on the first Monday of June 1858, for the election of members of the Legislative Assembly, a Representative in Congress, and State and County officers, and the Legislative Assembly shall convene at the Capital on the first Monday of July 1858, and proceed to elect two senators in Congress, and make such further provision as may be necessary to the complete organization of a State government.–\nSection 7. Former laws continued in force. All laws in force in the Territory of Oregon when this Constitution takes effect, and consistent therewith, shall continue in force until altered, or repealed.–\nSection 8. Officers to continue in office. All officers of the Territory of Oregon, or under its laws, when this Constitution takes effect, shall continue in office, until superseded by the State authorities.–\nSection 9. Crimes against territory. Crimes and misdemeanors committed against the Territory of Oregon shall be punished by the State, as they might have been punished by the Territory, if the change of government had not been made.–\nSection 10. Saving existing rights and liabilities. All property and rights of the Territory, and of the several counties, subdivisions, and political bodies corporate, of, or in the Territory, including fines, penalties, forfeitures, debts and claims, of whatsoever nature, and recognizances, obligations, and undertakings to, or for the use of the Territory, or any county, political corporation, office, or otherwise, to or for the public, shall inure to the State, or remain to the county, local division, corporation, officer, or public, as if the change of government had not been made. And private rights shall not be affected by such change.–\nSection 11. Judicial districts. Until otherwise provided by law, the judicial districts of the State, shall be constituted as follows: The counties of Jackson, Josephine, and Douglas, shall constitute the first district. The counties of Umpqua, Coos, Curry, Lane, and Benton, shall constitute the second district.–The counties of Linn, Marion, Polk, Yamhill and Washington, shall constitute the third district.–The counties of Clackamas, Multnomah, Wasco, Columbia, Clatsop, and Tillamook, shall constitute the fourth district–and the County of Tillamook shall be attached to the county of Clatsop for judicial purposes.–"}
{"text": "Want to stay on top of all the space news? Follow @universetoday on TwitterSedimentary rock covers 70% of the Earth. Erosion is constantly changing the face of the Earth. Weathering agents…wind, water, and ice…break rock into smaller pieces that flow down waterways until the settle to the bottom permanently. These sediments( pebbles, sand, clay, and gravel) pile up and for new layers. After hundred or thousands of years these rocks become pressed together to form sedimentary rock.\nSedimentary rock can form in two different ways. When layer after layer of sediment forms it puts pressure on the lower layers which then form into a solid piece of rock. The other way is called cementing. Certain minerals in the water interact to form a bond between rocks. This process is similar to making modern cement. Any animal carcasses or organisms that are caught in the layers of sediment will eventually turn into fossils. Sedimentary rock is the source of quite a few of our dinosaur findings.\nThere are four common types of sedimentary rock: sandstone, limestone, shale, and conglomerate. Each is formed in a different way from different materials. Sandstone is formed when grains of sand are pressed together. Sandstone may be the most common type of rock on the planet. Limestone is formed by the tiny pieces of shell that have been cemented together over the years. Conglomerate rock consists of sand and pebbles that have been cemented together. Shale forms under still waters like those found in bogs or swamps. The mud and clay at the bottom is pressed together to form it.\nSedimentary rock has the following general characteristics:\n- it is classified by texture and composition\n- it often contains fossils\n- occasionally reacts with acid\n- has layers that can be flat or curved\n- it is usually composed of material that is cemented or pressed together\n- a great variety of color\n- particle size varies\n- there are pores between pieces\n- can have cross bedding, worm holes, mud cracks, and raindrop impressions\nThis is only meant to be a brief introduction to sedimentary rock. There are many more in depth articles and entire books that have been written on the subject. Here is a link to a very interesting introduction to rocks. Here on Universe Today there is a great article on how sedimentary rock show very old signs of life. Astronomy Cast has a good episode on the Earth’s formation."}
{"text": "What can be learned from the post-election crisis in Greece?\nThe traditional political establishment in Greece buckled under the weight of crippling austerity and a mass people’s movement when the country went to the polls May 6. Now that the voting is over, and attempts to form a government have failed, another election must be held, scheduled for June 17, raising new questions about the way forward for the Greek working class. The crisis deepens as panicking Greeks withdraw their savings from banks on the brink of collapse.\nSince the fall of the U.S.-backed military dictatorship that ruled Greece from 1967-1974, two parties, PASOK and New Democracy, have dominated the political scene. However, both parties had their worst showing ever, and combined were only able to muster 32 percent of the vote, down from 77 percent in 2009. Instead, support grew for parties of both the left and the far right. With parliament deadlocked, unable to form a new governing coalition, a new election is pending and there is a distinct possibility of a protracted political crisis and a sharp polarization that provides an opportunity for the working class to decisively assert itself.\nBackground to the elections\nSince the worldwide capitalist economic crisis began in 2007-2008, several countries in the eurozone, which all operate with the common euro currency, have experienced severe debt crises. These national economies are more intimately linked than ever before—which was supposed to be the benefit of the eurozone—so the problems of one immediately threatens the rest.\nGermany, the strongest capitalist economy of the eurozone, along with the imperialist U.S., have been working hard to force economic restructuring on the most indebted countries, offering bailouts in exchange for severe cuts to social welfare programs and other austerity measures. They have worked through three main entities: the U.S.-dominated International Monetary Fund, the European Union and the European Central Bank, collectively referred to as the “Troika.” Over the last two years, the Troika has arranged for around €240 billion ($305 billion) in bailout funds for Greece to service its massive debt. In exchange, the Greek ruling class forced through devastating cuts that have led to repeated strikes and militant popular mobilizations.\nThe Troika has worked hand in hand with the Greek ruling class, which, while claiming to “understand” the opposition of the people, claims that austerity is a difficult but necessary step toward economic revival. The other option, they claim, is complete collapse. It is a story poor and working people across the world are familiar with, including in the United States.\nNarrowly winning first place in the elections was New Democracy, a center-right party that was part of the existing government led by Lucas Papademos. An unelected banker, Papademos was appointed to lead the government through its unpopular debt deal. New Democracy campaigned on a platform of supporting the extreme austerity measures imposed by the Troika, and promised only to try to renegotiate some of the more painful terms of the debt deal.\nThe other pro-austerity party, the misnamed Pan-Hellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK), came in third for the first time in the party’s history. PASOK is led by Evangelos Venizelos, the finance minister under the two previous governments. Venizelos was one of the main architects of the austerity “memorandum” and offered only a pitiful pledge that he would ask the country’s creditors to give them three years, rather than two, to reach absurdly unrealistic economic benchmarks.\nGains on the left\nThe biggest surprise of the election was the second-place finish of the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA), with 16.8 percent of the vote. SYRIZA is a collection of small communist tendencies and a larger reformist party that split from the Communist Party of Greece after the fall of the Soviet Union. SYRIZA is led by Alexis Tsipras, a former Communist Youth leader who has received significant international press attention. SYRIZA calls for canceling the bailout deal but keeping Greece inside the eurozone and European Union. This, it says, can be achieved through negotiations with the Troika and through nationalization of the Greek banking sector.\nAlthough there are revolutionary forces within SYRIZA, the dominant line at present is fundamentally social democratic. The “peaceful revolution” they have declared mutes the questions of socialism and working-class power, and raises hopes in a radically reformed capitalism. For example, Tsipras stated in a letter to high-ranking European Union officials, “We must urgently protect the economic and social stability of our country. … It is our duty to re-examine the whole framework of the existing strategy, given that it not only threatens social cohesion and stability in Greece but is a source of instability for the European Union.” While SYRIZA’s leadership wants to reverse austerity, its appeal to “social cohesion and stability” means “stability” under a reformed capitalism.\nThe second most popular party on the left was the Communist Party of Greece (KKE), which registered a modest increase of 1 percent from their previous election result, ending up with 8.5 percent. This was below the 10-12 percent that most opinion polls predicted. The KKE put forward a platform calling for the socialization of the means of production under a “working class-people’s power” government. Of the left groups in parliament, the Communist Party is the only one to call for Greece to leave the European Union, a bloc of the major imperialist and peripheral capitalist states of Europe.\nThe KKE has played a major role in the massive fight-back movement waged by the Greek working class and especially in its advocacy for general strikes. It intervenes through mass organizations like the All-Workers Militant Front (PAME) in the labor movement, the Greek Women’s Federation and the Students Struggle Front, among others.\nThe lowest scoring of the three left parties was Democratic Left, a split to the right from SYRIZA formed in 2010. It only received 6.1 percent of the vote, but its leader Fotis Kouvelis is often ranked as the most popular politician in Greece by opinion polls. Democratic Left rejects the memorandum, but makes sure to balance its criticism of austerity with pledges of absolute loyalty to the eurozone.\nMajor gains for far right and fascists\nFar-right forces experienced major gains in the election as well. The semi-fascist Popular Orthodox Rally suffered as punishment for its participation in the previous government, but new forces emerged. Independent Greeks, a split from New Democracy, came in fourth with 10.6 percent. The party rejects the austerity memorandum on nationalistic grounds and relies on anti-German and anti-Turkish demagogy in place of a specific political program.\nThe story that has perhaps gotten the most foreign press attention is the entrance of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party into parliament with 7 percent of the vote, more than 20 times their score in 2009. Its logo is an ancient Greek symbol similar to a swastika, and until recently Adolf Hitler’s manifesto Mein Kampf was displayed prominently at the party’s headquarters.\nGolden Dawn campaigned on a platform of expelling all immigrants from Greece and national chauvinist opposition to the Troika. While some voters were attracted to its racist rhetoric and acts of violence against immigrants, Golden Dawn bought the loyalty of others by operating food banks during a time of growing hunger.\nThe fascists’ success is a serious threat to the working class and all democratic forces in Greece. While its 7 percent may appear small, it is precisely under these polarized economic and political conditions, when the capitalist class cannot achieve stable rule through democratic means, that fascism has historically grown and taken power.\nThe main bourgeois parties cynically used the threat of Golden Dawn to present the false dilemma of austerity or a descent into fascism. But in reality, these mainstream parties’ promotion of anti-immigrant racism gave Golden Dawn political space to grow. Moreover, if it appeared that the working class could potentially become the ruling power in Greece, the bourgeoisie could accept, if not turn to, a fascist coup.\nThat the Greek ruling class has operated under fascist military rule before makes such a scenario all the more plausible.\nIt is up to the revolutionary left and the working class to develop a program and plan of action to smash fascism politically and in the streets.\nA ‘government of the left’?\nA central component of the SYRIZA campaign was its appeal for the formation of a “government of the left,” encompassing all the left forces opposed to the Troika. The formation of such a government was impossible given the election results and highly implausible given Greece’s undemocratic electoral laws governing coalitions. But SYRIZA’s call for a government of the left clearly resonated with much of the working class and contributed to its success. If SYRIZA were to emerge in first place in the June election, as presently projected, the left could achieve such a majority.\nSYRIZA leader Tsipras and other social-democratic proponents of a government of the left argue that it would be able to cancel the memorandum, reverse the wave of austerity measures, potentially nationalize the banks and rebuild the Greek economy in a way that strengthens the working class. SYRIZA makes the case that the European ruling class would never let Greece default and exit the eurozone because of the economic havoc this would create in other heavily indebted states like Spain and Italy. In short, Tsipras pledges to reverse the balance of forces inside the eurozone; instead of the Troika forcing Greece into deeper austerity, Greece would leverage its power against the Troika.\nWhile the Troika obviously wants to avoid a complete Greek default (lenders have already accepted a 53.5 percent write-down on the debt), they have had the last two years to prepare for this eventuality. The centerpiece of the European ruling class’ preparations is the European Financial Stability Facility, a $976 billion bailout fund, meant to act as a “firewall” to counter the immediate effects of a Greek bankruptcy. With this in place, there is a small but growing tendency of capitalist financiers who believe that if Greece were expelled, the eurozone would “end up stronger once the dust had settled.”\nTsipras insists that Greece can out-negotiate the international capitalists, rather than calling for the socialist reorganization of society. He raises unrealistic expectations among the oppressed in electoral and bourgeois political gamesmanship, rather than raising the possibility of a new class power.\nWhy revolution is necessary\nBy contrast, the KKE has called the “government of the left” idea a false hope that will lead to disillusionment. The KKE rejects possible participation in a left government, insisting that such a government will leave the capitalist state and the for-profit economic system intact, keep Greece bound to the imperialist institutions of the EU and NATO, and thus cannot resolve the central contradictions at the heart of the political crisis.\nMore broadly, they explain that the social-democratic program, which arose in the post-war period of capitalist expansion, cannot be achieved in the context of protracted capitalist crisis and neoliberal financial control. They have called the SYRIZA plan opportunist, betraying the long-term interests and political clarity of the working class in exchange for short-term gains for particular leftist parties.\nThis raises the age-old but still pivotal question of reform and revolution: Does the working class have the capacity to come to power, and how so? Can the capitalist system be reformed to resolve the exploitation at its center? How far can revolutionary organizations go at this time?\nSeveral organizations in Greece—including the KKE—have made the case that the political crisis of the bourgeois class has matured to the point of a revolutionary situation, opening the possibility for the transfer of power to the working class in alliance with middle-class strata.\nRevolutionaries, of course, fight for reforms that improve the conditions of the working class and facilitate the political struggle against the ruling class. But a central responsibility is to assess whether the conditions for revolution are approaching, to hasten their development and prepare for such an opportunity.\nThe basic contradiction in capitalist society is that the productive process is socialized, involving millions of workers, while ownership is private, concentrated in a tiny ruling class. The capitalists control the means of production and distribution, as well as countless financial mechanisms, to squeeze profits out of workers and maintain their political and economic power. The capitalist state (the police, military and courts) allows them to safeguard this system with force, while the government provides for its administration.\nA change in administration, like the ascent of a government of the left, will not alter the fundamental underlying character of the state. This can only be achieved by the overthrow of the capitalist state and its replacement by a worker’s state based on independent organs of working-class power—a socialist revolution.\nElections and the revolutionary process\nSome communist tendencies support the formation of a government of the left for this reason—not because it would solve the crisis, but because it would further polarize the country and hasten the development of a revolutionary situation.\nThere can be no doubt that the formation of a SYRIZA-KKE-Democratic Left coalition would cause considerable panic among the Greek and European ruling class, and new bouts of intense class struggle.\nHistory has shown that revolutions can take many paths and tactical turns. In Venezuela, the election of President Hugo Chávez, a socialist presiding over a fundamentally capitalist state, undoubtedly gave a boost to the class struggle and the regroupment of revolutionary forces in the country.\nIn Nepal, Maoists waged a triumphant revolutionary war against the feudal king that resulted in a negotiated peace and the Maoists’ subsequent election to lead a bourgeois government. Their decision to dissolve their armed forces remains the subject of considerable debate among revolutionaries. Neither country, despite heroic advances, has established socialism.\nBut for a Greek left government to be a vehicle of revolution, instead of demobilization, demoralization and disillusionment, a left-wing government would need to have clear programmatic unity around the socialization of the means of production, centralized planning, workers’ political power, and so on. It would need to organize the people to take on the police and the military that their own left-unity government would be associated with and nominally leading.\nOtherwise, when a revolutionary situation emerged it would only disorient the movement and contribute to the persistence of reformist illusions.\nSYRIZA has been silent or worse on these critical questions. In the run-up to the elections, Tsipras said: “A government of the left is in need of industrialists and investors. It needs a healthy business climate.” In other words, his version of a government of the left would not challenge the capitalists’ right to exploit labor.\nThe capitalist establishment has reciprocated, and the Federation of Hellenic Enterprises (SEV), the Greek equivalent of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, has called for the formation of a national unity government including SYRIZA.\nTsipras called the election results a “peaceful revolution,” a slogan that misleadingly suggests the electoral realm, rather than continued mass struggle, can provide a way out of the crisis for working people.\nThe revolutionary crisis and dual power\nWhile support for SYRIZA is likely to increase in the coming election, it is doubtful the new election will produce a clear winner or workable coalition. In the face of the increased likelihood of exiting the eurozone, which would deepen the economic and political crisis, the class struggle will intensify.\nWith the bourgeoisie so thoroughly discredited, and the Greek masses so clearly calling for an alternative way, the revolutionary left has an opportunity to offer a program that provides not only short-term relief, but also a longer-term vision of a new economic and political system. The question is how to mobilize the working class and broadly unite the revolutionary forces in a struggle to achieve this.\nHistorically, a key phase in any revolutionary crisis is that of dual power. By organizing what is essentially a second, rival state built on organs of mass struggle, revolutionaries can show concretely what working-class or people’s power looks like and offers. In the Russian Revolution, this took the form of councils of workers and soldiers (called soviets). In China, the Red Army itself functioned as a government in the areas that it liberated. Revolutionaries have also convened constituent assemblies—to rewrite the constitution—as a way to articulate, and establish the legitimacy of, a new political vision.\nClearly, there are millions in Greece who are still holding out hope that the existing capitalist government and state, perhaps with left-wing leadership, can deliver the goods. To this end, a sophisticated political struggle, backed by a concrete plan of action, must be waged against Tsipras and the social-democratic fantasies he projects. In his “April Theses,” designed to guide the Bolsheviks through Russia’s revolutionary crisis, Lenin called for “patient, systematic, and persistent explanation … especially adapted to the practical needs of the masses.”\nCan the struggle in the streets break the deadlock in parliament? Will alternatives to bourgeois state power be built? The Greek working class has found itself on the frontline of the international struggle against capitalism, and the answers to these questions will resonate around the world.\nFor revolutionaries in the United States, our main role is not to endorse this or that organization and its tactics from afar. Our chief responsibilities are 1) to explain that the Greek crisis is a result of the contradictions of capitalism, not reckless social spending, 2) to defend the unfolding Greek revolution, especially as it could escalate and be slanderously attacked in the imperialist media and even militarily assaulted by U.S.-NATO forces, and 3) to study and learn from the complex revolutionary process that our brothers and sisters are trying to navigate.\nWhile their process is far more advanced than our own, their struggle is ours—and we have much to learn from it."}
{"text": "Genital/ perigenital infection caused by the yeast-like fungus Candida albicans or occasionally by other species of Candida. Vulvovaginitis due to Candida presents with an erythema of the vaginal mucous membrane and the vulval skin, itching, soreness, and with a thick, creamy-white discharge. There may be spread on to the perineum and into the groins. In Candida balanitis, tiny papules develop on the glans penis, evolve as white pustules or vesicles and rupture, leaving a peeling edge. Involvement of groins sometimes coexists. Perianal candidiasis presents with erythema, soreness and irritation, and subsequent spread along the natal cleft is common.\nCandidosis, Genital/Perigenital, Kolpitis Candidomycetica, Vulvitis Candidomycetica"}
{"text": "Cremation to a Child\nWhen a deceased family member or friend is cremated or already\nhas been cremated, your child may want to know what cremation is.\nIn answering your child's questions about cremation, keep your\nexplanation of what cremation involves simple and easy to\nIn explaining cremation to your child, avoid using words that\nmay have a frightening connotation such as \"fire\" and \"burn.\"\nInstead, in a straightforward manner, tell your child that the\ndeceased body, enclosed in a casket or container, is taken to a\nplace called a crematory where it goes through a special process\nthat reduces it to small particles resembling fine gray or white\nsand. Be sure to point out that a dead body feels no pain.\nLet your child know that these cremated remains are placed in a\ncontainer called an urn and returned to the family. If cremation\nhas already taken place and the container picked up, you may want\nto show it to the child. Because children are curious, your child\nmay want to look at the contents.\nIf your child makes such a request, look at them yourself first\nso that you can describe what they look like. Share this with your\nchild. Then let the child decide whether to proceed further.\nIf possible, arrange for a time when you and your child can be\nwith the body before cremation is carried out. If handled\ncorrectly, this time can be a positive experience for the child. It\ncan provide an opportunity for the child to say \"good-bye\" and\naccept the reality of death. However, the viewing of the body\nshould not be forced. Use your best judgment on whether or not this\nshould be done.\nDepending on the age of your child, you may wish to include him\nor her in the planning of what will be done with the cremated\nremains. Before you do this, familiarize yourself with the many\ntypes of cremation memorials available. Some of the many options to\nconsider include burying the remains in a family burial plot,\ninterring them in an urn garden that many cemeteries have, or\nplacing the urn in a columbarium niche.\nDefined as a recessed compartment, the niche may be an open\nfront protected by glass or a closed front faced with bronze,\nmarble, or granite. (An arrangement of niches is called a\ncolumbarium, which may be an entire building, a room, a bank along\na corridor, or a series of special indoor alcoves. It also may be\npart of an outdoor setting such as a garden wall.)\nAlthough your child may not completely understand these or other\noptions for memorialization, being involved in the planning helps\nestablish a sense of comfort and understanding that life goes on\neven though someone loved has died.\nIf you incur any difficulties in explaining death or cremation\nto your child, you may wish to consult a child guidance counselor\nwho specializes in these areas."}
{"text": "Australian Bureau of Statistics\n6202.0 - Labour Force, Australia, Jun 2012 Quality Declaration\nPrevious ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 12/07/2012\n|Page tools: Print Page Print All RSS Search this Product|\nUNDERSTANDING THE AUSTRALIAN LABOUR FORCE USING ABS STATISTICS\nIn order to understand what is happening in Australian society, or our economy, it is helpful to understand people’s patterns of work, unemployment and retirement. ABS statistics can help to build this picture. Fifty years ago, the majority of Australians who worked were men working full-time. Most worked well into their 60s, sometimes beyond, and if they were not working most were out looking for work until that age. The picture now is very different. Far more people work part-time, or in temporary or casual jobs. Retirement ages vary much more, with a greater proportion of men not participating in the labour force once they are older than 55. Nowadays. 45% of working Australians are women, compared with just 30% fifty years ago. These are profound changes that have helped shape 21st Century Australia. This note explains some of the key labour force figures the ABS produces that can be used to obtain a better picture of the labour market.\nEvery month, the ABS runs a Labour Force Survey across Australia covering almost 30,000 homes as well as a selection of hotels, hospitals, boarding schools, colleges, prisons and Indigenous communities. Apart from the Census, the Labour Force Survey is the largest household collection undertaken by the ABS. Data are collected for about 60,000 people and these people live in a broad range of areas and have diverse backgrounds - they are a very good representation of the Australian population. From this information, the ABS produces a wide variety of statistics that paint a picture of the labour market. Most statistics are produced using established international standards, to ensure they can be easily compared with the rest of the world. The ABS has also introduced new statistics in recent years that bring to light further aspects of the labour market. It can be informative to look at all of these indicators to get a grasp of what is happening, particularly when the economy is changing quickly.\nOne thing to remember about the ABS labour force figures is that when a publication states that, for example, 11.4 million Australians are employed, the ABS has not actually checked with each and every one of these people. In common with most statistics produced, the ABS surveys a sample of people across Australia and then scales up the results – based on the latest population figures - to give a total for the whole country. Because the figures are from a sample, they are subject to possible error. The Labour Force Survey is a large one, so the error is minimised. The ABS provides information about the possible size of the error to help users understand how reliable the estimates are.\nThe above diagram shows the break down of the civilian population into the\ndifferent groups of labour force participation. Each pixel represents about\n1000 people as at September 2011.\nAccording to established international standards, everyone who works for at least one hour or more for pay or profit is considered to be employed. This includes everyone from teenagers who work part-time after school, to a partially retired grandparent helping out at the school canteen. While it is unreasonable to expect a family to survive on the income of an hour of work per week, one could also argue that all work, no matter how small, contributes to the economy. This definition of 'one hour or more' - which is an international standard - means that ABS' employment figures can be compared with the rest of the world. Now it is, of course, easy to argue that someone who works 2 or 3 hours per week is not really “employed”. But a definition is required. And any cut-off point is open to debate. Imagine if ABS defined being ‘employed’ as working 15 hours a week. Would it be reasonable to argue that someone who works 14.5 hours is unemployed, but 15 hours is not? It is also a mistake to assume that all persons who work low hours would prefer to work longer hours, and are therefore 'hidden' unemployment. Most people who work less than 15 hours a week are not seeking additional hours, although of course there are some who are. The issue of underemployment is further discussed below.\nRather than open up such discussions, the ABS prefers to use the international standard and the ABS also encourages people to consider other indicators to form a better picture of what is happening. Alongside the total employed figures, full-time and part-time estimates are provided to better inform on the different kinds of employment, and a detailed breakdown by the number of hours worked is also provided to allow for customised definitions of 'employment.'\nCommentators often refer to the rise in employment as the number of new jobs created each month. This can be misleading, because the ABS doesn't actually measure the number of jobs. This might sound like semantics, but if a person in the Labour Force Survey who is employed gains a second part-time job at the same time as their main job, this would have no impact on the employment estimate - the Labour Force Survey does not count jobs, it counts people.\nIt is also important to bear in mind that if the relative growth in population is greater than the number of new people in employment, there might actually be an increase in the employment figure, but a lower percentage of people with jobs. It is often informative to look at the proportion of people in employment. This measure, called the employment to population ratio, is the number of employed people expressed as a percentage of the civilian population aged over 15. This removes the impact of population growth to give a better picture of labour market dynamics over time.\nAGGREGATE MONTHLY HOURS WORKED\nInstead of counting how many people are working, another way of looking at how much Australians are working is to count the total number of hours worked by everyone. This is measured by a statistic produced by the ABS called Aggregate monthly hours worked, and it is measured in millions of hours. This can sometimes be more revealing of what is happening in the labour market, particularly in a weakening economy where a fall in hours worked can usually be seen before any fall in the number of people employed.\nPEOPLE WHO ARE NOT WORKING: THE UNEMPLOYED AND OTHERS\nThere are many reasons why Australians do not work. Some have retired and are not interested in going back to work. Some are staying home to look after children and plan on going back to work once the kids have grown older. Some are out canvassing for work every day while others have given up looking. The ABS separates all of these people into those who are unemployed and those who are not by asking two simple questions: If you were given a job today, could you start straight away? and Have you taken active steps to look for work? Only those who are ready to get back into work, and are taking active steps to find a job, are classed as unemployed.\nSome people might like to work, but are not currently available to work - such as a parent who is busy looking after small children. Other people might want to work but have given up actively looking for work - such as a discouraged job seeker who only half-heartedly glances at the job adds in the newspaper but doesn't call or submit any applications. These people are not considered to be unemployed, but are regarded as being marginally attached to the labour force. They can be thought of as 'potentially unemployed' when, or if, their circumstances change, but are regarded as being on the fringe of labour force participation until then.\nIt is important to note that the ABS unemployment figures are not the same as the data that Centrelink collects on the number of people receiving unemployment benefits. The ABS bases its figures on asking people directly about their availability and steps to find work. In this way, policy decisions about, for example, the criteria for the receipt of unemployment benefits have no impact on the way that the unemployment figures are measured.\nLABOUR FORCE AND PARTICIPATION RATE\nThe size of the labour force is a measure of the total number of people in Australia who are willing and able to work. It includes everyone who is working or actively looking for work - that is, the number of employed and unemployed together as one group. The percentage of the total population who are in the labour force is known as the participation rate.\nThe unemployment rate is the percentage of people in the labour force who are unemployed. This is a popular measure around the world for tracking a country’s economic health as it removes all the people who are not participating (such as those who are retired). Because the unemployment rate is expressed as a percentage, it is not directly influenced by population growth.\nThe underemployment rate is a useful companion to the unemployment rate. Instead of looking at the people who are unemployed, the underemployment rate captures those who are currently employed, but are willing and able to work more hours. It highlights the proportion of the the labour force who work part-time but would prefer to work full-time. This is sometimes referred to as the 'hidden' potential in the labour force.\nThe underemployment rate can be an important indicator of changes in the economic cycle. During an economic slow down, some people lose their jobs, become unemployed and contribute to a rising unemployment rate. But while this is happening, there might well be others who remain working but have their hours reduced; for example from full-time to part-time. As long as they want to work more hours, they are classed as underemployed, and contribute to the underemployment rate.\nLABOUR FORCE UNDERUTILISATION RATE\nThe labour force underutilisation rate combines the unemployment rate and the underemployment rate into a single figure that represents the percentage of the labour force that is willing and able to do more work. It includes people who are not currently working and want to start, and those who are currently working but want to - and can - work more hours. It provides an alternative – and more complete - picture of labour market supply than the unemployment rate, as changes in the underutilisation rate capture both changes in unemployment and underemployment, indicating the spare capacity in the Australian labour force.\nFor any queries regarding these measures or any other queries regarding the Labour Force Survey estimates, contact Labour Force on Canberra 02 6252 6525, or via email at email@example.com.\nThese documents will be presented in a new window.\nThis page last updated 8 August 2012"}
{"text": "Daily Planet's Ingram discusses prion disease 0\nDiscovery Channel's Daily Planet co-host Jay Ingram visits Grande Prairie today to offer behind-the-scenes details of a mysterious and contagious series of diseases.\nThe lecture takes place at the Grande Prairie Regional College at 7 p.m., where Ingram discusses fatal prion diseases.\n\"Here at this very microscopic level, strange things are happening and just now we are beginning to figure out what they are,\" he said.\nThe most well-known form of a prion disease is bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), widely known as the mad cow disease.\nPrion diseases spread when malformed proteins attach themselves to healthy tissue. Unlike other infectious ailments, they are incurable.\n\"It is a protein that has gone wrong,\" said Stefanie Czub, a scientist with the University of Calgary and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency who will be present at the lecture.\n\"For other infectious diseases we have a cure or the body heals itself quite efficiently.prion diseases, once infected, they are invariably fatal.\"\nA prion disease of current concern to Western Canadians is chronic wasting disease (CWD), affecting deer and elk in southern Saskatchewan and Alberta. Unlike mad cow disease, which infects the animal's brain, spinal cord and central nervous system, chronic wasting disease spreads to several parts of the animal, and is even present in urine and saliva.\nAnimals infected become very thin, and can carry the disease for two years before these signs become evident.\nPrion diseases can only be formally diagnosed by sampling infected tissue.\n\"With all these diseases, it takes quite a long time for the symptoms to show,\" Ingram said. \"You could hunt and kill a deer and eat it, and it might have the chronic wasting disease prions in it.\"\n\"The ultimate diagnosis can only be done on a piece of tissue, not in blood,\" Czub said.\nTwenty deer have been identified in Alberta with CWD since monitoring of the disease began in 2005. While the cause of mad cow disease is generally believed to be the use of recycled beef and bone meal material in livestock feed, which became a common practice in the 1980s, CWD's cause remains unknown.\n\"Nobody really knows,\" Ingram said. \"It could be that an infected deer goes to a salt lick, licks it, and the prions are in the saliva.\"\nIngram said that the disease is currently not an issue for the Peace Country, but infected deer and elk are bringing it into southern Alberta as they travel along the valleys of the South Saskatchewan and Red Deer Rivers.\n\"If chronic wasting disease spreads far enough north, especially in Saskatchewan, that it intersects with the caribou migration routes, and if caribou are susceptible, then you've got a huge problem on your hands,\" Ingram said.\nThe medical community is taking a close look at CWD due to the similarities prion diseases have with the degenerative Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Lou Gehrig's diseases.\n\"The way that they spread is somewhat similar,\" Ingram said. \"In Alzheimer's and Parkinson's and Lou Gehrig's disease, you get an accumulation in the brain of junk basically; they're called plaques, these sort of dark deposits if you look at brain tissue after autopsy.\"\n\"They are all part of the so-called protein-misfolding diseases,\" Czub said. \"One might be a very good model for the other, so we need to keep that in mind. Especially with this enormous increase in Alzheimer's in the future to be expected. One in three over the age of 65 is going to develop Alzheimer's disease in the next 10 years.\"\nHosted by the Alberta Prion Research Institute, Ingram's lecture is open to the public free of charge in the Collins Recital Hall, room L106 today at 7 p.m."}
{"text": "Protect your investment\nProtected cropping can be as beneficial for small fruit production as it is for vegetables. Yields of some berries may be two to three times greater in protected cultivation than outside in the field. Build customer loyalty by having fresh fruit first in the spring, long into fall, and by growing the highest quality berries.\nStrawberry plants, which are damaged by temperatures below 12F/-11C, require winter mulch. Although hay and straw are the traditional mulching materials, many strawberry growers use row covers because they require less labor to install and remove. Heavier row covers, weighing 1.25 oz./sq.yd. or more, are recommended.\nFall-bearing raspberries and blackberries that normally stop producing at the first frost will continue fruiting for months longer in an unheated hoophouse. They will fruit again earlier in spring than those in the field, commanding a much higher sales price.\nStrawberry transplants from runners produced over the summer can be planted in an unheated hoophouse in September. They will produce fruit in the fall, continuing until December, and then fruit again in early spring.\nStrawberry plasticulture is supplanting the traditional matted row system on many farms. Plant on black plastic mulch from mid-July to September and cover with row cover in fall. Fruits are harvested the following spring.\nProtect fruits from marauding birds with Johnny's bird netting which won't damage fruit or bend branches.\nGetting started with fruit\nBy Lynn Byczynski\nFor many market growers, fruits are the final frontier of horticultural expertise. Growing fruit is an interesting challenge for a vegetable grower because fruits require different systems for planting, cultivating, harvesting and post-harvest handling. But there are many reasons to take up the challenge.\n- The primary reason is that people love fruit. Farmers market customers flock to vendors with berries and grapes for sale. CSA members develop stronger ties to farms that can supply a wide range of fresh produce. Chefs who tout their connections to local farmers are delighted to be able to list local fruit on their dessert menus. At home, even the pickiest eaters are usually happy to snack on berries and grapes.\n- Consumption of berries and grapes is rapidly increasing worldwide, thanks to recent discoveries about the health benefits of these fruits. The pigments that give berries and red or purple grapes their deep colors contain phytochemicals that help prevent cancer, cardiovascular disease, and age-related mental decline. People feel good about eating grapes and berries!\n- From the farmer's and gardener's perspective, berries and grapes are easier to grow than ever before. New varieties, production practices, and products are increasing the options for growers in every region. Berries are popular crops for the hoophouse, for example, because protection from wind and rain produces extraordinary yields of high-quality fruits. Plastic and paper mulches reduce the need for year-round weeding of these perennial plants. And because Johnny's offers plants in small quantities, growers can trial numerous commercial varieties without spending a lot of money.\n- Although most berry and grape plants won't produce fruit for 1 to 3 years after planting, the wait is worthwhile. Commercial growers can charge a premium for fresh, ripe fruits. And home gardeners can save money by growing their own.\n- What do you need to get started with fruits? First, if you aren't sure about the suitability of your climate for small fruits, contact your state Extension service for recommendations. Some regions of the country may not have enough cold (chilling hours) for certain varieties, while others may be too cold for the plants or too hot for the fruits. Good soil preparation is essential for successful fruit production. So is an irrigation system. Most small fruits don't compete well with weeds, so a mulch of hay, straw, or wood chips is beneficial. Grapes need a strong trellis, which should be erected when the vines are planted. A living mulch in the paths between rows will help reduce weed pressure and improve soil fertility. You’ll find products and information about living mulches in the cover crops section on the web and in the catalog.\nBy Lynn Byczynski\nGrowing grapes may appear complicated to the beginner, and with good reason. Although grapes will grow anywhere, there are many kinds of training and trellising systems, and choosing the right one requires some study before planting.\nTraining and trellising go hand-in-hand because the kind of structure you build to hold your grape vines will affect how you prune them. The structure, in turn, depends somewhat on the type of grapes you grow because some are more vigorous and need stronger supports.\nIn general, a grape trellis needs to be able to support the weight of the crop and withstand high winds. It also should be designed to last 20 years, as that's how long you can expect your vines to produce.\nHome gardeners planting just a few vines can use a fence that fits into the landscape or, better still, an arbor that provides shade in summer as well as support for the grape vines. To get good fruit production from an arbor planting, pruning becomes the key. Texas Extension has a nicely illustrated manual on arbor training.\nCommercial growers with larger aspirations need to set up a trellis in the field. The main ingredients for a vineyard trellis are strong end posts with braces, earth anchors, or deadmen; posts along the length of the trellis to support the wires; and high-tensile galvanized steel wire to support the vines.\nThe most common type of trellis is the single curtain trellis with either one or two wires and posts every 16 to 24 feet apart, depending on the training system. With this type of trellis, various training styles are possible. Another popular type of trellis, especially in northern areas, is the double curtain, which allows the vines to spread horizontally across two wires.\nThe recommended trellis and training system varies by climate. Northern growers with shorter growing seasons usually choose training systems that expose more leaf surface to the sun, but those can be inappropriate to warm climates. To learn more about the best training and trellising system for your location, check the list below of state viticulture guides and choose the state nearest your own. Or, contact your state Extension service for recommendations.\nCalifornia: Viticulture and Enology Home Page\nColorado: Grape Growers Guide\nIdaho, Oregon, Washington: Northwest Berry & Grape Information Network\nIowa: Viticulture Home Page\nKansas: Commercial Grape Production\nMichigan: MSU Grape Information\nMissouri: Home Fruit Production: Grape Training Systems\nNew York: Cornell Viticulture\nOhio: Midwest Grape Production Guide\nOklahoma: Viticulture and Enology\nPennsylvania: Wine Grape Network\nSouth Dakota: Viticulture in South Dakota\nTexas: Winegrape Network\nVermont: Cold Climate Grape Production\nWisconsin: Growing Grapes\nBy Lynn Byczynski\nStrawberries are one of the most popular fruits in American gardens and market farms. They can be grown in many places, from hanging baskets to fields to hoophouses. The trick is to match the growing system to the type of strawberry you want to grow. Some varieties need plenty of space, whereas others can be grown in containers.\nJune-bearing varieties initiate fruit buds in fall and blossom the following spring. They are the earliest type to fruit. They produce one crop and then spend their energy sending out runners (also called daughter plants) that will fruit the following year. June-bearing strawberries are usually grown in a matted row system, in which the mother plants are planted in spring, spaced 18-24\" apart in rows that are 3-4' apart. The first year, flowers are pinched off to stimulate the plants to send out runners that fill in the spaces within the row and between the rows. Plants produce fruit the second spring. A variation of this system is to prune runners to one or two per plant so that they stay in a line and don't spread out between the rows. This obviously requires a lot more labor, but may result in better yields because of reduced competition. Matted-row systems can be renovated to keep plants producing for many years. Another system is called the ribbon row system, in which strawberry crowns are planted in fall and allowed to bloom and fruit the following spring. As runners form, they are removed to increase fruit size. Once the crop is done, runners are allowed to develop and fill in the bed to a matted row system.\nDay-neutral varieties produce fruit all summer. They can be grown as annuals: plant early in spring and pinch off flowers for two months to let the plants get established, and then let them fruit the rest of the summer. Day-neutral strawberries are good for container production on a deck or patio. Some varieties, including 'Seascape', will fruit on unrooted runners so they make attractive hanging baskets, with the runner plants cascading over the sides of the basket. Day-neutral strawberries can also be grown in a hill system, with 12 inches between plants.\nAlpine strawberries produce small but intensely flavorful berries. They do not send out runners and are usually grown from seed. They are a good choice for strawberry pots and other containers, or as edging in the vegetable garden. They also can be grown with less than full sun, so they are a good choice for many home gardeners.\nRegion-specific growing information is available from most state Extension services. ATTRA has a publication on Organic Production of Strawberries.\nBy Lynn Byczynski\nStrawberry quality, yield, and earliness is greatly improved in a hoophouse. Penn State researchers found that in their climate, hoophouse strawberries produced fruit 3 weeks earlier in spring than those grown outside, with about a 25% yield increase.\nMost commercial hoophouse strawberries are grown using an annual plasticulture system that includes raised beds, drip irrigation, plastic mulch, and floating row cover. Plugs are planted in late summer on beds covered with plastic mulch, with drip tape beneath the mulch. As the weather gets cold, the young plants are covered with floating row cover to maintain the warmer soil temperatures needed for establishment. The plants grow slowly during winter in the protected environment of the hoophouse; then, as the weather warms, they flower and produce berries for several weeks. The crop is then finished for the year. Strawberry plants can either be removed to make way for other crops; or they can be left to produce a second year if berry prices or other factors justify tying up the space for a year.\nPlugs are available from outside suppliers, or they can be produced on the farm in summer. To grow your own, detach unrooted daughter plants (runners) from the mother plant in July and stick them in potting mix in 72-cell flats under intermittent mist until roots protrude from the bottom of the cell. Then place on a greenhouse bench and grow until September, when they can be planted into the hoophouse. Plants that are rooted in July are likely to flower and fruit in fall in warmer climates, but that won't affect their yield the following spring.\nFor more information on hoophouse strawberries:\nGrowing Strawberries in High Tunnels in Missouri\nProduction of Vegetables, Strawberries, and Cut Flowers Using Plasticulture is a book about all aspects of horticultural plastics, and includes extensive information about hoophouse strawberries."}
{"text": "January 11, 2012\nImagine this scenario. You have a great career and you are a star employee. You are talented, a problem solver and go out of your way to help co-workers. You do your job and make it all look easy. Despite your dedication, one day a new person is hired. They have the same education, experience, and skills that you have. There is only one difference: he gets paid more. In spite of all the progress our nation has made in civil rights over the past fifty years, men still get paid more than women for no other reason than gender. Now is the time to change that.\nThe Paycheck Fairness Act, a long overdue amendment to the Equal Pay Act of 1963, (S. 182) was introduced by Congress in 2011 with the support of President Obama, who in a statement called the legislation “ a common-sense bill that will help ensure that men and women who do equal work receive the equal pay that they and their families deserve.” Nearly fifty years ago, the Equal Pay Act of 1963 passed, promising that men and women would receive equal pay for equal work. However, the wage gap continues despite women’s increased education, greater level of experience, and less time spent raising children. When President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act into law, women earned, on average, 60 cents for every dollar earned by men. In the forty-eight years that have passed, the pay gap has closed by less than 20 cents. In 2010, women earned 77 cents on every dollar earned by men. Women of color fared even worse--African American women earned only 67 cents, and Latinas just 58. Seventy-seven cents on the dollar is not fair. Now is the time to take action to close the pay gap.\nThe Paycheck Fairness Act would close loopholes, strengthen business incentives to end pay discrimination, prohibit retaliation against workers who share wage information, and bring the Equal Pay Act in line with other civil rights laws. Passing this act does not just affect women, it affects everyone. More families are depending on women as breadwinners. The share of couples that both work rose to 66 percent in 2010, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. The number of women who were the only working spouse also rose, with an estimated 4 million families depending on mom to bring home the bacon. The number of dads who were the only working spouse dropped, and the number of stay-at-home dads rose higher.\nThe wage gap has long-term effects on the economic security of women and families. In 2009 a typical college educated woman earned $36,278/year for fulltime work, while a comparable educated man earned $47,127- a difference of $10,849. This amount of money can be a great help to a family struggling during a recession. With $10,849, you could buy a year's worth of groceries ($3,210), pay for a semester of college tuition ($6,548), pay three months of rent and utilities ($2,265) six months of health insurance ($1,697), or cover six months on a student loan ($1,602).\nThe current economic crisis is heavily affecting families, and the latest data shows that gender roles are becoming more flexible and egalitarian. Shouldn’t pay reflect this shift? The answer is a resounding yes. We can’t afford to wait another fifty years for paycheck equality. The future of our economy and the well-being of our families depend on it. When women are paid fairly, whole families win. It is our civic duty to take action by writing or calling our Senators and Representatives and urging them to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act now."}
{"text": "Feral cats occur right across the continent in every habitat type including deserts, forests and grasslands. Total population estimates vary from 5 million to 18 million feral cats. Each feral cat kills between 5-30 animals per day. Taking the lower figure in that range (five) – and multiplying it by a conservative population estimate of 15 million cats – gives a minimum estimate of 75 million native animals killed daily by feral cats.\nIt is clear that cats are playing a critical role in the decline of our native fauna. They are recognised as a primary cause of several early mammal extinctions and are identified as a factor in the current declines of at least 80 threatened species.\nAWC has developed a practical strategy designed to minimise their impacts and facilitate the development of a long-term solution. This includes:\n- GROUND COVER: impairing the hunting efficiency of cats in grasslands and woodlands by manipulating ground cover through:\n- minimising the frequency and extent of late-season wildfires;and\n- reducing the density of feral herbivores.\n- DINGOES AS A BIOLOGICAL CONTROL: reducing the density of cats and affect hunting behaviour by promoting a stable Dingo population.\n- FERAL CAT-FREE AREAS: establishing feral cat-free areas to protect core populations of species most vulnerable to cats. AWC’s Scotia contains the largest cat-free area on the mainland; in total, AWC manages more feral cat-free land on mainland Australia than any other organisation.\n- STRATEGIC CONTROL: strategic implementation of control measures such as shooting and baiting to protect highly threatened species.\n- RESEARCH: generating scientific knowledge that will help design a long-term solution enabling the control of cats and their impacts across landscapes and, ideally, the eradication of feral cats.\nWe need your help in the battle to save our wildlife from feral cats. Please make a tax deductible donation to support practical land management that will limit the impact of cats. Your donation will help protect native animals at risk from feral cats, such as the Bilby, the Mala and a host of our small northern mammals. To donate, please click here.\nTo learn more about this project, please read pages 4-7 of the Summer 2012-2013 issue of Wildlife Matters here.\nFind out more at Australian Wildlife Conservancy"}
{"text": "Vanity Top Finishes\nVanity Top Composition\nGeologically speaking, rocks are classified into 3 main categories: igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic. Our sinks are made of all natural stones including granite, travertine, and cream marfil. Granite is a type of igneous rock, travertine is sedimentary while cream marfil is metamorphic.\nCream Marfil is a type of marble, which is a metamorphic rock resulting from the metamorphism of limestone. Limestone is a sedimentary rock, formed mainly from the accumulation of organic remains (bones and shells of marine microorganisms and coral) from millions of years ago. The calcium in the marine remains combined with carbon dioxide in the water in turn forms calcium carbonate, which is the basic mineral structure of all limestone. When subjected to heat and pressure, the original limestone experiences a process of complete recrystallization (metamorphism), forming what we know as marble. The characteristic swirls and veins of many colored marble varieties, for example, cream marfil, are usually due to various mineral impurities. Cream marfil is formed with a medium density with pores.\nTravertine is a variety of limestone, a kind of sedimentary rock, formed of massive calcium carbonate from deposition by rivers and springs, especially hot bubbly mineral rich springs. When hot water passes through limestone beds in springs or rivers, it dissolves the limestone, taking the calcium carbonate from the limestone to suspension as well as taking that solution to the surface. If enough time comes about, water evaporates and calcium carbonate is crystallized, forming what we know as travertine stone. Travertine is characterized by pores and pitted holes in the surface and takes a good polish. It is usually hard and semicrystalline. It is often beautifully colored (from ivory to golden brown) and banded as a result of the presence of iron compounds or other (e.g., organic) impurities.\nTravertine is mined extensively in Italy; in the U.S., Yellowstone Mammoth Hot Springs are actively depositing travertine. It also occurs in limestone caves.\nGranite is a very common type of intrusive igneous rock, mainly composed of three minerals: feldspar, quartz, and mica, with the first being the major ingredient. Granite is formed when liquid magma?molten rock material?cools beneath the earth?s crust. Due to the extreme pressure within the center of the earth and the absence of atmosphere, granite is formed very densely with no pores and has a coarse-grained structure. It is hard, firm and durable."}
{"text": "Thomas Nelson Publishers has a new line of biographies homeschoolers and writers are going to love, called Christian Encounters. Written at an adult level, they make a great resource for parents and excellent texts for older homeschool students.\nEach biography includes an online reading guide with probing questions that can be printed, discussed and answered. These are ideal for a homeschool research project, or reading group.\nPeter Leithart, biographer of Jane Austen, has taught Theology and Literature at New Saint Andrews College since 1998, and since 2003 has served as pastor of Trinity Reformed Church in Moscow, Idaho.\nHe writes a delightful 153-page treatise of Austen that all “Janeites” (Jane Austen fans) will appreciate. Far from clinical, Leithart’s humor and factual insights paint a well-rounded portrait of the young author that’s both entertaining and endearing. The book bursts its seams with information I had never before learned about this beloved author.\nJane Austen (16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817), is one of the most beloved and widely-read English novelists. Her realism makes her an important resource of English history. Her major works include: Sense and Sensibility (1811); Pride and Prejudice (1813); Mansfield Park (1814); Emma (1815); Northanger Abbey (1817) and Persuasion (1817).\nHomeschoolers will enjoy including her life and this fine book in any well-rounded study of England during the Regency Period. Writers will enjoy visiting the astonishingly ordinary but fascinating life of one of the most popular romance novelists in the history of English literature."}
{"text": "A patch is a piece of software designed to fix problems.\nHot patching is a mechanism of applying the patch to an application without requiring to shutdown or restart the system or the program concerned. This addresses the problems related to unavailability of service provided by the system or the program.\nWe came across a situation where a DLL is loaded by one of the critical processes in a system and that process demands high availability. The DLL has exported functions that are supposed to perform the core operations within the process. We identified a critical flaw in one of the exported functions from the DLL. One constraint we had while trying to fix the problem was to avoid any down time of this critical process.\nWe solved this problem by using the hot patch mechanism. We used an external process to inject a DLL [Hot patch]. This DLL has the corrected version of the defective function and also a hook to\nGetProcAddress function. As we know, calling\nGetProcAddress returns the address of the exported function from the specified DLL. By hooking into the\nGetProcAddress API, we monitored the requests to the exported function. When we find that the request was made for the flawed function, we just returned the address of the updated function which was part of the injected DLL.\nBy intercepting the calls of\nGetProcAddress API, we redirected the requests from the flawed function to the corrected function.\nWe could resolve this problem by using the concepts like DLL injection and API hooking.\nHot Patch Structure\nThis hot patching structure has the following binaries:\n- Hot Patch DLL: This DLL has only exported functions that are updated and will be used as replacement for the flawed functions. This also has the hooking logic to hook to\nGetProcAddress API exported by Kernel32.DLL.\n- Updater.exe: This process injects the hot patched DLL into the target process.\nHow to Inject DLL into a Remote Process\nOne method of injecting a DLL into a remote process requires a thread in the remote process to call\nLoadLibray of the desired DLL. Since we can't control the threads in a process other that our own, the solution would be to create a new thread in the target process. This enables us to have full control over the code that this thread is going to execute.\nWe can create a thread in a remote process using the following Windows API:\nHANDLE hProcess, </span /> PSECURITY_ATTRIBUTES psa,\nPDWORD pdwThreadId );\nAfter creating a new thread in the target process, we need to make sure that there is a call to\nLoadLibrary API that will load the DLL into the target process.\nFollowing is the complete set of steps for injecting a DLL into the target process:\nVirtualAllocEx API to allocate memory equal to the size of DLL full file path in the remote process:\nVirtualAllocEx(hProcess, NULL, dwSizeOfFilePath, MEM_COMMIT, PAGE_READWRITE);\nWriteProcessMemory to copy the DLL's full file path in the allocated space [Step 1]:\n(void</span />*)szDLLFilePath, dwSizeOfFilePath,NULL);\nCreateRemoteThread API to create thread in the remote process passing in the address of\nLoadLibary API and also the memory location of the DLL's full file path.\nhProcess, </span /> NULL,\n(LPTHREAD_START_ROUTINE) ::GetProcAddress(hKernel32,\"</span />LoadLibraryA\"</span />),\npDLLFilePath, </span /> 0</span />,\nVirtualFreeEx function to free the memory allocated in step 1:\n::VirtualFreeEx( hProcess, pDLLFilePath, dwSize, MEM_RELEASE );\nHow to Perform API Hooking using Import Section\nUsing module’s import section to perform hooking is quiet robust and easy to implement. To hook to a particular function, all we need to do is change the address of the flawed function in the module's import section.\nWe are trying to Hook to the\nGetProcAddress API exported by Kernel32.dll.\nFollowing is the complete set of steps for API hooking:\n- Locate the Module’s import section by calling\n- Loop through import section for the DLL which contains API that we want to hook. In this case, we would be searching for Kernel32.dll.\n- Once the DLL module is located, get the address to the array of\nIMAGE_THUNK_DATA structure that contains the information about the imported symbols:\npThunk = (PIMAGE_THUNK_DATA)((PBYTE)hModule + pImportDesc-></span />FirstThunk);\n- Once the address of the exported is located, use the following APIs to update the address to the new function that needs to be hooked:\nWriteProcessMemory(GetCurrentProcess(), ppfn, &pNewFunction,\nsizeof</span />(pNewFunction), NULL);\nVirtualProtect(ppfn, sizeof</span />(pNewFunction), dwOldProtect,&dwOldProtect);\nWhen Are We Going to Perform this Hooking\nImmediately after injecting the DLL into the remote process,\nLoadLibary calls the\nDLLMain of the injected DLL with\nDllMain( HMODULE hModule, DWORD ul_reason_for_call, LPVOID lpReserved)\nswitch</span />( ul_reason_for_call )\ncase</span /> DLL_PROCESS_ATTACH:\nHookTheAPI(); </span /> break</span />;\nImplementing Our Own GetProcAddress\nMyGetProcAddress will intercept all the calls made to\nGetProcAddress APIs to monitor if there is any request for the faulting function and if so, return the address of the corrected function.\nFARPROC WINAPI MyGetProcAddress(HMODULE hmod, PCSTR pszProcName)\npOldFunAdd = GetProcAddress(GetModuleHandle(\"</span />MySubsystem.dll\"</span />), \"</span />Foo\"</span />);\npNewFunAdd = GetProcAddress(GetModuleHandle(\"</span />MySubsystem.HP.dll\"</span />), \"</span />\"</span />Foo\"</span />);\npRetFunAdd = GetProcAddress(hmod, pszProcName);\nif((NULL != pOldFunAdd) && (NULL != pNewFunAdd))\n// if the request is of that Faulting Function\nif(pOldFunAdd == pRetFunAdd )\npRetFunAdd = pNewFunAdd; // Return address of\n// corrected function\nreturn pRetFunAdd ;\nThe attached binaries demo the hot patching implemented using the DLL Injection and Function Hooking. To keep the thing simple and for easy understanding, I am demonstrating with a very basic functionality. Please ignore the code optimizations for now:\n- MySubsystem.DLL: This DLL exports following functions\nRandomNumber: Returns a random number\nSleepTime: Specifies the time to sleep before making the other call to\n- MyProcess.exe: This process loads the MySubsystem.DLL and displays the\nRandomNumbers in console after sleeping for the specified amount of time as returned by MySubsystem.DLL.\n- Change Request: Displays the random numbers which are even. Odd number should not be displayed on the console. This has to be accomplished without restarting the process MyProcess.exe.\n- MySubsystem.HP.DLL: This is a HOT Patch DLL that contains the corrected\nMyRandomNumber as per the request. This also has the implementation for Hooking and Hooked function\n- Updater.exe: This process injects the MySubsystem.HP.DLL into MyProcess.exe\nRun MyProcess.exe to see that\nRandomNumbers which are both even and odd are getting displayed. Run the updater.exe and you will see only even numbers getting displayed. All the odd numbers are skipped.\nOne limitation for this approach is that the functions that are exported can be hot patched.\n- 6th October, 2010: Initial version"}
{"text": "Recent medical reports suggest that ingested aluminum has a direct link to Alzheimer's, attention deficit disorder, bone degeneration, kidney dysfunction, and even Parkinson's disease. Studies have also shown that aluminum salts can be absorbed from the intestines and concentrated in various human tissues. Most baking powder products, a staple in some households, contain toxic levels of aluminum.\nWith all this known, you probably would wonder why aluminum is allowed in baking powder and why anyone would use it. The baking powders that contain aluminum are ‘double-acting’ indicating that although some of the leavening power is released when the mix is prepared, the greater leavening takes place when the item is baked. This produces a very fine, light texture, and is appreciated particularly in commercial baking, where mixes often sit for long periods before they go into the oven. But it isn’t necessary for your baking. For a lighter texture, just bake the mix immediately.\nAlso, if you've ever experienced a bitter, \"tinny\" flavor when biting into a muffin, that's because of the baking powder used—and often the overuse of it. Using aluminum free baking powder not only will keep you from ingesting aluminum, but will also take away that bitter flavor.\nApril 10, 2011 at 9:41 pm\nMy son is allergic to corn. There is only one brand of baking powder (that I know of) that does not have cornstarch in it. Does this have cornstarch?\nJanuary 24, 2012 at 10:35 pm\nTry the Arrowroot powder. xx\nApril 1, 2012 at 2:33 pm\nRE: Baking Powder - Make your own. It's easier to find aluminum-free baking soda than baking powder:\n1 teaspoon baking soda\n2 teaspoons cream of tartar\n1 teaspoon corn starch (optional - can use arrowroot instead of corn starch)\nMix the baking soda and cream of tartar together until well combined. Use immediately.\nYield: One tablespoon of baking powder.\nTo store baking powder: Add a teaspoon of corn starch to the mixture, and stir. This will absorb any moisture from the air, and prevent the baking powder from reacting before you need it. Store in an air-tight container."}
{"text": "Eric Weisz, better known to the world as Harry Houdini, was born on this date in 1874. Famous for his feats as an escape artist and magician, Houdini also became one of the most crusading anti-spiritualists of the 1920s. Because of his familiarity with the illusions of stage magic and sleight of hand, Houdini was particularly adept at spotting the trickery that the so-called psychics and spirit mediums then hawking their services as conduits to the afterlife to the credulous grieving public commonly used. (Can you imagine anyone being foolish enough to fall for such predatory charlatanry today?)\nThat turn in Houdini’s career led him to collaborate with Scientific American on a lengthy exposé of spiritualism. Scientific American had offered a $5,000 reward to any medium who could satisfy its panel of investigators, which included Houdini, two of the magazine’s editors (J. Malcolm Bird and Austin C. Lescaboura) and others, that his or her paranormal gifts were genuine.\nUnfortunately, although the magazine’s panel did reveal many frauds during the few years of its tenure, the whole episode ended very badly. The problem—which in retrospect is quite evident to anyone who has read through the Scientific American archives of that time, as I did—was that at least one of the editors, Malcolm Bird, was not so secretly a believer in the afterlife and very much wanted a psychic to succeed.\nMatters came to a head in 1924 when the team was evaluating a psychic whom it called “Margery” in print, though we now know her to be Mina Crandon, the comely young wife of a Boston socialite and surgeon. You can read Houdini’s own account of the messy business that resulted, but in short: Mina Crandon’s seance tricks, perhaps aided by her personal charm, bamboozled Bird and the rest Scientific American group with the exception of Houdini, who was not initially at their meetings. They were prepared to award her the prize but Houdini protested that he needed to see for himself. At the seance, Houdini saw through the deception and called “Margery” on it, much to the annoyance of Bird, who angrily resisted exposing her con game. The arguments that followed led to the dissolution of the ghostbusting squad, and the $5,000 was never awarded.\nWhat Houdini’s account does not say, but which I have heard as a perhaps unreliable rumor, is that the dispute between Houdini and Bird actually turned into a physical brawl. (Ahh, the two-fisted SciAm editors of yesteryear….) Also, when I attended James Randi’s The Amaz!ing Meeting in Las Vegas in 2003 and talked about these events, magician and mad debunker Penn Jillette told me that he had heard directly from Mina Cranston’s granddaughter that Mina had been sleeping with several members of the team, including Bird. (Oh, the scandal!) That just might help to account for Bird’s umbrage at Houdini’s harsh quashing of Mina’s scam.\nBut that is not the anti-spiritualist episode I would like to talk about today.\nRather, turn to a particular occasion when Houdini was trying to disabuse Sir Arthur Conan Doyle of his own spiritualist inclinations. Conan Doyle was not the paragon of rationality and reason that one might assume the creator of Sherlock Holmes would be: he had a soft spot for mediums. (It tends to make one think of Holmes’s famous dictum that “when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth” in a somewhat different light.) Nevertheless, because Houdini and Conan Doyle had come to be friends, Houdini wanted to open the author’s eyes to the psychic frauds, and so he staged a demonstration that he hoped would do the trick.\nMichael Shermer recently described what happened in his February “Skeptic” column for Scientific American:\nIn the spring of 1922 Conan Doyle visited Houdini in his New York City home, whereupon the magician set out to demonstrate that slate writing—a favorite method among mediums for receiving messages from the dead, who allegedly moved a piece of chalk across a slate—could be done by perfectly prosaic means. Houdini had Conan Doyle hang a slate from anywhere in the room so that it was free to swing in space. He presented the author with four cork balls, asking him to pick one and cut it open to prove that it had not been altered. He then had Conan Doyle pick another ball and dip it into a well of white ink. While it was soaking, Houdini asked his visitor to go down the street in any direction, take out a piece of paper and pencil, write a question or a sentence, put it back in his pocket and return to the house. Conan Doyle complied, scribbling, “Mene, mene, tekel, upharsin,” a riddle from the Bible’s book of Daniel, meaning, “It has been counted and counted, weighed and divided.”\nHow appropriate, for what happened next defied explanation, at least in Conan Doyle’s mind. Houdini had him scoop up the ink-soaked ball in a spoon and place it against the slate, where it momentarily stuck before slowly rolling across the face, spelling out “M,” “e,” “n,” “e,” and so forth until the entire phrase was completed, at which point the ball dropped to the ground.\nHoudini then explained that he had done the whole thing through simple trickery and implored Conan Doyle to give up his spiritualist beliefs. Alas, he failed: not only did Conan Doyle continue to believe in mediums but he suspected that Houdini knowingly or unknowingly used his own supernatural gifts in the performance of his escape acts.\nHere is my question for the hive mind: How did Houdini do it? Magicians are of course famously reluctant to reveal how they do their tricks, and it’s not clear that Houdini showed the secret to Conan Doyle. (Perhaps that’s why Conan Doyle refused to be convinced.) Rather than ask a magician to break his professional code, I thought I would ask you readers to suggest how Houdini accomplished his “ghostly” slate writing.\nHere are my own uninformed guesses about elements of the trick, which still probably don’t quite cohere into a full explanation.\n- My sense is that the slate hung from wherever it was placed by wires attached to its four corners so that it could swing freely but also hang level. I suspect that a marionette-like arrangement of those wires could in theory allow a ball to be rolled across the slate’s surface as required.\n- Conan Doyle’s cutting into one of the cork balls to prove it had not been tampered with does not preclude his selected ball from being tampered with or replaced subsequently, when he is not looking.\n- Sending Conan Doyle down the street to write his secret message would give him a sense of privacy, but of course it also would allow Houdini (and unknown cronies?) a chance to reset the slate and the balls as they chose.\n- Any good pickpocket could probably remove that page with Conan Doyle’s message from his pocket, look at it and return it without him being the wiser.\nThat’s my best hypothesis about how Houdini did it. What’s yours?\nUpdate (added 3/25, 8:23 a.m.): Via Twitter, P. Kerim Friedman tells me that these two books (here and here) may hold the answer, although those explanations aren’t immediately available online. So I’d still like to hear your theories.\nThe How Did Houdini Trick Conan Doyle? by Retort, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License."}
{"text": "Bullying Among Elementary Schoolchildren\n- New Studies on Bullying. // Techniques: Connecting Education & Careers;May2005, Vol. 80 Issue 5, p15\nReports on a study focusing on bullying among school children by the Committee for Children (CFC) in the U.S. Initiatives undertaken by school administrators to reduce aggressive student behavior; Proposition for the integration of anti-bullying and social and emotional skills into classrooms;...\n- Bullying Prevention. Feldman, Sandra // Teaching Pre K-8;Mar2004, Vol. 34 Issue 6, p6\nDiscusses information on handling bullying among children in a school environment. Importance of parents' cooperation in handling bullying among their children in schools; Strategies in helping students deal with bullying among peers.\n- A Bully's Tale. // Education Canada;Summer2005, Vol. 45 Issue 3, p43\nThe article presents a personal narrative of experiences of being bullied when the author was a student. She relates how she was bullied, both physically and psychologically, during her elementary years. She relates how she was able to stop the bullying only after she herself used violence. She...\n- trying to fit in. Brodkin, Adele M. // Scholastic Parent & Child;Sep2008, Vol. 16 Issue 1, p48\nThe article offers tips on how parents and teachers can help a child not to be neglected in school. A six-year-old boy who is not as ease with physical activities, experienced being left out by other boys. An expert explains that young children exhaust their own fears of being an outsider by...\n- Free State educators' experiences and recognition of bullying at schools. de Wet, Corene // South African Journal of Education;Feb2006, Vol. 26 Issue 1, p61\nIn South Africa little research has been conducted into bullying and particularly into South African educators' experiences of school bullying. In an attempt to address this hiatus in the literature on bullying, I report on an investigation into Free State educators' experiences and recognition...\n- BULLYING. Scarpaci, Richard T. // Kappa Delta Pi Record;Summer2006, Vol. 42 Issue 4, p170\nThis article discusses the prevalence of bullying among school children in the U.S. in 2006. In approaching this problem, research has suggested that reduction of bullying is best accomplished through a school-wide effort. The role of teachers in addressing this problem is indicated. In...\n- BULLYING HURTS. Feltes, Kimberly // Scholastic Action;3/16/2009, Vol. 32 Issue 11, p16\nThe article addresses the growing problem of bullying in schools and offers tips on how to deal with it.\n- sticky SITUATION. // Scholastic News -- Edition 5/6;5/7/2007, Vol. 75 Issue 23/24, p14\nA hypothetical situation about a boy being bullied by his classmates is presented.\n- Next in the Teachers' Lounge …. Leete, Patricia // Teaching Young Children;Apr/May2012, Vol. 5 Issue 4, p31\nThe article presents the author's insights regarding the issue of bullying in school."}
{"text": "Green Power is electricity generated from renewable energy sources that are environmentally friendly such as solar, wind, biomass, and hydro power. New York State and the Public Service Commission have made a commitment to promote the use of Green Power and foster the development of renewable energy generation resources.\nGREEN POWER IN NEW YORK\nElectricity comes from a variety of sources such as natural gas, oil, coal, nuclear, hydro power, biomass, wind, solar, and solid waste. Green Power is electricity generated from renewable energy sources such as:\nSolar: Solar energy systems convert sunlight directly into electricity.\nBiomass: Organic wastes such as wood, other plant materials and landfill gases are used to generate electricity.\nWind: Modern wind turbines use large blades to catch the wind, spin turbines, and generate electricity\nHydropower: Small installations on rivers and streams use running or falling water to drive turbines that generate electricity.\nNY’s ENERGY MIX\n|The pie chart below shows the mix of energy sources that was used to generate New York’s electricity in 2003. Buying Green Power will help to increase the percentage of electricity that is produced using cleaner energy sources.|\nYou have the power to make a difference For only a few pennies more a day, you can choose Green Power and make a world of difference for generations to come.\n- Produces fewer environmental impacts than fossil fuel energy.\n- Helps to diversify the fuel supply, increasing the reliability of the NY State electric system and contributing to more stable energy prices.\n- Reduces use of imported fossil fuels, keeping dollars spent on energy in the State’s economy.\n- Creates jobs and helps the economy by spurring investments in environmentally-friendly facilities.\n- Creates healthier air quality and helps to reduce respiratory illness.\nIf just 10% of New York’s households choose Green Power for their electricity supply, it would prevent nearly 3 billion pounds of carbon dioxide, 10 million pounds of sulfur dioxide, and nearly 4 million pounds of nitrogen oxides from getting into our air each year. Green Power helps us all breathe a little easier.\nYour Energy…Your Choice\nYour electric service is made up of two parts, supply and delivery. In New York’s competitive electric market, you can now shop for your electric supply. You can support cleaner, sustainable energy solutions by selecting Green Power for some or all of your supply. No matter what electric supply you choose,your utility is still responsible for delivering your electricity safely and reliably, and will provide you with customer service and respond to emergencies.\nWhat happens when you choose to buy Green Power?\nThe Green Power you buy is supplied to the power grid that delivers the electricity to all customers in your region. Your Green Power purchase supports the development of more environmentally-friendly electricity generation. You are helping to create a cleaner, brighter New York for future generations. You will continue to receive the safe, reliable power you’ve come to depend on.\nSwitching to Green Power is as easy as:\n1. Use the list below to contact the Green Power service providers in your area.\n2. Compare the Green Power programs.\n3. Choose the Green Energy Service Company program that is right for you.\nUsing New York’s power to change the future Energy conservation, energy efficiency and renewable energy are critical elements in New York’s economic, security and energy policies. New York State is committed to ensuring that we all have access to reliable electricity by helping consumers use and choose energy wisely. Recently, the state launched two initiatives – one designed to educate the public about the environmental impacts of energy production, and one to encourage the development of Green Power programs.\nThe Environmental Disclosure Label\nNY RENEWABLE ENERGY SERVICE INITIATIVES\nThe New York State Public Service Commission is supporting development of renewable energy service programs in utility service territories across the state. These programs are spurring the development of new sources ofrenewable energy and the sale of Green Power to New York consumers. As a result, Green Power service providers are now offering a variety of renewable energy service options. Most New York consumers now have the opportunity to choose Green Power.\nSuppliers Offering Green Energy Products\nGreen Power can be arranged through the following suppliers (may not operate in all utility territories.) PSC has created the following list of providers and does not recommend particular companies or products.\n|Agway Energy Services||1-888-982-4929||www.agwayenergy.com|\n|Amerada Hess||1-800-HessUSA (437-7872)||www.hess.com\n(Commercial and Industrial only)\n|Community Energy, Inc.||1-866-Wind-123\n|Constellation New Energy||1-866-237-7693||www.integrysenergy.com\n(Commercial and Industrial only)\n|Energy Cooperative of New York||1-800-422-1475||www.ecny.org|\n|Green Mountain Energy Company||1-800-810-7300||www.greenmountain.com|\n|Integrys Energy NY||1-518-482-4615\n|Juice Energy, Inc||1-888-925-8423||www.juice-inc.com|\n|NYSEG Solutions, Inc.||1-800-567-6520||www.nysegsolutions.com|\n|Pepco Energy Services, Inc.\n(NYC commercial and industrial only)\n|Just Energy (GeoPower – Con Ed territory)||1-866-587-8674||www.justenergy.com|\n|Just Energy (GeoGas – Con Ed, KeySpan, NFG territories)||1-866-587-8674||www.justenergy.com|\n|Central Hudson Gas and Electric||1-800-527-2714||www.centralhudson.com|\n|National Grid||1-800-642-4272 (upstate)\n1-800-930-5003 (Long Island)\n|New York State Electric and Gas||1-800-356-9734||www.nyseg.com|\n|Orange and Rockland||1-877-434-4100||www.oru.com|\n|Rochester Gas and Electric||1-877-743-9463||www.rge.com|\n|Long Island Power Authority(LIPA)||1-800-490-0025||www.lipower.org|"}
{"text": "All About Canada: he Canada Site is the primary Internet portal for information on the Government of Canada, its programs, services, new initiatives and products, and for information about Canada.\nCanadian Health: Healthy living means making positive choices that enhance your personal physical, mental and spiritual health. You make these choices when you:\nEat nutritiously, choosing a variety of foods from all of the food groups as suggested by Canada’s Food Guide;\nCanadian Fitness: Current estimates from the 2000/01 Canadian Community Health Survey indicate that 33% of Canadians aged 20 + have a body mass index over 25 and are thus considered overweight. The trend is toward increased overweight: 26% of women aged 20-64 were considered overweight in 2000, compared with 14% in 1985.\nGeneral Nutrition: Providing science-based dietary guidance is critical to enhance the public’s ability to make healthy choices in the effort to reduce obesity and other food related diseases. Since dietary needs change throughout the lifespan, specialized nutrition information is provided about infants, children, teens, adult women and men, and seniors."}
{"text": "- About LENS\n- About Neurofeedback\n- LENS Treated Disorders\n- David Dubin\n- LENS Videos\n- Contact Us\nArchive for author David Dubin\nLos Angeles based LENS Neurofeedback provider and blogger.\nMore posts by David Dubin\nDr. David Dubin\nAfter Einstein’s death, his brain was preserved for future study. Scientists were naturally curious to see how the brain of this genius compared with the brain of a person of ordinary intelligence. Would there be an abundance of neurons (grey matter) or some unusual wiring of the neurons that distinguished his brain? When the brain was dissected, however, the only difference was that the numbers of cells that were not neurons (white matter) was dramatically increased. It is also true that, from evolutionary point of view, as brains became larger and “smarter”, what increased was not the percentage of neurons but of white matter. What does this mean?\nWhen most of us--scientists and lay people alike—imagine the brain, we think of neurons, those cells carrying information in the form of electrical impulses. Neurons are ‘brains of the brain’, so to speak, and the rest of the cells were thought to be there only for support. But neurons account for only 15 percent of the brain, while these so-called ‘support’ cells occupy 85 percent.\nThe group name for white matter cells, glia—derived from the world ‘glue’—reflects their lowly status. First seen clearly by anatomists in the late 1800’s, Glia were initially thought to be little more than structural support for neurons, because, like scaffolding, glial cells literally hold neurons in place.\nIt was later found that glia can speed transmission of electrical signals and also deliver energy to neurons and remove neuronal waste products. While appearing to be a little more interesting than originally thought, glia still seemed about as sexy as wire insulation, food delivery and waste management devices.\nUnlike neurons, there is no electrical activity within glia to send messages and information. It was therefore assumed that glia were deaf and dumb, incapable of communicating with either neurons or other glia, and therefore not particularly compelling as a focus of research. A good analogue would be the under-appreciated dark matter in astronomy. Dark matter is undetectable because it emits no electromagnetic radiation as the matter in the “visible” universe does. The existence of dark matter was eventually inferred from its gravitational effects on visible matter. While we had believed that the visible universe is the universe, the ordinary matter of our visible universe accounts for less than five percent of the total; dark matter accounts for more than 20 percent.\nToday, the pace of knowledge about glia has begun to accelerate, as outlined in an exciting new book, The Other Brain, by Dr. R. Douglas Fields[i] (the title refers to the 85 percent of the brain that is glial). Fields is a neuroscientist specializing in glial cell research, and the information in his book is so new that it isn’t found in standard medical textbooks. Two review articles in the May, 2010 issue of the research journal Nature Neuroscience attest to how much still needs to be learned, and how potentially revolutionary are the implications.\nSo, are glial cells really dumb as a doorknob? First, we are just now learning that glial cells do communicate, not through synapses but through “gap junctions”. These gap junctions are protein channels connecting one cell to another, like a spaceship docking at the mother station. Glia can pass messages among themselves by using calcium as a chemical messenger instead of sending an electric signal as neurons do. In his research, Fields showed that after a 15-second delay, changes in response to a neuronal firing were seen in the surrounding glial cells. As Fields puts it, glial cells are “listening in” on what neurons are doing, something virtually no one in neuroscience thought possible.\nContrary to all established dogma, it is now known that glia not only communicate directly from one cell to an adjacent one, but also with cells very far away. Glia are even able to “jump” over barriers like a ping pong ball going over a net. And whereas neurons transmit their signals in linear lines, like telephone wires, glia communicate, as Fields puts it, by “broadcasting signals widely, like cell phones.”\nGlia are also critical to the growth of neurons. Neuron cells grown in the lab without accompanying glial cells were found to have many fewer synapses than neurons grown with glial cells. Glia seem to play a central role in the number of synapses a neuron develops.\nContrary to what scientists thought, glia also have neurotransmitters; in fact, the same ones that neurons do. And there are receptors for these neurotransmitters both inside and on the outer surface of glial cells. Glial cells have receptors for glutamate, the principal stimulating neurotransmitter in the cortex, and GABA, which acts as a “brake” to calm down neurons. In other words, glia can excite or depress neurons and stimulate or calm the brain, just like medications.\nAnd, unlike neurons, glia can move. They have enormous cellular “fingers” like the elastic Mr. Fantastic of comic book fame, and can move between and on neurons. This constantly changes the circuitry of the brain. These glial fingers also form around synapses. They secrete substances that remodel tissue or stimulate neuron growth during development and repair of the brain making it likely that they function in a similar role during learning in the healthy brain.\nGlia repair injury, defend against disease, nurse neurons back to health and act as guide dogs for the re-growth of injured nerve fibers. Glia detect and react to bacteria and viruses, “gobble up” pathogens and release toxic chemicals to kill bacteria. And new research suggests that immature glial cells can act like stem cells and mature glia can stimulate stem cells dormant in the adult brain to form replacement neurons and glia. This could have implications for repair of the nervous system, including new possibilities for treating spinal cord injuries.\nThis is about as far removed from mere insulation, food delivery and waste management services as can be imagined. Glia are a lot smarter than we thought they were. A 2005 study shows a correlation between organization of fibers made of glial cells and IQ. Finding a greater proportion of glial cells in Einstein’s brain is not so surprising after all.\nWe still know very little about glia—even the basics such as how many kinds of glial cells there are and what they look like in detail. Their discovery, however, broadens our appreciation of the complexity of the brain. The brain, with its 100 billion neurons and an average of 10,000 synapses per neuron, has more potential connections than the atoms of our galaxy!\nWe don’t know yet if diet, exercise, supplements and other factors affect glial cells. However, the implications for health and illness—seizures, infections, cancer, addictions, mental illness and diseases such as Parkinson’s and multiple sclerosis may be far-reaching and profound.\nAs Fields says near the end of his book, “Here are cells that can build the brain of a fetus, direct the connection of its growing axons to wire up the nervous system, repair it after it is injured, sense impulses crackling through axons and hear synapses speaking, control the signals neurons use to communicate with one another at synapses, provide the energy source and substrates for neurotransmitters to neurons, couple large areas of synapses and neurons into functional groups, integrate and propagate the information they receive from neurons through their own private network, release neurotoxic or neuroprotective factors, plug and unplug synapses, move themselves in and out of the synaptic cleft, give birth to new neurons, communicate with the vascular and immune systems, insulate the neuronal lines of communication, and control the speed of impulse traffic through them. And some people ask, ‘Could these cells have anything to do with higher brain function?’ How could they possibly not?”\n[i] FIELDS, R. Douglas, The Other Brain, Simon & Schuster, December 2009, 384 p.\nPeople with obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD, have recurrent thoughts and behaviors that can be crippling. What follows is a discussion of the biology of the disorder and several aspects of treatment.\nObsessive compulsive disorder is not a single disorder; rather, it’s of a cluster of conditions. In OCD, sufferers might obsess and be anxious and compulsive about hoarding, cleaning, ordering and checking. Patients can also exhibit body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), where they imagine possessing a defect in physical appearance. Other diseases that overlap with OCD include Tourette’s syndrome and hypochondria. OCD also has a genetic component and runs in families; relatives of someone with OCD are 8 times more likely to present symptoms.\nThe areas of the brain that appears involved with OCD are the orbito-frontal cortex (OFC), a center for decision-making, and the thalamus, which filters and relays information. In these brain regions, the neurotransmitter glutamate is responsible for neuronal signaling. It’s thought that the deficit of glutamate production and function might contribute to the condition of OCD and other counter-productive behavior, including making decisions based on inappropriately perceived danger.\nObsessive Compulsive Disorder Treatment\nThe neurotransmitter serotonin may play an important role in whether someone gets obsessive compulsive disorder. Researchers have found a defect in the gene that makes a protein that “mops up” serotonin from between neurons. When there’s too much of this protein there is not enough serotonin, and that’s what is found in some with OCD. This is why Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors (SRIs) such as Prozac, which makes serotonin more available to the brain, are perhaps the most popular OCD treatment.\nAnother commonly used OCD treatment is exposure and response prevention (ERP), where the patient is exposed to stimuli that trigger the repetitive behavior but do not allow the patient to actually perform the compulsive behavior. Eventually the patient can learn that nothing bad happens when they don’t act out their compulsion.\nUnfortunately, ERP is a stressful treatment for patients to endure. And significant numbers of patients drop out of treatment. Various drugs, such as the SRIs, are now being used in conjunction with ERP.\nAnxiety usually is significant part of obsessive compulsive disorder. While anxiety does not appear to be the actual cause of OCD, anxiety can drive persistent thoughts and behaviors. A reduction in anxiety can be important in the treatment of OCD. Various modalities for treating anxiety include medication, neurofeedback (both traditional and LENS Neurofeedback), and/or behavioral approaches.\nWhen anxiety is successfully brought under control, there are not only fewer obsessive thoughts, but those obsessive thoughts that do persist become less prominent. Instead being the dominant focus, compulsive become background music as opposed to a loud concert. These thoughts demand less attention and this makes it easier to control compulsive behavior."}
{"text": "Managing the Generations\nBy Kerry L. Roberts and Pauline M. Sampson\nGenerational differences are common in schools; after all, for the most part students and their teachers have always come from different generations. We’d like to call attention to another kind of generational difference in districts: those among school board members, administrators, and teachers.\nFor many reasons, including economics and changing demographics, many districts have three or even four generations working for it. We note this because people born in different generations see and perceive situations, values, and work differently, and they communicate differently. This is a broad generalization, of course, but the era in which you grow up does influence your outlook, philosophy, and work habits.\nUnderstanding generational differences can help school board members and superintendents lead more effectively. They can make the differences work to the advantage of the district and to improve student achievement.\nSubscribers please click here to continue reading. If you are not a subscriber, please click here to purchase this article or to obtain a subscription to ASBJ."}
{"text": "Earth System Science Partnership (ESSP)\nThe ESSP is a partnership for the integrated study of the Earth System, the ways that it is changing, and the implications for global and regional sustainability.\nThe urgency of the challenge is great: In the present era, global environmental changes are both accelerating and moving the earth system into a state with no analogue in previous history.\nTo learn more about the ESSP, clink on links to access Strategy Paper, brochure and a video presentation by the Chair of the ESSP Scientific Committee, Prof. Dr. Rik Leemans of Wageningen University, The Netherlands.\nThe Earth System is the unified set of physical, chemical, biological and social components, processes and interactions that together determine the state and dynamics of Planet Earth, including its biota and its human occupants.\nEarth System Science is the study of the Earth System, with an emphasis on observing, understanding and predicting global environmental changes involving interactions between land, atmosphere, water, ice, biosphere, societies, technologies and economies.\nESSP Transitions into 'Future Earth' (31/12/2012)\nOn 31st December 2012, the ESSP will close and transition into 'Future Earth' as it develops over the next few years. During this period, the four global environmental Change research programmes (DIVERSITAS, IGBP, IHDP, WCRP) will continue close collaboration with each other. 'Future Earth' is currently being planned as a ten-year international research initiative for global sustainability (www.icsu.org/future-earth) that will build on decades of scientific excellence of the four GEC research programmes and their scientific partnership.\nClick here to read more.\nGlobal Carbon Budget 2012\nCarbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel burning and cement production increased by 3 percent in 2011, with a total of 34.7 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide emitted to the atmosphere. These emissions were the highest in human history and 54 percent higher than in 1990 (the Kyoto Protocol reference year). In 2011, coal burning was responsible for 43 percent of the total emissions, 34 percent for oil, 18 percent for gas and 5 percent for cement.\nFor the complete 2012 carbon budget and trends, access the Global Carbon Project website.\nGWSP International Conference - CALL for ABSTRACTS\nThe GWSP Conference on \"Water in the Anthropocene: Challenges for Science and Governance\" will convene in Bonn, Germany, 21 - 24 May 2014.\nThe focus of the conference is to address the global dimensions of water system changes due to anthropogenic as well as natural influences. The Conference will provide a platform to present global and regional perspectives on the responses of water management to global change in order to address issues such as variability in supply, increasing demands for water, environmental flows, and land use change. The Conference will help build links between science and policy and practice in the area of water resources management and governance, related institutional and technological innovations and identify ways that research can support policy and practice in the field of sustainable freshwater management.\nLearn more about the Conference here.\nGlobal Carbon Project (GCP) Employment Opportunity - Executive Director\nThe Global Carbon Project (GCP) is seeking to employ a highly motivated and independent person as Executive Director of the International Project Office (IPO) in Tsukuba, Japan, located at the Centre for Global Environmental Research at the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES). The successful candidate will work with the GCP Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) and other GCP offices to implement the science framework of the GCP. The GCP is seeking a person with excellent working knowledge of the policy-relevant objectives of the GCP and a keen interest in devising methods to integrate social and policy sciences into the understanding of the carbon-climate system as a coupled human/natural system. Read More.\nInclusive Wealth Report\nThe International Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change (IHDP) announces the launch of the Inclusive Wealth Report 2012 (IWR 2012) at the Rio +20 Conference in Brazil. The report presents a framework that offers a long-term perspective on human well-being and sustainability, based on a comprehensive analysis of nations' productive base and their link to economic development. The IWR 2012 was developed on the notion that current economic indicators such as Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the Human Development Index (HDI) are insufficient, as they fail to reflect the state of natural resources or ecological conditions, and focus exclusively on the short-term, without indicating whether national policies are sustainable.\nFuture Earth: Global platform for sustainability research launched at Rio +20\nRio de Janeiro, Brazil (14 June 2012) - An alliance of international partners from global science, research funding and UN bodies launched a new 10-year initiative on global environmental change research for sustainability at the Forum on Science and Technology and Innovation for Sustainable Development. Future Earth - research for global sustainability, will provide a cutting-edge platform to coordinate scientific research which is designed and produced in partnership with governments, business and, more broadly, society. More details.\nAPN's 2012 Call for Proposals\nThe Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN) announces the call for proposals for funding from April 2013. The proposals can be submitted under two separate programmes: regional global change research and scientific capacity development. More details.\nState of the Planet Declaration\nPlanet Under Pressure 2012 was the largest gathering of global change scientists leading up to the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio +20) with over 3,000 delegates at the conference venue and over 3,500 that attended virtually via live web streaming. The plenary sessions and the Daily Planet news show continue to draw audiences worldwide as they are available On Demand. An additional number of organisations, including 150 Science and Technology Centres worldwide streamed the plenary sessions at Planet Under Pressure-related events reaching an additional 12,000 viewers.\nThe first State of the Planet Declaration was issued at the conference.\nGlobal Carbon Budget 2010\nGlobal carbon dioxide emissions increased by a record 5.9 per cent in 2010 following the dampening effect of the 2008-2009 Global Financial Crisis (GFC), according to scientists working with the Global Carbon Project (GCP). The GCP annual analysis reports that the impact of the GFC on emissions has been short-lived owing to strong emissions growth in emerging economies and a return to emissions growth in developed economies.\nPlanet Under Pressure 2012 Debategraph\nDebategraph and Planet Under Pressure Conference participants and organisers are collaborating to distill the main arguments and evidence, risks and policy options facing humanity into a dynamic knowledge map to help convey and inform the global deliberation at United Nations Rio +20 and beyond.\nJoin the debate! (http://debategraph.org/planet)\nIntegrated Global Change Research\nThe ESSP and partners - the German National Committee on Global Change Research (NKGCF), International Council for Science (ICSU) and the International Social Science Council (ISSC) is conducting a new study on 'Integrated Global Change Research: Co-designing knowledge across scientific fields, national borders and user groups'. An international workshop (funded by the German Research Foundation) convened in Berlin, 7 - 9 March 2012, designed to elucidate the dimensions of integration, to identify and analyse best practice examples, to exchange ideas about new concepts of integration, to discuss emerging challenges for science, and to begin discussions about balancing academic research and stakeholder involvement.\nThe Future of the World's Climate\nThe Future of the World's Climate (edited by Ann Henderson-Sellers and Kendal McGuffie) offers a state-of-the-art overview - based on the latest climate science modelling data and projections available - of our understanding of future climates. The book is dedicated to Stephen H Schneider, a world leader in climate interpretation and communication. The Future of the World's Climate summarizes our current understanding of climatic prediction and examines how that understanding depends on a keen grasp of integrated Earth system models and human interaction with climate. This book brings climate science up to date beyond the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report. More details.\nSocial Scientists Call for More Research on Human Dimensions of Global Change\nScientists across all disciplines share great concern that our planet is in the process of crossing dangerous biophysical tipping points. The results of a new large-scale global survey among 1,276 scholars from the social sciences and the humanities demonstrates that the human dimensions of the problem are equally important but severely under-addressed.\nThe survey conducted by the International Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change (IHDP-UNU) Secretariat in collaboration with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the International Social Science Council (ISSC), identifies the following as highest research priority areas:\n1) Equity/equality and wealth/resource distribution;\n2) Policy, political systems/governance, and political economy;\n3) Economic systems, economic costs and incentives;\n4) Globalization, social and cultural transitions.\nFood Security and Global Environmental Change\nFood security and global environmental change, a synthesis book edited by John Ingram, Polly Ericksen and Diana Liverman of GECAFS has just been published. The book provides a major, accessible synthesis of the current state of knowledge and thinking on the relationship between GEC and food security. Click here for further information.\nGECAFS is featured in the latest UNESCO-SCOPE-UNEP Policy Brief - No. 12 entitled Global Environmental Change and Food Security. The brief reviews current knowledge, highlights trends and controversies, and is a useful reference for policy planners, decision makers and stakeholders in the community.\nGWSP Digital Water Atlas\nThe Global Water System Project (GWSP) has launched its Digital Water Atlas. The purpose and intent of the Digital Water Atlas is to describe the basic elements of the Global Water System, the interlinkages of the elements and changes in the state of the Global Water System by creating a consistent set of annotated maps. The project will especially promote the collection, analysis and consideration of social science data on the global basis. Click here to access the GWSP Digital Water Atlas.\nThe ESSP office was carbon neutral in its office operations and travel in 2011. The ESSP supported the Gujarat wind project in India. More details.\nThe Global Carbon Project has published an ESSP commissioned report, \"carbon reductions and offsets\" with a number of recommendations for individuals and institutions who want to participate in this voluntary market. Click here to learn more and to download the report from the GCP website.\nThe ESSP is a joint initiative of four global environmental change programmes:"}
{"text": "Tips for helping children behave\n(especially in public)\nI thought it was time to write down some of the tips I’ve acquired that concern children and behavior, as I’ve learned what I have about the brain and how it works. What I learned is that while you are thinking about something, you feel as you do about it. If you want to change how you feel, changing your thoughts helps us do that immediately. Just as I say, “ Imagine the tip of your left pinky finger… where the nail meets the skin…” Do you think of it? Did you think of your pinky because I mentioned it? You did that because that is how quickly our brain responds.\nTip 1. Keep a picture or small item (from a special time or event) that represents something special to the child with you.\nYes. Helping a child regain composure during a meltdown may be painful and embarrassing, not to mention the discomfort your child perceives at that time. There seems to be great debate over how to handle a situation like a meltdown like let them ride it out or leave immediately or yell or whatever… if you have tried these techniques I’d like you to pause and ask yourself how helpful your response was in the moment.\nKeeping a picture of a grandparent or a party or a vacation or an item or toy that they really want for their birthday or special holiday… (Big breath…) you get the picture… it helps take your child’s thoughts to a more pleasant place. You can make this even more effective by asking them questions about it, even if you know the answers ; )\nAsk questions like, “Hey remember this? Where/who is this again? Do you remember that thing in the picture…? What do you think happened right before this? What is your favorite thing about this? Can you make up a sentence/song/rhyme/or draw a picture about the picture? Can you spell something in the picture?\nThese questions will take their focus to something better. Once they’ve calmed down and appear to be past the issue, ask them what happened and explain why that behavior isn’t helpful or necessary.\nTip 2. A simple game of ‘I spy’ with extra OMG\nThis tip is great if you find yourself out and are caught empty handed without anything handy to keep your kids busy. Look around you and spot something ANYTHING that either you don’t see often or haven’t seen in awhile (not a person) and get excited while smiling and saying, “OMG you are never going to find what I am looking at! It is soooo _____________” This usually leads to a game of I spy which can be changed as your child develops I spy colors… I spy words that start with ___... I spy numbers …\nTip 3. Text Message back and forth\nI noticed a long time ago how technology has changed the interpersonal dynamic. Being more of a “find the solution girl”, I established some rules like no cell phone at the table for meals. Please know my daughter was 4 when I did this knowing that when she is grown she will have a phone and I probably will want to use our dining times to connect. I figured our meals are relatively short and whatever needed me could wait the 30 minutes. Also, it was a perfect opportunity to demonstrate the behavior I hope to create.\nThis is what led me to texting with my child. I remember when she was beginning to read that I looked for every practical experience for her to do so… signs, menus, airport terminals… everything. But sometimes there is nothing to read and nowhere to go as you get stuck waiting in line or for an appointment or for whatever presents a time where you can text and you need to keep kids busy and have fun… text them. Hand them your phone and say here… and let them read your message for them. Then let them respond to you via text. Hand the phone back and forth…after a few texts you may be happy to learn what you do… and you will both have fun while doing it.\nTip 4. Start them on a story.\nThis is one I use all the time and changes just as much as I use it. I simply start a story using something that I see for example… “Once there was this really cool girl who sat down to write some really helpful stuff for parents…” then they have to look around and continue the story using something they see. Example “But that girl decided to step away from her desk and go play with the fairies living in her backyard…”\nStart stories about the cars you see driving or the foods you see in the market or the stars in the sky… about the waves in the ocean and the mermaids that live deep below.\nWhen you run out of time for your part and you’ve got them interested, tell them to draw a picture of it or write a story about it.\nHow smart and well behaved your children are now. Thanks for reading. You do make a difference in your child’s life. Much Love."}
{"text": "Ten common myths about teaching\nEducators discuss the nation’s biggest misconceptions about teachers and their profession\nIt seems everyone has an opinion about teachers and their profession these days … and most of them aren’t teachers.\nPerhaps it would be a different matter if the conceptions of teaching were like those of NASA engineers: smart, genius! Or maybe like those of firefighters: brave, self-sacrificing! However, in our nation’s current climate, saying the word “teacher” is like Forrest Gump opening a box of chocolates: you never know what you’re going to get, as teachers too often are seen as a convenient scapegoat for the perceived problems that are plaguing public education.\neSchool News recently asked readers: “If you could clear up one misconception about teachers and/or teaching, what would it be?” Our goal was not only to help others understand these misconceptions, but also to learn how teachers feel they are perceived by others.\nHere are 10 misconceptions about teachers and teaching that emerged from readers (responses edited for brevity):\n1. Those who can’t do, teach.\n“The one misconception I would like to clarify is around the phrase, ‘Those who can cannot do, teach.’ While many educators are active contributors to the particular area in which they have domain expertise (i.e. Science, Language Arts, History), K-12 educators … have committed themselves to developing skills in how to engage and foster growth of young people around the content and processes that comprise that area of expertise. It is the very special practitioner [who] makes a good educator; however, good educators need to have enough knowledge of their areas of expertise to cultivate excitement, curiosity, and spark the passion to commit to a vocation or avocation. Maybe a better phrase is, ‘Those who teach create those who do.’” —Michael Jay\n“One of my favorites is, ‘Those who can’t, teach.’ Teachers must be well educated in their field of study, of course, but that is only the beginning. Teachers need much pedagogical preparation on topics including educational psychology, classroom management, assessment, curriculum instruction, communication skills, and budgeting. And that is all before a teacher steps into a classroom. The requirements for a qualified teacher include all of the skills needed for the 21st-century workplace.” —Mary Montag, teacher, St. Teresa’s Academy"}
{"text": "Vienna Philharmonic asks historians to look into alleged Nazi past\nHistorian says orchestra demonstrated sympathy for Austria's Nazi leadership during Holocaust.\nThe Vienna Philharmonic has asked three historians to research the orchestra's alleged Nazi past.\nThe announcement on January 22 came after Harald Walser, a historian and Parliament member for the Austrian Greens, said in an interview that the orchestra demonstrated sympathy for the country’s Nazi leadership during World War Two.\nHistorians Fritz Truempi, Oliver Rathkolb and Bernadette Mayrhofer will look into the \"politicization\" of the Vienna Philharmonic from 1938 to 1945, the fate of its Jewish musicians during that time and its relations with Nazis afterward, according to an orchestra statement, the French news agency AFP reported.\nTheir report is due in March.\nWalser has called for forming a committee of inquiry into the role of the philharmonic during those years and said the orchestra has not released all its documents from the Nazi era or has destroyed some of them.\nHe cited a listing on the philharmonic’s official website that describes a concert delivered on New Year’s Day of 1939 as a “sublime homage to Austria,” when it actually was a celebration of the country's unification with Nazi Germany in 1938.\nThe New Year's Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic takes place each year on the morning of January 1 in Vienna and is broadcast to an estimated audience of 50 million in 73 countries.\nWalser claims that after the war, an emissary of the Vienna Philharmonic gave a new copy of its honor ring in 1966 to Nazi war criminal Baldur von Schirach, who was responsible for the deportation of tens of thousands of Austrian Jews to death camps, following his release from Berlin’s Spandau Prison for war criminals. Von Schirach had received the original ring in 1942.\nSix Jewish musicians from the philharmonic were murdered by the Nazis in Austria and 11 were deported to death camps, according to reports."}
{"text": "Kidney Disease of Diabetes\nOn this page:\n- The Burden of Kidney Failure\n- The Course of Kidney Disease\n- Diagnosis of CKD\n- Effects of High Blood Pressure\n- Preventing and Slowing Kidney Disease\n- Dialysis and Transplantation\n- Good Care Makes a Difference\n- Points to Remember\n- Hope through Research\n- For More Information\nThe Burden of Kidney Failure\nEach year in the United States, more than 100,000 people are diagnosed with kidney failure, a serious condition in which the kidneys fail to rid the body of wastes.1 Kidney failure is the final stage of chronic kidney disease (CKD).\nDiabetes is the most common cause of kidney failure, accounting for nearly 44 percent of new cases.1 Even when diabetes is controlled, the disease can lead to CKD and kidney failure. Most people with diabetes do not develop CKD that is severe enough to progress to kidney failure. Nearly 24 million people in the United States have diabetes, 2 and nearly 180,000 people are living with kidney failure as a result of diabetes.1\nPeople with kidney failure undergo either dialysis, an artificial blood-cleaning process, or transplantation to receive a healthy kidney from a donor. Most U.S. citizens who develop kidney failure are eligible for federally funded care. In 2005, care for patients with kidney failure cost the United States nearly $32 billion.1\nAfrican Americans, American Indians, and Hispanics/Latinos develop diabetes, CKD, and kidney failure at rates higher than Caucasians. Scientists have not been able to explain these higher rates. Nor can they explain fully the interplay of factors leading to kidney disease of diabetes—factors including heredity, diet, and other medical conditions, such as high blood pressure. They have found that high blood pressure and high levels of blood glucose increase the risk that a person with diabetes will progress to kidney failure.\n1United States Renal Data System. USRDS 2007 Annual Data Report. Bethesda, MD: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; 2007.\n2National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. National Diabetes Statistics, 2007. Bethesda, MD: National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2008.\nThe Course of Kidney Disease\nDiabetic kidney disease takes many years to develop. In some people, the filtering function of the kidneys is actually higher than normal in the first few years of their diabetes.\nOver several years, people who are developing kidney disease will have small amounts of the blood protein albumin begin to leak into their urine. This first stage of CKD is called microalbuminuria. The kidney's filtration function usually remains normal during this period.\nAs the disease progresses, more albumin leaks into the urine. This stage may be called macroalbuminuria or proteinuria. As the amount of albumin in the urine increases, the kidneys' filtering function usually begins to drop. The body retains various wastes as filtration falls. As kidney damage develops, blood pressure often rises as well.\nOverall, kidney damage rarely occurs in the first 10 years of diabetes, and usually 15 to 25 years will pass before kidney failure occurs. For people who live with diabetes for more than 25 years without any signs of kidney failure, the risk of ever developing it decreases.\nDiagnosis of CKD\nPeople with diabetes should be screened regularly for kidney disease. The two key markers for kidney disease are eGFR and urine albumin.\neGFR. eGFR stands for estimated glomerular filtration rate. Each kidney contains about 1 million tiny filters made up of blood vessels. These filters are called glomeruli. Kidney function can be checked by estimating how much blood the glomeruli filter in a minute. The calculation of eGFR is based on the amount of creatinine, a waste product, found in a blood sample. As the level of creatinine goes up, the eGFR goes down.\nKidney disease is present when eGFR is less than 60 milliliters per minute.\nThe American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommend that eGFR be calculated from serum creatinine at least once a year in all people with diabetes.\nUrine albumin. Urine albumin is measured by comparing the amount of albumin to the amount of creatinine in a single urine sample. When the kidneys are healthy, the urine will contain large amounts of creatinine but almost no albumin. Even a small increase in the ratio of albumin to creatinine is a sign of kidney damage.\nKidney disease is present when urine contains more than 30 milligrams of albumin per gram of creatinine, with or without decreased eGFR.\nThe ADA and the NIH recommend annual assessment of urine albumin excretion to assess kidney damage in all people with type 2 diabetes and people who have had type 1 diabetes for 5 years or more.\nIf kidney disease is detected, it should be addressed as part of a comprehensive approach to the treatment of diabetes.\nEffects of High Blood Pressure\nHigh blood pressure, or hypertension, is a major factor in the development of kidney problems in people with diabetes. Both a family history of hypertension and the presence of hypertension appear to increase chances of developing kidney disease. Hypertension also accelerates the progress of kidney disease when it already exists.\nBlood pressure is recorded using two numbers. The first number is called the systolic pressure, and it represents the pressure in the arteries as the heart beats. The second number is called the diastolic pressure, and it represents the pressure between heartbeats. In the past, hypertension was defined as blood pressure higher than 140/90, said as \"140 over 90.\"\nThe ADA and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute recommend that people with diabetes keep their blood pressure below 130/80.\nHypertension can be seen not only as a cause of kidney disease but also as a result of damage created by the disease. As kidney disease progresses, physical changes in the kidneys lead to increased blood pressure. Therefore, a dangerous spiral, involving rising blood pressure and factors that raise blood pressure, occurs. Early detection and treatment of even mild hypertension are essential for people with diabetes.\nPreventing and Slowing Kidney Disease\nBlood Pressure Medicines\nScientists have made great progress in developing methods that slow the onset and progression of kidney disease in people with diabetes. Drugs used to lower blood pressure can slow the progression of kidney disease significantly. Two types of drugs, angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), have proven effective in slowing the progression of kidney disease. Many people require two or more drugs to control their blood pressure. In addition to an ACE inhibitor or an ARB, a diuretic can also be useful. Beta blockers, calcium channel blockers, and other blood pressure drugs may also be needed.\nAn example of an effective ACE inhibitor is lisinopril (Prinivil, Zestril), which doctors commonly prescribe for treating kidney disease of diabetes. The benefits of lisinopril extend beyond its ability to lower blood pressure: it may directly protect the kidneys' glomeruli. ACE inhibitors have lowered proteinuria and slowed deterioration even in people with diabetes who did not have high blood pressure.\nAn example of an effective ARB is losartan (Cozaar), which has also been shown to protect kidney function and lower the risk of cardiovascular events.\nAny medicine that helps patients achieve a blood pressure target of 130/80 or lower provides benefits. Patients with even mild hypertension or persistent microalbuminuria should consult a health care provider about the use of antihypertensive medicines.\nIn people with diabetes, excessive consumption of protein may be harmful. Experts recommend that people with kidney disease of diabetes consume the recommended dietary allowance for protein, but avoid high-protein diets. For people with greatly reduced kidney function, a diet containing reduced amounts of protein may help delay the onset of kidney failure. Anyone following a reduced-protein diet should work with a dietitian to ensure adequate nutrition.\nIntensive Management of Blood Glucose\nAntihypertensive drugs and low-protein diets can slow CKD. A third treatment, known as intensive management of blood glucose or glycemic control, has shown great promise for people with diabetes, especially for those in the early stages of CKD.\nThe human body normally converts food to glucose, the simple sugar that is the main source of energy for the body's cells. To enter cells, glucose needs the help of insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas. When a person does not make enough insulin, or the body does not respond to the insulin that is present, the body cannot process glucose, and it builds up in the bloodstream. High levels of glucose in the blood lead to a diagnosis of diabetes.\nIntensive management of blood glucose is a treatment regimen that aims to keep blood glucose levels close to normal. The regimen includes testing blood glucose frequently, administering insulin throughout the day on the basis of food intake and physical activity, following a diet and activity plan, and consulting a health care team regularly. Some people use an insulin pump to supply insulin throughout the day.\nA number of studies have pointed to the beneficial effects of intensive management of blood glucose. In the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial supported by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), researchers found a 50 percent decrease in both development and progression of early diabetic kidney disease in participants who followed an intensive regimen for controlling blood glucose levels. The intensively managed patients had average blood glucose levels of 150 milligrams per deciliter-about 80 milligrams per deciliter lower than the levels observed in the conventionally managed patients. The United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study, conducted from 1976 to 1997, showed conclusively that, in people with improved blood glucose control, the risk of early kidney disease was reduced by a third. Additional studies conducted over the past decades have clearly established that any program resulting in sustained lowering of blood glucose levels will be beneficial to patients in the early stages of CKD.\nDialysis and Transplantation\nWhen people with diabetes experience kidney failure, they must undergo either dialysis or a kidney transplant. As recently as the 1970s, medical experts commonly excluded people with diabetes from dialysis and transplantation, in part because the experts felt damage caused by diabetes would offset benefits of the treatments. Today, because of better control of diabetes and improved rates of survival following treatment, doctors do not hesitate to offer dialysis and kidney transplantation to people with diabetes.\nCurrently, the survival of kidneys transplanted into people with diabetes is about the same as the survival of transplants in people without diabetes. Dialysis for people with diabetes also works well in the short run. Even so, people with diabetes who receive transplants or dialysis experience higher morbidity and mortality because of coexisting complications of diabetes-such as damage to the heart, eyes, and nerves.\nGood Care Makes a Difference\nPeople with diabetes should\n- have their health care provider measure their A1C level at least twice a year. The test provides a weighted average of their blood glucose level for the previous 3 months. They should aim to keep it at less than 7 percent.\n- work with their health care provider regarding insulin injections, medicines, meal planning, physical activity, and blood glucose monitoring.\n- have their blood pressure checked several times a year. If blood pressure is high, they should follow their health care provider's plan for keeping it near normal levels. They should aim to keep it at less than 130/80.\n- ask their health care provider whether they might benefit from taking an ACE inhibitor or ARB.\n- ask their health care provider to measure their eGFR at least once a year to learn how well their kidneys are working.\n- ask their health care provider to measure the amount of protein in their urine at least once a year to check for kidney damage.\n- ask their health care provider whether they should reduce the amount of protein in their diet and ask for a referral to see a registered dietitian to help with meal planning.\nPoints to Remember\n- Diabetes is the leading cause of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and kidney failure in the United States.\n- People with diabetes should be screened regularly for kidney disease. The two key markers for kidney disease are estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and urine albumin.\n- Drugs used to lower blood pressure can slow the progression of kidney disease significantly. Two types of drugs, angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), have proven effective in slowing the progression of kidney disease.\n- In people with diabetes, excessive consumption of protein may be harmful.\n- Intensive management of blood glucose has shown great promise for people with diabetes, especially for those in the early stages of CKD.\nHope through Research\nThe number of people with diabetes is growing. As a result, the number of people with kidney failure caused by diabetes is also growing. Some experts predict that diabetes soon might account for half the cases of kidney failure. In light of the increasing illness and death related to diabetes and kidney failure, patients, researchers, and health care professionals will continue to benefit by addressing the relationship between the two diseases. The NIDDK is a leader in supporting research in this area.\nSeveral areas of research supported by the NIDDK hold great potential. Discovery of ways to predict who will develop kidney disease may lead to greater prevention, as people with diabetes who learn they are at risk institute strategies such as intensive management of blood glucose and blood pressure control.\nParticipants in clinical trials can play a more active role in their own health care, gain access to new research treatments before they are widely available, and help others by contributing to medical research. For information about current studies, visit www.ClinicalTrials.gov.\nFor More Information\nNational Diabetes Information Clearinghouse\n1 Information Way\nBethesda, MD 20892-3560\nNational Kidney Foundation\n30 East 33rd Street\nNew York, NY 10016\nPhone: 1-800-622-9010 or 212-889-2210\nNational Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse\nThe National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NKUDIC) is a service of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). The NIDDK is part of the National Institutes of Health of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Established in 1987, the Clearinghouse provides information about diseases of the kidneys and urologic system to people with kidney and urologic disorders and to their families, health care professionals, and the public. The NKUDIC answers inquiries, develops and distributes publications, and works closely with professional and patient organizations and Government agencies to coordinate resources about kidney and urologic diseases.\nPublications produced by the Clearinghouse are carefully reviewed by both NIDDK scientists and outside experts.\nThis publication is not copyrighted. The Clearinghouse encourages users of this publication to duplicate and distribute as many copies as desired.\nNIH Publication No. 08-3925\nPage last updated: September 2, 2010"}
{"text": "Deep Vein Thrombosis\nExams and Tests\nWhen you first see the doctor, he or she will do a physical exam and ask questions about your medical history. These help your doctor decide what tests you need based on your risk for deep vein thrombosis (DVT).\nYour doctor will check:\n- Your heart and lungs.\n- Your legs for warmth, swelling, bulging veins, or changes in skin color.\nYour doctor may ask:\n- Do you have any swelling or pain in your legs?\n- Have you had a blood clot before?\n- What medicines do you take?\n- Have you had surgery recently or have you been on any long trips lately?\nReference Ultrasound is the main test used to help diagnose DVT. It creates a picture of the flow of blood through the veins.\nIf your doctor thinks you should have more tests, you might have two or three more ultrasounds over the next 7 to 10 days.\nMore tests may be used when ultrasound results are unclear. These tests often aren't needed, but they may help diagnose or exclude a blood clot in the leg. These tests may include:\nBlood thinner testing\nIf you are treated with anticoagulant medicines, you may need periodic blood tests to monitor the effects of the anticoagulant on the blood. Blood tests include:\n- Reference Activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) to monitor treatment with heparin.\n- Reference Prothrombin time (PT), also referred to as INR, to monitor treatment with warfarin (Coumadin).\nTests for clotting problems\nSpecial blood tests may help identify Reference inherited blood-clotting problems that can increase your risk of forming blood clots or help explain why you got a blood clot. These tests check for genetic conditions or specific proteins in your blood.\nTesting might be done if you have or had one or more of the following:\n- A blood clot in a vein that has no clear cause\n- A blood clot at age 45 or younger\n- A blood clot in a vein at an unusual location, such as the gastrointestinal region, the brain, or the arms\n- A first-degree family member (mother, father, brother, or sister) who has had a blood clot in a vein before age 45 or has had problems with blood clotting\nScreening for these problems in the general population is not routinely done.\n|By:||Reference Healthwise Staff||Last Revised: Reference August 17, 2012|\n|Medical Review:||Reference E. Gregory Thompson, MD - Internal Medicine\nReference Jeffrey S. Ginsberg, MD - Hematology"}
{"text": "To preserve our planet, scientists tell us we must reduce the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere from its current level of 392 parts per million (\"ppm\")to below 350 ppm. But 350 is more than a number—it's a symbol of where we need to head as a planet.\nAt 350.org, we're building a global grassroots movement to solve the climate crisis and push for policies that will put the world on track to get to 350 ppm.\nScientists say that 350 parts per million CO2 in the atmosphere is the safe limit for humanity. Learn more about 350—what it means, where it came from, and how to get there. Read More »\nSubmit your success story from your work in the climate movement and we'll share the best ones on our blog and social networks! Stories from people like you are crucial tools in growing the climate movement.\nHelp spread the word and look good while doing it—check out the 350 Store for t-shirts, buttons, stickers, and more."}
{"text": "Since many ancestors of Americans were foreign born, naturalization records\nare another a source of genealogical information that you might want to\ninvestigate. Naturalization is the process through which a foreign born\nperson becomes a citizen of the United States and is eligible to vote.\nNot all immigrants became citizens as it is not required. Many obtained\ntheir citizenship because of pride in their new country and a desire to\nparticipate in democratic elections, a privilege perhaps not accorded\nto them in their country of birth. Others became citizens for more materialistic\nreasons, such as the right to acquire free land through homesteading.\nDuring times of war, there was often hostility towards people from the\nenemy country and immigrants may have obtained citizenship to show their\nloyalty to the U.S., especially if they had children serving in the U.S.\nWas Your Ancestor Naturalized?\nBefore beginning a search for a naturalization record, it may save hours\nof futile research if you try to determine if there is evidence that the\nindividual you are researching did become a citizen. There are several\nways to do this:\nEven with the above information, keep in mind the following caveats:\n- Location of Birth Was the person foreign born? Usually\nthere's no need to be naturalized if born in the U.S.\n- Census The 1900 and 1910 censuses ask if a person is\nnaturalized and 1920 further asks the year of naturalization. Indirectly,\nthe 1820 and 1830 census provide a clue with the question \"number of\nforeigners in each household not naturalized.\"\n- Homesteading Land The person had to have initiated the\nnaturalization process to be eligible for free land through homesteading.\n- Voter Registration Lists Is he/she listed as a voter?\n- Occupation Did this person hold a job that required\n- Not all foreign born individuals applied for citizenship and a child\nborn abroad is still a U.S. citizen if his/her parents are. During much\nof our history, the wife and children automatically became citizens\nwhen the husband/father took out citizenship papers.\n- Naturalization was one of many census questions. The person who provided\nthe answer may not have known in fact if someone else had been naturalized.\nAn individual may have said yes because he felt it was the right thing\nto say or he intended to begin the process.\n- A Declaration of Intent, not final papers, was all that was required\n- Not everyone who became a citizen registered to vote. Also, some states\nallowed people who had filed a Declaration of Intent to vote even if\nthey had not received their final papers.\nWhat Is the Procedure?\nBy now you might be getting the idea that naturalization documents are\nnot necessarily as easy to use as some other records, such as the census.\nGenerally, for most of our history there are two rules that apply to naturalizations:\n- It was a legal process handled through the courts.\n- It was usually a two-part procedure, the first being a Declaration\nof Intent indicating that the person intended to become a citizen (voluntary\nafter 1952). This may have included as part of the document or as a\nseparate certificate or record information on the individual's date\nand place of arrival into the United States. After a required period\nof residency (five years, with some exceptions) the individual would\nthen file a Petition for Naturalization and, if granted, would receive\na Certificate of Naturalization. Both or either the Declaration and/or\nthe Petition may contain valuable genealogical information.\nThe procedures and requirements differed greatly depending on the location\nand the time period. The first important information the researcher needs\nto establish is whether the naturalization was before 1906 or afterwards.\nIn 1906 the naturalization process was simplified and taken over by the\nfederal government. It is much easier to find out where to look and what\nto expect if it took place after 1906.\nWhere are Records Located?\nPrior to 1906, naturalization could take place in any court having common\nlaw jurisdiction. The court could be federal, state, or local and be called\nby many names circuit, supreme, civil, equity, district, common\npleas, chancery, superior. In some cases a municipal, police, criminal,\nor probate court did not actually have the right to handle naturalization\nbut they issued certificates anyway. Prior to 1905, over 5,000 courts\nhad been handling naturalization. By 1908 that number was reduced to just\nover 2,000 courts and the Department of Labor began issuing A Directory\nof Courts Having Jurisdiction in Naturalization Proceedings. This\ndirectory, available on microfilm through the Family History Library,\ncan help you determine which court your ancestor may have used. Naturalizations\ncan now be handled in either federal or local courts. Since 1929, most\nnaturalizations have been at federal courts, but earlier records are more\nlikely to be at a local court because it was closer to the individual.\nPrior to 1906, the biggest problem confronting a researcher is where\nto find the record. The two procedures did not have to take place in the\nsame court so the immigrant could have filed a Declaration soon after\nhis arrival in New York, or perhaps he lived in Ohio for a while and filed\nhis Declaration there, hoping to qualify for free land. Then, after settling\non land in South Dakota, he may have submitted his Petition to a local\ncourt. The Family History Library has microfilm copies of many pre-1930\nrecords. If your ancestor lived in an urban area, there are many rolls\nof films relating to Chicago (1871-1930), New York (1792-1906), Philadelphia\n(1793-1911) and New England (1791-1906).\nThe good news is that copies of all naturalization records from 1906\nto 1956 are at the Immigration and Naturalization Service in Washington,\nDC. This does not guarantee success though. Since you are dealing with\na government agency, be prepared for a long wait. I had a copy of one\ncertificate of citizenship which gave the court, location, date, and name\nof the immigrant, but the INS was never able to locate the file. You may\nalso be able to obtain copies of the file from the court, but some courts\nwill refer you to INS in Washington.\nNaturalizations after 1956 are kept at the local INS office. Some records\nare being transferred to National Archives branches or state archives.\nSee their page \"Naturalization\nRecords\" for information about records at the National Archives.\nWhat Do the Records Contain?\nIn 1906, the process was standardized and uniform forms were issued.\nThe forms have been revised periodically, but generally contain at least\nthe following information:\n- Declaration of Intention The court date and location;\nthe individual's name, age, occupation, personal description, birth\ndate and location, and residence; their date and vessel of arrival and\nlast foreign residence. From 1929 to 1941, it asked for the spouse's\nname, marriage date and place, and birth information, plus names, dates,\nand places of birth and residence of each child. It also includes a\npicture of the applicant. After 1941, it requests the spouse's name\n(no details on birth) and doesn't mention children. After 1929, the\nlast foreign residence is omitted. A separate Certificate of Arrival\ngiving details of arrival was required for arrivals after 1906, with\n- Petition for Naturalization The court date and location;\nname, residence, occupation, birth date and place; immigration departure\ndate and place; U.S. arrival port, date, and ship; date and place of\nDeclaration of Intention; spouse's name, birth date and place; children's\nnames, dates and places of birth; residence, witnesses, and oath of\nallegiance. From 1929 to 1941 it also asked race, marriage date and\nplace, date of spouse's entry into the U.S. and naturalization information,\nlast foreign residence, and name used on arrival. After 1941, a personal\ndescription was added, as well as details of any trips longer than six\nmonths out of the U.S.\n- The actual certificate This is the document given to\nthe new citizen and the one a researcher is most likely to find in old\nfamily papers. It contains little information: court, date. and name\nof new citizen. It may contain other information, but the Declaration\nand Petition are the papers the researcher should try to locate.\nPrior to 1906\nThere is no predicting what you might find in naturalization papers prior\nto 1906. Until 1828, the immigrant had to report to a court to register.\nThis report was supposed to contain information on the birthplace, age,\nand nationality. These alien registry books were separate volumes in many\nareas, especially in the northeast. The registry may be found in later\nrecords combined with the Declaration. After 1911, the immigrant was issued\na certificate of arrival.\nA Declaration of Intention was usually required, again with exceptions.\nIt may contain little more than the name of the immigrant, but may also\nhave some of the details incorporated in the post-1906 form described\nabove. These are also called \"first papers.\"\nEarly Petitions are part of the court record and may even be recorded\nin separate ledgers called \"second papers\" or \"final record.\" Information\nvaries greatly. Certificates of Naturalization were given to the new citizen.\nThe information was recorded but duplicates of the certificate were not\nkept on file.\nSpouses and children may derive their citizenship from their husband/father\nand not have to go through the procedure themselves. Up until 1922, a\nforeign born woman who married an American citizen became naturalized\nupon marriage or, if her husband was foreign born, when he became a citizen.\nNo separate filings were required. Prior to 1906, they usually were not\neven mentioned in the husband's petition.\nAfter 1922, a woman had to be naturalized on her own. However, from 1907\nto 1922, if a woman married an unnaturalized alien, she took his citizenship.\nThis created one particularly bizarre situation for a woman who was born\nin Poland in September 1901. In November of that same year she came to\nthe U.S. with her parents. Her father obtained citizenship in 1906 and\nshe automatically became a citizen as well. In 1918 she married a man\nwho had immigrated from Russia in 1913, but was not yet a citizen. She\nlost her citizenship because of this rule. In November 1922, her husband\nbecame a citizen. This did not help her because on September 22, 1922,\nthe law was changed to say that any alien woman who married an American\ndoes not become a U.S. citizen automatically. She applied on her own and\nagain became a U.S. citizen in 1942!\nChildren under the age of 21 automatically become citizens by the naturalization\nof a parent. However, there are many exceptions to this law regarding\nresidence, whether or not a Declaration is required, what happens if the\nparent dies or becomes insane, adopted children, illegitimate children,\nstep-children, and children born abroad.\nObtaining citizenship generally has been made easier for aliens who served\nin the U.S. military. Filing of the Declaration of Intention was often\nnot required and the period of residency eliminated or reduced. However,\nin 1894 the law was changed and during times of peace no one (except Indians)\ncould serve in the military unless he or she was a U.S. citizen or had\nfiled a Declaration of Intention. Aliens were allowed to serve during\ntimes of war and to become naturalized.\nSome states had laws forbidding aliens from owning land unless they had\nfiled a declaration. Homesteaders were able to qualify for free public\nland after filing the declaration. The National Archives has homestead\nrecords prior to May 1, 1908 and Bureau of Land Management after that\ndate. BLM can be accessed at http://www.blm.gov/nhp/index.htm.\nObstacles to Research\nBesides identifying the court (or courts) that handled the various steps\nin the procedure, there are other pitfalls. Some immigrants filed the\nDeclaration, perhaps for homesteading, but did not follow through with\nthe final papers. If they could vote and obtain land with the Declaration\nonly, they had no need to complete the process. Others were allowed to\nskip the declaration and only had to file the final petition. In addition,\nfraud occurred on a large scale. Thousands of fraudulent certificates\nwere issued in 1868 in New York because votes were needed in an election.\nThese certificates had no court records documenting the citizenship. If\nyou cannot locate the naturalization record in the court where it was\nsupposed to have occurred, your ancestor may have had a fraudulent certificate.\nFor further information, see the National Archives and Records Administration\nRecords\" page; the LDS Research Outline on the U.S. (p. 38-41)\nand the excellent 43-page booklet American Naturalization Processes\nand Procedures 1790-1985 by John J. Newman (Indianapolis: Family History\nSection, Indiana Historical Society 1985)."}
{"text": "This WebQuest was designed to meet the 3rd grade TEKS for TEXAS in the\nWriting 3.1(C) revise selected drafts for varied purposes, including to\nachieve a sense of audience, precise word choices, and vivid images.\nScience 3.9(A) observe and identify characteristics among species that allow\neach to survive and reproduce.\nSocial Studies 3.16(D & E) use various parts of a source, including the\ntable of contents, glossary, and index, as well as keyword computer\nsearches, to locate information;(E) interpret and create visuals including\ngraphs, charts, tables, timelines, illustrations, and maps.\nArt 3.2(C) produce drawings, paintings, prints, constructions, ceramics, and\nfiberart, using a variety of art materials appropriately."}
{"text": "The Syrian Flag :\ncolor in the Syrian flag refers to a definite meaning or a period as follows:\n1. Red Color: The blood of the martyrs.\n2. Black Color: The Abbasids.\n3. White Color: The Umayyad.\n4. The Green: The Rashidun or the Fatimid.\n5. The two stars represent the previous union\nbetween Egypt and Syria.\nSyrian flag is also found as a Shield in the middle of the Syrian Eagle's heart\nwhich is derived from the Arabic history, which referred to the flag of \"Khaled\nBin Al Waleed\" that was held\nat when he conquered Damascus in 635 AD. At the\nbottom of the Shield , there are two wheat spikes to represent the country's first\ncrop and its agricultural nature. The eagle grabs in his claws a stripe that\nhas the words \"Syrian Arab Republic\" written on it in Kufic (an\nArabic type of writing).\nSyrian National Anthem:\n\"Homat el Diyar\"\n(translated Guardians of the Homeland) is the national anthem of Syria, with\nlyrics written by \"Khalil Mardam Bey\" and the music by \"Mohammed Flayfel\", who\nalso composed the national anthem of the Palestinian National Authority, as\nwell as many other Arab folk songs.\nwas adopted in 1936 and temporarily fell from use when Syria joined the United\nArab Republic with Egypt in 1958. It was decided that the national anthem of\nthe UAR would be a combination of the then-Egyptian anthem and \"Homat elDiyar\" When Syria seceded from the union in 1961, the\nanthem was completely restored.\nTranslation of Syrian National Anthem:\nDefenders of our home,\nPeace be upon you;\nThe proud spirits had\nrefused to subdue.\nThe lion-abode of Arabism,\nA hallowed sanctuary;\nThe seat of the stars,\nAn inviolable preserve.\nOur hopes and our hearts,\nAre entwined with the flag,\nWhich unites our country...\nListen Syrian National Anthem...Click Here"}
{"text": "RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Biologists at the University of California, Riverside have found that voluntary activity, such as daily exercise, is a highly heritable trait that can be passed down genetically to successive generations.\nWorking on mice in the lab, they found that activity level can be enhanced with \"selective breeding\" – the process of breeding plants and animals for particular genetic traits. Their experiments showed that mice that were bred to be high runners produced high-running offspring, indicating that the offspring had inherited the trait for activity.\n\"Our findings have implications for human health,\" said Theodore Garland Jr., a professor of biology, whose laboratory conducted the multi-year research. \"Down the road people could be treated pharmacologically for low activity levels through drugs that targeted specific genes that promote activity. Pharmacological interventions in the future could make it more pleasurable for people to engage in voluntary exercise. Such interventions could also make it less comfortable for people to sit still for long periods of time.\"\nIn humans, activity levels vary widely from couch-potato-style inactivity to highly active athletic endeavors.\n\"We have a huge epidemic of obesity in Western society, and yet we have little understanding of what determines variation among individuals for voluntary exercise levels,\" Garland said.\nStudy results appear online Sept. 1 in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B.\nThe researchers began their experiments in 1993 with 224 mice whose levels of genetic variation bore similarity to those seen in wild mouse populations. The researchers randomly divided the base population of mice into eight separate lines – four lines bred for high levels of daily running, with the remaining four used as controls – and measured how much distance the mice voluntarily ran per day on wheels attached to their cages.\nWith a thousand mice born every generation and four generations of mice each year, the researchers were able to breed highly active mice in the four high-runner lines by selecting the highest running males and females from every generation to be the parents of the next generation. In the control lines, breeders were chosen with no selection imposed, meaning that the mice either changed or did not change over time purely as a result of random genetic drift.\nBy studying the differences among the replicate lines, the researchers found that mice in the four high-runner lines ran 2.5-3-fold more revolutions per day as compared with mice in the four control lines. They also found that female and male mice evolved differently: females increased their daily running distance almost entirely by speed; males, on the other hand, increased speed but they also ran more minutes per day.\nThe study is an example of an \"experimental evolution\" approach applied rigorously to a problem of biomedical relevance. Although this approach is common with microbial systems and fruit flies, it has rarely been applied to vertebrates due to their longer generation times and greater costs of maintenance. The results of such studies can inform biologists about fundamental evolutionary processes as well as \"how organisms work\" in a way that may lead to new therapeutic strategies.\n\"This study of experimental evolution confirms some previous observations and raises new questions,\" said Douglas Futuyma, a distinguished professor of ecology and evolution at Stony Brook University, New York, who was not involved in the research. \"It shows that 'there are many ways to skin a cat': different ways in which a species may evolve a similar adaptive characteristic – running activity, in this case. Garland and coauthors go further by beginning to explore the detailed ways in which an adaptive feature, such as muscle size or metabolic rate, may be realized and by showing sex differences in the response to selection. It would be fascinating to know, and challenging to find out, if any one of these different responses is adaptively better than others.\"\nGarland was joined in the research by Scott Kelly, Jessica Malisch, Erik Kolb, Robert Hannon, Brooke Keeney, Shana Van Cleave and Kevin Middleton, all of whom work in his lab.\nThe study was supported primarily by a grant to Garland from the National Science Foundation.\nDetails of the experimental set-up\nThe mice run on wheels attached to their cages. Wheel running is a completely voluntary behavior for the mice. They can sit in their cages and not run at all. If they do run, they can get off the wheels at any time. For the experiments, each mouse was given access to the wheels for only six days of their lives. A computer recorded every minute how much distance (revolutions) the mice ran for the six days. The researchers selected breeders depending on how much distance the mice ran on days 5 and 6.\nAbout Theodore Garland Jr.\nGarland received his doctoral degree in biological sciences from UC Irvine. Before joining UCR in 2001, he was a faculty member at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is trained in comparative physiology and evolutionary biology, as well as quantitative genetics with emphasis on exercise physiology. He is co-editor of Experimental evolution: concepts, methods, and applications of selection experiments (University of California Press, 2009). On the editorial boards of several scientific journals, he is the author/coauthor of nearly 200 peer-reviewed publications.\nThe University of California, Riverside (www.ucr.edu) is a doctoral research university, a living laboratory for groundbreaking exploration of issues critical to Inland Southern California, the state and communities around the world. Reflecting California's diverse culture, UCR's enrollment of about 18,000 is expected to grow to 21,000 students by 2020. The campus is planning a medical school and has reached the heart of the Coachella Valley by way of the UCR Palm Desert Graduate Center. The campus has an annual statewide economic impact of more than $1 billion.\nA broadcast studio with fiber cable to the AT&T Hollywood hub is available for live or taped interviews. To learn more, call (951) UCR-NEWS.\nAAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system."}
{"text": "by George Heymann | @techeadlines\nGoogle has started a new page on Google Plus to share their vision of what its augmented reality glasses could be. They are soliciting suggestions from users on what they would like to see from Project Glass.\n“We think technology should work for you—to be there when you need it and get out of your way when you don’t.\nA group of us from Google[x] started Project Glass to build this kind of technology, one that helps you explore and share your world, putting you back in the moment. We’re sharing this information now because we want to start a conversation and learn from your valuable input. So we took a few design photos to show what this technology could look like and created a video to demonstrate what it might enable you to do.”\nVideo after the break.\nRead the rest of this entry »\nFiled under: Android, General technology, Google, Media, Services, Augmented reality, eyeglasses, feature, featured, glasses, Google, Google Plus, Google Project Gass, google virtual reality glasses, New York Times, Project Glass, technology, turn by turn directions, UI, User interface, video chat, Virtual reality, Virtual reality glasses\nJanuary 18, 2012 • 11:07 am\n$3 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will fund development\nby Eric Klopfer\nMIT Education Arcade\nWith a new $3 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the MIT Education Arcade is about to design, build and research a massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) to help high school students learn math and biology.\nIn contrast to the way that Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) are currently taught in secondary schools — which often results in students becoming disengaged and disinterested in the subjects at an early age — educational games such as the one to be developed give students the chance to explore STEM topics in a way that deepens their knowledge while also developing 21st-century skills.\nRead the rest of this entry »\nFiled under: Gaming, Services, Software, 3 million dollar grant, Associate Professor, Augmented reality, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Common Core, Common Core standards, Education, education arcade, education program, Eric Klopfer, Filament Games, game to help teach math and science, High school, Math, mit, MIT education arcade, MMOG, Next generation science, StarLogo TNG, STEM, Washington, Washington D.C.\nby George Heymann\nBlackberry no sooner made its official Blackberry Bold 9900 announcement and then T-mobile tweeted that it would be carrying the device. The 9900 will be T-mobile’s first 4G capable Blackberry. It is rumored to be available on T-Mobile in the June/July timeframe.\nThe Blackberry Bold 9900/9930 will be a touch screen device with a 1.2 GHz processor, 8 GB of onboard memory, expandable to 32GB, HSPA+ 14.4 capable, 5 megapixel camera with flash, 720p HD video recording, dual-band WiFi, a built-in compass (magnetometer) and Near Field Communication (NFC) technology featuring the new Blackberry 7 OS.\nPress release after the break\nFiled under: Blackberry, Hardware, 4G, Augmented reality, BlackBerry, Blackberry Bold 9900, Blackberry Bold 9930, Evolution-Data Optimized, Evolved HSPA, Hertz, High-definition video, HSPA+, Research In Motion, T-Mobile, Touchscreen, Wi-Fi"}
{"text": "Skip to content\nSkip to navigation menu\n24 August 2007\nCardiff scientists exploring the safe storage of hydrogen to power vehicles as an environmentally friendly alternative to petrol have made a promising new discovery.\nHaving already developed an organic polymer capable of storing 1.7 per cent hydrogen by weight, Professors Neil McKeown from the School of Chemistry together with Peter Budd of the University of Manchester and David Book from the University of Birmingham can now report the creation of an organic polymer able to store around three per cent hydrogen by weight.\nThe figure is almost double the amount of hydrogen the group’s preliminary polymers could store last year, and offers hope of producing an organic polymer in the future capable of storing enough hydrogen to successfully power a vehicle.\nCommenting on the development, Professor McKeown said: \"We are excited to report this recent discovery by our research team of a polymer which can hold around three per cent hydrogen by weight. Although we still have a long way to go, it is clear that we are moving in the right direction, especially as we also have a number of promising new polymers to test. \"\nIn order to make hydrogen a viable alternative to petrol, a material which can store hydrogen at a weight of over six per cent is required. This figure is estimated by the American Department of Energy as the minimum required to make a fuel tank for hydrogen to power a vehicle for 300 miles.\n\"In order to obtain a polymer that can store useful quantities of hydrogen we need to make a much more porous material,\" said Professor McKeown, \"but one in which the holes are very small so as to fit snugly the small hydrogen molecules.\"\nProfessor McKeown and his team are investigating a number of promising methods to enhance pororosity as they attempt to build on their current success and produce a material that can store and release hydrogen safely and effectively. They are also collaborating with Professor Kenneth Harris within the School of Chemistry to develop other types of hydrogen storage materials.\nCardiff is the lead University in the research project, which is funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.\nThe EU: What’s in it for Wales?\nNew treatment for eczema trialled\nNew drugs in development for treatment of osteoarthritis\nThis is an externally hosted beta service offered by Google."}
{"text": "Respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) occurs most often in infants who are born too early. RDS can cause breathing difficulty in newborns. If it is not properly treated, RDS can result in complications. This may include pneumonia, respiratory failure, chronic lung problems, and possibly asthma. In severe cases, RDS can lead to convulsions and death.\nRDS occurs when infant's lungs have not developed enough. Immature lungs lack a fluid called surfactant. This is a foamy liquid that helps the lungs open wide and take in air. When there is not enough surfactant, the lungs do not open well. This will make it difficult for the infant to breathe.\nThe chance of developing RDS decreases as the fetus grows. Babies born after 36 weeks rarely develop this condition.\nA risk factor is something that increases your chance of getting a disease or condition. Factors that increase your baby's risk of RDS include:\n- Birth before 37 weeks; increased risk and severity of condition with earlier prematurity\n- Mother with insulin dependent diabetes\n- Multiple birth\n- Cesarean section delivery\n- Cold stress\n- Precipitous delivery\n- Previously affected infant\n- Being male\n- Hypertension (high blood pressure) during pregnancy\nThe following symptoms usually start immediately or within a few hours after birth and include:\n- Difficulty breathing, apnea\n- Rapid, shallow breathing\n- Delayed or weak cry\n- Grunting noise with every breath\n- Flaring of the nostrils\n- Frothing at the lips\n- Blue color around the lips\n- Swelling of the extremities\n- Decreased urine output\nThe doctor will ask about the mother's medical history and pregnancy. The baby will also be evaluated, as outlined here:\nAmniotic fluid is fluid that surrounds the fetus. It may be tested for indicators of well-developed lungs such as:\n- Lecithin:sphingomyelin ratio\n- Phosphatidyl glycerol\n- Laboratory studies—done to rule out infection\n- Physical exam—includes checking the baby's breathing and looking for bluish color around the lips or on trunk\n- Testing for blood gases—to check the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood\n- Chest x-ray —a test that uses radiation to take a picture of structures inside the body, in this case the heart and lungs\nTreatment for a baby with RDS usually includes oxygen therapy and may also include:\nA mechanical respirator is a breathing machine. It is used to keep the lungs from collapsing and support the baby's breathing. The respirator also improves the exchange of oxygen and other gases in the lungs. A respirator is almost always needed for infants with severe RDS.\nSurfactant can be given to help the lungs open. Wider lungs will allow the infant to take in more oxygen and breathe normally. One type of surfactant comes from cows and the other is synthetic. Both options are delivered directly into the infant's windpipe.\nInhaled Nitric Oxide\nNitric oxide is a gas that is inhaled. It can make it easier for oxygen to pass into the blood. The gas is often delivered during mechanical ventilation.\nNewborns with RDS may be given food and water by the following means:\n- Tube feeding—a tube is inserted through the baby's mouth and into the stomach\n- Parenteral feeding—nutrients are delivered directly into a vein\nPreventing a premature birth is the best way to avoid RDS. To reduce your chance of having a premature baby:\n- Get good prenatal care. Start as early as possible in pregnancy.\n- Eat a healthful diet. Take vitamins as suggested by your doctor.\n- Do not smoke. Avoid alcohol or drug use.\n- Only take medicines that your doctor has approved.\nIf you are at high risk of giving birth to a premature baby:\n- You may be given steroids about 24 hours before delivery. Steroids can help your baby's lungs develop faster.\n- Your doctor may do an amniocentesis. This test will check the maturity of your baby's lungs. The results will help determine the best time for delivery.\n- Reviewer: Michael Woods\n- Review Date: 09/2012 -\n- Update Date: 00/91/2012 -"}
{"text": "Communities in Kenya have adopted one another’s food preferences and recipes. With the exception of the Coast and Indian communities for whom food preparation is an elaborate process, nearly all other communities garnish their food by frying it. They also boil, bake in hot ashes and roast. Common foods include:\nIt is a sticky mixture of flour and water and is accompanied by vegetables, meat, milk or milk mixed with blood especially for pastoralist communities. Traditionally, it is made from millet or cassava. But maize flour has increasingly taken pride of place.\nlt is used to prepare sauces and stews. Communities have different ways of preparing meat, but roast meat is widely eaten as a delicacy especially in urban areas. Animals slaughtered for meat depend on the location, with beef and mutton the most common. Camel and game are the preserve of communities with access to the animals.\nIn the last quarter ofthe 20th century, maize replaced sorghum as the most important cereal in Kenya. lt is roasted and eaten as a snack and sold on the streets and in markets.\nGreen boiled maize, often garnished with salt, is also common. Among the Somali, fresh maize (galeey) is\nfried in oil and eaten as a snack. Dry maize is also fried to make popcorn, popular with children.\nA mixture of green or dry maize and beans, cowpeas, pigeon peas or even groundnuts is also popular. lt is eaten as a main course or snack. Sometimes, it is pounded with Irish or sweet potatoes, bananas and green vegetables.\nA wide range of traditional and exotic fruits are consumed in Kenya, usually as snacks. Mango, citrus fruits, banana, jackfruit, papaya, melons, guava, passion fruit, custard apple and avocado pear are common. Many traditional fruits such as baobab, wild custard apple, carissa, dialium, flacourtia (Indian plum), marula, vangueria, tamarind, vitex and ‘jujube’ are picked in the wild.\nThey are used as accompaniments for starchy food such as ugali. Common traditional vegetables include\nbaobab, cowpeas, amaranth, vine spinach, Ethiopian kale, pumpkin leaves, spider plant and hibiscus.\nKale (sukuma wiki) is now the most common vegetable in Kenya."}
{"text": "When someone tells that there was no successful French tank, especially in WWI - don't you believe him!\nThe Renault FT or Automitrailleuse à chenilles Renault FT modèle 1917, inexactly known as the FT-17 or FT17, was a French light tank; it is among the most revolutionary and influential tank designs in history. The FT was the first operational tank with an armament in a fully rotating turret, and its configuration with the turret on top, engine in the back and the driver in front became the conventional one, repeated in most tanks until today; at the time it was a revolutionary innovation, causing armour historian Steven Zaloga to describe the type as \"the world's first modern tank\".\nStudies on the production of a new light tank were started in May 1916 by the famous car producer Louis Renault. The evidence strongly suggests that Renault himself drew up the preliminary design, being unconvinced that a sufficient power/weight ratio could be achieved for the medium tanks requested by the military. One of his most talented designers, Rodolphe Ernst-Metzmaier, prepared the final drawings.\nThough the project was far more advanced than the two first French tanks about to enter production, the Schneider CA1 and the heavy St. Chamond, Renault had at first great trouble getting it accepted. Even after the first British use of tanks, on 15 September 1916, when the French people called for the deployment of their own chars, the production of the light tank was almost cancelled in favour of that of a superheavy tank (the later Char 2C). However, with the unwavering support of Brigadier General Jean-Baptiste Eugène Estienne (1860–1936), the \"Father of the Tanks\", and the successive French Commanders in Chief, who saw light tanks as a more feasible and realistic option, Renault was at last able to proceed with the design. However, competition with the Char 2C was to last until the very end of the war.\nThe prototype was slowly refined during the first half of 1917. Early production FTs were often plagued by radiator fan belt and cooling system problems, a characteristic that persisted throughout World War I. Only 84 were produced in 1917 but 2,697 were delivered before the end of the war. At least 3,177 were produced in total, perhaps more; some estimates go as high as 4,000 for all versions combined. However, 3,177 is the delivery total to the French Army; 514 were perhaps directly delivered to the U.S. Army and three to Italy - giving a probable total production number of 3,694.\nThe tanks had at first a round cast turret; later either an octagonal turret or an even later rounded turret of bent steel plate (called Berliet turret after one of the many coproducing factories). The latter two could carry a Puteaux SA 18 gun, or a 7.92 mm Hotchkiss machine gun. In the U.S., this tank was built on a licence as the Six Ton Tank Model 1917 (950 built, 64 before the end of the war).\nThere is a most persistent myth about the name of the tank: \"FT\" is often supposed to have meant Faible Tonnage, or, even more fanciful: Franchisseur de Tranchées (trench crosser). In reality, every Renault prototype was given a combination code; it just so happened it was the turn of \"FT\".\nAnother mythical name is \"FT-18\" for the guntank. A 1918 maintenance manual describes the FT as the Char d'Assault 18HP, a reference to the horsepower of the engine.\nFTs captured and re-used by the Germans in World War II were re-designated Panzerkampfwagen FT 18. Either of these might have led to the confusion. Also in \"FT 75 BS\", the \"BS\" does not mean Batterie de Support but \"Blockhaus Schneider\", a reference to the short 75mm Schneider gun with which it was fitted.\nThe FT was widely used by the French and the US in the later stages of World War I, after 31 May 1918. It was cheap and well-suited for mass production. It reflected an emphasis on quantity, both on a tactical level: Estienne proposed to overwhelm the enemy defences by a \"swarm\" of light tanks, and on a geostrategic level: the Entente was thought to be able to gain the upper hand by outproducing the Central Powers. A goal was set of 12,260 to be manufactured (4,440 of which in the USA) before the end of 1919.\nAfter the war, FTs were exported to many countries (Poland, Finland, Estonia, Lithuania, Romania, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Spain, Brazil, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan and Japan). As a result, FT tanks were used by most nations having armoured forces, invariably as their first tank type, including the United States. They took part in many later conflicts, such as the Russian Civil War, Polish-Soviet War, Chinese Civil War, Rif War and Spanish Civil War.\nFT tanks were also used in the Second World War, among others in Poland, Finland, France and Kingdom of Yugoslavia, although they were completely obsolete by then. In 1940 the French army still had eight battalions equipped with 63 FTs each and three independent companies with ten each, for a total organic strength of 534, all with machine guns.\nMany smaller units, partially raised after the invasion, also used the tank. This has given rise to the popular myth that the French had no modern equipment at all; in fact they had more modern tanks than the Germans; the French suffered from tactical and strategic weaknesses rather than from equipment deficiencies. When the German drive to the Channel cut off the best French units, as an expediency measure the complete French materiel reserve was sent to the front; this included 575 FTs. Earlier 115 sections of FT had been formed for airbase-defence. The Wehrmacht captured 1,704 FTs. A hundred were again used for airfield defence, about 650 for patrolling occupied Europe. Some of the tanks were also used by the Germans in 1944 for street-fighting in Paris. By this time they were hopelessly out of date.\nThe FT was the ancestor of a long line of French tanks: the FT Kégresse, the NC1, the NC2, the Char D1 and the Char D2. The Italians produced as their standard tank the FIAT 3000, a moderately close copy of the FT:\nThe Soviet Red Army captured fourteen burnt-out Renaults from White Russian forces, and rebuilt them at the Krasnoye Sormovo Factory in 1920. The Soviets claimed to have originally manufactured these Russkiy Reno tanks, but they actually produced only one exact copy, named 'Freedom Fighter Comrade Lenin'. When Stalin began the arms race of the Thirties, the first completely Soviet-designed tank was the T-18, a derivation of the Renault with sprung suspension:\nIn all, the FT was used by Afghanistan, Belgium, Brazil, the Republic of China, Czechoslovakia, Estonia, Finland, France, Nazi Germany, Iran, Japan, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, the Russian White movement, the Soviet Union, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Norway, the United Kingdom, the United States and the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.\nTwo interesting variants:"}
{"text": "According to Wikipedia, the definition of Earth Day is “a day early each year on which events are held worldwide to increase awareness and appreciation of the Earth’s natural environment.” Earth Day, started in 1970, and is celebrated nationally and in over 175 countries world wide. Do you celebrate Earth Day in your home?\nMy family and I love to celebrate our mother earth not only on Earth Day, but everyday. Each step we make in our home to become a greener family means we are doing that much more to reduce our carbon footprint. Cox Communications, my local cable company, wanted a way to reduce their carbon footprint as well so they started Cox Conserves in 2007.\nLaunched in 2007, Cox Conserves is the company’s national sustainability program that is designed to reduce Cox Enterprises’ carbon footprint by 20 percent. Cox Conserves seeks to reduce Cox Enterprises’ energy consumption by embracing alternative energy, conserving natural resources and inspiring eco-friendly behavior. The program engages each of the company’s major subsidiaries (Cox Communications, Manheim, Cox Media Group and AutoTrader.com) and encourages Cox Enterprises’ more than 50,000 employees and their families to engage in eco-friendly practices. For more information, visit: http://www.coxconserves.com/\nHow does Cox Conserves make a difference right here in Las Vegas?\nHow does Cox Conserves make a difference nationally?\nAlternative Energy – Cox actively identifies opportunities to harness solar energy and employ fuel cell technology, annually preventing more than 17,400 tons of greenhouse gases from entering the environment through its alternative energy projects.\nEnergy Conservation- Across Cox Enterprises, programs are in place to conserve energy, including producing alternative energy, constructing eco-friendly buildings, greening the company fleet, conserving resources and recycling materials.\nWaste Management- Cox Enterprises employs a holistic approach to waste management including waste reduction, strategic partnerships for e-waste and customer engagement.\nWater Conservation- Cox’s water conservation efforts save more than 20 million gallons of water annually and return high-quality reusable water to the community.\nHow can you celebrate Earth Day everyday? 5 Tips for a Green Home!\n- Reduce your junk mail stream by joining a no-send list. This is where my family is listed.\n- Use compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs. They use 2/3 less energy than standard incandescent light bulbs and last up to 10 times longer. If every household in the U.S. replaced one light bulb with a CFL, it would prevent enough pollution equal to taking more than 800,000 cars off the road for an entire year. This was one of the first things we did when we moved into a new home.\n- Buy bulk items. A family of four can save $2,000/year in the supermarket by choosing large sizes instead of individual serving sizes. This also reduces production of plastic wrappers and boxes. We love shopping our local super store.\n- Avoid using non-native plants that may be invasive in your area. We have desert landscaping to help reduce our use of water.\n- Skip pre-packaged items for school lunches and cut up your own cheese, meats and veggies to cut down on wasteful packaging.\nTreat the Earth well. It was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children.”\n~ Kenyan proverb\nDisclosure: This post was written on behalf of Cox Communications. All my thoughts and opinions are my own.\nLatest posts by Lolo (Posts)\n- A Chat With Rosita and Sesame Street’s Newest Neighbor Mando - May 15, 2013\n- Favorite Moments from the Week | Wordless Wednesday Linky - May 14, 2013\n- Arm & Hammer Tooth Tunes Toothbrush Review #ToothTunes1D - May 12, 2013"}
{"text": "Copyright (c) Arvin S. Quist\nINTRODUCTION TO CLASSIFICATION\nTHE NEED FOR CLASSIFICATION\nA government is responsible for the survival of the nation and its people. To ensure that survival, a government must sometimes stringently control certain information that (1) gives the nation a significant advantage over adversaries or (2) prevents adversaries from having an advantage that could significantly damage the nation. Governments protect that special information by classifying it; that is, by giving it a special designation, such as \"Secret,\" and then restricting access to it (e.g., by need-to-know requirements and physical security measures).\nThis right of a government to keep certain information concerning national security (secrets) from most of the nation's citizens is nearly universally accepted. Since antiquity, governments have protected information that gave them an advantage over adversaries. In wartime, when a nation's survival is at stake, the reasons for secrecy are most apparent, the secrecy restrictions imposed by the government are most widespread,[*] and acceptance of those restrictions by the citizens is broadest.[†] In peacetime, there are fewer reasons for secrecy in government, generally the government classifies less information, and citizens are less willing to accept security restrictions on information.\nMAJOR AREAS OF CLASSIFIED INFORMATION\nThe information that is classified by most democracies, whether in peacetime or wartime, is usually limited to information that concerns the nation's defense or its foreign relations--military and diplomatic information. Most of that information falls within five major areas: (1) military operations, (2) weapons technology, (3) diplomatic activities, (4) intelligence activities, and (5) cryptology. The latter two areas might be considered to be special parts of the first three areas. That is, intelligence and cryptology are \"service\" functions for the primary areas--military operations, weapons technology, and diplomatic activities. From a historical perspective, the classification of weapons technology became widespread only in the 20th century. Classification of information about military operations and diplomatic activities has been practiced for millennia.\nExamples of military-operations information that is frequently classified include information concerning the strength and deployment of forces, troop movements, ship sailings, the location and timing of planned attacks, tactics and strategy, and supply logistics. Obviously, if an enemy learned the major details of an impending attack, that attack would be less successful than if it came as a surprise to the enemy.* Information possessed by a government about an adversary's military activities or capabilities must be protected to preserve the ability to predict those activities or to neutralize those capabilities. If the adversary knew that the government had this information, the adversary would change those plans or capabilities. Military-operations information is usually classified for only a limited time. After an operation is over, most of the important information is known to the enemy.\nWeapons technology is classified to preserve the advantage of surprise in the first use of a new weapon,† to prevent an adversary from developing effective countermeasures against a new weapon,‡ or to prevent an adversary from using that technology against its originator (by developing a similar weapon). A major factor in that latter reason for classifying weapons technology is \"lead time.\" Classifying advanced weapons-technology information prevents an adversary from using that information to shorten the time required to produce similar weapons systems for its own use. Consequently, assuming continued advancements in a weapons technology by the initial developer of that technology, the adversary's weapons systems will not be as effective as those of the nation that initially developed that technology, and the adversary will be at a disadvantage.\nWith respect to lead time, when weapons systems can be significantly improved, then information on \"obsolete\" weapons is much less sensitive than information on newer weapons. Thus, information on muzzle-loading rifle technology was not as sensitive as that on breech-loading rifle technology, which was not as sensitive as information on lever-action rifle technology, . . . semiautomatic rifle . . . automatic rifle . . . machine gun. However, with respect to nuclear weapons, a \"rogue\" nation or terrorist group can probably achieve its objectives just as easily with \"crude\" kiloton nuclear weapons that might require a ship or truck to transport as with sophisticated megaton nuclear weapons that might fit into a (large) suitcase. Thus, \"obsolete\" nuclear-weapons technology should be continue to be protected, especially with respect to technologies concerning production of highly enriched uranium or other nuclear-weapon materials.\nWeapons technology includes scientific and technical information related to that technology. World War I marked the start of the \"modern\" period when science and technology affected the development of weapons systems to a greater degree than any time previously. That interrelationship became even more pronounced in World War II, with notable scientific and technological successes: the atomic bomb, radar, and the proximity fuse. World War II, particularly with respect to the atomic bomb, marked the first time that the progress of military technology was significantly influenced by scientists, as contrasted to advances by engineers or by scientists working as engineers.\nWith respect to classification, the more that applied scientific or technical information is uniquely applicable to weapons, the more likely that this information will be classified. Generally, basic research is not classified unless it represents a major breakthrough leading to a completely new weapons system. An example of that circumstance was the rigid classification during World War II, and for several years thereafter, of much basic scientific research related to atomic energy (nuclear weapons).\nThe need for secrecy in diplomatic negotiations and relations has long been recognized. A nation's ability to obtain favorable terms in negotiations with other countries would be diminished if its negotiating strategy and goals were known in advance to the other countries.* The effectiveness of military-assistance agreements between nations would be impaired if an adversary knew of them and could plan to neutralize them. In New York Times v. United States, the \"Pentagon Papers\" case, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stewart recognized the importance of secrecy in foreign policy and national defense matters:\nIt is elementary that the successful conduct of international diplomacy and the maintenance of an effective national defense requires both confidentiality and secrecy. Other nations can hardly deal with this Nation in an atmosphere of mutual trust unless they know that their confidences will be kept . . .. In the area of basic national defense the frequent need for absolute secrecy is, of course, self evident.\nDuring the term of the first\npresident, it was established that some need for secrecy in diplomatic matters would remain even after negotiations were completed. President Washington, in 1796, refused a request by the House of Representatives for documents prepared for treaty negotiations with U.S. and gave the following as one reason for refusal: England\nThe nature of foreign negotiations requires caution, and their success must often depend on secrecy; and even when brought to a conclusion a full disclosure of all the measures, demands, or eventual concessions which may have been proposed or contemplated would be extremely impolitic; for this might have a pernicious influence on future negotiations, or produce immediate inconvenience, perhaps danger and mischief, in relation to other powers.\nIt has been said that President Nixon initially was not going to attempt to stop the New York Times and other newspapers from publishing the \"Pentagon Papers.\" However, the executive branch was then in secret diplomatic negotiations with\n, and Henry Kissinger \"is said to have persuaded the president that the Chinese wouldn't continue their secret parleys if they saw that China couldn't keep its secrets.\" Washington\nIntelligence information includes information gathering and covert operations. Collecting military and diplomatic information about other nations involves the use of photoreconnaissance airplanes and satellites, communication intercepts, the review of documents obtained openly, and other overt methods. However, information gathering also includes the use of undercover agents, confidential sources, and other covert methods. For those covert activities, secrecy is usually imposed on the identity of agents or sources, on information about intelligence methods and capabilities, and on much of the information received from the covert sources. Few clandestine agents could be recruited (or, in some instances, would live long) if their identity were not a closely guarded secret. Information provided by a clandestine agent must frequently be classified because, if a government knew that some of its information was compromised, it might be able to determine the identity of the person (agent) who provided the information to its adversary. Successful intelligence-gathering methods must be protected so that the adversary does not know the degree of their success and is not stimulated to develop countermeasures to stop the flow of information. Intelligence information from friendly nations is generally classified by the recipient country. Allies would be less willing to share intelligence information if they knew that it would not be protected against disclosure.\nCryptology encompasses methods to code and transmit secret messages and methods to intercept and decode messages. Writing messages in code, or cryptography,* has been practiced for thousands of years. One of the earliest preserved texts of a coded message is an inscription carved on an Egyptian tomb in about 1900 B.C. The earliest known pottery glaze formula was written in code on a Mesopotamian cuneiform tablet in about 1500 B.C. The Spartans established a system of military cryptography by the 5th century B.C. Persia later used cryptography for political purposes. Cryptography began its steady development in western civilization starting about the 13th century, primarily in\n. By the early 16th century, Italy 's ruling Council of Ten had an elaborate organization for enciphering and deciphering messages. Venice\nRestrictions on cryptologic information are necessary to protect\ncommunications. Diplomatic negotiations could not successfully be conducted at locations other than the seat of government if safe communications could not be established. Cryptologic information must also be protected to prevent an adversary from learning of a nation's capabilities to intercept and decode messages. If an adversary learns that its communications are not secure, it will use another method, which will require additional time and effort to defeat.[‡] The Allies' World War II success in breaking the German codes contributed to shortening that war. That success was kept secret until 1974, about 34 years after the German code had been broken and about 29 years after World War II had ended. The U.S. Army's success in breaking a World War II U.S.S.R. code (the Venona project, which began in 1943 and continued until 1980) was not made public until about 1995. That was about 50 years after the first such message had been deciphered (and about 45 years after the U.S.S.R. had learned through espionage of the Army's success). U.S.\nBASIS FOR CLASSIFICATION IN THE UNITED STATES\nThe need for governmental secrecy was directly recognized in the U.S. Constitution. Article I, Sect. 5, of the Constitution explicitly authorizes secrecy in government by stating that \"Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such Parts as in their Judgment require Secrecy.\" Also included in the Constitution, in Article I, Sect. 9, is a statement that \"a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.\" A U.S. Court of Appeals has determined that the phrase \"from time to time\" was intended to authorize expenditures for certain military or foreign relations matters that were intended to be kept secret for a time.\nThe Constitution does not explicitly provide for secrecy by the Executive Branch of the U.S. Government. However, the authority of that Executive Branch to keep certain information secret from most\ncitizens is implicit in its executive responsibilities, which include the national defense and foreign relations. This presidential authority has been upheld by the Supreme Court in a number of cases. Judicial decisions have also relied on a common-law privilege for a government to withhold information concerning national defense and foreign relations. Congress, by two statutes, the Freedom of Information Act and the Internal Security Act of 1950, has implicitly recognized the president's authority to classify information (see Chapter 3). U.S.\nAt this time in the\n, information is classified either by presidential authority, currently Executive Order 12958, or by statute, the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (Atomic Energy Act). Classification under Executive Orders and under the Atomic Energy Act is extensively discussed in Chapters 3 and 4, respectively. United States\nCLASSIFICATION AND SECURITY\nClassification has been variously described as the \"cornerstone\" of national security, the \"mother\" of security, and the \"kingpin\" of an information security system.,,, Classification identifies the information that must be protected against unauthorized disclosure. Security determines how to protect information after it is classified. Security includes both personnel security and physical security.\nThe initial classification determination, establishing what should not be disclosed to adversaries and the level of protection required, is probably the most important single factor in the security of all classified projects and programs., None of the expensive personnel-clearance and information-control provisions (physical security aspects) of an information security system comes into effect until information has been classified; classification is the pivot on which the whole subsequent security system turns (excluding security for other reasons, such as to prevent theft of materials). 19 Therefore, it is important to classify only information that truly warrants protection in the interest of national security.\nSince the mid 1970s, several classification experts have remarked on the increasing emphasis by some government agencies on physical-security matters, which has been accompanied by a decreased emphasis on the classification function. One of the founders (and the first chairman) of the National Classification Management Society (NCMS), who was also an Atomic Energy Commission Contractor Classification Officer, has expressed concern about the tendency to emphasize the word \"security\" at the expense of the word \"classification\" with respect to security classification of information.17 In the mid 1980s another charter member of the NCMS pointed out that, although the status of classification still remained high in the Department of Energy (DOE), the situation had changed within the Department of Defense, where Classification Management had been organizationally placed under Security. Even the NCMS, founded as a classification organization, appears to be changing to become increasingly oriented towards security matters rather than classification matters. It is noteworthy that the marked emphasis by the U.S. Government in recent years on physical-security measures has not been accompanied by any significant increased emphasis on classification matters.\nThe previous paragraph was written in 1989, and the trend described in that paragraph has continued. The classification function at DOE headquarters is now a part of the security organization as is the classification function at many DOE operations offices and DOE-contractor organizations. That function generally used to be part of a technical or other non-security organization. The NCMS has also continued to become more security-oriented.\nWith respect to classification as a profession (or lack of recognition thereof), it is interesting to note some comments and a recommendation in the Report of the Commission on Protecting and Reducing Government Secrecy. In this 1997 report, that Commission noted the \"all-important initial decision of whether to classify at all,\" and that \"this first step of the classification management process . . . tends to be the weakest link in the process of identifying, marking, and then protecting the information.\" The Commission further stated that \"the importance of the initial decision to classify cannot be overstated.\" However, the Commission then stated that \"classification and declassification policy and oversight . . . should be viewed primarily as information management issues which require personnel with subject matter and records management expertise.\" Although recommending that \"The Federal Government . . . [should] create, support, and promote an information systems security career field within the Government,\" the Commission made no similar recommendation for security classification of information as a profession or career. Res ipsa loquitur.\n[*] \"When a nation is at war many things that might be said in time of peace are such a hindrance to its effort that their utterance will not be endured so long as men fight and that no Court could regard them as protected by any constitutional right\" [Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47, 52 (1919) (J. Holmes)].\n[†] Since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks against the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon, the United States considers itself to be in a war against terrorism. One consequence has been a significant shift in opinion, not only of the general public but also of some strong supporters of freedom-of-information matters, towards favoring more control of information that might aid terrorists. This increased control, especially pertaining to weapons of mass destruction, includes (1) establishing broader criteria for identifying information that is classified or \"sensitive\"; (2) permitting reclassification of declassified information, and (3) restricting further governmental distribution of documents already released to the public.\n*However, during the Greek and Roman eras in the Mediterranean, when the infantry was paramount and both sides were approximately equally equipped with respect to weapons, many battles were fought without attempts to maintain secrecy of troop movements or with respect to surprise attacks (B. and F. M. Brodie, From Crossbow to H-Bomb, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Ind., 1973, p. 17).\n†\"Secret\" weapons have proven decisive in warfare. One example of the decisive impact of a new weapon was at the battle of Crecy in 1346. At this battle, the English used their \"secret\" weapon, the longbow, to defeat the French decisively. Although the French had a two-to-one superiority in numbers (about 40,000 to 20,000), the French lost about 11,500 men, while the English lost only about 100 men (W. S. Churchill, A History of the English-Speaking Peoples, Vol. 1, Dodd, Mead and Co., New York, 1961, pp. 332-351; B. and F. M. Brodie, From Crossbow to H-Bomb, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Ind., 1973, pp. 37-40).\n‡In World War II, the Germans developed an acoustic torpedo designed to home in on a ship's propellers. However, the Allies obtained advance information about this torpedo so that when it was first used by the Germans, countermeasures were already in place (B. and F. M. Brodie, From Crossbows to H-Bombs, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Ind., 1973, p. 222).\n*In 1921, the United States, Britain, France, Italy, and Japan held a conference to limit their naval armaments. The United States had broken Japan's diplomatic code and thereby knew the lowest naval armaments that Japan would accept. Therefore, U.S. negotiators had merely to wait out Japan's negotiators to reach terms favorable to the United States (J. Bamford, The Puzzle Palace, Houghton, Mifflin Co., Boston, 1982, pp. 9-10).\n*The breaking of codes is termed cryptanalysis.\n[‡] Even \"friendly\" nations get upset if they know that one of their codes has been broken. As noted earlier in this chapter, the United States deciphered Japan's diplomatic code in 1921. Herbert O. Yardley, who was principally responsible for breaking this code, wrote a book, The American Black Chamber, published in 1931, which included information on this matter. Yardley's book did not contribute to developing friendly United States-Japanese relations. A consequence of this revelation was enactment of a U.S. statute that made it a crime for anyone who, by virtue of his employment by the United States, obtained access to a diplomatic code or a message in such code and published or furnished to another such code or message, \"or any matter which was obtained while in the process of transmission between any foreign government and its diplomatic mission in the United States\" (48 Stat. 122, June 10, 1933, codified at 18 U.S.C. Sect. 952.)\n B. and F. M. Brodie, From Crossbow to H-Bomb, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Ind., 1973, p. 172. Hereafter this book is cited as \"Brodie.\"\n Brodie, p. 233.\n New York Times v. United States, 403 U.S. 713, 728 (1971).\n J. D. Richardson, A Compilation of Messages and Papers of the Presidents. 1789-1897, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., Vol. I, at 194-195 (1896).\n Richard Gid Powers, \"Introduction,\" in Secrecy--The American Experience, by Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Yale University Press, New Haven, Conn., 1998, p. 32.\n D. Kahn, The Codebreakers, MacMillan, Inc., New York, 1967, p. 71. Hereafter cited as \"Kahn.\"\n Kahn, p. 75.\n Kahn, p. 82.\n Kahn, p. 86.\n Kahn, p. 106.\n Kahn, p. 109.\n See, for example, F. W. Winterbotham, The Ultra Secret, Harper & Row, New York, 1974.\n Halperin v. CIA, 629 F.2d 144, 154-162 (D.C. Cir., 1980).\n U.S. Constitution, Article II, sect. 2.\n See, for example, Totten v. United States, 92 U.S. 105 (1875); United States v. Reynolds, 345 U.S. 1 (1952); Weinberger v. Catholic Action of Hawaii, 454 U.S. 139 (1981).\n F. E. Rourke, Secrecy and Publicity: Dilemmas of Democracy, Johns Hopkins Press, Baltimore, 1961, pp. 63-64.\n D. B. Woodbridge, \"Footnotes,\" J. Natl. Class. Mgmt. Soc. 12 (2), 120-124 (1977), p.122.\n R. J. Boberg, \"Panel--Classification Management Today,\" J. Natl. Class. Mgmt. Soc. 5 (2), 56-60 (1969), p. 57.\n E. J. Suto, \"History of Classification,\" J. Natl. Class. Mgmt. Soc. 12 (1), 9-17 (1976), p.13.\n James J. Bagley, \"NCMS - Now and the Future,\" J. Natl. Class. Mgmt. Soc. 25, 20-29 (1989), p. 28.\n T. S. Church, \"Panel--Science and Technology, and Classification Management,\" J. Natl. Class. Mgmt. Soc. 2, 39-45 (1966), p. 40.\n W. N. Thompson, \"Security Classification Management Coordination Between Industry and DOD,\" J. Natl. Class. Mgmt. Soc. 4 (2), 121-128 (1969), p. 121.\n W. N. Thompson, \"User Agency Security Classification Management and Program Security,\" J. Natl. Class. Mgmt. Soc. 8, 52-53 (1972), p. 52.\n Department of Defense Handbook for Writing Security Classification Guidance, DoD 5200.1-H, U.S. Department of Defense, Mar. 1986, p. 1-1.\n F. J. Daigle, \"Woodbridge Award Acceptance Remarks,\" J. Natl. Class. Mgmt. Soc. 21, 110-112 (1985), p. 111.\n D. C. Richardson, \"Management or Enforcement,\" J. Natl. Class. Mgmt. Soc. 23, 13-20 (1987).\n Report of the Commission on Protecting and Reducing Government Secrecy, S. Doc. 105-2, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Chairman; Larry Combest, Vice Chairman, Commission on Protecting and Reducing Government Secrecy, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1997. Hereafter cited as the \"Moynihan Report.\"\n Moynihan Report, p. 19.\n Moynihan Report, p. 35.\n Moynihan Report, p. 44.\n Moynihan Report, p. 111."}
{"text": "Between the years 900 and 1100, Chinese painters created visions of landscape that depicted the sublimity of creation. Viewers are meant to identify with the human figures in these paintings. In Summer Mountains, travelers make their way toward a temple retreat. The central mountain sits in commanding majesty, like an emperor among his subjects, the culmination of nature’s hierarchy. The advanced use of texture strokes and ink wash suggests that Summer Mountains is by a master working about 1050, a date corroborated by collectors’ seals belonging to the Song emperor Huizong (r. 1101–25), whose paintings catalogue records three works entitled Summer Scenery by the otherwise unknown artist Qu Ding."}
{"text": "By Allison Lichter\nYoung children who can sit still and focus are more likely to graduate from college than children who are easily distracted, according to a new study from Oregon State University.\nResearchers made use of data that spanned 25 years, tracking a group of 430 preschool-age children through age 21. Parents were asked to rate their children on such behaviors as “playing with a single toy for long periods of time,” or “gives up easily” when a task or games gets hard.\n“We were interested in identifying early predictors of later success,” said Megan McClelland, early childhood research core director at OSU’s Hallie E. Ford Center for Healthy Children and Families, and a lead author on the study.\n“We know that early academic skills predict later academic stills,” she said. “But the ability to pay attention and focus are foundational skills that help kids persist through difficult tasks when they need to.”\nShe was quick to add that academic skills are critical, and that “aptitude part is part of the equation.”\nStill, she said, “There are a lot of very smart people who have difficulty finishing tasks.”\nOf course, a lot transpires in a person’s life between age 4 and age 21. While researchers couldn’t control for all variables, McClelland said, they were able to control for some of the most important predictors of academic success: including parents’ education level, the child’s cognitive ability, and childhood vocabulary.\nTeachers and parents can help young children develop the qualities of persistence and self-discipline by adding new rules to some familiar games. For example, McClelland suggested playing “Red Light, Green Light,” but changing the rules so that “red” means go, and “green” means stop.\n“Kids ask me all the time, ‘Are you trying to trick me?’ I tell them, ‘No, we want you stop and think about what you’re doing first.’”\nAnother simple activity to help build the concentration muscle is a dance game in which children are told they have to dance slowly when the music is fast, and dance quickly when the music is slow.\n“When kids have to control their bodies, it’s more challenging for them,” McClelland said. “They actually have to stop their movements and do something different. It requires a lot of thinking.”\nMcClelland is also the mother of a 3-year-old son. She acknowledges it takes time to help kids practice ways to focus and get engaged in things they are interested in.\n“He will sit there for 15 or 20 minutes doing a Thomas the Train puzzle.” While putting it together, McClelland will sometimes ask ‘How many pieces have we used?’ to build her son’s aptitude for counting.\nBut she says, “I’m also helping him focus and persist.”"}
{"text": "\"Chatter\": Language and History in Kierkegaard\nStanford University Press (1993)\n|Abstract||'Chatter' cannot always be taken lightly, for its insignificance and insubstantiality challenge the very notions of substance and significance through which rational discourses seek justification. This book shows that in 'chatter' Kierkegaard uncovered a specifically linguistic mode of negativity. The author examines in detail those writings of Kierkegaard in which he undertook complex negotiations with the threat - and also the promise - of 'chatter', which cuts across the distinctions in which the relation of language to reality - and above all, the reality of 'existence' - is stabilized, and it therefore releases historical understanding from its established conventions. Chatter situates as well as takes the measure of the seminal importance of Kierkegaard for many of today's unresolved debates about the relation of language and philosophy to history.|\n|Keywords||Language and languages Philosophy History Philosophy|\n|Buy the book||$13.00 used (48% off) $227.35 new Amazon page|\n|Call number||B4378.L35.F46 1993|\n|External links||This entry has no external links. Add one.|\n|Through your library||Configure|\nSimilar books and articles\nJon Stewart (2003). Kierkegaard's Relations to Hegel Reconsidered. Cambridge University Press.\nJohann Georg Hamann (2007). Writings on Philosophy and Language. Cambridge University Press.\nAngelo Mazzocco (1993). Linguistic Theories in Dante and the Humanists: Studies of Language and Intellectual History in Late Medieval and Early Renaissance Italy. E.J. Brill.\nMatthew Lauzon (2010). Signs of Light: French and British Theories of Linguistic Communication, 1648-1789. Cornell University Press.\nMichael Losonsky (2006). Linguistic Turns in Modern Philosophy. Cambridge University Press.\nDavid Emery Mercer (2001). Kierkegaard's Living-Room: The Relation Between Faith and History in Philosophical Fragments. Mcgill-Queen's University Press.\nMichael N. Forster (2011). German Philosophy of Language: From Schlegel to Hegel and Beyond. Oxford University Press.\nAntony Aumann (2011). The ‘Death of the Author’ in Hegel and Kierkegaard: On Berthold’s 'The Ethics of Authorship'. Graduate Faculty Philosophy Journal 32 (2):435-447.\nSorry, there are not enough data points to plot this chart.\nAdded to index2009-01-28\nRecent downloads (6 months)0\nHow can I increase my downloads?"}
{"text": "Using the same pool of data, the researchers identified a significant drop in overall daily calorie consumption as people got older. The median energy intake among men age 81 and older was 1,733 calories a day, compared to 2,668 calories per day ingested by men in the age group 19 to 30. For women, median energy intake showed a 28 percent reduction from the youngest to the oldest age group, from 1,844 calories a day to 1,325 calories daily.\nBased on the results, the scientists concluded that “new approaches to increasing the frequency and level of calcium supplement use to enhance calcium density may be necessary to reduce osteoporosis risks among older Americans.”\nJane E. Kerstetter, a professor of allied health sciences at UConn and a co-investigator on the study, says that calcium plays a fundamental role in promoting bone health and forestalling osteoporosis. In light of evidence that energy (food) intake declines with aging, calcium-dense foods and calcium supplements become vital factors in maintaining adequate calcium intake across the lifespan.\nIn November 2010, the Institute of Medicine issued new guidelines for daily calcium intake. The current guidelines recommend that men and women ages 19 to 50 consume 1,000 mg of calcium a day; however, after age 51 men are recommended to continue to consume 1,000 mg daily, while women are recommended to increase consumption to 1,200 mg daily.\nKerstetter adds that calcium intake from the diet should come first and foremost.\nTypically, one serving of dairy (1 cup of milk, 6 ounces of yogurt, or 1.5 ounces of cheese) provides 300 milligrams of calcium. If a person consumes three servings of dairy daily they will ingest 900 milligrams of calcium, which is often supplemented by an additional 300 milligrams from a variety of other non-dairy foods if the person is on a well-rounded diet. A total of 1,200 milligrams of daily calcium is sufficient to meet recommended guidelines for most people, says Kerstetter.\nThose who can’t tolerate dairy products should consider calcium-fortified foods, such as orange juice or over-the-counter nutrition supplements containing calcium, which are best absorbed during meals due to increased acid production in the stomach. Or, dietitians also suggest choosing low-fat or fat-free lactose-free milk and drinking smaller amounts of milk at a time as key strategies to obtain dairy nutrients.\nHowever, individuals should consult a medical professional before starting a new calcium supplementation regimen.\nThe lead author for the study was Kelsey Mangano, a registered dietitian and UConn doctoral student in the Department of Nutritional Sciences in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Anne M. Kenny, a geriatrician at the University of Connecticut Health Center who studies osteoporosis, served as a co-investigator. Karl Insogna, a professor of internal medicine in the Department of Internal Medicine at Yale University and an endocrinologist specializing in bone diseases, also participated in the research."}
{"text": "Become a fan of h2g2\nWe should remember that... of the 6,000 stars [that] the average human eye could see in the entire sky, probably not more than thirty – or one-half of one percent – are less luminous than the Sun; that probably, of the 700-odd stars nearer than ten parsecs, at least 96% are less luminous than the Sun. There is not even ONE real yellow giant – such as Capella, Pollux, or Arcturus – nearer than ten parsecs1 and only about four main sequence A stars.\n– Dutch astronomer Willem Jacob Luyten (1899 - 1994)\nThe closest star to us is, of course, our own Sun. It's unusual because it's a solitary yellow dwarf, while most of the stars nearby are in binary or even multiple systems. What makes our star really special though, is that it provides the energy for the only life in the Universe that we know of.\nLess Than Ten Light Years\nThe nearest star to the Sun is Proxima Centauri (also known as alpha Centauri C), which is a red dwarf, and is 4.2 light years2 distant. It has two stellar companions, the yellow dwarf Rigil Kentaurus (alpha Centauri A) and an orange dwarf, alpha Centauri B. They take up joint second place in our list, at 4.35 light years.\nBarnard's Star, a red dwarf, is just under six light years away. Next comes Wolf 359, another red dwarf. Yet another red dwarf, Lalande 21185, was thought to be the fourth-closest star when its co-ordinates were published by Joseph-Jérôme Lefrançais de Lalande (1732 - 1807) in 1801. This was before Barnard's Star and Wolf 359 were discovered. Lalande 21185 cannot be seen by the naked eye because at 7th magnitude it is too dim; however, it counts as sixth-closest to the Sun at 8.3 light years.\nThe seventh-closest is a star most denizens of Earth would recognise: Sirius (alpha Canis Majoris), with eighth place taken by its companion Sirius B, sometimes referred to as 'the Pup'. Sirius B is classified as a white dwarf, but it is one of the biggest known: in fact, its mass is comparable to that of our own Sun.\nCompleting the top ten stellar neighbours are BL Ceti, a red dwarf flare star, and its binary partner UV Ceti3, which are 8.7 light years away from our Sun. Flare stars unleash bright flashes of light as well as streams of charged particles. Some of the stars studied have flares of such enormous intensity that they can increase the brightness of the star by up to 10%. The flares are only brief, like a camera flash, but would be detrimental to any nearby planets.\nNext in line is Ross 154, one of many discovered in 1925 by American astronomer Frank Elmore Ross (1874 - 1960). Ross 154 is a UV Ceti-type flare star 9.7 light years distant, and is the last of the stars within ten light years of our Solar System.\n|Star||Other Name or |\n|#1||Proxima Centauri||alpha Centauri C||Red dwarf||Centaurus||4.2|\n|#2||Rigil Kentaurus||alpha Centauri A||Yellow dwarf||Centaurus||4.35|\n|#2||alpha Centauri B||HD 128621||Orange dwarf||Centaurus||4.35|\n|#4||Barnard's Star||Proxima Ophiuchi||Red dwarf||Ophiuchus||5.98|\n|#5||Wolf 359||CN Leonis||Red dwarf||Leo||7.7|\n|#6||Lalande 21185||HD 95735||Red dwarf||Ursa Major||8.3|\n|#7||Sirius||alpha Canis Majoris||Blue-white|\n|#7||Sirius B||alpha Canis Majoris B||White dwarf||Canis Major||8.5|\n|#9||BL Ceti||Luyten 726-8 A||Red dwarf|\n|#9||UV Ceti||Luyten 726-8 B||Red dwarf|\n|#11||Ross 154||V1216 Sgr||Red dwarf|\nBetween Ten and Twelve Light Years\nAt 10.3 light years is another one on the Ross catalogue: Ross 248, a red dwarf flare star. Due to the wide variety of periods that this star flares (4.2 years, 120 days, and five other catalogued outbursts between 60 and 291 days apart), astronomers suspect that Ross 248 has an undetected companion which is causing the erratic flaring. Next on is Epsilon Eridani, which has a dust disc4 and a suspected extrasolar planet system, the closest detected up to the time of writing, 2012. The two candidate planets are not thought to be hospitable to life (as we know it) because their proposed orbits are so far from the star. If the planets do exist, they are likely to be frigid worlds like our outermost planet Neptune5.\nThe French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille (1713 - 62) went on a 1751-4 expedition to the Cape of Good Hope, effectively a blank canvas sky for him to map. Using the planet Mars as a point of reference, his observations were the foundations for working out the lunar and solar parallax. Finding himself somewhat of a celebrity upon his return to Paris, de Lacaille hid from public attention in Mazarin College, writing up his findings. Barely taking care of himself, de Lacaille suffered from gout and was prone to over-working to the point of exhaustion. Unfortunately his catalogue, Coelum Australe Stelliferum, which described 14 new constellations and 42 nebulous objects among almost 10,000 southern stars, wasn't published until after he died at the age of just 49 years. One of those stars, Lacaille 9352, ranks as the 14th-closest to our Sun at 10.7 light years distance.\nEZ Aquarii is a triple star system situated at 11.3 light years away. EZ Aquarii A, B and C are all red dwarfs, and they may all be flare stars; however, not much is known about the smallest component (B). They are so dim (magnitude +13) that specialist equipment is required to view them. The system was labelled Luyten 789-6 by Dutch astronomer Willem Jacob Luyten, whose interest in astronomy had been sparked by viewing the predicted return of Halley's Comet in 1910, as an 11-year old schoolboy. In 1925 Luyten lost an eye in an accident but this tragedy did not wreck his chosen career. He was already working at the Harvard College Observatory, having been offered a post by the new director Harlow Shapley, whose own profile had been raised due to his participation in the Shapley-Curtis Debate of 1920. Luyten 'observed and measured more stellar images than anyone else', according to his biography at the National Academy of Sciences. He took up teaching at the University of Minnesota in 1931, and when he retired in 1967 he was given the title of Astronomer Emeritus which he held until his death at the ripe old age of 95.\nProcyon is a binary system which registers at +0.3 magnitude. The system consists of a yellow-white main sequence subgiant star, Procyon A, and a white dwarf companion, Procyon B, which was detected by Arthur von Auwers in 1862.\n|Star||Other Name or |\n|#12||Ross 248||HH Andromedae||Red dwarf|\n|#13||Epsilon Eridani||Sadira||Orange dwarf||Eridanus||10.5|\n|#14||Lacaille 9352||HD 217987||Red dwarf||Piscis Austrinus||10.7|\n|#15||Ross 128||FI Virginis||Red dwarf|\n|#16||EZ Aquarii A||Luyten 789-6 A||Red dwarf|\n|#16||EZ Aquarii B||Luyten 789-6 B||Red dwarf||Aquarius||11.3|\n|#16||EZ Aquarii C||Luyten 789-6 C||Red dwarf|\n|#19||Procyon A||alpha Canis Minoris||Yellow-white|\n|#19||Procyon B||alpha2 Canis Minoris||White dwarf||Canis Minor||11.4|\nThe binary system 61 Cygni has two orange dwarf components of 6th magnitude at 11.41 light years away. Its distance was the first to be measured of any star. These two stars claim joint 21st place in our list of close stellar neighbours. Another pair of red dwarf stars, Struve 2398 A and B, positioned at just 11.5 light years distant, are the next nearest. They were studied by Russian-German astronomer Prof Friedrich von Struve (1793 - 1864), director of the Dorpat Observatory (now the Tartu Observatory) in Estonia, who listed them in his Catalogus novus stellarum duplicium (Double Star Catalogue) of 1827.\nGroombridge 34 are twin variable red dwarfs. Newly-discovered variable stars are given upper case capital letters, so Groombridge 34 A and B are also known as GX Andromedae and GQ Andromedae respectively. The Epsilon Indi system is fascinating because it contains the closest-known brown dwarfs. Brown dwarfs are approximately the same size as Jupiter6, but their mass is at least ten times greater, possibly up to 50×. These bodies are neither star nor planet, but 'failed' stars. Other titles have been proposed, as it's hardly encouraging to keep referring to them as 'failed stars'. Suggestions so far include planetar (which sounds like something from the science fiction genre) and substar (that 'sub' prefix isn't much of an improvement). Since 2004, planets have been discovered orbiting brown dwarfs, (although not, as yet, in the Epsilon Indi system), so their profile has been raised. Hopefully they are in line for a better class in the future.\nDX Cancri is a solo red dwarf flare star which expands to five times its usual brightness during flare activity. It is thought by some astronomers that DX Cancri is a member of the Castor Moving Group which was suggested in 1990 by JP Anosova and VV Orlov at the Astronomical Observatory in Leningrad State University, Russia. A moving group is the term for a collection of stars which share the same origin. Although they are not gravitationally bound to each other they are on the same path on their journey through the galaxy, like an unravelled, stretched-out cluster. The Castor Moving Group is named after the luminary of Gemini, and includes the stars Alderamin (alpha Cephei), Fomalhaut, Vega, psi Velorum and Zubenelgenubi (alpha Librae).\nTau Ceti is one of the few nearby stars which are visible to the naked eye, albeit in the dim constellation Cetus, the Whale. Tau Ceti shot to fame in 1960, when Frank Drake launched Project Ozma, aiming to detect non-natural signals from space. Drake chose two stars which were similar to our Sun, Tau Ceti and Epsilon Eridani, for his project, which evolved to become SETI, the Search for Extra-terrestrial Intelligence. In December 2012, it was announced that five planets had been discovered orbiting Tau Ceti, with one of them possibly residing in the system's habitable zone.\nRed dwarf GJ 1061 in the southern constellation Horologium is the last of the stars within 12 light years. GJ 1061 is really small, even on the dwarf star scale: it registers just over ten percent of the Sun's mass. It is so dim (+13 mag) that you'd need a decent-sized telescope to view it, but just in case you ever get the opportunity, its co-ordinates are 03h 36m RA, −44° 30' 46\" Dec.\n|Star||Other Name or |\n|#21||61 Cygni A||V1803 Cyg A||Orange dwarf||Cygnus||11.41|\n|#21||61 Cygni B||V1803 Cyg B||Orange dwarf||Cygnus||11.41|\n|#23||Struve 2398 A||NSV 11288||Red dwarf||Draco||11.5|\n|#23||Struve 2398 B||Gliese 725 B||Red dwarf|\n|#25||Groombridge 34 A||GX Andromedae||Red dwarf||Andromeda||11.6|\n|#25||Groombridge 34 B||GQ Andromedae||Red dwarf||Andromeda||11.6|\n|#27||Epsilon Indi||HD 209100||Orange dwarf +|\ntwo Brown dwarfs\n|#28||DX Cancri||LHS 248||Red dwarf|\n|#29||Tau Ceti||HD 10700||Yellow dwarf||Cetus||11.88|\n|#30||GJ 1061||LHS 1565||Red dwarf||Horologium||11.99|\nNearby Stars in Fantasy and Science Fiction\nStars which are close to our own Solar System have inspired imaginative writers going back hundreds of years. Here is just a sample:\nProxima Centauri: the 1990s TV series Babylon 5 featured the planet Proxima III, which hosts an Earth Alliance colony.\nAlpha Centauri A: prolific author Isaac Asimov wrote about the water world Alpha of the Alpha Centauri A system in the Foundation and Earth book of his Foundation series.\nAlpha Centauri B: Witburg is a rocky planet orbiting Alpha Centauri B in the 2002 online role-playing game Earth & Beyond.\nBarnard's Star: Timemaster, a 1992 novel by Robert L Forward, bases its plot in the Barnard's Star system.\nWolf 359: Star Trek fans will recognise Wolf 359 as the system where Starfleet's armada was practically wiped out by the hive-minded Borg.\nLalande 21185: in the 1951 novel Rogue Queen penned by L Sprague de Camp, the planet Ormazd which orbits Lalande 21185 is investigated by Earth's space authority.\nSirius: Micromégas is one of the earliest known science fiction stories, it was written in 1752 by François-Marie Arouet (better known by his pen name Voltaire). The Micromégas of the story was an extremely tall7 alien visitor to Earth who hailed from one of the planets in the Sirius system.\nSirius B: in Seed of Light, a 1959 novel by Edmund Cooper, the Sirius A star is barren but Sirius B has a hospitable planet, Sirius B III, out of its five attendant worlds. The plot revolves around the people sent there to save the human race after the Earth has been devastated.\nBL Ceti: Larry Niven wrote A Gift From Earth in 1968, a part of his Known Space collection of multiple works. The plot involves the twin red dwarf stars BL Ceti and UV Ceti, which are important signposts for the eventual destination.\nUV Ceti: a space station called Eldorado, part of the 'Great Circle' route, is based at UV Ceti in the 1981 story Downbelow Station by CJ Cherryh.\nRoss 154: the planet Tei Tenga in the Ross 154 system is where the United Aerospace Armed Forces (UAFF) had a couple of military research bases in the video game Doom.\nRoss 248: Diadem is an icy world in orbit around Ross 248 in Alastair Reynolds's story Glacial. Following a failed attempt at human colonisation, an investigation a century later reveals that the planet is sentient and it uses cold-blooded annelids, burrowing through its ice-mantle, to 'think'.\nEpsilon Eridani: Les Grognards d'Éridan (The Napoleons Of Eridanus), written by French author Claude Avice in 1970, features a detachment of soldiers from the Napoleonic era who are abducted by aliens and transported to the Epsilon Eridani system to fight their battles for them. Also, Epsilon Eridani was the parent star of the planet Reach in the extremely successful Xbox game Halo: Reach.\nLacaille 9352: in the fictional universe of the Hyperion Cantos dreamed up by Dan Simmons, the inhospitable planet Sibiatu's Bitterness orbits the star Lacaille 9352.\nRoss 128: Across the Sea of Suns, written in 1984 by Gregory Benford, features a race of alien aquatic creatures which live under the ice-mantle of the frozen world Pocks, a member of the Ross 128 system.\nEZ Aquarii A, B and C: the character Sheldon in The Big Bang Theory regularly lists 'the closest stars to me' when ascending and descending stairs. Once, in disguise, he spoke the words 'EZ Aquarii B, EZ Aquarii C,' while passing Amy on the stairs, and was dismayed that she recognised him.\nProcyon A/B: His Master's Voice was written by Polish author Stanislaw Lem in 1968. This book focuses on the attempts by highly intelligent Earthlings to understand a message from the Procyon system.\n61 Cygni: The region surrounding 61 Cygni is known as the 'Darkling Zone' in the popular TV series Blake's 7.\nGroombridge 34: The Groombridge 34 system features in the Halo series of Xbox games.\nEpsilon Indi: New New York on Epsilon Indi III has a portal to the Earth, via a created wormhole, in the 1996 Starplex book by Robert J Sawyer.\nTau Ceti: Time for the Stars, written in 1956 by Robert A Heinlein, explores the telepathic bond between twins over the vastness of space. Tau Ceti III, in the Star Trek universe, is a hospitable M-class planet. One of the bountiful fruits which grows there is the Kaferian apple. While they can be eaten raw, they are much more tasty stewed with Talaxian spices and served in a pie, as recommended in the vegetarian options at Quark's Bar on the space station Deep Space Nine."}
{"text": "Some people love them and some people hate them, but whatever your tastes you should probably know a little about the vignette effect in photography. A vignette photo has edges that fade to either white or black, typically gradually, although it can be an effect that is used dramatically as well. This effect can be created in camera with certain lenses that are known to produce it, sometimes undesirably. Vignettes can also be created in the darkroom during the printing process. However, in this day and age the most common way to create a vignette is during the post-processing phase in a photo editing program such as Photoshop.\nGenerally in spite of our very wide field of view, our eyes don’t see with perfect focus at all points in a scene. We see the center of a scene with ideal light sensitivity and perfect focus and then focus and brightness will fall off increasingly toward the periphery. Therefore, a vignette more or less mimics the way our eyes actually see a scene. Although a photograph with precise focus and exposure throughout may be desirable in some scenarios, it can also seem very boring, artificial and even too contrived in others.\nVignetting can act as a way to frame the intended subject in a photo in either a subtle or dramatic way and really make it stand out to great creative effect. By causing the periphery to gradually fade away, not only will the photo be more like actual vision, it can immediately draw the eye to the main subject and away from unimportant elements in the background or periphery. It can also be used as a finishing touch on a photo once the exposure and composition are perfect.\nTypically a vignette, as previously mentioned, is used in a gradual or subtle way since our eyes don’t actually make the borders of our vision very dark and fuzzy. When used in this way, a vignette will generally not be consciously detectable by the untrained eye. However, there are times when a more dramatic vignette is a useful effect, such as in a black and white landscape to add a touch of drama or in an intense portrait to create a darker mood.\nOlder cheaper cameras such as Holgas often had poor optics, so many old photos have vignetting that was created in-camera unintentionally. This vintage look, which was previously not desirable, is now often intentionally recreated during post-processing with software like Photoshop.\nHow to Create a Vignette in Photoshop\nThere are a few ways to create a vignette in Photoshop but there are a few bits of information that are important to know first. A vignette should always be the very last step in the editing process. Deciding to crop the image post-vignette, for example, can cause the end result to be not desirable since a vignette is used to highlight the subject. If you are not completely sure that you are absolutely done editing your photo in other ways, you can choose to duplicate the original image layer so that you can go back to it if needed.\nThe easiest way to create a vignette in Photoshop is to first create a new layer and select the elliptical marquee tool. Create a circle or oval shape in the desired area on your photo.\nNext you will need to choose to feather your selection anywhere from 50 to 80 pixels by going to Select>Modify>Feather.\nYou can also choose the square marquee or even use the lasso tool to create a custom and creative shape. At this point you will go to Select>Inverse and fill the center of the selection with black or white depending on the look you ultimately want to achieve. If it is too dark at this point then you can easily lighten it by lowering the layer opacity.\nAnother easy and quick way to add vignetting to your photos in Photoshop involves the use of the Lens Correction filter.\nFirst you need to open your photo and as previously mentioned, be sure to finish all photo edits prior to adding the vignetting. Open the Lens Correction filter via the following path Filters>Distort>Lens Correction. You will see various options within the Lens Correction menu but we are going to focus on the Vignette sliders. The Amount slider will make the vignette darker or lighter and the Midpoint slider will adjust the mid-point of the vignette.\nThe first method of vignetting in Photoshop is definitely preferable if you want to place the vignetting in a custom place on the photo for creative effect, meaning not oval and dead center. However, the second method is great for a very precision vignette much like what would be created naturally with a lens.\nA Quick Note About Opinions on Vignettes\nOne thing to be aware of is that there are photographers that “object” to the use of vignetting. Many see it as a form of cheating and as a way to make a bad photograph better. They argue that the composition itself should be what creates all of the emphasis on the subject and not a post-processing technique. However, the viewer of the photo, unless they possess a critical and trained eye, really doesn’t care about why they like a photo. They just do. Ultimately photography is indeed an art form and artists are as varied art itself. The most important thing is to produce the images that you want to produce.\nRachael Towne is a photographer, digital artist and creator of photoluminary.com"}
{"text": "In December 1992, Toutatis made a close approach to Earth. At the time, it was an average of about 4 million kilometers (2.5 million miles) from Earth. Images of Toutatis were acquired using radar carried out at the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex in California's Mojave desert. For most of the work, a 400,000-watt coded radio transmission was beamed at Toutatis from the Goldstone main 70-meter (230-foot) antenna. The echoes, which took as little as 24 seconds to travel to Toutatis and back, were received by the new 34-meter (112-foot) antenna and relayed back to the 70-meter (230-foot) station, where they were decoded and processed into images.\nThe images of Toutatis reveal two irregularly shaped, cratered objects about 4 and 2.5 kilometers (2.5 and 1.6 miles) in average diameter which are probably in contact with each other. These \"contact binaries\" may be fairly common since another one, 4769 Castalia, was observed in 1989 when it passed near the Earth. Numerous surface features on Toutatis, including a pair of half-mile-wide craters, side by side, and a series of three prominent ridges -- a type of asteroid mountain range -- are presumed to result from a complex history of impacts.\nToutatis is one of the strangest objects in the solar system, with a highly irregular shape and an extraordinarily complex \"tumbling\" rotation. Both its shape and rotation are thought to be the outcome of a history of violent collisions. \"The vast majority of asteroids, and all the planets, spin about a single axis, like a football thrown in a perfect spiral, but Toutatis tumbles like a flubbed pass,\" said Dr. Scott Hudson of Washington State University. One consequence of this strange rotation is that Toutatis does not have a fixed north pole like the Earth. Instead, its north pole wanders along a curve on the asteroid about every 5.4 days. \"The stars viewed from Toutatis wouldn't repeatedly follow circular paths, but would crisscross the sky, never following the same path twice,\" Hudson said.\n\"The motion of the Sun during a Toutatis year, which is about four Earth years, would be even more complex,\" he continued. \"In fact, Toutatis doesn't have anything you could call a 'day.' Its rotation is the result of two different types of motion with periods of 5.4 and 7.3 Earth days, that combine in such a way that Toutatis's orientation with respect to the solar system never repeats.\"\nThe rotations of hundreds of asteroids have been studied with optical telescopes. The vast majority of them appear to be in simple rotation with a fixed pole and periods typically between one hour and one day, the scientists said, even though the violent collisions these objects are thought to have experienced would mean that every one of them, at some time in the past, should have been tumbling like Toutatis.\nInternal friction has caused asteroids to change into simple rotational patterns in relatively brief amounts of time. However, Toutatis rotates so slowly that this \"dampening\" process would take much longer than the age of the solar system. This means that the rotation of Toutatis is a remarkable, well-preserved relic of the collision-related evolution of an asteroid.\nOn September 29, 2004, Toutatis will pass by Earth at a range of four times the distance between the Earth and the Moon, the closest approach of any known asteroid or comet between now and 2060. One consequence of the asteroid's frequent close approaches to Earth is that its trajectory more than several centuries from now cannot be predicted accurately. In fact, of all the Earth-crossing asteroids, the orbit of Toutatis is thought to be one of the most chaotic.\nHigh Resolution Goldstone Images\nThese are 8 of the \"high resolution\" Goldstone images that are being used to produce a higher-resolution 3D model of Toutatis. (From Ostro et al., Science 270:80-83, 1995--© Copyright 1995 by the AAAS)\nHigh Resolution Image\nThis is a close up of one of the high-resolution images of Toutatis. (From Ostro et al., Science 270:80-83, 1995--© Copyright 1995 by the AAAS)\nTopographic Map of Toutatis\nThis is a topographic map of Toutatis. It is based upon the shape model of Phil Stooke which he produced using rendered images of the shape model by R.S. Hudson and S.J. Ostro and modified by him to fit the radar images. As with all maps, it is the cartographer's interpretation; not all features are necessarily certain given the limited data available. This interpretation stretches the data as far as possible. (Courtesy A. Tayfun Oner)\nShaded Relief Map of Asteroid 4179 Toutatis\nThis is a shaded relief map of asteroid 4179 Toutatis. As with all maps, it is the cartographer's interpretation and not all features are necessarily certain given the limited data available. This interpretation stretches the data as far as is feasible. (Courtesy Phil Stooke, NSSDC, and NASA)\n4 Views of Toutatis\nThis image shows four frames of asteroid Toutatis that were obtained on December 8-10 and 13, 1992. On each day, the asteroid was in a different orientation with respect to Earth. One large crater can be seen in the December 9 image (upper right) that measures about 700 meters (2,300 feet) in diameter. (Courtesy JPL/NASA)\nComputer Model of Toutatis\nThese images show a computer model of the Earth-orbit-crossing asteroid Toutatis. These views of the asteroid show shallow craters, linear ridges, and a deep topographic \"neck\" whose geologic origin is not known. It may have been sculpted by impacts into a single, coherent body, or Toutatis might actually consist of two separate objects that came together in a gentle collision. (Courtesy Scott Hudson, Washington State University)\nSpin State of Toutatis\nThis image shows the shape and non-principal-axis spin state of asteroid 4179 Toutatis rendered at a particular instant. The red, green, and blue axes are the principal axes of inertia; the magenta axis is the angular momentum vector; the yellow axis is the spin vector. If a flashlamp was attached to the short axis of inertia (the red axis) and flashed it every 15 minutes for a month, it would trace out the intricate path indicated by the small spheres stacked end-to-end. If this process was continued forever the path would never repeat. Toutatis's spin state differs radically from those of the vast majority of solar system bodies that have been studied. (© Copyright 1995 by the AAAS)\nSpin State of Toutatis on Nine Successive Days\nThis image shows the non-principal-axis spin state of asteroid 4179 Toutatis at one-day intervals (from left to right, top to bottom). The red, green, and blue axes are the principal axes of inertia; the magenta axis is the angular momentum vector; the yellow axis is the spin vector. Toutatis does not spin about a single axis. Instead, its spin vector traces a curve around the asteroid's surface once every 5.41 days. During this time the object rotates once about its long axis, and every 7.35 days, on average, the long axis precesses about the angular momentum vector. The combination of these two motions with different periods give Toutatis its bizarre \"tumbling\" rotation. (Courtesy Scott Hudson, Washington State University)"}
{"text": "|Skip Navigation Links|\n|Exit Print View|\n|Creating and Administering Oracle Solaris 11 Boot Environments Oracle Solaris 11 Information Library|\nA boot environment is a bootable instance of the Oracle Solaris operating system image plus any other application software packages installed into that image. System administrators can maintain multiple boot environments on their systems, and each boot environment can have different software versions installed.\nUpon the initial installation of the Oracle Solaris release onto a system, a boot environment is created. You can use the beadm(1M) utility to create and administer additional boot environments on your system.\nNote - In addition, the Package Manager GUI provides some options for managing boot environments.\nNote the following distinctions relevant to boot environment administration:\nA boot environment is a bootable Oracle Solaris environment consisting of a root dataset and, optionally, other datasets mounted underneath it. Exactly one boot environment can be active at a time.\nA dataset is a generic name for ZFS entities such as clones, file systems, or snapshots. In the context of boot environment administration, the dataset more specifically refers to the file system specifications for a particular boot environment or snapshot.\nA snapshot is a read-only image of a dataset or boot environment at a given point in time. A snapshot is not bootable.\nA clone of a boot environment is created by copying another boot environment. A clone is bootable.\nShared datasets are user-defined directories, such as /export, that contain the same mount point in both the active and inactive boot environments. Shared datasets are located outside the root dataset area of each boot environment.\nNote - A clone of the boot environment includes everything hierarchically under the main root dataset of the original boot environment. Shared datasets are not under the root dataset and are not cloned. Instead, the boot environment accesses the original, shared dataset.\nA boot environment's critical datasets are included within the root dataset area for that environment."}
{"text": "||This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page.\n||This article's factual accuracy may be compromised due to out-of-date information. (July 2012)\n||This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2012)\n||An editor has expressed a concern that this article lends undue weight to certain ideas, incidents, controversies or matters relative to the article subject as a whole. (July 2012)\nCulinary arts is the art of preparing and cooking foods. The word \"culinary\" is defined as something related to, or connected with, cooking. A culinarian is a person working in the culinary arts. A culinarian working in restaurants is commonly known as a cook or a chef. Culinary artists are responsible for skilfully preparing meals that are as pleasing to the palate as to the eye. They are required to have a knowledge of the science of food and an understanding of diet and nutrition. They work primarily in restaurants, delicatessens, hospitals and other institutions. Kitchen conditions vary depending on the type of business, restaurant, nursing home, etc. The Table arts or the art of having food can also be called as \"Culinary arts\".\nCareers in culinary arts \nRelated careers \nBelow is a list of the wide variety of culinary arts occupations.\n- Consulting and Design Specialists – Work with restaurant owners in developing menus, the layout and design of dining rooms, and service protocols.\n- Dining Room Service – Manage a restaurant, cafeterias, clubs, etc. Diplomas and degree programs are offered in restaurant management by colleges around the world.\n- Food and Beverage Controller – Purchase and source ingredients in large hotels as well as manage the stores and stock control.\n- Entrepreneurship – Deepen and invest in businesses, such as bakeries, restaurants, or specialty foods (such as chocolates, cheese, etc.).\n- Food and Beverage Managers – Manage all food and beverage outlets in hotels and other large establishments.\n- Food Stylists and Photographers – Work with magazines, books, catalogs and other media to make food visually appealing.\n- Food Writers and Food Critics – Communicate with the public on food trends, chefs and restaurants though newspapers, magazines, blogs, and books. Notables in this field include Julia Child, Craig Claiborne and James Beard.\n- Research and Development Kitchens – Develop new products for commercial manufacturers and may also work in test kitchens for publications, restaurant chains, grocery chains, or others.\n- Sales – Introduce chefs and business owners to new products and equipment relevant to food production and service.\n- Instructors – Teach aspects of culinary arts in high school, vocational schools, colleges, recreational programs, and for specialty businesses (for example, the professional and recreational courses in baking at King Arthur Flour).\nOccupational outlook \nThe occupation outlook for chefs, restaurant managers, dietitians, and nutritionists is fairly good, with \"as fast as the average\" growth. Increasingly a college education with formal qualifications is required for success in this field. The culinary industry continues to be male-dominated, with the latest statistics showing only 19% of all 'chefs and head cooks' being female.\nNotable culinary colleges around the world \n- JaganNath Institute of Management Sciences, Rohini, Delhi, India\n- College of Tourism & Hotel Management, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan\n- Culinary Academy of India, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India\n- Culinary Academy of India, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India\n- ITM School of Culinary Arts, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India\n- Welcomgroup Graduate School of Hotel Administration, Manipal, Karnataka, India\n- Institute of Technical Education (College West) – School of Hospitality, Singapore\n- ITM (Institute of Technology and Management) – Institute of Hotel Management, Bangalore, Karnataka, India\n- Apicius International School of Hospitality, Florence, Italy\n- Le Cordon Bleu, Paris, France\n- École des trois gourmandes, Paris, France\n- HRC Culinary Academy, Bulgaria\n- Institut Paul Bocuse, Ecully, France\n- Mutfak Sanatlari Akademisi, Istanbul, Turkey\n- School of Culinary Arts and Food Technology, DIT, Dublin, Ireland\n- Scuola di Arte Culinaria Cordon Bleu, Florence, Italy\n- Westminster Kingsway College (London)\n- University of West London (London)\n- School of Restaurant and Culinary Arts, Umeå University (Sweden)\n- Camosun College (Victoria, BC)\n- Canadore College (North Bay, ON)\n- The Culinary Institute of Canada (Charlottetown, PE)\n- Georgian College (Owen Sound, ON)\n- George Brown College (Toronto, ON)\n- Humber College (Toronto, ON)\n- Institut de tourisme et d'hôtellerie du Québec (Montreal, QC)\n- Niagara Culinary Institute (Niagara College, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON)\n- Northwest Culinary Academy of Vancouver (Vancouver, BC)\n- Nova Scotia Community College (Nova Scotia)\n- Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts (Vancouver, BC)\n- Vancouver Community College (Vancouver, BC)\n- Culinary Institute of Vancouver Island (Nanaimo, BC)\n- Sault College (Sault Ste. Marie, ON)\n- Baltimore International College, Baltimore, Maryland\n- California Culinary Academy, San Francisco, California\n- California School of Culinary Arts, Pasadena, California\n- California State, Pomona, California\n- California State University Hospitality Management Education Initiative\n- Chattahoochee Technical College in Marietta, Georgia\n- Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago\n- Coosa Valley Technical College, Rome, Georgia\n- Culinard, the Culinary Institute of Virginia College\n- Cypress Community College Hotel, Restaurant Management, & Culinary Arts Program in Anaheim\n- Classic Cooking Academy, Scottsdale, Arizona\n- Center for Kosher Culinary Arts, Brooklyn, New York\n- Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York\n- Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena, California\n- The Culinary Institute of Charleston, South Carolina\n- L'Ecole Culinaire in Saint Louis, Missouri and Memphis, Tennessee\n- Glendale Community College (California)\n- International Culinary Centers in NY and CA which include:\n- Institute for the Culinary Arts at Metropolitan Community College, Omaha, Nebraska\n- Johnson & Wales University, College of Culinary Arts\n- Kendall College in Chicago, Illinois\n- Lincoln College of Technology\n- Manchester Community College in Connecticut\n- New England Culinary Institute in Vermont\n- Orlando Culinary Academy\n- Pennsylvania Culinary Institute\n- The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,\n- Scottsdale Culinary Institute\n- Secchia Institute for Culinary Education: Grand Rapids Community College, Grand Rapids, MI\n- The Southeast Culinary and Hospitality College in Bristol, Virginia\n- Sullivan University Louisville, Kentucky\n- Los Angeles Trade–Technical College\n- Texas Culinary Academy\n- Central New Mexico Community College, Albuquerque, NM\n- AUT University (Auckland University of Technology)\n- MIT (Manukau Institute of Technology)\n- Wintec, Waikato Institute of Technology\nSee also \n- McBride, Kate, ed. The Professional Chef/ the Culinary Institute of America, 8th ed. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, INC, 2006.\nFurther reading \n- Beal, Eileen. Choosing a career in the restaurant industry. New York: Rosen Pub. Group, 1997.\n- Institute for Research. Careers and jobs in the restaurant business: jobs, management, ownership. Chicago: The Institute, 1977.\nExternal links"}
{"text": "Consider this article on why white rice would actually be better for you than brown. One of the USRDA \"My Plate\" and food pyramid biggest fallacies is the over-reliance on grain. However, if you are going to have grain, have a grain that isn't going to hurt you as bad.\nAs far as eating for health, look at your macro-nutrients first.\n- Protein: Unless you have renal problems, protein should be one of the higher proportions of food in your diet. Minimum is 1g per kg of lean weight if you do no exercise. If you do exercise, you will be better served by 1g per pound of lean weight or more. NOTE: 4 Calories per gram of protein.\n- Fat: There are several fat soluble vitamins you need--not the least of which is Vitamin D. If you stay with monounsaturated and saturated fats you will do well. You just want to make sure you balance of Omega-3 to Omega-6 fats are favorable. NOTE: 9 Calories per gram of fat.\n- Carbohydrates: Way to over-emphasized in modern diets, but still very necessary. These usually contain the water-soluble vitamins we need. NOTE: 4 Calories per gram of carbohydrates.\nA diet that consists of an even split 33% of Calories from each macronutrient is actually a pretty well balanced diet. Another good split is 30/30/40 (protein/fat/carbs). As far as carbohydrates go, the more you de-emphasize grains and emphasize green vegetables the better your diet will be.\nMeat is not bad. Fish is probably one of the best choices, usually anti-inflammatory (which reduces blood cholesterol), but prefer a filet over fish balls. Fruits are also good in moderation. Eggs are also good. To put things in perspective, most sources of meat include about 20g of protein per 4oz (closed fist portion) of meat.\nAs far as meat selection goes, if you favor grass-fed (or natural diet) sources of meat, the fats will have a more favorable balance of Omega-3 to Omega-6 fats. This will improve your health overall.\nThe biggest thing I see in your diet, is it seems to emphasize carb sources over protein sources, and possibly not enough fat.\nAs to your exercise, you will need to do something more than just upper body if your goal is to lose fat and gain muscle. You want to stimulate your whole body. You can do that with body-weight exercises. Burpees, squat-stands, etc. engage your lower half, and can help improve on the work you are doing with the upper half."}
{"text": "With the arrival of cold weather, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is reminding employers to take necessary precautions to protect workers from the serious, and sometimes fatal, effects of carbon monoxide exposure.\nRecently, a worker in a New England warehouse was found unconscious and seizing, suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning. Several other workers at the site also became sick. All of the windows and doors were closed to conserve heat, there was no exhaust ventilation in the facility, and very high levels of carbon monoxide were measured at the site.\nEvery year, workers die from carbon monoxide poisoning, usually while using fuel-burning equipment and tools in buildings or semi-enclosed spaces without adequate ventilation. This can be especially true during the winter months when employees use this type of equipment in indoor spaces that have been sealed tightly to block out cold temperatures and wind. Symptoms of carbon monoxide exposure can include everything from headaches, dizziness and drowsiness to nausea, vomiting or tightness across the chest. Severe carbon monoxide poisoning can cause neurological damage, coma and death.\nSources of carbon monoxide can include anything that uses combustion to operate, such as gas generators, power tools, compressors, pumps, welding equipment, space heaters and furnaces.\nTo reduce the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning in the workplace, employers should install an effective ventilation system, avoid the use of fuel-burning equipment in enclosed or partially-enclosed spaces, use carbon monoxide detectors in areas where the hazard is a concern and take other precautions outlined in OSHA's Carbon Monoxide Fact Sheet. For additional information on carbon monoxide poisoning and preventing exposure in the workplace, see OSHA's Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Quick Cards (in English and Spanish).\nUnder the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit www.osha.gov."}
{"text": "Sitting around a table at Meyers Center BOCES in Saratoga, students, teaching assistants, and teachers were busy crocheting. They weren’t making afghans or shawls– but rather, they were turning plastic into possibility. Little did they know they were also making history.\nProfiles of 17 human rights defenders from around the globe, with links to accompanying lesson plans.\nBrowse the curriculum. Download the complete 158-page guide or individual lesson plans.\nSpeak Truth to Power: Voices from Beyond the Dark brings the voices of human rights defenders into your classroom.\nFind out how you can support your students in their efforts to defend human rights.\nThe Speak Truth to Power project will enter the video documentary world with a contest challenging middle and high school students in New York to create a film based on the experience of courageous human rights defenders around the world.\nIt is with great sadness that the family of Professor Wangari Maathai announces her passing away on 25th September, 2011, at the Nairobi Hospital, after a prolonged and bravely borne struggle with cancer.\nNew to the STTP site this month is a lesson plan based on the work of Congressman John Lewis, who has dedicated his life to protecting human rights, securing civil liberties, and building what he described as “The Beloved Community” in America."}
{"text": "How many times did you hear that today? Probably a lot. But why are adults so hung up on hand washing? Why are they so in love with lather?\nWashing your hands is the best way to stop germs from spreading. Think about all of the things that you touched today — from the telephone to the toilet. Maybe you blew your nose in a tissue and then went outside to dig around the dirt.\nWhatever you did today, you came into contact with germs. It's easy for a germ on your hand to end up in your mouth. Think about how many foods you eat with your hands.\nYou can't wear rubber gloves all day long, but you can wash your hands so those germs don't get a chance to make you or someone else sick. When germs go down the drain, they can't make anyone sick.\nSo when are the best times to wash your hands?\nwhen your hands are dirty\nbefore eating or touching food (like if you're helping cook or bake, for example)\nbefore and after visiting a sick relative or friend\nNow you have the when and the why of hand washing. But did you know that a lot of people don't know how to get their paws perfectly clean? The next time you're told to step up to the sink and scrub up, remember these handy hints:\nUse warm water (not cold or hot) when you wash your hands.\nUse whatever soap you like. Some soaps come in cool shapes and colors or smell nice, but whatever kind gets you scrubbing is the kind you should use. Antibacterial soaps are OK to use, but regular soap works fine.\nWork up some lather on both sides of your hands, your wrists, and between your fingers. Don't forget to wash around your nails. This is one place germs like to hide. Wash for about 10 to 15 seconds — about how long it takes to sing \"Happy Birthday.\" (Sing it quickly two times or just once if you go nice and slow.)"}
{"text": "Cyclopædia of Political Science, Political Economy, and the Political History of the United States\nGEORGIA, one of the thirteen original United States. Its territory was originally included in the charter of 1662-3 to the lords proprietors of the Carolinas, but was set apart by a royal charter of June 9, 1732, to a company organized by James Oglethorpe to provide homes in America for indigent persons. The boundaries of the new colony were laid down in the charger as follows: \"All those lands, countrys and territories situate, lying and being in that part of South Carolina, in America, which lies from the most northern part of a stream or river there, commonly called the Savannah, all along the sea coast, to the southward, unto the most southern stream of a certain other great water or river called the Alatamaha, and westerly from the heads of the said rivers respectively in direct lines to the south seas.\" this boundary was more precisely defined by the state constitution of 1798 as beginning at the mouth of the Savannah, running up that river and the Tugalo to the headwaters of the latter, thence straight west to the Mississippi, down that river to parallel 31° north latitude, thence east on that parallel to the Appalachicola or Chattahoochee, along that river to the Flint, thence straight to the head of the St. Mary's river, along that river to the Atlantic, and thence along the coast to the place of beginning. June 20, 1752, the charter was surrendered, and the colony be came a royal province.\n—The first state constitution was adopted by a state convention, Feb. 5, 1777. It changed the name of parish to that of county, gave the choice of the governor to the legislature, fixed the governor's term at one year, and forbade the election of any person as governor for more than one year in three. A new constitution was formed by a state convention which met at Augusta, Nov. 4, 1788, and was ratified by another convention at the same place, May 6, 1789. Among other changes, it prolonged the governor's term to two years, and directed the senate to elect the governor from three names to be selected by the house. By an amendment adopted by a new state convention at Louisville, May 16, 1795, Louisville was made the permanent seat of government. Another constitution was adopted in state convention at Louisville, May 30, 1798. It abolished the African slave trade, but forbade the legislature to emancipate slaves without the consent of their owners, or to prevent immigrants from other states from bringing their slaves with them. Various amendments to this constitution were made up to and including the secession convention of 1861, the only one necessary to specify here being that of Nov. 17, 1824, which transferred the election of governor to the people. The changes produced by the rebellion will be given hereafter.\n—The territory originally claimed by Georgia, extending from the Atlantic coast to the Mississippi, was diminished in 1798 by the formation of Mississippi territory, from which the states of Mississippi and Alabama were afterward formed. (See\n—In presidential elections the electoral votes of Georgia have always been cast for democratic candidates, except in 1840 and 1848, when they were cast for Harrison and Taylor respectively, the whig candidates. In 1789 and 1792 the Georgia electors voted for Washington for the presidency and for various democrats for the vice-presidency. (See\n—The state elections until 1830 were undisputedly democratic, and all political struggles were entirely personal between different members of the same party. From 1796 until 1810 the claim of land companies to the Mississippi lands claimed by Georgia was the controlling issue in state politics, as was the case from 1825 until 1835 with the removal of the Creek and Cherokee Indians from the state. (See\n—After 1830 the state elections resulted almost as steadily in democratic success, but with much greater difficulty. Although but one governor, Crawford, was an avowed whig, the whig party in the state disputed every election vigorously, aided in electing at least one governor, Gilmer, in opposition to the national or regular democratic candidate, and frequently controlled the legislature, generally in years not affected by a presidential election. As a general rule the whig vote in the state may be reckoned at from 47 to 49 per cent. of the total, occasionally rising to a majority.\n—The formation of the so-called American party in the state reduced the opposition vote to about 40 per cent., and this proportion represents the opposition in 1860-61 both to the election of Breckinridge and to secession. The opposition to the latter measure, as elsewhere-mentioned, was to the advisability, not to the principle, of secession, and ceased when the majority and pronounced the decision. Indeed, the leader of the so-called union party of the state, A. H. Stephens, was almost immediately elected vice-president of the new southern confederacy. (See\n—In November, 1860, an act of the legislature provided for a special election for delegates to a state convention, which met at Milledgeville, Jan. 16, 1861. Jan. 16, by a vote of 208 to 89, an ordinance of secession was passed. It repealed the ordinance ratifying the constitution, and the acts ratifying the amendments to the constitution, dissolved the union between Georgia and the other states, and declared \"that the state of Georgia is in the full possession and exercise of all those rights of sovereignty which belong and appertain to a free and independent state.\" The minority, however, signed the ordinance, as a pledge that they would sustain their state, with the exception of six; and these yielded so far as to place on the minutes a pledge of \"their lives, fortunes and honor\" to the defense of the state. Ten delegates were chosen by the convention to represent the state at the organization of the provisional government in Montgomery, and Georgia thus became one of the confederate states. The progress of the war developed a considerable opposition in Georgia to the confederate government. In the leaders it took the form of a sublimated state sovereignty, in opposition to the despotic acts of the executive; but in the mass of voters there seems to have been a strong undercurrent in favor of reconstruction in its first form, that is, re-entrance to the Union on terms. April 30, 1865, the Sherman-Johnson agreement ended the rebellion in Georgia. (See\n—June 17, 1865, James Johnson was appointed provisional governor of the state. Under his directions a convention met at Milledgeville, Oct. 25, repealed the ordinance of secession, voided the war debt, and adopted a new state constitution, Nov. 7, which was ratified by popular vote. It recognized the abolition of slavery by the federal government as a war measure, but reserved the right of its citizens to appeal to \"the justice and magnanimity of that government\" for compensation for slaves; it made the governor ineligible for re-election; it confined the right of suffrage to free white male citizens; and it enjoined upon the legislature the duty of providing by law for \"the government of free persons of color.\" State officers were elected Nov. 15, 1865, the legislature met in December, and the state remained under the new form of government until March, 1867. (See\n—The election at which the constitution had been ratified had resulted in the choice of republican state officers, a republican senate, and a democratic house of representatives. In July the new state officers entered on their duties and the legislature ratified the congressional changes in the constitution, but during this and the next month the legislature proceeded to declare negroes ineligible to membership in it, and to admit to membership several persons who, it was alleged, were disqualified to hold office by the 14th amendment. During the year the state supreme court decided in favor of the eligibility of negroes to office, but the action of the legislature provoked an unfavorable feeling to Georgia in congress, and was construed as an effort to avoid the terms of reconstruction. In December, therefore, the Georgia senators were not admitted, and did not obtain their seats until January and February, 1871; the representatives had been admitted July 25, 1868. The Georgia electors, in obedience to a state law passed under the confederacy and not repealed in 1880, voted Dec. 9, 1868, the second Wednesday of December, instead of the first, as required by the federal statute. On this nominal ground a vigorous effort was made in February, 1869, to reject the vote of Georgia, but it was counted \"in the alternative.\" (See\n—Nothing, however, could save Georgia from re-reconstruction. The act of Dec. 23, 1869, authorized the governor to reconvene the legislature, with only such members as the reconstruction acts allowed, prohibited the exclusion of qualified members, authorized the use of the army and navy to support the governor, and imposed upon the legislature the ratification of the proposed 15th amendment as a condition precedent to the admission of senators and representatives from Georgia. The seats of the representatives also were thus vacated until January and February, 1871. The organization of the legislature in January and February, 1870, was only effected with great difficulty by the governor, and his irregular course of action was condemned by the senate investigating committee; but the organization was finally accomplished, the conditions fulfilled by the legislature, and the state admitted by act of July 15, 1870. The first election under the new regime took place Dec. 20—22, 1870, and resulted in the choice of democratic state officers, and of five democratic and two republican representatives in congress. At the next election for congressmen, 1872, the state having been re-districted, the republicans lost one congressman and gained one. At the next election, 1872, the democrats elected all the nine congressmen: in two districts the republican vote entirely disappeared, and in all the others it was much reduced. Since that time the state has been democratic in all elections, state and national, and the political contest has been confined to factions of the dominant party. The peculiar state law, requiring electors to vote on thesecondWednesday of December, excited some comment in 1881, but the undisputed republican majority in the presidential election of 1880 allowed the state's electoral votes to be admitted without objection.\n—A new constitution was formed by a convention which met at Atlanta, July 11, 1877, and was ratified by popular vote, Dec. 5. Its only noteworthy changes were its location of the state capital at Atlanta, and its limitation of the right of suffrage by prohibiting any one convicted of a penitentiary offense, and not pardoned, from registering, voting or holding office.\n—The most prominent citizens of the state in national politics have been William H. Crawford, Herschel V. Johnson, and Alexander H. Stephens. (See those names.) Reference should also be made (see also list of governors) to John M. Berrien, democratic United States senator 1825-9, attorney general under Jackson (see\n—The name of Georgia was given to the colony in 1732 in honor of King George II. The prosperity of the state and its vast possibilities of future growth have encouraged its citizens to give it the popular name of the empire state of the south.\n—GOVERNORS George Walton (1789-90); Edward Telfair(1790-3); Geo. Matthews (1793-6); Jared Irwin (1796-8); James Jackson (1798-1801); Josiah Tatnall (1801-2); John Milledge (1802-6); Jared Irwin (1808-9); David B. Mitchell (1809-130; Peter Early (1813-15); David B. Mitchell (1815-17); William Rabun (1817-19); John Clark (1819-23); George M. Troup (1823-7); John Forsyth (1827-9); George R. Gilmer (1829-31); Wilson Lumpkin (1831-5); William Schley (1835-7); George R. Gilmer (1837-9); Charles J. McDonald (1839-43); George W. Crawford (1843-7); G. W. B. Towns (1847-15); Howell Cobb (185103); Herschel V. Johnson (1853-7); Joseph E. Brown (1857-65); James Johnson (provisional, 1865); Chaekwa J. Jenkins (1863-7); John Pope and G.G. Meade (military governors, March, 1867-June, 1868); Rufus B. Bullock (June, 1868-October, 1871); Benjamin Coley (acting, October 1871-January, 1872); James M. Smith (chosen by special election, January, 1872-January, 1877); Alfred H. Colquitt (1877-83).\nReturn to top"}
{"text": "For the past decade I’ve been developing forensic techniques for determining if an image is a forgery. The general philosophy that I have adopted is to first concede that there is no single technique that can detect all forms of digital manipulation. I have, therefore, been developing a number of different forensic tools each tailored to detecting specific forms of photo manipulation – some of these techniques operate on subtle pixel-level statistics that are invisible to the human eye, and others operate on geometric properties that can sometimes be seen with a trained eye.\nFor example, in the image shown below, the bottle’s cast shadow is clearly incongruous with the shape of the bottle (as is the shadow on this cover of Time Magazine). Such obvious errors in a shadow are easy to spot, but more subtle differences can be harder to detect.\nShown below are two images in which the bottle and its cast shadow are slightly different (the rest of the scene is identical). Can you tell which is consistent with the lighting in the rest of the scene?\nThe geometry of cast shadows is dictated by the 3-D shape and location of an object and the illuminating light(s). It turns out, perhaps somewhat surprisingly, that there is a simple and intuitive 2-D image-based geometric analysis that can verify the authenticity of shadows.\nLocate any point on a shadow and its corresponding point on the object, and draw a line through them. The best points to use are the corners of an object for which it is easier to match shadow and object. Repeat for as many clearly defined shadow and object points as possible. As you do this, you will find that all of the lines should intersect at one point – the location of the illuminating light.\nHere is the basic intution for why this image-based construction works. Since light travels in a straight line, a point on a shadow, its corresponding point on the object, and the light source must all lie on a single line. Therefore, the light source will always lie on a line that connects every point on a shadow with its corresponding point on an object. Because under the rules of perspective projection, straight lines project to straight lines, this basic geometry is preserved in the 2-D image of a scene. Notice that this constraint holds regardless of the shape or orientation of the surface onto which a shadow is cast.\nShown below are the results of this simple geometric analysis, which clearly reveals the second bottle to be the fake.\nIn practice, there are some limitations to a manual application of this geometric analysis. Care must be taken to select appropriately matched points on the shadow and the object. This is best achieved when the object has a distinct shape (the corner of a cube or the tip of a cone). In addition, if the dominant light is the sun, then the lines may be nearly parallel, making the computation of their intersection vulnerable to slight errors in selecting matched points. And, it is necessary to remove any lens distortion in the image which causes straight lines to be imaged as curved lines which will then no longer intersect at a single point.\nWe are developing a suite of forensic tools that will automate and simplify the detection of fakes, one of which will almost certainly rely on the analysis of shadows.\n[CGI model credit to Jeremy Birn, Lighting and Rendering in Maya]"}
{"text": "Archive for the ‘transcendental geometry’ tag\nThe modern mathematician finds the space of three dimensions, in which our visible universe is containled, entirely too contracted for his conceptions, and is obliged to imagine a space of “n” dimensions in order that his fancy may find room to disport itself. But it is a new idea, on the part of the novelist, to make the conceptions of transcendental geometry the basis for an amusing story.\nThe very short article goes on to compare “Flatland” with “Through the Looking Glass” and their use of geometry as speculative and imaginative.\nIn trying to find more about this term, it appears that sadly the intelligent design crowd has laid claim to it. The most I could find (in an admittedly short search) was this related Wikipedia article on “Complex Geometry“:\nIn mathematics, complex geometry is the study of complex manifolds and functions of many complex variables. Application of transcendental methods to algebraic geometry falls in this category, together with more geometric chapters of complex analysis."}
{"text": "Child and Adolescent Suicide\nLeft untreated, depression can lead some youth to take their own lives. Suicide is the third leading cause of death for 15- to 24-year-olds and the sixth leading cause of death for 5- to 14-year-olds. Attempted suicides are even more common.\nWarning signs of suicide\nFour out of five teens that attempt suicide give clear warnings. If you suspect that a child or adolescent is suicidal, look for these warning signs:\n- Threats of suicide—either direct or indirect.\n- Verbal hints such as “I won’t be around much longer” or “It’s hopeless.\n- Obsession with death.\n- Overwhelming sense of guilt, shame or rejection.\n- Putting affairs in order (for example, giving or throwing away favorite possessions).\n- Sudden cheerfulness after a period of depression.\n- Dramatic change in personality or appearance.\n- Hallucinations or bizarre thoughts.\n- Changes in eating or sleeping patterns.\n- Changes in school performance.\nWhat Should Parents and Other Adults Do if They Think a Child Is Suicidal?\n- Ask the child or teen if he or she feels depressed or thinks about suicide or death. Speaking openly and honestly allows the child to confide in you and gives you a chance to express your concern. Listen to his or her thoughts and feelings in a caring and respectful manner.\n- Let the child or teen know that you care and want to help.\n- Supply the child or teen with local resources, such as a crisis hotline or the location of a mental health clinic. If the child or teen is a student, find out if there are any available mental health professionals at the school and let the child know about them.\n- Seek professional help. It is essential to seek expert advice from a mental health professional that has experience helping depressed children and teens.\n- Alert key adults in the child’s life—family, friends, teachers. Inform the child’s parents or primary caregiver, and recommend that they seek professional assistance for their child or teen.\n- Trust your instincts. If you think the situation may be serious, seek immediate help. If necessary, break a confidence in order to save a life.\nThis will connect you with a crisis center in your area.\nCovenant House Nine Line\nThis is a 24-hour teen crisis line.\nAmerican Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry\nAmerican Association of Suicidology"}
{"text": "Alternative Instruction Program\nThe Alternative Instruction Program (AIP) provides an appropriate educational setting for students with diagnosed learning disabilities and/or attention disorders. While the standard-sized classroom works well for many students, the learning needs of some are better met in a small group environment providing more frequent interaction and closer supervision.\nFor admission into the AIP, the student must have a recent or updated diagnosis of a learning disability and/or attention disorder. Other data will also be taken into consideration as part of the admissions process such as standardized test scores, academic ability, observations, input from classroom teachers, work samples, and emotional or behavioral factors. Student progress in AIP is assessed regularly to ensure that enrollment in the program adequately meets the student’s educational needs."}
{"text": "The history of Cornell University’s South Asia Collection dates from 1868 when Cornell’s President Andrew D. White went to Europe armed with formidable lists of books and apparatus to be collected. He made large purchases of scientific and literary works. One of the most important of his acquisitions was the library of one of the founders of historical linguistics, Franz Bopp (1791-1867). Fully one-third of Bopp’s approximately five thousand volume collection was comprised of Indological subject matter. Since the beginning, Cornell University has continued to build on the initial strength of the Bopp library, acquiring complete collections of most of the important serials and monographs in this field.\nToday, with material from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal, the South Asia Collection is the fourth largest in the United States and the largest intershelved collection combining both Indic and Western languages.\nCollections in rural sociology, anthropology, communications, education, regional planning and art history are also noteworthy among the South Asia Collection. The holdings include the Gandhi Memorial Library, which Cornell received as a gift in 1949. The South Asia Collection has grown steadily with gifts from the government of India and individuals in this country, as well as substantial library acquisitions."}
{"text": "Darryl D’Monte continues his reportage of the Climate Action Network International meet on in Bangkok where, he says, two NGOs put forward blueprints that could be templates on which the new climate treaty is based\nTwo NGOs -- the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and a consortium led by Greenpeace -- have put forward blueprints that could be templates on which the new climate treaty, due to be negotiated in Copenhagen in December, is based.\nWWF employs the concept of greenhouse development rights (GDRs), which have earlier also been propagated by the Stockholm Environment Institute and others. This August, it released a report titled ‘Sharing the effort under a global carbon budget’.\nWWF says: “A strict global carbon budget between now and 2050 based on a fair distribution between rich and poor nations has the potential to prevent dangerous climate change and keep temperature rise well below 2 degrees Celsius.”\nThe report is based on research and shows different ways to cut global emissions by at least 80% globally, by 2050, and by 30% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels. Both the EU and US have agreed to this 2050 target but differ drastically on the intermediate goals, which have a vital bearing on keeping global temperatures from rising above 2 degrees C, beyond which there will be catastrophic climate changes.\n“In order to avoid the worst and most dramatic consequences of climate change, governments need to apply the strictest measures to stay within a tight and total long-term global carbon budget,” said Stephan Singer, director of global energy policy at WWF. “Ultimately, a global carbon budget is equal to a full global cap on emissions.”\nAccording to the analysis, the total carbon budget -- the amount of tolerable global emissions over a period of time -- has to be set roughly at 1,600 Gt CO2 eq (gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent) between 1990 and 2050.\nAs the world has already emitted a large part of this, the budget from today until 2050 is reduced to 970 Gt CO2 eq, excluding land use changes.\nThe report evaluates different pathways to reduce emissions, all in line with the budget. It describes three different methodologies which could be applied to distribute the burden and the benefits of a global carbon budget in a fair and equitable way.\n- Greenhouse development rights (GDRs), where all countries need to reduce emissions below business-as-usual based on their per capita emissions, poverty thresholds, and GDP per capita.\n- Contraction and convergence (C&C), where per capita allowances converge from a country’s current level to a level equal for all countries within a given period.\n- Common but differentiated convergence (CDC), where developed countries’ per capita emissions converge to an equal level for all countries and others converge to the same level once their per capita emissions reach a global average.\nThe report says that by 2050, the GDR methodology requires developed nations as a group to reduce emissions by 157% (twice what they are contemplating). “Given that they cannot cut domestic emissions by more than 100%, they will need to finance emission reductions in other countries to reach their total.”\nWhile the greenhouse development rights method allows an increase for most developing countries, at least for the initial period, the two other methods give less room for emissions increase. Under the C&C and CDC methodology, China, for example, would be required to reduce by at least 70% and India by 2-7% by 2050, compared to 1990.\nThe poorest countries will be allowed to continue to grow emissions until at least 2050 under the GDR methodology, but will be required to reduce them after 2025 under the two remaining allocation options.\nThe Greenpeace proposal, which has WWF and other partners, was released at an earlier UN climate meet in Bonn this year. It also talks of a global carbon budget. Industrial countries would have to phase out their fossil fuel energy consumption by 2050. The trajectory would be as follows: 23% between 2013 and 2017, 40% by 2020 (twice the EU commitment), and 95% by 2050.\nGlobally, deforestation emissions would need to be reduced by three-quarters by 2020, and fossil fuel consumption by developing countries would have to peak by 2020 and then decline.\nThe proposal envisages that industrial countries will provide at least $160 billion a year from 2013 to 2017, “with each country assuming national responsibility for an assessed portion of this amount as part of its binding national obligation for the same period”.\nThe main source of this funding, which could prove controversial, would be auctioning 10% of industrial countries’ emissions allocations. There would also be levies on aviation and shipping, since both add to global warming.\nGreenpeace proposes a Copenhagen climate facility which would apportion $160 billion as follows:\n- $56 billion for developing countries to adapt to climate change.\n- $7 billion a year as insurance against such risks.\n- $42 billion in reducing forest destruction and degradation.\n- $56 billion on mitigation and technology diffusion.\nTalks at Bangkok are deadlocked between the G77 and China that want to continue with the Kyoto Protocol, and the US which wants a new treaty. The EU is open to a continuation of the old treaty with a new track to include the US (which has not ratified Kyoto), as well as emerging developing countries. Where and how such proposals will dovetail with the document now being negotiated is by no means clear, and it will be nothing less than a catastrophe for the entire planet if Copenhagen ends in a stalemate.\nInfochange News & Features, October 2009"}
{"text": "The Ancient Forests of North America are extremely diverse. They include the boreal forest belt stretching between Newfoundland and Alaska, the coastal temperate rainforest of Alaska and Western Canada, and the myriad of residual pockets of temperate forest surviving in more remote regions.\nTogether, these forests store huge amounts of carbon, helping tostabilise climate change. They also provide a refuge for large mammalssuch as the grizzly bear, puma and grey wolf, which once ranged widelyacross the continent.\nIn Canada it is estimated that ancient forest provides habitat forabout two-thirds of the country's 140,000 species of plants, animalsand microorganisms. Many of these species are yet to be studied byscience.\nThe Ancient Forests of North America also provide livelihoods forthousands of indigenous people, such as the Eyak and Chugach people ofSouthcentral Alaska, and the Hupa and Yurok of Northern California.\nOf Canada's one million indigenous people (First Nation, Inuit andMétis), almost 80 percent live in reserves and communities in boreal ortemperate forests, where historically the forest provided their foodand shelter, and shaped their way of life.\nThrough the Trees - The truth behind logging in Canada (PDF)\nOn the Greenpeace Canada website:\nInteractive map of Canada's Borel forest (Flash)\nFun animation that graphically illustrates the problem (Flash)\nDefending America's Ancient Forests"}
{"text": "Many manufacturing plants employ compressed air systems in one capacity or another, and, for the most part, these systems provide similar output. While all compressed air might be the same, the engineering of that air is not. The needs of a petrochemical plant are quite different from those of an automobile manufacturing plant. Application-specific engineered air addresses those different needs.\nEngineered air describes compressed air tailored to meet specific industry needs—100 percent oil-free, particulate filtered, and reliable. It goes beyond the simple output of compressed air at a specified pressure pounds per square inch. Engineered air provides the right type of air for the right application. A good example of this concept put into practice is work done at a North American ethylene plant.\nEthylene processing plants use compressed air systems in a number of ways. Air powers pneumatic tools used in general maintenance, and it is employed for other plant operations, such as blow-down and dry-out. Blow-down uses compressed air to clear pipes and vessels of debris and blockage, while dry-out uses compressed air to remove moisture from pipes prior to ethylene processing.\nEthylene plants also use compressed air combined with steam to remove the coke build-up in the cracking furnaces. Scheduled periodic removal of this solid build-up allows the overall ethylene processing operations to run more efficiently.\nRecently, a world-scale North American ethylene plant was undergoing a major expansion project that required a specially designed compressor system to handle the additional requirements. With this major expansion underway, it was vital that this new system provide absolutely reliable engineered air.\nIn order to ensure the most dependable compressed air source possible, the compressor package included a custom-designed compressor with a high-tech control system, meeting requirements for durability and reliability, accessibility and maintainability, and high level of control (Fig. 1).\nThe base design for this customized system also had to meet stringent API 672 standards for packaged, integrally geared centrifugal air compressors for petroleum, chemical, and gas industry services.\nDurability and reliability\nA baseload ethylene plant is the lynchpin of any petrochemical manufacturing complex. Ethylene is the building block and feedstock for all the downstream feeder plants. A baseload plant is expected to run continuously, maximizing efficiencies and minimizing costs. Downstream plants totally rely on the plant to provide a continuous supply of feedstock—in this case ethylene.\nThis is one of the key reasons the compressor system had to be designed to be extremely durable. To ensure this durability, the customized air compressor features self-adjusting tilting pad journal bearings that can adapt to load changes, providing stability, as well as double-acting thrust bearings to accommodate all load conditions. In addition, the system features stainless steel impellers, resistant to corrosion and erosion.\nAll of the compressor systems had to run reliably also. An unplanned shutdown would have an adverse impact on the entire petrochemical complex manufacturing capabilities. The compressor was built with a redundant oil system, helping eliminate the possibility of system failure, allowing the ethylene plant to meet its availability targets (Fig. 2).\nWithin an air compressor, the oil pump is the heart of the lubrication system; it is what keeps the machine running smoothly. If the pump breaks down, the machine comes to a grinding halt. To avoid this, we included not one, but two full capacity, full pressure pumps in the design—one motor-driven auxiliary and the other a shaft-driven main.\nDuring regular operations, the shaft-driven main is operating, while the motor-driven auxiliary is on perpetual standby for emergency situations, providing additional overall package protection. Without this redundant system, in the event of an oil system malfunction, the entire compressor system needs to be shut down. The redundant system eliminates downtime and provides a reliable source of engineered air.\nAccessibility and maintainability\nIn order to keep the plant’s compressor system running efficiently and reliably, it was essential to design the unit for maximum accessibility and maintainability. While requiring additional time and attention from plant engineers, scheduled cleaning and maintenance are a sound investment. As with all other plant operating systems, compressed air systems that have a planned maintenance program are less likely to have unexpected breakdowns. Simply put, less downtime allows for more production. In addition, consistent cleaning and maintenance practices help keep wear and tear to a minimum. This ultimately saves money in replacement parts.\nThe intercooler design is an example of the ease-of-maintenance design philosophy. Within a compressor intercooler, both U-shaped and straight intercooler tubes are industry practice. However, straight tubes are easier to clean than those with a U-bend design. An engineer can simply remove the water piping, unbolt the water box, and rod the tubes in place. Rodding is not possible with U-bend tubes found in some compressors.\nIn addition, intercooler tubes with a water-in-tube design are easier to clean and maintain than those with an air-in-tube design that require wire brush or chemical bath cleaning. This compressor features straight intercooler tubes with water-in-tube design for this very reason. The longer it takes to clean the intercooler, the longer engineered airflow is down.\nAnother example of important compressor components that benefit from diligent inspection and maintenance are journal and thrust bearings. These bearings help provide a stable and near frictionless environment to support and guide the rotating shaft. Properly installed and maintained, these bearings can last for extended periods of time. However, regularly scheduled inspections and maintenance keep them running reliably. The ethylene plant’s compressor features horizontally split bearings, which are easy to maintain, inspect, and replace. An engineer simply removes the top half of the gear case to service. No other disassembly is required.\nInterchangeability of parts is another factor taken into consideration when designing the ethylene plant’s compressor system. Interchangeability contributes heavily to ease of maintenance. Interchangeable parts save time and money. Multiple stage air compressors use a bull gear and pinion system to power the impellers at each stage of air compression. The quality of the bull gears used directly determines whether they are interchangeable. The customized compressor uses high precision AGMA Quality 13 gears.\nThe American Gear Manufacturers Association (AGMA) provides established gear quality ratings, ranging from 3-15. These numbers signify the quality levels, or standards, developed by the AGMA that differ per application. AGMA Quality Level 13 gears, otherwise known as aircraft-quality gearing, are generally regarded as high-precision gears. They provide lower noise levels and, under normal operating conditions, have a longer performance life. More importantly, though, they provide interchangeability.\nIf the gear is AGMA Quality Level 12 or below and any one of the three pieces needs to be replaced, all three pieces—one gear and two pinions—need to be replaced. However, with Level 13 gears, rather than remove and replace all three pieces, the plant engineer needs to swap out only the component in question. This saves time and money in unnecessary replacement parts.\nHigh level of control\nThe operation of multiple compressors feeding into a single plant air system needs to be coordinated, monitored, and controlled in order to accommodate various applications. An initial investment in innovative monitoring technology can ultimately pay for itself.\nWith that in mind, the customized compressor can be accommodated with a PLC-based automatic sequencer, which permits up to eight compressor units to communicate with one another and operate in sequence according to a programmed schedule. High-tech PLC-based automatic sequencers are capable of monitoring and matching compressor supply to demand. For example, they can select which compressors to use at any given time, shutting down those compressors not necessary to plant operations, even choosing back-up units if needed. By turning multiple compressors into one, an automatic sequencer can ensure stable system pressure, which allows the entire operation to run as efficiently as possible, saving both time and money.\nIn addition, a PLC-based modular control system allows for remote monitoring and diagnostic checks on the compressed air systems, helping to predict and prevent any systems malfunctions that could result in stoppage of engineered air. This can save money on repairs and replacements, as well as lost production time.\nThe most cost-effective systems, like the FS-Elliott Regulus control system, provide state-of-the-art technology and ease-of-use. The ideal control system should feature an easy-to-operate touch screen with a graphic color display. These features allow operators to view easy-to-understand graphics while monitoring the plant engineered air systems. An advanced system also provides easy adjustment of set-points and control mode changes using the touch screen. These flexible controls are fully adaptive, changing to meet the plant’s application-specific needs.\nThe control system also stores and logs operating data used for trend monitoring and preventive maintenance. This feature permits engineers to monitor and predict trends in their engineered air systems and act before problems arise. Extended monitoring of vital parameters is important for equipment protection, saving money in maintenance and avoiding repairs.\nEthylene plants are extremely energy conscious. A systems operation closer to surge lines saves power and minimizes wasteful unloading, while lower set-points and precise control minimizes energy usage. The advanced control system is able to make more efficient use of the ethylene plant’s manpower. With easy-to-use remote control and monitoring capabilities, this system can reduce the tasks of the ethylene plant operators, allowing them to shift focus to other plant responsibilities.\nAn engineered air system is created with specific plant applications in mind, to increase reliability and efficiency. The custom-engineered compressor we installed at the ethylene plant was designed with the following key points in mind:\n• Durability and reliability—A robust engineered design combined with key system redundancies.\n• Accessibility and maintainability—Moving parts designed with ease of access and maintenance in mind.\n• High level of control—High-tech control systems provide for efficient operation and allow plant operations to predict and prevent possible problems."}
{"text": "At the heart of the celebration of Thanksgiving is the idea of 'giving thanks' but the main attraction of this festival is the tradition of family gathering for sharing the Thanksgiving dinner and eating turkey on this holiday. It is well known that the turkey has a delicious history and it is considered as the favorite bird of the Americans. But there are even more interesting and fun facts about this bird, which can surprise you. Here we are with our collection of various facts about turkey as Turkey Trivia.\nTurkeys originated in North and Central America.\nUsually the turkeys are found in hardwood forests with grassy areas but\nthey are capable of adapting themselves to different habitats.\nTurkeys spend the night in trees.\nYou can easily see a turkey on a warm clear day or during light rain.\nTurkeys fly to the ground at first light and feed until mid-morning.\nFeeding resumes in mid-afternoon.\nTurkeys start gobbling before sunrise and generally continue through\nmost of the morning.\nThe field of vision of wild turkey is so good that it is about 270\nThe wild turkey has excellent hearing.\nA spooked turkey can run at speed up to 20 miles per hour.\nA wild turkey can run at speed of up to 25 miles per hour.\nA wild turkey can fly for short distances at up to 55 miles per hour.\nDomesticated turkeys or the farm-raised turkeys cannot fly.\nTurkeys were one of the first birds to be domesticated in the America.\nThe male turkeys are called 'tom', the female turkeys are called 'hen'\nand the baby turkeys are called 'poult'.\nThe male turkeys gobble whereas female turkeys make a clicking noise.\nThe male turkeys gobble to attract the female turkeys for mating. The\ngobble is a seasonal call made during the spring and fall.\nA mature turkey generally has around 3,500 feathers. The Apache Indians\nconsidered the turkey timid and wouldn't eat it or use its feathers on\nAccording to an estimate, during the Thanksgiving holiday more than 45\nmillion turkeys are cooked and around 525 million pounds of turkey is\nAbout ninety-five percent of American families eat turkey on the\nThanksgiving Day whereas fifty percent eat turkey on Christmas holiday.\nAlmost fifty percent of Americans eat turkey at least once every 2\nAccording to the National Turkey Federation about twenty-four percent\nof Americans purchase fresh turkeys for Thanksgiving and seventy percent\npurchase frozen turkeys.\nNorth Carolina is the number one producer of turkeys. It produces\naround 61 million turkeys per year. Minnesota and Arkansas are second\nand third number producers of turkey.\nThe part of the turkey that is used in a good luck ritual is known as\nThe red fleshy growth from the base of the beak that hangs down over\nthe beak is called 'snood'. It is very long on male turkeys."}
{"text": "Blue Ocean Research & Conservation\nDiscovering the Ocean\nOur scientific research has focused recently on an often overlooked yet ecologically important part of many ecosystems–sponges. Numbering over 8000 species, they are common to many aquatic habitats from the Ross Shelf in Antarctica, Lake Baikal in Russia, rocky reefs in South Africa, to coral reefs throughout the Caribbean.\nSponges are critical to coral reef survival. Sponges filter and clean the water, provide shelter for commercially important species like juvenile lobsters, and are eaten by many fish and turtles. On many coral reefs, sponges outnumber corals, with sponges providing three-dimensional structure that creates habitat and refuge for thousands of species. Because of their large size and kaleidoscope colors, sponges help fuel the popular and lucrative diving and tourism industries.\nAs climate change results in warmer, more acidic oceans, all marine life is potentially affected. It is well-known that coral health declines under these conditions, but the effect on sponge growth and survival is unknown. Significant declines in sponge health and biomass would be catastrophic to coral reefs, reducing water quality and severely impacting thousands of species from symbiotic microbes to foraging hawksbill turtles. A major loss of sponges would not only negatively impact marine life, but also local communities that depend on reefs for coastal protection and food.\nBlue Ocean’s research scientist, Dr. Alan Duckworth, studied the effects of warmer, more acidic waters on the sponge Cliona celata, which bores into the shells of scallops and oysters, weakening and eventually killing them. Alan hypothesized that because climate change will result in shellfish having weaker shells, these sponges could cause greater losses of shellfish. This study has been done in collaboration with Dr. Bradley Peterson of Stony Brook University.\nAlan’s other area of study was the first climate change experiment focused on tropical sponges. It investigated the effects of warmer, more acidic water on the growth, survival, and chemistry of several Caribbean coral reef sponges. This study was based at the Discovery Bay Marine Lab in Jamaica and chemical analysis of sponge samples was completed by Dr. Lyndon West from Florida Atlantic University.\nPutting Teeth in Shark Conservation\nThe goal of this fellowship is to help small, island nations by strengthening their ability to identify illegal shark fishing and enforce recently established shark sanctuaries. It will help provide much needed scientific research, training, outreach and DNA-testing tools which can then be used to help protect valuable marine sanctuaries worldwide."}
{"text": "A jet owned by the German Air Research Center, which is equipped with devices and sensors to analyze the ash emitted by the volcano in Eyjafjallajökull glacier in Iceland, arrived in the country yesterday.\n“The jet can tell us about the distribution of the ash and it can, to a certain degree, fly into the ash cloud, although it cannot be exposed to too much ash,” Haraldur Ólafsson, professor in meteorology at the University of Iceland, told Morgunbladid.\nOn their way to the country, the crew of the test jet didn’t notice much ash above Iceland’s southwestern corner. The jet took a few dives above Eyjafjallajökull to collect samples, which will be analyzed today.\nÓlafsson said it is clear that the ash level will be low. The jet will go on another expedition today and is expected to return to Germany on Sunday.\nThe cost of the expeditions, approximately ISK 30 million (USD 233,000, EUR 175,000), will only be covered by Iceland to a small extent—the largest part will be paid for by the German Ministry of Transport and the British Meteorological Office.\nÓlafsson explained that significant interests are at stake. “In the past days the forecasts that have come from the British Met Office have been rather bleak and more pessimistic than what considered reasonable compared to the current situation of the eruption”.\n“The reason [for the testing] is that it is costly to close the airspace and it is very important to have confirmation of whether there is a real danger,” Ólafsson said, adding that the risk factor of ash in the atmosphere has never been analyzed directly before.\n“It has been evaluated visually. People have measured the height of the ash plume on radars and visually from airplanes,” Ólafsson explained. “Significant uncertainty lies in these measurements, which explains why the forecasts have been questionable”."}
{"text": "The European Union runs into roadblocks in its plans for Kosovo\nWHEN the Austro-Hungarian empire declared war on Serbia in July 1914, few could have imagined that the result would be the demise not only of the Habsburg empire, but also of the Russian and Ottoman ones. Nobody believes that Serbia's challenge to the European Union over Kosovo will be anything like as dramatic; most Serbs want to join the EU, not destroy it. Yet 100 days after Kosovo declared independence, Serbia has done a lot better than anybody expected in thwarting the EU's plans for it.\nSerbia still regards Kosovo as a province, but the ethnic Albanians, who constitute over 90% of its 2m people, declared its independence in February. So far 41 countries have recognised Kosovo, including America and 20 of the EU's 27 members. But five of these are microstates like Nauru and the Marshall Islands. And such big hitters as Brazil, China, India and Russia have not recognised the new country. Nor have Spain, Egypt or even most Muslim countries.\nSince the end of the war in 1999, Kosovo has come under the jurisdiction of the United Nations. Legally the last word in its government accordingly lies with the head of the UN mission in Pristina. When Kosovo declared its independence, the EU authorised the establishment of a big new police and justice mission named EULEX. With the Americans and others, it also set up the office of the international civilian representative (ICR), investing him with sweeping powers.\nOn June 15th Kosovo's new constitution is due to come into force. It foresees no role at all for the UN. But legal and technical problems mean that the EULEX mission has been postponed. As for the ICR, whose (Dutch) head, Pieter Feith, is also the EU's special representative in Kosovo, one UN official scoffs, “He and his team are here as tourists. What are they doing? They can't take over the role they were assigned, as we are still here.”\nSince independence the Belgrade government has consolidated its grip on Serbian areas of Kosovo, including almost all of the region north of Mitrovica. It even held local elections, condemned as illegal by the UN, the EU and the ICR. EULEX and the ICR will be unable to operate in these areas. De facto, Kosovo is thus divided not only into Serb and ethnic-Albanian areas, but also into places where the UN will keep operating and the ethnic-Albanian areas where EULEX and the ICR will probably take over. For the EU, says one diplomat, “It is a face-saving operation now. Their plan has been derailed.”\nAs the June 15th deadline nears, meeting after meeting is taking place to try to resolve the impasse. The UN's future role is now utterly unclear because, as the joke has it, everyone is “waiting for Ban”. Under pressure from all sides, the UN secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, has done little beyond prohibiting the transfer of cars, buildings and equipment to EULEX and the ICR. The Russians recently warned him that any notion that he might try to resolve the problem without the approval of the UN Security Council (and thus of Russia) was “out of the question”.\nAttempts are now being made to square the circle by seeing if EULEX could somehow come under the UN's legal authority, but so far no progress towards a deal has been made. What is becoming distressingly obvious to Kosovo's Albanians is that, despite declaring independence, their future is still tied to Serbia's. Keen to gain more recognition, they are making little fuss. But Mr Feith says “they need to be given some comfort that their interests are being taken care of.” If they don't get it, he sees trouble ahead."}
{"text": "Considering the fact that half of you reading this right now are probably wearing one, It’s only right to start this week off with the most commonplace of all acronymic items– the OCBD (oxford cloth button down.) While the latter half is attributed to the shirt’s button down collar, Oxford Cloth itself has a far less straightforward explanation. As the last remaining fabric from a series of four, Oxford cloth’s story is one of inexplicable survival. In the late nineteenth century a Scottish Mill designed and produced four cloths, one for each of the world’s most distinguished universities. While Harvard, Yale, and Cambridge all had their respective cloths lost to history, for reasons unknown Oxford endured becoming one of the most widespread fabrics in the world. Oxford cloth is created by weaving together two yarns that are of the same color but just a shade different, giving it a marled texture that breaks from the ordinary aesthetic of a solid dress shirt.\nOxford Cloth shirts were originally perceived to be a piece of formal wear and were exclusively worn as part of a suit. This all began to change in 1896, when John E. Brooks, (the grandson of Henry Sand Brooks, the founder of Brooks Brothers’) went to England and noticed that polo players were wearing shirts with button down collars to keep them secured during games. Brooks brought the design back to the states, and Brooks Brothers combined the button down collar with oxford cloth to create the OCBD. They remained a relatively formal shirt until the 1930′s, when tennis and polo players began wearing Oxford cloth button downs during their games. While these were still unequivocally upper class sports, they nonetheless placed the Oxford shirt in an entirely new context, and by the 50′s Ivy League undergrads were wearing OCBD’s. For the students, and their limited wardrobes, the versatile shirts were a major asset. OCBD’s could not only be worn untucked on weekends, or with a jacket when going out, the shirts relaxed basket weave also allowed them to be worn pretty much year round. Today, practically every company produces their version of the OCBD, and they’re somewhat of a collectors item, not because they’re rare but because you can never collect too many."}
{"text": "|BEING PREPARED - READ ONLINE|\nWinter storms may include strong winds, heavy snow, sleet, freezing rain, ice and/or extreme cold. Storms often knock out power, down trees, and make roads impassable for days. The weight of snow and ice can collapse buildings. Winds descending off mountains can reach 100 miles per hour. Ice jams in rivers can lead to flooding, and snow in the mountains can become an avalanche.\nWinter storms are called deceptive killers because most deaths are only indirectly related to the storm. Nearly seventy percent of all deaths from ice and snow are due to traffic accidents on icy roads. The remainder are from exposure of people caught out in the storm, hypothermia, dehydration, and heart attacks from over exertion.\nWhat constitutes extreme cold varies in different areas of the country. In southern and coastal areas, both the people and the buildings are unused to winter weather. Extreme cold may mean temperatures just below freezing (32 degrees Fahrenheit) because it damages crops, bursts pipes, brings down power lines and threatens people living in houses with inadequate heat. In the north and Midwest, winter storms are expected and few would consider it extreme cold unless the temperatures are below zero.\nThe safest place to be in a winter storm is in a building. If you live in an area that has severe winters, your house should be prepared. Start with an outdoor thermometer that is easily readable from inside the house. As winter approaches, install storm windows or staple over windows with strong plastic sheeting to improve insulation. Windows should also have heavy draperies that can keep out the cold. Insulate outside walls, attics and crawl spaces. Weather strip all doors. Wrap or insulate water pipes to prevent freezing. Remove and store hoses and cover the hose nipples until spring. Make sure your furnace is working properly and check all fireplaces or other secondary heating systems. As a bonus, all this will save you money on your heating bills.\nAs a winter storm approaches, there are additional preparations. Make sure that you have food and water for a week because it may be difficult to get out for several days after the storm passes. Fill your car with gas and check your emergency supplies. If you live in an area where winter storms are unusual, you may need to bring in hoses, wrap pipes and cover windows to improve your insulation.\nDuring the storm, stay inside. Even if you lose power and heat, you will be safer in the house than in a car. Wear several layers of loose fitting, light weight, warm clothing so you can adjust to the temperature in the house. Wear socks and shoes. Get out mittens and a hat that covers your ears to use if you need them. Eat regularly and drink plenty of water, broth or juice to avoid dehydration. Avoid alcohol and caffeine since they make hypothermia and dehydration worse.\nReduce the temperature in the house to conserve fuel: 65F in the day and 55F at night. There will be very high demand on the natural gas and electricity distribution systems. If you use oil, your tank could run dry before you can get it refilled.\nWhen using alternative heat from a fireplace, wood stove or space heater, follow all fire safety rules and ventilate properly to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning. Keep a fire extinguisher or bucket of water near the fire in case it gets out of control.\nOpen cabinet doors under sinks to keep the pipes warm and let all faucets drip a little to keep the water lines from freezing. If a pipe freezes, use a hair dryer to thaw it out gently, never a torch. Heat only the areas of your house that you are using.\nIf you lose heat, move everyone into one room to conserve what heat you can. Use an interior room with few doors or windows. A bedroom or dining room is usually a good choice. Seal off drafts by putting blankets over windows and towels under doors. Walk around or exercise to generate body heat and maintain circulation. Sleep in shifts. At least one person should stay awake at all times to make sure the others are alright. Watch for signs of hypothermia such as slurred speech, disorientation, or uncontrollable shivering. Let the authorities know that you are in trouble so they can get to you as quickly as possible after the storm.\nTry to make sure your car will continue to work if you need it. Winterize your car in the fall. Keep the battery and ignition system in top condition, and keep the battery terminals clean. In long periods of severe cold, cars will be hard to start in the morning. If you don’t have an engine warmer, you can keep the car warm the same way you keep a person warm. Every few hours, start the car and run it until it is warm. Make sure the garage door is open to avoid carbon monoxide. When the car is warm, turn it off and close the garage. Put blankets over the hood and radiator. This holds in the engine heat and keeps the car warm enough to restart.\nUse public transportation instead of your car, if public transportation is available. If you must drive in a winter storm, be very well prepared. If the car is parked outside, clean the ice and snow off the hood, roof, trunk and lights, as well as the windows. Warm up the car outside, never in the garage. Plan your route carefully, stay on main roads and plan alternatives if some roads are impassable. Call ahead so you are expected. Give your route and estimated time of arrival.\nIf possible, travel with at least two people in the car and travel only in daylight. If you have a choice of vehicles, take the one that is most brightly colored. Drive for the road conditions: do not speed; be cautious about passing; and remember that patches of ice can be virtually invisible. Make sure the car is fit for the road. In bad conditions, you should have snow tires or chains. Keep the car at least half full of gasoline and top it off before the storm hits. This reduces the chance of icing in the fuel line. Wear polarized sunglasses to reduce glare. Carry a cell phone and keep in touch with those at your destination.\nKeep emergency supplies in the car all winter long. Along with the usual car emergency kit, you should have supplies for being stranded in the snow. These include several gallons of water, high calorie non-perishable foods, blankets, a change of clothes for keeping dry, a bright colored flag for the antenna or window, sand or cat litter for traction, a shovel, a windshield scraper, and a large coffee can with lid and toilet paper for sanitation.\nIf you get stuck in the snow, turn the steering wheel from side to side to clear away some of the snow. Accelerate slowly and see if you can get the car moving again. If this does not work, use the shovel to dig out the drive wheels and put some sand or litter under them for traction. If neither of these works, you are stuck.\nIf you have to stop, stay in your vehicle. You will quickly become disoriented in snow and cold. Try to find a place where you are partially protected by an overpass or tree line. Make the car as visible as possible: set out flares or triangles; lift the hood; put a brightly colored cloth or flag on the antenna or window; clear snow off the roof. Leave the overhead light on so you can be seen at night unless this appears to be running down the battery. In remote areas, spread a large cloth or the trunk mat on top of the snow to attract the attention of rescue planes.\nClear the snow away from the exhaust pipe, open the two front windows about 2 inches and run the engine and heater for 10 minutes out of every hour. This is usually enough to keep the occupants warm while conserving fuel and reducing the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. Listen to the radio, charge the cell phone and turn on the emergency flashers while the motor is running. Roll the windows up just before turning off the engine. If you feel drowsy or nauseated, turn the engine off immediately.\nConserve as much body heat as possible. Wear all the dry clothing you have available. Huddle together if there is more than one person in the car. Use maps and newspapers as added insulation under the blankets. If they are dry, put the floor mats under you on the seat to insulate your back side. Keep your hands and feet inside your clothing and cover your head and ears.\nKeep your circulation going and generate body heat by doing isometric exercises. Contract muscles in your arms and legs rhythmically. Clap your hands and move your legs. Sing and dance to the music in your seat. If there are two people in the car, alternate brief periods of sleep. You need to reawaken and exercise periodically.\nDon’t go outdoors in a winter storm unless it is absolutely necessary. If you must go out, prepare very carefully. Stretch and warm up before going out. If you are shoveling snow, pushing a car, or walking in deep snow, you are doing heavy exercise. Avoid over exertion and take frequent breaks to warm up. Do not work up a sweat as this can lead to chilling and hypothermia. If you develop chest pain or shortness of breath stop immediately and go inside since these may be signs of a heart attack. Walk carefully. Falling on ice can cause disabling injuries.\nIf you are caught outside in a snow storm, the first thing to do is find shelter. If you can get to a building or a car, go immediately. If you are too far away from existing shelters, try to build a shelter. Prepare a lean-to, wind-break or even a snow cave for protection from the wind. Build a fire in the open for heat and as a signal to rescuers. If you can place rocks around the fire they will absorb and radiate heat to keep you warmer. Curl up and cover all exposed parts of your body to preserve heat and prevent frostbite of your fingers and toes. Stay as dry as possible. In extreme cold, do not let yourself go to sleep. If you feel drowsy, start exercising. This will wake you up and increase your body heat.\nOnce the snow storm has passed, do whatever you can to make yourself visible to rescuers. Dig out your car or tent so it shows up against the snow. Get out from under trees. Use a bright cloth as a flag. Stamp out “HELP” or “SOS” in the snow. Write the message with tree limbs or stones or anything that will show up against the snow. Don’t over exert yourself and don’t try to walk out. Let help come to you."}
{"text": "You have always heard that in ancient times salt was like gold, but why is that? Salt is the original preserving mean. Meat cured in salt doesn’t spoil, cheese soaked in brine lasts longer, and those foods could then be stored for long travels, colder months, or times of famine. Cervia, a small town on the Adriatic coast of Italy whose main trade has traditionally been in salt, has always been considered a prized domain by the Pope State exactly for this reason.\nSalt has been for a very long time a state monopoly in Italy, so all production was sent to be repackaged at a central government facility. Only in the past five years the salt monopoly has been lifted, allowing salt producing facilities to brand their products. So, instead of getting whatever salt you can get at the Sali e Tabacchi store (the designated monopoly outlet where you buy all tobacco products and lottery tickets- and where you used to buy salt as well!) you can pick a local salt, from a given salt pond. Since Cervia is about 2 miles from my hometown, smack in the heart of Romagna, I am partial to Cervia’s salt!\nThe salt ponds in Cervia are fortunately alive and well. They survived modernization and mechanization, and some of the ponds are still harvested by hand, making for an extraordinary open air museum of salt heritage! Sal Fiore (flower salt, the same fleur de sel of French celebrity) is a fine sea salt, still called sale del papa (Pope’s salt), as traditionally the first harvested salt was delivered to Rome to be used on the Pope’s table. Given this important historic background, the salt producers in Cervia decided to brand their salt as Sale Dei Papi, the Popes’ salt. An important name!\nIn 2004, Slow Food recognized Salina Camillone (a salt pond, pictured above) as a Presidia, to preserve the production, harvesting methods and the quality of the product. Two salts are then recognized as the diamond head of Cervia’s production: the Salina Camillone salt and the Salfiore di Romagna, the Popes’ Salt.\nBoth Salina Camillone salt and Sal Fiore are completely natural: they dry by sunlight, and no additivies or anti-caking agents are added to the final product- not even iodine, as sea salt naturally has it! Sal Fiore is a fine salt, the first one to be harvested in the traditional method, and it’s a perfect finishing salt, as its crunchy texture and sharp sea taste make for an interesting touch on salads and steamed vegetables. The salt from Salina Camillone is instead very coarse, harvested by hand in limited uquantities every day, from June till September. The Camillone salt pond has been harvested in the same way since Roman times, and the salt it produces is somewhat more humid than other sea salts, making for a terrific ingredient in salt crust recipes.\nCervia’s salt is still an artisanal product, not widely available on the shelves- even in Italy! You can find it mainly online, at the official website of the Saline di Cervia, or at this other small online shop, based on the East Coast, Olive Nation. Corti Brothers also carries it online, and the website carries an extensive history of the product!\nFiled under: Traditional Foods"}
{"text": "August 20, 2012\n- coddle (verb)\n- What does it mean?\n- : to treat with extreme care : pamper\n- How do you use it?\n- \"Big Ma was not one for coddling any of us, but now she turned from the stove and, wiping her hands on her long white apron, sat down on the bench and put her arm around Little Man.\" (Mildred D. Taylor, _Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry_)\n- Are you a word wiz?\nThe \"pamper\" sense of \"coddle\" comes from an earlier meaning that had to do with a special kind of careful treatment given to something delicate. What do you think was treated so carefully?We're not going to coddle you, just tell you that A is the right answer. When \"coddle\" first came to be part of the English language around 1600, the word meant to cook something slowly and gently in water that is just below the boiling point. Usually eggs are what's being cooked when \"coddle\" is used in this sense today, but when \"coddle\" was first being used, other foods, especially fruit, were also cooked by coddling. Because coddling is a very gentle way to cook something, such gentle treatment led to the extended meaning of \"to treat with extreme care, pamper.\""}
{"text": "From cave paintings to the internet NOV 03 2008\nA fantastically extensive timeline of recorded information \"from cave paintings to the internet\". It's an expanded version of the timeline that appears in the book, From Gutenberg to the Internet (more info), which seems really interesting.\nFrom Gutenberg to the Internet presents 63 original readings from the history of computing, networking, and telecommunications arranged thematically by chapters. Most of the readings record basic discoveries from the 1830s through the 1960s that laid the foundation of the world of digital information in which we live. These readings, some of which are illustrated, trace historic steps from the early nineteenth century development of telegraph systems -- the first data networks -- through the development of the earliest general-purpose programmable computers and the earliest software, to the foundation in 1969 of ARPANET, the first national computer network that eventually became the Internet. The readings will allow you to review early developments and ideas in the history of information technology that eventually led to the convergence of computing, data networking, and telecommunications in the Internet.\n(via design observer)"}
{"text": "The riveting story of the two crusading lawyers who led the legal battle to end segregation, one case and one courtroom at a time.\nThe Supreme Court’s decision inBrown v. Board of Educationis widely considered a seminal point in the battle to end segregation, but it was in fact the culmination of a decades-long legal campaign.Root and Branchis the epic story of the two fiercely dedicated lawyers who led the fight from county courthouses to the marble halls of the Supreme Court, and, in the process, laid the legal foundations of the civil rights movement.\nCharles Hamilton Houston was the pioneer: After becoming the first African-American on theHarvard Law Review, he transformed the law school at all-black Howard University into a West Point for civil rights advocacy.\nOne of Houston’s students at Howard was a brash young man named Thurgood Marshall. Soon after Marshall’s graduation, Houston and Marshall opened the NAACP’s legal office. The abstemious, proper Houston and the folksy, easygoing Marshall made an unlikely duo, but together they faced down angry Southern mobs, negotiated with presidents and senators, and convinced even racist judges and juries that the Constitution demanded equal justice under law for all American citizens.\nHouston, tragically, would die before his strategy came to fruition in the Brown suit, but Marshall would argue the case victoriously and go on to become the first African-American Supreme Court justice—always crediting his mentor for teaching him everything he knew. Together, the two advocates changed the course of American history."}
{"text": "Nordic Cool 2013: Literature Panel: The Secret Behind the Northern Lights\nIn this interactive session, Norwegian solar physicist Pål Brekke utilizes photos and video footage from NASA satellites to discuss the visual phenomenon known as the Northern Lights.\n- Sat., Mar. 2, 2013, 10:30 AM\n- Terrace Gallery\nPlease use the event calendar to search for current events.\nFor the duration of Nordic Cool 2013, the Terrace Gallery will become the Cool Club, an extension of the Nordic Design Illustrated exhibition. The Cool Club will feature the iconic Arne Jacobsen Series 7 chairs, on loan from Fritz Hansen, the Embassy of Denmark in Washington, D.C., and Furniture from Scandinavia, and a new curtain made from fabric by Marimekko.\nFor thousands of years, people in the northern part of the world have marveled at the spectacular and fearful displays that occasionally light up the northern sky. Award-winning Norwegian solar physicist Pål Brekke has published several popular books about the Sun and the aurora borealis, including the most recent, Our Explosive Sun and The Northern Lights: A Guide. One of the foremost scholars on the subject, Mr. Brekke has spoken multiple times to full houses at the Smithsonian and elsewhere. In this interactive session, he will utilize photos and video footage from NASA satellites to discuss the visual phenomenon known as the Northern Lights. This panel will be moderated by Joseph M. Davila, an Astrophysicist in the Solar Physics Branch at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD.\nPart of Nordic Cool 2013.\nJoseph M. Davila, USA (Moderator)\nJoseph M. Davila is an award-winning astrophysicist in the Solar Physics Branch of the Laboratory for Astronomy and Solar Physics at NASA-Goddard Space Flight Center. Dr. Davila earned a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Lamar University, Beaumont, TX in 1972, a BS in Physics from the University of California, Irvine in 1978 and a PhD in Astronomy from the University of Arizona in 1982. His research interests have included the linear and non-linear theory of hydromagnetic waves; hydromagnetic instabilities due to energetic particle beams, resonance absorption in inhomogeneous plasmas, the acceleration of high speed wind streams in solar and stellar coronal holes, and plasma heating in closed magnetic structures. Dr. Davila has also published research on the acceleration of cosmic rays, the transport of energetic particles within the Galaxy, the modulation of Galactic cosmic rays by the solar wind, and the propagation of solar cosmic rays in the interplanetary medium.\nPål Brekke, Norway\nPål Brekke received a Dr. Scient degree in 1993 from the University of Oslo and he participated on behalf of Norway in the pre-launch activities for the NASA/ESA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) mission. After the launch of SOHO in December 1995, he was part of the science operation team at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. In 1999, he joined the European Space Agency (ESA) as the SOHO Deputy Project Scientist stationed at NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center. While there he was also responsible for outreach and media activities making SOHO into one of the most well-known current satellite projects with more than 60 million hits per month on their web page. Currently, he works as a senior advisor at the Norwegian Space Centre in Oslo and as an adjunct professor at the University Center at Svalbard (UNIS). He is a Norwegian delegate to the ESA Science Programme Committee and a delegate to the International Living with a Star. He is the recipient of a Fulbright Fellowship, ESA's Exceptional Achievement Award, and the Laurels for Team Achievements from the International Academy for Astronautics. He is an internationally known lecturer and author of several popular science articles and books - the latest Our Explosive Sun (Springer 2012). He will be coming out with a new book in January tailored toward tourists, visitors, and anyone hunting the northern lights, The Northern Lights: A Guide.\nThis is a FREE event. General Admission tickets will be distributed, two (2) per person on a first-come-- first-serve basis, in front of the theater, 30 minutes before the performance begins.\nThe Nordic Cool 2013 Literature Series is curated by Danish Arts Council, Norwegian Literature Abroad, Swedish Arts Council (Kulturrådet), Finnish Literature Exchange, and Icelandic Literature Foundation.\nNordic Cool 2013 is presented in cooperation with\nand Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden.\nThe Honorable Bonnie McElveen-Hunter, Marilyn Carlson Nelson, and Barbro Osher\nMajor support is provided by the Honorable Bonnie McElveen-Hunter,\nMrs. Marilyn Carlson Nelson and Dr. Glen Nelson, the Barbro Osher Pro Suecia Foundation,\nDavid M. Rubenstein, and the State Plaza Hotel.\nInternational Programming at the Kennedy Center is made possible through the generosity of the\nKennedy Center International Committee on the Arts."}
{"text": "Dover Castle, Kent - England\nLocated at the shortest crossing between the UK and continental Europe, Dover Castle played a prime role in England's historical fortunes. Invading from France, William the Conqueror built the first castle in 1066 - an earthwork structure with a motte. Henry II did most to shape the building between 1179 and 1188, adding defences radiating out from the keep to produce Europe's first concentric castle. Henry II’s work was carried out with the help of Maurice the Ingeniator, and was completed by King John, resulting in a four-storey keep, a three-towered forebuilding and impregnable defensive walls.\nFrom 1216-17 the castle was besieged by the French, standing up to the test, but Henry III strengthened the defences further. The outer curtain wall was completed, stretching to the edge of the cliff, and Constable's Gate was constructed - a cluster of different sized towers designed to command all angles of attack. In the 18th century, Colonel William Twiss added extra gun positions, and constructed Constable's Bastion, Canon's Gateway and numerous barracks and storehouses. Further additions were made in the 1850s, and Dover Castle played an vital role in the two world wars as a site for anti-aircraft guns and radar. The army remained in the castle until 1958, and in 1963 handed it over to the Ministry of Works for preservation.\nThe entry to Dover Castle, which includes two chapels, is the magnificent forebuilding. The significance of the three-towered forebuilding , can be fully appreciated, stretching along the eastern wall of the keep. It was around this stronghold that the concentric castle was developed and work was completed in the mid-13th century. Looming over the busy port, the centrepiece of Dover Castle is the Great Tower - the largest keep in Britain - a four storey building housing a basement, a first floor and a second floor spanning two stories. The outer curtain wall, with twenty individual towers, creates an outer bailey stretching to the edge of the cliff.\nThe Great Tower and forebuilding, viewed from the west demonstrate the vast size of Dover Castle, perched atop the cliffs overlooking the English Channel. Beneath the castle is a network of tunnels, a barracks during the Napoleonic Wars and a military command centre during World War II."}
{"text": "Robin Yapp, Contributor\nDecember 10, 2012 | 5 Comments\nSaudi Arabia's newly announced commitment to introducing solar-powered desalination plants marks a welcome and significant step in advancing the technology. In October 2012, Abdul Rahman Al-Ibrahim, governor of the country's Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC), which procures the majority of its extensive municipal desalination assets, announced plans to establish three new solar-powered desalination plants in Haqel, Dhuba and Farasan. SWCC is the biggest producer of desalinated water worldwide, accounting for 18% of global output.\nEnergy-intensive desalination plants have traditionally run on fossil fuels, but renewables, particularly solar power, are now beginning to play a part.\nAround half the operating cost of a desalination plant comes from energy use, and on current trends Saudi Arabia and many other countries in the region would consume most of the oil they produce on desalination by 2050.\nThe dominant desalination technology at present, with around 60% of global capacity, is Reverse Osmosis (RO), which pushes brine water through a membrane that retains the salt and other impurities.\nThermal desalination uses heat as well as electricity in distillation processes with saline feedwater heated to vaporise, so fresh water evaporates and the brine is left behind. Cooling and condensation are then used to obtain fresh water for consumption.\nMulti Stage Flash (MSF), the most common thermal technique accounting for around 27% of global desalination capacity, typically consumes 80.6 kWh of heat energy plus 2.5-3.5 kWh of electricity per m3 of water. Large scale RO requires only around 3.5-5 kWh/m3 of electricity.\nAccording to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), desalination with renewable energy can already compete cost-wise with conventional systems in remote regions where the cost of energy transmission is high. Elsewhere, it is still generally more expensive than desalination plants using fossil fuels, but IRENA states that it is 'expected to become economically attractive as the costs of renewable technologies continue to decline and the prices of fossil fuels continue to increase.'\nSolar Reducing Costs\nSWCC has taken a long view and aims to gradually convert all its desalination plants to run on solar power as part of a drive unveiled by the Saudi government earlier this year to install 41 GW of solar power by 2032.\nThe Al-Khafji solar desalination project, near the border with Kuwait, will become the first large-scale solar-powered seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) plant in the world, producing 30,000 m3 of water per day for the town's 100,000 inhabitants.\nDue for completion at the end of 2012, it has been constructed by King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), the Saudi national science agency, using technology developed in conjunction with IBM. Innovations include a new polymer membrane to make RO more energy efficient and protect the membrane from chlorine - which is used to pretreat seawater - and clogging with oil and marine organisms.\nThe use of solar power will bring huge cuts to the facility's contribution to global warming and smog compared to use of RO or MSF with fossil fuels, according to the developers.\nAl-Khafji is the first step in KACST's solar energy programme to reduce desalination costs. For phase two, construction of a new plant to produce 300,000 m3 of water per day is planned by 2015, and phase three will involve several more plants by 2018.\nHistorically, desalination plants have been concentrated in the Persian Gulf region, where there is no alternative for maintaining the public water supply. The region has excellent solar power prospects, suggesting that coupling of the two technologies may become commonplace. A pilot project to construct 30 small-scale solar desalination plants by the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi has already seen 22 plants in operation, each producing 25 m3 of potable water per day.\nBut population increases and looming water scarcity have also prompted widespread investment in desalination. It is now practised in some 150 countries including the US, Europe, Australia, China and Japan and it is becoming an increasingly attractive option both financially and for supply security.\nOver the past five years the capacity of operational desalination plants has increased by 57% to 78.4 million m3 per day, according to the International Development Agency. Sharply falling technology costs have been a key driver of the trend and an EU-funded project is examining the case for expanding solar-powered desalination.\nSolar power may even offer a solution to an impending crisis in Yemen, where water availability per capita is less than 130 m3/year. Yemen's capital Sana'a, with a population of two million, faces running out of groundwater before 2025. It is estimated that a solar plant powered by a 1250 MW parabolic trough to desalinate water from the Red Sea and pump it 250 km to Sana'a could be constructed for around $6 billion.\nAround 700 million people in 43 countries are classified by the UN as suffering from water scarcity today - but by 2025 the figure is forecast to rise to 1.8 billion. With the global population expected to reach nine billion by 2050 and the US secretary of state openly discussing the threat of water shortages leading to wars, desalinated water has never been more important.\nDemand for desalinated water is projected to grow by 9% per year until 2016 due to increased consumption in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and in energy-importing countries such as the US, India and China.Population growth and depletion of surface and groundwater means desalination capacity in the MENA region is expected to grow from 21 million m3/day in 2007 to 110 million m3/day in 2030, according to the International Energy Agency.\nUS President John F Kennedy, speaking in 1962, said: 'If we could produce fresh water from salt water at a low cost, that would indeed be a great service to humanity, and would dwarf any other scientific accomplishment.' In the half century since, the need for innovation to satisfy humanity's demand for clean water has become ever more urgent. While technological advances continue to improve the efficiency of desalination methods, it is vital that the sources of power used by desalination plants also continue to evolve.\nTo add your comments you must sign-in or create a free account.\nWith over 57,000 subscribers and a global readership in 174 countries around the world, Renewable Energy World Magazine covers industry, policy, technology, finance and markets for all renewable technologies. Content is aimed decision makers..."}
{"text": "Please visit this url for more educational videos:\nWorld War I (abbreviated as WW-I, WWI, or WW1), also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict that embroiled most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance. Over 70 million military personnel were mobilized in one of the largest wars in history. The main combatants descended into a state of total war, pumping their entire scientific and industrial capabilities into the war effort. Over 15 million people were killed, making it one of the deadliest conflicts in history.\nThe immediate or proximate cause of war was the assassination on 28 June 1914 of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, by Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian nationalist. Austria-Hungary's resulting demands against the Kingdom of Serbia activated a sequence of alliances. Within weeks the major European powers were at war; their global empires meant that the conflict soon spread worldwide.\nBy the war's end, four major imperial powers—Germany, Russia, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire—had been militarily and politically defeated, with the latter two ceasing to exist as autonomous entities. The revolutionized Soviet Union emerged from the Russian Empire, while the map of central Europe was completely redrawn into numerous smaller states. The League of Nations was formed in the hope of preventing another such conflict. The European nationalism spawned by the war, the repercussions of Germany's defeat, and the Treaty of Versailles would eventually lead to the beginning of World War II in 1939."}
{"text": "THREE-PHASE ROTATING FIELDS\nThe three-phase induction motor also operates on the principle of a rotating magnetic field. The following discussion shows how the stator windings can be connected to a three-phase ac input and have a resultant magnetic field that rotates.\nFigure 4-4, views A-C show the individual windings for each phase. Figure 4-4, view D, shows how the three phases are tied together in a Y-connected stator. The dot in each diagram indicates the common point of the Y-connection. You can see that the individual phase windings are equally spaced around the stator. This places the windings 120° apart.\nFigure 4-4. - Three-phase, Y-connected stator.\nThe three-phase input voltage to the stator of figure 4-4 is shown in the graph of figure 4-5.\nUse the left-hand rule for determining the electromagnetic polarity of the poles at any given instant. In applying the rule to the coils in figure 4-4, consider that current flows toward the terminal numbers for positive voltages, and away from the terminal numbers for negative voltages.\nFigure 4-5. - Three-phase rotating-field polarities and input voltages.\nThe results of this analysis are shown for voltage points 1 through 7 in figure 4-5. At point 1, the magnetic field in coils 1-1A is maximum with polarities as shown. At the same time, negative voltages are being felt in the 2-2A and 3-3A windings. These create weaker magnetic fields, which tend to aid the 1-1A field. At point 2, maximum negative voltage is being felt in the 3-3A windings. This creates a strong magnetic field which, in turn, is aided by the weaker fields in 1-1A and 2-2A. As each point on the voltage graph is analyzed, it can be seen that the resultant magnetic field is rotating in a clockwise direction. When the three-phase voltage completes one full cycle (point 7), the magnetic field has rotated through 360°.\nROTOR BEHAVIOR IN A ROTATING FIELD\nFor purposes of explaining rotor movement, let's assume that we can place a bar magnet in the center of the stator diagrams of figure 4-5. We'll mount this magnet so that it is free to rotate in this area. Let's also assume that the bar magnet is aligned so that at point 1 its south pole is opposite the large N of the stator field.\nYou can see that this alignment is natural. Unlike poles attract, and the two fields are aligned so that they are attracting. Now, go from point 1 through point 7. As before, the stator field rotates clockwise. The bar magnet, free to move, will follow the stator field, because the attraction between the two fields continues to exist. A shaft running through the pivot point of the bar magnet would rotate at the same speed as the rotating field.\nThis speed is known as synchronous speed. The shaft represents the shaft of an operating motor to which the load is attached.\nRemember, this explanation is an oversimplification. It is meant to show how a rotating field can cause mechanical rotation of a shaft. Such an arrangement would work, but it is not used. There are limitations to a permanent magnet rotor. Practical motors use other methods, as we shall see in the next paragraphs.\nThe construction of the synchronous motors is essentially the same as the construction of the salient-pole alternator. In fact, such an alternator may be run as an ac motor. It is similar to the drawing in figure 4-6. Synchronous motors have the characteristic of constant speed between no load and full load. They are capable of correcting the low power factor of an inductive load when they are operated under certain conditions.\nThey are often used to drive dc generators. Synchronous motors are designed in sizes up to thousands of horsepower. They may be designed as either single-phase or multiphase machines. The discussion that follows is based on a three-phase design.\nFigure 4-6. - Revolving-field synchronous motor.\nTo understand how the synchronous motor works, assume that the application of three-phase ac power to the stator causes a rotating magnetic field to be set up around the rotor. The rotor is energized with dc (it acts like a bar magnet). The strong rotating magnetic field attracts the strong rotor field activated by the dc. This results in a strong turning force on the rotor shaft. The rotor is therefore able to turn a load as it rotates in step with the rotating magnetic field.\nIt works this way once it's started. However, one of the disadvantages of a synchronous motor is that it cannot be started from a standstill by applying three-phase ac power to the stator. When ac is applied to the stator, a high-speed rotating magnetic field appears immediately. This rotating field rushes past the rotor poles so quickly that the rotor does not have a chance to get started. In effect, the rotor is repelled first in one direction and then the other. A synchronous motor in its purest form has no starting torque. It has torque only when it is running at synchronous speed.\nA squirrel-cage type of winding is added to the rotor of a synchronous motor to cause it to start. The squirrel cage is shown as the outer part of the rotor in figure 4-7. It is so named because it is shaped and looks something like a turnable squirrel cage. Simply, the windings are heavy copper bars shorted together by copper rings. A low voltage is induced in these shorted windings by the rotating three-phase stator field. Because of the short circuit, a relatively large current flows in the squirrel cage.\nThis causes a magnetic field that interacts with the rotating field of the stator. Because of the interaction, the rotor begins to turn, following the stator field; the motor starts. We will run into squirrel cages again in other applications, where they will be covered in more detail.\nFigure 4-7. - Self-starting synchronous ac motor.\nTo start a practical synchronous motor, the stator is energized, but the dc supply to the rotor field is not energized. The squirrel-cage windings bring the rotor to near synchronous speed. At that point, the dc field is energized. This locks the rotor in step with the rotating stator field. Full torque is developed, and the load is driven. A mechanical switching device that operates on centrifugal force is often used to apply dc to the rotor as synchronous speed is reached.\nThe practical synchronous motor has the disadvantage of requiring a dc exciter voltage for the rotor. This voltage may be obtained either externally or internally, depending on the design of the motor."}
{"text": "As a holistic veterinarian, I feel it is incredibly important to take the whole\nanimal into consideration when it comes to nutrition. And, whenever practical, my\npreference is to provide nutrients, minerals and vitamins in their natural forms.\nIn this post, I’d like to talk to you specifically about vitamin E, to review both the strengths and weaknesses\nof natural and synthetic forms.\nVitamin E is an incredibly complex and important nutrient that, among other things,\nfunctions as an antioxidant. Antioxidants are naturally occurring nutrients that\npromote health by slowing the destructive aging process of cells (a breakdown called\n“peroxidation”). In peroxidation, damaged molecules known as free radicals steal\npieces from other cells, like fat, protein or DNA. The damage can spread, damaging\nand killing entire groups of cells. While peroxidation can be useful to destroy\nold cells or germs and parasites, when left unchecked, free radicals produced by\nperoxidation also damages healthy cells. Antioxidants can help to stem the tide\nof peroxidation, thus stabilizing free radicals.\nAntioxidants like vitamin E are crucial to the health of companion animals of any age.\nThey can improve the quality of the immune response and the effectiveness\nof vaccines in young pets, and help maintain a vital immune system in seniors. More..."}
{"text": "Today, existing insulin pumps are about the size of a pager. The new ST- enabled Debiotech miniaturized MEMS device is about one quarter the size of these existing pumps and can be worn as a nearly invisible patch on the skin. The small size frees the patient from concerns with holding the pump in place and concealing it under clothing.\nThe insulin Nanopump, developed by Debiotech and industrialized by ST, represents the first use of microfluidic MEMS technology in diabetes treatment. Functional samples have already been produced and the two partners expect that a fully industrialized product, in the form of a disposable cartridge, will be available in selected markets in 2008. Debiotech will remain responsible for the commercialization of the product through its licenses with major players in the medical device market.The press release states that the Nanopump can control it's output down to the nanoliter level and has capabilities of detecting occlusions, bubbles and other malfunctions. A browse through their website shows that this is not the only innovation they're working on that affects diabetics. They're also developing a micro-needle array built using MEMS technology to allow for improved hypodermic drug delivery."}
{"text": "Examples of analysis sections\nAn example from a law field report about a courtroom observation\nClick here to see the description section of this law field report.\n| The legal processes I observed in the district court hearing reflect to a certain extent Australian social values. Their purpose is to attempt to maintain an efficient court system and create justice before the law. Processes such as rules of evidence which ensure only the most applicable evidence is heard have been developed over many years, thus demonstrating an influence of past and future cases. Similarly, the doctrine of precedent ensures that similar cases have similar results. Procedural grounds for objections protect witnesses from harassment and potential confusion. Therefore, all of these legal processes create an environment in which changing social values will bring about complementary changes in court decisions.\n||The meaning and theoretical significance of the observations described are explored\nFootnote 1: adapted from Woodward-Kron, R., Thomson, E. & Meek, J. (2000) A text based guide to academic writing. CD-Rom. Dept. Of Modern Languages, University of Wollongong.\nAn example from an education field report about a classroom practicum experience\n| As I help the students I am conscious of the scaffolding Vygotsky described taking place. I observed other people such as teachers and parents scaffolding with their children. It was, therefore, interesting to realise that I was doing the same as I walked around the classroom helping the children with their tasks. Scaffolding helps the children to reach their zone of proximal development which in turn helps them to achieve more complex tasks.\nI have found my practical experience in the classroom has been full of examples supporting the theories of Piaget and Vygotsky and to a lesser extent Erikson. It is also good to see that these theories actually have real world application to child development.\n|Exploring the significance of practical experience and observations from a theoretical perspective\nReflection about what the field experience has meant for theoretical understanding\nThis is the analysis section from a history field report about historical monuments.\nClick here to see the description section of this history field report.\nThe Bulli Coal Mining Company had 331 employees: this represented approximately 20% of the population of Bulli. Given the small size of the Bulli community, the population was calculated at 1352 persons in the 1891 census (Mitchell & Sherington, 1984: 42), and its dependence on the Bulli Coal Mining Company, the impact of a disaster of this magnitude was enormous. Henry Parkes and his government realising the hardship being experienced by the community, particularly the bereaved families, gave “official support to a public fund and established a board to distribute the money after investigating the needs of those bereaved” (Mitchell & Sherington, 1984: 58).\nThe impact of the disaster is reflected in the structure of the monument. The monument was intended to last the test of time. Its shape, an obelisk, is unlike anything else in the area. This fact combined with the historical use of the obelisk, principally in ancient Egypt, suggests the memorial was considered important to the community. No reference is made on the monument, however, in regard to the date of the dedication or to who unveiled it which is significant given the government support of a disaster relief fund for the Bulli community in the wake of the disaster.\nAnalysis of the event the monument commemorates\nConclusion drawn about the structure and shape of the monument given\nFootnote 2: adapted from Flello, J. unpublished manuscript.\nAn example from an education field report about a classroom practicum experience. (This example contains a mixture of description and analysis within a single paragraph. This is an alternative approach to having these two types of different writing in separate sections.)\n| Both childcare centres encouraged the children to think critically and reflectively about themselves and the wider community; for example, I observed an incident at centre 2 (14/5), where the teacher helped the children with an equity of access issue in the playground. Several children wanted to play on the slide and gym equipment but one child continually walked up the slide disrupting the pattern of play. The group of children began to speak loudly and harshly to him and threatened to kick him. The teacher was able to facilitate a resolution to this problem by getting the children to examine what was happening and think of alternative actions. There were all, in effect, being empowered to deal with the injustice they were facing in the playground rather than resorting to physical violence or giving up and playing elsewhere, as some children were about to do.\n||Topic sentence: a general theoretical conclusion is drawn\nConclusion illustrated by an example observed in the field\nDescription of the observed event\nTheoretical perspective used to analyse the event\nFootnote 3: adapted from McNabb, Learning Skills Centre, University of Melbourne.\nComments and questions should\nbe directed to Unilearning@uow.edu.au"}
{"text": "Before we may design a crystal filter it is necessary to know the crystal's data.\nUnfortunately this information is not in the datasheet - or we have no datasheet\nbecause the crystals were bought on a market some decades ago ...\nFig.1: A crystal, it's symbol and equivalent circuit\nFortunately these values may be measured using a small adapter - which may be built on the fly.\nWe measured our crystals using the circuit below :\nFig.2: Measurement Adapter\nFig.3: Measurement Adapter Schematics\nThe Capacitors used are Mica (Glimmer) obtained from www.reichelt.de\nWith a jumper either the short or one of the series capacitors ( 15 pF or 33 pF ) may be selected.\nThe tree positions of the jumper result in 3 different Transmission curves when using\na Network Analyser or Spectrum Analyser with built in generator.\n( of course you may use a generator and a hf-voltmeter or anything equivalent ... )\nThe Amplitude response looks somehow like this :\nFig.4: Measured Amplitude Response S21\nYou will notice, that the maximum (fs) will move while the minimum (fp) remains constant.\nWith the short selected we measure the lowest frequency where Transmission\nis maximum. The maximum ( with 33 pF selected ) is next and then the\nmaximum ( with 15 pF selected )."}
{"text": "\"We consider it essentially the child's personal time and don't feel it should be taken away for academic or punitive reasons,\" said Dr. Robert Murray, who co-authored the new policy statement for the American Academy of Pediatrics.\nRecess helps students develop communication skills, such as cooperation and sharing, and helps counteract the time they spend sitting in class, according to the statement.\n\"The cognitive literature indicates that children are exactly as we are as adults. Whenever they're performing a complicated or complex task, they need time to process the information,\" said Murray, a professor at Ohio State University in Columbus.\n\"Kids have to have that time scheduled. They're not given the opportunity to just get up and walk around for a few minutes,\" he added.\nPrevious research, according to the statement's authors, found children pay closer attention and perform better mentally after recess.\nLast January, a review of 14 studies found kids who get more exercise from - among other things - recess and playing on sports teams tend to do better in school (see Reuters Health story of January 3, 2012 here: http://reut.rs/UcJhV0.)\nBut a 2011 survey of 1,800 elementary schools found about a third were not offering recess to their third grade classes (see Reuters Health story of December 5, 2011 here: http://reut.rs/UcOqwt.)\nMurray told Reuters Health that schools in Japan offer children about 10 minutes of free time after every 50 minutes of class, which he said makes sense.\n\"I think you can feel it if you go to a lecture that after 40 to 50 minutes of a concentrated activity you need to take a break,\" he said.\nCurrently, the American Heart Association calls for at least 20 minutes of recess every day, but Murray said recess needs depend on the child.\n\"Most schools - on average - are working on the framework of 15 to 30 minute bursts of recess once or twice a day,\" he said.\nThere is, however, consensus on when in the day children's recess should take place.\nThe U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Agriculture both recommend schools schedule recess before lunch.\nPrevious studies have found that children waste less food and behave better for the rest of the day when their recess is before their scheduled lunch, the pediatricians' statement notes.\nThe statement also says schools should not substitute physical education classes for recess.\n\"Those are completely different things and they offer completely different outcomes,\" said Murray. \"(Physical education teachers are) trying to teach motor skills and the ability of those children to use those skills in a bunch of different scenarios. Recess is a child's free time.\"\nThe pediatricians also warn against a recess that is too structured, such as having games led by adults.\n\"I think it becomes structured to the point where you lose some of those developmental and social emotion benefits of free play,\" said Murray.\n\"This is a very important and overlooked time of day for the child and we should not lose sight of the fact that it has very important benefits,\" he added.\nSOURCE: http://bit.ly/HjQ8dI Pediatrics, online December 31, 2012."}
{"text": "Choose Privacy Week\nPrivacy is a particularly slippery and amorphous issue, about which people hold a wide variety of opinions and beliefs, particularly in the post-9-11 world in which we live.\nLibraries and library workers think about privacy issues a lot - and want our customers to think critically about privacy issues, too. Personal privacy issues touch everyone at virtually every stage of life, and even into death (e.g., access to the Social Security Death Index online), raising a universe of hard questions to be answered.\nSponsored by the ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF), Choose Privacy Week is an annual initiative inviting library users of all ages and backgrounds into a national conversation about privacy rights in a digital age. The theme for this year's Choose Privacy Week is \"Freedom from Surveillance.\"\nLibraries have been interested in maintaining the privacy of individuals. Beaufort County Library Board of Trustees adopted the American Library Association Core of Ethics years ago. It's part of our core values as library workers. Why? Because freedom of speech is meaningless without the freedom to read.\nClick here [http://www.privacyrevolution.org/images/uploads/Trina_UserHandout.pdf] for handout explaining why librarians and libraries insist upon empowering our customers to explore, research, and make choices based upon their individual needs.\nQ: Where are the lines drawn between \"right of privacy\" and \"right to know\" today ?\nThe major source used in the preparation of this entry was http://www.privacyrevolution.org/. Please explore the website - and think hard about where you stand on the issue of individual privacy rights."}
{"text": "3.1 Systematic Errors\nSystematic errors are uncertainties in the bias of the data. A simple example is the zeroing of an instrument such as a voltmeter. If the voltmeter is not correctly zeroed before use, then all values measured by the voltmeter will be biased, i.e., offset by some constant amount or factor. However, even if the utmost care is taken in setting the instrument to zero, one can only say that it has been zeroed to within some value. This value may be small, but it sets a limit on the degree of certainty in the measurements and thus to the conclusions that can be drawn.\nAn important point to be clear about is that a systematic error implies that all measurements in a set of data taken with the same instrument are shifted in the same direction by the same amount - in unison. This is in sharp contrast to random errors where each individual measurement fluctuates independently of the others. Systematic errors, therefore, are usually most important when groups of data points taken under the same conditions are being considered. Unfortunately, there is no consistent method by which systematic errors may be treated or analyzed. Each experiment must generally be considered individually and it is often very difficult just to identify the possible sources let alone estimate the magnitude of the error. Our discussion in the remainder of this chapter, therefore, will not be concerned with this topic."}
{"text": "This week’s illustration post focuses on perhaps the most popular illustrated genre of the Renaissance: the emblem book. Emblem books were a genre developed in the early 16th century as digestible and curious works which combined an image, a motto and an explanatory text. This genre remained popular on the continent well into the 17th century, although, strangely, it never found any real footing in the U.K. The illustrations were most commonly woodcuts and the mottoes Latin, however Greek and vernacular mottoes were common as well.\nThe intention of most emblem books was to deliver a moral lesson through text and image, but often the connection between these two elements is obscure. There are many projects that have developed over the last decade to provide a digital repository for these books worth exploring (Emblematica Online [Univeristy of Illinois and Herzog August Bibliothek], University of Glasgow and the Emblem Project Utrecht are good examples).\nAlthough St Andrews 17th century holdings remain largely unexplored, I did come across a wonderful example of a Spanish emblem book published at the height of the genre’s popularity. This week’s post features the emblems from Sebastián de Covarrubias y Orozco’s Emblemas morales (1610). This work was published under the direction of Don Francisco Gómez de Sandoval, 1st Duke of Lerma, shortly after Covarrubias had recovered from a serious illness. This is perhaps Covarrubias’s most popular publication on emblems, but he is most well-known for his Tesoro de la lengua castellana o española (1611).\nFrom the beginning of this book it is quite obvious that the author’s roots, both as a canon in the Catholic Church and as a keen lexicographer, are quite influential. However, Covarrubias does stray off into the weirder and esoteric world of the emblem books of the day: dragons, serpents, snake-eating deer and oversized-tops (above, which look like the ship from Flight of the Navigator to this blogger). Covarrubias also draws on everyday scenes of fishermen and farmers toiling in the field to root this emblem book in the real-world.\nI’ve sampled here some of my favourites from this book, however a full scan is available at Emblematica Online. This work was not Covarrubias’s first foray into the world of emblem books, in 1589 he published a work, also entitled Emblemas morales, which provides almost 100 pages worth of text about emblems and their origins and then provides 100 examples afterword (none of which are repeated in his 1610 work). This work was republished in 1604 with the same text but with new woodcuts.\nCovarrubias’s 1610 Emblemas morales, however, is a completely new work, featuring new emblems and mottoes with shorter verse explanations."}
{"text": "S7 Technical Assistance\nEastern prairie fringed orchid (Platanthera leucophaea)\nDetermining whether eastern prairie fringed orchid (Platanthera leucophaea) may be present in a proposed project area in the following northeastern Illinois counties: Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will.\n|Photo by Mike Redmer\nAs part of Step 1 of the S7 process, you checked the Illinois species list and found that eastern prairie fringed orchid is present in the county where your proposed project is located. The next step is to determine whether eastern prairie fringed orchid \"may be present\" in the action area of your proposed project. Below is guidance to help you make that determination.\nHabitat: The eastern prairie fringed orchid (orchid) occurs in a wide variety of habitats, from wet to mesic prairie or wetland communities, including, but not limited to sedge meadow, fen, marsh, or marsh edge. It can occupy a very wide moisture gradient of prairie and wetland vegetation. It requires full sun for optimal growth and flowering, which ideally would restrict it to grass and sedge dominated plant communities. However, in some plant communities where there are encroaching species such as cattail and/or dogwood, the orchid may be interspersed or within the edge zones of these communities and thus can sometimes occur in partially shaded areas. The substrate of the sites where this orchid occurs include glacial soils, lake plain deposits, muck, or peat which could range from more or less neutral to mildly calcareous (Bowles et al. 2005, USFWS 1999). In some cases, the species may also occur along ditches or roadways where this type of habitat is present.\nProcesses that maintain habitats in early or mid-successional phases may be important in providing the sunny, open conditions required by the orchid (USFWS 1999). Sedge meadow and marsh habitats that support this orchid are usually early- or mid- successional because of past grazing, drainage, or soil disturbance. Patch disturbances that expose the soil to this orchid’s seeds, and reduce competition from established plants, may be needed for seedling establishment.\nHawkmoths are the pollinators of this orchid species. In Illinois the hawkmoth, Sphinx eremitus is a confirmed pollinator although there may be others. Eumorpha pandorus and Eumorpha achemon have been confirmed as pollinators in other states. Host plants for the caterpillars of Sphinx eremitus include various species of beebalm (Monarda spp.), mints (Mentha spp.), bugleweed (Lycopus spp.) and sage (Salvia spp.).\nFollow the steps below to determine whether the eastern prairie fringed orchid may be present in the action area of your proposed project. This guidance is specific to Cook, Lake, McHenry, DuPage, Kane, and Will counties in northeastern Illinois.\n1) Define the action area – all areas to be affected directly or indirectly by the Federal action and not just in the immediate area involved in the action. (For example: downstream areas, adjacent off-site wetlands, etc.)\n2) Does the action area support any wet to mesic prairie or wetland\ncommunities including, but not limited to sedge meadow, fen, or marsh edges?\nIf the answer is yes, go to number 3 (below). If the answer is no, conclude that “the eastern prairie fringed orchid is not present,” document your finding for your records or provide this information to the federal action agency. No further consultation is required.\n3) Conduct a floristic quality assessment for the proposed project site during the growing season or use a previous assessment that is not more than three years old and was conducted during the growing season.\n4) If any wetland in the action area is determined to be high quality, (a Floristic Quality Index of 20 or greater and/or a Native Mean C of 3.5 or greater) proceed to number 5 (below) or contact the Chicago Field Office for further consultation.\nWetlands that are not high quality will not support eastern prairie fringed orchid. For those wetlands, conclude that “the eastern prairie fringed orchid is not present,” document your finding for your records or provide this information to the federal action agency. No further consultation is required for those wetlands.\n5) Compare the plant species list generated for each high quality wetland with our Associate Plant Species List for the Eastern Prairie Fringed Orchid. If four or more associates are listed, then proceed to number 6. If not, high quality wetlands that support three or less eastern prairie fringed orchid associate plant species are unlikely to support eastern prairie fringed orchids. Conclude that “the eastern prairie fringed orchid is not present” and document your finding for your records or provide this information to the federal action agency. No further consultation is necessary for those wetlands.\n6) The eastern prairie fringed orchid may be present in your action area. You may either assume that the eastern prairie fringed orchid is present and proceed to Step 2 of the Section 7 Consultation Process or conduct a field search during the bloom date of the orchid; June 28 through July 11. Because northeastern Illinois orchid populations bloom sporadically rather than all plants blooming at the same time, searches should be conducted on a minimum of three non-consecutive days within this time period. Please notify the Chicago Field Office before conducting your survey.\n7) If you assume that the eastern prairie fringed orchid may be present in the action area or a field search proves that the orchid is present, the next step in the S7 Consultation Process is to determine whether the proposed action may affect any eastern prairie fringed orchids. Go to Step 2 of the S7 Consultation Process to begin that determination.\nPlease contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Chicago Illinois Field Office if you for more information or if you have any questions.\nChicago Illinois Field Office\n1250 South Grove, Suite 103\nBarrington, Illinois 60010\nPhone: 847/381-2253, ext. 20\n1Swink, F. and G. Wilhelm. 1994. Plants of the Chicago Region, 4th ed. Indiana Academy of Science, Indianapolis. 921pp.\nStep 1 of the Section 7 Process\nSection 7 Technical Assistance"}
{"text": "A species on the brink – Freshwater Pearl Mussel\nThey can live for over a century, they have one of the most bizarre life-cycles of any species you’re likely to find and they’re one of the reasons why the Romans invaded Britain. What’s more is that their future is in our hands. The freshwater pearl mussel might not have the glamour of some other iconic ‘Scottish’ species like the golden eagle or red squirrel, but they’re incredibly important. Scotland holds around half of the world’s population of this fascinating creature and they are currently balancing on a knife-edge.\nPopulations are found in some of the rivers flowing into Loch Ness.\nFreshwater pearl mussels are very slow-growing and live at the bottom of clean, generally fast-flowing rivers. These animals, which spend the early part of their life harmlessly attached to the gills of trout and salmon before settling onto a suitable substrate are now extinct across most of their former range. Highland rivers are a stronghold for the species.\nAs their name suggests, they very occasionally bear a pearl, and this has in many ways led to their downfall. The taking of mussels by ‘pearl-fishers’ has been the main reason for the massive declines in these populations, but they have also been affected by pollution and river-engineering works.\nThe freshwater pearl mussel was given full legal protection in 1998 but unfortunately illegal activity still continues. Every year we still come across significant ‘kills’ where piles of hundreds of empty shells mark the scene of a few hours illegal fishing, where a whole population of this globally threatened species can be wiped out in a couple of hours.\nThese threats to the species have meant that the freshwater pearl mussel is a UK Wildlife Crime priority. This means that the Police work closely with Scottish Natural Heritage, anglers, bailiffs, river users and a wide-range of other organisations to help tackle these crimes by improving awareness, collection of intelligence and better enforcement to safeguard the species.\nHowever, whilst the police and other organisations do their best to help tackle wildlife crime in this way they can’t do it alone, and the help of the public can be absolutely crucial. Pearl fishing is often carried out in remote locations, or very early in the morning when there is less chance of being detected, and often during the summer when daylight hours are long and the rivers are low. Fishing is often carried out by wading out into rivers and using glass-bottomed buckets to find the mussels and a cleft stick to recover them. If anyone sees or suspects that pearl fishing is taking place we urge people to report it to their local police station and Wildlife Crime Officer as soon as possible.\nAt the same time there are numerous projects aimed at active conservation of the species, including a recent £3.5 million project funded by the European Commission’s LIFE+ fund and secured by Scottish National Heritage and 14 other organisations. The project will improve habitats for the species, encourage simple and effective positive management of rivers where they are present, improve awareness and understanding of the species as well as helping address wildlife crime issues.\nSo it’s not all doom and gloom for this remarkable species, and everybody has a role in ensuring it’s survival – let’s hope that we can bring the freshwater pearl mussel back from the brink.\nIf you would like more information on the species visit SNH’s website at http://www.snh.gov.uk/about-scotlands-nature/species/invertebrates/freshwater-invertebrates/freshwater-pearl-mussel/"}
{"text": "Science in fiction affects our ability to understand science in real life. For instance, you might already be familiar with the idea that detective shows on TV, particularly forensics shows like CSI, might be influencing what juries expect to see in a courtroom.\nThis is called the \"CSI effect\" and it's hotly debated. Some prosecutors think it has a real impact on jury decisions—if they don't get the fancy, scientific evidence they've been conditioned to expect then they won't convict. Meanwhile, though, empirical evidence seems to show a more complicated pattern. Surveys of more than 2000 Michigan jurors found that, while people were heavily expecting to see some high-tech forensic evidence during trials, that expectation probably had more to do with the general proliferation of technology throughout society. More interestingly, that broad expectation didn't seem to definitively influence how jurors voted during a specific trial. In other words: The jury is still out. (*Puts on sunglasses*)\nA FRONTLINE documentary that airs tomorrow centers around an interesting corollary on this issue: Whether or not shows like CSI influence juries to expect more technology, they do present a wildly inaccurate portrait of how accurate that technology is. The reality is, many of the tools and techniques used in detective work have never been scientifically verified. We don't know that they actually tell us what they purport to tell us. Other forensic technologies do work, but only if you use them right—and there's no across-the-board standard guaranteeing that happens.\nEven ideas you think you can trust implicitly—like fingerprint evidence—turn out to have serious flaws that are seriously under-appreciated by cops, lawyers, judges, and juries.\nBrandon Mayfield, an Oregon lawyer, was at the center of international controversy in 2004 after the FBI and an independent analyst incorrectly matched his prints to a partial print found on a bag of detonators from the Madrid terrorist bombings.\nDror asked five fingerprint experts to examine what they were told were the erroneously matched prints of Mayfield. In fact, they were re-examining prints from their own past cases. Only one of the experts stuck by their previous judgments. Three reversed their previous decisions and one deemed them “inconclusive.”\nDror’s argument is that these competent and well-meaning experts were swayed by “cognitive bias”: what they knew (or thought they knew) about the case in front of them swayed their analysis. The Mayfield case and studies like Dror’s have changed how fingerprints are used in the criminal justice system. The FBI no longer testifies that fingerprints are 100 percent infallible.\nThe Real CSI episode of FRONTLINE airs tomorrow, April 17th. Check out the FRONTLINE website for more information.\nImage: Fingerprint developed with black magnetic powder on a cool mint Listerine oral care strip, a Creative Commons Attribution (2.0) image from jackofspades's photostream."}
{"text": "The Chesapeake Bay TMDL, Maryland's Watershed Implementation Plan and Maryland's 2012-2013 Milestone Goals\nThe Chesapeake Bay TMDL: A Pollution Diet for the Chesapeake Watershed\nThe Chesapeake Bay is a national treasure constituting the largest estuary in the United States and one of the largest and most biologically productive estuaries in the world. Despite significant efforts by federal, state, and local governments and other interested parties, pollution in the Chesapeake Bay prevents the attainment of existing water quality standards. The pollutants that are largely responsible for impairment of the Bay are nutrients, in the form of nitrogen and phosphorus, and sediment.\nThe United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in coordination with the Bay watershed jurisdictions of Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, West Virginia, New York, and the District of Columbia (DC), developed and, on December 29, 2010, established a nutrient and sediment pollution diet for the Bay, consistent with Clean Water Act requirements, to guide and assist Chesapeake Bay restoration efforts. This pollution diet is known as the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL), or Bay TMDL.\nMDE took part in an ongoing, high-level decision-making process to create the essential framework for this complex, multi-jurisdictional TMDL that will address nutrient and sediment impairments throughout the entire 64,000 square mile Chesapeake Bay watershed.\nMDE participated in numerous inter-jurisdictional and inter-agency workgroups and committees over the last three years to provide technical expertise and guidance for developing the Bay TMDL in a manner consistent with the State’s water quality goals and responsibilities. In particular, MDE worked to ensure that the Bay TMDL addressed the nutrient and sediment impairments in all of Maryland’s tidal waters listed as impaired by those pollutants on the State’s Integrated Report of Surface Water Quality.\nMDE took the lead on developing an allocation process that will enable the State to meet a key requirement for the Bay TMDL and Maryland’s Watershed Implementation Plan: the sub-allocation of major basin loading caps of nutrient and sediment to each of 58 “segment-sheds” in Maryland – the land areas that drain to each impaired Bay water quality segment – and to each pollutant source sector in those areas.\nMaryland’s Watershed Implementation Plan for the Bay TMDL\nConcurrent with the development of the Bay TMDL, EPA charged the Bay watershed states and DC with developing watershed implementation plans in order to provide adequate “reasonable assurance” that the jurisdictions can and will achieve the nutrient and sediment reductions necessary to implement the TMDL within their respective boundaries.\nMaryland’s Phase I Plan provides a series of proposed strategies that will collectively meet the 2017 target (70% of the total nutrient and sediment reductions needed to meet final 2020 goals). After more than a year of cooperative work, MDE and the Departments of Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Planning released a Draft Phase I Plan for public review in October 2010 and, following extensive consideration of hundreds of public comments, submitted Maryland’s Final Phase I Watershed Implementation Plan to EPA on December 3, 2010.\nMaryland’s Phase II Plan provides a series of proposed strategies that will collectively meet the 2017 target (60% of the total nutrient and sediment reductions needed to meet final 2025 goals). This was changed from Phase I due to concerns that the implementation was not achievable with that timeframe. Maryland worked many partners in local jurisdictions to develop Phase II Watershed Implementation Plans with more detailed reduction targets and specific strategies to further ensure that the water quality goals of the Bay TMDL will be met. See Maryland's Development Support for the Chesapeake Bay Phase II WIP webpage.\nMDE is continuing to work with its partners in local jurisdictions to implement the Phase II WIP. See the Implementing Maryland’s WIP: Making Progress toward Bay Restoration Goals webpage.\nPlease direct questions or comments concerning this project to Tom Thornton with Maryland's TMDL Program at (410) 537-3656 or email at Thomas.Thornton@maryland.gov.\n|Acrobat® Reader is required to view and print the PDF files. If you do not have it click on the icon to the right."}
{"text": "Coffee is an important crop and is crucial to the economy of many developing countries, generating around US$70 billion per year. There are 115 species in the Coffea genus, but only two, C. arabica and C. canephora, are commercially cultivated. Coffee plants are attacked by many pathogens and insect-pests, which affect not only the production of coffee but also its grain quality, reducing the commercial value of the product. The main insect-pest, the coffee berry borer (Hypotheneumus hampei), is responsible for worldwide annual losses of around US$500 million. The coffee berry borer exclusively damages the coffee berries, and it is mainly controlled by organochlorine insecticides that are both toxic and carcinogenic. Unfortunately, natural resistance in the genus Coffea to H. hampei has not been documented. To overcome these problems, biotechnological strategies can be used to introduce an α-amylase inhibitor gene (α-AI1), which confers resistance against the coffee berry borer insect-pest, into C. arabica plants.\nWe transformed C. arabica with the α-amylase inhibitor-1 gene (α-AI1) from the common bean, Phaseolus vulgaris, under control of the seed-specific phytohemagglutinin promoter (PHA-L). The presence of the α-AI1 gene in six regenerated transgenic T1 coffee plants was identified by PCR and Southern blotting. Immunoblotting and ELISA experiments using antibodies against α-AI1 inhibitor showed a maximum α-AI1 concentration of 0.29% in crude seed extracts. Inhibitory in vitro assays of the α-AI1 protein against H. hampei α-amylases in transgenic seed extracts showed up to 88% inhibition of enzyme activity.\nThis is the first report showing the production of transgenic coffee plants with the biotechnological potential to control the coffee berry borer, the most important insect-pest of crop coffee."}
{"text": "Close to standard\n|Points of interest||\nAncient Rakatan ruins\nTandun III was originally surveyed approximately 12,293 BBY by Doctor Beramsh, who led an expedition from Ord Mantell. What Beramsh and his team discovered was a lush beautiful world with close to standard gravity and was suitable for both oxygen breathing humans and humanoids. Further exploration of the planet also revealed ruins of ancient population centers which Beramsh believed were constructed by the Rakata.\nDespite the survey report of ideal atmospheric conditions, its distance from the Hydian Way prevented Tandun III from ever being colonized. Historical records would indicate that a possible second survey was conducted generations later during Chancellor Finis Valorum's second term.\nAt some point between 29 BBY and 19 BBY, the Republic Group took an Insignia of Unity that once stood on the podium of the Galactic Senate Rotunda. The group believed the insignia could be used as a symbol to restore Republic honor to the galaxy and brought it to Tandun III for safe-keeping. Enlisting the help of the Antarian Rangers, the Republic Group built a secret storehouse in one of the planet's ancient ruins and made the Stellar Envoy the key to accessing the facility. In 19 BBY the Republic Group and the Antarian Rangers were considered enemies of the Empire and thus the secret facility and the Insignia of Unity were left abandoned and forgotten for over six decades.\nDuring the Yuuzhan Vong's invasion of the galaxy, the Yuuzhan Vong settled the world and began Vongforming it to meet their needs. The land was transformed into cliffs of yorik coral, tampasis of s'teeni, with populations of scherkil hla, sparkbees, and other Yuuzhan Vong biots.\nOver the course of twenty years the Vongforming had taken its toll on the planet. Intact forests abundant with life still covered the southern hemisphere, while surface temperatures had rendered landmasses in the northern hemisphere unsuitable for all but the most extremophilic sentient species. Extensive regions of extreme volcanic and tectonic activity griped the planet in catastrophic forces that were likely to destroy it. The sky was filled with powerful winds and icy clouds that produced storms with sheets of rain, lightening, and hailstones. And while still breathable, dweebit beetles filled the atmosphere with high concentrations of carbon dioxide, methane, and sulfur.\nIn 43 ABY the Solos, accompanied by Tobb Jadak and Flitcher Poste, came to Tandun III as part of their quest to uncover the history of the Millennium Falcon. They landed the Falcon inside of the abandoned Republic Group warehouse and discovered the Insignia of Unity. It was at that time that Lestra Oxic appeared and revealed that he had followed the Solos to Tandun III in order to claim the emblem for himself. He told all present the history behind how the emblem ended up at Tandun III and inspected it only to realize that the emblem before him was a fake.\nAt the same time of the meeting, groundquakes increased in severity and volatility finally ending in the planet's strongest quake. Oxic and his associates, now accompanied by Jadak and Poste, left to continue the search for the true Insignia of Unity, as the Solos themselves fled the planet.\nIt was shortly after the Millennium Falcon's return to space that Tandun III flared and erupted in a shock wave that hurtled enormous chunks of itself into the vacuum of space.\nBehind the scenesEdit\nC-3PO stated the first survey of the world took place around 12,293 BBY and that the expedition was launched from Ord Mantell. This is odd due to the fact that Ord Mantell was not colonized until 12,000 BBY.\nAdditionally, C-3PO said Dr. Beramsh believed the ancient population centers were Rakatan in origin. Yet, the Rakata were unknown to the galaxy at large until the end of the Jedi Civil War in 3,956 BBY.\nHe continued to claim that the world was not colonized most likely due to its distance from the Hydian Way which was pioneered in 3,705 BBY. Thus the reason why the world was never colonized in the thousands of years between its exploration and the founding of the Hydian Way remains a mystery."}
{"text": "Information contained on this page is provided by NewsUSA, an independent third-party content provider. WorldNow and this Station make no warranties or representations in connection therewith.\n/National Children's Cancer Society) - The good news is that some drug shortages\nhave been resolved, and many essential childhood cancer drugs are now more available. The root of the problem, however, persists.\nFor the past two years, hospitals have been hit with significant shortages of many generic drugs for several diseases, including cancer. In 2011 alone, there were at least 250 different shortages.\nPharmaceutical companies and drug manufacturers make less money off many of the older, generic drugs used for cancer treatment. But generally, most shortages are a result of manufacturing snags and production problems.\nImprovements are being made; cooperation between drug manufacturers and the FDA has helped prevent many new shortages. But at large, oncology drugs for both children and adults are severely lacking.\nSandra Kweder, deputy director of the FDA's Office of New Drugs, wholeheartedly agrees, \"With regard to oncology drugs we remain extremely concerned about the shortages,\" she said at a press conference held by the American Society of Clinical Oncology.\nAlthough there are ongoing shortages of anesthesia, pain medicines and antibiotics, the scarcity of cancer drugs means that any shortage has a huge impact. Last year broke records -- more than 200 cancer drugs were unavailable.\nWhen an Ohio plant was shut down due to manufacturing problems last November, production halted on several critical drugs, including a preservative-free version of methotrexate -- the key treatment for the common pediatric cancer acute lymphoblastic leukemia.\n\"The childhood cancer community was very concerned,\" says Angie Hayes, Case Manager for The National Children's Cancer Society (NCCS). \"Childhood cancer patients and families shouldn't have to delay treatment because hospitals and cancer treatment centers ran out of medication.\"\nThe Fight Against Childhood Cancer Continues\nThe NCCS has provided assistance to more than 30,000 children in the U.S. For 25 years, NCCS has grown and evolved with programs such as the Pediatric Oncology Program (POP), which has distributed over $54 million to families, and Beyond the Cure. This year alone, Beyond the Cure -- a survivorship program designed to educate children and their families about the challenges they may face as childhood cancer survivors -- has awarded $125,000 in college scholarships to 38 cancer survivors.\nTo learn more about the resources offered by NCCS, visit www.theNCCS.org"}
{"text": "CURRENT CZECH NAME: Ostroh\nOstroh Uhersky, Uhersky Ostroh, Ungarisch-Ostra, Ungarisch-Ostroh\nLOCATION: Ostroh is a small\ntown in Moravia, located at 48.59 longitude and 17.23 latitude, 75 km E\nof Brno, 9 km ENE of Bzenec (seeMap\n- by Mapquest, then click\non your browser's \"Back\" button to return to this page).\nHISTORY: The earliest known\nJewish community in this town dates from 1592. In 1635 there were\n22 Jewish houses. In 1671 there were 16 Jewish houses with more than\n30 Jewish families, including Isak Schulklopper, Salamon Lateiner, Israel\nIsak, Mandl, Salamon Chaska, Benesch, Friedrich Kojeteiner, Schmidl, Jekl\nFleischhacker, Salamon Mojses, Rabiner, Mojses Stanjetz, Jakob Gutman,\nIsrael Strimpfstricker, and Loebl Isak. From 1798-1848 there were\n89 Jewish families. In 1848 the community numbered 478 members, but\ndropped to 220 after the First World War. The Jewish population was\n70 in 1930. The present town population is 5,000 - 25,000 with fewer\nthan 10 Jews.\nNoteworthy historical events involving or affecting the Jewish community\nwere the separation of a Jewish quarter in 1727 and the existence of a\nself-standing political community from 1890-1920. The old Jewish\ncemetery was established in 17th century, with the last known Jewish burial\nin 1862. The Jewish congregation was Conservative.\nBirth, Death and Marriage record books for Ostroh may be located at the\nCzech State Archives in Prague, Statni istredni archiv, tr. Milady Horokove\n133, CZ-166 21 Praha 6, Czech Republic, tel/fax: +42 (2) 333-20274.\nSearch JewishGen/Internet resources for Ostroh.\nNOTABLE RESIDENTS AND DESCENDANTS:\nAccording to the entry in the International Association of Jewish Genealogical\nSocieties Cemetery Project database, Chaim Weizmann, president of the State\nof Israel, once lived in Ostroh.\nThe following rabbis worked in Ostroh: Salomo Mose (1592); David b. Samuel\nHalevy (1659); Mose b. Hakadosch Elchanan from Fuerth (1655); Jesaja b.\nSabatai Scheftel (1659); Joel b. Samuel from Krakau (1668); Mhrr Pinchas\n(after 1700); Mhrr Salomo (before 1719); Kolonimos b. mhrr Baruch (from\n1720); Loeb Steiniz (d. 1760); Mhrr Pinchas b. mhrr Aaron (1766); Jakob\nHirsch b. Mose Loeb (Biach) Feilbogen (1790-1853); Mose Loeb b. mhrr JA\nha-Kohen Mueller (d. 1853); Dr. Joel Mueller; Dr. S. Wolfsohn; (1876-1878);\nDr. Israel Taglicht (1883-1893); Dr. Emanuel Lenke; Dr. D. Herzog (1897-1900);\nDr. Simon Friedmann; Dr. Michael Halberstamm (from 1919).\nOther notables include: Mordechai b. Schalom (community elder and author\nof the statutes of the chevra kadisha in 1650); Schalom b. Jecheskel (landowner\n1668); Mandl Salamon Steinitzer (land deputy 1732); Michl b. R. Sch. David\n(judge); Mose Singer (judge 1835); Mandl Duschak (judge 1858); Loeb Winter\n(judge 1860); Jesajas Braun (judge 1864); Sal. Kihn (judge 1876); Salamon\nWinter (judge 1880-1888); Jonatan Lamberg (judge); Max Kihn (judge 1898);\nDr. Eduard Stern (judge 1902); Jehuda Diamand (judge 1903); Sigmund Klein\n(judge 1909); Loeb Nussbaum; Samuel Kornblueh; Sal. Sommer; Jakob Hahn;\nJakob Strauss; Jechiel Gruenbaum.\nRabbi Dr. Moritz Grünwald was born 29 March 1853 in Ostroh.\nHe studied at the Universities of Vienna and Leipzig. He founded\nthe Jüdische Centralblatt in Belovar. In 1883 he became rabbi\nof Pisek and later Jungbunzlau. He was the chief rabbi of Sofia from\n1893 until his death in London on 10 June 1895.\nThe great-great- grandson of Amalie Reif (b. Ostroh), E.\nRandol Schoenberg, is a frequent contributor to Jewishgen's Austria-Czech\nSIG and the submitter of this page.\nTom Beer has submitted an interesting story about his great-grandfather,\nBeer (b. Ostroh).\nCEMETERIES: There are two Jewish\ncemeteries in Ostroh. The older cemetery location is urban, on flat\nland, separate but near other cemeteries, and not identified by any sign\nor marker. It is reached by turning directly off a public road.\nIt is open to all. The cemetery is surrounded by no wall or fence\nand there is no gate. The approximate size of cemetery before WWII\nand now is 0.1277 hectares. The cemetery contains no special memorial\nmonuments. The cemetery contains no known mass graves. Within the limits\nof the cemetery there are no structures. The municipality is the\npresent owner of the cemetery property, which is now utilized for recreation\n(park, playground, sports field). Adjacent properties are commercial\nor industrial. The cemetery boundaries have not changed since 1939.\nPrivate visitors come rarely to the cemetery. The cemetery\nwas vandalized during World War II and between 1945 and 1981. No\nmaintenance has been done. Now there is occasional clearing or cleaning\nby authorities. There is a slight threat posed by pollution and proposed\nThe new cemetery is located at 1.5 km to the E, Veselska-Str. This\nJewish cemetery was established in 1862. The last known Jewish burials\nwere in the 1950s and 1960s. The cemetery location is urban, on flat\nland, separate, but near other cemeteries, and not identified by any sign\nor marker. It is reached by crossing the public property of the town\ncemetery. It is open to all. A continuous masonry wall surrounds\nthe cemetery. There is a gate that does not lock. The\napproximate size of the cemetery is now 0.2777 hectares; before WWII it\nwas about 0.47 hectares. There are 100-500 stones. The cemetery\nhas no special sections. The tombstones and memorial markers\nare made of marble, granite and sandstone. The tombstones vary among\nflat shaped stones, finely smoothed and inscribed stones, flat stones with\ncarved relief decoration and obelisks. The cemetery has tombstones\nwith bronze decorations or lettering and metal fences around graves.\nInscriptions on tombstones are in Hebrew, German and Czech. The cemetery\ncontains special memorial monuments to Holocaust victims. There are\nno known mass graves. Within the limits of the cemetery are no structures.\nThe present owner of the cemetery property is the local Jewish community\nof Brno. The adjacent properties are other cemeteries.\nThe current Jewish cemetery boundaries are smaller now than in 1939 because\nof the town cemetery. Private visitors come occasionally to the cemetery.\nThe cemetery has been vandalized occasionally, mostly between 1981-91.\nNo maintenance has been done. Local/municipal authorities and Jewish\ngroups from within the country did restoration work, finally completed\nin 1991. Now there is occasional clearing or cleaning by authorities.\nThere is a moderate threat posed by pollution, vegetation and vandalism;\nand slight threats are posed by uncontrolled access, weather erosion, and\nexisting and proposed nearby development.\nThese surveys were completed on 1.3.1992 by Ing. Arch. Jaroslav Klenovsky,\nZebetinska 13, 623 00 Brno.\nCONTACTS: Town officials:\nMagistrate Jiri Chmelar, Mestsky urad Hradistska 305, 687 24 uhersky Ostroh,\ntel. 0632/91116. Regional officials: PhDr. Jana Spathova, Okresni urad,\nReferat Kultury, 686 01 Uherske Hradiste, tel. 0632/432. Interested parties:\nSlovacke muzeum, dir. PhDr. Ivo Frolec, Smetanovy sady, 686 01 Uherske\nHradiste, tel. 0632/2262. Other sources: Bohumil Gelbkopf, Rybare 198,\n687 24 Uhersky Ostroh, Tel. 0.\nSOURCES: Gedenkbuch der\nUntergegangenen Judengemeinden Mährens, Hugo Gold ed. (1974), pp..\n116-117; Die Juden und JudengemeindenMährens in Vergangenheit unde\nGegenwart, Hugo Gold ed. (1929), pp: 563-570 (pictures); Jiri Fiedler,\nJewish Sights of Bohemia and Moravia (1991), pp. 53-54; International Association\nof Jewish Genealogical Societies Cemetery Project, Czech Republic, Ostroh.\nSUBMITTER: E. Randol\nSchoenberg, 3436 Mandeville Canyon Road, Los Angeles, California 90049-1020\nUSA. Tel: 1-310-472-3122 (h), 1-213-473-2045 (w). Fax: 1-213-473-2222.\nWeb Page: http://www.schoenberglaw.com\nReturn to GemeindeView\nReturn to Austria-Czech SIG Homepage"}
{"text": "The New Genetics of Mental Illness; June/July 2008; Scientific American Mind; by Edmund S. Higgins; 8 Page(s)\nThroughout history shamans, clerics and physicians have tried to pin down what goes awry when a person slips into sadness, insanity or psychosis. Theorists have variously blamed mental illness on an imbalance of bodily fluids, the movement of planets, unconscious mental conflict and unfortunate life experiences. Today many researchers believe that psychiatric disorders arise in large part from a person¿s genetic makeup. Genes, after all, are the blueprints for the proteins that create and control the brain.\nAnd yet genetics cannot be the whole story: identical twins, who have virtually the same DNA, do not always develop the same mental disorders. For example, if one identical twin acquires schizophrenia, the other stands just a 50 percent chance of also suffering from the disease. Indeed, abundant data suggest that psychiatric ailments typically result from a complex interplay between the environment and a number of different genes [see ¿The Character Code,¿ by Turhan Canli; Scientific American Mind, February/March 2008]. But only recently have scientists begun to grasp how the environment affects the brain to produce psychological changes."}
{"text": "Our newest title\nBusy with Bugs\nExtremely Interesting Things to Do with Bugs\nIllustrated by Margaret Brandt\nNational Best Books 2010 Award\nChildren's Educational category\nUSA Book News\nFor kids who love bugs and\nbug adventures, Busy\nwith Bugs is a\nguide for exploring the miniature world of tiny animals. This book buzzes\nwith information, fun facts, and 160 extremely interesting things to do\nwith bugs. It teaches children to explore the anatomy, behavior, life\ncycles, and habitats of bugs in their own backyards and school yards.\nReference pages include a glossary packed with information, a\nlists of useful resources, and an invaluable guide to\nFind out more\nCreek Books is a\nsmall publisher committed to \"teaching kids to care for the Earth.\"\nOur books are designed to motivate children to listen to, learn from, and love\nthe world of nature. We believe that children who learn to love our Earth\ntoday will protect it tomorrow.\nOn our web site, you can look at our books and find out how to order them. In\nyou¡¯ll find fascinating information, and projects and activities to try at\nhome or school. We are working to develop our site into an ideal place for\nkids ¡ª a place where they can have fun learning about our Earth.\nthe Squirrel House, a photo journal about a family of squirrels which live\nat Trickle Creek. You'll find plans for building a squirrel house, other\nsquirrel activities, and photos of baby squirrels.\nCooper to download a\ncomplete teacher's guide (preK-2) for teaching\nabout rainforests. You'll also find free paper dolls, coloring pages,\nbookmarks, a pattern for making a bromeliad and a poison-arrow frog, and an\ninterview with Toni Albert, the author of Saving the Rain Forest with\nCammie and Cooper.\nBuy the hardcover edition of\nI Heard the Willow Weep for $6.00. (Retail price: $15.95) This\nis the perfect book for Earth Day ¡ª\nand Earth Day is everyday!\nYou'll find it in our Half-Price Warehouse."}
{"text": "The latest weapon unleashed to battle California's growing energy demand comes in the form of free software. The State of California Energy Commission's Public Interest Energy Research (PIER) program is responsible for the development of a free software package dubbed the Sensor Placement and Orientation Tool (SPOT). The purpose of this software is to help designers establish correct photosensor placement relative to a given daylighting and electric lighting design.\nDaylighting systems, which use natural lighting to supplement electric lighting, are sensitive to photosensor placement and performance. However, until now, there have been no easy-to-use tools to help designers predict performance and determine optimum sensor positioning. Using an Excel worksheet interface, SPOT accounts for variables such as room geometry, surface reflectances, solar orientation, electric lighting layout, and window design to help determine the best location for photosensors. It also helps designers comply with the daylighting requirements in California's Title 24 energy code, which calls for separate controls for daylit areas and offers substantial energy budget credits for automatic daylighting controls.\nThis software may be downloaded for free at www.archenergy.com/SPOT/index.html."}
{"text": "Hop into roo before it's too late\nA call for Australians to eat kangaroos to combat climate change might be a case of tuck in now before it's too late, research by an Australian biologist suggests.\nWriting in the December edition of Physiological and Biochemical Zoology, Dr Euan Ritchie, of James Cook University in Queensland, says population numbers of the iconic Australian marsupial are at threat from climate change.\nRitchie, from the School of Marine and Tropical Biology, says a rise in average temperatures in northern Australia of just 2°C could reduce suitable habitat for kangaroo populations by as much as 50%.\nHis findings follow a recent call by economist, Professor Ross Garnaut, of the Australian National University, that Australians help fight climate change by swapping their beef-eating habits for a taste of Skippy.\nRitchie, who admits to being a committed roo eater, says his findings should not deter people from kangaroo steaks and may even help the animal survive.\n\"The species [of kangaroo] currently being harvested are very well monitored,\" he says.\n\"So it means we will pick up differences [in range and population] very quickly and will be in a position to respond to that.\"\nAccording to the study, the kangaroo species under greatest threat is the antilopine wallaroo.\nRitchie says it is more vulnerable because it has a very defined range across the tropical savannas of far northern Australia from Cape York in Queensland across to the Kimberleys of Western Australia.\nUsing climate change computer modelling, Ritchie and co-author Elizabeth Bolitho, also of James Cook University, found the 2°C temperature increase, predicted by 2030, would shrink the antilopine's range by 89%.\nA 6°C increase, the upper end of temperature increase predictions to 2070, may lead to their extinction if they are unable to adapt to the arid environment which results, Ritchie says.\nHe says the main threat of climate change is not on the kangaroo itself, but on the habitat that sustains its populations.\nAmong the impacts that will affect their geographic range are increased prevalence of fires and changes to vegetation and the availability of water.\nHe says a 0.4°C increase would reduce the distribution of all species of kangaroos and wallaroos by 9%.\nAn increase of 2°C saw the geographic range of the kangaroos reduced by as much as 50%.\nWeathering the changes\nHowever the news is not all bad.\nBy contrast to the antilopine, Ritchie says the eastern gray kangaroo is in a strong position to weather climate changes because of its predominance in the cooler eastern seaboard of Australia.\nAnd he says the red kangaroo and common wallaroo are better adapted to sustain hotter climates.\nProfessor Lesley Hughes, of the Climate Change Ecology Group at Macquarie University in Sydney, backs Ritchie's findings.\n\"Virtually every time we do bioclimatic modelling you get this result [of species under threat],\" she says.\nHowever she says few studies \"go up to 6°C\" because \"the more you extrapolate into the future the more doubt you have\".\nHughes adds however that a 6°C rise in temperature would \"wipe out\" most native Australian species."}
{"text": "Deep in a North Carolina marsh, a lone swamp sparrow sits on his perch in the middle of the water. He’s singing his usual song. But he’s also aggressively flapping one wing, trying to incite a nearby male into action. Onlookers are watching – just to see what happens.\nHowever, this is no ordinary territorial scuffle. This is bird research. The sparrow on the perch is a robot, and the chief, hip wader-clad onlooker – who is also in control of the robot’s movements – is Steve Nowicki, Ph.D., a biology, psychology, and neurobiology professor at Duke University. He’s testing whether the wing flap will actually prompt a fight.\nAccording to Nowicki, birdsong and signaling have a surprisingly close relationship with human speech.\n“It’s an unexpected and remarkable model for human speech control, development and perception,” he said. “Birds also learn their songs in much the same way humans learn to speak, and that’s an unusual trait. They have to learn their language from their parents.”\nHis research, though, isn’t about merely studying how birds behave and communicate. He and his team watch signals and behaviors; they run simulations and analyze hormones; they record neurons and assemble protein sets. They’re deciphering how birds promote their survival and reproductive success. In short – they’re studying evolution, past and present.\nNowicki, who is also dean and vice provost of undergraduate education, was almost the bird researcher who wasn’t. As a student at Tufts University in Boston, he was a declared music major. Late in his collegiate career, he discovered a love of biology – particularly the brain and behavior – and raced to complete a major in the subject. He then pursued his graduate degree in neurobiology at Cornell University.\nIt was there he was first introduced to the siren song of birds. When it comes to communicating, birds have far less to say than humans. But they express themselves in equally complex ways, Nowicki said.\n“Humans use complicated signal communication, and we use an array of sounds to create words that have rich meanings,” he said. “When you look at sparrow songs – the number of notes per second and the frequency – it’s just as complicated as human speech. They’re just not saying much.”\nAll the same, they’re getting their points across.\nSongs, signals and responses\nIn addition to the aggressive response the swamp sparrow’s wing flap provokes, the absence or introduction of song or even a physical attribute can prompt birds to behave differently, Nowicki said.\nBirds, like most animals, are territorial and will, in most cases, defend their turf. But how will neighboring birds respond if a battle ensues? Will they come to help or avoid the fight? Will they treat the male differently if he loses to the interloper? Researchers can test this reaction, Nowicki said, by removing a bird from its environment, playing a recording of another male’s song, and, then, reintroducing the bird to see how the others respond.\n“It’s interesting to see what happens, because no one wants a floating male in the neighborhood,” he said. “Research has shown that with some birds, peer birds are more wary of the winner, but they might also try to encroach on a loser’s territory.”\nAnd, just as with other species, birds can use their physical attributes to signal to and communicate with each other. For example, a trait, such as a bright red neck and throat commonly seen in the male house finch, can broadcast a bird’s prowess or superior qualities. The red-throated male finch does attract more females, Nowicki said, but it isn’t because of the color. The pigment comes from a carotenoid-rich diet that gives these males a stronger immune system, making them better mates.\nMale song sparrows use their song repertoire in much the same way. The more songs they learn and exhibit, the more attractive they are to females. The reason, Nowicki said, is that birds with larger song selections appear to be smarter. They simply learn songs faster.\n“Males who sing better have better developed brains, and in theory that makes them better mates,” he said. “We’re still working out why having a better brain for learning song is better for the female, but it’s clear females prefer these males as their mates.”\nImpact on human activity\nUnderstanding the role and importance of birdsong and signaling doesn’t shed much light on the evolution of human communication, but knowing what songs and signals mean to birds can directly affect human choices and behavior.\nFor example, researchers have evidence that stress directly affects a bird’s ability to develop song, which can ultimately impact pair bonding and mating. If scientists study the way birds living in both polluted and pristine environments sing, the data could play a role in accurately evaluating ecosystem health.\nThis knowledge also can impact wildlife preservation efforts. It isn’t enough to allocate a certain amount of space to a population based only on the number of animals surveyed. There are often other factors at work, Nowicki said. In the case of the small warbler ovenbird, it’s important to know that females won’t be setting in an area with fewer than 10 males. This type of information can significantly alter conservation efforts, he said.\nRegardless of how the research of birdsong is used, Nowicki said, his work constantly reminds him of how intertwined birds and music are with our surroundings.\n“I keep coming back to birdsong not simply because it’s a good model,” Nowicki said. “When I wake up in the morning and hear birds singing, it’s part of the wonderful aesthetic world we live in, and my job to learn more about it is a privilege.”"}
{"text": "Philosophy and Religion\nThe Philosophy and Religion Department at Montclair State University is home to the \"big questions\": the nature of truth, knowledge, art, morality, social justice, life, death, God, the universe, and Being itself. In our department, you will learn what human beings have thought about these big questions throughout history, and how they have sought to live their lives in relation to the answers. You will also be encouraged to address these questions yourself and make them relevant to your own life.\nThe discipline of Philosophy puts you in conversation with thinkers from ancient times to the present who have asked questions such as: What is the nature of truth, and justice? Is there a natural law that governs the universe? How can I know reality—through reason or through sense experience? How is my mind related to my body? How do I make ethical judgments when there is no clear \"right\" or \"wrong\" answer? What makes something beautiful? Is democracy always the best form of government?\nThe study of Religion aims to understand how people have lived out their central beliefs about this world and the next, the secular and the sacred, humanity and the divine. In itself, religion has been an arena for struggling with questions of meaning and reality. It has also been a powerful influence in law, government, family life, and the arts. One cannot adequately understand human experience or the clash of nations and empires without attending to the roles played by religion.\nFor more information, contact:"}
{"text": "Description from Flora of China\nHerbs, annual or perennial, all parts strongly aromatic (anise-scented). Stem erect, terete, gray-green or lurid-green, glabrous. Leaves petiolate, sheaths membranous-margined; blade pinnately decompound; ultimate segments linear. Umbels compound, terminal and lateral; bracts and bracteoles absent; rays numerous, upwards-spreading, unequal. Calyx teeth obsolete. Petals yellow, obovate, mid rib conspicuous, apex with narrowly inflexed lobule. Stylopodium conic; styles very short, reflexed. Fruit oblong, terete, glabrous; ribs 5, acute or round-obtuse; vittae 1 in each furrow, 2 on commissure. Seed face plane or slightly concave. Carpophore 2-cleft to base.\nOne species: Mediterranean region; cultivated and adventive worldwide, including in China.\n(Authors: She Menglan (佘孟兰 Sheh Meng-lan); Mark F. Watson)"}
{"text": "What orbits the Earth at 17,500 miles per hour, is 360 feet wide, 260 feet long and has a crew of 3? It is the International Space Station, also known as the I.S.S. It is going to be finished in the year 2006. The countries that are putting it together are the United States, Russia, Japan, Canada, Brazil, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. There will be 100 different pieces sent up to space to create the I.S.S.\nWhat You Want to Know About The I.S.S.\nWhen it is completed, the I.S.S. will be the size of two football fields. You will be able to see it from Earth without a telescope. The I.S.S. will be much bigger than previous space stations. Other space stations, like Mir, were cramped. You also had to eat dehydrated food (food without water). The I.S.S. will have a refrigerator with fresh foods.\nThe I.S.S. is like living on earth except one thing-you are weightless! When you are sleeping, you have to be strapped to the wall or else you will float out of your bed.\nThe first crew went up in orbit on October 31, 2000. The size of the crew was decided by how big the escape pod was. That was 3.\nDid you know that every time we breathe or exercise we add moisture to the air? This extra moisture has to be removed from the air on the ISS so the moisture doesnít collect on the ISS equipment. This moisture will be recycled.\nThe crew will recycle all of the water on board from the moisture in the air to the crewís urine and wash water. I know that sounds really gross, but the water is going to be purified and going to be cleaner than the water we drink here on Earth. There are 3 steps to purifying the water:\nThe crew will be up in space for a long time, but when they come back, they wonít be able to walk right away. There is no gravity in space so you donít use your legs that much, and when you go to use them itís just like trying to run after you rollerblade.\nThe people that are training to get on the space station are going to train hard. They will have to train for 2 years. Some of that training will be in the Canadian forest in the middle of winter to prepare them for problems they might run into up in space.\nWhat are Some Modules Up in Space?\nIn 1999,the first U.S. built station component, the Unity connecting module, was moved to the launch pad. It was loaded onto the Space Shuttle, Endeavour.\nMore than six major components are in the processing facility. At the end of the year 2000, more than 500,000 pounds of U.S. and international station equipment was completed. Thatís the weight of 250 pick-up trucks.\nUnity is a six-sided connecting module to which all-future U.S. station modules will attach. Unity will serve as a passageway to various parts of the station. Attached to Unity are two adapters. One to serve as a permanent connection to the Russian station and another that will serve as a shuttle docking port.\nWhat is Going to Put Some Of the International Space Station Together?\nSome of the I.S.S. is going to be put together from the outside. One of the dangers is that you could be hit by a micrometeoroid. Some micrometeoroids are the size of a grain of sand, but others can be the size of basketballs and go right through you. The countries that are building the I.S.S. have built robots to put together some of the I.S.S. so that no one gets hurt. Remember, the I.S.S. is made up of 100 different modules so it will take a long time to put it together.\nSpace: Everything You Want to Know and Beyond. </J0112388> Last Visited: December, 2001.\nNASA.<http://www.nasa.gov> Last Visited: January, 2002.\nSpace in the Spotlight Novi Meadows Elementary 2002\nAll pictures courtesy of NASA unless otherwise noted"}
{"text": "Hexavalent chromium is a compound used to create pigments and prevent corrosion in dyes, paints, primers, inks and plastics. The chemical is used in the production of stainless steel, leather tanning and wood preservation.\nThe Hexavalent Chromium Panel was formed in October 2009 to represent former and current users of hexavalent chromium. The panel’s primary activities include sponsoring research to fill the scientific database informing the risk levels for hexavalent chromium in drinking water and communicating the findings of this research.\nIn the past year, the panel has undertaken an effort to sponsor an independent study. Guided by highly qualified, leading experts, research is being conducted to determine the threshold at which the chemical is not toxic. This data will inform EPA and other policymakers as they develop a drinking water standard for hexavalent chromium."}
{"text": "The Handel and Haydn Society is a chorus and period instrument orchestra in the city of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1815, it is one of the oldest performing arts organizations in the USA. Most widely known for its performances of George Frideric Handel's Messiah, the group gave its American premiere in 1818 and has performed the piece annually since 1854.\nThe Handel and Haydn Society was founded as an oratorio society in Boston on April 20, 1815, by Gottlieb Graupner, Thomas Smith Webb, Amasa Winchester, and Matthew S. Parker, a group of Boston merchants and musicians who were eager to improve the performance of choral music in a city that, at the time, offered very little music of any kind. The name of the Society reflects the foundersí wish to bring Boston audiences the best of the old (G.F. Handel) and the best of the new (Haydn) in concerts of the highest artistic quality. The first performance by the Society was held on Christmas night in 1815 at King's Chapel, and included a chorus of 90 men and 10 women.\nFrom its earliest years, the Handel and Haydn Society established a tradition of innovation, performing the American premieres of G.F. Handelís Messiah in 1818, Haydnís The Creation in 1819, Verdiís Requiem in 1878, Amy Beach's Mass in 1892, and numerous other works by G.F. Handel, Mozart, J.S. Bach, and others.\nThe Society was also an early promoter of composer Lowell Mason, publishing his first collection of hymns and later electing him as the group's President. Mason's music was extremely influential and much of it is still performed today. He is best known for composing the music for the popular carol, Joy to the World. Mason was also instrumental in establishing music education in the USA.\nThroughout the 19th and 20th centuries, Handel and Haydn staged music festivals to commemorate its own anniversaries and such significant events as the end of the Civil War. The Society organized Americaís first great music festival in 1857, and in later years gave benefit concerts to aid the Union Army, victims of the Chicago fire in 1871, and Russian Jewish refugees in 1882. Over the years, the Handel and Haydn Society has performed for such luminaries as President James Monroe, Grand Duke Alexis of Russia, Admiral Dewey, and Queen Elizabeth II.\nBy the mid 20th century, the Handel and Haydn Society had begun to move toward vocal and instrumental authenticity. In 1967, an acknowledged expert in Baroque performance practice, Thomas Dunn, became the Society's Artistic Director and transformed the group's large amateur chorus into one of approximately 30 professional singers. In 1986, Christopher Hogwood succeeded Thomas Dunn as Artistic Director and added period-instrument performances and a new verve to the high choral standards of the Society. In October 1986, Handel and Haydn presented its first period instrument orchestra concert under Christopher Hogwoodís baton, and by the 1989-1990 season all of the Society's concerts were performed on period instruments. The Society has remained committed to historically informed performance following the end of Christopher Hogwood's tenure as Artistic Director in the spring of 2001.\nHandel and Haydn Society announced the appointment of Harry Christophers as Artistic Director on September 26, 2008. Harry Christophers, a regular guest conductor of the Society, began his tenure as Artistic Director with the 2009-2010 season and is the organizationís thirteenth artistic leader since its founding in 1815. The initial term of Harry Christophersí contract with the Society extends through the 2011-2012 season.\nHarry Christophers has conducted the Handel and Haydn Society each season since his first appearance in September 2006, when he led a sold-out performance in the Esterházy Palace at the Haydn Festival in Eisenstadt, Austria. Held in the same location where Haydn lived and worked for nearly 40 years, this Austrian appearance marked the Societyís first in Europe in its then 191-year history. Harry Christophers returned to conduct the Society in Boston in a critically acclaimed performance of G.F. Handelís Messiah in December 2007, followed by an appearance at Symphony Hall in January 2008. Founder and Music Director of the renowned UK-based choir and period-instrument orchestra, The Sixteen, he is also in demand as a guest conductor for leading orchestras and opera companies worldwide and in the USA.\nWelsh conductor Grant Llewellyn joined Handel and Haydn in the 2001-2002 season as Music Director. Grant Llewellyn did not have a background in period-instrument performance prior to joining the Society, but has won wide acclaim from critics and musicians for his energetic and compelling conducting. He has been noted for his charming personality and for his ability to produce exceptional performances from the Society's musicians.\nDuring his tenure as Music Director, the Society produced several recordings that have met with considerable commercial success, including Peace and All is Bright which both appeared on Billboard Magazine's Classical Top 10 chart. Handel and Haydn Society was also awarded its first Grammy Award for a collaboration with the San Francisco choral ensemble Chanticleer for the 2003 recording of Sir John Tavener's Lamentations and Praises.\nThe Society also entered into a multi-year relationship with Chinese director Chen Shi-Zheng starting in 2003. This has yielded fully-staged productions of Monteverdi's Vespers (in 2003) and Orfeo (in 2006) that Chen sees as the start of a cycle of Monteverdi's surviving operas and his Vespers. The 2006 Orfeo was co-produced by the English National Opera. Chen also directed a production of Purcell's Dido and Aeneas in 2005 for Handel and Haydn. Grant Llewellyn concluded his tenure in 2006.\nIn July 2007, the ensemble made a historic appearance at London's Royal Albert Hall as part of the BBC Proms concert series, presenting Haydn's oratorio Die Jahreszeiten (The Seasons), with Sir Roger Norrington conducting."}
{"text": "Crab, King – US (kani)\nIn the U.S., there are three commercial King Crab species – Red, Blue and Golden King Crab – all caught in Alaskan waters.\nKing Crabs typically mature around 5-7 years of age and can have a leg span of 6 feet. Most King Crab populations are at healthy levels of abundance and not considered overfished. Some populations are closed for fishing, however, to rebuild numbers.\nKing Crabs are caught using crab pots, which are typically 700 lb steel pots covered with nylon webbing. Although large, they do relatively little damage to the muddy sea floor. New management policies and regional closures have helped mold this ‘derby’ fishery into a well-regulated, efficient and economically stable program.\nBycatch in King Crab fisheries is low, typically consisting of female and undersized male crabs."}
{"text": "“Norman Clyde was attracted to the Sierra Nevada Mountains sometime after 1911 while in his mid-20s… Clyde spent more than 50 years perfecting his mental maps, locating crashed airplanes, and rescuing lost souls and climbers in trouble - or retrieving their bodies.\nClyde’s name was legendary. Many climbers would rank him second only to John Muir as an intimate pioneer of places inaccessible and second to none as a climber… Clyde climbed Mt. Whitney at least 50 times. Between 1914 and about 1940, he became the first climber to reach the tops of at least 126 peaks.”"}
{"text": "Potatoes are one of the easiest plants to grow because they are not extremely picky about the soil that they are grown in. Growing the best potatoes, however, requires preparation and diligence during the growing stages. As potato plants spread and the potatoes start to grow, the gardener needs to be sure that the tubers remain covered with soil.\nChit (pre-sprout) the seed potatoes. This step is optional but recommended. Cut out the crown sprouts or eyes to allow the potato to grow sprouts from the shoulders and sides. To find the crown sprout, look closely at the potato for a cluster of more than four or five eyes. Cut out these eyes with a potato peeler and set the potatoes in an egg carton, crown side up.\nCheck the potatoes every few days and mist them lightly with a water/fertilizer mix. When the sprouts have grown to about an inch, they are ready to plant.\nClear the planting area of all weeds and debris, using a shovel and garden rake. Remove any rocks and roots, as they can interfere with the growth of the potatoes. Prepare the soil to approximately 1 foot deep.\nSpread a 2-inch layer of compost or planting mix onto the cleared soil and mix in with a shovel. Dig into the soil with the shovel and turn the dirt several times until the compost and soil are mixed thoroughly.\nPlant the sprouted (or unsprouted) seed potatoes at a depth of about 1 inch and about 1 foot apart. If the seed potatoes are small, less than 2 oz. each, they do not need to be cut; if they are larger than 2 oz., cut the potatoes into chunks that include at least one eye each. Each chunk should be no smaller than 1 square inch.\nWater the potatoes thoroughly at least once each week. Over-watering will cause potatoes that have black centers, but potatoes need to be watered consistently to avoid misshapen tubers.\nCheck the leaves and stems daily for insect damage and treat as necessary. Bring in dirt from other areas of the garden to bury the tubers as they grow in size; do not let the potatoes become uncovered while growing.\nHarvest the potatoes at any desired stage of growth. New potatoes are small, tender potatoes and are used in many recipes. Allow baking potatoes to grow larger."}
{"text": "Capital and oldest city of the kingdom of Navarra, Spain. Next to Tudela, it possessed the most important Jewish community. The Jewry was situated in the Navarreria, the oldest quarter of the city. When Navarra came under the guardianship of Philip the Fair, and the Pamplonians refused to pay him homage, the Jewry was destroyed by the French troops, the houses were plundered, and many Jews were killed (1277). In 1280, upon the complaint of the Jews, the city was directed to restore to them the confiscated propertiesand to assign to them other ground for building purposes. In 1319 the city council, in conjunction with the bishop, to whom the Jews were tributary, had resolved, in compliance with the wish of King Charles I., to rebuild the Jewry; but this was not done until 1336.\nThe new Jewry was near the Puente de la Magdalena, and was surrounded with strong walls to guard it against invasion. In the Jewry was the Alcaceria, where the Jews carried on considerable traffic in silk goods, while in a separate street were stores in which they sold jewelry, shoes, etc. Some of the Jews were artisans, and were employed by the royal court; others practised medicine. The physician Samuel, in recognition of his services as surgeon to the English knight Thomas Trivet, was presented by King Charles in 1389 with several houses situated in the Jewry and which had formerly been in the possession of Bonafos and his son Sento, two jugglers. In 1433 the physician Maestre Jacob Aboazar, who had his house near the Great Synagogue, accompanied the queen on a journey abroad. Contemporary with him was the physician Juce (Joseph).\nIn 1375 the Jews of Pamplona numbered about 220 families, and paid a yearly tax of 2,592 pounds to the king alone. They had, as in Estella and Tudela, their independent magistracy, consisting of two presidents and twenty representatives. Gradually the taxes became so burdensome that they could no longer be borne. In 1407 King Charles III. issued an order that the movable property of the Jews should be sold at auction, and the most notable members placed under arrest, unless they paid the tax due to him. To escape these frequent vexations many of the Jews resolved to emigrate; and a part of the Jewry was thus left uninhabited. No sooner had Leonora ascended the throne as coregent (1469) than she issued an order to the city magistrate to require the Jews to repair the dilapidated houses.\nThe policy of Ferdinand and Isabella triumphed in the Cortes of Pamplona in 1496. Two years later the Jews were expelled from Navarra. Many emigrated; and those who were unable to leave the city embraced Christianity. Ḥayyim Galipapa was rabbi of Pamplona in the fourteenth century; and the scholar Samuel b. Moses Abbas was a resident of the city.\n- Kayserling, Gesch. der Juden in Spanien, i. 34, 43. 73, 93, 105 et seq.;\n- Rios, Hist. ii. 452, iii. 200;\n- Jacobs, Sources, s.v. Pamplona."}
{"text": "Most exercise-related injuries have the same basic cause - the overstressing of muscles, tendons, ligaments, bones, and other tissue. With sufficient precautions and care, risks can be minimized. Warming up slowly and cooling down properly can help prevent many stress injuries. To be effective, your warm-up and cool-down exercises should use the same muscles as your main exercise. For example, if you jog, begin by walking for several minutes, then jog slowly, before breaking into a full stride. Do this before and after your regular exercise. Every athlete should include a 15-minute warm up and cool down program as part of the workout. This will increase flexibility, reduce muscle soreness, and improve overall performance. Other good principles to follow during exercise are: know your body's limitations and warning signals; drink plenty of water; and never combine heavy eating with heavy exercising. For more information on the benefits of warming up and cooling down, consult a physician."}
{"text": "Textbook Page 16 Workbook 1-2 Pages 25 - 26\nEnable full screen by clicking the button in the bottom right corner.\nDescription: The next several sections teach some of the most common objects in the home which are also some of the most commonly spoken words. This video begins the \"home\" series by teaching the names of the rooms themselves. You can use \"The House Song\" to reinforce what is being taught in these videos."}
{"text": "While Blackboard is the dominant commercial learning management (LMS) for the creation and management of\nonline courses, one of its main competitors is Moodle. Moodle is a free,\nopen source LMS for creating and managing online courses that is currently in use\nfrom the classroom level to the university level. It can be used for completely\nonline courses or to augment classroom instruction. While it has forums and\nwikis to create communities around courses, it can also be used with\nassignments and quizzes to teach in a more traditional format.\nHow widespread is Moodle used in education? Currently,\nthere are 51,900 registered and validated Moodle sites hosting some 2.7 million\ncourses for 30 million users in 206 countries worldwide. It was designed to\npromote the use of a social constructivist model wherein “groups construct\nknowledge for one another, collaboratively creating a small culture of shared\nartifacts with shared meanings. When one is immersed within a culture like\nthis, one is learning all the time about how to be a part of that culture, on\nmany levels.” Moodle doesn’t have to be used with this pedagogical model, but\nits orientation is towards the community-based development structure (here,\nlearning) of the Web.\nConnexions“Connexions is an environment for collaboratively developing, freely sharing, and rapidly publishing scholarly content on the Web.” It is not simply a Web site that hosts textbooks, articles, and courses. A non-profit run by\n“Most textbooks are a mass of information in linear format: one topic follows after another. However, our brains are not linear - we learn by making connections between new concepts and things we already know. Connexions mimics this by breaking down content into smaller chunks, called modules, that can be linked together and arranged in different ways. This lets students see the relationships both within and between topics and helps demonstrate that knowledge is naturally interconnected, not isolated into separate classes or books.”\nConnexions identifies itself as part of the open education movement and as inspired by the open source software movement. Their modules, be they a textbook, an article, or a course, are open education resources, which are “teaching and learning materials that are free to use and also re-use in new ways around the world.” Connexions sees itself as part of both a global and a grassroots community. Currently, 500,000+ unique visitors a month visit their Web site.\nMIT OpenCourseWare (OCW)\nMIT OCW is the result of MIT’s desire to use the Internet to pursue its mission of\nadvancing knowledge and educating students. Announced in 2001 and launched in\n2002, MIT OCW has now published 1,890 courses online for free use. OCW is a “Web-based\npublication of virtually all MIT course content. OCW is open and available to\nthe world and is a permanent MIT activity.” These courses are educational\nresources and do not lead to course credit, certificates or degrees, nor do they\ninvolve contact with faculty.\nMIT OCW’s largest group of its one million monthly visits are self-learners though students and teachers are larger subgroups of what is a global audience. It is a major gift of knowledge to the open education movement from one of the world’s most prestigious academic institutions.\nThere are many other open education resources to explore, for example, the Open Education Resources Commons or even iTunes U, You Tube, or TeacherTube. The commercial sector undoubtedly has much to offer education, but the open education movement will continue to bring its own change just as Linux and Firefox continue to do so today.\nWhat experience have you had with educational tools and resources on the Web? Contact us and share your experiences.\nReturn to previous page\nNo Comments for this article at this time."}
{"text": "Autism and the Recovery Act\nService in the Field: National Health Service Corps (NHSC)\nThe NHSC is a network of primary health care professionals working in underserved communities across the country. To support their service, the Recovery Act allocated funding to the NHSC to provide more than 4,000 clinicians with financial support in the form of loan repayment.\nOne NHSC loan repayor receiving Recovery Act funds has become involved in treatment/support of ASD patients. Andrea Kinlen, Ph.D., a licensed clinical psychologist working in McPherson, Kansas, is working with patients and families to provide testing and therapy services for ASD patients. As Dr. Kinlen continued to spend time with patients, learning about their struggles and telling them they weren’t alone, an idea for a local support group emerged. Encouraged by the support of her supervisor and funding provided by a partial community grant, Dr. Kinlen engaged the families she counseled, other clinics, and local schools. As families came together, they were able to share stories and discuss challenges. Although the ages of the children and levels of severity vary, members of the group have found much common ground.\nAutism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of complex neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by social impairments; communication difficulties; and restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior. These characteristics can range in impact from mild to significantly disabling. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that an average of 1 in 110 children in the United States has ASD. Symptoms usually begin to appear before age three and can cause delays or problems that continue through adulthood. Early detection of ASD and intervention can greatly increase a child’s ability to learn new skills and improve overall quality of life.\nThe cost of ASD to affected people, their families, and society is enormous. Children with ASD have a wide range of healthcare and services needs, and their families typically lose income, often as a result of one parent leaving the workforce in order to care for and meet his or her child’s special health and educational needs. A great majority of adults with ASD struggle with ongoing and mostly unmet needs for employment, housing, services, and supports. Lifetime costs to care for an individual with ASD have been estimated to be $3.2 million. \nWith funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has been able to accelerate work in promising areas of ASD research.*\nNational Institutes of Health (NIH)\nNIH invested $122 million in Recovery Act funds for groundbreaking research on ASD that otherwise would not have been possible, in areas such as screening, early detection, potential interventions and therapeutics, and in revealing the precise causes and mechanisms underlying this disorder (which are still largely unknown). Research area highlights include:\n- Aiding Diagnosis: A two-site study at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor and the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital is adapting the interview tool that is the current gold standard for diagnosing ASD into a brief parent interview that can be done over the telephone. This new tool may help reduce screening costs, which could mean that more children are able to be screened, and that screening could occur earlier in a child’s life, leading to starting treatments sooner for the child. Additionally, reduced costs would help researchers to quickly identify potential participants for ASD studies. As part of the research process, study investigators performed free ASD screenings in Ohio and Michigan to test their changes to the interview tool. These screenings have reached children from many families for whom a screening might otherwise have been too costly to afford. Read more.\n- Addressing Disparities: Investigators at Florida State University are exploring the significant racial and ethnic minority disparities that exist in the early diagnosis of ASD, often delaying minority access to beneficial early interventions and services. The results of this research will lead to culturally sensitive screening and evaluation methods that may decrease the age at which all children with ASD are diagnosed. Read more.\n- Possible Causes: Although the exact causes of ASD are still unknown, research suggests an interaction between environmental factors and genetic predisposition. A number of Recovery Act-funded studies are using advanced DNA sequencing technology that allows for quick study of many genes at a time, while others are focusing on a variety of other potential causes. For example, one study at the University of California-Davis is exploring the role of infection during pregnancy on raising the risk of ASD in a mouse model. Research suggests that a mother’s immune response to infection may affect levels of immune molecules in the fetal brain, impacting brain development and possibly contributing to ASD. Read more.\n- Improving Interactions: Most children with ASD seem to have no reaction to other people or may respond atypically to others’ emotions. Such behavior can isolate children with ASD from their peers. NIH awarded a Challenge grant to support the development and testing of a new computer-assisted program at the University of California, San Diego to train children with ASD how to respond to others’ facial expressions (for example, widening one’s eyes, wrinkling one’s nose, etc.), and how to produce facial expressions conveying particular emotions to others. Read more.\n- Potential Therapeutics: In another study, researchers at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine will determine whether a certain hormone improves social cognition in adults with ASD—a potentially new treatment for social impairment linked to ASD. There has been little headway in the development of pharmacological treatments for social impairment, and it is widely acknowledged that such treatments are needed as an alternative or addition to behavioral interventions. Read more.\n- Skill Development: Employment can provide greater independence to people with ASD, but symptoms of the disorder often pose major social and communication barriers. In response to this issue, researchers at Do2Learn.com developed the free JobTIPS website. JobTIPS presents job-seeking resources to youth with ASD, and also provides detailed explanations of how to behave in specific situations, such as what to say and not say to a potential employer, and how to disclose their diagnosis. Two autism research centers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Emory University, Atlanta, will help evaluate the effectiveness of JobTIPS in helping teens and young adults with ASD to learn new job-related skills and apply them in real world situations. Read more.\nRead more about NIH’s Recovery Act-funded investments in ASD and learn how these investments are moving science forward sooner than anticipated in addressing some of the most significant challenges to understanding and treating ASD.\nAgency for Healthcare Research & Quality (AHRQ)\nAHRQ is using $1.4 million in Recovery Act funding for research that seeks to provide patients, clinicians, and others with evidence-based information to make informed decisions about health care—including research on ASD intervention strategies:\n- Communicating ASD Treatments: There is no cure and no consensus regarding which intervention strategy is most effective for treating ASD. Given the complexity of ASD and associated therapies, it is clear that teachers, clinicians, and families need guidance in selecting appropriate treatments. AHRQ-funded research is developing, implementing, and evaluating strategies for disseminating information online about treatments for autism and ASD to over 16,000 individuals in important clinician, parent and teacher audiences. This novel approach will accelerate the translation of new scientific evidence on ASD therapeutics into practice and decision-making in families, the education system, the health care system, and public policy. Read more.\n Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Prevalence of autism spectrum disorders - Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, United States, 2006. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) Surveillance Summaries. December 2009;58(10):1-20.\n Montes G, Halterman JS. Association of childhood autism spectrum disorders and loss of family income. Pediatrics. April 2008;121(4):e821-6.\n Ganz ML. The lifetime distribution of the incremental societal costs of autism. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. April 2007;161(4):343–9.\n*Projects cited in this report are examples of Recovery Act funding being applied to autism, not a comprehensive listing of Recovery Act-funded projects."}
{"text": "As one year shifts into the next, it is worthwhile to look at two artists who use non-permanence and change as their medium. It may seem strange to make an artwork knowing it may only last a few hours, but that's exactly what happens when you create art on the beach. And we're not talking sandcastles.\nJim Denevan and Andres Amador are just two artists who use sand as their palette and canvas. Their large scale earth works, so large they are only visible from afar, hark back to the sixties tradition of land art, zen meditation and even crop circles, but with a contemporary twist. Andres Amador's Playa Paintings, ranging from 100 to several thousand feet, were all made by raking sand on the beaches around California. \"The beach renews itself and there is no clean up involved\", he says of his methods. Some have environmental messages, like the Biohazard and Warning signs he made following the oil spill of 2007.\nSurfer (and founder of the \"Outstanding in the Field\" moveable feasts) Jim Denevan has created over 600 drawings in the sand, using sticks and garden tools. He has also exhibited at PS1 MOMA and Headlands Center for the Arts. He recently made the world's largest freehand drawing on a dry lake in Nevada, walking for eight days to draw the 3 mile pattern. Although their art is as temporary as the winds or tides, for both Amador and Denevan it is this fleeting moment that motivates them. So sign up to their newsletters to find out about the next sand action, or it will be gone before you know it.\nClick on a picture to launch the image gallery (7 images)"}
{"text": "Acer griseum (Paperbark Maple) is a species of maple native to central China, in the provinces of Gansu, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Sichuan, at altitudes of 1,500–2,000 m. It is a small to medium-sized deciduous tree, reaching 6-9 m (20-30 ft) tall, 5-6 m (15-25 ft) wide, with a trunk up to 70 cm (2 ft) in diameter. The bark is smooth, shiny orange-red, peeling in thin, papery layers; it may become fissured in old trees. The shoots are densely downy at first, this wearing off by the second or third year and the bark exfoliating by the third or fourth year. The leaves are compound, with a 2–4 cm petiole with three leaflets, each 3-10 cm long and 2-6 cm broad, dark green above, bright glaucous blue-green beneath, with several blunt teeth on the margins. Paperbark Maple is widely grown as an ornamental plant in temperate regions. It is admired for its decorative exfoliating bark, translucent pieces of which often stay attached to the branches until worn away. It also has spectacular autumn foliage which can include red, orange and pink tones. In the world of trees, Acer griseum is a small species, generally growing to around 12m in height. But what it lacks in stature, it more than makes up for in beauty. Its copper-red bark ensures that it is easy to identify, even in winter, as does its technique of bark renewal. As the old sheaves of bark die, they peel themselves off revealing the young, smooth bark beneath. This self-exfoliation, although unusual, is not unique and also occurs in several species of birch.\nAt the turn of the 20th century, the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew sent a young botanist by the name of Ernest Henry Wilson to China. As well as looking into the effect the charcoal industry was having on the forests, Wilson was also asked by his financier, the Veitch Nursery, to find interesting plants. The plan was to find the handkerchief tree Davidia involucrata which had been described, but never collected. Eventually, Wilson found the location where the tree was last seen only to find a tree stump and a newly-erected hut built from its timber! Over the next decade or so, 'Chinese' Wilson, as he was to become known, brought back more than 1,000 garden plants - more than any other collector. This eventually included the handkerchief tree, the regal lily Lilium regale and also the Paperbark Maple Acer griseum."}
{"text": "Miriam has four children, although she has given birth six times. Two infants unfortunately died within days of birth. However, her most recent birth was different in that Miriam and her female relatives had learned from the local female community health worker (CHW) about the importance of keeping the baby warm.\nAn old custom of washing a newborn soon after birth is being discounted with the knowledge that infants were becoming sick. Instead, a baby should be gently dried with a towel and placed next to the mother's skin. Washing should wait until later.\n\"Until I received training about the care of newborn babies, I followed our old customs. I did not realize how important it is to keep the baby warm after birth,\" said a CHW. \"Embracing a newborn against the mother's warm skin is so simple, and the mothers like it, too.\"\nWith nearly nine out of 10 births in Afghanistan still occurring in the home, USAID is training local health workers in essential maternal and newborn care. They then teach pregnant mothers and their families the simple but important actions they can take to preserve the lives of newborns.\nAlthough general health has improved since 2002, Afghanistan remains a country with some of the poorest health indicators worldwide. Afghanistan has one of the highest mortality rates of any nation: about one in five children die before the age of five. Approximately 80 percent of women in rural Afghanistan give birth outside a health facility without a skilled birth provider. Consequently, teaching basic newborn care along with other basic health skills to community care providers is a vital part of the Ministry of Public Health's national strategy.\nTogether, USAID and the Afghan Ministry of Health are helping save the lives of babies born in rural homes by ensuring that local health workers know the key newborn care skills to share with pregnant mothers and their families. Families can be more confident and better prepared for their babies' births.\nLast updated: June 05, 2012"}
{"text": "Sign up for our newsletter\nGardening in the Rainy Zone.\nLilium 'White Stargazer'\nSunset zones: All.\nUSDA zones: 3-10.\nHeat zones: 8-1.\nHeight: 30-35 inches (76-88 cm).\nStar-shaped, white petals recurved at the tips.\nHumus rich, slightly acidic, moist, well-drained soil.\nIn spring, when lilies are at the spear stage of growth (like asparagus), fertilize with a complete organic fertilizer. Do not feed again for the rest of the year; excessive fertilizing can promote disease and soft growth.\nAs soon as the foliage dies back, dig bulbs and remove scales, bulbils and offsets from bulb; immediately replant.\nRemove dried stems only after foliage dies back.\nRainy Side Notes\nLilium 'White Stargazer' is the most popular of the white upright lilies and used by many for forcing. In fact, Peter Schenk bred it with forcing and the cut flower trade in mind. However, L. 'Siberia' and L. 'Jan de Graaf', two other upright whites, are not far behind in popularity. Like most Oriental lilies, white stargazer lily is deliciously fragrant.\nCut flowers when the first flower is first opening. The flower lasts from 5-9 days in the vase. Pull the pollen sacks off when the flower opens to keep pollen from staining linens beneath the vase. If pollen should get on clothes or linens, let it dry before wiping it off. If wiped when wet, the pollen will stain.\nTo grow lilies well, mulch with composted manures or compost and shredded bark to keep the roots cool while adding humus to the soil.\nArticle: Oriental Lilies for the Summer Garden:\nPhotographed in author's garden."}
{"text": "In a study led by UCSF team an existence of relationship between asthma and composition of bacterial species, which are present in bronchial airways was revealed.\nThis finding could suggest new treatment or even potential cures for the common inflammatory disease.\nUsing new detection methods, researchers learned that the diversity of microbes inside the respiratory tract is far vaster than previously suspected - creating a complex and inter-connected microbial neighborhood that appears to be associated with asthma, and akin to what has also been found in inflammatory bowel disease, vaginitis, periodontitis, and possibly even obesity.\n\"People thought that asthma was caused by inhalation of allergens but this study shows that it may be more complicated than that - asthma may involve colonization of the airways by multiple bacteria,\" said study co-author Homer Boushey, MD, a UCSF professor of medicine in the division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine.\nIn their three-year pilot project, the scientists collected samples from the airway linings of 65 adults with mild to moderate asthma and 10 healthy subjects. Then, using a tool that can identify approximately 8,500 distinct groups of bacteria in a single assay, the scientists profiled the organisms present in each sample to look for relationships between bacterial community composition and clinical characteristics of the patients' asthma.The researchers found that bronchial airway samples from asthmatic patients contained far more bacteria than samples from healthy patients. The scientists also found greater bacterial diversity in the asthmatic patients who had the most hyper-responsive or sensitive airways (a feature of asthma).\nThe study has been published online in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology."}
{"text": "Here are 15 ways kids can benefit from learning meditation techniques:\n1. Meditation practice develops strength of character, as the child learns about virtuous living by thinking over the qualities of each virtue. 2. Meditation can help a child learn to think for themselves, and determine a best course of action by reflecting on possible solutions. 3. If the child is being raised in a particular religion, the quiet time of meditation is a chance to reflect on the spiritual lesson for the day.\n4. Meditation is a positive activity that can be an example to a child's friends of a way to handle stress and work out problems. 5. Meditation feels good because a calm mind and relaxed body generate feelings of harmony. 6. As kids grow up and meditation deepens feelings of joy awaken within, and can be shared in daily living through caring actions, making meditation a win-win activity.\n7. Learning even, regular breathing gives instant stress relief on a moment's notice. The regular even breathing is a bridge that ties body to mind; when breathing is made regular it calms the physical body. 8. Following the sequence within a meditation develops memory and the ability to concentrate, which carries over into school work. 9. Longer meditations give the body and mind time to deeply relax and center.\n10. I found in teaching, that active or hyperactive kids moving in rhythm with the group, such as in walking meditation, derive a calming effect. 11. Meditation is non-competitive, and each can participate within the limits of their own ability, with adaptations if needed, or by working with a partner. 12. Meditation can be done individually or in a group setting and it does not need a special place to practice.\n13. Beginning meditation practice in childhood sets up a lifetime habit for a way to handle stress, and as the child matures spiritual qualities can be added to meditate upon, such as kindness, loving, honesty, compassion. 14. Developing the discipline to sit still for meditation carries over into learning how to sit and concentrate to work out a problem or do school work. 15. Meditation feeds self-esteem: when in control of body and mind the youngster finds confidence to handle any situation competently.\nFor offline reading\nGod Speaks through the Holy Spirit\nMore than 100 spiritual relationship topics with a reflective meditation to bring you into personal contact with the Holy Spirit. Uplifting to the goal of meditation, communion with our Creator, Sustainer. 198 pages.\nMeditation for all Kids\nSitting, walking, dance and group circle meditations, along with positive affirmations, verses and benefits of meditation for kids of all ages and abilities in a 100 page book with illustrations.\nArticle by Susan Helene Kramer"}
{"text": "Self-Reliance in a Power Outage\nPeople do not usually think of a power outage in the same light as an earthquake. However, when the power is out for a long period of time, citizen requests for fire, police, medical, and other public services will begin to mount. At some point, the increased demand for services could result in delayed response times.\nFor this reason, every citizen should learn to be self-reliant in an emergency. And even though power outages may only last a few hours, individuals and organizations should be prepared to be without assistance for 72 hours or longer.\nTo assist individuals prepare for an emergency, the City of San Mateo, State of California, American Red Cross, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and Pacific Gas and Electric Company have provided information on what to do during a power outage or other emergency.\n- Check Circuit Breakers. If your power goes out, check your home's circuit breakers or fuses first. Your power could be out because a circuit has tripped or a fuse has blown.\n- Report Electrical Outages. See if the lights in your neighborhood are off. Contact the local electric utility to report an outage.\n- Power Lines. If you can see any power lines on the ground, stay at least 10 feet away from them as electricity might still be flowing through the lines.\n- Sensitive Appliances. Protect appliances from possible power surges when electricity is restored. Unplug appliances and computers, if possible, and turn off non-essential lights.\n- Keep Food Cold. Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible to help prevent food spoilage. Refrigerated foods should remain safe to eat for four hours. Food in a closed freezer can stay frozen for up to two days. If in doubt, throw it out.\n- Dry Ice. Add dry or block ice to the freezer to help keep food frozen. Never add dry ice with your bare hands or place directly on top of food.\n- Water. Discontinue non-essential water usage. Do not drink cloudy or dirty water. Don't be alarmed if chlorine level is higher than normal. Notify water officials of low or no water pressure.\n- Stay Cool. During hot days, stay cool indoors and drink plenty of fluids.\n- Check on Neighbors. Check on elderly or medically dependent neighbors.\n- Life Support Equipment. If someone in your household uses life support equipment, make arrangements for a back-up power supply.\n- Generators. Establish independent, short-term power supplies such as generators or battery-operated devices. If you own a generator, never plug it into any electric outlet in your home. Instead, plug appliances directly into the generator.\n- Monitor Radio and Television. Monitor battery operated radio or television for current information on the outage.\n- Telephones. A telephone that does not depend on electricity. Cordless phones will not function during an outage.\n- Garage Doors. Know how to manually release and open any electric doors, like garage doors.\n- Security Gates. Find out the steps needed to take to open and close security gates.\n- House Numbers. Ensure house numbers are readily visible from the street for emergency response.\n- Anticipate Traffic Delays. Intersections should be treated as four-way stops when traffic lights are out. Anticipate long traffic delays in areas where the power is out."}
{"text": "What Is It?\nA meniscus is a disk-shaped piece of cartilage that acts as a shock absorber inside a joint. Each knee has one lateral meniscus under the outer knob of the thighbone and one medial meniscus under the inner knob of the thighbone. Each meniscus acts as a natural cushion between the thighbone (femur) and shinbone (tibia). The two cushions prevent excess wear and tear inside the knee joint by keeping the ends of the two bones from rubbing together. Each meniscus also absorbs much of the shock of jumps and landings and helps to distribute joint fluid evenly to lubricate and nourish the knee.\nIn the United States, a torn meniscus is the most common reason for knee surgery.\nThe symptoms of a torn meniscus can include:\n- Knee pain, usually on one side of your knee\n- Tenderness at the side of the joint\n- Knee swelling within the first 12 hours after injury\n- A \"locked\" knee that can't be bent\n- A knee that catches during movement, or can't be fully straightened\n- A click, pop or grinding inside your knee when you move it\n- A knee that buckles, gives way or feels generally weak\nYour doctor will inspect both your knees to compare your injured knee with your uninjured one. He or she will check your injured knee for signs of swelling, tenderness and fluid inside the knee joint. If your knee is not locked, the doctor will bend your injured knee and check for clicks, snaps and \"catches\" within the joint. Your doctor also will evaluate your knee's range of motion and will maneuver your knee to see whether your meniscus is sensitive to pressure. For example, in the \"McMurray test,\" the doctor bends the leg at the knee, and then rotates it inward or outward while straightening it. If you feel pain during this test or if there is a \"click\" sound as your leg rotates, there is a good chance that your meniscus is torn.\nIf the results of your exam suggest you have a torn meniscus, you may need more tests, including:\n- Knee X-rays to check for bone injuries, including fracture, that can cause symptoms similar to a torn meniscus\n- A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan or computed tomography (CT) scan -- Nine out of 10 times, a torn meniscus will show up on one of these tests.\n- Arthroscopy (camera-guided surgery) to look inside the knee joint and examine the meniscus -- When arthroscopy is used for diagnosis, the problem can often be treated during the same surgery.\nIf you have arthroscopic surgery to treat your torn meniscus and your job involves sedentary work (mostly sitting), you may be able to return to work one to two weeks after surgery, with full recovery in about four to eight weeks. If you are an athlete or your job requires a lot of physical activity, it may take three to four months after surgery before you feel like you have as much function in your knee as you require.\nAlthough it's hard to prevent accidental knee injuries, you may be able to reduce your risks by:\n- Warming up and stretching before participating in athletic activities\n- Exercising to strengthen the muscles around your knee\n- Avoiding sudden increases in the intensity of your training program\n- Wearing comfortable, supportive shoes that fit your feet and your sport\n- Wearing appropriate protective gear during activities, including athletic activities, in which knee injuries are common (especially if you've had knee injuries before).\nThere are several options for treating a torn meniscus:\n- Nonsurgical. This may include a temporary knee brace and rehabilitation to keep the knee muscles strong while the knee is not bearing as much weight. This approach is most effective for small tears (5 millimeters or less) near the edge of the meniscus, where healing is usually good, or for people who are not good candidates for surgery.\n- Surgery to repair the tear. If the tear is large (1 to 2 centimeters), but it involves a part of the meniscus where there is enough blood supply for healing, the doctor may be able to repair it with stitches.\n- Surgery to remove part of the meniscus (partial meniscectomy). If the tear involves part of the meniscus where healing is poor, the surgeon may trim away ragged edges along the tear to allow the joint to move smoothly.\n- Surgery to remove the entire meniscus (total meniscectomy). This option is used for tears that cannot be treated any other way. Doctors try to avoid this, because it leaves the knee without a meniscus and greatly increases the wear on the ends of the femur and tibia. In the long run, this also increases the risk of osteoarthritis (degenerative joint disease) in the knee.\nIf you need surgery to correct a torn meniscus, it usually can be done using arthroscopy (camera-guided surgery) as a same-day procedure. After the procedure, you will begin physical therapy to help strengthen your knee muscles, reduce pain and swelling, and return the knee's full range of motion.\nWhen To Call a Professional\nCall your doctor to schedule an evaluation whenever an injured knee:\n- Locks, catches or can't be fully extended\n- Becomes very painful or swollen\n- Makes a click, pop or grinding sound when you move it, especially if associated with pain\n- Buckles, gives way or feels generally weak\nIn most cases, the outlook is very good. If your torn meniscus has been repaired surgically or partially removed, you probably will be able to resume your normal athletic activities once you've finished physical therapy.\nAccording to long-term studies, most people who have had a meniscus repaired feel very satisfied with the results of their surgery, even 10 or 11 years after the procedure. However, some people with meniscus injuries eventually develop arthritis in the injured knee. Typically, arthritis develops many years after the injury. The highest risk is among those who've had a part or all of the meniscus removed, because significant injuries requiring this surgery often damage the joint but also because these surgeries take away some or all of the cushioning effect of the meniscus.\nNational Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases\nNational Insitutes of Health\n1 AMS Circle\nBethesda, MD 20892-3675\nNational Rehabilitation Information Center (NARIC)\n8201 Corporate Dr.\nLandover, MD 20785\nAmerican Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine\n6300 North River Road\nRosemont, IL 60018\nNational Athletic Trainers' Association\n2952 Stemmons Freeway\nDallas, TX 75247\nAmerican Physical Therapy Association\n1111 North Fairfax St.\nAlexandria, VA 22314-1488"}
{"text": "On April 30, 1789, George Washington was sworn in as the first President of the United States.\nGeorge Washington wrote the following on the eve of his inauguration:\nIt is said that every man has his portion of ambition. I may have mine, I suppose, as well as the rest, but if I know my own heart, my ambition would not lead me into public life; my only ambition is to do my duty in this world as well as I am capable of performing it, and to merit the good opinion of all good men.\nWe are so lucky, so very lucky, to have had this man in our “canon”. There’s as always, so much to say. One of the thing that strikes me about him is that he never wanted to seem like he was jostling for power or position. George Washington had many wonderful qualities and abilities – but it was this distaste for public life that I believe made him truly great. He went out of his way to let everyone know how unworthy he felt, how he hoped their trust in him was warranted, that he was eager to finally go home and live the life of a private man… But on this day in history, April 30, there was to be no private man anymore. His people had chosen him, and while Mount Vernon continued to call to him, he knew he must accept.\nDavid McCullough describes, in his book on John Adams, inauguration day:\nOn the day of his inauguration, Thursday, April 30 1789, Washington rode to Federal Hall in a canary-yellow carriage pulled by six white horses and followed by a long column of New York militia in full dress. The air was sharp, the sun shone brightly, and with all work stopped in the city, the crowds along his route were the largest ever seen. It was as if all New York had turned out and more besides. “Many persons in the crowd,” reported the Gazette of the United States “were heard to say they should now die contented � nothing being wanted to complete their happiness � but the sight of the savior of his country.”\nIn the Senate Chamber were gathered the members of both houses of Congress, the Vice President, and sundry officials and diplomatic agents, all of whom rose when Washington made his entrance, looking solemn and stately. His hair powdered, he wore a dress sword, white silk stockings, shoes with silver buckles, and a suit of the same brown Hartford broadcloth that Adams, too, was wearing for the occasion. They might have been dressed as twins, except that Washington’s metal buttons had eagles on them.\nIt was Adams who formally welcomed the General and escorted him to the dais. For an awkward moment Adams appeared to be in some difficulty, as though he had forgotten what he was supposed to say. then, addressing Washington, he declared that the Senate and House of Representatives were ready to attend him for the oath of office as required by the Constitution. Washington said he was ready. Adams bowed and led the way to the outer balcony, in full view of the throng in the streets. People were cheering and waving from below, and from windows and rooftops as far as the eye could see. Washington bowed once, then a second time.\nFourteen years earlier, it had been Adams who called on the Continental Congress to make the tall Virginian commander-in-chief of the army. Now he stood at Washington’s side as Washington, his right hand on the Bible, repeated the oath of office as read by Chancellor Robert R. Livingston of New York, who had also been a member of the Continental Congress.\nIn a low voice Washington solemnly swore to execute the office of the President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, to “preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States.” Then, as not specified in the Constitution, he added, “So help me God”, and kissed the Bible, thereby establishing his own first presidential tradition.\n“It is done,” Livingston said, and, turning to the crowd, cried out, “Long live George Washington, President of the United States.”\nThe following is George Washington’s first inaugural address. What I sense in these words is what I sense in so many of the original documents of that time, written by the main players: they were embarking on a grand and hopeful experiment. They were entering uncharted waters. And they all seem determined (each in their different ways, with their different views) to make the most of the opportunity, to seize the day. No decision was unimportant, everything had meaning … and what I also sense in this inaugural address is that Washington knew that he wasn’t only talking to the people present, but he was also talking to us. The future generations. They all knew that they were being watched, carefully, by those who would come after.\nThe only thing required of a President on his inauguration day, in those early early days, was that he take the oath of Office. Washington, in composing an address, to the people who put their faith in him, set the precedent. Every president since then has followed his example.\nGeorge Washington’s first inaugural address:\nFellow-Citizens of the Senate and of the House of Representatives:\nAmong the vicissitudes incident to life no event could have filled me with greater anxieties than that of which the notification was transmitted by your order, and received on the 14th day of the present month. On the one hand, I was summoned by my Country, whose voice I can never hear but with veneration and love, from a retreat which I had chosen with the fondest predilection, and, in my flattering hopes, with an immutable decision, as the asylum of my declining years–a retreat which was rendered every day more necessary as well as more dear to me by the addition of habit to inclination, and of frequent interruptions in my health to the gradual waste committed on it by time. On the other hand, the magnitude and difficulty of the trust to which the voice of my country called me, being sufficient to awaken in the wisest and most experienced of her citizens a distrustful scrutiny into his qualifications, could not but overwhelm with despondence one who (inheriting inferior endowments from nature and unpracticed in the duties of civil administration) ought to be peculiarly conscious of his own deficiencies. In this conflict of emotions all I dare aver is that it has been my faithful study to collect my duty from a just appreciation of every circumstance by which it might be affected. All I dare hope is that if, in executing this task, I have been too much swayed by a grateful remembrance of former instances, or by an affectionate sensibility to this transcendent proof of the confidence of my fellow-citizens, and have thence too little consulted my incapacity as well as disinclination for the weighty and untried cares before me, my error will be palliated by the motives which mislead me, and its consequences be judged by my country with some share of the partiality in which they originated.\nSuch being the impressions under which I have, in obedience to the public summons, repaired to the present station, it would be peculiarly improper to omit in this first official act my fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the universe, who presides in the councils of nations, and whose providential aids can supply every human defect, that His benediction may consecrate to the liberties and happiness of the people of the United States a Government instituted by themselves for these essential purposes, and may enable every instrument employed in its administration to execute with success the functions allotted to his charge. In tendering this homage to the Great Author of every public and private good, I assure myself that it expresses your sentiments not less than my own, nor those of my fellow- citizens at large less than either. No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the Invisible Hand which conducts the affairs of men more than those of the United States. Every step by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency; and in the important revolution just accomplished in the system of their united government the tranquil deliberations and voluntary consent of so many distinct communities from which the event has resulted can not be compared with the means by which most governments have been established without some return of pious gratitude, along with an humble anticipation of the future blessings which the past seem to presage. These reflections, arising out of the present crisis, have forced themselves too strongly on my mind to be suppressed. You will join with me, I trust, in thinking that there are none under the influence of which the proceedings of a new and free government can more auspiciously commence.\nBy the article establishing the executive department it is made the duty of the President “to recommend to your consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.” The circumstances under which I now meet you will acquit me from entering into that subject further than to refer to the great constitutional charter under which you are assembled, and which, in defining your powers, designates the objects to which your attention is to be given. It will be more consistent with those circumstances, and far more congenial with the feelings which actuate me, to substitute, in place of a recommendation of particular measures, the tribute that is due to the talents, the rectitude, and the patriotism which adorn the characters selected to devise and adopt them. In these honorable qualifications I behold the surest pledges that as on one side no local prejudices or attachments, no separate views nor party animosities, will misdirect the comprehensive and equal eye which ought to watch over this great assemblage of communities and interests, so, on another, that the foundation of our national policy will be laid in the pure and immutable principles of private morality, and the preeminence of free government be exemplified by all the attributes which can win the affections of its citizens and command the respect of the world. I dwell on this prospect with every satisfaction which an ardent love for my country can inspire, since there is no truth more thoroughly established than that there exists in the economy and course of nature an indissoluble union between virtue and happiness; between duty and advantage; between the genuine maxims of an honest and magnanimous policy and the solid rewards of public prosperity and felicity; since we ought to be no less persuaded that the propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained; and since the preservation of the sacred fire of liberty and the destiny of the republican model of government are justly considered, perhaps, as deeply, as finally, staked on the experiment entrusted to the hands of the American people.\nBesides the ordinary objects submitted to your care, it will remain with your judgment to decide how far an exercise of the occasional power delegated by the fifth article of the Constitution is rendered expedient at the present juncture by the nature of objections which have been urged against the system, or by the degree of inquietude which has given birth to them. Instead of undertaking particular recommendations on this subject, in which I could be guided by no lights derived from official opportunities, I shall again give way to my entire confidence in your discernment and pursuit of the public good; for I assure myself that whilst you carefully avoid every alteration which might endanger the benefits of an united and effective government, or which ought to await the future lessons of experience, a reverence for the characteristic rights of freemen and a regard for the public harmony will sufficiently influence your deliberations on the question how far the former can be impregnably fortified or the latter be safely and advantageously promoted.\nTo the foregoing observations I have one to add, which will be most properly addressed to the House of Representatives. It concerns myself, and will therefore be as brief as possible. When I was first honored with a call into the service of my country, then on the eve of an arduous struggle for its liberties, the light in which I contemplated my duty required that I should renounce every pecuniary compensation. From this resolution I have in no instance departed; and being still under the impressions which produced it, I must decline as inapplicable to myself any share in the personal emoluments which may be indispensably included in a permanent provision for the executive department, and must accordingly pray that the pecuniary estimates for the station in which I am placed may during my continuance in it be limited to such actual expenditures as the public good may be thought to require.\nHaving thus imparted to you my sentiments as they have been awakened by the occasion which brings us together, I shall take my present leave; but not without resorting once more to the benign Parent of the Human Race in humble supplication that, since He has been pleased to favor the American people with opportunities for deliberating in perfect tranquillity, and dispositions for deciding with unparalleled unanimity on a form of government for the security of their union and the advancement of their happiness, so His divine blessing may be equally conspicuous in the enlarged views, the temperate consultations, and the wise measures on which the success of this Government must depend.\nWilliam Maclay, a senator from Pennsylvania, kept a daily journal – highly detailed, and rather cynical, about the Senate sessions of the first Congress. He describes the first inauguration in vivid detail:\n30th April, Thursday.–This is a great, important day. Goddess of etiquette, assist me while I describe it. The Senate stood adjourned to half after eleven o’clock. About ten dressed in my best clothes; went for Mr. Morris’ lodgings, but met his son, who told me that his father would not be in town until Saturday. Turned into the Hall. The crowd already great. The Senate met. The Vice-President rose in the most solemn manner. This son of Adam seemed impressed with deeper gravity, yet what shall I think of him? He often, in the midst of his most important airs–I believe when tie is at loss for expressions (and this he often is, wrapped up, I suppose, in the contemplation of his own importance)– suffers an unmeaning kind of vacant laugh to escape him. This was the case to-day, and really to me bore the air of ridiculing the farce he was acting. “Gentlemen, I wish for the direction of the Senate. The President will, I suppose, addressthe Congress. How shall I behave? How shall we receive it? Shall it be standing or sitting?”\nHere followed a considerable deal of talk from him which I could make nothing of. Mr. Lee began with the House of Commons (as is usual with him), then the House of Lords, then the King, and then back again. The result of his information was, that the Lords sat and the Commons stood on the delivery of the King’s speech. Mr. Izard got up and told how often he had been in the Houses of Parliament. He said a great deal of what he had seen there. [He] made, however, this sagacious discovery, that the Commons stood because they had no. seats to sit on, being arrived at the bar of the House of Lords. It was discovered after some time that the King sat, too, and had his robes and crown on.\nMr. Adams got up again and said he had been very often indeed at the Parliament on those occasions, but there always was such a crowd, and ladies along, that for his part he could not say how it was. Mr. Carrol got up to declare that he thought it of no consequence how it was in Great Britain; they were no rule to us, etc. But all at once the Secretary, who had been out, whispered to the Chair that the Clerk from the Representatives was at the door with a communication. Gentlemen of the Senate, how shall he be received? A silly kind of resolution of the committee on that business had been laid on the table some days ago. The amount of it was that each House should communicate to the other what and how they chose; it concluded, however, something in this way: That everything should be done with all the propriety that was proper. The question was, Shall this be adopted, that we may know how to receive the Clerk? It was objected [that] this will throw no light on the subject; it will leave you where you are. Mr. Lee brought the House of Commons before us again. He reprobated the rule; declared that the Clerk should not come within the bar of file House; that the proper mode was for the Sergeant-at-Arms, with the mace on his shoulder, to meet the Clerk at the door and receive his communication; we are not, however, provided for this ceremonious way of doing business, having neither mace nor sergeant nor Masters in Chancery, who carry down bills from the English Lords.\nMr. Izard got up and labored unintelligibly to show the great distinction between a communication and a delivery of a thing, but he was not minded. Mr. Elsworth showed plainly enough that if the Clerk was not permitted to deliver the communication, the Speaker might as well send it inclosed. Repeated accounts came [that] the Speaker and Representatives were at the door. Confusion ensued; the members left their seats. Mr. Read rose and called the attention of the Senate to the neglect that had been shown Mr. Thompson, late Secretary. Mr. Lee rose to answer him, but I could not hear one word he said. The Speaker was introduced, followed by the Representatives. Here we sat an hour and ten minutes before the President arrived–this delay was owing to Lee, Izard, and Dalton, who had stayed with us while the Speaker came in, instead of going to attend the President. The President advanced between the Senate and Representatives, bowing to each. He was placed in the chair by the Vice-President; the Senate with their president on the right, the Speaker and the Representatives on his left. The Vice-President rose and addressed a short sentence to him. The import of it was that he should now take the oath of office as President. He seemed to have forgot half what he was to say, for he made a dead pause and stood for some time, to appearance, in a vacant mood. He finished with a formal bow, and the President was conducted out of the middle window into the gallery, and the oath was administered by the Chancellor. Notice that the business done was communicated to the crowd by proclamation, etc., who gave three cheers, and repeated it on the President’s bowing to them.\nAs the company returned into the Senate chamber, the President took the chair and the Senators and Representatives their seats. He rose, and all arose also and addressed them. This great man was agitated and embarrassed more than ever he was by the leveled cannon or pointed musket. He trembled, and several times could scarce make out to read, though it must be supposed he had often read it before. He put part of the fingers of his left hand into the side of what I think the tailors call the fall of the breeches, changing the paper into his left hand. After some time he then did the same with some of the fingers of his right hand. When he came to the words all the world, he made a flourish with his right hand, which left rather an ungainly impression. I sincerely, for my part, wished all set ceremony in the hands of the dancing-masters, and that this first of men had read off his address in the plainest manner, without ever taking his eyes from the paper, for I felt hurt that he was not first in everything. He was dressed in deep brown, with metal buttons, with an eagle on them, white stockings, a bag, and sword.\nFrom the hall there was a grand procession to Saint Paul’s Church, where prayers were said by the Bishop. The procession was well conducted and without accident, as far as I have heard. The militia were all under arms, lined the street near the church, made a good figure, and behaved well.\nThe Senate returned to their chamber after service, formed, and took up the address. Our Vice-President called it his most gracious speech. I can not approve of this. A committee was appointed on it–Johnson, Carrol, Patterson. Adjourned. In the evening there were grand fireworks. The Spanish Ambassador’s house was adorned with transparent paintings; the French Minister’s house was illuminated, and had some transparent pieces; the Hall was grandly illuminated, and after all this the people went to bed.\nI have such a deep fondness for John Adams, with all his airs and self-importance and vanity. I just love the guy, what can I say. He’s so feckin’ human.\nThe description of Washington’s awkwardness makes me want to cry:\nHe rose, and all arose also and addressed them. This great man was agitated and embarrassed more than ever he was by the leveled cannon or pointed musket. He trembled, and several times could scarce make out to read, though it must be supposed he had often read it before. He put part of the fingers of his left hand into the side of what I think the tailors call the fall of the breeches, changing the paper into his left hand. After some time he then did the same with some of the fingers of his right hand. When he came to the words all the world, he made a flourish with his right hand, which left rather an ungainly impression. I sincerely, for my part, wished all set ceremony in the hands of the dancing-masters, and that this first of men had read off his address in the plainest manner, without ever taking his eyes from the paper, for I felt hurt that he was not first in everything. He was dressed in deep brown, with metal buttons, with an eagle on them, white stockings, a bag, and sword.\nGod. Good God. But what really moves me is that after the address, they all walked in procession, led by George Washington, to St. Paul’s Church, for a service.\nSt. Paul’s Church. (Read that article … it’s a well-known story, of course, but it always bears repeating.) St. Paul’s has always had meaning for us here in New York, because of its long history, but now … it has more meaning than ever. I can’t even think about St. Paul’s without feeling tears come to my eyes. So to think … that that special church, that church that became symbolic (not just to us here, but to people all over the country) of hope, or survival, of healing … would be the place where George Washington prayed for guidance after being sworn in as the first President… I mean, honestly. I don’t even know what else to say about it.\nApril 30, 1789 … the day this new nation embarked on its unknown and exciting course, with George Washington at the helm.\nHere is an image of the first page of this inaugural address, in Washington’s own hand."}
{"text": "Rabbi Victor Caro\nJ.D. Levy Home\nJ.D. Levy Clothing Store\nRabbi Issac Moses\nSome history of Quincy’s Jewish Community\nQuincy’s first permanent Jewish resident was Abraham Jonas, an English-born Jew, who prior to his arrival in 1838 had lived in Cincinnati with other members of the Jonas family, had moved to Williamstown, KY where he was merchant and representative in the Kentucky state legislature, and where he had been the Grand Master of Kentucky Lodge of Masons in 1832. Why Jonas uprooted his family and came to the wilds of Illinois remains unclear. Beginning as a carriage, chair, window, and paint merchant, Jonas quickly plunged into local Masonic and political affairs. In 1840 he was elected the first Grand Master of the Illinois Masonic Lodge and in 1841 he was elected to his only term in the Illinois legislature as a member of the Whig Party. Jonas has characterized as quick in perception, a brilliant debater, and a formidable opponent. It was during this one term that he met Abraham Lincoln and their political friendship was solidified. Historians have said that Jonas was Lincoln’s closest Jewish friend, and it was Jonas who helped propel Lincoln’s candidacy for President.\nTwo of Jonas’s brothers, Samuel and Edward, followed him to Quincy at the end of 1840 or early 1841. These three English Jews quickly blended into the small town, with Samuel becoming one of the founders of the Quincy Public Library. Abraham studied law and was admitted to the bar. His activities on behalf of the Whig Party resulted in his appointment as Postmaster of Quincy in 1849.\nAt about the same time the first wave of German born Jews began to settle in Quincy. Several had been peddlers and decided to settle down in Quincy. Men like David Hermann who arrived in 1846 and Moses Jacobs in 1847 became successful merchants. When recalling those early years, Moses Jacobs noted that by 1849 there were enough Jews to conduct high holiday services on an annual basis, usually in someone’s home. By 1851 the little community had collected enough funds to allow Edward Jonas to purchase a parcel of land overlooking the Mississippi River for a cemetery. By 1852 it was reported that “the Israelites of Quincy had commenced a congregational organization, by electing a Schochet…” When Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise made a one day stop in Quincy on July 16, 1856, he noted that “there are about 40 souls of the Jewish persuasion hailing from Germany, Poland and England. They do a flourishing business.” He also wrote that they would have a nice little congregation if they could overcome their business jealousy.\nBy the end of that year, those jealousies had been set aside as 26 families founded K. K. B’nai Abraham, and one year later Reverend Israel Worenski became their spiritual leader as Chazzan and Schochet. The congregation met in the third floor of the Jonas building at the southeast corner of Fifth and Hampshire, across from the town square. This “traditional” congregation grew as more Jews settled in Quincy because of its economic prospects. By 1859 Moses Jacobs reported that there were thirty members, or about 100 residents of all ages. Regular Sabbath services were led by the Chazzan, and the congregation supported the services of a Schochet.\nUntil this point there is nothing to show that Jews faced any kind of discrimination, and the onset of the Civil War acted to further integrate Jews into the life of the community. Lincoln appointed Jonas to the position of Postmaster, Jewish men enlisted in the military, and several of Quincy’s Jewish women helped to found and to activate the Needle Pickets to assist families of Union soldiers. However, there were stirrings of secession within the Jewish community. When the congregation met in 1861 to elect a Chazzan and lecturer, and a Schochet, Mohel, and Shamus, eight members, mostly Bavarians, threatened to leave. Differences were set aside and Nathan Hainsfurther, a resident of Winchester, Illinois, who attended high holiday services in 1861, said, “None of the greater congregations of the country could offer any more to the devout mind than is the case here. The place of worship is a nice hall supplied with everything necessary to a synagogue, and was very well attended.”\nOne year later the members of B’nai Abraham had collected enough funds to begin the process of building their own house of worship. Such a place was found across from Jefferson Square. Edward Jonas solicited more funds through the newspaper The Occident in which he noted 45 paying members comprising two hundred persons, a Chazzan and teacher, and “a location in a beautiful city of 20,000 on the banks of the Mississippi which offers a peaceful and prosperous home.”\nThe rift in the congregation had not healed and on October 18, 1864, seventeen members held a meeting in their place of worship to elect officers and establish a new congregation. These “reformers” wanted to break from the old ways and establish a congregation that reflected the American way. This congregation called itself K.K. B’nai Sholom, and by 1866 it was renting an old Baptist Church as its home.\nMeanwhile, just prior to the high holidays in 1866, B’nai Abraham dedicated its synagogue. Designed to hold 200 persons, the sanctuary was 18 feet high, with seats on both sides of a central aisle, one for men and the other for women. The building was lit with gas and handsomely carpeted. The dedication was service was attended by both Jews and Gentiles, but noticeably absent were members of B’nai Sholom.\nPerhaps in an attempt to placate the secessionists, B’nai Abraham in 1868 introduced an organ and choir into its services. But B’nai Sholom was already planning its own synagogue on Ninth Street between Broadway and Spring. None other than Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise dedicated the cornerstone on July 18, 1869. Just prior to this, in May 1869, B’nai Abraham suffered a mortal blow, when fire damaged its wooden synagogue. When Temple B’nai Sholom was dedicated on September 8, 1870, it literally towered over B’nai Abraham. Costing $25,000, this red brick structure followed a neo-Byzantine style of architecture, dominated by six story high Moorish towers. At nine stories in height, this building was easily recognizable in the Quincy skyline. Some traditionalists had left B’nai Abraham to become charter members of B’nai Sholom.\nReasonable individuals began to conduct behind the scenes negotiations, but it took Rabbi Adolph Ollendorf of B’nai Abraham to effect a merger. He gradually introduced reforms in B’nai Abraham and his eloquent speeches probably spurred the members to bring about a merger of the two congregations. On July 29, 1872, the two congregations passed resolutions of merger. The following Friday evening the first joint Shabbat service was held at B’nai Sholom, with the final Shabbat day service at B’nai Abraham the next day. Herman Hirsch wrote that \"Peace, harmony and good will now exists among the members of the united congregations…for in union lies strength….”\nThis moment was the apex of Jewish life in Quincy. Social and economic forces in the wider country were having an effect. Quincy’s river traffic gave way to the railroad, Quincy’s was no longer a frontier community, and Quincy’s younger generation of Jews sought to make their fortunes and find their spouses elsewhere. Orthodox Judaism as a mode of worship for Quincy’s Jews had been cast aside in favor of Reform. The size of the Jewish community inexorably declined, and Rabbi Elias Eppstein, Quincy’s rabbi in the 1890s thought that the community was on the verge of death. But Congregation B’nai Sholom has survived, now numbering approximately 65 members, and its building, although changed in appearance, remain the second oldest continuously used synagogue west of the Allegheny Mountains and the oldest in Illinois.\nWeb Services by Media Development"}
{"text": "XML and Java Servlets\nWith recent introduction of new APIs and tools for the Java Server Pages (JSP) environment, marrying XML data to Java-based services and applications is easier than ever before. The September 17 release of the JavaServer Pages 1.2 specification (\n- The new specification includes better mechanisms for accessing and describing XML data than earlier versions.\n- Standard JSP tag libraries support XML based data more efficiently and effectively.\n- Lots of third-party JSP tag libraries are popping up that know about all kinds of XML applications and services.\n- Better message handling facilities are integrated into the JSP environment, not coincidentally based on XML and the Simple Object Access Protocol, aka SOAP.\nTag libraries permit collections of custom, XML-like tags to be defined and used in Java servlets constructed to invoke such libraries. In other words, a tag library defines a set of Java classes for the custom JSP actions that the tag library supports. Invoking the tag library imports custom processing and actions into the Java environment so a Java runtime environment like JRun 3.0 will know what to do with such tags as they're recognized. Tag libraries are usually packaged as Java archives in JAR files to make custom tag functions available to developers as they create content, and to Java runtime environments and tools as they encounter and react to such custom tags.\nThe great thing about JSP and Java servlets is that they run on the server side, and can therefore control their environments to a large extent. This makes it possible to grab and interpret XML-based data on the server, and to transform it into plain-vanilla HTML, XHTML, or other formats (PDF, plain text, rich text files, and so forth) for delivery to Web clients. This helps sidestep the kinds of horrible compatibility issues that dynamic content can cause on the user agent side of a Web or other Internet service connection by keeping custom activities entirely on the server side, where they can be carefully implemented, tested, monitored, and controlled without necessarily being exposed to users.\nI find it very interesting that what works for effective delivery of XML data in general works equally well as a technique for combining Java and XML to supports all kinds of powerful, dynamic applications and services. For more information on this great topic, please consult:\n- Sun's Java Server Pages home (http://java.sun.com/products/jsp/)\n- Westy Rockwell's article on \"JSP Tag Libraries\" at www.informit.com (search on JSP or the entire title for this and lots of other useful references)\n- Visit jakarta.apache.org to examine a substantial collection of custom JSP tag libraries.\n- www.orionserver.com offers a nice JSP tutorial and another good collection of JSP tag libraries as well.\n- Bill Brogden's excellent book Java Developer's Guide to Servlets and JSP does a nice job of introducing servlets and JSP, and covering tag libraries as well.\nHave questions, comments, or feedback about this or other XML-related topics? Please e-mail me at email@example.com; I'm always glad to hear from my readers!\nEd Tittel is a principal at LANWrights, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of LeapIt.com. LANWrights offers training, writing, and consulting services on Internet, networking, and Web topics (including XML and XHTML), plus various IT certifications (Microsoft, Sun/Java, and Prosoft/CIW).\nThis was first published in December 2001"}
{"text": "The American Meteorological Society\n) promotes the development and dissemination of information and education on the atmospheric\nAtmospheric sciences is an umbrella term for the study of the atmosphere, its processes, the effects other systems have on the atmosphere, and the effects of the atmosphere on these other systems. Meteorology includes atmospheric chemistry and atmospheric physics with a major focus on weather...\nand related oceanic\nOceanography , also called oceanology or marine science, is the branch of Earth science that studies the ocean...\nand hydrologic sciences\nHydrology is the study of the movement, distribution, and quality of water on Earth and other planets, including the hydrologic cycle, water resources and environmental watershed sustainability...\nand the advancement of their professional applications. Founded in 1919, the American Meteorological Society has a membership of more than 14,000 professionals, professors, students, and weather enthusiasts. Some members have attained the designation \"Certified Consulting Meteorologist (CCM)\", many of whom have expertise in the applied meteorology discipline of atmospheric dispersion modeling\nAtmospheric dispersion modeling is the mathematical simulation of how air pollutants disperse in the ambient atmosphere. It is performed with computer programs that solve the mathematical equations and algorithms which simulate the pollutant dispersion...\n. To the general public, however, the AMS is best known for its \"Seal of Approval\" to television and radio meteorologists.\nThe AMS publishes nine atmospheric and related oceanic and hydrologic journals (in print and online), issues position statements on scientific topics that fall within the scope of their expertise, sponsors more than 12 conferences annually, and offers numerous programs and services. There is also an extensive network of local chapters.\nThe AMS headquarters are located at Boston, Massachusetts. It was built by the famous Boston architect Charles Bulfinch\nCharles Bulfinch was an early American architect, and has been regarded by many as the first native-born American to practice architecture as a profession....\n, as the third Harrison Gray Otis House\nThere are three houses named the Harrison Gray Otis House in Boston, Massachusetts. All were built by noted American architect Charles Bulfinch for the same man, Harrison Gray Otis.-First Harrison Gray Otis House:...\nin 1806 and was purchased and renovated by the AMS in 1958, with staff moving into the building in 1960. The AMS also maintains an office in Washington, D.C.\nWashington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, \"the District\", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....\n, at 1120 G Street NW.\nSeal of Approval\nThe AMS Seal of Approval program was established in 1957 as a means of recognizing television and radio weather forecasters who display informative, well-communicated, and scientifically-sound weather broadcast presentations. The awarding of a Seal of Approval is based on a demonstration tape submitted by the applicant to six members of a review panel after paying an application fee. Although a formal degree in meteorology is not a requirement to obtain the original Seal of Approval, the minimal requirements of meteorological courses including hydrology, basic meteorology & thermodynamic meteorology including at least 20 core college credits must have been taken first before applying (ensuring that the forecaster has at least a minimal required education in the field). There is no minimum amount of experience required, but previous experience in weather forecasting and broadcasting is suggested before applying. It is worthy to note that many broadcasters who have obtained the Seal of Approval do in fact have formal degrees in Meteorology or related sciences and/or certifications from accredited University programs. Upon meeting the core requirements, having the seal, and working in the field for 3 years that broadcaster may then be referred to as a Meteorologist in the broadcast community.\nAs of February 2007, more than 1,600 Seals of Approval have been granted, of which more than 700 are considered \"active.\" Seals become inactive when a sealholder's membership renewal and annual seal fees are not paid.\nThe original Seal of Approval program will be phased out at the end of 2008. Current applicants may either apply for the original Seal of Approval or the Certified Broadcast Meteorologist (CBM) Seal until December 31, 2008. After that date, only the CBM Seal will be offered. Current sealholders retain the right to use their seal in 2009 and onward, but new applications for the original Seal of Approval will not be accepted after December 31, 2008.\nNote: The NWA Seal of Approval is issued by the National Weather Association\nThe National Weather Association is an American professional association with a mission to support and promote excellence in operational meteorology and related activities...\nand is independent of the AMS.\nCertified Broadcast Meteorologist (CBM) Seal\nThe original Seal of Approval program was revamped in January 2005 with the introduction of the Certified Broadcast Meteorologist, or CBM, Seal. This seal introduced a 100-question multiple choice closed-book examination as part of the evaluation process. The questions on the exam cover many aspects of the science of meteorology, forecasting, and related principles. Applicants must answer at least 75 of the questions correctly before being awarded the CBM Seal.\nPersons who obtained or applied for the original Seal of Approval before December 31, 2004 and were not rejected are eligible for an upgrade of their Seal of Approval to the CBM Seal upon the successful completion of the CBM exam and payment of applicable fees. Upgrading from the original Seal of Approval is not required. New applicants for the CBM Seal must pay the application fee, pass the exam, and then submit demonstration tapes to the review board before being considered for the CBM Seal. While original sealholders do not have to have a degree in meteorology or a related field of study to be upgraded, brand new applicants for the CBM seal must have a degree in meteorology or a related field of study to be considered.\nIn order to keep either the CBM Seal or the original Seal of Approval, sealholders must pay all annual dues and show proof of completing certain professional development programs every five years (such as educational presentations at schools, involvement in local AMS chapter events, attendance at weather conferences, and other activities of the like).\nAs of February 2007, nearly 200 CBM seals have been awarded to broadcast weather forecasters, either upgraded from the original Seal of Approval or granted to new applicants.\nAmerican Meteorological Society offers several awards in the fields of meteorology and oceanography.\nAtmospheric Research Awards Committee\n- The Carl-Gustaf Rossby Research Medal\nThe Carl-Gustaf Rossby Research Medal is the highest award for atmospheric science of the American Meteorological Society. It is presented to individual scientists, who receive a medal...\n- The Jule G. Charney Award\n- The Verner E. Suomi Award\n- The Remote Sensing Prize\n- The Clarence Leroy Meisinger\n- The Henry G. Houghton\nOceanographic Research Awards Committee\n- The Sverdrup Gold Medal\nSverdrup Gold Medal Award - is the American Meteorological Society's award granted to researchers who make outstanding contributions to the scientific knowledge of interactions between the oceans and the atmosphere.-Recipients:...\n- The Henry Stommel Research Award\nThe Henry Stommel Research Award is awarded by the American Meteorological Society to researchers in recognition of outstanding contributions to the advancement of the understanding of the dynamics and physics of the ocean. The award is in the form of a medallion and was named for Henry...\n- The Verner E. Suomi\n- The Nicholas P. Fofonoff Award\nThe American Meteorological Society publishes the following scientific journals:\n- Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society\nThe Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society is a scientific journal published by the American Meteorological Society.The official organ of the society, it is devoted to editorials, topical reports to members, articles, professional and membership news, conference announcements, programs and...\n- Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences\nThe Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences is a scientific journal published by the American Meteorological Society...\n- Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology\nThe Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology is a scientific journal published by the American Meteorological Society....\n- Journal of Physical Oceanography\nJournal of Physical Oceanography is a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the American Meteorological Society . It was established in January 1971 and is available on the web since 1996...\n- Monthly Weather Review\nThe Monthly Weather Review is a scientific journal published by the American Meteorological Society.Topics covered by the journal include research related to analysis and prediction of observed and modeled circulations of the atmosphere, including technique development, data assimilation, model...\n- Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology\nThe Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology is a scientific publication by the American Meteorological Society.The journal includes papers describing the instrumentation and methodology used in atmospheric and oceanic research including computational techniques, methods for data acquisition,...\n- Weather and Forecasting\nWeather and Forecasting is a scientific journal published by the American Meteorological Society.Articles on forecasting and analysis techniques, forecast verification studies, and case studies useful to forecasters...\n- Journal of Climate\nThe Journal of Climate is a scientific journal published by the American Meteorological Society.The journal publishes articles on climate research, in particular those concerned with large-scale atmospheric and oceanic variability, changes in the climate system , and climate simulation and...\n- Journal of Hydrometeorology\nThe Journal of Hydrometeorology is a scientific journal published by the American Meteorological Society. It covers the modeling, observing, and forecasting of processes related to water and energy fluxes and storage terms, including interactions with the boundary layer and lower atmosphere, and...\n- Weather, Climate, and Society (new journal, to start 2009)\n- Earth Interactions\nEarth Interactions is a scientific journal published by the American Meteorological Society, American Geophysical Union, and Association of American Geographers....\n- Meteorological Monographs\nMeteorological Monographs is a publication of the American Meteorological Society.The AMS Monograph Series has two parts, historical and meteorological...\nThe American Meteorological Society produces the following scientific databases:\n- Meteorological and Geoastrophysical Abstracts\nAs a means of promoting \"the development and dissemination of information and education on the atmospheric and related oceanic and hydrologic sciences and the advancement of their professional applications\", the AMS periodically publishes policy statements on issues related to its competence on subjects such as drought\nA drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...\nOzone depletion describes two distinct but related phenomena observed since the late 1970s: a steady decline of about 4% per decade in the total volume of ozone in Earth's stratosphere , and a much larger springtime decrease in stratospheric ozone over Earth's polar regions. The latter phenomenon...\nand acid deposition\nAcid rain is a rain or any other form of precipitation that is unusually acidic, meaning that it possesses elevated levels of hydrogen ions . It can have harmful effects on plants, aquatic animals, and infrastructure. Acid rain is caused by emissions of carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen...\nIn 2003, the AMS issued the position statement Climate Change Research: Issues for the Atmospheric and Related Sciences\n- Human activities have become a major source of environmental change. Of great urgency are the climate consequences of the increasing atmospheric abundance of greenhouse gases... Because greenhouse gases continue to increase, we are, in effect, conducting a global climate experiment, neither planned nor controlled, the results of which may present unprecedented challenges to our wisdom and foresight as well as have significant impacts on our natural and societal systems.\n- The Maury Project (a comprehensive national program of teacher enhancement based on studies of the physical foundations of oceanography)"}
{"text": "An estimated 50,000 to 60,000 farmworkers between the ages of 14 and 16 might be affected by proposed changes to child labor laws.\nStricter regulations bring new training requirements\nProducers could soon lose a share of their farmworkers or be subject to big fines if one of those workers sustains a serious injury, or dies, in a farm accident.\nThe U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division is now poring over the more than 3,000 comments it received on its proposed changes to the Hazardous Occupations Orders for Agricultural Employment. The changes will affect hired farmworkers between the ages of 14 and 16 regardless of their immigration status. Children working on farms owned or operated by their parents will continue to be exempt from the orders.\nWhile no one knows for sure exactly how many young workers would be affected by the changes, the Department of Labor estimates that between 50,000 and 60,000 hired farmworkers are between the ages of 14 and 16. The most important of the proposed child labor changes—the first in more than three decades—that crop producers need to be aware of include:\n- The tractor-safety certification training required for these workers to be able to operate tractors and other farm machinery would be increased from 20 hours to 90 hours. Children enrolled in the program, however, could work and operate farm machinery while taking the training.\n- The height at which these children could work would be lowered from the current 20' to 6'.\n- They would be banned from working in grain elevators.\n- They would not be allowed to use electronic devices such as iPods or cell phones while operating a motor vehicle such as a tractor (GPS is an exception).\n- Tractors operated by these workers would need to have rollover protection and a proper seat belt.\n\"Farmers have big concerns about some of the proposed changes,\" says Craig Lang, president of the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation and a fifth-generation dairy producer from Brooklyn, Iowa. A lot of kids work for neighbors, and there are certain things parents would like their kids to be able to do when they reach age 14 or 15—including running a tractor and other farm machinery, Lang says.\nThe proposed change that Lang and others have the biggest objection to is the extended requirement for tractor-safety certification. \"There’s no realistic way to financially support the expanded training,\" says Bob Aherin, an ag engineer specializing in farm safety at the University of Illinois. \"There are very few Extension programs that would have the capacity to offer the coursework. It would be great if we could get young people to go through a 90-hour training, but\nI just don’t see it happening.\"\nThe height restriction is also an issue. \"Farmers view this as another intrusion of government into the private lives of citizens,\" Lang says. \"Parents should be able to determine whether it is safe for their child to work for a neighbor and at what height. When does the intrusion of government stop and allow good parenting to take over?\"\nGreg Rinehart farms 900 acres near Boone, Iowa, with the help of his 10 children. He’s concerned that kids across the country—particularly those in locations far from city centers—will lose out on the opportunity to work on farms if the proposed rules go into effect. \"Kids learn great work ethics on farms,\" Rinehart says. \"They learn the value of hard work, work skills and life lessons. We don’t want to limit kids’ exposure to farms and farm work.\"\nThe penalty could reach $100,000, the maximum allowed by law, for employers who knowingly violate the orders and employ an untrained child worker in a hazardous job who sustains serious dismemberment or dies. \"Minor violations could result in a warning,\" says Michael Hancock, assistant administrator for policy at the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. \"The secretary of labor really believes in these regulations. To expect a final ruling in 2012 is not too ambitious. This is a life and death issue for children.\"\nAccording to study conducted by the General Accounting Office, 4% of all working youth during the 1990s were employed in agriculture, but they experienced more than 40% of the youth occupational fatalities. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that agricultural workers ages 15 to 17 have a risk of dying that’s 4.4 times greater than the average 15- to 17-year-old worker. The greatest risk of death comes from tractor rollovers.\n- January 2012"}
{"text": "For people living with diabetes, maintaining optimal blood glucose control takes knowledge, dedication, support — and money. According to a study published in the December 2008 issue of the journal Diabetes Care, people recently diagnosed with diabetes spend, on average, $4,174 more each year on medical costs than people who don’t have diabetes — a gap that increases substantially each year following the initial diagnosis.\nIn our current economic climate, when people are losing their savings, jobs, homes, and health insurance, people living with diabetes can face major health problems if they don’t have enough money to take care of their condition. And how can people with diabetes come up with the money for doctors’ visits, medicines, insulin, monitoring supplies, an insulin pump, and pump supplies when they are struggling to pay their rent or mortgage, make car payments, and afford their rising grocery bills?\nThe good news is that there is help available — help that many people, including doctors and social workers, are not always aware of. Through a variety of sources, including nonprofit organizations, government programs, discount pharmacies, and direct services from manufacturers, taking care of your diabetes is possible even when your bank account is nearly empty. That said, there is no one-size-fits-all solution to finding what you need; it all depends on your financial situation. It will take a good deal of time, persistence, and self-advocacy to locate the programs that will help you. Having a computer with Internet access will make your search faster and easier, but you can also find the help you need through phone calls and perhaps a visit to your local Health and Human Services office, whose location can be found in the “government” section of your local phone book.\nThis article leads you through a variety of resources currently available to help people with diabetes afford health care, medicine, and supplies.\nIn the last decade, as the number of Americans living without health insurance has increased to an estimated 47 million people, a number of nonprofit agencies have been created to help people find insurance or health care or to afford medical supplies without insurance. Some of these nonprofits are specifically aimed at people with diabetes.\nThe Foundation for Health Coverage Education (FHCE) is an excellent place to begin for anyone who is uninsured, has recently lost benefits, or is struggling to afford insurance premiums. FHCE is an organization that employs trained specialists to help people discover what public and private programs they are eligible for and what their most affordable options are — all for free. By taking a five-question eligibility quiz on their Web site, www.coverageforall.org, you can see all of the programs for which you may qualify in your state. You can then call FHCE’s help line, (800) 234-1317, to discuss your options with a real person.\n“Many people will be eligible for two or three programs and not know it,” says FHCE President Ankeny Minoux. For example, in some states, a person who is self-employed may qualify for a group small-business insurance plan, which can be much more affordable than buying into the state’s high-risk insurance pool. These are the kinds of tips that can make all the difference for someone whose budget is tight. FHCE has provided over 536,000 people with such guidance in the last five years.\niPump was founded in 2006 by Lahle Wolfe, a single mother of four who has diabetes, as do two of her children. iPump has shipped supplies to more than 6,000 people with diabetes in its two years of operation, providing critical materials to more than 30 free clinics throughout the United States that were turning away people with diabetes because they lacked basic monitoring supplies and syringes. The group has also provided assistance to get more than 20 people on insulin pumps and plans to do the same for at least 10 more people during the first half of this year.\nWolfe was inspired to start iPump by her own life experience. “As a single mom to four children, who had insurance, I still could not pay all our diabetes-related medical bills. I had to quit college, sell our home, and move across the country to get on a state insurance program because I had exhausted COBRA benefits,” she recalls. “But our premiums and out-of-pocket medical expenses were still more than $25,000 a year — more than my entire income. I often had to choose between food, my own diabetes supplies, and my daughter’s diabetes care.” (The other child had not yet developed diabetes.) “No family should have to go through what we did.”\nTo apply for help through iPump, visit its Web site, www.ipump.org. iPump accepts donations of all unexpired diabetes and pump supplies and it relies on monetary donations to distribute them: It costs about $700 to place a donated pump with a new client. Donations can be sent to iPump.org, Inc., 2250 Alyssum Avenue, Upland, California, 91784.\nA number of other nonprofit organizations can help with prescription medicines, diabetes supplies, and health care. They include the following:\n- The Partnership for Prescription Assistance has a Web site, www.pparx.org, and phone service, (888) 477-2669, both of which offer access to hundreds of assistance programs for the uninsured.\n- The Charles Ray III Diabetes Association, Inc., provides blood glucose meters, strips, and other supplies to those who can’t afford to pay for them. To apply for assistance, log on to www.charlesray.g12.com.\n- The Patient Advocate Foundation Co-Pay Relief Program assists people who have chronic illnesses — including diabetes — and are fully insured but who struggle to afford their insurance co-payments. To apply for assistance, go to www.copays.org or call (866) 512-3861.\n- NeedyMeds (www.needymeds.org) is a nonprofit Web site that offers free, anonymous advice to anyone who cannot afford needed medicine or health care. The Web site helps visitors find both low-cost medicine programs and disease-based assistance programs.\nLocal charitable organizations, including the Lions Club International, Rotary Club, Elks Club, Kiwanis Club, and Shriners, can provide assistance with medical supplies or help with fund-raising for medical expenses. However, local chapters offer different kinds of help, so you should look up your local chapter and contact it directly or check with your local Health and Human Services office for more information.\nHealth care was one of the hottest topics in the 2008 Presidential election, and it remains to be seen how the new administration will change our current health-care system. At this time, most Americans rely on employer-sponsored health insurance or purchase private policies. However, there are a number of government-sponsored programs that can benefit people with diabetes.\nMedicare is a government health insurance program for people ages 65 and over as well as younger people with serious health problems such as kidney failure. Part A of Medicare covers hospital stays and is provided at no cost to those who qualify. Part B covers doctor visits outside of hospitals and requires paying a monthly premium. Medicare Advantage Plans, also called Part C, are health insurance plans that are approved by Medicare but run by private companies. They are available to anyone enrolled in Parts A and B. These plans tend to offer more benefits at a greater cost; details vary from state to state.\nParts A, B, and C now cover blood glucose meters, test strips, lancets, insulin pumps and supplies, therapeutic shoes, glaucoma screenings, flu and pneumonia vaccines, and counseling by registered dietitians and certified diabetes educators under certain conditions. Part D provides prescription drug benefits. This three-year-old program is run by private insurance companies, so the cost and benefits of plans vary. However, all Part D plans “leave a huge ‘doughnut hole’ that requires patients to pay several thousand dollars a year,” says Dr. Richard Grant, an endocrinologist at Massachusetts General Hospital and author of a 2006 study published in Diabetes Care, which reported that nearly 15% of people with diabetes say they have trouble affording their prescriptions. “The trend we reported on in the study has certainly continued to worsen. With the tumbling economy, joblessness, home foreclosures, etc., people are under severe financial pressures.” Because of this gap in drug coverage, some people on Medicare will still need to find help from other sources (such as the nonprofits listed above) to help pay for their diabetes supplies or drugs.\nFor Medicare eligibility information, call the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services at (800) 633-4227, or visit www.medicare.gov. People who have Medicare for a disability and are still struggling to make their co-payments on prescriptions may be eligible for extra benefits through Social Security, which can be applied for at www.socialsecurity.gov or by calling (800) 772-1213.\nMedicaid is a medical assistance program sponsored by both the federal government and state governments, and administered by each state; coverage varies by state. Eligibility is based on income level and several other criteria. Among the groups of people served by Medicaid are low-income parents, children, seniors, and people with disabilities. Medicaid recipients may qualify for full or partial coverage of certain types of diabetes medicines and blood glucose meters and strips.\nCHIP is the Children’s Health Insurance Program provided by each state. It is for children whose families earn too much to qualify for Medicaid but too little to afford private health insurance. For information, call (877) 543-7669, or visit www.insurekidsnow.gov.\nThe VA (Department of Veteran Affairs) runs hospitals and clinics for veterans who meet eligibility requirements based on income. To find out more about VA health benefits, call (800) 827-1000 or visit www.va.gov.\nThe Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) requires certain medical facilities to offer free or discounted care to people who meet low-income eligibility requirements (called the Hill-Burton program). For a directory of locations, call (800) 400-2742 or visit www.hrsa.gov/hillburton. HRSA also supports many local health centers specifically aimed at people who are struggling financially. Centers vary greatly from region to region. A major challenge of community-run health centers is that they are often understaffed and can have a waiting list to see a doctor. It may take several attempts to reach someone on the phone to schedule an appointment. While it may be possible to see the same doctor each time you visit a clinic, at many centers this is not guaranteed. As a patient using a community health center, you may need to share your medical history each time you see a new doctor. If you are willing to be a self-advocate and to be persistent about scheduling and showing up for your medical appointments, using the services of a community-run center can be an excellent way to get the medical care you need despite a tough financial situation. To find an HRSA health center in your area, visit www.hrsa.gov/help.\nManufacturers and pharmacies\nDiabetes medicines can be expensive, particularly for people with Type 2 diabetes — who often need to take multiple drugs — or for anyone with diabetes who also takes medicine to treat conditions such as heart or kidney disease or high blood pressure. Fortunately, a number of manufacturers have programs that offer free or low-cost medicines and supplies to those in need. These companies include the following:\nA longer listing of manufacturers that offer assistance, compiled by the American Diabetes Association, can be found at www.diabetes.org/advocacy-and-legalresources/healthcare/insurance.jsp.\nIt is a good idea to ask your doctor to prescribe the generic form of any medicine you take, if there is one, and to look for discount pharmacies. A very helpful Web site, www.pharmacychecker.com, lets you compare prices of insulin and other medicines at different online pharmacies. Many people also find that shopping at Wal-Mart pharmacy gives significant savings because of its $4 prescription program and its low-priced ReliOn blood glucose test strips and supplies.\nAnother fairly new Web site, www.slashdrugcosts.org, offers free advice to people who are seeking ways to lower the cost of their medicines. It is a library of information, offered by a concerned citizen group, about ways to afford medicines without having to lower your income to be eligible for Medicaid or other assistance programs.\nFinally, Together Rx is a public service program created and sponsored by some of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies. It provides a free prescription-savings card for eligible residents of the United States and Puerto Rico who have no other prescription drug coverage. To apply, go to www.togetherrxaccess.com. (See “Resources Listed In Text” for a list of all the resources mentioned in this article.)\nDon’t go it alone\nIf you are struggling financially, finding the assistance you need to take care of your diabetes will require time, patience, and persistence. But as you can see from this article, there are many possible resources to help you get through hard economic times. You can also reach out to your doctor, diabetes educator, or social worker, as well as friends and family members, to get the support you need. In nearly all cases, there is a way to get the health care you need to stay well with diabetes."}
{"text": "eso0842 — Science Release\nBeta Pictoris planet finally imaged?\n21 November 2008\nA team of French astronomers using ESO's Very Large Telescope have discovered an object located very close to the star Beta Pictoris, and which apparently lies inside its disc. With a projected distance from the star of only 8 times the Earth-Sun distance, this object is most likely the giant planet suspected from the peculiar shape of the disc and the previously observed infall of comets onto the star. It would then be the first image of a planet that is as close to its host star as Saturn is to the Sun.\nThe hot star Beta Pictoris is one of the best-known examples of stars surrounded by a dusty 'debris' disc. Debris discs are composed of dust resulting from collisions among larger bodies like planetary embryos or asteroids. They are a bigger version of the zodiacal dust in our Solar System. Its disc was the first to be imaged — as early as 1984 — and remains the best-studied system. Earlier observations showed a warp of the disc, a secondary inclined disc and infalling comets onto the star. \"These are indirect, but tell-tale signs that strongly suggest the presence of a massive planet lying between 5 and 10 times the mean Earth-Sun distance from its host star,\" says team leader Anne-Marie Lagrange. \"However, probing the very inner region of the disc, so close to the glowing star, is a most challenging task.\"\nIn 2003, the French team used the NAOS-CONICA instrument (or NACO ), mounted on one of the 8.2 m Unit Telescopes of ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT), to benefit from both the high image quality provided by the Adaptive Optics system at infrared wavelengths and the good dynamics offered by the detector, in order to study the immediate surroundings of Beta Pictoris.\nRecently, a member of the team re-analysed the data in a different way to seek the trace of a companion to the star. Infrared wavelengths are indeed very well suited for such searches. \"For this, the real challenge is to identify and subtract as accurately as possible the bright stellar halo,\" explains Lagrange. \"We were able to achieve this after a precise and drastic selection of the best images recorded during our observations.\"\nThe strategy proved very rewarding, as the astronomers were able to discern a feeble, point-like glow well inside the star's halo. To eliminate the possibility that this was an artefact and not a real object, a battery of tests was conducted and several members of the team, using three different methods, did the analysis independently, always with the same success. Moreover, the companion was also discovered in other data sets, further strengthening the team's conclusion: the companion is real.\n\"Our observations point to the presence of a giant planet, about 8 times as massive as Jupiter and with a projected distance from its star of about 8 times the Earth-Sun distance, which is about the distance of Saturn in our Solar System ,\" says Lagrange.\n\"We cannot yet rule out definitively, however, that the candidate companion could be a foreground or background object,\" cautions co-worker Gael Chauvin. \"To eliminate this very small possibility, we will need to make new observations that confirm the nature of the discovery.\"\nThe team also dug into the archives of the Hubble Space Telescope but couldn't see anything, \"while most possible foreground or background objects would have been detected\", remarks another team member, David Ehrenreich.\nThe fact that the candidate companion lies in the plane of the disc also strongly implies that it is bound to the star and its proto-planetary disc.\n\"Moreover, the candidate companion has exactly the mass and distance from its host star needed to explain all the disc's properties. This is clearly another nail in the coffin of the false alarm hypothesis,\" adds Lagrange.\nWhen confirmed, this candidate companion will be the closest planet from its star ever imaged. In particular, it will be located well inside the orbits of the outer planets of the Solar System. Several other planetary candidates have indeed been imaged, but they are all located further away from their host star: if located in the Solar System, they would lie close or beyond the orbit of the farthest planet, Neptune. The formation processes of these distant planets are likely to be quite different from those in our Solar System and in Beta Pictoris.\n\"Direct imaging of extrasolar planets is necessary to test the various models of formation and evolution of planetary systems. But such observations are only beginning. Limited today to giant planets around young stars, they will in the future extend to the detection of cooler and older planets, with the forthcoming instruments on the VLT and on the next generation of optical telescopes,\" concludes team member Daniel Rouan.\nOnly 12 million years old, the 'baby star' Beta Pictoris is located about 70 light-years away towards the constellation Pictor (the Painter).\n NACO is one of the instruments on ESO's VLT that make use of Adaptive Optics (AO). Such systems work by means of a computer-controlled deformable mirror that counteracts the image distortion induced by atmospheric turbulence (see e.g. ESO Press Release 25/01).\n The astronomers can only see the projected separation between the star and the planet (that is, the separation projected on the plane of the sky).\n\"A probable giant planet imaged in the β Pictoris disk. VLT/NACO Deep L-band imaging\", by A.-M. Lagrange et al., 2008, Letter to the Editor of Astronomy and Astrophysics, in press. (a PDF file can be downloaded here)\nThe team is composed of A.-M. Lagrange, G. Chauvin, D. Ehrenreich, and D. Mouillet (Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de l'Observatoire de Grenoble, France), D. Gratadour, G. Rousset, D. Rouan and E. Gendron (LESIA, Observatoire de Paris, France), T. Fusco, and L. Mugnier (Office National d'Etudes et de Recherches Aérospatiales, Chatillon, France), F. Allard (Centre de Recherche Astronomique de Lyon, France), and the NAOS Consortium.\nTel: +33 4 7651 4203\nTel: +33 4 7663 5803\nTel: +33 1 4507 7715\nTel: +49 89 3200 6222\nTel: +56 2 463 3123\nAbout the Release\n|Legacy ID:||PR 42/08|\n|Facility:||Very Large Telescope|"}
{"text": "Cheating, Plagiarism, and Academic Dishonesty\nStudents must be honest and responsible in the completion of their academic work. While parents are encouraged to assist and guide their children, they must allow their children to do their own work. Students must refrain from:\n- Copying another student's work or homework\n- Plagiarism (submitting another's work as one's own)\nTeachers who suspect that a student may have been academically dishonest will report their concern to the Administration. Consequences may range from receiving a zero (no credit) on the assignment to required withdrawal from school."}
{"text": "Party Affiliation: Republican\n- He injured his knee trying to tackle eventual Olympic and NFL great Jim Thorpe during Army football's 27-6 loss to Carlisle in 1912. He never played again.\n- Dwight Eisenhower was the only president to serve in both world wars, and was promoted to five-star general in the midst of World War II.\n- Health was not Ike’s middle name (David was, though). He was a chainsmoker, had between two and seven heart attacks, was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, and died of cardiac arrest in 1969 at the age of 79.\nClick image to view the full poster\n- He championed and signed the bill authorizing the Interstate Highway System, making your soul-searching cross-country roadtrip possible.\n- His mother, a pacifist, cried when he enrolled in West Point. But his 1915 graduating class became known as the “class the stars fell on”, producing 59 generals.\n- In response to the panic over Russia’s Sputnik satellite, the Eisenhower administration oversaw the creation of NASA in October, 1958."}
{"text": "[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index][Subject Index][Author Index]\nBreathing Apparatus in Tyrannosaurines\nThe subject of various breathing apparati in extant animals as\napplied to dinosaurs is interesting, because there are obvious\nalternate systems which may be applied, and I think Ruben et al. 1999\ndid not confront this. Am hoping to get the article today, so bear my\nunread comment on that.\nOtherwise, there are apparently various breathing systems employed\nby modern animals, including:\nhepatic: liver is pushed into lungs to force expelling of breath. --\nemployed by crocs and lizards(?).\ncontinuous circulation: lungs are rigid, air is forced in and out by\npowered airsacs manipulated by movement of muscle compression. --\nemployed by birds.\ndiaphragmatic: lungs are flexible and are compressed by movement of\nribs, and expelled by reactive movement of diaphragm. -- employed by\nmammals and snakes(?).\ngrastralic: gastralia compress internal organs to force flexible\nlungs to expell. -- ?\nI am unsure how turtles do it, but they seem to have had rigid lungs\nand ribs and would have to rely on other forces to breathe. Ruben et\nal. suggest that the first (hepatic) was employed by crocs and\ntheropods, but what about those dinosaurs that lacked a mobile pubis\nor any other way of compressing the liver?\nTake it this way: tyrannosaurs have rigid backs, the pubis could not\ninduce the position of the liver, and the back could not squeeze down\nto force the lungs to move; the gastralia or a continuous ventilation\nare the only other proposed breathing mechanisms through which it can\n\"pump\" it's lungs (as well as whatever turtles employ). The hepatic\nsystem doesn't work for tyrannosaurs, and unless I'm mistaken, it\nwouldn't for other rigid-backed dinosaurs.\n- Often, it is the man who is brought\ndown the path to the end who does\nnot see his own steps. -\nJaime A. Headden\nQilong, the website, at:\nDO YOU YAHOO!?\nGet your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com"}
{"text": "Humans are strange, thrill-seeking creatures. We crave not just a thrill, but something so terrifying that we think, if only for a moment, that we might not actually survive. For those of us not ready for base jumping in wing suits, roller coasters can fulfill that excitement lust. And the amusement park fixtures may never have existed if not for something decidedly unthrilling (though important!): coal mining.\nIn the early 19th century, a coal company operator in Pennsylvania named Josiah White decided to allow the locals a ride on the mine's trains after hours. The trip was an intense 9-mile dive down a mountain, and people loved it. Mules carried the cars back up once they reached the bottom.\nSeveral years later, White invented roller coaster's first big innovation: the thing that makes that distinctive click while they climb. To help meet increasing coal demand, White expanded his operation by building a 664-foot vertical track climbing up a nearby mountain. The steep slope meant an increased risk that cars could lose their grip and slide backwards. So White added a third rail in the middle along with cars equipped with ratchets that engaged with the middle track to prevent backsliding.\nTrolley companies jumped into the amusement game at the close of the 19th century, adding small parks at the end of their lines. One notable trolley terminal at Coney Island brought roller coaster culture into the mainstream with rapid-fire coaster innovation. A 600-foot, gravity-powered, switchback railway going an astonishing six (!!!) mph, was such a success that its inventor, La Marcus Thompson, recouped the $1,600 bucks he spent on building the ride in just six weeks. Another inventor turned the typically linear tracks into a loop. Yet another in 1885 kicked his ride off with a powered hoist that yanked cars up to the top of a hill before letting them go.\nJust 10 years later, Coney Island introduced the vertical loop to the roller coaster design cannon with the Flip-Flap Railway. The 25-foot inversion was physically uncomfortable to say the least, and it only operated for a few years. Then, in 1901, a coaster with a more gentle oval design mitigated the G-forces. Side note: the lap bar had not yet entered the scene. During the upside down parts, G-forces and handles on the side of the cars were the only things holding riders in.\nHigher speeds, thankfully, brought better safety precautions-something absolutely necessary when whipping around at 150 mph without even a helmet. (Did you know there is a roller coaster in Abu Dhabi that goes 150mph?!) Flying forward at even half that clip will make your body feel like a twisted slinky, thanks to G Forces in three directions. But here's the thing: engineers have gotten really good at fine-tuning these G-forces to your benefit.\nA 5-G force makes a 100-pound person feel like she weighs 500 pounds. Kent Bachmann, the director of design and engineering for Hersheypark in Pennsylvania, says they stop short of 5Gs, \"because some people black out—but we flirt with it.\" Your body will register 5Gs at anything over 200 milliseconds, but if you hit 5Gs for a fraction of a second less than that, your body wont feel it. That dipping in and out of such intensity is all baked into the design. Alleviating some of that force is important, too, and elements like banked turns take the pressure off.\nSudden acceleration, change in direction, and the feeling of weightlessness also add to the thrill. Wooden roller coasters rely in part on that out of control feeling you get while speeding around the track. Older models were decidedly jolty, but more precise construction, thanks to better computer-powered design tools, allow modern \"woodies\" an experience reminiscent of coasters past, but without the residual head ache.\nThat particular out of control feeling comes from the materials. \"Wood grows and shrinks with the weather, and the distance between the rails changes over time,\" says Evan Souliere, a design engineer at Great Coasters. \"With steel, you're in constant contact with the track; with wood, you're not.\" It may feel like you're going to fly off the track, but the design ensures you won't. Wooden coaster tracks look like an upside down, inward pointing pair of Ls. On the top of the track, there's a strip of steel that the trains ride on. Just inside that, 90 degrees from the road wheel, is a guide track. A smaller set of wheels runs on this surface facing outward, stopping the cars from moving side to side. A third set of wheels runs on the underside of the track, pointing upwards, keeping the train from going airborne. Because there is movement in the wood, not all the wheels touch all the time-which is what makes us want to pee our pants as they lose contact with the seat.\nSteel coasters can take you higher, faster, and offer more upside down time, but they still rely on sensory trickery. Hersheypark's new $25 million \"Skyrush\" coaster carries riders over an existing wooden looped ride, taking them what seems like arms reach of other park goers.\nThey've also stripped the 75 mph ride of upper body armor, leaving you free to throw your arms up unencumbered. There's a seat belt and lap bar combo that will keep you safe, but the feeling that perhaps you won't be makes the ride, which opens this summer, that much more terrifying.\nWho knows, maybe humans would have invented roller coasters even without coal mining. Even in 15th-century Russia, long before the 100 mph-plus, 4G scream machines we have today, folks got their thrills by schlepping wooden toboggans up 70-foot hills to slide down an ice slope at 50-miles-per-hour. The man-made hills were called \"flying mountains,\" and they sound quite terrifying, not to mention very dangerous—but also, of course, tantalizingly fun."}
{"text": "C. Mackenzie Brown, Professor of Religion at Trinity University, One Trinity Place, San Antonio, TX 78212-7200; e-mail firstname.lastname@example.org.\nAvataric evolutionism is the idea that ancient Hindu myths of Vishnu's ten incarnations foreshadowed Darwinian evolution. In a previous essay I examined the late nineteenth-century origins of the theory in the works of Keshub Chunder Sen and Madame Blavatsky. Here I consider two major figures in the history of avataric evolutionism in the early twentieth century, N. B. Pavgee, a Marathi Brahmin deeply involved in the question of Aryan origins, and Aurobindo Ghose, political activist turned mystic. Pavgee, unlike Keshub, used avataric evolutionism in expounding his nationalistic goals for an independent India. His rationale was bolstered by the idea that India was the fountainhead of all science and civilization. Aurobindo saw in avataric evolutionism a possible key to understanding the involution and evolution of the supreme spirit in the realm of matter as taught in traditional Vedanta. This material-spiritual evolution represented for Aurobindo the necessary knowledge for the true liberation of India, transcending purely political independence. Such knowledge he also saw as the means for the spiritual liberation of the whole of humankind. The processes of involution and evolution he claimed were not in conflict with modern science, and Western evolutionary thinking seems to have inspired many of his own evolutionary reflections, even though in the end he rejected the Darwinian transmutation of species. I conclude with an overview and assessment of recent, post-colonial Hindu assimilations of avataric evolutionism."}
{"text": "Dust off Morocco and fires in Portugal\nJeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC\nSaharan Desert dust (tan pixels) was spreading northwestward over the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Morocco on September 13, 2003. In this scene, the Canary Islands are visible in the lower left corner while the western tip of the Iberian Peninsula can be seen in the upper right. A thick plume of gray smoke is streaming westward from a large forest fire that had been burning in Portugal since the previous week.\nThis true-color image was acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), aboard NASA's Aqua satellite."}
{"text": "Click here to visit the Ignatius Critical Editions website\nWritten in the sixth century, The Consolation of Philosophy was one of the most popular and influential works of the Middle Ages. Boethius composed the masterpiece while imprisoned and awaiting the death sentence for treason. The Christian author had served as a high-ranking government official before falling out of favor with Roman Emperor Theodoric, an Arian. In the Consolation, Boethius explores the true end of life-knowledge of God-through a conversation with Lady Philosophy. Part prose, part poetry, the work combines Greek philosophy and Christian faith to formulate answers to some of life's most difficult and enduring questions.\nAbout the Editor/Translator:\nScott Goins, Ph.D., is Professor of Classics and Director of the Honors College at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana. He received his Ph.D. and M.A. from Florida State University and has published writings on several authors including Virgil and Boethius.\nBarbara H. Wyman, M.A., M.F.A., teaches English and Latin at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Besides Boethius, she has published writings on George Herbert, Hopkins, and others"}
{"text": "There are times when I want to create an ad hoc network to share files or a network connection. Here are the steps to create an ad hoc network in Windows 7.\n- Click on Start (Windows icon) and type wireless. Click on Manage wireless networks.\n- Click on Add to add a network.\n- Click on Create an ad hoc network.\n- Click on Next.\n- Enter a name for your network and configure the security options. Click on Next when you are done.\n[Update: 3/21/2009] If you are interested in setting up an ad hoc network with encryption, please see this post.\n[Update: 8/17/2010] Please see my latest post about setting an ad hoc network to share an internet connection."}
{"text": "Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin were born on the very same day, February 12, 1809, a fateful day for the world. That their births mean so much to so many 200 years later reflects far more than their amazing life accomplishments. With its love of Great Men, history has turned each into a symbol of a major inflection point in the development of Western Civilization, marking the emergence of the Modern in our world. Lincoln symbolizes the final collapse of slavery as an acceptable practice of Christian people. Darwin symbolizes the final collapse of the traditional Christian explanation of how the world works. These historic changes in worldviews originated centuries before their birthday. Neither Lincoln nor Darwin was a major agent of the change. But each was fated to drive the final nail. Neither Lincoln’s presidency nor Darwin’s writings completed the change, but each turned the tide, making it forever impossible to slip permanently backward.\nIt is ironic that Lincoln symbolizes vindication of the Christian concept of the dignity of the individual person, with God-given rights, whereas Darwin symbolizes the Modern concept of a remote God uncaring about the lives of individual persons. The triumph of Divinely justified abolition was concurrent with the legitimizing of belief that God, even if God exists, is irrelevant to life as we know it.\nDarwin Fish vs. Jesus Fish\nSeveral years ago, I was driving home from work, a bit too lost in my thoughts. I had to brake violently to avoid rear-ending a car stopped at an intersection in my California town. As I recovered my wits and studied the rear-end of the car I nearly smashed, I saw for the first time the Darwin fish – the “Jesus fish” with Darwin’s name instead and little feet underneath, like the familiar figure of a fish sprouting feet to become an amphibian. I laughed! And I continued to laugh as I saw more of these Darwin fish on the rear ends of cars around town. It is a university town, where you expect such clever, irreverent humor. Over time, I saw the growing bumper battle between the Darwin fish and the Jesus fish, with ever more clever designs, culminating in the Darwin fish opening wide to eat the Jesus fish! I became concerned. Too many people are taking this battle seriously, seeing Darwin as displacing Jesus.\nThis was not the reaction of an offended Christian or shock at such public display of intolerance. I was reacting to the name Darwin coming to symbolize so much other than the man or even his work. The Darwin fish proposes an equivalence between Darwin and Jesus. Darwin the prophet of modernity, Darwin the symbol of Ultimate Truth, Darwin an object of “religious” reverence. This struck me as profound misrepresentation of who was Charles Darwin and what he himself stood for. This was not science versus religion or science versus Christianity but Science as a religion competing with Christianity as a religion. I knew Charles the person would have been appalled.\nA Visit to Down House\nTwo years ago, I spent a March day at Down House, Charles’s home for forty years. No other single house is more closely associated with the work of a great man. It was a weekday, so I nearly had the place to myself. Charles Darwin and his wife Emma and his children and his servants and his experiments and his village came alive in my mind.\nI prowled the family rooms, furnished almost as they were 150 years ago, imagining I could hear Emma playing the piano in the parlor. I stood for an hour in his study, just watching Charles in my mind as he worked with total concentration yet smiled when his children came noisily rushing in to find scissors for their project. I returned a few minutes later to imagine Charles Lyell and Joseph Hooker sitting with Charles in rapt conversation. I stood by the dining table to watch Charles holding court as local magistrate to settle disputes among his fellow villagers. Then I saw him alone at the table carefully reconciling the accounts of the Friendly Club he helped start so that local laborers could save for their future needs. I had tea at the kitchen table, where Charles once played a hand of whist for the cook while she tended the stove. I walked the Sandwalk round and round five times as a snow squall swept through the stand of old trees Charles had planted then changed abruptly to pale Kentish sunshine over the fields that once belonged to the neighbor, Sir John Lubbock. On the Sandwalk, I thought for the first time in years about that near-accident in my own town and then about the meaning of the “Darwin fish.”\nIn Defense of Charles the Person\nI am a friend of Charles the person and therefore feel obliged to defend his good name. Not that I knew him in person! My great, great grandfather was born in England the same year as Charles. But I know Charles a great deal better than I know my own ancestor. His voyage on the Beagle inspired me to travel the world, too. His evolutionary theory structured my worldview in university and to this day. To me, however, Charles is more than a voyage and a theory. Charles is a life-long friend – not a mentor or a teacher or a hero or an icon – a personal friend – like the fantasy friend of a child, I suppose – with passions and aversions, strengths and weaknesses, to which I relate my own. He is a person with whom I can sympathize but also criticize. He puzzles yet inspires me. He makes me smile, and he is exasperating. We agree, and we disagree. We walk together in silence. He speaks, I listen. He is a personal friend, no less than my deceased father, who is gone, yet with me. It is a person-to-person connection. In short, I like Charles Darwin a great deal. I know him too well to sit by while the modern world enthrones him as its demi-god. Nor can I idly allow him to be branded the Anti-Christ.\nTo Understand Charles the Person\nThe Darwin name will be taken in vain regardless of how hard we try to set the record straight, but those of us who honor intellectual honesty and historical accuracy should have ready access to the real man and what were most likely his true views on the issues that are now so controversial. Surely this better understanding only improves the debate. We also owe this much to such a remarkable, decent and likeable man.\nYou might ask what more there is to know about Charles Darwin. Surely his life and work are among the best chronicled of any historic figure. What can be added to the numerous biographies based on volumes of personal letters, notebooks, manuscripts, and of course, his many books?\nNonetheless, lots more is being written now, because today is February 12, 2009, the bicentennial of Charles Darwin’s birth. The world is celebrating as it would for no other scientist, because Darwin has become the patron saint of the secular worldview that needs no god for explanation of past, present and future. The commemoration will be the occasion for new assaults in the ongoing culture war between evolution and creationism, more generally between secular and religious worldviews. There will be lectures and symposia, sermons and articles, popular books and television specials revisiting and interpreting the life, times and writings of this iconic figure of the modern (and post-modern) world.\nWhether the authors are triumphant or defiant in their attitude toward Charles Darwin, the naturalist of H.M.S. Beagle and author of On the Origin of Species will overshadow Charles Darwin the remarkably likeable countryman of Shropshire and Kent, the loyal friend of leading intellectuals around the world, the loving, playful father of accomplished children, and especially the devoted husband of Emma Wedgwood. The influence of Emma on the career and thinking of Charles goes well beyond her famous roles as hostess and lady of Down House, guardian of his health and spirits, and worrier for his eternal soul as his worldview evolved toward its irretrievable break from Anglican orthodoxy. She was a devout believer, but as a thoughtful Unitarian, not a rote Anglican. She was the sophisticated daughter and granddaughter of great industrialists. She had done the Grand Tour and learned the languages and music of the Continent (in contrast, Charles visited Europe only once, a brief visit to Paris, before his famous voyage, after which he never left England again). She was keenly interested in the politics and current events of the day. And she was Charles’s best friend.\nAn Online Book Project\nAs I stood in the parlor of Down House, it occurred to me that Emma and Charles were a couple worthy of a Jane Austen novel. As I did my five turns around the Sandwalk, I started an ambition to achieve a novelist’s level of sympathy with this historic couple, if only to better understand Charles.\nWhat Charles and Emma wrote about their own personal views gives only partial insight. Each had personal biases welling up from assumptions, of which even they were mostly unaware. As we all are, Charles and Emma were children of their time and all that led up to that time. Therefore, to properly interpret what they were thinking and feeling, we have to explore the history and philosophy and culture and society that influenced their thinking and feeling. A daunting task indeed!\nIn July of last year (2008), I launched DarwinWatch on which I am posting a series of essays and book reviews I am writing as I read and think on this task. Someday I plan to meld these into a book, which I may title Walking Fish: Charles and Emma Darwin on the Question of God. There is no way to know how successful this project might be, but you may find my effort interesting to monitor on occasion. I welcome your comments.\nCopyright 2009 by Chris Dunford. May be quoted in part or in full only with attribution to Chris Dunford (www.darwinwatch.wordpress.com)"}
{"text": "Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists have found environmentally and economically sound uses for the byproducts of biofuel production.\nAnimal scientist William Dozier, formerly with the ARS Poultry Research Unit in Mississippi State, Miss., has been working with colleagues at the ARS Swine Odor and Manure Management Research Unit in Ames, Iowa, and Iowa State University (ISU) to find ways to supplement animal diets with glycerin. Glycerin, a biofuel byproduct, contains energy-providing nutrients for animals.\nDozier and ISU colleague Kristjan Bregendahl evaluated the use of glycerin supplements in poultry feed. Dozier primarily dealt with broilers, which are chickens raised specifically for meat production, and gave glycerin-supplemented poultry feed to broilers that were 7 to 45 days old.\nDozier evaluated the apparent metabolizable energy (AME) intake—a standard measure of energy—for the study group and for a control group that ate a standard diet. The youngest chicks, aged 7 to 10 days, showed a higher AME intake than the control group. However, the two groups showed no significant differences in the amount of feed they consumed, body weight, or the amount of energy lost in feces and urine (energy excretion).\nThe second group of broilers, aged 21 to 24 days old, that consumed glycerin feed supplements showed no difference in body weight, energy excretion, and AME. However, their feed intake and the amount of energy provided by the diet intake (gross energy) increased when glycerin supplementation increased. The oldest broilers, aged 42 to 45 days old, showed increases in feed consumption, gross energy, and AME.\nDozier notes that from a nutritional standpoint, this technology can serve as an alternative dietary energy source that could result in lower feed costs. Swine and poultry producers are very interested in supplementing livestock feed with glycerin, in part because the corn grain and soybeans that used to be fed to livestock are now being used for biofuel production. This way, the crops can be used for both biofuels and for livestock feed."}
{"text": "To be sustainable, old cities need new, smarter infrastructures, says HP Labs sustainability visionary Chandrakant Patel\nSince arriving at HP Labs in 1991, HP Fellow and director of HP’s Sustainable IT Ecosystem Lab Chandrakant Patel has worked to make IT systems more energy efficient. His early research in microprocessor system design led Patel to pioneer the concept of ‘smart data centers’ – data centers in which compute, power and cooling resources are provisioned based on the need. He now extends his vision of energy efficiency beyond the data center to what he calls ‘City 2.0.’\nAs nations look to rebuild their aging infrastructures and at the same time take on the challenge of global climate change, Patel argues that resource usage needs to be at the heart of their thinking. And, we must take a fundamental perspective in examining “available energy” in building and operating the infrastructure. Only if we use fewer resources to both build and run our infrastructures, he says, will we create cities that can thrive for generations to come. And we can only build in that way, he suggests, if we seamlessly integrate IT into the physical infrastructure to provision the resources – power, water, waste, etc - at city scale based on the need\nChandrakant Patel recently described his vision of building City 2.0, enabled by a Sustainable IT Ecosystem.\nSo you started out by addressing energy use in the data center?\nThat’s right. When we created the Thermal Technology Research Program at HP Labs in the early 90s, our industry was not addressing power and cooling in the data center at all. But we thought the data center should be looked at as a system. And if you look at it that way, there are three key components to the data center: computing, power, and cooling. We felt all of these should be provisioned based on need. Just as you dedicate the right computing instrument to the workload, you supply the power and cooling on an as-needed basis. You use sensors and controls, so that when workload comes in, you decide what kind of workload it is and give it the right level of compute, power, and cooling.\nWhat kind of impact does this have on energy use?\nWell, we built a “smart” data center in Palo Alto and a large data center in Southern India as a proof of concept. In the data center in Southern India, we used 7,500 sensors to record the temperature of its various parts, which feed back to a system that automatically controls all the air conditioners. In addition to saving 40% in energy used by the cooling system, the fine grained sensing allowed us to dynamically place workloads and shut machines down that are not being used.\nFurthermore, with 7500 sensors polling every few seconds, we are able to mine sensor data to detect “anomalies” so we can extend the life of large scale physical systems such as compressors in the cooling plant. This type of sensing and control is critical for large scale physical installations. One wouldn’t run a house without a thermostat, so why should one run a multi-megawatt data center without fine grained measurement and control? A ceiling fan in a house uses a few hundred watts, and it has a knob so one can change its speed based on the need.\nThe blowers in air handling units inside a data center use10 kilowatts, and are often running at full speed all the time regardless of the data center’s needs!\nHow do you apply this kind of approach over the entire IT ecosystem?\nFirst, you need to ask: what is the ecosystem? The world has billions of service-oriented client devices, like our laptops and handhelds. Then it has thousands of data centers, and thousands of print factories. That’s the ecosystem. Then you need to ask if that ecosystem is as energy efficient as it can be. To do that we take a life cycle approach. We look at the energy it takes to build and operate IT products over their life-cycle. If you do that, you can see that you might design, build and operate them in completely different ways – through appropriate choice of energy conversion means and appropriate choice of materials - ultimately leading to least energy, least material designs. Indeed, we believe that taking such an “end to end” view in design and management is required to reduce the cost of IT services that will enable the billions to use IT ecosystem to meet their needs.\nCan you give an example?\nTake a laptop as an example.\nHow much energy is required to build a laptop - to extract the material, to manufacture it, operate it and ultimately reclaim it? Using Joules of available energy consumed as the currency, one can examine the supply chain and design the laptop with appropriate choice of materials to minimize the consumption of available energy. Such a technique also allows one to examine the carbon emission across a product life cycle. This type of proactive approach is good for the environment and good for business. Good for business because, in our opinion, such an approach will lead to lowest-cost products and services.\nIs there an impact on IT services too?\nAbsolutely. Today, I can reserve train tickets online for rail travel in India from my home in the US. But most of the 700 million people in India must take a motorized rickshaw to the train station, and spend half a day, to get the ticket. They can ill afford to spend the time. Couldn't we give them appropriately priced IT services so they can do it online? That's what Web 2.0 is about for me -- meeting the fundamental needs of a society. Furthermore, these kinds of services would reduce congestion and reduce consumption of available energy. We can ask - and we need to ask - the same kinds of questions when we are talking about bringing people all kinds of resources more effectively.\nHow do you get the information you need to make decisions based on energy used over the life of a product?\nFirstly, at design time, the IT ecosystem enables us to create a tool for analysis based on scientific principles rather than anecdotes and rules of thumb. Secondly, the IT ecosystem provides us the ability to avail energy and material data for lifecycle analysis in design phase e.g. the available energy used in extracting Aluminum from Bauxite. Next, during operation, you use sensors and controls to manage your resources. Take traffic flow in a city. All you need to manage it is a backbone, the sensors, the data center and a panel where you can collect all that information and manage it. With that we can manage the flow so that available energy is being provisioned based on the need. You can do the same with electricity, water, waste, etc. Thus, you are using the IT ecosystem to have a net positive impact by deconstructing conventional business models – you're creating a sustainable ecosystem using IT.\nIs that what you mean by the City 2.0 ?\nYes. We started the Sustainable IT Ecosystem Lab at HP Labs because we wanted to integrate the IT ecosystem into the next generation of cities - what I've called City 2.0. If you had to build a city all over again, how would you build it? Are you going to just build a city with more roads, more bridges? Or are you going to use the IT ecosystem so that more people can use less of those physical resources more effectively? Wouldn't you think it would be better if a data center was there, and it managed all the resources? Wouldn't it be better to harvest the rain that falls in the area and have a lot of local reservoirs? Wouldn't it be good to have a local power grid instead of bringing power from somewhere else? Those are the kinds of questions that we are wrestling with.\nHow can HP contribute to building the City 2.0?\nHP has the breadth and the depth – the billions of service-oriented client devices, the thousands of data centers and the thousands of print factories. HP covers all aspects of the IT ecosystem. And we have a great history in measurement, communication, and computation. What I’d like to see us do is leverage the past to create the future. A future where we address the fundamental needs of society by right provisioning the resources so that future generations can have the same quality of life as we do.\nThe US and many other countries are in recession. Building the City 2.0 is an expensive proposition, so why is it worth doing?\nFirst of all, I think building a smart infrastructure could revitalize our economy by providing businesses with the opportunity to apply their new technologies for solving age-old problems like water distribution and energy management. And secondly, if governments around the world are going to spend on infrastructure, we probably want to do it in a smart way: not just building things for the sake of building them. We can - and should - do it in a planned, sustainable way where we also create new, high-paying and long-lasting jobs.\nMore information about HP Labs is available at: www.hpl.hp.com/about/\nplease sign in to rate this article"}
{"text": "A group of researchers have developed a way to identify pirated movies by reducing the original to a signature genetic code. The system can match even videos that have been altered or had their colors changed to the source, an area where many video piracy mechanisms fall short.\nDrs. Alex and Michael Bronstein and Professor Ron Kimmel have come up with a way to isolate a certain subset of data from video files that serves an analogous role to a fingerprint at a crime scene. While the creators haven't published research on this exact project in order to guard the proprietary technology, it works by applying a series of grids over the film to reduce it to a series of numbers.\nOnce the film has been systematically reduced, copyright holders can take the \"DNA signature\" of the video and scan sites that host pirated videos for it. According to the three researchers, the signature should be able to find correct matches even if the videos' borders have been changed, commercials have been added, or scenes have been edited out, which is a capability that sites that patrol for piracy, like YouTube, currently lack.\nThere are no details on the limitations of the system, such as video length, style, or quality. \"We have a fully working prototype and have established a company that commercializes it,\" Dr. Bronstein told Ars.\nWhile the website is no more revealing about how the video DNA matching works, Bronstein adds that they've already had a few companies interested in licensing the technology."}
{"text": "In De vita et moribus Iulii Agricolae, Tacitus describes and praises the life of his father-in-law Gnaeus Julius Agricola, an eminent Roman general. It covers briefly the people and geography of Britain, where Agricola was stationed.\n- Idque apud imperitos humanitas vocabatur, cum pars servitutis esset.\n- Translation: Because they didn't know better, they called it 'civilization,' when it was part of their slavery.\n- Book 1, paragraph 21.\n- Longer variant: Step by step they were led to things which dispose to vice, the lounge, the bath, the elegant banquet. All this in their ignorance they called civilisation, when it was but a part of their servitude.\n- Auferre, trucidare, rapere, falsis nominibus imperium; atque, ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant.\n- Translation: To ravage, to slaughter, to usurp under false titles, they call empire; and where they make a desert, they call it peace. Oxford Revised Translation (at Project Gutenberg) \n- Translation: They plunder, they slaughter, and they steal: this they falsely name Empire, and where they make a wasteland, they call it peace. — translation Loeb Classical Library edition\n- Translation: To plunder, butcher, steal, these things they misname empire: they make a desolation and they call it peace. — translation by William Peterson\n- More colloquially: They rob, kill and plunder all under the deceiving name of Roman Rule. They make a desert and call it peace.\n- At the end of chapter 30.\n- This is a speech by the Caledonian chieftain Calgacus addressing assembled warriors about Rome's insatiable appetite for conquest and plunder. The chieftain's sentiment can be contrasted to \"peace given to the world\" which was frequently inscribed on Roman medals. The last part solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant (they make a desert, and call it peace) is often quoted alone. Lord Byron for instance uses the phrase (in English) as follows,\n- Mark where his carnage and his conquests cease!\nHe makes a solitude, and calls it — peace.\n- Lord Byron, Bride of Abydos (1813), Canto 2, stanza 20.\n- Mark where his carnage and his conquests cease!\n- Et maiores vestros et posteros cogitate.\n- Translation: Think of your forefathers and posterity.\n- Chapter 32.\n- It belongs to human nature to hate those you have injured.\n- Chapter 42; reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).\n- Tu vero felix, Agricola, non vitae tantum claritate, sed etiam opportunitate mortis.\n- Translation: Thou wast indeed fortunate, Agricola, not only in the splendour of thy life, but in the opportune moment of thy death. \n- Chapter 45.\n- The Germans themselves I should regard as aboriginal, and not mixed at all with other races through immigration or intercourse. For in former times, it was not by land but on shipboard that those who sought to emigrate would arrive; and the boundless and, so to speak, hostile ocean beyond us,is seldom entered by a sail from our world.\n- Chapter 2\n- They even say that an altar dedicated to Ulysses, with the addition of the name of his father, Laertes, was formerly discovered on the same spot, and that certain monuments and tombs with Greek inscriptions, still exist on the borders of Germany and Rhaetia.\n- Chapter 3.\n- On the whole,one would say that their strength is in their infantry, which fights along with the cavalry; admirably adapted to the action of the latter is the swiftness of certain foot soldiers, who are picked from the entire youth of their country, and stationed in front of the line.\n- Chapter 6.\n- To abandon your shield is the basest of crimes; nor may a man thus disgraced be present at the sacred rites, or enter their council; many, indeed, after escaping from battle, have ended their infamy with the halter.\n- Chapter 6.\n- Mercury is the deity whom they chiefly worship, and on certain days they deem it right to sacrifice to him even with human victims.\n- Chapter 9.\n- Quanquam severa illic matrimonia\n- Translation: However the marriage is there severe.\n- Start of chapter 18.\n- This is in the sense that the matrimonial bond was strictly observed by the Germanic peoples, this being compared favorably against licentiousness in Rome. Tacitus appears to hold the fairly strict monogamy (with some exceptions among nobles who marry again) between Germanic husbands and wives, and the chastity among the unmarried to be worthy of the highest praise. (Ch. 18).\n- …ibi boni mores valent quam alibi bonae leges.\n- Translation: …good habits are here more effectual than good laws elsewhere.\n- End of chapter 19.\n- No one in Germany laughs at vice, nor do they call it the fashion to corrupt and to be corrupted.\n- Chapter 19.\n- Indeed, the crowning proof of their valour and their strength is that they keep up their superiority without harm to others.\n- Chapter 35.\n- Their shields are black, their bodies dyed. They choose dark nights for battle, and, by the dread and gloomy aspect of their death-like host, strike terror into the foe, who can never confront their strange and almost infernal appearance.\n- Chapter 43.\n- All this is unauthenticated, and I shall leave it open.\n- Chapter 46 (last text line).\n- It is the rare fortune of these days that one may think what one likes and say what one thinks.\n- Book I, 1.\n- He possessed a peculiar talent of producing effect in whatever he said or did.\n- Book II, 80.\n- Once killing starts, it is difficult to draw the line.\n- Book I, 39.\n- Some might consider him as too fond of fame; for the desire for glory clings even to the best men longer than any other passion.\n- Book IV, 6.\n- Deos fortioribus adesse.\n- Translation: The gods are on the side of the stronger.\n- Book IV, 17.\n- Corruptissima re publica plurimae leges.\n- Translation: The more numerous the laws, the more corrupt the government.\n- Variant: The more corrupt the state, the more laws.\n- Original Quote: And now bills were passed, not only for national objects but for individual cases, and laws were most numerous when the commonwealth was most corrupt.\n- Book III, 27.\n- Conspicuous by his absence.\n- Book III, 76; Lord John Russell, alluding to an expression used by him (\"Conspicuous by his absence\") in his address to the electors of the city of London, said, \"It is not an original expression of mine, but is taken from one of the greatest historians of antiquity\".\n- The images of twenty of the most illustrious families—the Manlii, the Quinctii, and other names of equal splendour—were carried before it [the bier of Junia]. Those of Brutus and Cassius were not displayed; but for that very reason they shone with pre-eminent lustre.\n- Book III, 76.\n- He had talents equal to business, and aspired no higher.\n- Book VI, 39.\n- He upbraided Macro, in no obscure and indirect terms, \"with forsaking the setting sun and turning to the rising\".\n- Book VI, 52, referring to Tiberius.\n- What is today supported by precedents will hereafter become a precedent.\n- Book XI, 24.\n- So true is it that all transactions of preeminent importance are wrapt in doubt and obscurity; while some hold for certain facts the most precarious hearsays, others turn facts into falsehood; and both are exaggerated by posterity.\n- Variant: So obscure are the greatest events, as some take for granted any hearsay, whatever its source, others turn truth into falsehood, and both errors find encouragement with posterity.\n- Book III, 19.\n- The desire for safety stands against every great and noble enterprise.\n- A popular rendering of: “nisi impunitatis cupido retinuisset, magnis semper conatibus adversa”\n- Variant: \"but desire of escape, foe to all great enterprises, held him back.\" This of Subrius Flavus’ passing thought of assassinating Nero while the emperor sang on stage.\n- Book XV, 50.\nQuotes about Tacitus\n- Abuse, if you slight it, will gradually die away; but if you show yourself irritated you will be thought to have deserved it.\n- Liberty is given by nature even to mute animals.\n- Great empires are not maintained by timidity."}
{"text": "'sheaves' by steven banken\nat biesbosch national park in the netherlands, the act of cutting reed and willow shoots and bundling them just before winter is an annual event,\nmaking it a natural area for supply material. instead of letting the brush just decay, dutch designer steven banken's reintroduces these sheaves into nature\nas furniture pieces, whereby he has developed a simple stainless steel metal clamping bracket to hold bunches of the raw material together,\nforming bench seating, that is modifiable in length depending on how the reeds are cut. this gives the dried plant new life, a minimal intervention\nthat brings the reeds back into the environment as outdoor seating in the summer.\nsimple metal brackets are used to hold the raw material together\none of today's biesbosch reed cutters (left) and shots of the excessive growth of the plant at the national park"}
{"text": "What Is It?\nVitiligo consists of white patches of skin that are caused by the loss of melanin, the pigment that gives skin its color. Melanin is produced by special cells called melanocytes, which are destroyed in people who have vitiligo. Experts are still working out the details to understand why this disease occurs, but evidence strongly suggests that vitiligo is an autoimmune disorder, in which the body's immune system mistakenly targets and injures these specific cells within your own body.\nVitiligo can cause minor changes or extensive changes in the skin. In some people, it may be hardly noticeable, while in others it is obvious. In dark-skinned people the vitiligo patches are obvious since they contrast with normal skin. Light-skinned people may have fewer cosmetic concerns, but patches without pigment can become obvious in the summer because unaffected skin tans but vitiligo skin does not tan.\nVitiligo occurs in about 1% to 2% of the population. Approximately 30% of people with vitiligo have a family history of the condition. About half of people with vitiligo start showing symptoms before age 20.\nPeople with vitiligo have an increased risk of developing certain diseases, such as hypothyroidism (an underactive thyroid), hyperthyroidism (an overactive thyroid), type 1 diabetes , Addison's disease (a disease that causes a decrease in the function of the adrenal gland) and pernicious anemia (vitamin B12 deficiency). Also, people with these conditions have an increased risk of developing vitiligo. These medical conditions are all problems that involve the immune system attacking cells in the body.\nVitiligo causes patches of white skin that are often symmetrical (even), with dark or red borders. The patches can occur anywhere, but the areas most commonly affected are the backs of the hands, the face, and areas that have skin folds, such as the armpits and genitals. Body openings, such as the lips, eyes, nipples and anus are also common areas for vitiligo, as are areas that have been sunburned.\nVitiligo can occur in bursts, so that sizeable areas of skin may rapidly lose their pigment during the beginning stages of the condition, yet then these whitened skin patches may abruptly stop expanding for months or years.\nVitiligo causes a pattern of skin changes that usually can be recognized easily by a doctor. If the skin changes are in a pattern that suggests other conditions, your doctor might recommend a biopsy of the skin to be certain about your diagnosis. In a biopsy, a small piece of skin is removed and examined in a laboratory. A biopsy usually is not needed to diagnose vitiligo.\nIn 1 out of every 5 to 10 people, some or all of the pigment eventually returns on its own and the white patches disappear. For most people, however, the whitened skin patches last and grow larger if vitiligo is not treated. Vitiligo is a lifelong condition.\nThere is no way to prevent vitiligo.\nVitiligo can be treated if it causes emotional or social distress. The goals of treatment are to minimize the contrast in color between your normal skin and skin patches that have lost pigment. If you are light-skinned, part of your treatment may be to protect your normal skin from tanning by using sunscreens with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 15.\nYou can try to get normal skin color to return in the areas affected by vitiligo with treatment called repigmentation therapy, which can take several forms:\n- Topical treatments are helpful in most people. These are applied directly to the skin. Steroid creams or ointments are applied once a day for up to several months. These medications are not always effective, and they can thin the skin with continued use. Other medicines that may be helpful include tacrolimus (Protopic) and pimecrolimus (Elidel), but these medicines are used with caution because of a possible link between these drugs and skin cancer or lymphoma.\n- Ultraviolet B light treatment is effective for treating vitiligo in at least half of all patients. Ultraviolet light can be provided by a hand-held light box for smaller areas of skin. People who have many areas of skin involved can be treated by putting on goggles and standing inside a closet-sized light box for several minutes. The treatment must be repeated often, usually for three times a week and for at least six months. Side effects, which should be discussed thoroughly with your dermatologist, include itching, pain and sunburn as well as increased risk of skin cancers.\n- Psoralen plus ultraviolet A light treatment (commonly called PUVA) causes slightly more pronounced side effects than ultraviolet B light therapy, but it is another effective way to treat vitiligo. Like UVB treatment, this therapy helps at least half of all patients. Psoralens are drugs that cause skin to darken when they react with ultraviolet A light. They can be applied as a cream or taken as pills. After the psoralen medicine is used, you are exposed to ultraviolet light. PUVA treatment is not for pregnant women, women who are breastfeeding or children younger than 10. There is also an increased risk of skin cancers.\n- Oral medicines that suppress your immune system can halt vitiligo skin changes and in many cases can allow normal pigment to return. For people who have large skin areas involved, oral steroids sometimes are used instead of steroids applied to the skin. This treatment is seldom used because of potential side effects of oral steroids.\n- For people with severe vitiligo, depigmentation can remove the color from normal skin, making all of the skin the same white color. This treatment is rarely used because the skin without pigment is very vulnerable to damage from sun exposure. A bleaching solution is applied daily for up to 12 months. It may be 2 or 3 months before you see any effects. About 95% of people will be depigmented within 12 months, and must then meticulously avoid sun exposure. Side effects can occur in up to 50% of those treated, and include skin redness, dryness, itching and burning, especially on the face.\n- Skin grafting removes normal skin from less visible areas and uses this skin to replace white areas in places where the person has the most cosmetic concerns. Skin grafting is used only in a very small number of people with vitiligo.\nWhen to Call a Professional\nIf you notice that patches of skin appear white, contact your doctor for an examination. Treatment may be most helpful if it can be started when only a small area of skin is affected. It is very important to wear sunscreen to protect the areas affected by vitiligo, since these areas are especially at risk for sunburn and for skin cancers.\nFor most people with vitiligo, this condition slowly worsens without treatment or needs continued treatment.\nAmerican Academy of Dermatology\nP.O. Box 4014\nSchaumburg, IL 60168-4014"}
{"text": "Jan. 22, 2008 Norwegian and Swiss biologists have made a startling discovery about the relationship between organisms that most people have never heard of. The Tree of Life must be re-drawn, textbooks need to be changed, and the discovery may also have significant impact on the development of medicines.\nThe discovery by Norwegian and Swiss researchers has gained attention from biologists worldwide. The findings come from the largest ever genetic comparison of higher life forms on the planet. Of 5000 genes examined, researchers identified 123 common genes from all known groups of organisms; these common genes have been studied more closely.\nLost a Branch\n“The results were pretty astounding. All non-bacterial life on Earth—called eukaryotic life— can now be divided into four main groups instead of the five groups that we have been working with up to now,” says Kamran Shalchian-Tabrizi, an associate professor from the University of Oslo’s Department of Biology who has also worked with the Department of Zoology and Animal Biology and the Department of Genetic Medicine and Development, at the University of Geneva, Switzerland.\nThe Tree of Life (see illustration) has, through the discovery that the two formerly separated branches share a similar evolutionary history, lost one of its branches, and this will both improve and simplify quite a bit of scientific work in the future.\n“Kinship says a lot about shared traits. Our findings can be important in many fields, such as in the study of the development of life and in the manufacture of new medicines” says Shalchian-Tabrizi in an interview with the University of Oslo’s research magazine Apollon.\n“Our knowledge of organisms and the development of medicines are often based on comparative studies across species. It is, therefore, essential that we know the relationships between the largest groups in the great diversity of eukaryotes,” he adds.\nThe research group has, for example, found that brown algae and silica algae, and groups of single cell organisms like the malaria parasite, marine foraminifera, and the green sun animalcule (acanthocystis turfacea) actually belong to the same group. Previously, these species were thought to be completely unrelated.\n“The work that we published in the August edition of PLoS One means that the description of the Tree of Life must be revised in new textbooks,” says Professor Kjetill S. Jakobsen from the University of Oslo’s Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES). He is also a member of the Microbial Evolution Research Group (MERG), led by Shalchian-Tabrizi, at the Department of Biology. MERG is one of 16 groups that the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences believes may have the potential to develop into new Centres of Excellence.\nThe New Branch\nAll life on Earth can be divided into two essentially different life forms—eukaryotes and prokaryotes. The eukaryotes gather their genetic material in a nucleus, while the prokaryotes (bacteria and archaea) have their genetic material floating freely in the cell. Eukaryotic organisms—such as humans—can, as a result of the new findings, be divided into the following four categories:\n- Plants (green and red algae, and plants)\n- Opisthokonts (amoebas, fungi, and all animals—including humans)\n- Excavates (free-living organisms and parasites)\n- SAR (the new main group, an abbreviation of Stramenophiles, Alveolates, and Rhizaria, the names of some of its members)\n“The SAR group has to some extent been identified earlier, but we could not know if it was a correct observation because we lacked statistical data. To get that data, we first had to reconstruct the entire eukaryote tree with the help of these 123 genes. Chromalveolates and rhizaria were clearly separate groups until we published our results,” says Shalchian-Tabrizi.\n“To make the picture a little less clear, one branch of chromalveolates is still in no man’s land. It may be that these also belong to SAR, but we will require additional genes and genomes to study this. We have set our sights on doing that in the course of the next few years,” he adds.\n“The Tree of Life tells the story of life on Earth, and our research can say something about how quickly life developed. Our discovery suggests that there were fewer big “events” than we have previously assumed in the development of higher life forms. The more we know about the branches on the Tree of Life, the more we can find out about life’s Big Bang, the beginning of life on Earth,” says Shalchian-Tabrizi.\nThree billion years ago, there was only bacteria and Archaea. Eukaryotic life, which comprises all multi-celled organisms, developed in the sea—probably between 1.2 and 1.6 billion years ago. It was not before about 500 million years ago that the first creatures crept onto land.\n“By digging down into the historical layers with the help of phylogenetic reconstruction, where we can find out about kinship between organisms at the genetic level and we can find answers to questions about how new traits developed. We are working, in a matter of speaking, with genetic archaeology. In this manner, we can also discover the cause of the Earth’s biological diversity,” says Jakobsen.\nOther social bookmarking and sharing tools:\nNote: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.\nNote: If no author is given, the source is cited instead."}
{"text": "In 1765, the first census in Puerto Rico was conducted. It produced a count of 44,833 inhabitants, with 5,037 of those black slaves. Details about the free population were not specified in the count. The number of black slaves rose to 51,265 in 1846, one of the last counts before the abolition of slavery. The census of 1765 began a rich history of census taking. Under Spanish rule, the population was counted 13 times.\nA year after the United States invasion, the first census under U.S. command was conducted under the supervision of the United States Department of War. This census determined that at the end of the 19th century the island population was 953,243 inhabitants. Beginning in 1910, Puerto Rico was included in the United States Census and since then the Census Bureau, under the United States Commerce Department, on the first of April in years ending in zero, has provided official figures on the number of residents. Under United States rule, 11 censuses have been conducted.\nReaching a level of one million inhabitants took more than 130 years, but the population rose to two million in less than fifty years. Passing three million was an even faster process, taking about four decades. It is expected that the 2010 census will show the Puerto Rico population stabilized around four million, which would imply that reaching the fourth million occurred in less than thirty years.\nAutor: gf Ana L. Dávila Román\nPublished: September 20, 2010."}
{"text": "Erythritol is a sweetener made from sugar alcohols, manufactured to provide a low-calorie substitute for sugar trade, so it is a good alternative when used to sweeten foods without consuming many calories.\nHowever, erythritol may also have certain health problems it is better to know before deciding on a sweetener which on the market.\nWhat is erythritol?\nErythritol is obtained from the fermentation of the natural enzymes contained in the corn and wheat. Because it is a sweetener that the body becomes very slowly glucose, intake not entail risks of alterations in blood sugar, which in turn makes it an artificial sweeteners preferred by diabetics and can not eat sugar.\nNegative effects of erythritol\nBut not everything is beneficial, and erythritol can also cause some health problems. Mainly its laxative reaction, which causes bloating and diarrhea.\nWhile the negative effects depends on the individual and their metabolism, we can say as a general rule that the symptoms you mentioned are more likely in cases of high consumption of the sweetener and infant bodies. It is therefore advisable to pay attention to the recommended amount in each package, and not exceeded in proportion.\nAt the beginning of the article you were saying that erythritol has a much lower level of calories than conventional sugar and other sweeteners, but this does not mean that it lacks them altogether. It is estimated that each grain of erythritol may contain about 2.6 calories, so this information should also be considered for consumption because of an improperly made, in addition to affecting overall health, can cause weight problems or ruin your diet.\nErythritol and trans fats\nYou will also have to consider the other components that accompany a commercial sweetener erythritol. This is due to erythritol does not provide the same taste as sugar, so the companies add to the product other ingredients, like trans fat to improve taste and bring a touch sweeter.\nThis entails that, although we will be consuming less calories than traditional sugar, on the other side will be increasing our intake of fat, with its known harmful effects on the body.\nIt is best that you inspect each product carefully and read carefully the nutritional tables. Those sweeteners that contain Trans fats, should be discarded immediately, because this single ingredient decompensation other benefits that could have the erythritol.\nEnjoy this article?\nYou might also like"}
{"text": "Small Planet Around Kepler -37\nNASA's Kepler mission scientists have discovered a new planetary system that is home to the smallest planet yet found around a star similar to our sun. The planets are located in a system called Kepler-37, about 210 light-years from Earth in the constellation Lyra (the general direction of the star Vega). The smallest planet, Kepler-37b, is slightly larger than our moon, measuring about one-third the size of Earth. It is smaller than Mercury, which made its detection a significant challenge.\nThe moon-size planet and its two companion planets were found by scientists with NASA's Kepler mission to find Earth-sized planets in or near the habitable zone, the region in a planetary system where liquid water might exist on the surface of an orbiting planet. However, while the star in Kepler-37 may be similar to our sun, the system appears quite unlike the solar system in which we live. Kepler-37 is a yellow dwarf, G-type star just like ours.\nAstronomers think Kepler-37b does not have an atmosphere and cannot support life as we know it. The tiny planet almost certainly is rocky in composition. Kepler-37c, the closer neighboring planet, is slightly smaller than Venus, measuring almost three-quarters the size of Earth. Kepler-37d, the farther planet, is twice the size of Earth.\nThe artist's concept image depicts the new planet dubbed Kepler-37b. The planet is slightly larger than our moon, measuring about one-third the size of Earth. Kepler-37b orbits its host star every 13 days at less than one-third the distance Mercury is to the sun. The estimated surface temperature of this smoldering planet, at more than 800 degrees Fahrenheit (700 degrees Kelvin), would melt the zinc in a penny.\nThe first exoplanets found to orbit a other stars were giants. As technologies have advanced, smaller and smaller planets have been found, and Kepler has shown even Earth-size exoplanets are common.\n\"Even Kepler can only detect such a tiny world around the brightest stars it observes,\" said Jack Lissauer, a planetary scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif. \"The fact we've discovered tiny Kepler-37b suggests such little planets are common, and more planetary wonders await as we continue to gather and analyze additional data.\" There are a lot of stars and even more planets.\nKepler-37's host star belongs to the same class as our sun, although it is slightly cooler and smaller. All three planets orbit the star at less than the distance Mercury is to the sun, suggesting they are very hot, inhospitable worlds. Kepler-37c and Kepler-37d, orbit every 21 days and 40 days, respectively. A fairly crowded inner space near the host star.\n\"We uncovered a planet smaller than any in our solar system orbiting one of the few stars that is both bright and quiet, where signal detection was possible,\" said Thomas Barclay, Kepler scientist at the Bay Area Environmental Research Institute in Sonoma, Calif., and lead author of the new study published in the journal Nature. \"This discovery shows close-in planets can be smaller, as well as much larger, than planets orbiting our sun.\"\nThe research team used data from NASA's Kepler space telescope, which simultaneously and continuously measures the brightness of more than 150,000 stars every 30 minutes. When a planet candidate transits, or passes, in front of the star from the spacecraft's vantage point, a percentage of light from the star is blocked. This causes a dip in the brightness of the starlight that reveals the transiting planet's size relative to its star.\nThe size of the star must be known in order to measure the planet's size accurately. To learn more about the properties of the star Kepler-37, scientists examined sound waves generated by the boiling motion beneath the surface of the star. They probed the interior structure of Kepler-37's star just as geologists use seismic waves generated by earthquakes to probe the interior structure of Earth. The science is called asteroseismology.\nAsteroseismology also known as stellar seismology is the science that studies the internal structure of pulsating stars by the interpretation of their frequency spectra. Different oscillation modes penetrate to different depths inside the star. These oscillations provide information about the otherwise unobservable interiors of stars in a manner similar to how seismologists study the interior of Earth and other solid planets through the use of earthquake oscillations\nThe sound waves travel into the star and bring information back up to the surface. The waves cause oscillations that Kepler observes as a rapid flickering of the star's brightness. Like bells in a steeple, small stars ring at high tones while larger stars boom in lower tones. The barely discernible, high-frequency oscillations in the brightness of small stars are the most difficult to measure. This is why most objects previously subjected to asteroseismic analysis are larger than the sun.\nWith the very high precision of the Kepler instrument, astronomers have reached a new milestone. The star Kepler-37, with a radius just three-quarters of the sun, now is the smallest bell in the asteroseismology steeple. The radius of the star is known to 3 percent accuracy, which translates to exceptional accuracy in the planet's size.\nFor further information see Kepler b.\nArtist Concept image NASA/Ames/JPL-Caltech."}
{"text": "Bob Seay of WGBH News and James David Jacobs of Classical New England consider the odd history and captivating power of Aaron Copland's Lincoln Portrait.\nTo hear a performance of Lincoln Portrait with the United States Marine Band, conductor Col. Michael J. Colburn, and narrator Brian Stokes Mitchell, click on \"Listen\" above.\n|Abraham Lincoln, by Alexander Gardner [public domain], via Wikimedia Commons|\nWritten in 1942, Lincoln Portrait, by Aaron Copland, is a rare musical tribute to an American President. It played an inspirational role when it was written, during the dark, early days of World War II.\nBut it continued to inspire over the decades, with countless notable narrators giving voice to the words by Abraham Lincoln that Copland chose for his tribute.\nThose words, though, were chosen from within a surprising cultural context, as Bob Seay explains:\nIf Lincoln's words express the highest ideals of American democracy, Copland's music expresses the diversity of sources that have combined to create an American music and culture, as James David Jacobs writes:\n|Aaron Copland (source: AP)|\nIt’s hard in 2012 to appreciate just how original Copland’s Lincoln Portrait was in 1942. There had been other works that combined spoken text with orchestra, but the combination of serious public statement and serious artistic statement, with ceremony, history, and politics coexisting with music, was, and remains, rare.\nThe music Copland wrote isn’t mere backdrop for the words, the narrator not even speaking until the piece is about half over. That music tells a story, a story of both an individual life and of a nation. It’s also a story of diverse musical influences, reflecting the diverse musical strands that have come together to create an American music.\nThe beginning of the work is typical Copland, with woodwinds uttering soft three-note mottoes in intervals of fourths and fifths. That serenity, however, is answered by unsettling chords. It’s not unlike Ives’s The Unanswered Question and its dialogue between a stark, angular statement and its muddled response.\nThere are also subtle references to the music of Native Americans, engaged in what could be considered Lincoln’s other, less celebrated civil war. The dance-like tone of this section can be considered a sort of analogue to the scherzo in Beethoven’s Eroica symphony, representing both the joys and adventures of the individual heroic figure and the energy and the spirit of the nation and its people.\nThe strands come together, and the music reverts to the unsettled atmosphere of the work’s beginning. Then, just as we’ve almost forgotten about the speaker, he or she begins to speak.\nIt’s too important, Copland seems to be saying, to hide behind the cloak of artistic license, of interpretation and ambiguity. No, the meaning of this music must be spelled out, and when we hear the words of Lincoln we know why.\nCopland has done us a service by providing a frame in which we can ponder these words, which turn out to be as relevant to today’s struggles as they were in the 1860s. The questions posed by the cultural conflicts illustrated in the differing strands of music are still being asked today.\nLincoln and Copland seem to have some things in common. Both pulled off radical, even revolutionary accomplishments while being regarded as accessible and populist. Both took the ideas of acknowledged radicals and made them palatable for a general audience. Both took their roles in the mainstream as serious, important missions, aimed at bringing wildly divergent philosophical camps together. And both were criticized by those selfsame radicals and branded as sellouts or traitors.\nBeyond all that, they occupy similar places in our culture: the historical significance of each has been subject to regular cycles of reassessment, a process that began during each man’s own lifetime. Lincoln Portrait gives us the chance to consider them together, with all the resonance each man’s life and work have for us today.\n- James David Jacobs\nREAD MORE AND HEAR LINCOLN PORTRAIT ON-DEMAND\nComment on This Article\nNews updates from WGBH"}
{"text": "Doctors, medical organizations and the government can claim that healthy population medical screenings for various cancers are of value even if the screening test turns out negative. Of course, the value also depends on how many true positive cases of cancer are turned up and whether early detection plays any role in the overall cure of the cancer. What these medical groups don’t tell the public, because often those advising don’t really know, is what is the frequency of false positive results (detecting a “cancer” when there really is none present)and the harm produced as part of further testing or removal of what was thought to be a cancer but was not.\nAn advance in the knowledge regarding the frequency of false positives picked up in population screening tests and the subsequent harm is now available as an article “Cumulative Incidence of False-Positive Results in Repeated, Multimodal Cancer Screening” by Jennifer Miller Croswell, M.D. and a host of others published in the Annals of Family Medicine\nYou must read the entire article to fully understand how the data was obtained and its significance, but to get started, here is the Abstract of the article.\nPURPOSE Multiple cancer screening tests have been advocated for the general population; however, clinicians and patients are not always well-informed of screening burdens. We sought to determine the cumulative risk of a false-positive screening result and the resulting risk of a diagnostic procedure for an individual participating in a multimodal cancer screening program.\nMETHODS Data were analyzed from the intervention arm of the ongoing Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian (PLCO) Cancer Screening Trial, a randomized controlled trial to determine the effects of prostate, lung, colorectal, and ovarian cancer screening on disease-specific mortality. The 68,436 participants, aged 55 to 74 years, were randomized to screening or usual care. Women received serial serum tests to detect cancer antigen 125 (CA-125), transvaginal sonograms, posteroanterior-view chest radiographs, and flexible sigmoidoscopies. Men received serial chest radiographs, flexible sigmoidoscopies, digital rectal examinations, and serum prostate-specific antigen tests. Fourteen screening examinations for each sex were possible during the 3-year screening period.\nRESULTS After 14 tests, the cumulative risk of having at least 1 false-positive screening test is 60.4% (95% CI, 59.8%–61.0%) for men, and 48.8% (95% CI, 48.1%–49.4%) for women. The cumulative risk after 14 tests of undergoing an invasive diagnostic procedure prompted by a false-positive test is 28.5% (CI, 27.8%–29.3%) for men and 22.1% (95% CI, 21.4%–22.7%) for women.\nCONCLUSIONS For an individual in a multimodal cancer screening trial, the risk of a false-positive finding is about 50% or greater by the 14th test. Physicians should educate patients about the likelihood of false positives and resulting diagnostic interventions when counseling about cancer screening.\nWith more and more publicity regarding healthy population cancer screening, particularly regarding its importance and value in early cancer detection and with more commercial patient requested imaging tests, there has been some concerns in the literature about all this. Specifically there are issues involving the safety of the screening test itself (for example, if X-ray procedures are used) or invasive screening exams (such as sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy). There is also concern about the results of the screening. Are there a large number of false positives as outcome of the screening which lead to additional testing or more invasive procedures with their own risks? In addition, do these false positives lead to unnecessary financial costs of medical care? Is there a benefit for early detection in terms of cancer cure which trumps all the costs and harms which healthy population screening can develop? Answers to these questions within the education the public receives about the need for screening is essential if the public is to accept the screening under ethically and legally appropriate informed consent. The question for doctors, medical organizations and the government is “do we really know and understand what we are advising the public?” ..Maurice.\nGraphic: \"False Results\" created by me using ArtRage and Picasa 3."}
{"text": "Is it possible to multiply the frequency of a digital signal using digital components alone, and at the same time, preserve the duty cycle? I could finally come across the circuit below: it doubles ...\nI'm trying to scope out what frequencies different common analog signals are. The DPScope design specs provides a list of common lower (sub 1 MHz) frequencies (copied below). audio (20 kHz) ...\nI have a clock that is running at 25.175MHz I want to run that signal through some basic logic gates from the 74HC series. I have looked on the datasheet for the 74HC08 (AND Gate), I can't seem to ...\nImportant note: You are not helping me do my homework. This is for a competition for engineering students, that encourages you to \"use your network\" ;) I've got this pattern for a frequency divider ..."}
{"text": "COMMON SENSE DEFINED\nIf we’re going to think about common sense I guess we first need to look for a definition. One dictionary’s definition is:\ncommon sense: (kòm¹en sèns) noun: Native good judgment. [Translation of Latin sênsus commúnis, common feelings of humanity.]\nI get from the reference “native” that a little common sense comes from experience and a little may be given to each of us by God. When I was a child, after getting caught for something I had done, I lost count of the times my grand-mother said, “Sometimes you don’t show the common sense God gave a jackass!” So, from an early age I was informed that God did give us some kind of sense that is supposed to be “native” to our being and that even jackasses have some of this gift. Once a person reaches an age where conscious thought actually occurs, we continue to show signs of a common sense that apparently comes from God. For example, testing has proven that all children have an inborn fear of heights. Without anyone actually receiving lessons, common sense tells a child that if they fall or jump from a high place, they’re only going to fly straight to the bottom and that, most likely, they will only get to do it once. Then there’s common sense learned from experience. As a child growing up in Florida, I once chased down, and caught in my hand, a rather large, brown spider. Notice I said “once”. Fortunately for me the lesson was only painful and not deadly. No one had ever told me that spiders would bite. However, from that point forward, without ANY outside instruction, I was always aware that anything and everything “might” bite. Viola! …. Another seed of common sense had just been planted to hopefully keep at least one fool from early disaster. Unfortunately, this aspect of developing common sense can be somewhat painful, and takes longer with some than others. It does not take much common sense for most of us to know that running into a brick wall full force will be an uncomfortable and unrewarding experience. I have a wonderful daughter, who for some unknown reason, when she was young, insisted on experiencing many of life’s challenges, first-hand, in an equally similar manner with the usual predictable results. ZOOM! SPLAT! OUCH! More than once, she got her nose bloodied, before her common sense finally began to start showing itself.\nI don’t know just how much common sense God actually decided to give the jackass, or if the jackass tried, could he ever improve his station in life beyond being a politician; but I hope and pray that now, as an older adult, I have developed that which the Lord did choose to give me, plus what I have learned the hard way, to a level of being able to help my children and even grand-children, “fine tune” their own common sense, while experiencing fewer bloody noses."}
{"text": "Key: \"S:\" = Show Synset (semantic) relations, \"W:\" = Show Word (lexical) relations\nDisplay options for sense: (gloss) \"an example sentence\"\n- S: (n) fire (the event of something burning (often destructive)) \"they lost everything in the fire\"\n- S: (n) fire, firing (the act of firing weapons or artillery at an enemy) \"hold your fire until you can see the whites of their eyes\"; \"they retreated in the face of withering enemy fire\"\n- S: (n) fire, flame, flaming (the process of combustion of inflammable materials producing heat and light and (often) smoke) \"fire was one of our ancestors' first discoveries\"\n- S: (n) fire (a fireplace in which a relatively small fire is burning) \"they sat by the fire and talked\"\n- S: (n) fire (once thought to be one of four elements composing the universe (Empedocles))\n- S: (n) ardor, ardour, fervor, fervour, fervency, fire, fervidness (feelings of great warmth and intensity) \"he spoke with great ardor\"\n- S: (n) fire (fuel that is burning and is used as a means for cooking) \"put the kettle on the fire\"; \"barbecue over an open fire\"\n- S: (n) fire (a severe trial) \"he went through fire and damnation\"\n- S: (n) fire, attack, flak, flack, blast (intense adverse criticism) \"Clinton directed his fire at the Republican Party\"; \"the government has come under attack\"; \"don't give me any flak\"\n- S: (v) open fire, fire (start firing a weapon)\n- S: (v) fire, discharge (cause to go off) \"fire a gun\"; \"fire a bullet\"\n- S: (v) fire (bake in a kiln so as to harden) \"fire pottery\"\n- S: (v) displace, fire, give notice, can, dismiss, give the axe, send away, sack, force out, give the sack, terminate (terminate the employment of; discharge from an office or position) \"The boss fired his secretary today\"; \"The company terminated 25% of its workers\"\n- S: (v) fire, discharge, go off (go off or discharge) \"The gun fired\"\n- S: (v) fire (drive out or away by or as if by fire) \"The soldiers were fired\"; \"Surrender fires the cold skepticism\"\n- S: (v) arouse, elicit, enkindle, kindle, evoke, fire, raise, provoke (call forth (emotions, feelings, and responses)) \"arouse pity\"; \"raise a smile\"; \"evoke sympathy\"\n- S: (v) burn, fire, burn down (destroy by fire) \"They burned the house and his diaries\"\n- S: (v) fuel, fire (provide with fuel) \"Oil fires the furnace\"\n- S: (v) fire (generate an electrical impulse) \"the neurons fired fast\"\n- S: (v) fire, flame up (become ignited) \"The furnace wouldn't fire\"\n- S: (v) fire, light, ignite (start or maintain a fire in) \"fire the furnace\""}
{"text": "U.S. Virgin Islands are often referred as 'America's Paradise'. Saint Thomas, Saint John and Saint Croix - the three main islands that constitute U.S. Virgin Islands - are surrounded by North Atlantic Ocean on the north and Caribbean Sea on the south. They form Virgin Islands archipelago together with British Virgin Islands, which lie on their west.\nThe islands are popular for their sea, surf, sand and sun and are important tourist attractions of America. Christopher Columbus is credited with discovering the islands in 1493. They were held by European colonial powers such as Spain, Britain, the Netherlands, France and Denmark-Norway one after the other. The Islands were purchased by the United States from Denmark in 1917.\nSaint Thomas is the busiest and the most cosmopolitan of U.S. Virgin Islands. Charlotte Amalie in Saint Thomas is the Caribbeans' most popular cruise ship hub. Saint Thomas pampers its visitors with a wide choice of beaches, each having its own specialty. Magens Bay, St. Thomas' most visited beach, has calm waters and is ideal for swimming and children. Water sports opportunities include boating and kayaking.\nPalm tree-lined beach of Lindberg Bay is picturesque and is perfect for relaxing. There are facilities for a range of water sports. Coki Point is an excellent beach for snorkeling. Saint Thomas is also a shoppers' paradise. One can have bird's eye view of the U.S. Virgin Island from St. Thomas Skyride, a cable car system.\nSaint John is the smallest of U.S. Virgin Islands, but has the best beaches. Trunk Bay is a picturesque beach famous for its white sand and beautiful water. The beach is a popular snorkeling spot. Honeymoon Bay, featuring white sand and crystal clear water, is a quieter beach compared to Trunk Bay.\nHawknest Beach, Great Cruz Bay, Maho Bay and Salomon Beach are just some of the other beaches that Saint John offers. The island, of which a large part is covered by Virgin Islands National Park, has spectacular landscape with lush mountains and beautiful beaches. One can get a peek into Saint John's history and heritage by visiting ruins of sugar plantation sites and rock carvings.\nSaint Croix is the largest of three main U.S. Virgin islands. This island is known for its historical sites, rainforest, beaches and hills. There are plantation villages of yesteryears and other sites related with with the plantation agriculture, which made Saint Croix a major sugar producing island. Colonial architecture coexists with modern buildings across towns of the islands. Palm-lined sunny beaches of Saint Croix present unmatched beauty. Protestant Cay, Mermaid Beach and Shoy's are some of the popular beaches of this island."}
{"text": "This patient support community is for discussions relating to general health issues, adolescents, babies, child health, eating disorders, fitness, immunizations and vaccines, infectious diseases, and senior health.\nIn October, 2010 I was told by my doctor that I had a vitamin d deficiency. My level was 13. My hair was falling out, I was having a lot of back pain, trouble sleeping at night, and I was experiencing memory and concentration problems among other things. Since then I have been taking prescription strength vitamin d at 100,000 IU's per week. I've been on this high dosage for nine months. At one point my level vitamin d level went up to 32. However, they just tested me again (July 26, 2011) and my level has dropped to 26. My doctor now wants me to double my dose to 200,000 UI's for the next three months. Can you tell me why my levels are not going up, and if I should be asking for more blood work? If I need more blood work, what should I request? Any information that you can provide me with will be much appreciated. Thank you in advance.\nDid your doctor administer a 25-hydroxyvitamin test to determine if you have optimal levels of Vitamin D in your blood? In order to get the proper amount of Vitamin D your body requires, you need to be able to find a healthy balance of sunlight, but still reduce your risk of skin cancer, particularly Melanoma. Wear sunscreen every time you are in the sun and keep your sun exposure to 20 minutes at a time.\nLow vitamin D levels occur because of less intake of vitamin D, less exposure to sunlight or as side effects of some diseases. Toxic substances, harmful chemicals, side effects of certain medicines can also give rise to such condition that the level of vitamin D goes down the normal level. It is a rare occurrence that the vitamin D levels is low because of some hereditary diseases. Following are some of the causes for low levels of vitamin D.\nLack of Exposure to Sunlight\nThe layer under the skin produces vitamin D using sunlight. People of certain geographical locations like those in the northern hemisphere have living conditions such that their exposure to sunlight is minimum. Aged people and small babies often do not get enough exposure to sunlight. Aging skin of elderly people needs more time to prepare vitamin D. People with the condition of lupus are sensitive towards sunlight. So, they are advised not to stay out under direct sunlight for a long time. Under all these conditions, the factors responsible for low vitamin D, is absence of sunlight.\nThere are very few food substances that contain naturally occurring vitamin D. Some of the food items that provide us vitamin D are beef liver, fleshy part of the fish, egg yolk, fish oils and cheese. Therefore, vegetarians are more prone to low vitamin D levels.\nAnother very important element that is usually overlooked by conventional doctors is that you need to take magnesium to get the vitamin D to work properly. Usually, just a normal amount of magnesium is all that is required to get the vitamin D to synthesize properly.\nI strongly recommend going to the Vitamin D Council's website to find more information about the magnesium and other supplement connection to vitamin D absorption. Yes, there were other minerals mentioned, but magnesium seems to be the most important one. I urge you to also sign up for their newsletters. Vitamin D deficiency is not funny, because it can kill. It almost killed me. Mine was only 8 when I started out.\nIn addition to that last post. The amount your are stating you are taking is it really that high or did you mean 1,000 or 2,000 IU? That is an incredibly high amount and seems out fo the ball park. Our experience is that we were low but not as low as you are we were around 20 to 30. The recommended daily intake is about 2,000 I.U. but you have to test your blood a few times to get it right and it takes some months for the level to go up. So I tend to absorb it well and only need 1,000 I.U. to get the Vit D to be normal but I was tested every 3 months until the level was at the right amount. My husband has to take 4,000 I.U. in order to be normal. Yes sunlight does help but you need to get out there (with sunscreen on) and it didn't go up for me after walking an hour a day in the sun. So, it depend on your diet and ability to absorb. As the last post said you need magnesium to help.\nThe Content on this Site is presented in a summary fashion, and is intended to be used for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not intended to be and should not be interpreted as medical advice or a diagnosis of any health or fitness problem, condition or disease; or a recommendation for a specific test, doctor, care provider, procedure, treatment plan, product, or course of action. Med Help International, Inc. is not a medical or healthcare provider and your use of this Site does not create a doctor / patient relationship. We disclaim all responsibility for the professional qualifications and licensing of, and services provided by, any physician or other health providers posting on or otherwise referred to on this Site and/or any Third Party Site. Never disregard the medical advice of your physician or health professional, or delay in seeking such advice, because of something you read on this Site. We offer this Site AS IS and without any warranties. By using this Site you agree to the following Terms and Conditions. If you think you may have a medical emergency, call your physician or 911 immediately."}
{"text": "In 1929, the wild financial speculation of the Roaring Twenties came to a sudden halt in October when the stock market began to slide.\nBanker's Committee Stops Panic of '29 Worries spread through the economic community about the passing of the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act. Tariffs had always been a point of contention among Americans, even spurring South Carolina to threaten secession over the Tariff Act of 1828. Producers such as farmers and manufacturers called for protective tariffs while merchants and consumers demanded low prices. The American economy soared while post-war Europe rebuilt in the '20s, and the Tariff Act of 1922 skimmed valuable revenue from the nation's income that would otherwise have been needed as taxes. The country barely noticed, and the economy surged forward as new technological luxuries became available as well as new disposable income.\nMeanwhile, however, the nation faced an increasingly difficult drought while food prices continued to drop during Europe's recovery. Farmers were stretched thinner and thinner, prompting calls for protective agricultural tariffs and cheaper manufactured goods. In his 1928 presidential campaign, Herbert Hoover promised just that, and as the legislature met in 1929, talks on a new tariff began. Led by Senator Reed Smoot (R-Utah) and Representative Willis C. Hawley (R-Oregon), the bill quickly became more than Hoover and the farmers had bargained for as rates would increase to a level exceeding 1828 for industrial products as well as agricultural. A new story by Jeff ProvineThe revenue would be a great boon, but it unnerved economists, who wondered if it could kill the economic growth already slowing by a dipping real estate market.\nThe weakened nerves shifted from economists to investors, who took the heated debate in the Senate as a clue that times may become rough and decided to get out of the stock market while they could. Prices had skyrocketed over the course of the '20s as the middle class blossomed and minor investors came into being. Another hallmark of the '20s, credit, enabled people to buy stock on margin, borrowing money they could invest at what they hoped would be a higher percentage. The idea of a \"money-making machine\" spread, and August of 1929 showed more than $8.5 billion in loans, more than all of the money in circulation in the United States. The market peaked on September 3 at 381.17 and then began a downward correction. At the rebound in late October, panicked selling began. On October 24, what became known as \"Black Thursday\", the market fell more than ten percent. On Friday, it did the same, and the initial outlook for the next week was dire.\nAmid the early selling in October, financiers noted that a crash was coming and met on October 24 while the market plummeted. The heads of firms and banks such as Chase, Morgan, and the National City Bank of New York collaborated and finally placed vice-president of the New York Stock Exchange Richard Whitney in charge of stopping the disaster. Forty-one-year-old Whitney was a successful financier with an American family dating back to 1630 and numerous connections in the banking world who had purchased a seat on the NYSE Board of Governors only two years after starting his own firm. Whitney's initial strategy was to replicate the cure for the Panic of 1907: purchasing large amounts of valuable stock above market price, starting with the \"blue chip\" favorite U.S. Steel, the world's first billion-dollar corporation.\nOn his way to make the purchase, however, Whitney bumped into a junior who was analyzing the banking futures based on the increase of failing mortgages from failing farms and a weakening real estate market. He suggested that the problems of the new market were caused from the bottom-up, and a top-down solution would only put off the inevitable. Instead of his ostentatious show of purchasing to show the public money was still to be had, Whitney decided to use the massive banking resources behind him to support the falling. He made key purchases late on the 24th, and then his staff worked through the night determining what stocks were needlessly inflated, what were solid, and what could be salvaged (perhaps even at a profit). Stocks continued to tumble that Friday, but by Monday thanks to word-of-mouth and glowing press from newspapers and the new radio broadcasts, Tuesday ended with a slight upturn in the market of .02 percent. Numerically unimportant, the recovery of public support was the key success.\nWith the initial battle won, Whitney spearheaded a plan to salvage the rest of the crisis as real estate continued to fall and banks (which were quickly running out of funds as they seized more and more of the market) would soon have piles of worthless mortgaged homes and farms. Banks organized themselves around the Federal Reserve, founded in 1913 after a series of smaller panics and determined rules that would keep banks afloat. Further money came from lucrative deals with the wealthiest men in the country such as John D. Rockefeller, Henry Ford, and the Mellons of Pittsburgh. Businesses managed to continue work despite down-turning sales through loans, though the unemployment rate did increase from 3 to 5 percent over the winter.\nThe final matter was the question of international trade. As the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act continued in the Senate, economists predicted retaliatory tariffs from other countries to kill American exports, but Washington turned a deaf ear. Whitney decided to protect his investments in propping up the economy by investing with campaign contributions. Democrats took the majority as the Republicans fell to Whitney's use of the press to blame the woes of the economy on Congressional \"airheads\". Representative Hawley himself lost his seat in the House, which he had held since 1907, to Democrat William Delzell. President Hoover, a millionaire businessman before entering politics, noted the shift, but remained quiet and dutifully vetoed the new tariff.\nBy 1931, it became steadily obvious that America had shifted to an oligarchy. The banks propped up the market and were propped up themselves by a handful of millionaires. If Rockefeller wanted, he could single-handedly pull his money and collapse the whole of the American nation. Whitney took greater power as Chairman of the Federal Reserve, whose new role controlled indirectly everything of economic and political worth. As the Thirties dragged on, the havoc of the Dust Bowl made food prices increase while simultaneously weakening the farming class, and Whitney gained further power by ousting Secretary of Agriculture Arthur Hyde and installing his own man as a condition for Hoover's reelection in '32.\nChairman Whitney would \"rule\" the United States, wielding public relations power and charisma to give Americans a strong sense of national emergency and patriotism during times like the Japanese War in '35 (which secured new markets in East Asia) and the European Expedition in '39. He employed the Red Scare to keep down ideas of insurrection and used the FBI as a secret police, but his ultimate power would be that, at any point, he could tamper with interest rates or stock and property value, and the country would spiral into rampant unemployment and depression, dragging the rest of the world with it."}
{"text": "Silica fume is a highly pozzolanic material that is used to enhance mechanical and durability properties of concrete. It may be added directly to concrete as an individual ingredient or in a blend of portland cement and silica fume.\nInterest in the use of silica fume resulted from the strict enforcement of air-pollution measures designed to stop release of the material into the atmosphere. Initial use of silica fume in concrete was mostly for cement replacement,along with water-reducing admixtures. Eventually,the availability of high-range water-reducing admixtures(superplasticizers) allowed new possibilities for the use of silica fume to produce high levels of performance.\n* Reduces concrete permeability\n* Increases concrete strength\n* Improves resistance to corrosion"}
{"text": "What is a Mediator?:\nHeavy court caseloads and rising legal costs have prompted many people to settle their legal disputes outside the courtroom through a process known as alternative dispute resolution (ADR). Mediators, also known as arbitrators and conciliators, guide the ADR process and help resolve conflicts between disputing parties.\nJob Duties of Mediators:\nMediators facilitate negotiation and settlement between disputing parties by providing direction and encouragement, working collaboratively with the parties and finding creative ways to reach a mutual solution. Specific duties vary widely depending upon practice setting but may include facilitating discussion and controlling the direction of negotiations; preparing court reports, social case histories, correspondence and other documents; implementing legislative enactments and court rules relating to a case; and keeping abreast of current trends, rules and legislation.\nAlthough many mediators are lawyers and former judges, non-lawyers from all backgrounds are entering the profession. To date, no formal licensing or certification process exists in the U.S. for mediators. Training for mediators is available through independent mediation programs, national and local mediation membership organizations, and postsecondary schools, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. Colleges and universities in the United States are beginning to offer advanced degrees in dispute resolution and conflict management.\nSuperior communication, negotiation, problem-solving, analytical and conflict resolution skills are essential. Mediators must have the ability to maintain confidences, exercise sound judgment and discretion, work collaboratively with others and foster effective working relationships with clients, courts, judicial staff, community agencies and the general public. In addition to a high level of competence, successful mediators are intuitive and able to help meet their clients’ emotional needs. Neutrality, honesty, creativity and patience are also crucial to the mediator’s role.\nAccording to the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, earnings for mediators range from $28,090 to $102,202 per year with median annual wages estimated at $49,490. Hourly rates range from a low of $13.50 to a high of $49.05 with a median hourly wage estimated at $23.80. Most mediators are employed by the state and local government, schools and universities, legal service providers, insurance carriers and corporations.\nAs individuals and businesses seek to avoid the delays, publicity and high costs inherent in litigation, alternative dispute resolution is becoming an increasingly popular alternative to lawsuits. As a result, mediators are expected to experience above average growth in employment.\nThe American Arbitration Association and the American Bar Association Section for Dispute Resolution provide a wealth of information relating to the dispute resolution field.Mediate.com maintains a list of international, national and state conflict resolution organizations."}
{"text": "Cannibalism: The Ancient Taboo in Modern Times\nSexual cannibalism is considered to be a psychosexual disorder, which involves a person sexualizing the consumption of another person's flesh. This does not necessarily suggest that the cannibal achieves sexual gratification only in the act of consuming human flesh, but also may release sexual frustration or pent up anger. Sexual cannibalism is considered to be a form of sexual sadism and is often associated with the act of necrophilia (sex with corpses). There have been several high profile cases, which have involved sexual cannibalism, including that of Andrei Chikatilo, Edward Gein, Albert Fish, Armin Mewes and Jeffrey Dahmer.\nDuring the 1920's Americans were confronted with the horrors of Albert Fish who was said to have raped, murdered and eaten a number of children. Fish was a sexual cannibal in the truest sense of the term and claimed to have experienced enormous sexual pleasure when he imagined eating a person or when he actually indulged his fantasies.\nAndrei Chikatilo, a Russian serial killer, was responsible for the murders of scores of young boys and girls. During most of his life, Chikalito suffered from impotency and was only able to achieve sexual gratification from the torture and murder of other people. He would often mutilate and then consume the flesh of his victims, including the breasts, genitalia and internal sex organs, as well as other body parts. It is possible that he also achieved sexual gratification when cannibalizing. Chikatilo claimed that he was disgusted by the \"loose morals\" of many of his victims, who served as painful reminders of his own sexual incompetence. Moira Martingale writes in Cannibal Killers that many of the murders Chikatilo committed came after viewing sexually explicit or violent videos.\nEdward Gein, a farmer from Plainfield, Wisconsin was as believed to have killed at least three people including his brother, a bar keeper named Mary Hogan and the owner of the local hardware store, Bernice Worden. In 1957, police searched Gein's home and found the body of Worden along with the remains of over fifteen other women. A majority of the remains found at the crime scene were robbed from a nearby cemetery. Gein was believed to have had sexual contact with the corpses.\nHe was also an admitted transvestite, who found delight in dismembering the bodies and peeling away the skin of the corpses so that he could wear them around the house. Gein was known to have cannibalized some of the bodies, including Worden's whose heart was in a pan on the stove at the time police conducted their search of the house. Whether Gein sexualized the consumption of his victims was unclear. However, there was a strong relationship between his necrophilia and cannibalistic behavior.\nIntriguingly, some people that claim to be cannibals have admitted to feeling a sense of euphoria and/or intense sexual stimulation when consuming human flesh. In an article written by Clara Bruce titled Chew On This: You're What's for Dinner, anthropophagists compared eating human flesh with having an orgasm. The experience was further believed to cause an out-of-body-experience causing effects comparable to taking mescaline.\nAccording to Lesley Hensel, author of Cannibalism as a Sexual Disorder, eating human flesh can cause an increase in levels of vitamin A and amino acids, which can cause a chemical effect on the blood and in the brain. This chemical reaction could possibly lead to the altered states that some cannibals have claimed to have experienced. However, this theory has not been substantiated by scientific evidence.\nIn Fascination with Cannibalism has Sexual Roots, Josh Cannon writes about psychologist Steven Scher and his team who conducted one of the only known studies on sex and cannibalism at Eastern Illinois University in 2002. The study surveyed several groups of people who were asked questions pertaining to cannibalism and sexual interests. The results of the study found that people were more likely to eat someone that they were sexually attracted to than not. This suggests that there might be a significant sexual component in the practice of cannibalism."}
{"text": "BP still has to pay the government for that little slip-up that happened last year. The Clean Water Act imposes punitive damages for any act of pollution carried out in US waters, with fines proportional to the magnitude of the environmental impact. For oil spills, damages are calculated according to the amount of hydrocarbons leaked into the water column. The Macondo well hemorrhaged oil for 89 days. That’s a whole lotta fine dollaz. Damages look set to total between $5.4 and $21 billion dollars, depending government’s final estimate of oil spilled.\nBut Congress has to decide how that money gets spent – and thankfully, the House and Senate are trying to move quickly to pass the bill. The fine money is tentatively set to be divided amongst five areas:\n- 35 percent would be divided equally among the five Gulf states for economic and ecological recovery activities along the coast.\n- 30 percent would be dedicated to the development and implementation of a comprehensive restoration plan. A new Gulf Coast Restoration Council — made up of representatives from all five states — would dictate the scope of that plan.\n- 30 percent would be disbursed by the council to Gulf Coast states, with the allocation dictated in part by spill impact.\n- 5 percent would go to a new long-term science and fisheries endowment and to a Gulf Coast research, science and technology program.\nLast October, President Barack Obama established the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force to come up with a plan to not only restore ecosystems damaged by the spill but also to repair decades of past damage done by efforts to reengineer the Mississippi River and expand oil and gas drilling in gulf marshes. The task force, made up of senior federal officials and representatives from the five Gulf Coast states of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, held a series of public meetings over the past year and sought input from a wide range of scientists.\nThe result is a set of sweeping but relatively general recommendations aimed at bolstering both the science and the political support needed to tackle some highly complex restoration challenges. It sets out four major goals—restoring and conserving habitat, restoring water quality, replenishing and protecting living coastal and marine resources, and enhancing community resilience—along with 19 “major actions” needed to accomplish the goals.\nThe need for better science gets plenty of ink—including calls for more comprehensive gulf monitoring and data-collection systems. But the report also notes that “the dire state of many elements of the Gulf ecosystem cannot wait for scientific certainty and demand immediate action.” To avoid delays, the panel proposes an “adaptive management” process of “learning by doing, wherein flexibility is built into projects, and actions can be changed based on” new science and progress toward goals."}
{"text": "- Definition of syncopation in the Online Dictionary. Meaning of syncopation. Pronunciation of syncopation. Translations of syncopation. syncopation synonyms, syncopation antonyms. Information about syncopation in the free online English. — “syncopation - definition of syncopation by the Free Online”,\n- Also, if the musician suddenly does not play anything on beat 1, that would also be syncopation. Playing a note ever-so-slightly before or after a beat is another form of syncopation because this produces an unexpected accent. — “Syncopation - Definition”,\n- Syncopation. In music, syncopation includes a variety of rhythms which are in some way unexpected in that they deviate from the strict succession of regularly spaced strong and weak but also powerful beats in a meter (pulse) In music, syncopation includes a variety of rhythms which are in some. — “Syncopation”,\n- Syncopation definition, a shifting of the normal accent, usually by stressing the normally unaccented beats. See more. — “Syncopation | Define Syncopation at ”,\n- Syncopations can happen anywhere: in the melody, the bass line, the rhythm section, the chordal accompaniment. Ragtime, for example, would hardly be ragtime without the jaunty syncopations in the melody set against the steady unsyncopated bass. — “Syncopation”,\n- Syncopation Software is a leading provider of decision support software tools including decision ***ysis software, risk ***ysis Founded as a spin-off from a first-tier consulting organization, Syncopation develops products that go beyond the basics to give you exceptional insight into real-world. — “DPL Decision Tree & Business Risk ***ysis Software”,\n- More simply, syncopation is a general term for a disturbance or interruption of the Syncopation is used in many musical styles, and is fundamental in black-influenced styles. — “Syncopation - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia”,\n- (Click to enlarge) syncopation from Mozart's Symphony no. 25 syncopation n. Music . A shift of accent in a passage or composition that occurs when a. — “syncopation: Definition from ”,\n- Welcome to ! Practicing Smart • Musical Theory • Musical Syncopation • Improvising on the Piano • Laurel Webster. Copyright2010 Loraine & Chris Plante. All Rights Reserved. website design by C. — “Musical Syncopation”,\n- Syncopation.TV is the means by which we exhibit, ***yze and discuss the fascinating world of music across genre, cultural, age and national boundaries. This is the place where you can further explore music and the men and women dedicated to this art and craft. — “Syncopation.TV - Home”, syncopation.tv\n- Syncopation ( pronounced SINK-o-PAY-shun) is hearing the beat when you don't expect to. When notes begin before or after a strong beat, you have syncopation. Listen to this rhythm in Example 1. The notes fall on the beats. This is not syncopation. Now listen to Example 2. — “Syncopation”, empire.k12.ca.us\n- I've been testing out Syncopation using the new iTunes release from Apple and have found Syncopation 2.2 to be fully compatible with iTunes 10. Syncopation has been thoroughly tested on Snow Leopard, and I'm happy to say that no compatibility issues have been found. — “Sonzea - Home”,\n- In music the word syncopation has a very specific meaning. Actually, the main syncopation in cha-cha happens on beat two (usually the first part of a rock step), I'll explain why shortly. — “Syncopation in dance and music”,\n- on | off. enter. — “Syncopation Official Web Site”,\n- For other uses of the same name, see Syncopation (disambiguation). In music, syncopation includes a variety of rhythms which are in some way unexpected in that they deviate from the strict succession of regularly spaced strong and weak but also powerful beats in a meter (pulse). — “Syncopation - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia”,\n- Syncopation is a musical process that involves adding an unexpected element to the basic beat of a musical composition. At times, the syncopation adds more beats, while at other times it delays or changes the sense of a particular beat in the line of rhythm. — “What Is Syncopation?”,\n- Dynamic Syncopation music profile on Yahoo! Music. Find lyrics, free streaming MP3s, music videos and photos of Dynamic Syncopation on Yahoo! Music. — “Dynamic Syncopation on Yahoo! Music”,\n- Syncopation Makes It Move. Introduction. Syncopation is the wonderful effect which is created when notes which are supposed to fall in a certain place surprise the ear and fall somewhere else. When the accent falls off the beat, or if there is silence on the beat, then syncopation occurs. — “Music Concepts Online: Syncopation Lecture”, neiu.edu\n- Syncopation. Syncopation is a disturbance or interruption of the regular flow of rhythm. Syncopation shifts this emphasis, or, to put it another way, it places the accent on the wrong syllable. — “Syncopation: Excerpts from The NPR Classical Music Companion”, kennedy-\n- syncopation in a folk context, check out the examples below. In this example, there is a syncopated melody over a simple quarter-note bass part, which. — “Syncopation”,\n- Syncopation is used in many musical styles, including classical music, but it is fundamental in such styles as reggae, ragtime, rap, jump blues, jazz and often in dubstep. In the form of a back beat, syncopation is used in virtually all contemporary popular music. — “Syncopation - New World Encyclopedia”,\n- The Elite Syncopation quintet has been touring the United States from coast to coast for over a decade, Elite Syncopation tours nationally, giving dozens of concerts a year, both locally in Connecticut and throughout the rest of the country. Click here for booking information. — “Elite Syncopation: Who We Are”,\nrelated images for syncopation\n- Divine Syncopation Body Being Neighbor and Conscience\n- Mara Galeazzi\n- Divine Syncopation Being detail\n- Home | Browse | About Previous\n- Avoid playing these exercises by ear or by simply following the rhythmical sense Look carefully at your notes and follow the peculiar division of time Observe the syncopation Emphasize the time well Notice the change in the position of the hand also the fingering\n- SYNCOPATION2 1 jpg t=1227738298\n- carefully at your notes and follow the peculiar division of time Observe the syncopation Emphasize the time well Notice the change in the position of the hand also the fingering\n- Divine Syncopation Body detail\n- Syncopation Semale jpg\n- ROOM VIEWS FOR DISPLAY PURPOSES ONLY MAY NOT BE TO SCALE\n- SYNCOPATION4 jpg t=1227738273\n- html 24 Jul 2008 17 55 thumbs 04 Dec 2007 03 59 Syncopation2 jpg 25 Jun 2007 17 21 136k JAZZ TRUMPET II jpg 25 Jun 2007 17 21 140k\n- PARTITURA 4 4 BODHRAN\n- technique syncopation003B gif\n- SYNCOPATION2 jpg t=1227738243\n- PARTITURA 4 4 BODHRAN\n- SYNCOPATION3 jpg t=1227738257\n- After sufficient discussion has taken place a verdict can then be passed based on a majority vote Band Syncopation Genre Vocal Jazz Website\n- I ll make it easy for y all\n- I ve been struggling to figure out an efficient way to share music with other people in my household for a while now Until now my solution has been to copy files on to Time Capsule so that\n- SYNCOPATION1 1 jpg t=1227738314\n- Syncopation Screen\n- Syncopation Mixed media on 140 Arches Watercolor Paper 5 5 x 7 5 Click here for larger image $100\n- box cover costume jewelry rusty metal objects plastic doll s eye embossed wall paper 1962 dictionary text reproduction 1864 newspaper and acrylic paint Closer view of figure Left side of box\n- LRendezvous jpg 25 Jun 2007 17 21 140k Le Jongleur jpg 25 Jun 2007 17 21 141k Syncopation1 jpg 25 Jun 2007 17 21 141k Claire de Lune jpg 25 Jun 2007 17 21 141k\n- Pobrań 1 Powiększ obrazek\n- seemed that the paint work was peeling near the first window at the bow end just on the gunnel It seemed to be a to large area to be cruising damage and the primer coat seemed to be exposed Regards\n- 100 Schick Hybriden Syncopation 1999 1645 17 Temptress 1997 622 3\n- This is what it took back in the day when Russ first gained the Syncopation Broach\n- Syncopation Fresh Start\n- PARTITURA 4 4 BODHRAN\n- 183 X\n- Paragon s Syncopation Jenna Breeder Owner Handler Mary Fedders\n- BANJO BANJO BANJO PLECTRUM BANJOS TENOR BANJOS BANJO BOOKS BANJO LESSONS BANJO CHORDS BANJO SONGS\nrelated videos for syncopation\n- Syncopated Rhythm Linedance\n- But Not For Me - Syncopation iTunes: Syncopation vocal jazz quartet performs \"But Not For Me\" in Boston, Massachusetts, March 30, 2009. Aubrey Logan, Lee Abe, David Thorne Scott, and Christine Fawson perform.\n- Drum Online - Bass drum syncopation Clip from the forthcoming 'Drum Online - Drum tuition vol 1' dvd. Matt Parker demonstrates quarter note grooves incoporating bass drum syncopation.\n- Syncopation + Improvisation Just playing around using some syncopated grooves and fills.\n- Aces of Syncopation - His Eye is on the Sparrow Aces of Syncopation (Netherlands) featuring MACHTELD CAMBRIDGE AND BROOKS TEGLER Robert Veen,sax; Paul Habraken, sousaphone; Johan Lammers, banjo, Harry Kanters, piano; special guests: Brooks Tegler, drums and Machteld Cambridge, vocals. Recorded by (Thanks!) at: Gospelservice Jazzweekend Berg en op Zoom, May 18-2008 Aces of Syncopation - Netherlands\n- 12/8ths African Drum Beats With Syncopated Ride Cymbals : 12/8ths African Drum Beats With Syncopated Cymbals: Part 1 Learn to play 12/8ths African drum patterns with syncopated ride cymbal patterns and conga off the beat or on the beat. Free video drum lessons featuring a professional drummer and drum teacher!\n- Elite Syncopations - Scott Joplin Another piece by Scott Joplin I like to play!\n- English Country Garden-syncopated piano cover Dan's interpretation of the childhood classic \"In an English Country Garden\" with syncopation.\n- Mirrwatnga used E yidaki | Adam Marrilaga | slow syncopation Jonathon Mirrwatnga made this yidaki, a very rustic and simple-looking instrument. But give it a blow and you'll be surprised that it punches above its weight. Quite extraordinary considering its modest size and shape, and that it has been 'bandaged' in parts with duct tape... I like the slow syncopation that Adam Laga plays on this yirdaki especially the first few seconds: dith-du, ditj-du, ditj-du-drong-ditj-du, ditj-du, du-du-ditj-du-du... This instrument is for sale for those who are interested in yidaki of the highest cultural integrity. It isn't the prettiest thing but it is the real deal: .au\n- Dynamic Syncopation & Massinfluence - 2 Tha Left from Xen Cuts.\n- Chuck Rainey (examples of his syncopation) My rendition of his trademark bouncy feel from \"Coalition\" he made with Cornell Dupree, Eric Gayle, Richard Tee and I think, Bernard Purdie. This style of syncopation became the theme for Carol Kaye bass books\n- Hal Galper Master Class - Rhythm and Syncopation and please check out Hal's Trio recording, E Pluribus Unum - Live in Seattle http And: From a clinic at the University of Colorado in Boulder, April 2, 2010\n- Lee Ritenour - Sweet Syncopation From the album First Course\n- Julianne Johnson with syncopation For use with the Beyond Bum-Ditty lesson. Julianne Johnson played slowly twice and then at speed, using the syncopation discussed in the lesson. The original lesson has two parts: Part 1: Part 2: --Cathy Moore\n- Tango Lesson: Syncopated Snake Walk + Sustained Volcada Homer and Cristina Ladas perform a didactic demo at the end of an argentine tango class.\n- Elite Syncopations by Scott Joplin Ben Washburn, age 15, playing Elite Syncopations by Scott Joplin. This is the second Scott Joplin piece I have learned on the piano.\n- Dynamic Syncopation - No Qualms Various Artists : \"Ninja Cuts Vol. 3 - Funkungfusion\"\n- Hugo and Fritz Kreisler Syncopation Hugo Kreisler on cello, Fritz Kreisler on violin, and Charlton Keith on piano playing Fritz Kreisler's \"Syncopation\"\n- Life Syncopation - Jazztronik Life Syncopation by Jazztronik from the album Love Tribe (2007)\n- Dynamic Syncopation - The Plan Ninja Tunes - Dynamic Syncopation - The Plan music video.\n- Fritz Kreisler: Syncopation This is Fritz Kreisler´s own (and very rare) arrangement of \"Syncopation\", originally for violin and piano. Recorded 02/2010. Piano tro: MusicA Tre: Ernst Ueckerman, piano; Stephan Knies, violin; Birgit Boehme, cello. More info about MusicA Tre at\n- Dynamic Syncopation - Veteran's Leg Dynamic Syncopation - Veteran's Leg Dynamism (1999) Ninja Tune\n- Syncopation Emphasizing the offbeat and the unexpected weak beats can be more fun than most realize. This video also builds upon the concept of independence between the offbeat bass drum and the on beat snare with the ride/hihat hand...\n- Scott Joplin-Elite Syncopation A Rag Time Piano solo\n- Billy Ocean - Syncopation - 1984\n- How Music Works: Rhythm - Accent & Syncopation \"Humans are naturally musical.\" In this segment of Howard Goodall's 2006 documentary, a major exponent of why we enjoy music is explained in very clear and concise points. He traces the roots of syncopation back to Africa, long before the West could grasp the concept, and explains the evolution of the shifting of accents in Western music using Philip Glass's \"Akhenaten\" vs. Handel's \"Zadok the Priest\" to illustrate.\n- West Coast Swing Ladies Syncopations ! West Coast Swing Ladies Syncopations & Variations with Laurie Schwimmer!\n- Syncopation - It's Jazzy\n- Dynamic Syncopation - The Essence Dynamic Syncopation - The Essence from Dynanism\n- Dynamic Syncopation - The Plan (feat. Juice Aleem) Dynamism '1999\n- West Coast Swing Syncopations That Sizzle Michael Kiehm & Janelle Walton.\n- Both Sides Now- Syncopation Syncopation performs \"Both Sides Now\" at Spookappella at TCAN. Aubrey Logan, Christine Fawson, David Scott, Tsunenori \"Lee\" Abe\n- Modern Blues Harmonica - syncopation 1 (Gussow.089) Jungle rhythms, bathtub gin, and white girls gone bad: harpist Adam Gussow evokes the origins of \"sinful syncopation,\" using ***ogies from stock car racing, and shows you how to \"advance the spark\" to boost the horsepower on your own harp playing. Blues Harmonica Secrets Revealed! DVD\n- Dynamic syncopation ft. yeshua da poED - the essence dropped 1999 on ninja tune produced by dynamic syncopation\n- Syncopation - Anna Piotrowski Syncopation by Fritz Kreisler performed by Anna Piotrowski at the 2008 Preludio Kreisler Concert, Ithaca NY\n- Reggae rhythm guitar lesson pt3 syncopation Reggae strumming guitar lesson pt3 I use No, No, No by Dawn Penn to show reggae rhythm on the guitar. I play a G&L tribute asat special electric guitar. The chords I use are mainly Am and D and I slide down to the C and to G Free MP3's of my stuff at http\n- Syncopation by Fritz Kreisler\n- Free Guitar Lessons: Country Blues Fingerpicking : All About Syncopation & Blues Fingerpicking Learn about syncopation as you learn how to fingerpick the blues on the guitar, from a professional guitar player in this free video music lesson. Expert: Amanda Claire Bio: Amanda Claire is a leather artist currently living in Austin, Texas, where she specializes on custom pieces that blend traditional technique with modern designs. Filmmaker: MAKE | MEDIA\n- syncopation.wmv In answer to a Banjohangout thread, I use a guitar and a banjo to discuss the syncopation of a melody\n- Acid house from 1958 ... Tom dissevelt & Kid Baltan ( Dick Raaijmakers ) syncopation In 1958, Philips tried to make \"popular\" electronic music. For a couple of years \"room 306\" of the Philips laboratory in Eindhoven was allowed to make records like this. It did not catch on. You could say they were 30 years ahead of their time... klassieke muziek remix\ntwitter about syncopation\nBlogs & Forum\nblogs and forums about syncopation\n“Syncopation November 14, 2008. In Knitting, My designs | 1 comment. Bet you didn't think I'd actually get this done today, did you. Pattern: Syncopation, of my own devising. Model: Rowanspun DK. Yup, this yarn is discontinued. I have it on good authority”\n— Syncopation | Fiber Dreams,\n“Guitar Noize is a guitar blog focussing on guitar news, crazy guitar designs, Syncopation experiment”\n— Syncopation experiment,\n“Forum Intro. Greeley Central Drumline Forum. http://syncopation.aimoo. and Exercises. Schedules. Sectionals >> Go to Greeley Central Drumline Forum. Similar Forums”\n— Greeley Central Drumline Forum - Aimoo,\n“Myspace profile for Syncopation. Find friends, share photos, keep in touch with classmates, and meet new people on Myspace”\n— Syncopation on Myspace Music - Free Streaming MP3s, Pictures,\n— Pandora FAQ,\n“Before starting to explain what musical syncopation is, it is response, or trackback from your own site. Posted in Music by Mickys-Blog No Comments Yet. Leave a Comment”\n— What is Musical Syncopation And How Does It Work?,\n“Syncopation. Saturday, 27 October 2007. If you are Pagan and have a blog, then we would To join Syncopation's Pagan Blog List: You must display one of the buttons which are on”\n“Songwriting and Music Forum > Community Blog > Songstuff Stuff > syncopation. off. Subscribe to Songstuff Our resident drumming expert Tom Hoffman introduces Syncopation and discusses why it is so important for drummers”\n— Songwriting and Music Forum -> Songstuff Stuff,\n“Submitted by syncopation on Thu, 03/29/2007 - 9:43pm. Related topics: Submitted by syncopation on Thu, 03/29/2007 - 5:31pm. Related topics: love. poem. poetry”\n— syncopation's blog | The Icarus Project,"}
{"text": "Commemorations for Kiahk 15\nThis day marks the departure of St. Gregory, the Patriarch of the Armenians who was a martyr, without bloodshed (A Confessor). This saint, as it was mentioned on the 19th day of the Coptic month of Tute, was tortured by Tiridates, the Armenian king, in the year 272 A.D. for disobeying the king and refusing to worship the idols. The king cast the saint into an empty pit where he lived for 15 years, during which God took care of him.\nNear the pit lived an old widow, who saw, in a vision, someone telling her to make bread regularly and cast it into this pit. She continued to do so for 15 years. Because of the length of time, no one in his congregation knew if he was alive or dead.\nWhen the king killed Arbsima, the virgin, and all the virgins who were with her, he also ordered that their bodies be cast away on the mountains. Later on he regretted what he did for he wanted to marry Arbsima.\nWhen the king's family and close advisers saw how he grieved for killing St. Arbsima, they advised him to go out for hunting to recreate himself. While he was riding his horse the Devil jumped on him and cast him on the ground. King Tiridates became possessed with an evil spirit and assumed the appearance and manners of a wild boar, to an extent that no one was able to go near him safely. Many of the people of his kingdom had the same fate. Great fear and crying was heard all over the palace and the kingdom as a result of what had happened to the king and many others as a result of what the king did to the virgins.\nThe king's sister saw a vision on three consecutive nights. A man was telling her that unless she brought St. Gregory out of the pit, the King would not be saved nor would be cured. The people were surprised, since they believed that he was dead. They went to the pit and dropped a rope and called his name. When the saint moved the rope, they knew that he was still alive, they asked him to tie the rope around him and they pulled him out.\nThe people took the Saint with great honor to the palace. They asked him to heal the king of his sickness. The Saint asked him if he would go back to his evil deeds. When the king expressed no intention of going back to his evil works, the saint prayed for him, and the evil spirit departed from him. His personality and his mind were restored, but he was not completely cured. The nails of his hands and feet remained like those of a boar as a punishment and as a reminder to him of what he was and in order for him not to go back to his evil works.\nThe saint inquired about the whereabouts of the bodies of the virgins. He went and found them undecayed and he placed them in an honorable place.\nSt. Gregory cured all who were sick and cast out many devils. The king and his people believed. He taught and baptized them. He built many churches, ordained bishops and priests for them and he instituted laws for them to follow.\nWhen he completed his strife, he departed in peace.\nHis prayers be with us and Glory be to our God forever. Amen."}
{"text": "In the era of Facebook and Twitter, it's clear we love talking about ourselves—indeed, the topic makes up 40% of our everyday conversation. Now scientists can explain why: Doing so stimulates the brain the same way sex, food, and cash do. Researchers scanned subjects' brains and found that parts linked to those pleasures lit up when subjects chatted about themselves.\nResearchers also offered study subjects up to 4 cents per question to talk about topics other than themselves, like President Obama. Turns out \"people were even willing to forgo money in order to talk about themselves,\" says a researcher. Subjects would part with 17% to 25% of the potential cash for an opportunity for self-disclosure, the Wall Street Journal reports."}
{"text": "Israel was born as a sanctuary for a people banished from their homeland, harassed in exile and ultimately subjected to mass murder. But there is more than one population here that meets this description. For, the Jewish state is home to another dispersed, insular and tradition-bound nation that has suffered through the trauma of exile and one of the most devastating genocides of modern times.\nSome 1.5 million Circassians were killed in the Caucasian War of the mid-to-late 19th century, and another million — fully 90% of the population — were deported from their land in the Caucasus Mountains. Today, roughly 4,000 Circassians live in Israel, where they constitute the country’s only Sunni Muslim community that sends each of its sons to the military.\nRead post on Arty Semite blog about Israeli museums’ spotlight on Circassians.\n“We’ve traditionally been friends with both Jews and Arabs, even when they were fighting among themselves,” said Zoher Thawcho, the 39-year-old co-founder of the Circassian Heritage Center in Kfar Kama. “We don’t see everything Israel does as holy, nor what the Arab states or Palestinians do…. It’s not as if we say, ‘From now on we’re with you, so we’re enemies of the other.’”\nMost Circassians (sur-CASH-ins) took refuge in the lands of the Ottoman Empire. Today, 2 million of the world’s 7 million Circassians live in Turkey, with another 120,000 in Syria and 100,000 in Jordan. Circassians were Christian for 1,000 years, but from the 16th to the 19th century became Islamized under the influence of Crimean Tatars and Ottoman Turks.\nIn Israel, the community is spread across two villages in the green hills of the Galilee: Kfar Kama — 13 miles southwest of Tiberias, population 3,000; and Rehaniya — nine miles north of Safed, population 1,000. In the 16th century, the Circassians also founded Abu Ghosh, now a famous restaurant town located west of Jerusalem, but their progeny long ago adopted the Arabic language and culture of their surroundings.\n“Circassians are like a prism that shows just how polarized Israeli society is,” said Chen Bram, an anthropologist who is currently working as a professor at the University of Florida. “It’s as if someone who doesn’t fit into the category of either Jew or Arab is from another planet. They’re neither here nor there.\n“In terms of their day-to-day lives, both politically and ideologically, they’re closer to Jewish society. But in recent years, on the margins, there has also been more identification with their Islamic identity. I attribute that to a reaction to various racist remarks that have been thrown their way.”"}
{"text": "Severe dyslexia is caused by disorientation, which for dyslexic people means that they have an innacurate perception of the words. That is, they might see the letters of the words jumbled around in all sorts of different ways. There is no way that a dyslexic person who suffers from this sort of disorientation can ever remember a word, because the word seems different every time they look at it.\nThere is no single pattern of difficulty that affects all dyslexic people. A dyslexic person might have any of the following problems:\n- She might see some letters as backwards or upside down;\n- She might not be able to tell the difference between letters that look similar in shape such as o and e and c ;\n- She might not be able to tell the difference between letters that have similar shape but different orientation, such as b and p and d and q ;\n- The letters might look all jumbled up and out of order;\n- The letters and words might look all bunched together;\n- The letters of some words might appear completely backwards, such as the word bird looking like drib\n- The letters and words might look o.k., but the dyslexic person might get a severe headache or feel sick to her stomach every time she tries to read;\n- She might see the letters o.k., but not be able to sound out words -- that is, not be able to connect the letters to the sounds they make and understand them;\n- She might be able to connect the letters and sound out words, but not recognize words she has seen before, no matter how many times she has seen them -- each time she would have to start fresh;\n- She might be able to read the words o.k. but not be able to make sense of or remember what she reads, so that she finds herself coming back to read the same passage over and over again.\nThe dyslexic people might see the letters of the words jumbled around in all sorts of different ways."}
{"text": "Talking to Your Doctor About Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)\nYou have a unique medical history. Therefore, it is essential to talk with your doctor about your personal risk factors and/or experience with\ngeneralized anxiety disorder\n(GAD). By talking openly and regularly with your doctor, you can take an active role in your care.\nHere are some tips that will make it easier for you to talk to your doctor:\n- Bring someone else with you. It helps to have another person hear what is said and think of questions to ask.\n- Write out your questions ahead of time, so you don't forget them.\n- Write down the answers you get, and make sure you understand what you are hearing. Ask for clarification, if necessary.\n- Don't be afraid to ask your questions or ask where you can find more information about what you are discussing. You have a right to know.\n- Tell your doctor about your constant worry and tension, or any other signs of GAD, such as aches and pains for no reason, or trouble sleeping.\n- Tell your doctor if these problems keep you from doing everyday things and living your life.\n- Ask for a checkup to check for other illnesses.\n- Ask your doctor if he or she has helped other people with GAD. Special training helps doctors treat people with GAD. If your doctor doesn't have special training, ask for the name of a doctor or counselor who does.\n- What treatment options are available for GAD?\nIf your doctor prescribes medicine, ask:\n- How long will it take to work?\n- What benefits can I expect?\n- What side effects should I watch for?\n- Can you recommend a counselor who treats people with GAD?\nIf you decide to try counseling, interview counselors and find one with whom you feel comfortable discussing your problems. You should ask the counselor about:\n- His training and experience in treating anxiety disorders\n- His basic approach to treatment\n- The length of treatment\n- The length and frequency of treatment sessions\n- What health insurance is accepted\n- Fee schedules and sliding scale fees to accompany various financial circumstances\nAsk your doctor or counselor about lifestyle changes that could help you reduce your anxiety and stress symptoms. Examples may include:\n- Caffeine and alcohol use\n- Getting adequate sleep\n- Relaxation and stress management techniques\n- What are my chances of recovering from GAD with treatment? Without treatment?\n- Will I have a recurrence of GAD and related conditions? What can I do to prevent these?\nGeneralized anxiety disorder (GAD). Anxiety Disorders Association of America website. Available at:\n. Accessed October 29, 2008.\nGeneralized anxiety disorder.\nNational Institute of Mental Health website. Available at:\n. Update June 2008. Accessed October 29, 2008.\nHahn RK, Reist C, et al.\nPsychiatry. Laguna Hills, CA: Current Clinical Strategies Publishing; 2006.\nLast reviewed September 2012 by Rimas Lukas, MD\nPlease be aware that this information is provided to supplement the care provided by your physician. It is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. CALL YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDER IMMEDIATELY IF YOU THINK YOU MAY HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider prior to starting any new treatment or with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.\nCopyright © EBSCO Publishing. All rights reserved."}
{"text": "- Historic Sites\nThe Winter Soldiers,\nDecember 1973 | Volume 25, Issue 1\nThat was the end of the campaigning in 1776. Washington went into winter quarters and waited for a spring that would bring new hardships. Most of his soldiers went home, to be replaced by unpromising recruits. But now, for the rest of the war, there would be among these green men a leavening of veterans who had seen Hessians surrender and British regulars run from a pitched battle and who would not forget the sight. As Ketchum writes, “The Americans’ revolution survived—survived in some mysterious way that no one could quite fathom—in no small part because of what George Washington and his soldiers achieved against all the odds that nature and a vastly superior military force could pit against them. … Because of their accomplishments, the waning days of 1776 were not the end of everything, but a new beginning.”\nThe Winter Soldiers is the story of the men who brought about that new beginning; it is a story that cannot be told too often and has rarely been told so well."}
{"text": "|Paradise in Peril: Chilkoot's Brown Bears|\nby Lincoln Larson\nMarch 10, 2004\n: The Chilkoot Brown Bear Project\nI uttered the habitual salutation as I began the trek down from my isolated research cabin to the banks of Southeast Alaskaís Chilkoot River. Although I saw no evidence of recent bear activity through the light of my headlamp, I had no intention of startling a 700-pound sow with cubs in the predawn of that cold, rainy September day. At 5:00 AM, I was the only human being walking along the river.\nAs I approached my observation post, I heard splashing nearby. Straining my eyes in the darkness, I struggled to find the source of the commotion. Through my binoculars, I could just a make out the silhouette of a subadult grizzly devouring salmon carcasses on the riverís far bank, 60 meters away. At that distance, I was in no danger. Suddenly I froze. A large, dark form shot into my field of view, no more than 10 meters away. Even in the dark, I immediately recognized the shape of a large female brown bear. As I slowly and quietly backed away, two cubs ran up the bank and onto the road where I was standing. I managed to move behind the trunk of a spruce tree. My trembling fingers clutched the cannister of bear spray fastened to my beltóa last resort in case of a grizzly charge. The bears were obviously aware of my presence, but upwind, and in the dark, they were unable to locate my exact position. After over a minute of intense sniffing and scanning, the large sow eventually decided to saunter off downriver. The cubs bounded off behind her, and I breathed a heavy sigh of relief. I had emerged unscathed and transformed after my closest grizzly encounter while working on the Chilkoot Brown Bear Project.\nChilkoot Study Area\nInquisitive Subadult Bear\n: Studying the Chilkoot Bears\nThe Chilkoot River flows about one mile out of Chilkoot Lake and into Lutak Sound, 10 miles north of Haines, Alaska. Every year, four different species of salmon (pink, sockeye, chum and coho) return to the river to spawn. The largest run occurs in September, when over 100,000 pinks and sockeyes (see note below) enter the icy waters to breed. The abundance of salmon attracts many predators to the Chilkoot each fall, including bald eagles and grizzly bears. Hundreds of fishermen and tourists also follow the salmon upstream to capitalize on the extraordinary angling and wildlife-viewing opportunities. This unique situation, a wild Alaskan River with easy road access, raises multiple conservation issues centered on the preservation of Chilkootís grizzly bears.\nTaking advantage of the ideal setting, the Brown Bear Project focuses on bear foraging ecology and habitat use patterns in relation to the riverís human activity. For two months beginning in mid-August, the research team observed and recorded bear and human behavior along the river corridor. We were stationed at designated points along the river for three-hour shifts at sunrise and sunset (mixed with the occasional midday observation). Though spectators avoided the river on cold, rainy days, adverse weather conditions did not deter the bears or the researchers. We logged many hours huddled in freezing rain, inspired by the rapture of field biology and our majestic surroundings. The observation posts were concealed and did not obstruct bear access routes to the river. As a result, both tourists and bruins were rarely aware of our presence. Using video cameras, binoculars, and tape recorders, we documented human and bear activity throughout the three-hour periods.\nFrom August to October, we viewed 16 different bears (not counting cubs) foraging along the Chilkoot River. Each of these bears was either an adult female (some with litters of up to four cubs) or a subadult (age 2-3 years). The large males presumably stayed deeper in the mountains, farther from the threats posed by hunters and civilization.\nDuring the project, I became very familiar with all the individual bears and their idiosyncrasies. The grizzlies displayed a variety of different fishing techniques. While many of the subadults ran, jumped, and futilely flailed at fish in the swiftly moving water, the older bears had clearly refined their skills. One mother preferred snorkeling for salmon, another opted to wait patiently before plunging on unfortunate passersby, and another had mastered a herding technique, chasing fish into pools with no outlets. The cubs enthusiastically attempted to imitate their mothersí tactics, but experienced little success. They often left the water and frolicked on the riverbanks, anxiously awaiting the delivery of their next meal.\nAs the season progressed, the bears began to consume fish carcasses at a higher rate. Live fish offer a richer energy content but, with hibernation looming, bears desperate to pack on the pounds seemed to prefer quantity instead of quality. Individual bears developed certain routines that made their spatial and temporal habitat use patterns very predictable. One adult female emerged from the same spot in the forest at exactly the same time (virtually down to the minute) for five consecutive days, constantly fishing the same segment of the river. With many bears in a relatively small area (up to seven bears were sometimes visible along a 100 meter stretch of river), confrontations and chases between grizzlies unwilling to share fishing spots often occurred. Sows with cubs dominated the riverís feeding hierarchy, and smaller subadults were frequently forced to retreat. All the bears faced one common obstacle, however: human disturbances.\nNOTE: Fish counts are conducted at the Weir, a man-made structure composed of a series of closely-spaced bars designed to block fish movement upstream while permitting the free flow of water. A few bars are lifted several times a day, creating a small opening through which fish can pass. Fish & Game Officials count the salmon as they swim by. After spawning, the salmon die and their bodies float downstream. Bears often congregate at the Weir early in the morning to pick the fish carcasses off the bars.\nFishing Along the Chilkoot\nSubadult Feeding on Carcasses\n: The Impacts of Human Activity\nEvidence indicates that human activity greatly influences brown bear activity. Bears were most active in the extreme early morning and late evening, corresponding to the minimum in angler and vehicle densities. Bears in more remote locations, such as Alaskaís Katmai National Park, prefer to fish during the daylight hours when live fish capture rates are much higher. The Chilkoot grizzlies, however, choose to forage in the dark to eliminate human disturbances. With humans in the vicinity, the bears experienced decreased fishing success and often resorted to eating fish carcasses while maintaining constant vigilance. In some instances, vehicle traffic along the road was so heavy that bears were denied access to the river.\nSows with cubs generally showed less tolerance for humans, possibly due to the recent shootings of several young bears that some members of the local community perceived as threats. In most cases, these cubs discovered garbage that had not been properly disposed, and they began to associate humans with food. Food-conditioned bears are reluctant to exploit the valuable salmon resource of the river, electing to scavenge trash cans and fishermenís coolers in search of an easier meal. As people from around the world flock to the Chilkoot River each fall to witness the amazing bear-feeding spectacle, the number and intensity of bear-human interactions will continue to grow. Men and bears are capable of coexistence, but the volatile situation along the Chilkoot demonstrates that proper management techniques are necessary to ensure a relationship beneficial to both species. We must give the animals some space in order to encourage and appreciate their natural behavior.\nAs my experience with the Chilkoot brown bears confirms, the common perception of grizzlies as menacing monsters and man-killers is completely unwarranted. While the bears certainly offer an imposing, commanding presence, they are generally benign, intelligent creatures that should be revered, not feared. The Chilkoot River System provides an excellent case study for wildlife management techniques around Alaskaís salmon streams. If we can understand the effects of human habitat use and recreation in this river ecosystem, we can begin to develop strategies for protecting bears in other areas.\nSpecial thanks to Lori and Anthony Crupi, founder and\ndirector of the Chilkoot Brown Bear Project.\nAbout the author:\nLincoln Larson is a recent graduate of Duke University (Durham,\nNorth Carolina) and an aspiring field biologist."}
{"text": "I love the fall and how the leaves change from deep greens to reds and orange and gold. This natural riot of color takes place wherever there are trees with leaves and there’s almost no place better to watch the leaves change than in the Northeast. This part of the four-seasoned ritual of life attracts tourists from far and wide and tugs at me to make a special trip to our home in the mountains there. And this reminds me every year about the natural changes that are a constant in our lives.\nEver wonder why and how the leaves change colors?\n• As summer ends and autumn comes, the days get shorter and shorter. This is how the trees \"know\" to begin getting ready for winter. The trees will begin to rest and live off the food they stored during the summer. The green chlorophyll disappears from the leaves. As the bright green fades away, we begin to see yellow and orange colors. Small amounts of these colors have been in the leaves all along - we didn’t them in the summer because they were covered up by the green chlorophyll. The bright reds and purples we see in leaves are made mostly in the fall. In some trees, like maples, glucose is trapped in the leaves after photosynthesis stops. Sunlight and the cool nights of autumn cause the leaves to turn this glucose into a red color. It’s the combination of all these things that makes the beautiful fall colors we enjoy each year.\nEver hear of Thomas Cole’s The Voyage of Life series? In 1840 he did this series of paintings that represent an allegory of the four stages, or seasons, of human life:\n• In childhood, the infant glides from a dark cave into a rich, green landscape.\n• As a youth, the boy takes control of the boat and aims for a shining castle in the sky.\n• In manhood, the adult relies on prayer and religious faith to sustain him through rough waters and a threatening landscape.\n• Finally, the man becomes old and the angel guides him to heaven across the waters of eternity.\nIn each painting, accompanied by a guardian angel, the voyager rides the boat on the River of Life. The landscape, corresponding to the seasons of the year, plays a major role in telling the story. And in those paintings you can clearly see the leaves changing colors in the season (manhood) that represents the fall of the voyager’s life.\nSo what’s this mean to you and me? Things change! Always! Life is full of changes and most of us are creatures of habit. And because we don’t know what’s next, we tend to cling to what we already have and know and are comfortable with. We reminisce about and cherish the past because it’s familiar, it’s already happened and we know how the movie ends. And while that’s generally true, it’s the half of the story that we tend to recognize. The other half is that the things we learn from the past should continually be updating our knowledge of life, and how to process the new things we see and experience, and how to better understand the meaning of who and what we are – that’s the harder part of the story to accept.\nWith each passing season, and the changes that occur, we need to grow and become wiser. And that wisdom should create the stuff we need to constantly be better, to do the things we’re called upon to do each day better, and to help those around us to become better. But you won’t learn anything or get better if you’re not open to the changes – natural or man-made – that occur every day.\nI wish you could join me here at our camp to look across the lake at the beauty that is unfolding. The scene is constant; the colors let me know that time is marching on. On the one hand I could worry that the seasons of my life are marching on, or, on the other, I could be challenged by the things I’ve learned this year that will help me to be wiser and more thoughtful in the future. One stunts natural growth; the other invigorates a sense of wonder about the world around us and the endless possibilities that potentially exist. The choice is ours. And while these leaves will begin to fade and fall soon, the inspiration that they trigger should last a lifetime. That’s the voyage of life, and I’m sure glad to be on it!\nMy message this week is about being inspired to dream about improving our lives:\n“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” -C.S. Lewis\nClive Staples Lewis (1898 – 1963), commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis and known to his friends and family as \"Jack\", was a British novelist, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist from Ireland.\nGot any new dreams today? Not the ones you try to remember and think about when you wake, but the kind that have you excited to try something really new. Everyone can dream, but not everyone has the curiosity, energy, courage and stamina to try to attempt and achieve their dreams. Most want things to be smooth and easy, with no surprises or challenges that can potentially make you look silly. Fact is, without those challenges or knowing how to recover from looking silly you’ll never get to experience what it is to learn from trying something new. You can tell the ones who are into this – the twinkle in their eye, the bounce in their step, the way they carry themselves. If that’s you, and you’ll know if it is, then set another goal today, dream another dream today and make a pledge to be creative and innovative today. Go ahead – you’re never too old!\nFriday, September 30, 2011\nat 5:24 AM\nFriday, September 23, 2011\n“Everyone wants to be true to something, and we’re true to you” - that’s the marketing tagline for Jet Blue’s travel rewards program. I know because it kept scrolling across the little screen on the back of the seat in front of me when I recently flew across country. It’s okay in the context of what they’re trying to promote, but it also might apply to more than just loyalty programs. And it may be that because people naturally want to be ‘true blue’ to so many things, it becomes overused and almost trite. That’s too bad. Because being ‘true blue’ can be a good thing.\nFirst: ever wonder where the term ‘true blue’ comes from?\n• Loyal and unwavering in one's opinions or support for a cause or product.\n• 'True blue' is supposed to derive from the blue cloth that was made at Coventry, England in the late middle-ages. The town's dyers had a reputation for producing material that didn't fade with washing, i.e. it remained 'fast' or 'true'. The phrase 'as true as Coventry blue' originated then and is still used (in Coventry at least).\n• True Blue is an old naval/sailing term meaning honest and loyal to a unit or cause.\n• And dictionaries say that true blue refers to “people of inflexible integrity or fidelity”.\nAnd second: does ‘true blue’ really mean anything in this era of fast food and slick advertising?\nThere are lots of loyalty programs – hotels, airlines, slot clubs, retail stores, pop food brands, credit cards, clothing, wine, restaurants, movie theaters, travel sites, theme parks, computer games and countless more – and they all try to get you to stick with them by rewarding you in all kinds of ways: points, miles, free gifts, shows, food and on and on. But it seems a bit contrived, as if there’s some Oz-like character behind a curtain trying to entice you with these awards (read: bribes).\nImagine if this kind of thing were done with going to school or work, singing in a choir, participating in some community event, volunteering your time to some worthy cause, remaining friends or staying in a relationship… doesn’t seem as appropriate in those, does it? Think of someone or something you really like: do you really and truly like them or it, or do you need to be bribed with rewards to feel that way. Of course you don’t. So why do the airlines and hotels and all those other things we purchase have to bribe us like them?\nBut – there are companies out there that do understand what it takes to win your loyalty:\n• Southwest Airlines was one of the first companies that made having fun and using common sense part of their strategy for success. Singing the safety jingle, devising a different boarding routine and setting the record for on-time departures set them apart and won over customers. They got it!\n• Zappos doesn’t give you anything extra to make you want to come back – they believe that great service plus free shipping and returns will do that. Everyone said that nobody would buy shoes online – wrong. Zappos gets it!\n• Apple wins and keeps their customer’s loyalty by incubating and introducing cool new ideas and products all the time. And they’re just about the biggest and most successful and most admired company on the planet. They get it!\nBut for every Southwest Airlines-type great experience there are hundreds of others that under perform and underwhelm. So they sign you up and hope that rewarding your loyalty overcomes the other things they do that destroys your loyalty. Seems to me they just don’t get it?\nJet Blue says they give you more leg room – that’s true if you pay extra for those few rows that have it. How come they just don’t make eye contact and smile more? How come they can’t get the bags to the conveyor in less than 30 minutes (which may not seem like much to them but after a cross country flight an extra 30 minutes is painful). How come they don’t get it? I want to join their loyalty program so I can get another trip with them like I want to have my teeth drilled. And then they spend so much time and energy trying to give you that free round trip ticket if you apply for their credit card – you know, the one that has annual fees and high interest rates. How come they don’t get it? Why can’t they just treat me like a loyal and valued customer, like someone they genuinely like and appreciate, like they’d like to be treated if they had to fly on someone else’s airline. Seems to me they just don’t get it.\nMost of the good things in life are rooted in quality, trust and respect. People you work with and for, family that you live with and love, things you do for fun and relaxation, games you gladly play with others, friendships you’re lucky enough to have, clubs you join and actively participate in, activities you sign up for – they’re all based on the simple premise that things that are good are that way because they are genuinely good and fun and worthwhile. And that’s why you stick with them loyally.\nBut all these other kinds of loyalty programs are contrived. And yet we sign up for them like they’re free and worthwhile. They’re not free – we pay for the increased costs of these rewards. And they’re not worthwhile - we’re treated poorly by those who have the attitude that the cheap rewards they give are enough to overcome the thoughtless and robotic service they go through the motions of providing. Next time someone asks if I’ve signed up for their loyalty program I’m going to give them a tip: treat me nicely, treat me fairly, treat me respectfully, act like you really do care, thank me like you really mean it and treat me like you really do want me as a customer – and I’ll come back as often as I can or need to, willingly and freely. When are all these marketing geniuses going to wake up? When are they going to be ‘true blue’ to the Golden Rule?\nMy message this week is about how excellence can lead to greatness:\n”If you want to achieve excellence, you can get there today. As of this second, quit doing less-than-excellent work.” -Thomas J. Watson\nThomas John Watson, Sr. (1874 – 1956) was president of International Business Machines (IBM) and oversaw that company's growth into a global force from 1914 to 1956. Watson developed IBM's distinctive management style and corporate culture, and turned the company into a highly-effective selling organization. He was called the world's greatest salesman.\nDo you want to achieve excellence? Some people don’t – they’re content to work alongside others, doing just enough to get by and satisfy their basic needs, content to have a few toys, take life easy and not make waves. But is that what you want – would that be enough for you? If not, then you’ve got to decide right now to start going farther, looking to help others, caring more, trying harder, and being more of what you can be today. You’ve got to take it to the next level – in commitment, in energy, in enthusiasm, in being a role model, in paying closer attention to details, in always striving to do and be all that you’re capable of. As of this second, you’ve got to quit doing less-than-excellent work. That’s how YOU can achieve excellence - (note: the emphasis is on YOU)!\nat 5:34 AM\nFriday, September 16, 2011\nWhere were you on 9/11? For most of us the answers are permanently etched in our minds. Like the attack on Pearl Harbor and VE Day for our parents, or the moment John Kennedy was shot or Armstrong set foot on the moon for the baby boomers, 9/11 has become one of the iconic moments in time for all who were alive then.\nI remember exactly where I was, what I was doing, who told me and how I felt the day Kennedy was killed; and like most people I was watching on our little black and white TV when Ruby shot Oswald the next day. I remember my teacher bringing me into the assembly hall to watch when Armstrong took “one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”. There have been literally trillions of moments in my life, but these iconic ones stand out, frozen in time and in my mind. And then there was 9/11.\nIn these weekly blogs I try to write about things that catch my attention. These stories tend to take on meanings beyond the specific incidents I mention, meanings that relate to life’s larger issues and that can possibly teach us something. But this one goes way beyond any of the moments and incidents that caught my attention - 9/11 caught the attention of everyone on the planet. There aren’t many things that reach that level, things that stop time, that leave indelible memories about where we were and who we were with, that immediately bring back visceral feelings and emotions of a long ago but clearly remembered moment in time. 9/11 does all of those things and more.\nMy wife and I were in NYC: preparing to get on the George Washington Bridge to go into Manhattan when the first plane hit; coming to a complete stop on the road and in our lives; watching in fear and confusion as the second plane hit; staring in horror as first one and then the other building fell; hearing about the other plane crashes in Washington and Pennsylvania; staying glued to the radio and then the television while the world stood still.\nWe drove away from the City that day in fear and confusion – trying to get as far away as possible and to make sense of how and why this happened. As we drove we came upon a rise in the road where all the cars were stopped; people were standing beside their cars and looking back in the direction we came from, so we stopped too. In the distance there was smoke where the towers so recently stood; nobody was talking; everyone was crying. We eventually made it to our home in the Adirondack Mountains, safe and overwhelmed by the fear and confusion that enveloped the world as we knew it. I can see and feel that day now as if were yesterday. I guess that’s what an iconic moment is: something we remember – clearly and forever.\nAnd now, in what seems like no time at all, ten years have passed and the memorial to those killed has been unveiled. The reading of the names this past Sunday stopped and stunned us all over again. The tolling of the bells in New York, Washington and Shanksville brought us back to that moment in time. The sight of the grieving families and friends as they touched and etched the names of their fathers, brothers, mothers, sisters, relatives and friends brought us together now as we were back then. The pettiness and partisanship that dominates the news was pushed aside for just a moment as we all stood in solemn and shared tribute to something that transcended all the comparatively meaningless stuff that normally seeks to grab our attention. As sad as the memories are, the togetherness helps us get through the memories now like it did when this terrible tragedy first happened. Why can’t we make that feeling last?\nA man named Al DiLascia from Chicopee, Mass. wrote a letter to the editor of the New York Times this week that summed this up:\nFor one brief moment on September 11, 2011, time seemed to stand still. People sought family members and recognized the importance of family. Acts of charity were plentiful. There was an assessment of life and what is really important. Places of worship were full. People unashamedly prayed. For one brief moment...\nLet’s try to remember – not just the events that make up these iconic moments, but what they really mean, and what’s really important. Don’t let a day pass that you don’t tell those you love how much you care and to show it in thoughtful and meaningful ways, to touch the people and things that are most important to you, to reach out and give to those in need, and to quietly count and give thanks for all the blessings that are in your life. Do whatever you have to do to make the meaning of your iconic moments last!\nMy message this week is about being loyal to the people and things that are important in your life:\n“Loyalty is something you give regardless of what you get back, and in giving loyalty, you're getting more loyalty; and out of loyalty flow other great qualities.”\nColonel Charles Edward (\"Chuck\") Jones (1952 – 2001) was a United States Air Force officer, a computer programmer, and an astronaut in the USAF Manned Spaceflight Engineer Program. He was killed in the attacks of September 11, 2001 aboard American Airlines Flight 11, the first plane to hit the first World Trade Center building at 8:46am.\nAll of the great values we read and write about seem to be interconnected, and loyalty may be the one at the hub of them all. Think of the people and things you’re loyal to, and then note the other great qualities that come from that loyalty. Friendship, success, pride, humility, professionalism, integrity, team spirit and passion are a few that immediately come to mind. These are the qualities and values that you hope to find in others, and certainly they’re the ones to which you should always aspire. But to get loyalty you need to give it, and that means you must be true to your work and family and friends, forgiving in your nature, humble in your approach to others, sincere in your dealings with all, and understanding in the complex and competitive world that we live in. Look for ways to give loyalty today without attaching any strings for reciprocity. And don’t be surprised if you then start to get loyalty and all the other great qualities flowing back to you in return.\nStay well. And please say a prayer for these heroes and all the others in your life who’ve passed.\nat 6:20 AM\nFriday, September 9, 2011\nVacation homes in the Adirondacks are commonly referred to as camps – my family is fortunate to have one and, as you know from some of my previous blogs, we’ve spent a lot of time there this year. These are not to be confused with day and overnight camps that parents send their kids to. This is about the second kind of camp.\nI went to an overnight camp as a kid and loved it, but that’s a story for another time. This tale begins at Camp Nazareth (that’s the name of the overnight camp at the end of our lake). Its run by the local Catholic Diocese which has had little success in recent years attracting enough kids. More often than not, this wonderful facility – it can hold up to 300 kids at any one time - is terribly under used. Fortunately, it seems that they’ve now discovered ways to attract alternate users like family reunions, corporate retreats and, just this past week, a high school crew team (Google “rowing sport” to learn more about this sport on Wikipedia). And that crew team caught our attention.\nOur family’s camp (we call it “The Point”) is on the water and we can easily see when anyone is on the lake. While sitting on our dock one morning we were surprised to see this crew team go by. If you’ve never seen a crew team before, they operate in long narrow boats (like large kayaks) that are referred to as “sculls” – these are two to eight-person boats that are rowed by that many team members, each of whom operates one oar. In this case, there were two eight-person sculls (one with all men and the other all women) that were practicing. Mind you, this is not an everyday sight – there are a few motorboats and a lot of canoes and kayaks on our lake, so the sight of these two sculls was a bit of a surprise. Alongside these two sculls was a small motorboat in which sat the coach who had a megaphone and was giving instructions and commands. On the first day of what appeared to be one of their initial practice sessions, these two sculls were having what was obviously some beginner’s training. And here’s another key bit of information: the team has to row in very close order for the boat to move along smoothly. If any of the rowers is out of synch (even a little) the boat can very easily (and visibly) miss a beat. And if any of those misses are overly pronounced the boats can stop altogether or even capsize. So at the beginning of this training the coach definitely wanted to take it slow.\nAs the week progressed, however, the boats began to move more smoothly, and over time they got smoother and faster. And since the object of crew is to beat the competition, smooth and fast is definitely better. In order to get smoother and faster, the individual team members all have to practice at learning not only how to improve their own skills but also how to be in better synch with all the other members of their team. In crew, as in so many other aspects of life, both are critical (as in one without the other is not worth much).\nAs we watched this unfold before us, we started to reflect on how the basic lessons being learned out on the lake apply to just about everything we do in life (and here I need to confess that my wife realized this before I did). Being effective and functional at anything – playing with friends on the school yard, getting along as a family, working with colleagues, participating on a sports team, singing in a choir, building something with others, participating in community events – really is about learning how to improve your own skills while also performing in concert with others. Learning anything alone is one thing, learning it together and then interacting with others is a whole different thing. The key to life is learning both, because one without the other is really not worth much. And here was a live metaphor for this right on the lake in front of us – and just like that my whole professional life flashed before me as I watched this training unfold.\nEach of these young athletes was working hard to learn how to be the best they could be, they and their team mates were learning how to interact with each other more effectively, the coaches were seeing the results of their hard work and practice, and those of us on the sidelines were rewarded by seeing how things can and should work when effective instructions, practice and coaching all come together. We don’t often get to see things so clearly, or watch how the rituals of cause and effect play out so clearly. Simply put: this was a real lesson about life. And, in part because of where we were, and also because of what we saw and then realized, we were again moved to exclaim “that’s the Point!\nMy message this week is about finding things you can be passionate about, because they define who and what you are.\n“I know that I have found fulfillment. I have an object in life, a task ... a passion.”\nAmantine Lucile Aurore Dupin, later Baroness Dudevant (1804 – 1876), best known by her pseudonym George Sand, was a French novelist and memoirist.\nHave you found fulfillment? Not just a momentary or fleeting sense of accomplishment, but a lasting and on-going feeling that “this is it”. We all do lots of little and mostly disconnected things – chores, work, hobbies – and these achieve short-term goals or complete individual assignments. But every now and then one big thing comes along that is more about defining our style or purpose, and these make us who and what we are. Now it could be a car or a job – those certainly say a lot about you. But to find fulfillment – to know that something is really about the “you” that is truly you – that’s a real find. And that’s the kind of thing that passion is truly built upon. Something you love deeply, that you can’t stop thinking about, that you can’t wait to get up and do each day, and that you truly care more about than almost anything else. That’s the kind of passion that is truly a treasure – and that’s the kind of object in life that you want to be on the lookout for – today and every day. That’s the Point!\nat 5:14 AM\nFriday, September 2, 2011\nLast week was something else – an earthquake and a hurricane and tornados and sunshine and hot and cold… I'm having trouble remembering where I am.\nI grew up in upstate New York and experienced four distinct seasons each year – but there were no earthquakes or tornados. I later moved to Nevada for nearly a quarter century and experienced dry heat – but there were never any hurricanes or tornados. I then moved to the beaches of California where the sun shines 300+ days a year, the temperature rarely gets above 75 and earthquakes and wild fires are a nuisance – but there are no tornados or hurricanes. And now I’m back in New York (city and upstate) and just about everything but wild fires have hit here in the past 8 months. What’s going on?\nI didn’t own a winter coat – and the record snow falls and cold last winter drove me to Land’s End with a singleness of purpose. I didn’t own boots or an umbrella, and the wet snow and rains taught me a lot about what it means to stay dry. I’m used to driving wherever I want to go and not having a car here to help navigate through the varying weather patterns has made me a fan of the Weather Channel. I never thought about the weather, never worried about what I’d wear or looked at the skies for clues to what’s coming, and now that the weather changes in the blink of an eye I am obsessed with meteorology.\nBut last week, depending where you were in the path of all this weather, meteorologists either got it right, mostly right, or wrong. Hey – they’re human so maybe we shouldn’t hold them to such a high standard as always being right. I mean, is anybody always right? Maybe we should take what they say and apply some old fashioned lore to this inexact science – such as:\nRed sky at night, sailor's delight,\nRed sky in the morning, sailors take warning.\nWhen the wind is blowing in the North\nNo fisherman should set forth,\nWhen the wind is blowing in the East,\n'Tis not fit for man nor beast,\nWhen the wind is blowing in the South\nIt brings the food over the fish's mouth,\nWhen the wind is blowing in the West,\nThat is when the fishing's best!\nWhen halo rings the moon or sun, rain's approaching on the run.\nWhen windows won't open, and the salt clogs the shaker,\nThe weather will favor the umbrella maker!\nNo weather is ill, if the wind be still.\nWhen sounds travel far and wide,\nA stormy day will betide.\nIf clouds move against the wind, rain will follow.\nA coming storm your shooting corns presage,\nAnd aches will throb, your hollow tooth will rage.\nI wouldn’t normally be thinking about these things, but all this crazy weather has me spooked. Is it global warming or just the fact that weather seems unpredictable? Were the winters way more intense when we were kids, or did it just seem that way because we were kids? Can weather really be predicted correctly all the time by these meteorologists, or should we take what they say with a “grain of salt”? Or should we rely more on our own common sense as aided by some of these old fashioned sayings?\nHere in New York last week the mayor and the meteorologists got it wrong – but not by much. The winds blew and the rains fell and, though there was less flooding and damage than predicted here, they made damn sure we were prepared by scaring the daylights out of us with their dire warnings. Now some people are complaining because they scared us; but those same people complained when they didn’t scare us before last winter’s massive snow storm, or that they didn’t scare others enough before Katrina.\nFact is, lots of people are never happy, especially if they’re inconvenienced. But potentially saving lives is better than trying to apologize for not saving lives: isn’t that what ‘better safe than sorry’ is all about? Maybe we expect too much from the elected officials who we don’t really like or trust anyways (especially when they are inconveniencing us). I guess they’re damned if they do and damned if they don’t. I’ve even read some editorials about how this should make us either for or against big government. Come on, it was just a storm. And even though lots of people got flooded out, and there was lots of damage to homes and fields and trees and power lines, and lots of high water and wind, I’m relieved because it was less than predicted here on my street. I’m really sad for those to whom it was as much or more than predicted. And even though I don’t blame anyone, I sure as hell would like to know what all this crazy weather means, and whether a red sky at night really does mean a sailor’s delight?\nMy message this week is about loyalty, and whether we need to think about how loyal we are to others and how loyal we need to be to ourselves:\n“Loyalty to petrified opinion never yet broke a chain or freed a human soul.” -Mark Twain\nMark Twain achieved great success as a writer and public speaker. His wit and satire earned praise from critics and peers, and he was a friend to presidents, artists, industrialists, and European royalty.\nLoyalty can be both good and bad. People often remain loyal long after the reason for doing so has ended. If the reason you became loyal has petrified then you need to re-examine your motives and goals; you need to break free when the times demand it and it’s the right thing to do. Loyalty should be given to the best ideas, the highest principles, the most ethical leaders, the greatest challenges, and to the most extraordinary opportunities. But sometimes we remain loyal just because we are afraid to appear disloyal or we’re afraid to re-examine that loyalty. This conflict can be a Catch 22, or it can be a moment of re-commitment and rebirth. And just like a plant that’s been sitting for a long time, it’s a good idea to re-pot our beliefs to make sure that our roots continue to grow deeper and stronger. So look at your loyalties today and make sure they’re where they should be.\nStay warm, dry and well!\nat 5:36 AM"}
{"text": "The founders explicitly rejected direct democracy — in which citizens vote on every issue — in favor of representative democracy. The idea was that legislators would convene at a safe remove from voters and, thus insulated from the din of narrow interests and widespread but ephemeral passions, do what was in the long-term interest of their constituents and of the nation. Now information technology has stripped away the insulation that physical distance provided back when information couldn’t travel faster than a horse.Yes, one wonders what the Framers might have thought of free speech.\nFebruary 3, 2010\nSays Robert Wright:"}
{"text": "In Think: The Life of the Mind and the Love of God John piper shows us the intricate continuity between the Christian faith and intellectual development. Focusing on the life of the mind helps us to know God better, love him more, and care for the world around us in thoughtful ways.\nWhile we must value the experiential an emotional elements of our faith, the intellectual aspects are far too often neglected and as Piper says in this book, we also need to practice careful thinking about God. Piper contends that \"thinking is indispensable on the path to passion for God.\" So how are we to maintain a healthy balance of mind and heart, thinking and feeling?\nPiper urges us to think for the glory of God. He demonstrates from Scripture that glorifying God with our minds and hearts is not either-or, but both-and. Thinking carefully about God fuels passion and affections for God. Likewise, Christ-exalting emotion leads to disciplined thinking."}
{"text": "Christine Duncan, MD\nSickle cell disease (SCD) affects as many as 100,000 Americans, and a comprehensive understanding of SCD is essential for pediatric and adult hematologists. This common disease will be explored in depth in an Education Program Session today at 7:30 a.m. and again at 2:00 p.m. in rooms 393-396 of the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. The session is designed for all hematologists who treat patients with sickle cell syndromes, including general adult and pediatric hematologists and those who practice in tertiary care centers.\nGene therapy offers promise as a curative therapy for SCD but is not yet a reality. Stem cell transplantation has successfully cured many severely affected patients, but it is limited by the availability of donors and by transplant-related toxicity. As a result, we are still searching for effective and tolerable alternative therapies for this common disease.\nIn today’s session, Drs. Kenneth Ataga of the University of North Carolina and Russell Ware of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital will review existing and innovative therapies for SCD.\nDr. Ataga will describe treatments aimed at decreasing sickle hemoglobin polymerization directly, and therapies that target aspects of sickle cell pathobiology other than hemoglobin (e.g., vascular adhesion or cellular hydration).\nDr. Ware will then examine the use of hydroxyurea in SCD, a treatment widely used by clinicians since landmark clinical trial results were reported in the 1990s. While hydroxyurea cannot be considered a novel therapy, it is receiving increased attention, and there is renewed enthusiasm for the drug. The 2008 NIH consensus statement regarding the use of hydroxyurea in patients with SCD cites strong evidence for the efficacy of the drug in adult patients and compelling data for its use in children.\nThe NIH consensus statement that examined the use of hydroxyurea also addressed the need for patients with SCD to have a primary health care provider. The statement suggests that providers either specialize in the care of patients with SCD or maintain contact with a hematologist with expertise in SCD. This recommendation highlights the often overlapping arenas of SCD management and primary care, which Dr. Joshua Field from Washington University, St. Louis, will emphasize in his discussion of two commonly co-exisiting conditions that have complex interactions: SCD and asthma. As Dr. Field explains, \"We do not fully understand if these are two separate disease processes or if the asthma is a manifestation of sickle cell disease. The diagnosis and treatment of patients with sickle cell and airway disease is not straightforward. The same rules used to diagnose a patient with asthma in the general population may not apply to a child with sickle cell disease. Sickle cell comorbidities may make it harder to diagnose and to treat a patient with asthma and SCD.\"\nDr. Duncan indicated no relevant conflicts of interest.\nback to top"}
{"text": "Art. XXIX.—The Older Gravels of North Canterbury.\n[Read before the New Zealand Institute, at Christchurch, 4th—8th February, 1919; received by Editor, 24th February, 1919; issued separately, 16th July, 1919.]\n|General Description of the District where the Beds are best developed||269|\n|Description of Typical Localities||270|\n|Grey River, East Branch||270|\n|Grey River, West Branch||273|\n|Okuku River and Mairaki Downs||274|\n|Kowai River, North Branch||274|\n|Kowai River, South Branch||274|\n|Lower Warpara Gorge||278|\n|Other Canterbury Localities||279|\n|General Conclusions as to the Origin and Age of the Beds, and Relation to the Gravels of the Canterbury Plains||280|\nWidely distributed along the base of the Southern Alps lies a series of unfossiliferous sedimentary beds, consisting for the most part of well-stratified gravels, sands, and clays, with occasional lignite, whose position has hitherto been somewhat doubtful. Haast (1879, p. 316, and map, p. 370) included them in his Pareora formation, and mentioned the occurrence of lignite-beds (p. 318) in the “Moeraki” Downs, at the mouth of the Waipara River, and in the Broken River basin, but hardly mentions the locality where they attain their maximum development—viz., the Mount Grey Downs and the vicinity of the two branches of the Kowai River. Hutton (1885, p. 211) considered them as equivalent to the Wanganui system of the North Island, but remarked that they were difficult to distinguish from the upper gravels of the Pareora system. Park (1910, p. 252) considered them older fluvio-glacial drifts. Thomson (1917, p. 411) refers to them more fully, but is extremely doubtful whether they shall be assigned to his Notocene or Notopleistocene set of deposits.\nOwing to the practical absence of fossils it is difficult to determine their position accurately, but they nevertheless represent an interesting series, and the following account is intended to bring out their chief features. In addition to the difficulty noted by Hutton, there is the additional one that in their lithological content as well as to some extent the conditions under which they were laid down they resemble the beds that overlie them, and this makes it at times impossible to separate them from subsequent gravel and sandy beds.\nGeneral Description of the District Where the Beds Are Best Developed.\nThe chief area where they are developed lies to the south-east and south of Mount Grey, between the Waipara and Okuku Rivers, but they attain their greatest development in the basins of the Southern Kowai and the Grey Rivers. Important outliers also occur to the west of the Okuku, on\nthe lower slopes of Mount Thomas, and south of the Ashley River, where they form the Mairaki Downs (= Moeraki Downs of Haast). The beds form a kind of frontal apron to the higher greywacke hills, such as Mount Grey and Mount Karetu; but still they rise in places to well over 1,000 ft. above sea-level. The downs country has been dissected to some extent, and on the front facing south-east consequent streams have cut deep narrow channels, with high precipitous banks, whereas in the north-eastern portion the tributaries forming the Northern Kowai tend to develop valleys along the strike. The same is also true of the east branch of the Grey. The character of the drainage points to recent and rapid uplift, perhaps in agreement with that of which there is distinct evidence on the coast farther north (McKay, 1877, p. 177; Hutton, 1877, p. 55; Speight, 1918, p. 99). On the sides of the steep banks, especially those running with the dip, numerous good sections are exposed; and it will be best at this stage to give a more detailed description of typical sections, preferably those illustrating the relationship between the underlying Tertiary beds and the overlying gravels. Although the beds are typically developed in the basin of the Kowai River, and I have selected the name of that locality as the one most appropriate to designate the series, yet the most instructive sections are to be seen in the basin of the Grey River, and these will therefore be taken first.\nDescriptions of Typical Localities.\nGrey River, East Branch.\nThe eastern or chief branch of the Grey River rises in the country between Mounts Grey and Karetu, flows south therefrom in a deep wooded gorge, and then gradually turns to the south-west and follows along the north-western edge of the Mount Grey Downs till it enters on the plains and joins the Okuku River in the neighbourhood of White Rock Station. The first part of its course has been cut in greywacke, but on leaving the higher country it crosses the marginal fringe of Tertiary sedimentaries at an angle of about 45° with their strike, so that when the stream runs in the direction of the dip the cross-section of its channel is narrow and trench-like, but when it runs along the strike the valley opens out somewhat, with dip slopes bordering the stream on its north-western side and steep scarp slopes on its south-eastern side. The latter are in places very bold and precipitous, and show clear-cut sections. Especially is this the case at the Horseshoe Cliff, about a mile below the gorge, where the north-western slope of the downs has been scored by a deep washout, and the strata are clearly exposed for 500 ft.\nIn the lower part of the river-gorge there is a most interesting occurrence of the lower members of the Cretaceo-Tertiary series, analogous to that seen in the Waipara and Weka Pass sections. These beds when followed along the strike run in the direction of the greywacke mass of Mount Grey; and unless they turn round on approaching it, as they do on the north-east slope of the mountain, the junction between the two sets of beds will in all probability be a fault contact. To the west of the gorge, however, the junction between the two sets of beds is a normal unconformity.\nThe following is a description of the beds here exposed, the sequence being in ascending order:—\nGreyish sands and sandy shales, glauconitic, concretionary in places, and stained with sulphur; succeeded by light-coloured argillaceous and slightly glauconitic sands—all striking north-east and dipping south-east at 45°.\nGreenish glauconitic sand passing up into glauconitic limestone, the glauconitic material being disposed in irregular patches and lenses, giving the rock a somewhat streaky appearance; it is also full of worm-borings filled with glauconitic material. This passes up into\nAmuri limestone, 25 ft. thick, with less glauconite than 2. The passage beds between this and the lower bed consist of fragments of Amuri limestone in a greensand matrix, the limestone finally taking on the facies of the typical Amuri stone, being white and jointed into quadrangular blocks. The strike is as before, but the dip is less, being about 30°.\nGlauconitic limestone, 20 ft. thick, comparable with the Weka Pass stone as it approaches a shore-line (Speight and Wild, 1918, p. 77), but passing up into a more sandy facies.\nMarl, slightly sandy, with concretionary layers and rounded concretions. This is the stratigraphical equivalent of the “grey marl” in the Weka Pass district. It has the same strike and dip as the limestone, and its thickness is about 70 ft.\nThus far the sequence is quite clear and conformable, but for a time the exposures are obscured and the relations to the underlying beds are not plain.\nJust below the gorge there is a well-marked bed, striking north-north-east, with slightly flatter dip than the limestone, and containing numerous specimens of Ostrea ingens. Farther down-stream, but higher in the series, is a sandy conglomerate followed by sands with broken shells. These pass up into sands with a layer of oyster and other shell fragments, and then follow the beds of the Kowai series.\nThese are first exposed at the mouth of the gorge, just above the site of the old sawmill. They consist of sands and sandy gravels containing shell-fragments and showing intraformational unconformities, but no clear evidence, given by sections, of an unconformity between the Kowai series and the lower Tertiaries. Almost everywhere in the case of gravels resting on sands or other finer detrital beds the upper surface of the latter has suffered some erosion, but in no case in this branch of the Grey does this, in my opinion, amount to sufficient to be considered a major unconformity.\nOn the next bluff down-stream, and higher in the sequence, the beds exposed consist of greenish-grey sands (weathering light-brown) and sandy gravels, with sandy carbonaceous shales and impure lignite. These are capped unconformably by terrace-gravels belonging to the early history of the Grey River. This sequence is repeated on the next bluff, but the gravel beds of the Kowai series become more important, one very heavy band of gravel near the top of the cliff being divided into two parts by a layer of carbonaceous shale. In the bed of the river, at the base of this cliff, is a section which shows an unconformable junction between a greenish sand and an overlying bed of gravel. After a careful consideration of the circumstances of this case I have come to the conclusion that it must be considered only as an intraformational unconformity, due to the erosion of the bed of sand by marine currents in the interval between its deposition and that of the succeeding layer of gravel.\nThese beds strike north-east, and dip south-east at an angle of 20°.\nAs the sections are followed down-stream their character does not change except that the gravels become increasingly important, a feature that is well exemplified at the Horseshoe Cliff, on the face of which gravels greatly predominate, some layers being from 50 ft. to 70 ft. in thickness. Well-defined sandy layers also occur. The regular stratification of the beds\ntowards the base of the cliff points to their having been deposited in shallow water in close proximity to a shore-line, and not on a land-surface; but at the higher levels the stratification becomes more indistinct and the pebbles become coarser and more subangular in shape, so it is almost certain that the closing beds of the series were laid down on a land-surface. The presence of lignite in the lower beds clearly indicates estuarine or deltaic conditions.\nIt should be noted that on the high banks of the Grey River there is a still more recent series of gravels belonging to the history of the stream. They are similar in lithological features to the gravels of the Kowai series, but they are neither so well stratified nor so well cemented. They are undoubtedly river and not sea deposits. Where contacts can be seen they are easily differentiated, but elsewhere, especially on the lower slopes of the downs, it is difficult to separate them from the upper members of the lower set of beds, which were also laid down on a land-surface.\nGrey River, West Branch.\nThe general stratigraphy of the beds in the basin of the western branch of the Grey River is similar to that in the eastern. The following is a general description of the strata exposed above the greywacke as disclosed on the sides of the gorge of the stream:—\nSands and greensands.\nLimestone, full of bryozoan remains, but only a few feet thick in the gorge of the stream, thickening, however, to the east and to the west. There is a marked difference in the features of this limestone as compared with that in the eastern branch, and as they are in apparent continuity it might be assumed that the stone in the western branch represents a shallower-water facies. I am by no means certain that this is the true explanation, and the question of the identity as regards their stratigraphical position must be reserved for further investigation.\nMarls, greenish in colour, with rounded concretions and concretionary bands, passing up into greyish sands with fragmentary fossil shells.\nIn the river these beds strike E. 25° S. and dip south at an angle of 30°, but they have suffered some deformation, and the strike changes to north-east on the ridge between the two branches of the Grey, and also as the beds are traced round to White Rock and the Okuku River. The upper surface of the sands was distinctly eroded before the next bed was laid down. This consists of a heavy band of cemented gravel. The following beds are then encountered, in ascending order:—\nGravel bed just referred to.\nSandy clays and gravels.\nSandy clay and carbonaceous shale, repeatedly alternating. One bed of shale is from 12 in. to 18 in. thick.\nSandy gravel, well cemented with iron oxide.\nGreenish-grey sands, sandy shales, and gravels, rapidly alternating, totalling over 200 ft. in thickness, the strike gradually becoming east-north-east, and the dip flattening out from 30° to 10°.\nGravels, sandy and with occasional thin layers of sandy clay, lying flat or with slight dip to the south-east. These are at least 500 ft. thick, and are well exposed on the ridge between the western Grey and the stream near the White Rock Station.\nThe section in this river thus shows that there is a distinct series in which gravels are the dominant beds lying unconformably on marine Tertiaries. It should be noted that in the western branch there are no gravel beds below the unconformity. Either they have never been deposited or they have been removed by erosion. There is a strong suggestion from the eastern branch that gravel beds are present among the higher members of the underlying marine series, so that their presence cannot be taken as decided evidence that beds containing gravels in this locality necessarily belong to the Kowai series.\nOkuku River and Mairaki Downs.\nSimilar gravels occur on the banks of the Okuku, especially on the western side, where they form low hills fringing the base of Mount Thomas, and stretching westward towards the Garry River and Glentui. Towards the Ashley they are masked by more-recent gravels, but they reappear on the south bank of the river, forming the Mairaki Downs. The strata here consist of thick sandy gravels, sandy clays, and occasional layers of carbonaceous shale. Opposite the mouth of the Garry they strike north-east and dip north-west at an angle of 20°, forming the south-eastern wing of a syncline which is developed farther west, while farther east, towards Rangiora, the structure is anticlinal. The country directly between the Mairaki and Mount Grey Downs is probably a syncline, but the surface is completely masked by recent gravels and clays belonging to the Ashley and Okuku Rivers and to the lower course of the Grey and Makerikeri Rivers, the latter draining a considerable area on the south-western flank of the Mount Grey Downs.\nKowai River, North Branch.\nAn excellent idea of the structure and general features of the northern part of the downs area can be obtained by examination of the high banks of the North Kowai, and especially of a tributary which rises in Mount Brown itself and flows in a south-easterly direction across the strike of the beds, thus exposing all the members of the series present in this locality. The following is a general description of the beds encountered, starting with the Mount Brown beds and following up to the highest members of the series:—\nAt the contact with the upper members of the Mount Brown series the latter consist of sands, and marine gravels with shells, striking north-east and dipping south-east at an angle of 10°. The Mount Brown beds are here capped unconformably with sandy gravels containing rounded and sub-angular greywacke pebbles, and belonging in all probability to the high-level terrace-gravels of the present Kowai River. Lower down sands, sandy clays, and sandy gravels dipping south-east at very low angles are exposed on the banks of the stream and in the deep gullies on the northern side. There is certainly a disagreement in dip between these beds and the underlying Mount Brown beds, suggesting an unconformity, but nowhere could I see an actual contact in order to determine this point precisely. The slight escarpment of the downs which faces Mount Brown at this point is determined by the presence of the gravel beds which occur at this horizon. It is noteworthy that there is an entire absence of the gravel beds with broken-shell layers which cover the Mount Brown beds in the vicinity of Weka Pass, a point which increases the probability that the beds forming the downs rest on the Mount Brown beds unconformably.\nFarther down-stream the beds lie almost flat, with an east-south-east strike and a dip to the north-north-east at very low angles (less than 5°). On a high bluff a series of well-stratified sands and sandy gravels is exposed. Near the base of the cliff, under a sandy bed cemented in its lower part with iron oxide, lies a narrow band of sandy carbonaceous shale, 6 in. to 8 in. thick, containing pieces of lignified wood, and passing down into sandy clay with interstratified irregular lenses of lignite. Under these lie sands and sandy gravels, and then bluish-green and brown sands. A little below this the strike swings round to north-north-east, with an easterly dip, and in a narrow gully on the south side of the stream an interesting section is exposed. Here both the bluish-green sands and the sandy gravels have been eroded, and on the eroded surface have been deposited sands and sandy gravels containing fragments of the lower beds. A similar occurrence is to be observed on the face of a cliff in the main stream, the lower beds dipping 10° and the upper lying flat across them. A thin layer of broken-shell fragments was observed high up on the face of the cliff in an inaccessible position.\nHigher in the series are rapidly alternating sands and fine sandy gravels, in layers down to 1 in. in thickness, and these are succeeded by sands, sandy-gravel beds, and bluish-grey and brown sands, the former with broken-shell layers. In the gravels are numerous fragments of limestone, which must have been derived from a surface of the Amuri limestone exposed to decided erosion. The fragments are generally less than 2 in. in length, but are sometimes longer, and are usually flattened like beach shingle. There is no doubt as to the interstratification of these beds in the series under consideration, as the same feature was observed in a deep gully to the north of the stream in its proper stratigraphical position. The presence of these fragments is positive proof of the presence of an unconformity between these beds and the Amuri limestone, and supports the stratigraphical evidence from the Grey River. In the bluish-green sands there are occasional shell-fragments.\nFor some distance below this spot there are no clear sections, but sand is probably the major constituent of the beds. At the junction with the Kowai River, however, there are high cliffs on the northern side, where the strata are clearly visible for half a mile. The lowest beds exposed in this locality are sands with interstratified gravels, in which limestone-fragments form a most important constituent. The beds with the limestone-fragments are at least 50 ft. thick, and may be thicker. Higher up the limestone constituent gets less and less, and the pebbles are entirely of greywacke. No other included material, such as fragments of Mount Brown limestone, was noted at this spot, which might indicate the date of the break between the Amuri limestone beds and those under consideration. It is possible that these gravel beds are unconformable to the greenish marine sands, since for some distance no exposures are visible which enable their relations to be precisely determined, and there is evidence from other parts of the area that these upper gravels are unconformable to greenish sands—e.g., in the Grey River (see p. 272) and also in No. 2 Creek (see p. 276). These gravel beds are fairly well stratified, with occasional beds of sandy clay and thin carbonaceous shales, their total thickness being about 1,000 ft., and the whole thickness of the series from the junction of the Mount Brown beds upward being about 1,500 ft., though this may include two series—viz., the Motunau and the Kowai series.\nThe course of the main stream above its junction with the tributary follows almost along the strike of the beds, so that the structure is not so well displayed. The beds exposed consist of marine sands, which are remarkably\ncurrent-bedded, and loose and cemented sandy gravels with numerous fossils similar to the beds exposed in the Lower Waipara Gorge. The highest bed of this series exposed in the valley of the stream consists of greenish sandy clay, which weathers a light brown, and contains fossil shells. Its upper surface has been distinctly eroded, and on it rests a heavy layer of cemented gravel, and following this are sandy clays and gravel beds dipping south-east at angles of 10°. These beds pass upward into the gravel beds exposed on the cliffs of the river below the junction with the tributary. In the tributary mentioned above I could find no indication of an eroded surface analogous to that in the main stream, and so it may be an unconformity of local character similar to those recorded elsewhere, but it may indicate a decided unconformity between the Motunau and the Kowai series.\nIt is owing to the typical development of these gravels and the beds associated with them in the Kowai River, not only in this locality but in the south branch as well, that I have called them the Kowai series. It is possible, however, that the lower part of this group of beds may be equivalent to the upper part of the Motunau series, and subsequent investigation may show the term to be unnecessary.\nIn No. 2 Creek, a southern tributary of the North Kowai, there is a very important section. Just below the high bluff on the north side, about four miles above the junction, the stream has exposed the following beds:—\nGreenish sands, becoming more clayey in the upper portions and passing up into sandy shale.\nLignite, very impure, 10 in. thick, striking east-north-east and dipping north-north-west at 5°.\nArgillaceous sands, decidedly clayey above the coal but becoming more sandy and greenish in colour higher up. The thickness exposed is about 6 ft., but it is eroded, and sandy gravels rest on it unconformably. An eroded surface appears just below this in the bed of the stream, with an angular mass of green sandy clay embedded in the gravel.\nIn close proximity to the erosion surface there is another section showing the same features, but with only 3 ft. of bed 3 interposed between the coal and the gravels.\nJust over the dividing-ridge between this and the South Kowai River there are high cliffs, facing south, composed of similar beds, with gravels more strongly developed in the higher levels, and dipping south at angles about 5°. Thus an anticlinal axis runs east-north-east along the ridge in close proximity to the road which runs along the crest.\nJust at the point where the stream turns after leaving the steeper slopes of Mount Grey, and assumes a north-easterly course, coal and associated beds are exposed in its actual channel and in the bank of a small gully on the southern side. They consist of—\nGreenish sands, passing up into sandy clays.\nClays succeeded by greenish sandy clays.\nGravels, mixed with sand, cemented with iron oxide.\nGreenish sandy clays.\nThese beds strike north-east, and dip north-west at an angle of 5°.\nWhen followed up-stream there is an alternation of sands and gravels, apparently conformable to the beds just enumerated, exposed in the slips\non the river-banks; but the dip becomes steeper till, on the face of a high bluff below the bush, it reaches 20°. Here are alternating sandy clays and gravels, the former greenish-yellow in colour, which are capped unconformably by somewhat irregular sands and gravels, lying almost horizontally across the denuded edges of the lower set. The upper series evidently forms the distinct ridge which leads down-stream past the point where the undoubted unconformity described above was observed.\nSimilar beds are observed in places on the banks of the stream higher up, but the covering of bush and soil is too complete to attempt a correlation with those lower down. Owing to this covering it is likewise impossible to say whether the junction between the greywackes of Mount Grey is a simple unconformity or a fault contact.\nKowai River, South Branch.\nThe high banks of this river rise in places to a height of 500 ft. above its bed, frequently with precipitous faces, and thus excellent sections are exposed. The strata are also folded into gentle anticlines and synclines, so that in the cores of the former the lower beds are exposed. They consist of the following in ascending order:—\nSands with concretionary layers, with broken-shell beds in the lower part, at least 80 ft. thick.\nGreen sandy clays and gravel beds, the latter finer in grain and thicker in the lower part, and cemented with iron oxide.\nAt higher levels there are rapidly alternating gravel and sandy beds, the former composed of subangular pebbles, which point to deposit either on a land-surface or on a shore-line in close proximity to the source of supply. No limestone pebbles were seen in these beds. In places they exhibit intraformational unconformities, such as one would expect when rapid changes in the conditions of deposit take place, especially when the change is from a sand to a gravel, and vice versa. The gravel beds frequently form steep cliffs; and their hard bands determine the dividing-ridges between the tributary streams running into the main river, especially on the south side, and they also determine an important reach of the river itself, although its direction is primarily across the strike, and therefore of consequent character.\nA specially good section is to be seen where the river makes a right-angle turn, and changes from the subsequent to the consequent direction. The beds are here bent up into a rather sharp anticline with a north-east strike and a dip to the north-west at an angle of 50°. On the seaward side of the anticlinal axis the dip is much less, the angle being about 10°, the succession being similar. But farther down-stream the strike swings round till it is north-north-east, then north-north-west, and finally north-west, following for a time the direction of the main river. This allows the lower members of the series to be exposed again in the bed and banks of the river. They consist here of sands and sandy clays, greenish-blue in colour and weathering brown, containing fossils, some of the sands with concretionary layers and associated with thin gravel beds. The shells consist of Siphonalia, Glycymeris, and Ostrea, but in a fragmentary condition.\nFarther down-stream the greenish-blue beds are still exposed, but the strike gradually becomes north-east with a dip to the south-east, and gravel beds form the greater part of the high bluffs which face the river on the north above the Mount Grey Station.\nOpposite the right-angle turn of the river referred to above, and immediately to the west of the axis of the anticline, there is distinct evidence of the presence of an unconformity between the gravels just referred to and a higher series. The beds here consist of sands and sandy gravels which are lithologically indistinguishable from the higher members of the lower series. On a bluff facing the river the beds in contact with the gravels of the lower series are exposed lying across their denuded edges at low angles, and immediately to the north-west they show a reversal of dip and are inclined to the south-east at angles of from 5° to 7°. This dip is in agreement with that which can be observed in sections in the upper basin of the Southern Kowai, and notably to the south of the anticline which runs to the south-east of No. 2 Creek and parallel with it. Thus there is evidence of an unconformity in the Southern Kowai in close proximity to that in the No. 2 Creek in the drainage area of the Northern Kowai.\nIt will be noted that the lowest members of the series present in the two branches of the Kowai consist of sandy beds with marine fossils, whereas these do not appear with certainty in the Grey River. The gravel beds are, however, equally developed in each area. This difference is perhaps of no special stratigraphical importance, since the gravel beds in both areas are undoubtedly marine, and in the Grey area conditions may not have been favourable for the preservation of fossil remains. As far as I can see at present, there is no evidence of a major unconformity between the gravel beds and the lower marine beds, although minor, intraformational unconformities undoubtedly exist. There is, however, distinct evidence of a discordance at a higher level in the Kowai series between beds of similar lithological character both above and below the unconformity, but not such a discordance as necessitates the higher beds being placed in another distinct series. The whole area and its vicinity no doubt experienced a fairly rapid elevation, probably of a differential character, so that erosion went on in one part of the area while deposition was continuous in an adjacent part. If subsequent deposition over the denuded area then ensued this special stratigraphical feature can be satisfactorily explained.\nIn Fox's Creek, the next stream south of the Kowai, there is an excellent section of the gravels forming the great mass of the downs area. This stream rises in the centre of the area and flows east, being bounded on the north for the middle part of its course by precipitous banks, in places up to 500 ft. in height above the stream. The beds here exposed consist of sandy gravels, sands, and sandy clays, with occasional thin, discontinuous layers of sandy carbonaceous shale. The sands are frequently blue-green in colour, and without fossils as far as I could see. In this part of the course of the stream the beds lie flat, with a slight dip to the north, but on the eastern margin of the downs the dip increases to 10° and its direction becomes south-east. In the adjacent valleys to the north and south there are similar beds with similar dip.\nLower Waipara Gorge.\nJust where the river crosses the western end of the Limestone Range, beds of the Motunau series are exposed, consisting of marine sands, sandy clays, and sandy gravels frequently cemented with calcareous material and containing numerous fossil shells (Speight, 1912 and 1914). They are\ninvolved in anticlines and synclines, and sometimes dip at steep angles—as high as 55° to 60°. They do not contain, as far as my observation goes, any limestone-fragments such as might have been shed from the Weka Pass or Amuri limestone beds, and this suggests that they are not unconformable to the beds containing those limestones, a conclusion which is supported by general stratigraphical evidence. These Motunau beds are capped unconformably by gravels containing numerous fragments of limestone, and from their lack of distinct stratification it may be concluded that they are high-level terrace-gravels of more recent date. Similar gravels occur on the downs just east of the Amberley—Waipara Railway, covering a considerable extent of country, as they are occasionally exposed in the sides of deep washouts and cap the cliffs cut by the river in making its gorge.\nAlong the north bank of the river below the Teviotdale Bridge there is also a series of Motunau beds, consisting of sands, sandy clays, and gravels, some of which are very fine and smooth and are evidently of marine origin. These beds contain fossil shells at various levels, which point to the age being Mio-Pliocene or Pliocene (Speight, 1914). On the south bank of the river the beds are much obscured by slip-material and vegetation, so that in no place is the contact clearly displayed. On the terrace near the mouth of the river the following section is exposed:—\nYellowish sands, exposed at river-level and for 6 ft. upwards.\nSandy lignite, with well-marked woody structure and containing crystals of gypsum in stellate and columnar groups, 4 ft. in thickness.\nSandy clay (fireclay?), with occasional pieces of bituminized wood.\nLignite, full of bituminized wood, 6–8 in.\nSand and sandy clay, with pieces of wood, 4 ft.\nGravel, 6 ft.\nFarther up-stream the lignite-beds are exposed in similar stratigraphical position, succeeded by yellowish clays and sandy gravels, and at one place there is an exposure under the lignite of well-stratified and rounded marine shingle.\nThese beds all strike east-south-east and dip west-south-west at very flat angles, and it is impossible to tell on stratigraphical grounds whether the gravels overlying the lignites are conformable or not, or whether they belong to the Kowai series or to recent terrace-gravels. The locality furnishes evidence of the ease with which conformity may be simulated under certain circumstances. If level beds are planed by the sea, and no irregularity left on their being depressed and covered with a veneer of sediments, apparent conformity may occur over considerable distances, and especially will this be the case if the beds in contact are of a sandy or gravelly nature. A suggestion of unconformity is given in this case by the presence in the lowest layer of gravel of large pebbles, up to 8 in. in diameter, and more or less subangular, indicating strong currents on a land-surface or on a sea-bottom in close proximity to land, and that the beds were deposited under conditions entirely dissimilar from those obtaining when the better-rounded gravels were laid down.\nOther Canterbury Localities.\nThere are other localities in this part of the South Island where similar gravels occur, among which may be cited the Isolated Hills in the Culverden\nBasin; the cliffs at Gore Bay, where well-cemented gravels are involved in a syncline; the western side of the Trelissick Basin, specially in the Hog's Back Creek; between the Pudding Stone and the North Ashburton River; and in South Canterbury between the Tengawai and Pareora Rivers. It is probable, too, that the deeper gravels encountered in the bore at Chertsey belong to this series, the indications of petroleum coming from plant-remains which elsewhere have formed lignite.* Just below the Rakaia Gorge, where great thickness of gravels has been exposed, there is an underlying set of beds which are more strongly oxidized than the covering strata, and they may perhaps be assigned to a series older than the prevailing shingle beds of the plains. Although this criterion is perhaps an unsatisfactory one on which to base a determination of relative age, yet it has been applied in Switzerland in order to differentiate the gravels of the older glacial series of that region.\nGeneral Conclusions as to the Origin and Age of the Beds, and Relation to the Gravels of the Canterbury Plains.\nThe materials of which these gravels are composed have been derived almost entirely from original greywackes. No limestone was noted among them except in the case of the beds in the North Kowai. Occasional pebbles of basalt also occur, such as might have been derived from areas where such rocks are known to exist. A siliceous sandstone, white in colour and forming rounded masses, which could not be traced to its source, also occurs freely in the gravels of the Mount Grey district. These are perhaps masses of sandstone which have been loosely cemented by processes analogous to those which have formed the sarsen stones, or “Chinamen,” as they are called by miners, of the schist areas of Central Otago.\nThe subangular nature of the pebbles shows that the greywacke land must have been in close proximity to the area of deposit. The absence of large pebbles suggests that it was of moderate relief, though it might have been the outlying portion of a more elevated tract. The gravels contain, however, no suggestion of a glacial or fluvio-glacial origin; they are just such gravels as might have been brought down by the present Ashley or Waipara Rivers, which have no connection with glaciers. The origin of the limestone constituent can be traced exactly, as exposures of limestone of similar nature occur within a short distance of the area where they have been deposited; but these limestone pebbles occur low down in the series and disappear at higher levels, so that the uppermost beds must have been derived from areas where limestone does not exist. Although the lower members of the series are undoubtedly marine, the upper members were in all probability deposited under estuarine conditions or actually on a land-surface.\nThe determination of the age of the Kowai series is a matter of some difficulty. The unconformity in the Grey River shows that it is certainly post-Miocene, and in the Lower Waipara Gorge beds occur under the gravels with a fossil content which shows them to be upper Pliocene (Speight, 1914, p. 300)—that is, beds which form the upper part of the Motunau series. Therefore we may reasonably infer that the Kowai series is either upper Pliocene, if no unconformity exists between two sets of beds, or Pleistocene, if an unconformity is demonstrable. The Pliocene beds of the lower Waipara are perhaps the uppermost beds of a conformable Cretaceo-Tertiary series.\n[Footnote] * Pieces of carbonized bark have recently been obtained from a depth of 1,900 ft. in this bore.\nTherefore if an unconformity can be proved between the Kowai series and any member of the lower series it will be unconformable to all. As the presence of included fragments of limestone in the gravel beds of the Kowai demonstrates the existence of a clear unconformity between the gravels and the limestones, and the undoubted erosion-surface in the Grey River demonstrates the presence of one at a higher level still, we may therefore infer that the gravels of the Kowai series must be of Pleistocene age. If, however, the Cretaceo-Tertiary series is broken up eventually into subordinate unconformable elements, then this argument fails, and the matter will depend on the relation of the Kowai series to the fossiliferous marine beds of the lower Waipara and the Northern Kowai, as being the highest beds on which the Kowai series undoubtedly rests. The relation of the two sets of beds is somewhat obscure, though, judging from the evidence in the latter locality, probably unconformable. Therefore all that can be definitely stated is that the Kowai series overlies undoubted upper Pliocene beds and must be of a later age, and is most probably Pleistocene.\nThis must be earlier than the gravels forming the Canterbury Plains, for these have suffered no deformation by folding movements, whereas the gravels of the Kowai series are at times folded somewhat acutely. They would therefore antedate the last period of glaciation to which the region had been subjected.\nA point which bears on the conformity of the Tertiary sequence should be noted—viz., that in neither of the two branches of the Grey River are the typical Mount Brown beds developed, thus suggesting an unconformity between the Motunau series, or the Kowai series, and the Mount Brown beds in case the absence is due to erosion, or between the Mount Brown beds and the “grey marls” in case the overlying beds, together with the Mount Brown beds, are part of a conformable series. As there appears to be no evidence of unconformity between the Mount Brown beds and the “grey marls” in the typical locality, whereas there is some evidence of an unconformity between the Motunau series and the Mount Brown beds, it seems more likely that the absence of the Mount Brown facies in the Grey River is due to erosion of these beds after deposition. This, however, is a point which requires further investigation.\nHaast, J. von, 1879. Geology of Canterbury and Westland.\nHutton, F. W., 1877. Rep. Geol. Explor. during 1873–74, pp. 27–58.\n— 1885. Sketch of the Geology of New Zealand, Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc., vol. 41, pp. 191–220.\nMcKay, A., 1877. Rep. Geol. Explor. during 1874–76, pp. 172–84.\nPark, J., 1910. The Geology of New Zealand, Whitcombe and Tombs, Christchurch.\nSpeight, R., 1912. A Preliminary Account of the Lower Waipara Gorge, Trans. N.Z. Inst., vol. 44, pp. 221–33.\n— 1914. Additions to the List of Fossils from the Lower Waipara, Trans. N.Z. Inst., vol. 46, p. 300.\n— 1918. Structural and Glacial Features of the Hurunui Valley, Trans. N.Z. Inst., vol. 50, pp. 93–105.\nSpeight, R., and Wild, L. J., 1918. The Stratigraphical Relationship of the Weka Pass Stone and the Amuri Limestone, Trans. N.Z. Inst., vol. 50, pp. 65–93.\nThomson, J. A., 1917. Diastrophic and other Considerations in Classification and Correlation, and the Existence of Minor Diastrophic Districts in the Notocene, Trans. N.Z. Inst., vol. 49, pp. 397–413."}
{"text": "Researchers in Britain have developed a drug they say could revolutionize the effectiveness of radiation on cancer. Radiotherapy is used to destroy cancer cells by zapping their DNA, thus disrupting their ability to function and reproduce. But like other cells in the body, cancer cells have a sort of DNA repair kit that can minimize these effects. The new drug disables the DNA repair process and allows radiotherapy to target tumors with “deadly accuracy.”\nFrom Newcastle University:\nNew drug could help target cancer cells with deadly accuracy\nA new drug that could revolutionise the impact of radiotherapy on cancer and make treatment much more effective, has been developed by Cancer Research UK scientists at Newcastle University.\nThe drug, developed by the charity’s clinical unit at the University, has been designed to destroy the protection enjoyed by cancer cells.\nRadiotherapy kills cancer cells by causing damage to DNA. But the DNA damage repair kit ? the body’s Sir Lancelot which is present in all cells ? rides to the rescue of the beleaguered cells and can get in the way of effective treatment.\nThe new drug will, in turn, disable the DNA repair process and allow radiotherapy to target tumours with deadly accuracy, according to research leader Professor Hilary Calvert, speaking at Cancer Research UK’s first annual conference in Kenilworth, Warwickshire.\nProfessor Calvert explains: ‘Our DNA is damaged all the time during life’s daily routine. One cell sustains about 30,000 incidents of DNA damage every day through the oxygen and chemicals circulating in the body. Therefore the DNA damage repair process is invaluable and keeps us from dissolving into a blob of jelly.’\nBut the downside of this is that the DNA repair kit also comes to the rescue of cancer cells when they are under attack. This has led scientists to search for a weapon to prevent the repair kit from working on tumours.\nThe most promising prospect in the armoury is a class of drugs known as PARP inhibitors which block the action of DNA repair enzymes called PARPs*. In pre-clinical studies researchers have found that these drugs are highly effective at sensitising cancer cells to radiotherapy.\nProfessor Calvert says that one of the problems with radiotherapy ? which is the most common way of treating cancer apart from surgery ? is that the dose needed to kill large tumours is often too toxic to be sustained by the body.\n‘We have been trying to find something to make tumours more sensitive to radiotherapy. And we hope the PARP inhibitor will prove an effective radiosensitizer which would be a huge benefit to cancer patients.\n‘Clinical trials of radiosensitizers have always posed a particularly difficult problem of design because we have to ensure that they are not increasing any side effects to normal tissue,’ he says. ‘Many of the side-effects of radiotherapy are very late and can occur many months or years after the original treatment.’\nProfessor Robert Souhami, Director of Clinical Research for Cancer Research UK, says: ‘The development and production of the PARP inhibitors mean we have a potentially very exciting new approach to cancer treatment.\n‘But there is still much work to be done. We hope clinical trials will start soon but these would take several years to complete before any drug could be licensed for general use.’"}
{"text": "Forgetfulness: Knowing when to Ask for Help\nMaria has been a teacher for 35 years. Teaching fills her life and gives her a sense of accomplishment, but recently she has begun to forget details and has become more and more disorganized. At first, she laughed it off, but her memory problems have worsened. Her family and friends have been sympathetic but are not sure what to do. Parents and school administrators are worried about Maria's performance in the classroom. The principal has suggested she see a doctor. Maria is angry with herself and frustrated, and she wonders whether these problems are signs of Alzheimer's disease or just forgetfulness that comes with getting older.\nMany people worry about becoming forgetful. They think forgetfulness is the first sign of Alzheimer's disease. Over the past few years, scientists have learned a lot about memory and why some kinds of memory problems are serious but others are not.\nAge-related changes in memory\nForgetfulness can be a normal part of aging. As people get older, changes occur in all parts of the body, including the brain. As a result, some people may notice that it takes longer to learn new things, they don't remember information as well as they did, or they lose things like their glasses. These usually are signs of mild forgetfulness, not serious memory problems.\nSome older adults also find that they don't do as well as younger people on complex memory or learning tests. Scientists have found, though, that given enough time, healthy older people can do as well as younger people do on these tests. In fact, as they age, healthy adults usually improve in areas of mental ability such as vocabulary.\nKeeping your memory sharp\nPeople with some forgetfulness can use a variety of techniques that may help them stay healthy and maintain their memory and mental skills. Here are some tips that can help:\nOther causes of memory loss\nSome memory problems are related to health issues that may be treatable. For example, medication side effects, vitamin B12 deficiency, chronic alcoholism, tumors or infections in the brain, or blood clots in the brain can cause memory loss or possibly dementia (see more on dementia, below). Some thyroid, kidney, or liver disorders also can lead to memory loss. A doctor should treat serious medical conditions like these as soon as possible.\nEmotional problems, such as stress, anxiety, or depression, can make a person more forgetful and can be mistaken for dementia. For instance, someone who has recently retired or who is coping with the death of a spouse, relative, or friend may feel sad, lonely, worried, or bored. Trying to deal with these life changes leaves some people confused or forgetful.\nThe confusion and forgetfulness caused by emotions usually are temporary and go away when the feelings fade. The emotional problems can be eased by supportive friends and family, but if these feelings last for a long time, it is important to get help from a doctor or counselor. Treatment may include counseling, medication, or both.\nMore serious memory problems\nFor some older people, memory problems are a sign of a serious problem, such as mild cognitive impairment or dementia. People who are worried about memory problems should see a doctor. The doctor might conduct or order a thorough physical and mental health evaluation to reach a diagnosis. Often, these evaluations are conducted by a neurologist, a physician who specializes in problems related to the brain and central nervous system.\nA complete medical exam for memory loss should review the person's medical history, including the use of prescription and over-the-counter medicines, diet, past medical problems, and general health. A correct diagnosis depends on accurate details, so in addition to talking with the patient, the doctor might ask a family member, caregiver, or close friend for information.\nBlood and urine tests can help the doctor find the cause of the memory problems or dementia. The doctor also might do tests for memory loss and test the person's problem-solving and language abilities. A computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain scan may help rule out some causes of the memory problems.\nAmnestic mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Some people with memory problems have a condition called amnestic mild cognitive impairment, or amnestic MCI. People with this condition have more memory problems than normal for people their age, but their symptoms are not as severe as those of Alzheimer's disease, and they are able to carry out their normal daily activities.\nSigns of MCI include misplacing things often, forgetting to go to important events and appointments, and having trouble coming up with desired words. Family and friends may notice memory lapses, and the person with MCI may worry about losing his or her memory. These worries may prompt the person to see a doctor for diagnosis.\nResearchers have found that more people with MCI than those without it go on to develop Alzheimer's within a certain timeframe. However, not everyone who has MCI develops AD. Studies are underway to learn why some people with MCI progress to AD and others do not.\nThere currently is no standard treatment for MCI. Typically, the doctor will regularly monitor and test a person diagnosed with MCI to detect any changes in memory and thinking skills over time. There are no medications approved for use for MCI.\nDementia. Dementia is the loss of thinking, memory, and reasoning skills to such an extent that it seriously affects a person's ability to carry out daily activities. Dementia is not a disease itself but a group of symptoms caused by certain diseases or conditions such as AD. People with dementia lose their mental abilities at different rates.\nSymptoms may include:\nTwo of the most common forms of dementia in older people are Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. These types of dementia cannot be cured at present.\nIn Alzheimer's disease, changes to nerve cells in certain parts of the brain result in the death of a large number of cells. Symptoms of Alzheimer's disease begin slowly and worsen steadily as damage to nerve cells spreads throughout the brain. As time goes by, forgetfulness gives way to serious problems with thinking, judgment, recognizing family and friends, and the ability to perform daily activities like driving a car or handling money. Eventually, the person needs total care.\nIn vascular dementia, a series of strokes or changes in the brain's blood supply leads to the death of brain tissue. Symptoms of vascular dementia can vary but usually begin suddenly, depending on where in the brain the strokes occurred and how severe they were. The person's memory, language, reasoning, and coordination may be affected. Mood and personality changes are common as well.\nIt's not possible to reverse damage already caused by a stroke, so it's very important to get medical care right away if someone has signs of a stroke. It's also important to take steps to prevent further strokes, which worsen vascular dementia symptoms. Some people have both Alzheimer's and vascular dementia.\nTreatment for dementia\nA person with dementia should be under a doctor's care. The doctor might be a neurologist, family doctor, internist, geriatrician, or psychiatrist. He or she can treat the patient's physical and behavioral problems (such as aggression, agitation, or wandering) and answer the many questions that the person or family may have.\nPeople with dementia caused by Alzheimer's disease may be treated with medications. Four medications are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat Alzheimer's disease. Donepezil (Aricept®), rivastigmine (Exelon®), and galantamine (Razadyne®) are used to treat mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease (donepezil has been approved to treat severe Alzheimer's disease as well). Memantine (Namenda®) is used to treat moderate to severe Alzheimer's disease. These drugs may help maintain thinking, memory, and speaking skills, and may lessen certain behavioral problems for a few months to a few years in some people. However, they dont stop Alzheimer's disease from progressing. Studies are underway to investigate medications to slow cognitive decline and to prevent the development of Alzheimer's disease.\nPeople with vascular dementia should take steps to prevent further strokes. These steps include controlling high blood pressure, monitoring and treating high blood cholesterol and diabetes, and not smoking. Studies are underway to develop medicines to reduce the severity of memory and thinking problems that come with vascular dementia. Other studies are looking at the effects of drugs to relieve certain symptoms of this type of dementia.\nFamily members and friends can help people in the early stages of dementia to continue their daily routines, physical activities, and social contacts. People with dementia should be kept up-to-date about the details of their lives, such as the time of day, where they live, and what is happening at home or in the world. Memory aids may help. Some families find that a big calendar, a list of daily plans, notes about simple safety measures, and written directions describing how to use common household items are useful aids.\nWhat you can do\nIf you're concerned that you or someone you know has a serious memory problem, talk with your doctor. He or she may be able to diagnose the problem or refer you to a specialist in neurology or geriatric psychiatry. Health care professionals who specialize in Alzheimer's can recommend ways to manage the problem or suggest treatment or services that might help. More information is available from the organizations listed below.\nPeople with Alzheimer's disease, MCI, or a family history of Alzheimer's disease, and healthy people with no memory problems and no family history of Alzheimer's disease may be able to take part in clinical trials. Participating in clinical trials is an effective way to help in the fight against Alzheimers. To find out more about clinical trials, call the Alzheimer's Disease Education and Referral (ADEAR) Center toll-free at 1-800-438-4380 or visit the ADEAR Center website at www.nia.nih.gov/Alzheimers. More information is available at www.ClinicalTrials.gov.\nFor more information\nHere are some helpful resources:\nAlzheimer's Disease Education and Referral (ADEAR) Center\nP.O. Box 8250\nSilver Spring, MD 20907-8250\nThe National Institute on Aging's ADEAR Center offers information and publications in English and Spanish for families, caregivers and professionals on diagnosis, treatment, patient care, caregiver needs, long-term care, education and training, and research related to Alzheimer's disease.\n225 North Michigan Avenue, Floor 17\nChicago, IL 60601-7633\nNational Library of Medicine\nFor more information on health and aging, contact:\nVisit NIHSeniorHealth (www.nihseniorhealth.gov), a senior-friendly website from the National Institute on Aging and the National Library of Medicine. This website has health information for older adults. Special features make it simple to use. For example, you can click on a button to have the text read out loud or to make the type larger.\nNational Institute on Aging\nNational Institutes of Health\nU.S. Department of Health and Human Services\nPage last updated March 29, 2010"}
{"text": "|Skip Navigation Links|\n|Exit Print View|\n|Oracle Solaris Administration: ZFS File Systems Oracle Solaris 11 Information Library|\nThis chapter provides step-by-step instructions on setting up a basic Oracle Solaris ZFS configuration. By the end of this chapter, you will have a basic understanding of how the ZFS commands work, and should be able to create a basic pool and file systems. This chapter does not provide a comprehensive overview and refers to later chapters for more detailed information.\nThe following sections are provided in this chapter:"}
{"text": "Machu Picchu, Peru\nEverything about Machu Picchu makes you marvel that it ever came to exist. The lost city of the Incas is built on a saddle-shaped ridge slung between two giant peaks. Near-vertical slopes drop away on either side, down to a massive bend in the Urubamba River. What could have motivated the Incas to undertake such a construction at this remote location in the Andean cordillera? Machu Picchu, built over 700 years ago and hidden by jungle since the 16th century, was rediscovered in 1911. It consists of about 200 buildings, which include dwellings and temples, a central plaza and a royal palace, all flanked by terraces for farming.\nThe stone for the buildings was mined from a quarry and shaped using bronze tools, then smoothed with sand in order to fit tightly together. No mortar was used in the construction. Even after many centuries of wear and tear, the precision is amazing; It would be impossible to slide a piece of paper between many of the blocks. Machu Picchu is notable for the way that existing rock features were incorporated into the design. Inevitably the craftsmanship on sacred buildings is the finest. For spectacular views, make the steep climb up to Wayna Picchu, the mountain behind Machu Picchu. Alternatively, climb to the top of the less crowded Machu Picchu peak, which catches the first rays of the rising sun. Both mountains overlook the entire site, down to the river below, which puts the Incas· great achievement of construction into perspective.\nThe Incas worshipped the sun god Inti, so the summer solstice was the most important day in their calendar, and the Temple of the Sun their most important building. In fact, all their temples and sacred sites were designed to mark solar and astrological events. A stone, Intihuatana ('Hitching Post of the Sun'), is the focus of a major religious site where a ritual was performed, in the shortening days before the winter solstice, to prevent the sun disappearing. Similar stones were at other Inca sites, but were damaged or destroyed by Spanish conquistadores. The one at Machu Picchu survived because the site was never discovered. The population of Machu Picchu is believed to have numbered over a thousand, and the people were so distant from other settlements that they would have produced much of their own food. This accounts for the intricately terraced fields, which have survived remarkably intact thanks to the care and skill that went into their construction. Maize and potatoes were grown, and advanced irrigation techniques were used to ensure that rainwater didn't just run off down the hill to the Urubamba River far below.\nNo-one knows for sure why Machu Picchu was built. Some surmise that it was a royal or religious retreat for one of the Inca rulers. Certainly its remote location and altitude of nearly 2500 metres would seem to rule out any trade or military function. Whatever its use, the obvious effort that went into its construction indicates that it was considered important and held in high regard by those who created it.\nAll trips to Machu Picchu begin and end in Cuzco. The train journey from Cuzco to Aguas Calientes, the town in the river valley below the ruins, takes four hours. Buses go to and from the town to the ruins from 6 am until 5.30 pm. The trains from Cuzco arrive mid-morning and leave late in the afternoon, so the least crowded times at the"}
{"text": "Prizes and Celebrations in Brazil\nUNESCO Brasilia Office usually promotes national events in partnership with various organizations to celebrate the International Days, Years and Decades proclaimed by the General Assembly of the United Nations in order to mark important aspects of human life and history. The Office and its partners also promote national or international prizes in the areas of UNESCO mandate.\nList of Prizes, Celebrations and Campaigns\nOriginally called MERCOSUR Prize for Young Researchers, the Award was created by the Specialized Meeting on Science and Technology of MERCOSUR - RECyT in 1998. Since the 2004 Call, the Award has had the partnership of UNESCO and has changed its title to MERCOSUR Science and Technology Award, comprising two categories: “Young Researchers”, up to 35 years old, and “Integration”, for a team of researchers with no limit of age, involving at least two member countries.\nThe annual context is organized by UNESCO in Brazil and partnerships in celebration of the World Science Day for Peace and Development, established by the United Nations in 2001 and celebrated every year on November 10. Each year, the context has an specific theme. All secondary education students in Brazil can participate in the context by sending their written works and/or drawings on the theme.\n09.04.12 UNESCO International Prizes\nUNESCO promotes international prizes to reward international outstanding efforts made in the themes of UNESCO's mandate: Education, Natural Sciences, Social and Human Sciences, Culture, Communication and Information, and Peace.\n09.04.12 United Nations International Days\nThe United Nations General Assembly designates a number of \"International Days\" to mark important aspects of human life and history. UNESCO, in particular, observes the following:\n09.04.12 United Nations International Years\nUNESCO participates in the celebration of the following International Years proclaimed by the General Assembly of the United Nations:\n09.04.12 United Nations International Decades\nUNESCO participates in the celebration of the following International Decades proclaimed by the General Assembly of the United Nations:\nUNESCO Director-General, Irina Bokova, has designated the Brazilian Dominican friar Frei Betto as laureate of the 2013 UNESCO/José Martí Prize for his exceptional contribution to building a universal culture of peace, social justice and human rights in Latin America and the Caribbean.\nUNESCO Brasilia Office Director, Lucien Muñoz, sent a letter to the Brazilian Dominican friar, Frei Betto, congratulating him for receiving the José Martí 2013 Award for his decisive contribution to a culture of peace, justice and respect to human rights in Latin America."}
{"text": "Undated (WXOW) - In 2009, the US Preventative Task force recommended against breast cancer screening for women aged 40 to 49.\nIt said the risks outweigh the small potential benefit in younger women, but a new study in the \"Annals of Internal Medicine\" says these women would benefit from screening the latest turn in the see-saw debate over detecting breast cancer.\nThe study says screening is helpful for women with a two-fold increase in such risk factors as: having dense breasts, a family history of breast cancer and having had hormone replacement therapy.\nThe authors acknowledge that false positives can cause needless procedures and increased anxiety, but they say false positives can be reduced by focusing on high-risk patients and using regular instead of digital mammogram's.\nAll content © Copyright 2000 - 2013 WorldNow and WXOW. All Rights Reserved.\nPersons with disabilities who need assistance with issues relating to the content of this station's public inspection file should contact Administrative Assistant Theresa Wopat at 507-895-9969. Questions or concerns relating to the accessibility of the FCC's online public file system should be directed to the FCC at 888-225-5322, at 888-835-5322 (TTY) or at email@example.com."}
{"text": "Portrait of Katherine Parr, Queen of England (1512-1548)\nEnglish School, Late Sixteenth Century\n“As the famous rhyme suggests, Katherine Parr’s record as the last of Henry VIII’s six wives was unique. She survived.”\nOil on panel\n21¼ x 15¾ inches, 54 x 40 cm\nPossibly William Bryant, sale at Edward Foster’s, London, 15th May 1823 as ‘Holbein’\nArchibald Alexander Leslie Melville, 13th Earl of Leven and 12th Earl of Melville\nby whom sold, Robinson and Fisher, 29th November 1934 lot 107, as ‘Holbein’\nAnon sale Christies London 9th June 1944, Lot 14\n1967 J Gold Coll.\nAnon Sale Sothebys London 11th July 1983 (lot 37)\nEnglish Private Collection\nKatherine Parr, by Susan E. James (London 1999) p 421 fig 30, as showing the Queen c. 1546;\nIan Tyers, Dendrochronoligical Survey, 2005;\nInscribed at top, Catharina Regina Uxor Henrici VIII\nAs the famous rhyme suggests, Katherine Parr’s record as the last of Henry VIII’s six wives was unique. She survived. Though Anne of Cleves, the sad ‘Flanders Mare’ unable to arouse England’s most insatiable monarch, lived on until 1557 it is only Katherine who was neither divorced, beheaded, or died. She was by any standards a remarkable woman: beautiful enough to marry the King of England, despite having neither royal nor court background; shrewd enough to remain his Queen, despite court plots and an attempt on her life; and courageous enough to sustain the Protestant cause, despite Henry’s latent sympathies for the Roman faith. She was Regent of England during Henry’s invasion of France in 1544. And with her publication of religious works such as Prayers or Meditations in 1545, she became not only the first English Queen to publish a work of prose, but the first woman to do so in the sixteenth century.\nKatherine became Queen of England in July 1543. Henry was her third husband, but, on this occasion, not her first choice. She had instead fallen in love with the dashing courtier Thomas Seymour, and was understandably wary of Henry’s past form when it came to marital relations. Five wives had failed – what chance did a sixth have of success? Nonetheless, to turn down the King’s offer of marriage was unthinkable. Katherine, a deeply devout woman, determined that if she was to be Queen, she would be Queen with a purpose. That purpose was to further the cause of the Protestant Reformation.\nIn doing so Katherine, literally, risked her life. Never afraid to exercise her sharp mind, Katherine had become accustomed to discussing religion with Henry VIII. Though this was at first welcomed by the King, the conservative factions of court and church were terrified of any radical words whispered into the Royal ear - that after all was how Anne Boleyn had first led Henry towards Lutheranism. To conservatives like Bishop Gardiner and Chancellor Wriothesley the answer seemed obvious – Katherine should meet the same fate as Anne. At first, Henry, increasingly irascible from ulcerated legs, indicated that Katherine’s days were numbered. An arrest warrant was drawn up, and, amid rumours of ‘a new queen’, arrest could only have been followed by death. But Katherine succeeded in persuading Henry of her good faith and innocent naivety. “Is it even so, Sweetheart?”, said the King, “Then perfect friends we are now again…”[i] Thus did Tudor Royalty kiss and make up.\nKatherine’s victory checked any conservative renaissance in the final years of the King’s reign. From now all eyes turned to the future (Protestant) reign of Edward VI. Here, Katherine appears to have been less successful, and for once followed her heart rather than her head. With ill-considered haste, she took Thomas Seymour as her lover within weeks of Henry’s death in 1547, and married him just months later. In doing so she lost any chance she may have had in exercising power during Edward’s minority. And yet, perhaps her final and most enduring success was yet to come, for in helping to restore the Princesses Mary and Elizabeth to the line of succession she had extended the Tudor dynasty by half a century. Katherine died after giving birth to a daughter in 1548.\nThe iconography of Katherine Parr is of particular interest. It is ironic that so few portraits of the Queen appear to survive, given that she was the foremost patron of portraiture in mid-Tudor England. There are several reasons why the Queen liked portraiture, not least because she evidently liked art. But perhaps the most intriguing reason may lie in Henry VIII’s habit (undoubtedly annoying to Catherine) of repeatedly portraying himself with Jane Seymour. Was Katherine’s jealousy manifested in art? Was her decision to commission the first full-length portraits of Elizabeth and Mary as Princesses, part of her desire to elevate them from illegitimate bastards to heirs of the English crown? Whatever the reasons, her legacy to the advancement of English portraiture cannot be doubted.\nThere are five recorded certainly known portraits of Katherine Parr that survive. The first is a miniature formerly in the collection of Horace Walpole (now at Sudeley Castle), which is probably by Lucas Hornebolt. The second and third, in the National Portrait Gallery, are a full-length (once erroneously called Lady Jane Grey) by Master John, and a half-length by an unknown artist. A fourth (Lambeth Palace) shows a young Katherine in the 1530s. And now the present example represents a fifth, and shows the Queen towards the end of her life.\nAnd yet, Katherine’s own records show that she commissioned at least more than a dozen portraits of herself; “give me one of your small pictures”, her fourth husband Thomas Seymour wrote, “if ye have any left…”[ii] The contrast between Katherine’s commissions and those extant portraits gives a useful indication of how little survives from the sixteenth century – in this case less than a third. The Queen’s chamber accounts show that John Bettes the Elder painted up to seven miniatures – none survive – and nor apparently do any other miniatures by Hornebolt, aside from the possible Sudeley example.\nRecords also show that Katherine was painted by Hans Eworth, the Dutch artist considered the closest thing to Holbein’s heir[iii]. Such patronage was an indication of Katherine’s desire to support the new, for Eworth had only arrived in England c.1543. His earliest known work is dated 1549. The almost enamel-like flesh tones and bright colouring of the cheeks in this portrait, together with the distinctive modeling of the eyes, may suggest that the artist of this picture was influenced in some way by Eworth’s now lost original. The accomplished handling of the detail in Katherine’s out-turned collar, and the delicate portrayal of her hair, is also reminiscent of Eworth’s Mary Neville, Lady Dacre (National Gallery of Canada). That the jewelry Katherine wears in this portrait is similar to that recorded in her inventories, not to mention the intelligent depiction of Katherine’s slight physique, further suggests that it is based on a contemporary ad vivum example."}
{"text": "Margaret Woodrow Wilson, the daughter of President at the time Thomas Woodrow Wilson, singing the U.S. national anthem “Star Spangled Banner” in 1915. After her mother’s death in 1914 Margaret served as the First Lady of the United States until her father’s second marriage in 1915. She would go on to make several recordings around 1918. In 1938 she travelled to the ashram of Sri Aurobindo in Pondicherry, India where she chose to stay for the rest of her life. She was later known in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram as ‘Nistha’ (Sanskrit for “sincerity”). In 1942, she and the scholar Joseph Campbell edited the English translation of the classical work on the Hindu mystic, Sri Ramakrishna, The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna by Swami Nikhilananda, which was published in 1942. She was to die two years later, 6 years after entering the ashram, of a kidney infection aged 57. (Wikipedia)\nThe lyrics of the “The Star-Spangled Banner” come from “Defence of Fort McHenry”, a poem written in 1814 by the 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet, Francis Scott Key, after he witnessed the bombardment of Fort McHenry by the British Royal Navy ships in Chesapeake Bay 200 years ago this year in the War of 1812. The image above shows the U.S. flag flying above Fort McHenry in 1914. (Wikipedia)\nInternet Archive Link\nPlease note while this recording is in the public domain in the Eurozone, it may not be in other jurisdictions (e.g. the US). Please check its status in your jurisdiction before re-using.\nHELP TO KEEP US AFLOAT\nThe Public Domain Review is a not-for-profit project and we rely on support from our readers to stay afloat. If you like what we do then please do consider making a donation. We welcome all contributions, big or small - everything helps!\nBecome a Patron\nMake a one off Donation\nSIGN UP TO THE NEWSLETTER\nSign up to get our free fortnightly newsletter which shall deliver direct to your inbox the latest brand new article and a digest of the most recent collection items. Simply add your details to the form below and click the link you receive via email to confirm your subscription!"}
{"text": "Life in our towns in the Middle Ages is the main subject of our work. We want to look at it from all points of views, like: history, music, clothing food, law, traditions, markets, churches, building houses, medicine.....\n- Subjects: Art, Cross Curricular, Design and Technology, Foreign Languages, Geography, History, Media Education, Music, Special Needs Education\n- Languages: DE - EN\n- Pupil's age: 7 - 16\n- Tools to be used: Audio conference, Chat, e-mail, Forum, Other software (Powerpoint, video, pictures and drawings), Video conference, Web publishing\n- Aims: The aim of this project is to get to know the history of the Middle Ages in the hometown, area,... read more\n- Work process: Life, traditions, music, food, markets, clothes, building houses, churches, law, medicine in the Middle Ages in my town, area, country.\nEach... read more\n- Expected results: Historical competence about the Middle Ages beginning in the home town, area, country and learning about the same historical time... read more"}
{"text": "Requests: If you need specific information on this remedy - e.g. a proving or a case info on toxicology or whatsoever, please post a message in the Request area www.homeovision.org/forum/ so that all users may contribute.\nThe opium poppy is indigenous to Asia Minor, and awareness of the euphoriant effect of some part of the poppy plant is implicit in the Sumerian records of 4000 BC. Clear accounts exist of its use in the Egyptian, Greek, and Roman cultures. Paracelsus was aware of its usefulness and prepared the first tincture of opium, called laudanum, subsequently simplified by Sydenham.\nFriedrich Sertürner (1783-1841) isolated morphine from opium and demonstrated for the first time that a single purified chemical substance could account for the pharmacological effects of a natural product. Sertürner, a reluctant apprentice to a pharmacist in Prussia, was disturbed by the variable potency of available opium preparations and set out to purify and standardize it. Working at a time when neither experimental pharmacology nor the chemistr of natural products were recognized fields of endeavor, Sertürner succeeded in isolating morphine from opium. Using a bioassay in dogs, he established that morphine, as he named the alkaline substance, was the somnifacient principle in opium. His early reports 1803 were either rejected by editors or ignored after publication. He eventually tested his purified preparation on himself and 3 friends, administering 3 doses of 30mg in 45 minutes and observing vomiting, flush, and near coma. This work was finally published in 1817 and attracted the interest of the influential French chemist Gay-Lussac. The work of Sertürner influenced Pelletier and Caventou, and in the same year other pure principles from plant sources were successfully isolated.\nThe addicting properties of opium have also been important in its history. In China, opium was used only in the treatment of dysentery until the mid-1700s. The English, Portuguese, and Dutch built up a large trade supplying opium to China, and addiction had become so much of a problem by the early 1800s, that the Chinese government acted to bar the importation of opium and reduce the amount of opium-smoking. These acts precipitated a 3-year war terminated by the treaty of Nanking 1842, which gave England Hong-Kong, opened 5 ports to English traders, and specifically authorized continued trade in opium.\nThe risk of addiction was probably underestimated in the West for some time thereafter. Opium and morphine were widely prescribed and easily available in many patent medicines. Misuse was common until about 1920, but the predominant pattern was one of oral use. Since the laws were changed at that time, the number of people involved has become comparatively small but the narcotic is injected.\nMorphine and other naturally occurring narcotics are isolated from opium.\nOpium is collected from only one variety of poppy, Papaver somniferum. A few days after the petals fall, the unripe, still succulent seed pod is lighthly incised. A day later the sticky brown gum that has collected is scraped from the surface of the pod. As much as 25% of this crude opium may be made up ofalkaloids. The content of morphine varies from 9 to 14% and is adjusted to 10% in the standardized preparations.\nThe legal production of opium is regulated by the United Nations. India, Turkey, and Russia are the largest producers of opium from which morphine and other alkaloids are isolated. Morphine is used as such, however, a larger amount is converted chemically into codeine, which occurs in opium in amounts insufficient to meet the needs of medicine.\nThe illegal production of opium is huge. The large amounts of opium still used in the Orient are produced mostly in Southeast Asia. For many years, the illegal heroin that reached the USA originated as opium in Turkey. Mexican opium is now the primary source of heroin, with smaller contributions from the Orient and Iran."}
{"text": "In my line of work, I get asked the question a lot “What exactly IS a gifted child?” There are a lot of misconceptions and misdiagnoses surrounding this issue. I like to refer to the following two lists that I’ve adapted from College Planning for Gifted Students: Choosing And Getting into the Right College by Sandra Berger, who articulates the myths and truths of this topic very well.\nSome common myths about gifted children:\n- They are all high achievers and super smart.\n- They do not need help and are self-contained.\n- They have fewer problems because they are superior to others mentally.\n- The future of a gifted student is guaranteed to go well and they will succeed at anything they try.\n- They are disciplined and self disciplined.\n- They develop socially and emotionally at the same rate as their intellect.\n- They are outcasts and loners.\n- Their greatest asset is their smarts.\n- The gifted student's family always champions and supports them completely.\n- They need to be leaders for others and assume that position as part of their lives.\n- They are naturally creative and do not need much instruction.\n- They are well behaved and role models.\nSome truths about gifted children:\n- They are often perfectionists who see their academic achievements in direct correlation to their self-esteem.\n- They can place unreal expectations on themselves to do well and feel personally responsible as failures if they don’t reach those expectations.\n- Their chronological age, social, physical, emotional, and intellectual development may all be at different levels at any given time.\n- Some of them are \"mappers\" (sequential learners), while others are \"leapers\" (spatial learners).\n- They may always be steps ahead of their classmates and peers, causing them to grow bored within the school setting.\n- They are problem solvers and sometimes have trouble being in the academic environment where curriculum is so structured and predictable.\n- They often think abstractly, which oftentimes makes studying and test taking difficult for them even though they may know the material.\nDr. Dan Peters, Ph.D., is co-founder of the Summit Center (http://summitcenter.us/), which provides psychological and educational assessments and counseling for children and adolescents, specializing in the gifted, creative, and twice-exceptional."}
{"text": "Issued in Shanghai, February 28, 1972\nPresident Richard Nixon of the United States of America visited the People's Republic of China at the invitation of Premier Chou En-lai of the People's Republic of China from February 21 to February 28, 1972. Accompanying the President were Mrs. Nixon, U.S. Secretary of State William Rogers, Assistant to the President Dr. Henry Kissinger, and other American officials.\nPresident Nixon met with Chairman Mao Tsetung of the Communist Party of China on February 21. The two leaders had a serious and frank exchange of views on Sino-U.S. relations and world affairs.\nDuring the visit, extensive, earnest and frank discussions were held between President Nixon and Premier Chou En-lai on the normalization of relations between the United States of America and the People's Republic of China, as well as on other matters of interest to both sides. In addition, Secretary of State William Rogers and Foreign Minister Chi Peng-fei held talks in the same spirit.\nPresident Nixon and his party visited Peking and viewed cultural, industrial and agricultural sites, and they also toured Hangchow and Shanghai where, continuing discussions with Chinese leaders, they viewed similar places of interest.\nThe leaders of the People's Republic of China and the United States of America found it beneficial to have this opportunity, after so many years without contact, to present candidly to one another their views on a variety of issues. They reviewed the international situation in which important changes and great upheavals are taking place and expounded their respective positions and attitudes.\nThe Chinese side stated: Wherever there is oppression there is resistance. Countries want independence, nations want liberation and the people want revolution-this has become the irresistible trend of history. All nations, big or small, should be equal; big nations should not bully the small and strong nations should not bully the weak. China will never be a superpower and it opposes hegemony and power politics of any kind. The Chinese side stated that it firmly supports the struggles of all the oppressed people and nations for freedom and liberation and that the people of all countries have the right to choose their social systems according to their own wishes and the right to safeguard the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of their own countries and oppose foreign aggression, interference, control and subversion. All foreign troops should be withdrawn to their own countries. The Chinese side expressed its firm support to the peoples of Viet Nam, Laos and Cambodia in their efforts for the attainment of their goal and its firm support to the seven-point proposal of the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Viet Nam and the elaboration of February this year on the two key problems in the proposal, and to the Joint Declaration of the Summit Conference of the Indochinese Peoples. It firmly supports the eight-point program for the peaceful unification of Korea put forward by the Government of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea on April 12, 1971, and the stand for the abolition of the \"U.N. Commission for the Unification and Rehabilitation of Korea\". It firmly opposes the revival and outward expansion of Japanese militarism and firmly supports the Japanese people's desire to build an independent, democratic, peaceful and neutral Japan. It firmly maintains that India and Pakistan should, in accordance with the United Nations resolutions on the India-Pakistan question, immediately withdraw all their forces to their respective territories and to their own sides of the ceasefire line in Jammu and Kashmir and firmly supports the Pakistan Government and people in their struggle to preserve their independence and sovereignty and the people of Jammu and Kashmir in their struggle for the right of self-determination.\nThe U.S. side stated: Peace in Asia and peace in the world requires efforts both to reduce immediate tensions and to eliminate the basic causes of conflict. The United States will work for a just and secure peace; just, because it fulfills the aspirations of peoples and nations for freedom and progress; secure, because it removes the danger of foreign aggression. The United States supports individual freedom and social progress for all the peoples of the world, free of outside pressure or intervention. The United States believes that the effort to reduce tensions is served by improving communication between countries that have different ideologies so as to lessen the risks of confrontation through accident, miscalculation or misunderstanding. Countries should treat each other with mutual respect and be willing to compete peacefully, letting performance be the ultimate judge. No country should claim infallibility and each country should be prepared to reexamine its own attitudes for the common good. The United States stressed that the peoples of Indochina should be allowed to determine their destiny without outside intervention; its constant primary objective has been a negotiated solution; the eight-point proposal put forward by the Republic of Viet Nam and the United States on January 27, 1972 represents a basis for the attainment of that objective; in the absence of a negotiated settlement, the United States envisages the ultimate withdrawal of all U.S. forces from the region consistent with the aim of self-determination for each country of Indochina. The United States will maintain its close ties with and support for the Republic of Korea; the United States will support efforts of the Republic of Korea to seek a relaxation of tension and increased communication in the Korean peninsula. The United States places the highest value on its friendly relations with Japan; it will continue to develop the existing close bonds. Consistent with the United Nations Security Council Resolution of December 21, 1971, the United States favors the continuation of the ceasefire between India and Pakistan and the withdrawal of all military forces to within their own territories and to their own sides of the ceasefire line in Jammu and Kashmir; the United States supports the right of the peoples of South Asia to shape their own future in peace, free of military threat, and without having the area become the subject of great power rivalry.\nThere are essential differences between China and the United States in their social systems and foreign policies. However, the two sides agreed that countries, regardless of their social systems, should conduct their relations on the principles of respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states, non-aggression against other states, non-interference in the internal affairs of other states, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence. International disputes should be settled on this basis, without resorting to the use or threat of force. The United States and the People's Republic of China are prepared to apply these principles to their mutual relations.\nWith these principles of international relations in mind the two sides stated that:\n--progress toward the normalization of relations between China and the United States is in the interests of all countries;\n--both wish to reduce the danger of international military conflict;\n--neither should seek hegemony in the Asia-Pacific region and each is opposed to efforts by any other country or group of countries to establish such hegemony; and\n--neither is prepared to negotiate on behalf of any third party or to enter into agreements or understandings with the other directed at other states.\nBoth sides are of the view that it would be against the interests of the peoples of the world for any major country to collude with another against other countries, or for major countries to divide up the world into spheres of interest.\nThe two sides reviewed the long-standing serious disputes between China and the United States. The Chinese side reaffirmed its position: The Taiwan question is the crucial question obstructing the normalization of relations between China and the United States; the Government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government of China; Taiwan is a province of China which has long been returned to the motherland; the liberation of Taiwan is China's internal affair in which no other country has the right to interfere; and all U.S. forces and military installations must be withdrawn from Taiwan. The Chinese Government firmly opposes any activities which aim at the creation of \"one China, one Taiwan\" \"one China two governments\", \"two Chinas\", an \"independent Taiwan\" or advocate that \"the status of Taiwan remains to be determined\".\nThe U.S. side declared: The United States acknowledges that all Chinese on either side of the Taiwan Strait maintain there is but one China and that Taiwan is a part of China. The United States Government does not challenge that position. It reaffirms its interest in a peaceful settlement of the Taiwan question by the Chinese themselves. With this prospect in mind, it affirms the ultimate objective of the withdrawal of all U.S. forces and military installations from Taiwan. In the meantime, it will progressively reduce its forces and military installations on Taiwan as the tension in the area diminishes.\nThe two sides agreed that it is desirable to broaden the understanding between the two peoples. To this end, they discussed specific areas in such fields as science, technology, culture, sports and journalism, in which people-to-people contacts and exchanges would be mutually beneficial. Each side undertakes to facilitate the further development of such contacts and exchanges.\nBoth sides view bilateral trade as another area from which mutual benefit can be derived, and agreed that economic relations based on equality and mutual benefit are in the interest of the peoples of the two countries. They agree to facilitate the progressive development of trade between their two countries.\nThe two sides agreed that they will stay in contact through various channels, including the sending of a senior U.S. representative to Peking from time to time for concrete consultations to further the normalization of relations between the two countries and continue to exchange views on issues of common interest.\nThe two sides expressed the hope that the gains achieved during this visit would open up new prospects for the relations between the two countries. They believe that the normalization of relations between the two countries is not only in the interest of the Chinese and American peoples but also contributes to the relaxation of tension in Asia and the world.\nPresident Nixon, Mrs. Nixon and the American party expressed their appreciation for the gracious hospitality shown them by the Government and people of the People's Republic of China."}
{"text": "const void * memchr ( const void * ptr, int value, size_t num );\nvoid * memchr ( void * ptr, int value, size_t num );\nLocate character in block of memory\nSearches within the first num bytes of the block of memory pointed by ptr for the first occurrence of value (interpreted as an unsigned char), and returns a pointer to it.\nBoth value and each of the bytes checked on the the ptr array are interpreted as unsigned char for the comparison.\n- Pointer to the block of memory where the search is performed.\n- Value to be located. The value is passed as an int, but the function performs a byte per byte search using the unsigned char conversion of this value.\n- Number of bytes to be analyzed.\nsizet is an unsigned integral type.\nA pointer to the first occurrence of value in the block of memory pointed by ptr.\nIf the value is not found, the function returns a null pointer.\nIn C, this function is only declared as:\nvoid * memchr ( const void *, int, size_t );\ninstead of the two overloaded versions provided in C++.\n/* memchr example */\nint main ()\nchar * pch;\nchar str = \"Example string\";\npch = (char*) memchr (str, 'p', strlen(str));\nprintf (\"'p' found at position %d.\\n\", pch-str+1);\nprintf (\"'p' not found.\\n\");\n- Compare two blocks of memory (function\n- Locate first occurrence of character in string (function\n- Locate last occurrence of character in string (function"}
{"text": "The aim of the project - which is in the style of a Wikipedia - is to make the large volume of information that exists on children's rights more accessible, to highlight persistent violations and inspire collective action. Much of the information in the new Wiki is already available on the CRIN website but might not be easily retrieveable.\nSee the Wiki here: http://wiki.crin.org/mediawiki/index.php?title=Main_Page\nWe are launching the Wiki with an initial batch of 41 country pages, with more to follow. They are:\nAfghanistan, Angola, Argentina, Bahrain, Belarus, Belgium, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Colombia, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Finland, Grenada, Guatemala, Japan, Lao, PDR, Macedonia, former Yugoslav Republic of, Mongolia, Montenegro, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Paraguay, Serbia, Singapore, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, Yemen\nThe Wiki is a web-based, multi-lingual and interactive project - this means we need your input to ensure the pages are kept up to date. Find out how to contribute below.\nPlease note that this project is still being tested, if you have comments or suggestions, please email them to email@example.com.\nWhy are we doing this?\nThe purpose of making all information about children's rights available in one place is to build a clearer picture of some of the repeated violations of children's rights in a given country. The eventual goal will be to try to match these violations with possible avenues of redress.\nWe have found that few children's rights advocates are aware of or make use of the full range of opportunities within the UN and regional human rights mechanisms to pursue children's rights advocacy. Yet many of the bodies which are not specifically child rights-focused, such as the UN Special Procedures and the Universal Periodic Review, also issue recommendations on children's rights. The Wiki therefore brings together all recommendations and decisions on children's rights made by these bodies, including courts, to make it easy for advocates to make the most of all available options.\nWhat is in the Wiki?\nEach country has its own homepage with the following sections:\nIn addition, the Wiki contains state-by-state information on ratifications of international human rights treaties, communications/ complaints mechanisms and inquiry procedures.\nOn the Wiki, read:\nOur eventual aim is to make all information about children's rights available in English as well as the official language of the country concerned. Parts of the Wiki which exist in other languages are currently linked to from the English version. If you are planning to translate any sections of the Wiki into your language or are available to volunteer your time to help with this, please contact CRIN at firstname.lastname@example.org"}
{"text": "About How to Draw Elephant:\nLearning how to draw an elephant is fun, but it can also help kids develop many important skills. These skills, eye-hand coordination, color concepts, picture and number comprehension, form the foundation for early learning success. Enjoy this free, printable how to draw an elephant page!\nUse of our How to Draw Elephant page:\nOur how to draw an elephant may be used only for your personal, non-commercial use. Parents, teachers, churches and recognized nonprofit organizations may print or copy multiple how to draw an elephant pages for use at home or in the classroom."}
{"text": "UK hydrogen cars are coming - if you can fill up\nLONDON (Reuters) - Britain's hydrogen fuel cell car fleet may hit top gear within five years, but only if there is enough investment in filling stations, the UK Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Association (UK HFCA) told Reuters on Friday.\nFuel cells convert hydrogen into electricity, with heat and water being the only by-products, with a number of car makers including Toyota, Ford, and Hyundai, pushing to commercialize the low-carbon hybrid fuel cell vehicle by 2015.\n\"Somewhere around 2015 to 2017 we'll be over threshold and I think we'll see a larger and growing fleet,\" HFC chairman Dennis Hayter said.\n\"It's all aligned with the rollout of the infrastructure. In order to get to a semi-ubiquitous availability of hydrogen, then yes, you're talking may billions of pounds, but it doesn't have to come at once.\"\nHayter said fuel cell cars only take minutes to refill with a range of around 250 miles range. Plug-in electric vehicles take hours to recharge with a range of around 100 miles.\nExisting petrol filling stations could be converted, with hydrogen companies possibly leasing some of the pumps, while current hydrogen production capacity is seen as adequate for the next decade.\n\"You may find there's a deal to be made between the hydrogen gas and petroleum companies. Things are happening in the background and gradually a network is starting to appear,\" Hayter said.\n\"At present, the majority of hydrogen is derived from reforming of natural gas for industrial purposes such as refining and in chemicals.\n\"The quantities currently used and likely to be needed for transport in the next five to 10 years would still be minimal alongside hydrogen consumed for industrial use.\"\nFor the long term estimates of hydrogen costs, Hayter believes it will be competitive with petrol, or cheaper. Using U.S. hydrogen prices of $8 a kilogram, it would cost around $32 to fill up fuel cell car with a 250 mile range, he said.\n\"It's not comparing apples with apples, but if they're the long term costs, then it could be significantly cheaper but it depends on the fuel duty,\" Hayter added.\nThe UK HFCA is calling for hydrogen not to be taxed as a transport fuel, as petrol is, to help incentivize uptake.\nBritain has around 30 hydrogen fuel vehicles, mostly buses and taxi in London, with two filling stations in the city and another four expected by 2012, the UK HFCA said.\nSeen as a way to decarbonise the transport sector, Britain's former Labour government planned to subsidise low-carbon vehicle purchases from 2011, with a grant worth up to 5,000 pounds ($7,584).\n(Editing by William Hardy)\n- Tweet this\n- Share this\n- Digg this"}
{"text": "Acidosis is a condition in which there is excessive acid in the body fluids. It is the opposite of alkalosis (a condition in which there is excessive base in the body fluids).\nCauses, incidence, and risk factors:\nThe kidneys and lungs maintain the balance (proper pH level) of chemicals called acids and bases in the body. Acidosis occurs when acid builds up or when bicarbonate (a base) is lost. Acidosis is classified as either respiratory acidosis or metabolic acidosis .\nRespiratory acidosis develops when there is too much carbon dioxide (an acid) in the body. This type of acidosis is usually caused by a decreased ability to remove carbon dioxide from the body through effective breathing. Other names for respiratory acidosis are hypercapnic acidosis and carbon dioxide acidosis. Causes of respiratory acidosis include:\n- Chest deformities, such as kyphosis\n- Chest injuries\n- Chest muscle weakness\n- Chronic lung disease\n- Overuse of sedative drugs\nMetabolic acidosis develops when too much acid is produced or when the kidneys cannot remove enough acid from the body. There are several types of metabolic acidosis:\nDiabetic acidosis (also called diabetic ketoacidosis and DKA) develops when substances called ketone bodies (which are acidic) build up during uncontrolled diabetes .\n- Hyperchloremic acidosis results from excessive loss of sodium bicarbonate from the body, as can happen with severe diarrhea.\nLactic acidosis is a buildup of lactic acid . This can be caused by:\n- Exercising vigorously for a very long time\n- Liver failure\n- Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia)\n- Medications such as salicylates\n- Prolonged lack of oxygen from shock, heart failure, or severe anemia\nOther causes of metabolic acidosis include:\nSigns and tests:\n- Arterial or venous blood gas analysis\n- Serum electrolytes\n- Urine pH\nAn arterial blood gas analysis or serum electrolytes test, such as a basic metabolic panel, will confirm that acidosis is present and indicate whether it is metabolic acidosis or respiratory acidosis. Other tests may be needed to determine the cause of the acidosis.\nTreatment depends on the cause. See the specific types of acidosis.\nAcidosis can be dangerous if untreated. Many cases respond well to treatment.\nSee the specific types of acidosis.\nCalling your health care provider:\nAlthough there are several types of acidosis, all will cause symptoms that require treatment by your health care provider.\nPrevention depends on the cause of the acidosis. Normally, people with healthy kidneys and lungs do not experience significant acidosis.\nSeifter JL. Acid-base disorders. In: Goldman L, Ausiello D, eds. Cecil Medicine. 23rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2007:chap 119.\n|Review Date: 11/15/2009|\nReviewed By: David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.\nThe information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Call 911 for all medical emergencies. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. © 1997-\nA.D.A.M., Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited."}
{"text": "[Sex. Syst.—Monoecia, Polyandria.\nGen. Char—See ante, p. 318.\nSp. Char.—Leaves obovate, oblong; obliquely divided into obtuse lobes; segments, oblong entire; cup hemispherical, tuberculated; acorn ovoid, oblong; fruit in pairs.\nThis tree is less elevated than the Q. tinctoria. It forms, however, a larger and more regularly-expanded head, with numerous horizontal branches. The trunk and branches have a whitish hue, hence the name White Oak. The leaves are of a silvery appearance, with a hoary under surface. The young leaves are covered with a fine silky down.\nThe bark is rough externally, of a light colour; the effete epidermis being arranged in flat layers On drying, the internal layer becomes brown. It breaks with a stringy fracture. The odour is decided and tan-like; taste astringent and bitter. This bark is used in tanning. For medicinal purposes it is preferred to the black oak.\nDECOCTUM QUERCUS ALBAE, U. S.; Decoction of White Oak Bark.—(Take of White Oak Bark, bruised, an ounce: Water a pint and a half. Boil down to a pint and strain.)—Used as the Decoctum Quercus, p. 320.]\nThe Elements of Materia Medica and Therapeutics, Vol. II, 3th American ed., was written by Jonathan Pereira in 1853."}
{"text": "|NEWSRoom | Source: Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center|\nOlder Adults May Need More Vitamin D to Prevent Mobility Difficulties\nOlder adults who don’t get enough vitamin D—either from diet, supplements or sun exposure—may be at increased risk of developing mobility limitations and disability, according to new research from Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.\n“This is one of the first studies to look at the association of vitamin D and the onset of new mobility limitations or disability in older adults,” said lead author Denise Houston, PhD, RD, a nutrition epidemiologist in the Wake Forest Baptist Department of Geriatrics and Gerontology. Houston researches vitamin D and its effects on physical function.\nThe study, published online in the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences, analyzed the association between vitamin D and onset of mobility limitation and disability over six years of follow-up using data from the National Institute on Aging’s Health, Aging, and Body Composition (Health ABC) study. Mobility limitation and disability are defined as any difficulty or inability to walk several blocks or climb a flight of stairs, respectively.\nOf the 3,075 community-dwelling black and white men and women aged 70-79 who were enrolled, data from 2,099 participants was used for this study. Eligible participants reported no difficulty walking one-fourth mile, climbing 10 steps, or performing basic, daily living activities, and were free of life-threatening illness. Vitamin D levels were measured in the blood at the beginning of the study. Occurrence of mobility limitation and disability during follow-up was assessed during annual clinic visits alternating with telephone interviews every six months over six years.\n“We observed about a 30% increased risk of mobility limitations for those older adults who had low levels of vitamin D, and almost a two-fold higher risk of mobility disability,” Houston said.\nHouston said vitamin D plays an important role in muscle function, so it is plausible that low levels of the vitamin could result in the onset of decreased lower muscle strength and physical performance. Vitamin D may also indirectly affect physical function as low vitamin D levels have also been associated with diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease and lung disease—conditions that are frequent causes of decline in physical function. Houston said people get vitamin D when it is naturally produced in the skin by sun exposure, by eating foods with vitamin D, such as fortified milk, juice and cereals, and by taking vitamin D supplements.\n“About one-third of older adults have low vitamin D levels,” she said. “It’s difficult to get enough vitamin D through diet alone and older adults, who may not spend much time outdoors, may need to take a vitamin D supplement.”\nCurrent recommendations call for people over age 70 to get 800 International Units of vitamin D daily in their diet or supplements. Houston pointed out that current dietary recommendations are based solely on vitamin D’s effects on bone health.\n“Higher amounts of vitamin D may be needed for the preservation of muscle strength and physical function as well as other health conditions,” she said. “However, clinical trials are needed to determine whether increasing vitamin D levels through diet or supplements has an effect on physical function.”\nThis research was supported in part by the Intramural Research Program of the National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging; National Institute on Aging contracts N01-AG-6-2101, N01-AG-6-2103, and No1-AG-6-2106; National Institute on Aging grants R01 AG028050, R01 AG029364 and K01 AG030506 (to DKH); National Institute of Nursing Research grant R01 NR012459; and the Wake Forest University Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Center (P30 AG021332).\nCo-authors include: Janet A. Tooze, PhD, Gary G. Schwartz, PhD, Jeff D. Williamson, MD, Stephen B Kritchevsky, PhD, Rebecca H. Neiberg, PhD and M. Kyla Shea, PhD, all of Wake Forest Baptist; Dorothy B. Hausman, PhD, and Mary Ann Johnson, PhD, University of Georgia, Athens; Jane A. Cauley, PhD, University of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania; Doug C. Bauer, MD, University of California, San Francisco; and Tamara B. Harris, MD, National Institute on Aging.\n|Short Link: http://www.news-line.com/?s212392|\ncomments powered by Disqus"}
{"text": "The National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall opened in September 2004. Fifteen years in the making, it is the first national museum in the country dedicated exclusively to Native Americans. The five-story, 250,000-square-foot, curvilinear building is clad in a golden-colored Kasota limestone that is designed to evoke natural rock formations that have been shaped by wind and water over thousands of years. The museum is set in a 4.25-acre site and is surrounded by simulated wetlands. The museum's east-facing entrance, its prism window and its 120-foot-high space for contemporary Native performances are direct results of extensive consultations with Native peoples. The museum's architect and project designer is the Canadian Douglas Cardinal (Blackfoot); its design architects are GBQC Architects of Philadelphia and architect Johnpaul Jones (Cherokee/Choctaw). Disagreements during construction led to Cardinal being removed from the project, but the building retains his original design intent, and his continued input enabled its completion. The museum's project architects are Jones & Jones Architects and Landscape Architects Ltd. of Seattle and SmithGroup of Washington, D.C., in association with Lou Weller (Caddo), the Native American Design Collaborative, and Polshek Partnership Architects of New York City; Ramona Sakiestewa (Hopi) and Donna House (Navajo/Oneida) also served as design consultants. The landscape architects are Jones & Jones Architects and Landscape Architects Ltd. of Seattle and EDAW Inc., of Alexandria, Virginia."}
{"text": "The doctrine of purgatory is revealed through certain scriptural texts which speak of a burning fire – cf. 1 Cor 3:15, 1 Pet 1:7. Though there are certainly other passages of the Bible which can be drawn upon (e.g. Job praying for his dead children, the Judas Maccabeus praying for the dead), the Tradition of the Church has principally relied upon the passages referring to fire – this is especially noticeable in the declarations of Florence and Trent.\nHence, we come to a very important question: If the Church discovered the doctrine of purgatory through meditating upon the scriptural images of a purifying fire, ought we to hold that there is material fire in purgatory? With the help of the Catechism of the Catholic Church and the great Thomistic theologian Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, we may succeed in shedding some light upon this question.\nNot a clear teaching of the Church\nThat there is fire in purgatory is not a clear teaching of the Church – Garrigou-Lagrange considers it a sententia probabilissima (the most probable doctrine), but not a defined teaching of the Church. He notes that the Council of Florence did not condemn the Greek schismatics who denied the existence of fire in purgatory, though it does favor the common Latin opinion affirming the presence of material fire there.\nOn the other hand, it is important to mention that the Church has not rejected the possibility of material fire in purgatory. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 1030-1032) refers to the fire and flames of purgatory twice, never indicating that these flames are metaphorical. Thus, the Church seems to feel bound to at least allow for the possibility of a strictly literal interpretation of the purifying fire and uses the language of fire and of flames without any hint that this is meant metaphorically.\nHow can a disembodied soul suffer from material flames?\nFr. Garrigou-Lagrange, following St. Thomas Aquinas, affirms that it is possible for spiritual beings to “suffer” from material flames – this is called the pain of sense. It is a clear doctrine of the Church that the souls in purgatory undergo the pain of sense, at least spiritually – even if there are no physical flames in purgatory, the souls there suffer in their spiritual senses. The chief pain of purgatory is the delay of the beatific vision, but in addition to this there also the pain of sense.\nA disembodied soul cannot suffer from material flames in the same way a body or even an embodied soul can suffer from them. The separated spirit suffers insofar as it is bound to the material flames and hindered from acting as it would and where it would. There is a certain humiliation inflicted upon the soul since it is made to depend upon a material creature (i.e. the fire). A loose analogy is seen in a paralyzed person who cannot act as they would.\nAre there material flames in purgatory?\nHere we will cite the words of the venerable father Garrigou-Lagrange: “After long discussions and wide historical researches on this particular point, it seems wise to conclude with St. Robert Bellarmine and Suarez as follows, ‘Although the existence of fire in purgatory is less certain than that of fire in hell, the doctrine which admits a real fire in purgatory must be classified as a sentential probabilissima. Hence the contrary opinion is improbable.’\n“This view rests on seven reasons: first, the consent of scholastic theologians. Second, the authority of St. Gregory the Great (Dial. 4, 39). Third, the authority of St. Augustine. Forth, the concordant testimonies of St. Cyprian, St. Basil, St. Caesarius, of the liturgy, which begs refreshment of these souls. Fifth, the unanimous decision of the Latin fathers at the Council of Florence. Sixth, the very probable foundation found in 1 Corinthians 3:15. Seventh, particular revelations, for example those of St. Catherine of Ricci. She suffered forty days to deliver a soul from purgatory. A novice, touching her hand, said, ‘But, my mother, you are burning.’ ‘Yes, my daughter,’ she replied, ‘this fire is not seen, but it consumes like a burning fever.’” (from Life Everlasting)\nThroughout the next couple of weeks, I will post on several additional questions regarding the nature of purgatory. Let us all pray for the Poor Souls during the next month!"}
{"text": "January 10th, 2004 01:15 AM\nYeah, arbitrary precision is very confusing. I've tried to make my own like that with huge string allocations (acturally char arrays) and compare numbers one by one. I don't know what happened to it, but I probably never completed it anyways.\nAnd that recursive function looks really....recursive. I don't see any code to exit out of the loop, IE it will continue to call it self over and over until the program finally kills the heap/stack or something. I don't quite know what it is...\nAlso, even if it wasn't a static, it would still always be zero (if you managed to get an answer out of it since it loops forever). Why? Since there is no checking to see if X is less than or equal to 1. Without that it would multiply it by 0 when x = 0, and thus the answers would be cleared.\nWell the only reason I can acturally comment on it is because I have my C book here with an example of a recursive function to calculate factorials... heh. Sadly I don't think I'm *allowed* to post the code up. Sorry.\nThe next best thing - Using Linked Lists of Integers to store the factorial of 1000... http://www.codeguru.com/algorithms/factorial.shtml I don't happen to think that the code there is easily understandable though...\nJanuary 10th, 2004 01:32 AM\nTim_axe, sorry to be pedantic, but if you look at his code, x would never be zero, that wasn't the issue. The fact is that it is pointless even having the x if you set total to 0 at the start because total will never increase, and that's even if you ignore that there is no way to exit the recursion.\nAlso, because total is a local variable and you are not sending it as an argument, total would have died at the beginning of each recursion in any case. A slightly more functional function, if still not very good would be:\nPlease note that even that code is completely useless :P I just felt like correcting the other code (too tired to check who it was that posted it, and I can't see just now anyway :P)\nvoid genFactorial(int x, int t)\nint total = t; // you probably wouldn't even need total now\nvoid main(void) // yes, I know it isn't totally correct\nOh god that makes me look sad.\n Tim_axe, I'm sorry. I realise what you are saying now (couldn't really see it properly, my contact lenses are fscked atm). I left what I said in incase someone already had seen it so that you know I was apologising [/edit]\nJanuary 10th, 2004 04:07 AM\nDon't worry about it gothic_type, I can see where I sort of rambled on in my post and just messed up what I was trying to point out.\nI'll work off of your code since it has the basic framework and I want to save typing...\n*Opens up DevC++*\n*Finds C Programming Book*\n*Returns to Open Window*\nOkay, this following code compiles, and works fine for me. If not, please debug it yourself. :P Also, don't give it an integer bigger than 14. It will crash or mess up something (Integer Overflow). Same goes for letters, and decimal numbers. Integers only...\nEnjoy. Also, it won't do your 100 or whatnot. Only up to 14... Check the link in my previous post to find code for bigger numbers. I haven't tried it myself...\nusing namespace std;\nunsigned int genFactorial(unsigned int x);\ncout<<\"Blah. Give me an Integer or I'll crash: \";\ncout<<\"\\nI think that is: \"<<genFactorial(fact)<<endl;\ncout<<\"If that's wrong, it's 42!\"<<endl;\nunsigned int genFactorial(unsigned int x)\nx *= genFactorial(x-1);\nJanuary 10th, 2004 08:33 AM\nTim_axe, nice prog; appears to work correctly (despite the fact that I attempted to get gcc to compile it to begin with which made it unhappy )\nNow all we need to do is edit the program so that it can do 100, but still using integers :P.\nBTW -- Tim_axe, I think we must be the only people sad enough to have kept on posting to this topic...I think everyone else bailed :P\nJanuary 12th, 2004 07:27 PM\nwell you guys are using recursion, which isnt going to be good when you are computing 100 because you will run out of space in RAM.\nSupport your right to arm bears.\n^^This was the first video game which i played on an old win3.1 box\nJanuary 12th, 2004 10:26 PM\nWhite_Eskimo, the only reason I (and I think Tim_axe as well) was using recursion was because Striek had suggested it. His code was really messed up, so I was trying to \"fix\" it while also attempting to point out the multiplying by zero error.\nAnyhow. Since no-one else really suggested/posted another method, at least it's something. :P\nJanuary 13th, 2004 12:31 AM\nWell I guess we could continue it... Anyone else want to help out?\nSo we can scrap the recursion idea because the program would eventually run out of heap/stack or something on really big numbers... But as to how will we use integers to store numbers that are over 32bits long... We might have to borrow from the code @ http://www.codeguru.com/algorithms/factorial.shtml by somehow adopting use of linked lists of integers. Although the code there already uses it to compute factorials...\nSo, I guess it would be like this (insert really bad program outline here):\nUse types in number, ie 60.\nAllocate 59/60/61 integers (array), put numbers 60 to 1 in them. (we will somehow multiply them later on, which is what factorials do)\nThen we can allocate some more integers, say 1000 to be safe for now, and set each element to 0. This will hold our output, with each integer holding a single digit. 1000 here would mean we can store a 1000 digit answer for a factorial. My guess is that is the factorial of 150 or so?\nWe then multiply the last two integers from the first array, ie with values 60 and 59.\nStore this result, ie 3540, in a temporary integer. We then seperate it into thousands, hundreds, tens, and ones, etc., and put it into the answer in those respective places in the answer array.\nThis gets messy. We seperate the next integer into ones and tens, and then somehow multiply the answer array and this next integer, ie 58, and deal with carrying over numbers to keep a single digit to the answer. Move that into the answer, and repeat that process. The link does that somewhere, but with linked lists instead of arrays of integers.\nThis technique could work well up until getting the factorial of about 65537, since 65537 * 65536 is a number over 32bits, the largest we could hold in an unsigned integer / long value on a normal 32bit PC... (first multiplacation step)\nIt is sort of reinventing the wheel I guess since there is already code to do it. I could probably work on it when I'm not studying for finals this week. Hopefully we can figure this one out, lol.\nJanuary 13th, 2004 04:55 PM\nWow. I looked at that \"algorithm\"...I couldn't even have begun to think about coding that (mainly because I've never learned about linked lists and I don't know as much as I should about c++).\nJanuary 14th, 2004 03:38 AM\nI tried to come up with my own code and it is useless. I can't get it to carry numbers over right and multiply them together the way I need to. It ended up using only the first unsigned long in the array of about 1000 of them.\nAnyways, I read through the comments of that tutorial, and came across this one. Man the person (Krishna Kumar Khatri) is good... Saves me from ripping out anymore of hair trying to get my own version to work.\nJanuary 14th, 2004 03:47 PM\nlol. That code's still too confusing for me to understand without reading it over a couple of times :P.\nIf you could somehow devise a way to multiply parts 1 to n in an array to output them without having to store them in a variable, then I've got a program that solves this problem. But I guess that was the whole problem in the first place :P\nAnyhow. I'm just annoyed that I couldn't think up a solution myself"}
{"text": "a programme established by the US government in 1947 to give economic help to Europe after World War II. It was named after George C. Marshall, who was the US Secretary of State. Thousands of millions of dollars were provided for rebuilding cities, roads, industries etc\nDefinition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English Advanced Learner's Dictionary.\nDictionary pictures of the day\nDo you know what each of these is called?\nClick on any of the pictures above to find out what it is called."}
{"text": "A/Prof. Dirk Van Helden\n|Work Phone||(02) 4921 5623|\n|Fax||(02) 4921 7406|\nPrincipal Research Fellow\nSchool of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy\nThe University of Newcastle, Australia\n|Office||MS405, Medical Sciences|\nInvestigations are being made on cellular rhythms including those in lymphatics, blood vessels, gastrointestinal tract, heart and specific mood-associated brain nuclei. We have discovered a new mechanism that it is driven by intracellular Ca2+ stores that allow groups of cells to self pace and hence become rhythmic. We are now exploring the relevance of this mechanism in a range of tissues. We are also interested in specific proteins involved in the pacemaker mechanism including inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors, ryanodine receptors, store operated calcium channels and TRP family proteins. These studies may influence future therapies to control lymphedema, digestive disorders, heart arrhythmias and brain mood states.\nWe also have a recent patent relating to use of a topical ointment as a first aid treatment against snakebite. This was a surprising outcome that arose from studies investigating whether snake venoms enhance lymphatic pumping and hence accelerate their own delivery. Our preliminary trials indicate topical application of the ointment slows lymphatic transport by some 350% with no obvious adverse effects. The cream will be of particular use for bites to the torso where pressure bandaging is ineffective. It may also be useful as a first aid treatment against bites from other venomous creatures.\n- PhD, University of New South Wales\n- Bachelor of Engineering, University of New South Wales\n- Cellular physiologist\n- gastrointestinal physiology\n- heart pacemaking\n- smooth muscle\nLymphatic and gastric pacemaking: Pacemaking in the lymphatic and gastric systems are the basis for our discovery of store pacemaking and calcium phase waves. We are now unravelling the finer details of these mechanisms. Importantly, as for all good research, there can often be unexpected yet important serendipitous outcomes. One in case is that this work has led to development of a first aid treatment against bites from venomous animals whose venoms transit the lymphatic system and we have a patent application on this finding under review.\nHeart pacemaking: Traditionally, this has been considered to operate through a clock in the cell surface membrane of pacemaker cells. However, recent evidence from our pilot and modelling studies and from the work of others indicates a significant role of calcium stores. This introduces the possibility that the heart pacemaker model is only part of the story and that pacemaking involves an intracellular clock (i.e. store pacemaking). We are investigating this hypothesis, which if upheld will change the text book model for heart pacemaking and help change present understanding of specific heart disorders and their treatment.\n(National Health and Medical Research Program Grant -NHMRC PG Cardiac Pacemaking, 2007-2009).\nBrain rhythms: Brain rhythms function in most areas of the brain and while fundamental to life and our psyche remain poorly understood. We are testing the hypothesis that specific rhythms in the Locus Coeruleus, a brain stem nucleus known to be associated with mood states, are generated by store pacemaking. Evidence that the rhythms are generated by store pacemaking could provide a new framework for interpreting drug action in the treatment of mood disorders such as Bipolar Disorder, as all three main drug classes used in its treatment have the common mode action of inhibiting calcium stores.\n(Australian Research Council Discovery Program Grant Investigation of a Brain Rhythm 2005-2007).\nUterine pacemaking: Astonishingly, there is still no clear understanding of the pacemaker mechanism that initiates and times uterine contractions. Pilot studies we have undertaken suggest this to be mediated by store pacemaking. Proof for this hypothesis would herald a mechanistic description for uterine contractions and may provide new insight into associated dysfunctions such as premature birth.\n(NHMRC PG Rhythmicity and synchronicity in uterine smooth muscle, 2007-2009).\nFields of Research\n|020599||Optical Physics Not Elsewhere Classified||50|\n|110399||Clinical Sciences Not Elsewhere Classified||30|\n|111699||Medical Physiology Not Elsewhere Classified||20|\nCentres and Groups\nBody relevant to professional practice.\n- Faculty member - Cardiovascular Physiology/Circulation of 'Faculty of 1000 Biology'\n- member of council - Australian Physiological society\n- Chair, Research Committee - HMRI Cardiovascular Group\n- Member of Editorial Board 2001-2005 - the British Journal of Pharmacology\n- Member - The British Journal of Pharmacology\n- member - Australian Physiological Society\n|01/01/2001 - 01/12/2011|\nNHMRC Senior Research Fellow\nUniversity of Newcastle (Australia)\n|01/01/1990 - 01/12/2000|\nSenior Brawn Fellowship\nUniversity of Newcastle (Australia)\nHunter Medical Research Institute (Australia)\n2004 Hunter Medical Research Institute Sparke Helmore/ NBN Award for Research Excellence from a field of ~350 scientists in the University and Area Health Sectors\nGordon conference, United Kingdom (Conference Presentation - non published.)\nDepartment of physiology\nUniversity of Western Australia, Australia (External Reviewer - Departments.)\nResearch policy (e.g. Archetect of the Brawn Fellowship Scheme at the University of Newcastle)\nHonours and Postgraduate students\n- Cellular Physiology"}
{"text": "Part 2 - Those Who Are Unable to See the Fact of Creation\nThe theory of evolution is a philosophy and a conception of the world that produces false hypotheses, assumptions and imaginary scenarios in order to explain the existence and origin of life in terms of mere coincidences. the roots of this philosophy go back as far as antiquity and ancient Greece.\nAll atheist philosophies that deny creation, directly or indirectly embrace and defend the idea of evolution. the same condition today applies to all the ideologies and systems that are antagonistic to religion.\nThe evolutionary notion has been cloaked in a scientific disguise for the last century and a half in order to justify itself. Though put forward as a supposedly scientific theory during the mid-19th century, the theory, despite all the best efforts of its advocates, has not so far been verified by any scientific finding or experiment. Indeed, the \"very science\" on which the theory depends so greatly has demonstrated and continues to demonstrate repeatedly that the theory has no merit in reality.\nLaboratory experiments and probabilistic calculations have definitely made it clear that the amino acids from which life arises cannot have been formed by chance. the cell, which supposedly emerged by chance under primitive and uncontrolled terrestrial conditions according to evolutionists, still cannot be synthesised even in the most sophisticated, high-tech laboratories of the 20th century. Not a single \"transitional form\", creatures which are supposed to show the gradual evolution of advanced organisms from more primitive ones as neo-Darwinist theory claims, has ever been found anywhere in the world despite the most diligent and prolonged search in the fossil record.\nIn their attempts to gather evidence for evolution, evolutionists have unwittingly proven by their own efforts that evolution cannot have happened at all!\nThe person who originally put forward the theory of evolution, essentially in the form that it is defended today, was an amateur English biologist by the name of Charles Robert Darwin. Darwin first published his ideas in a book entitled the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection in 1859. Darwin claimed in his book that all living beings had a common ancestor and that they evolved from one another by means of natural selection. Those that best adapted to the habitat transferred their traits to subsequent generations, and by accumulating over great epochs, these advantageous qualities transformed individuals into totally different species from their ancestors. the human being was thus the most developed product of the mechanism of natural selection. in short, the origin of one species was another species.\nDarwin's fanciful ideas were seized upon and promoted by certain ideological and political circles and the theory became very popular. the main reason was that the level of knowledge of those days was not yet sufficient to reveal that Darwin's imaginary scenarios were false. When Darwin put forward his assumptions, the disciplines of genetics, microbiology, and biochemistry did not yet exist. If they had, Darwin might easily have recognised that his theory was totally unscientific and thus would not have attempted to advance such meaningless claims: the information determining species already exists in the genes and it is impossible for natural selection to produce new species by altering genes.\nWhile the echoes of Darwin's book reverberated, an Austrian botanist by the name of Gregor Mendel discovered the laws of inheritance in 1865. Although little known before the end of the century, Mendel's discovery gained great importance in the early 1900s with the birth of the science of genetics. Some time later, the structures of genes and chromosomes were discovered. the discovery, in the 1950s, of the DNA molecule, which incorporates genetic information, threw the theory of evolution into a great crisis, because the origin of the immense amount of information in DNA could not possibly be explained by coincidental happenings.\nBesides all these scientific developments, no transitional forms, which were supposed to show the gradual evolution of living organisms from primitive to advanced species, have ever been found despite years of search.\nThese developments ought to have resulted in Darwin's theory being banished to the dustbin of history. However, it was not, because certain circles insisted on revising, renewing, and elevating the theory to a scientific platform. These efforts gain meaning only if we realise that behind the theory lie ideological intentions rather than scientific concerns.\nNevertheless, some circles that believed in the necessity of upholding a theory that had reached an impasse soon set up a new model. the name of this new model was neo-Darwinism. According to this theory, species evolved as a result of mutations, minor changes in their genes, and the fittest ones survived through the mechanism of natural selection. When, however, it was proved that the mechanisms proposed by neo-Darwinism were invalid and minor changes were not sufficient for the formation of living beings, evolutionists went on to look for new models. They came up with a new claim called \"punctuated equilibrium\" that rests on no rational or scientific grounds. This model held that living beings suddenly evolved into another species without any transitional forms. in other words, species with no evolutionary \"ancestors\" suddenly appeared. This was a way of describing creation, though evolutionists would be loath to admit this. They tried to cover it up with incomprehensible scenarios. for instance, they said that the first bird in history could all of a sudden inexplicably have popped out of a reptile egg. the same theory also held that carnivorous land-dwelling animals could have turned into giant whales, having undergone a sudden and comprehensive transformation.\nThese claims, totally contradicting all the rules of genetics, biophysics, and biochemistry are as scientific as fairy-tales of frogs turning into princes! Nevertheless, being distressed by the crisis that the neo-Darwinist assertion was in, some evolutionist paleontologists embraced this theory, which has the distinction of being even more bizarre than neo-Darwinism itself.\nThe sole purpose of this model was to provide an explanation for the gaps in the fossil record that the neo-Darwinist model could not explain. However, it is hardly rational to attempt to explain the gap in the fossil record of the evolution of birds with a claim that \"a bird popped all of a sudden out of a reptile egg\", because, by the evolutionists' own admission, the evolution of a species to another species requires a great and advantageous change in genetic information. However, no mutation whatsoever improves the genetic information or adds new information to it. Mutations only derange genetic information. Thus, the \"gross mutations\" imagined by the punctuated equilibrium model, would only cause \"gross\", that is \"great\", reductions and impairments in the genetic information.\nThe theory of punctuated equilibrium was obviously merely a product of the imagination. Despite this evident truth, the advocates of evolution did not hesitate to honour this theory. the fact that the model of evolution proposed by Darwin could not be proved by the fossil record forced them to do so. Darwin claimed that species underwent a gradual change, which necessitated the existence of half-bird/half-reptile or half-fish/half-reptile freaks. However, not even one of these \"transitional forms\" was found despite the extensive studies of evolutionists and the hundreds of thousands of fossils that were unearthed.\nEvolutionists seized upon the model of punctuated equilibrium with the hope of concealing this great fossil fiasco. As we have stated before, it was very evident that this theory is a fantasy, so it very soon consumed itself. the model of punctuated equilibrium was never put forward as a consistent model, but rather used as an escape in cases that plainly did not fit the model of gradual evolution. Since evolutionists today realise that complex organs such as eyes, wings, lungs, brain and others explicitly refute the model of gradual evolution, in these particular points they are compelled to take shelter in the fantastic interpretations of the model of punctuated equilibrium.\nIs there any Fossil Record to Verify the Theory of Evolution?\nThe theory of evolution argues that the evolution of a species into another species takes place gradually, step-by-step over millions of years. the logical inference drawn from such a claim is that monstrous living organisms called \"transitional forms\" should have lived during these periods of transformation. Since evolutionists allege that all living things evolved from each other step-by-step, the number and variety of these transitional forms should have been in the millions.\nIf such creatures had really lived, then we should see their remains everywhere. in fact, if this thesis is correct, the number of intermediate transitional forms should be even greater than the number of animal species alive today and their fossilised remains should be abundant all over the world.\nSince Darwin, evolutionists have been searching for fossils and the result has been for them a crushing disappointment. Nowhere in the world – neither on land nor in the depths of the sea – has any intermediate transitional form between any two species ever been uncovered.\nDarwin himself was quite aware of the absence of such transitional forms. It was his greatest hope that they would be found in the future. Despite his hopefulness, he saw that the biggest stumbling block to his theory was the missing transitional forms. This is why, in his book the Origin of Species, he wrote:\nDarwin was right to be worried. the problem bothered other evolutionists as well. A famous British paleontologist, Derek V. Ager, admits this embarrassing fact:\nThe gaps in the fossil record cannot be explained away by the wishful thinking that not enough fossils have yet been unearthed and that these missing fossils will one day be found. Another evolutionist paleontologist, T. Neville George, explains the reason:\nLife Emerged on Earth Suddenly and in Complex Forms\nWhen terrestrial strata and the fossil record are examined, it is seen that living organisms appeared simultaneously. the oldest stratum of the earth in which fossils of living creatures have been found is that of the \"Cambrian\", which has an estimated age of 530-520 million years.\nLiving creatures that are found in the strata belonging to the Cambrian period emerged in the fossil record all of a sudden without any pre-existing ancestors. the vast mosaic of living organisms, made up of such great numbers of complex creatures, emerged so suddenly that this miraculous event is referred to as the \"Cambrian Explosion\" in scientific literature.\nMost of the organisms found in this stratum have highly advanced organs like eyes, or systems seen in organisms with a highly advanced organisation such as gills, circulatory systems, and so on. There is no sign in the fossil record to indicate that these organisms had any ancestors. Richard Monestarsky, the editor of Earth Sciences magazine, states about the sudden emergence of living species:\nNot being able to find answers to the question of how earth came to overflow with thousands of different animal species, evolutionists posit an imaginary period of 20 million years before the Cambrian Period to explain how life originated and \"the unknown happened\". This period is called the \"evolutionary gap\". No evidence for it has ever been found and the concept is still conveniently nebulous and undefined even today.\nIn 1984, numerous complex invertebrates were unearthed in Chengjiang, set in the central Yunnan plateau in the high country of southwest China. Among them were trilobites, now extinct, but no less complex in structure than any modern invertebrate.\nThe Swedish evolutionist paleontologist, Stefan Bengston, explains the situation as follows:\nThe sudden appearance of these complex living beings with no predecessors is no less baffling (and embarrassing) for evolutionists today than it was for Darwin 135 years ago. in nearly a century and a half, they have advanced not one step beyond the point that stymied Darwin.\nAs may be seen, the fossil record indicates that living things did not evolve from primitive to advanced forms, but instead emerged all of a sudden and in a perfect state. the absence of the transitional forms is not peculiar to the Cambrian period. Not a single transitional form verifying the alleged evolutionary \"progression\" of vertebrates – from fish to amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals – has ever been found. Every living species appears instantaneously and in its current form, perfect and complete, in the fossil record.\nIn other words, living beings did not come into existence through evolution. They were created.\nDeceptions in Drawings\nThe fossil record is the principal source for those who seek evidence for the theory of evolution. When inspected carefully and without prejudice, the fossil record refutes the theory of evolution rather than supporting it. Nevertheless, misleading interpretations of fossils by evolutionists and their prejudiced representation to the public have given many people the impression that the fossil record indeed supports the theory of evolution.\nThe susceptibility of some findings in the fossil record to all kinds of interpretations is what best serves the evolutionists' purposes. the fossils unearthed are most of the time unsatisfactory for reliable identification. They usually consist of scattered, incomplete bone fragments. for this reason, it is very easy to distort the available data and to use it as desired. Not surprisingly, the reconstructions (drawings and models) made by evolutionists based on such fossil remains are prepared entirely speculatively in order to confirm evolutionary theses. Since people are readily affected by visual information, these imaginary reconstructed models are employed to convince them that the reconstructed creatures really existed in the past.\nEvolutionist researchers draw human-like imaginary creatures, usually setting out from a single tooth, or a mandible fragment or a humerus, and present them to the public in a sensational manner as if they were links in human evolution. These drawings have played a great role in the establishment of the image of \"primitive men\" in the minds of many people.\nThese studies based on bone remains can only reveal very general characteristics of the creature concerned. the distinctive details are present in the soft tissues that quickly vanish with time. with the soft tissues speculatively interpreted, everything becomes possible within the boundaries of the imagination of the reconstruction's producer. Earnst A. Hooten from Harvard University explains the situation like this:\nStudies Made to Fabricate False Fossils\nUnable to find valid evidence in the fossil record for the theory of evolution, some evolutionists have ventured to manufacture their own. These efforts, which have even been included in encyclopaedias under the heading \"evolution forgeries\", are the most telling indication that the theory of evolution is an ideology and a philosophy that evolutionists are hard put to defend. Two of the most egregious and notorious of these forgeries are described below.\nCharles Dawson, a well-known doctor and amateur paleoanthropologist, came forth with a claim that he had found a jawbone and a cranial fragment in a pit in the area of Piltdown, England, in 1912. Although the skull was human-like, the jawbone was distinctly simian. These specimens were christened the \"Piltdown Man\". Alleged to be 500 thousand years old, they were displayed as absolute proofs of human evolution. for more than 40 years, many scientific articles were written on the \"Piltdown Man\", many interpretations and drawings were made and the fossil was presented as crucial evidence of human evolution.\nIn 1949, scientists examined the fossil once more and concluded that the \"fossil\" was a deliberate forgery consisting of a human skull and the jawbone of an orang-utan.\nUsing the fluorine dating method, investigators discovered that the skull was only a few thousand years old. the teeth in the jawbone, which belonged to an orang-utan, had been artificially worn down and the \"primitive\" tools that had conveniently accompanied the fossils were crude forgeries that had been sharpened with steel implements. in the detailed analysis completed by Oakley, Weiner and Clark, they revealed this forgery to the public in 1953. the skull belonged to a 500-year-old man, and the mandibular bone belonged to a recently deceased ape! the teeth were thereafter specially arranged in an array and added to the jaw and the joints were filed in order to make them resemble that of a man. Then all these pieces were stained with potassium dichromate to give them a dated appearance. (These stains disappeared when dipped in acid.) Le Gros Clark, who was a member of the team that disclosed the forgery, could not hide his astonishment:\nIn 1922, Henry Fairfield Osborn, the director of the American Museum of Natural History, declared that he had found a molar tooth fossil in western Nebraska near Snake Brook belonging to the Pliocene period. This tooth allegedly bore the common characteristics of both man and ape. Deep scientific arguments began in which some interpreted this tooth to be that of Pithecanthropus erectus while others claimed it was closer to that of modern human beings. This fossil, which aroused extensive debate, was popularly named \"Nebraska Man\". It was also immediately given a \"scientific name\": \"Hesperopithecus Haroldcooki\".\nMany authorities gave Osborn their support. Based on this single tooth, reconstructions of Nebraska Man's head and body were drawn. Moreover, Nebraska Man was even pictured with a whole family.\nIn 1927, other parts of the skeleton were also found. According to these newly discovered pieces, the tooth belonged neither to a man nor to an ape. It was realised that it belonged to an extinct species of wild American pig called Prosthennops.\nDid Men and Apes Come from a Common Ancestor?\nAccording to the claims of the theory of evolution, men and modern apes have common ancestors. These creatures evolved in time and some of them became the apes of today, while another group that followed another branch of evolution became the men of today.\nEvolutionists call the so-called first common ancestors of men and apes \"Australopithecus\" which means \"South African ape\". Australopithecus, nothing but an old ape species that has become extinct, has various types. Some of them are robust, while others are small and slight.\nEvolutionists classify the next stage of human evolution as \"Homo\", that is \"man\". According to the evolutionist claim, the living beings in the Homo series are more developed than Australopithecus, and not very much different from modern man. the modern man of our day, Homo sapiens, is said to have formed at the latest stage of the evolution of this species.\nThe fact of the matter is that the beings called Australopithecus in this imaginary scenario fabricated by evolutionists really are apes that became extinct, and the beings in the Homo series are members of various human races that lived in the past and then disappeared. Evolutionists arranged various ape and human fossils in an order from the smallest to the biggest in order to form a \"human evolution\" scheme. Research, however, has demonstrated that these fossils by no means imply an evolutionary process and some of these alleged ancestors of man were real apes whereas some of them were real humans.\nNow, let us have a look at Australopithecus, which represents to evolutionists the first stage of the scheme of human evolution.\nAustralopithecus: Extinct Apes\nEvolutionists claim that Australopithecus are the most primitive ancestors of modern men. These are an old species with a head and skull structure similar to that of modern apes, yet with a smaller cranial capacity. According to the claims of evolutionists, these creatures have a very important feature that authenticates them as the ancestors of men: bipedalism.\nThe movements of apes and men are completely different. Human beings are the only living creatures that move freely about on two feet. Some other animals do have a limited ability to move in this way, but those that do have bent skeletons.\nAccording to evolutionists, these living beings called Australopithecus had the ability to walk in a bent rather than an upright posture like human beings. Even this limited bipedal stride was sufficient to encourage evolutionists to project onto these creatures that they were the ancestors of man.\nHowever, the first evidence refuting the allegations of evolutionists that Australopithecus were bipedal came from evolutionists themselves. Detailed studies made on Australopithecus fossils forced even evolutionists to admit that these looked \"too\" ape-like. Having conducted detailed anatomical research on Australopithecus fossils in the mid-1970s, Charles E. Oxnard likened the skeletal structure of Australopithecus to that of modern orang-utans:\nWhat really embarrassed evolutionists was the discovery that Australopithecus could not have walked on two feet and with a bent posture. It would have been physically very ineffective for Australopithecus, allegedly bipedal but with a bent stride, to move about in such a way because of the enormous energy demands it would have entailed. By means of computer simulations conducted in 1996, the English paleoanthropologist Robin Crompton also demonstrated that such a \"compound\" stride was impossible. Crompton reached the following conclusion: a living being can walk either upright or on all fours. A type of in-between stride cannot be sustained for long periods because of the extreme energy consumption. This means that Australopithecus could not have been both bipedal and have a bent walking posture.\nProbably the most important study demonstrating that Australopithecus could not have been bipedal came in 1994 from the research anatomist Fred Spoor and his team in the Department of Human Anatomy and Cellular Biology at the University of Liverpool, England. This group conducted studies on the bipedalism of fossilised living beings. Their research investigated the involuntary balance mechanism found in the cochlea of the ear, and the findings showed conclusively that Australopithecus could not have been bipedal. This precluded any claims that Australopithecus was human-like.\nThe Homo Series: Real Human Beings\nThe next step in the imaginary human evolution is \"Homo\", that is, the human series. These living beings are humans who are no different from modern men, yet who have some racial differences. Seeking to exaggerate these differences, evolutionists represent these people not as a \"race\" of modern man but as a different \"species\". However, as we will soon see, the people in the Homo series are nothing but ordinary human racial types.\nAccording to the fanciful scheme of evolutionists, the internal imaginary evolution of the Homo species is as follows: First Homo erectus, then Homo sapiens archaic and Neanderthal Man, later Cro-Magnon Man and finally modern man.\nDespite the claims of evolutionists to the contrary, all the \"species\" we have enumerated above are nothing but genuine human beings. Let us first examine Homo erectus, who evolutionists refer to as the most primitive human species.\nThe most striking evidence showing that Homo erectus is not a \"primitive\" species is the fossil of \"Turkana Boy\", one of the oldest Homo erectus remains. It is estimated that the fossil was of a 12-year-old boy, who would have been 1.83 meters tall in his adolescence. the upright skeletal structure of the fossil is no different from that of modern man. Its tall and slender skeletal structure totally complies with that of the people living in tropical regions in our day. This fossil is one of the most important pieces of evidence that Homo erectus is simply another specimen of the modern human race. Evolutionist paleontologist Richard Leakey compares Homo erectus and modern man as follows:\nLeakey means to say that the difference between Homo erectus and us is no more than the difference between Negroes and Eskimos. the cranial features of Homo erectus resulted from their manner of feeding, and genetic emigration and from their not assimilating with other human races for a lengthy period.\nAnother strong piece of evidence that Homo erectus is not a \"primitive\" species is that fossils of this species have been unearthed aged twenty-seven thousand years and even thirteen thousand years. According to an article published in Time – which is not a scientific periodical, but nevertheless had a sweeping effect on the world of science – Homo erectus fossils aged twenty-seven thousand years were found on the island of Java. in the Kow swamp in Australia, some thirteen thousand year-old fossils were found that bore Homo Sapiens-Homo Erectus characteristics. All these fossils demonstrate that Homo erectus continued living up to times very close to our day and were nothing but a human race that has since been buried in history.\nArchaic Homo Sapiens and Neanderthal Man\nArchaic Homo sapiens is the immediate forerunner of contemporary man in the imaginary evolutionary scheme. in fact, evolutionists do not have much to say about these men, as there are only minor differences between them and modern men. Some researchers even state that representatives of this race are still living today, and point to the Aborigines in Australia as an example. Like Homo sapiens, the Aborigines also have thick protruding eyebrows, an inward-inclined mandibular structure, and a slightly smaller cranial volume. Moreover, significant discoveries have been made hinting that such people lived in Hungary and in some villages in Italy until not very long ago.\nEvolutionists point to human fossils unearthed in the Neander valley of Holland which have been named Neanderthal Man. Many contemporary researchers define Neanderthal Man as a sub-species of modern man and call it \"Homo sapiens neandertalensis\". It is definite that this race lived together with modern humans, at the same time and in the same areas. the findings testify that Neanderthals buried their dead, fashioned musical instruments, and had cultural affinities with the Homo sapiens sapiens living during the same period. Entirely modern skulls and skeletal structures of Neanderthal fossils are not open to any speculation. A prominent authority on the subject, Erik Trinkaus from New Mexico University writes:\nIn fact, Neanderthals even had some \"evolutionary\" advantages over modern men. the cranial capacity of Neanderthals was larger than that of the modern man and they were more robust and muscular than we are. Trinkaus adds: \"One of the most characteristic features of the Neanderthals is the exaggerated massiveness of their trunk and limb bones. All of the preserved bones suggest a strength seldom attained by modern humans. Furthermore, not only is this robustness present among the adult males, as one might expect, but it is also evident in the adult females, adolescents, and even children.\"\nTo put it precisely, Neanderthals are a particular human race that assimilated with other races in time.\nAll of these factors show that the scenario of \"human evolution\" fabricated by evolutionists is a figment of their imaginations, and that men have always been men and apes always apes.\nCan Life Result from Coincidences as Revolution Argues?\nThe theory of evolution holds that life started with a cell that formed by chance under primitive earth conditions. Let us therefore examine the composition of the cell with simple comparisons in order to show how irrational it is to ascribe the existence of the cell – a structure which still maintains its mystery in many respects, even at a time when we are about to set foot in the 21st century – to natural phenomena and coincidences.\nWith all its operational systems, systems of communication, transportation and management, a cell is no less complex than any city. It contains power stations producing the energy consumed by the cell, factories manufacturing the enzymes and hormones essential for life, a databank where all necessary information about all products to be produced is recorded, complex transportation systems and pipelines for carrying raw materials and products from one place to another, advanced laboratories and refineries for breaking down imported raw materials into their usable parts, and specialised cell membrane proteins for the control of incoming and outgoing materials. These constitute only a small part of this incredibly complex system.\nFar from being formed under primitive earth conditions, the cell, which in its composition and mechanisms is so complex, cannot be synthesised in even the most sophisticated laboratories of our day. Even with the use of amino acids, the building blocks of the cell, it is not possible to produce so much as a single organelle of the cell, such as mitochondria or ribosome, much less a whole cell. the first cell claimed to have been produced by evolutionary coincidence is as much a figment of the imagination and a product of fantasy as the unicorn.\nProteins Challenge Coincidence\nAnd it is not just the cell that cannot be produced: the formation, under natural conditions, of even a single protein of the thousands of complex protein molecules making up a cell is impossible.\nProteins are giant molecules consisting of amino acids arranged in a particular sequence in certain quantities and structures. These molecules constitute the building blocks of a living cell. the simplest is composed of 50 amino acids; but there are some proteins that are composed of thousands of amino acids. the absence, addition, or replacement of a single amino acid in the structure of a protein in living cells, each of which has a particular function, causes the protein to become a useless molecular heap. Incapable of demonstrating the \"accidental formation\" of amino acids, the theory of evolution founders on the point of the formation of proteins.\nWe can easily demonstrate, with simple probability calculations anybody can understand, that the functional structure of proteins can by no means come about by chance.\nThere are twenty different amino acids. If we consider that an average-sized protein molecule is composed of 288 amino acids, there are 10300 different combinations of acids. of all of these possible sequences, only \"one\" forms the desired protein molecule. the other amino-acid chains are either completely useless or else potentially harmful to living things. in other words, the probability of the coincidental formation of only one protein molecule cited above is \"1 in 10300\". the probability of this \"1\" occurring out of an \"astronomical\" number consisting of 1 followed by 300 zeros is for all practical purposes zero; it is impossible. Furthermore, a protein molecule of 288 amino acids is rather a modest one compared with some giant protein molecules consisting of thousands of amino acids. When we apply similar probability calculations to these giant protein molecules, we see that even the word \"impossible\" becomes inadequate.\nIf the coincidental formation of even one of these proteins is impossible, it is billions of times more impossible for approximately one million of those proteins to come together by chance in an organised fashion and make up a complete human cell. Moreover, a cell is not merely a collection of proteins. in addition to proteins, cells also include nucleic acids, carbohydrates, lipids, vitamins, and many other chemicals such as electrolytes, all of which are arranged harmoniously and with design in specific proportions, both in terms of structure and function. Each functions as a building block or component in various organelles.\nAs we have seen, evolution is unable to explain the formation of even a single protein out of the millions in the cell, let alone explain the cell.\nProf. Dr. Ali Demirsoy, one of the foremost authorities of evolutionist thought in Turkey, in his book Kalitim ve Evrim (Inheritance and Evolution), discusses the probability of the accidental formation of Cytochrome-C, one of the essential enzymes for life:\nAfter these lines, Demirsoy admits that this probability, which he accepted just because it was \"more appropriate to the goals of science\", is unrealistic:\nThe correct sequence of proper amino acids is simply not enough for the formation of one of the protein molecules present in living things. Besides this, each of the twenty different types of amino acid present in the composition of proteins must be left-handed. Chemically, there are two different types of amino acids called \"left-handed\" and \"right-handed\". the difference between them is the mirror-symmetry between their three dimensional structures, which is similar to that of a person's right and left hands. Amino acids of either of these two types are found in equal numbers in nature and they can bond perfectly well with one another. Yet, research uncovers an astonishing fact: all proteins present in the structure of living things are made up of left-handed amino acids. Even a single right-handed amino acid attached to the structure of a protein renders it useless.\nLet us for an instant suppose that life came into existence by chance as evolutionists claim. in this case, the right and left-handed amino acids that were generated by chance should be present in nature in roughly equal amounts. the question of how proteins can pick out only left-handed amino acids, and how not even a single right-handed amino acid becomes involved in the life process is something that still confounds evolutionists. in the Britannica Science Encyclopaedia, an ardent defender of evolution, the authors indicate that the amino acids of all living organisms on earth and the building blocks of complex polymers such as proteins have the same left-handed asymmetry. They add that this is tantamount to tossing a coin a million times and always getting heads. in the same encyclopaedia, they state that it is not possible to understand why molecules become left-handed or right-handed and that this choice is fascinatingly related to the source of life on earth.13\nIt is not enough for amino acids to be arranged in the correct numbers, sequences, and in the required three-dimensional structures. the formation of a protein also requires that amino acid molecules with more than one arm be linked to each other only through certain arms. Such a bond is called a \"peptide bond\". Amino acids can make different bonds with each other; but proteins comprise those and only those amino acids that join together by \"peptide\" bonds.\nResearch has shown that only 50 % of amino acids, combining at random, combine with a peptide bond and that the rest combine with different bonds that are not present in proteins. to function properly, each amino acid making up a protein must join with other amino acids with a peptide bond, as it has only to be chosen from among the left-handed ones. Unquestionably, there is no control mechanism to select and leave out the right-handed amino acids and personally make sure that each amino acid makes a peptide bond with the other.\nUnder these circumstances, the probabilities of an average protein molecule comprising five hundred amino acids arranging itself in the correct quantities and in sequence, in addition to the probabilities of all of the amino acids it contains being only left-handed and combining using only peptide bonds are as follows:\nAs you can see above, the probability of the formation of a protein molecule comprising five hundred amino acids is \"1\" divided by a number formed by placing 950 zeros after a 1, a number incomprehensible to the human mind. This is only a probability on paper. Practically, such a possibility has \"0\" chance of realisation. in mathematics, a probability smaller than 1 over 1050 is statistically considered to have a \"0\" probability of realisation.\nWhile the improbability of the formation of a protein molecule made up of five hundred amino acids reaches such an extent, we can further proceed to push the limits of the mind to higher levels of improbability. in the \"haemoglobin\" molecule, a vital protein, there are five hundred and seventy-four amino acids, which is a much larger number than that of the amino acids making up the protein mentioned above. Now consider this: in only one out of the billions of red blood cells in your body, there are \"280,000,000\" (280 million) haemoglobin molecules. the supposed age of the earth is not sufficient to afford the formation of even a single protein, let alone a red blood cell, by the method of \"trial and error\". the conclusion from all this is that evolution falls into a terrible abyss of improbability right at the stage of the formation of a single protein.\nLooking for Answers to the Generation of Life\nWell aware of the terrible odds against the possibility of life forming by chance, evolutionists were unable to provide a rational explanation for their beliefs, so they set about looking for ways to demonstrate that the odds were not so unfavourable.\nThey designed a number of laboratory experiments to address the question of how life could generate itself from non-living matter. the best known and most respected of these experiments is the one known as the \"Miller Experiment\" or \"Urey-Miller Experiment\", which was conducted by the American researcher Stanley Miller in 1953.\nWith the purpose of proving that amino acids could have come into existence by accident, Miller created an atmosphere in his laboratory that he assumed would have existed on primordial earth (but which later proved to be unrealistic) and he set to work. the mixture he used for this primordial atmosphere was composed of ammonia, methane, hydrogen, and water vapour.\nMiller knew that methane, ammonia, water vapour and hydrogen would not react with each other under natural conditions. He was aware that he had to inject energy into the mixture to start a reaction. He suggested that this energy could have come from lightning flashes in the primordial atmosphere and, relying on this supposition, he used an artificial electricity discharge in his experiments.\nMiller boiled this gas mixture at 100 0C for a week, and, in addition, he introduced an electric current into the chamber. At the end of the week, Miller analysed the chemicals that had been formed in the chamber and observed that three of the twenty amino acids, which constitute the basic elements of proteins, had been synthesised.\nThis experiment aroused great excitement among evolutionists and they promoted it as an outstanding success. Encouraged by the thought that this experiment definitely verified their theory, evolutionists immediately produced new scenarios. Miller had supposedly proved that amino acids could form by themselves. Relying on this, they hurriedly hypothesised the following stages. According to their scenario, amino acids had later by accident united in the proper sequences to form proteins. Some of these accidentally formed proteins placed themselves in cell membrane-like structures, which \"somehow\" came into existence and formed a primitive cell. the cells united in time and formed living organisms. the greatest mainstay of the scenario was Miller's experiment.\nHowever, Miller's experiment was nothing but make-believe, and has since been proven invalid in many respects.\nThe Invalidity of Miller's Experiment\nNearly half a century has passed since Miller conducted his experiment. Although it has been shown to be invalid in many respects, evolutionists still advance Miller and his results as absolute proof that life could have formed spontaneously from non-living matter. When we assess Miller's experiment critically, without the bias and subjectivity of evolutionist thinking, however, it is evident that the situation is not as rosy as evolutionists would have us think. Miller set for himself the goal of proving that amino acids could form by themselves in earth's primitive conditions. Some amino acids were produced, but the conduct of the experiment conflicts with his goal in many ways, as we shall now see.\nF Miller isolated the amino acids from the environment as soon as they were formed, by using a mechanism called a \"cold trap\". Had he not done so, the conditions of the environment in which the amino acids formed would immediately have destroyed the molecules.\nIt is quite meaningless to suppose that some conscious mechanism of this sort was integral to earth's primordial conditions, which involved ultraviolet radiation, thunderbolts, various chemicals, and a high percentage of free oxygen. Without such a mechanism, any amino acid that did manage to form would immediately have been destroyed.\nF the primordial atmospheric environment that Miller attempted to simulate in his experiment was not realistic. Nitrogen and carbon dioxide would have been constituents of the primordial atmosphere, but Miller disregarded this and used methane and ammonia instead.\nWhy? Why were evolutionists insistent on the point that the primitive atmosphere contained high amounts of methane (CH4), ammonia (NH3), and water vapour (H2O)? the answer is simple: without ammonia, it is impossible to synthesise an amino acid. Kevin McKean talks about this in an article published in Discover magazine:\nAfter a long period of silence, Miller himself also confessed that the atmospheric environment he used in his experiment was not realistic.\nF Another important point invalidating Miller's experiment is that there was enough oxygen to destroy all the amino acids in the atmosphere at the time when evolutionists thought that amino acids formed. This oxygen concentration would definitely have hindered the formation of amino acids. This situation completely negates Miller's experiment, in which he totally neglected oxygen. If he had used oxygen in the experiment, methane would have decomposed into carbon dioxide and water, and ammonia would have decomposed into nitrogen and water.\nOn the other hand, since no ozone layer yet existed, no organic molecule could possibly have lived on earth because it was entirely unprotected against intense ultraviolet rays.\nF in addition to a few amino acids essential for life, Miller's experiment also produced many organic acids with characteristics that are quite detrimental to the structures and functions of living things. If he had not isolated the amino acids and had left them in the same environment with these chemicals, their destruction or transformation into different compounds through chemical reactions would have been unavoidable. Moreover, a large number of right-handed amino acids also formed. the existence of these amino acids alone refuted the theory, even within its own reasoning, because right-handed amino acids are unable to function in the composition of living organisms and render proteins useless when they are involved in their composition.\nTo conclude, the circumstances in which amino acids formed in Miller's experiment were not suitable for life forms to come into being. the medium in which they formed was an acidic mixture that destroyed and oxidised any useful molecules that might have been obtained.\nEvolutionists themselves actually refute the theory of evolution, as they are often wont to do, by advancing this experiment as \"proof\". If the experiment proves anything, it is that amino acids can only be produced in a controlled laboratory environment where all the necessary conditions have been specifically and consciously designed. That is, the experiment shows that what brings life (even the \"near-life\" of amino acids) into being cannot be unconscious chance, but rather conscious will – in a word, Creation. This is why every stage of Creation is a sign proving to us the existence and might of Allah.\nThe Miraculous Molecule: DNA\nThe theory of evolution has been unable to provide a coherent explanation for the existence of the molecules that are the basis of the cell. Furthermore, developments in the science of genetics and the discovery of the nucleic acids (DNA and RNA) have produced brand-new problems for the theory of evolution.\nIn 1955, the work of two scientists on DNA, James Watson and Francis Crick, launched a new era in biology. Many scientists directed their attention to the science of genetics. Today, after years of research, scientists have, largely, mapped the structure of DNA.\nHere, we need to give some very basic information on the structure and function of DNA:\nThe molecule called DNA, which exists in the nucleus of each of the 100 trillion cells in our body, contains the complete construction plan of the human body. Information regarding all the characteristics of a person, from the physical appearance to the structure of the inner organs, is recorded in DNA by means of a special coding system. the information in DNA is coded within the sequence of four special bases that make up this molecule. These bases are specified as A, T, G, and C according to the initial letters of their names. All the structural differences among people depend on the variations in the sequence of these bases. There are approximately 3.5 billion nucleotides, that is, 3.5 billion letters in a DNA molecule.\nThe DNA data pertaining to a particular organ or protein is included in special components called \"genes\". for instance, information about the eye exists in a series of special genes, whereas information about the heart exists in quite another series of genes. the cell produces proteins by using the information in all of these genes. Amino acids that constitute the structure of the protein are defined by the sequential arrangement of three nucleotides in the DNA.\nAt this point, an important detail deserves attention. An error in the sequence of nucleotides making up a gene renders the gene completely useless. When we consider that there are 200 thousand genes in the human body, it becomes more evident how impossible it is for the millions of nucleotides making up these genes to form by accident in the right sequence. An evolutionist biologist, Frank Salisbury, comments on this impossibility by saying:\nThe number 41000 is equivalent to 10600. We obtain this number by adding 600 zeros to 1. As 10 with 11 zeros indicates a trillion, a figure with 600 zeros is indeed a number that is difficult to grasp.\nEvolutionist Prof. Ali Demirsoy was forced to make the following admission on this issue:\nIn addition to all these improbabilities, DNA can barely be involved in a reaction because of its double-chained spiral shape. This also makes it impossible to think that it can be the basis of life.\nMoreover, while DNA can replicate only with the help of some enzymes that are actually proteins, the synthesis of these enzymes can be realised only by the information coded in DNA. As they both depend on each other, either they have to exist at the same time for replication, or one of them has had to be \"created\" before the other. American microbiologist Jacobson comments on the subject:\nThe quotation above was written two years after the disclosure of the structure of DNA by James Watson and Francis Crick. Despite all the developments in science, this problem remains unsolved for evolutionists. to sum up, the need for DNA in reproduction, the necessity of the presence of some proteins for reproduction, and the requirement to produce these proteins according to the information in the DNA entirely demolish evolutionist theses.\nTwo German scientists, Junker and Scherer, explained that the synthesis of each of the molecules required for chemical evolution, necessitates distinct conditions, and that the probability of the compounding of these materials having theoretically very different acquirement methods is zero:\nIn short, the theory of evolution is unable to prove any of the evolutionary stages that allegedly occur at the molecular level.\nTo summarise what we have said so far, neither amino acids nor their products, the proteins making up the cells of living beings, could ever be produced in any so-called \"primitive atmosphere\" environment. Moreover, factors such as the incredibly complex structure of proteins, their right-hand, left-hand features, and the difficulties in the formation of peptide bonds are just parts of the reason why they will never be produced in any future experiment either.\nEven if we suppose for a moment that proteins somehow did form accidentally, that would still have no meaning, for proteins are nothing at all on their own: they cannot themselves reproduce. Protein synthesis is only possible with the information coded in DNA and RNA molecules. Without DNA and RNA, it is impossible for a protein to reproduce. the specific sequence of the twenty different amino acids encoded in DNA determines the structure of each protein in the body. However, as has been made abundantly clear by all those who have studied these molecules, it is impossible for DNA and RNA to form by chance.\nThe Fact of Creation\nWith the collapse of the theory of evolution in every field, prominent names in the discipline of microbiology today admit the fact of creation and have begun to defend the view that everything is created by a conscious Creator as part of an exalted creation. This is already a fact that people cannot disregard. Scientists who can approach their work with an open mind have developed a view called \"intelligent design\". Michael J. Behe, one of the foremost of these scientists, states that he accepts the absolute being of the Creator and describes the impasse of those who deny this fact:\nThe result of these cumulative efforts to investigate the cell – to investigate life at the molecular level – is a loud, clear, piercing cry of \"design!\" the result is so unambiguous and so significant that it must be ranked as one of the greatest achievements in the history of science. This triumph of science should evoke cries of \"Eureka\" from ten thousand throats.\nBut, no bottles have been uncorked, no hands clapped. Instead, a curious, embarrassed silence surrounds the stark complexity of the cell. When the subject comes up in public, feet start to shuffle, and breathing gets a bit laboured. in private people are a bit more relaxed; many explicitly admit the obvious but then stare at the ground, shake their heads, and let it go like that. Why does the scientific community not greedily embrace its startling discovery? Why is the observation of design handled with intellectual gloves? the dilemma is that while one side of the elephant is labelled intelligent design, the other side must be labelled God.19\nToday, many people are not even aware that they are in a position of accepting a body of fallacy as truth in the name of science, instead of believing in Allah. Those who do not find the sentence \"Allah created you from nothing\" scientific enough can believe that the first living being came into being by thunderbolts striking a \"primordial soup\" billions of years ago.\nAs we have described elsewhere in this book, the balances in nature are so delicate and so numerous that it is entirely irrational to claim that they developed \"by chance\". No matter how much those who cannot set themselves free from this irrationality may strive, the signs of Allah in the heavens and the earth are completely obvious and they are undeniable.\nAllah is the Creator of the heavens, the earth and all that is in between.\nThe signs of His being have encompassed the entire universe.\n1. Charles Darwin, the Origin of Species: By Means of Natural Selection or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life, London: Senate Press, 1995, p. 134.\n2. Derek A. Ager. \"The Nature of the Fossil Record.\" Proceedings of the British Geological Association, vol. 87, no. 2, (1976), p. 133.\n3. T.N. George, \"Fossils in Evolutionary Perspective\", Science Progress, vol.48, (January 1960), p.1-3\n4. Richard Monestarsky, Mysteries of the Orient, Discover, April 1993, p.40.\n5. Stefan Bengston, Nature 345:765 (1990).\n6. Earnest A. Hooton, Up From the Ape, New York: McMillan, 1931, p.332.\n7. Stephen Jay Gould, Smith Woodward's Folly, New Scientist, 5 April, 1979, p. 44.\n8. Charles E. Oxnard, the Place of Australopithecines in Human Evolution: Grounds for Doubt, Nature, No. 258, p. 389.\n9. Richard Leakey, the Making of Mankind, London: Sphere Books, 1981, p. 116\n10. Eric Trinkaus, Hard Times Among the Neanderthals, Natural History, No. 87, December 1978, p. 10, R.L. Holoway, \"The Neanderthal Brain: What was Primitive?\", American Journal of Physical Anthrophology Supplement, No. 12, 1991, p. 94\n11. Ali Demirsoy, Kalitim ve Evrim (Inheritance and Evolution), Ankara: Meteksan Yayinlari 1984, p. 61\n12. Ali Demirsoy, Kalitim ve Evrim (Inheritance and Evolution), Ankara: Meteksan Yayinlari 1984, p. 61\n13. Fabbri Britannica Science Encyclopaedia, Vol. 2, No. 22, p. 519\n14. Kevin McKean, Bilim ve Teknik, No. 189, p. 7\n15. Frank B. Salisbury, \"Doubts about the Modern Synthetic Theory of Evolution\", American Biology Teacher, September 1971, p. 336.\n16. Ali Demirsoy, Kalitim ve Evrim (Inheritance and Evolution), Ankara: Meteksan Publishing Co., 1984, p. 39.\n17. Homer Jacobson, \"Information, Reproduction and the Origin of Life\", American Scientist, January, 1955, p.121.\n18. Reinhard Junker & Siegfried Scherer, \"Entstehung Gesiche Der Lebewesen\", Weyel, 1986, p. 89.\n19. Michael J. Behe, Darwin's Black Box, New York: Free Press, 1996, pp. 232-233."}
{"text": "With Abby off at school, it is a chance to work on learning more with Kenzie. She knows all her letters, and we have been working on mastering her sounds. We’ll be doing the activity I’m showing you today with every letter of the alphabet. You may have seen my tutorial on sewing a reversible bag. Today I decided to put the bag to use. I had some punch out letters and attached them to the bag with tape so it would just be a temporary addition.\nNext, we wandered around the house looking for A words to put in our bag. We found an apple, alligator, ambulance, airplane, apron. As we walked around, we kept on making the two A sounds.\nWe took our bag to the chalkboard, emptied it out and wrote down all of our words. Then, I had Kenzie locate and trace the A’s in the words. Finally, she was able to write the letter A on her own. In case you are wondering, she is 3 1/2. It is a great preschool or kindergarten activity."}
{"text": "As an extended service of _____________________________________________, you will receive fact sheets to help you learn how to investigate, select and use waste minimization opportunities for your industry. Reducing or eliminating hazardous substances is an important business decision. When you use hazardous chemicals in your processes, you are not just making a one-time purchase of the material, you are also paying for:\nThese costs add up, and finding alternatives to these substances should be a priority. Alternatives are available and often out-perform old process equipment and chemicals.\nProper storage and disposal Permits Protecting worker health submitting required reports training employees\nHow can auto body repair shops' pollution prevention efforts help industrial laundries?\nOften small amounts of hazardous materials are left in industrial shop towels and wipes after use. The wipes are usually not treated as hazardous waste and are often cleaned by industrial laundries for re-use.\nWipes and towels from auto body repair shops often contain cleaners, oils, solvents and paints composed of hazardous materials. These chemicals are transferred to the industrial laundry's wastewater during washing.\nAuto body repair shops' efforts to reduce the amount of hazardous substances they use and discard in wipes will reduce the pollutant load in the laundries' wastewater. Pollution prevention efforts to substitute less hazardous cleaners, oils, solvents and paints will benefit both auto body shops and industrial laundries.\nThe pollution prevention ideas in this fact sheet may help you lessen the overall impact of your facility on the environment as well as potentially reduce operating costs.\nIdentify and Use Less Hazardous Paints and CoatingsWHO TO CALL FOR HELP\nLess toxic paints and coatings mean less hazardous materials left on shop towels and wipes.\n- Consider using paints and coatings with less hazardous ingredients.\nIdentify and Use Less Hazardous Solvents and Cleaners\nLess hazardous cleaners mean less hazardous materials left on shop towels and wipes.\n- Consider using cleaners and solvents with a lower volatile organic compound (VOC) content.\n- Consider using water-based or citrus-based dillmonine cleaner in place of solvents.\nReduce the Amount of Solvents and Cleaners Used\nEmployees often have ideas on how to use less solvents. Check with them.\n- Use a spray bottle or plunger can to deliver solvents where they're needed.\n- Don't dip shop towels or wipes into open solvent containers.\n- Reduce the size of the shop towel or wipe. You'll reduce the amount of solvent used at the same time.\n- Consider reusing shop towels or wipes for repetitive tasks.\n- Keep used wipes and towels in closed containers between uses.\n- Limit the amount of solvent available for use each day.\nSpray Gun Cleaning Tips\n- Consider developing a multiple stage cleaning process with a soak stage using partially spent solvent.\n- Keep spray guns in proper working condition. This minimizes cleaning effort and solvent use.\n- Immerse only the spray gun tip when cleaning.\nRecover Solvents and Cleaners from Towels and Wipes Before They Are Sent to the Laundry. Recovery methods include:\n- Gravity Drain\n- Hand Wringing\n- Automatic wringing\n- Centrifuging--explosion proof\n- VOC stripping using steam\n- Use a liner (mesh type bag) in the used towel/wipe collection container to keep the wipes above any free liquid in the bottom of the container\n- Don't put towels or wipes with free liquid into the collection container--wring them out first\n- Recovered solvents may be reused\n- Share Material Safety Data Sheets for materials used in your shop with your launderer\n- Collect, store and transport used shop towels and wipes to the laundry facility in closed containers\n- Don't use shop towels or wipes to clean up spills of hazardous materials or to dispose of excess materials\n- Sort shop towels or wipes according to the types of materials they may contain\nFor Free, Non-Regulatory Assistance and Referrals, contact PPRC.\nProduced by the Northwest Partnership for Environmental Technology Education for the Pacific Northwest Pollution Prevention Resource Center,\n513 First Ave. West, Seattle, WA 98119\nphone: 206-352-2050, fax: 206-352-2049, e-mail: firstname.lastname@example.org, WWW address: http://www.pprc.org"}
{"text": "Glossary of Generalized Anxiety Disoder Terms\nDefinition of hedonic treadmill\nDefinition of learned helplessness\nDescription of norepinephrine\nDescription of serotonin\nDefinition of manic episode.\nMajor Depressive Episode\nDefinition of major depressive episode\nDefinition of negative reinforcement\nDefinition of substance abuse\nDefinition of substance dependence\nDefinition of panic attack and how it is related to generalized anxiety disorder\nDefinition and description of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)\nSocial Phobia (Social Anxiety Disorder)\nDefinition of social phobia and how it can be related to GAD\nDefinition of agoraphobia and how it can be related to GAD.\nDefinition of specific phobia and the various subtypes.\ndefinition of mood disorder\nDescription of depression\nDiscussion of psychotherapy related to generalized anxiety disorder\ndefinition of an anxiety disorder"}
{"text": "Patient data is more accessible than ever thanks to patient and provider mobile connectivity. Data protection and patient ID verification have become critical parts of health care infrastructure. Providers want to identify their patients as quickly as possible, if they’re in need of emergency treatment, but they also need to ensure the data they're reading is accurate and secure.\nRead this guide to understand how different health care patient ID verification technologies and trends, including single sign-on, data breach protection and response, and more, have affected and will continue to shape the health IT industry.\nTable of contents:\nIdentification numbers or codes can be used to authenticate doctors and verify the accuracy of patient data. Hospitals also use IDs to control what information doctors can access through the use of their mobile devices. Read more to see other ways in which IDs are currently used in health care facilities.\nSingle sign-on in health care\nSingle sign-on technology enables doctors and patients more convenient access to their information by giving them one login name and password that grants them access to various processes. Read how else single sign-on is used to protect and grant access to critical data.\nPatient info data breaches\nInstances of compromised or stolen data are preventable through patient and physician education. However, there have been examples of data breaches in which patient information has been exposed, including a notable breach at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.\nFuture patient ID options and regulations\nA national system consisting of a unique patient ID for every American has been a stated goal of some health care personnel. This is one possible option for secure patient identification in the future. There are other areas, like cloud and mobile devices, that are changing the way that health care IDs will be used."}
{"text": "Words Are Powerful\nSpeech -- the ability to convey ideas and feelings through words -- is unique to human beings. It can be a tremendous blessing, but it's also ripe for abuse.\nThe words our children choose to use in expressing themselves help create their personal window on the world.\nPositive forms of expression can help our children grow into positive, optimistic people who view the world around them with generous and hopeful eyes. Negative forms of expression, such as defamatory, mean-spirited speech, will cultivate in them a negative, cynical view of the world.\nSpeech That Is Evil\nIt's easy to fall prey to a destructive pattern of speaking badly about others and gossiping -- to the point where it becomes a recreational activity! In order to enjoy the many people in our lives, we have to stop verbalizing the negativity and focus on their positive virtues. This takes a lot of effort but is essential in raising happy children.\nIf we're always finding fault, we will naturally be dissatisfied, disappointed and displeased, and so will be our children.\nRaising happy children requires us to impart to our offspring the ability to look at everything positively --situations, places and material objects. Most important of all is how they view people.\nTorah calls \"evil language\" anything negative, even if it's true.\nThe Hebrew term for speaking badly of others is called lashon hara, literally \"evil language.\" Interestingly, the Torah calls \"evil language\" anything negative, even if it's true. (Slander -- malicious, false information is called motzi shem ra, literally \"giving another a bad name.\")\nIn sharp contrast to the Western adage about sticks and stones not hurting, Judaism looks very gravely upon misuse of speech. Our tradition teaches that lashon hara can destroy many lives, even unintentionally, in one fell swoop:\n- the person speaking,\n- the person spoken about,\n- and the person spoken to.\nLet's look at why.\n- The person speaking: Although you briefly become the center of attention when you dish out a juicy piece of gossip, in the long run people start mistrusting you. \"Gee, I wonder what she says about me when I'm not around.\" People don't trust gossips and will avoid confiding in you. In the end, you're killing your own reputation. Furthermore, because you are misusing the gift of speech that God gave you, you are also lessened in His eyes.\n- The person spoken about: The person under discussion is, of course, being killed in everyone's eyes. Whether the information is true or false, it is hard to take back defamatory words already spoken and undo the character assassination already committed. That person's reputation is forever blemished.\n- The person spoken to: Interestingly enough, this is the person who is the most culpable, even though s/he is seemingly the innocent one. All s/he did was listen! But the Talmud says that listening to lashon hara is even worse than speaking it; the person had the power to stop it and didn't. Now the transgression is complete.\nExceptions to the Rule\nOf course, there are times we are all owed to speak share negative information about others; in fact, there are times it is an obligation to do so. For example - when a friend is about to be become financially involved with a person we know to be unethical, or seriously dating a person we know to be abusive or otherwise unsuitable. Or when a child has information that will prevent harm from occurring.\nBeware of the excuses children and adults often use for speaking lashon hara:\n- \"But it's true!\" Lashon hara specifically refers to sharing derogatory information when it is true. Spreading vicious lies is far worse!\n- \"If she were here I would say it to her face.\" Maybe you would, and maybe you wouldn't. In any case, it is still forbidden.\n- \"Everyone knows about it.\" Does this justify you adding fuel to the fire? Even if it is on the front page of the newspaper, you are still forbidden to speak about it.\nTeaching our children to avoid speaking lashon hara takes a concerted effort. Experiment with the following tools:\n- Teach by example. Showing children that it's a priority for you is perhaps the most important lesson. Don't let them hear your gossiping with your friends or relatives. Don't let them hear you laughing at other people's expense. Even better than \"don't let them hear you\" is not doing it -- whether they're in earshot or not.\n- Discuss the importance of avoiding lashon hara. Help your children identify what is and isn't proper speech. Talk about how improper speech can hurt others and how it hurts the person speaking lashon hara. There are a number of excellent Jewish books that can help you.\n- Discourage \"tattling.\" When your kids come to \"tell on\" someone, tell them you aren't interested in reports of someone else's bad behavior, but that you're available if they need help or advice.\n- Get in the habit of not using names. There's no need for you to know the names of problem students at school unless you'll have a direct role in addressing the issue. Focus the discussion on your child's feelings, worries and concerns. If he or she needs protection that requires your intervention, tell him or her that it is proper to tell you the name of the offending child.\n- Don't fall into the trap of casual lashon hara. At dinner and at other family times, bring books to the table to discuss or talk about current events. When you discuss what happened in each person's day, focus on what they learned that day and how they felt. Show your children that there are more interesting things to talk about than other people's poor behavior.\n- Give positive reinforcement. Be sure to commend your kids when they manage to tell you about school or neighborhood problems without mentioning who was involved. Let them know that you're proud of them - and that God is too.\n- Reminders! Tape a reminder to the telephone: \"No Lashon Hara!\" Put up signs on the fridge and in other prominent locations around the house.\n- Study it. Read a small section of the laws of lashon hara each day during dinner or at your Shabbat table. Encourage discussion and examples."}
{"text": "Gasoline prices have increased rapidly during the past several years, pushed up mainly by the sharply rising price of oil. A gallon of gasoline in the US rose from $1.50 in 2002 to $2 in 2004 to $2.50 in 2006 to over $4 at present. Gasoline prices almost trebled during these 6 years compared to very little change in nominal gas prices during the prior fifteen years. The US federal tax on gasoline has remained at 18.4 cents per gallon during this period of rapid growth in gasoline prices, while state excise taxes add another 21.5 cents per gallon. In addition, many local governments levy additional sales and other taxes on gasoline. Gasoline taxes have not risen much as the price of gasoline exploded upward.\nThe price of gasoline is much lower than in other rich countries mainly because American taxes are far smaller. For example, gasoline taxes in Germany and the United Kingdom amount to about $3 per gallon. Some economists and environmentalists have called for large increases in federal, state, and local taxes to make them more comparable to gasoline taxes in other countries. Others want these taxes to rise by enough so that at least they would have kept pace with the sharply rising pre-tax fuel prices. At the same time two presidential candidates, Hillary Clinton and John McCain, proposed a temporary repeal during this summer of the federal tax in order to give consumers a little relief from the higher gas prices. We discuss the optimal tax on gasoline, and how the sharp increase in gas prices affected its magnitude.\nTaxes on gasoline are a way to induce consumers to incorporate the \"external\" damages to others into their decision of how much to drive and where to drive. These externalities include the effects of driving on local and global pollution, such as the contribution to global warming from the carbon emitted into the atmosphere by burnt gasoline. One other important externality is the contribution of additional driving to road congestion that slows the driving speeds of everyone and increases the time it takes to go a given distance. Others include automobile accidents that injure drivers and pedestrians, and the effect of using additional gasoline on the degree of dependence on imported oil from the Middle East and other not very stable parts of the world.\nA careful 2007 study by authors from Resources for the Future evaluates the magnitudes of all these externalities from driving in the US (see Harrington, Parry, and Walls, \"Automobile Externalities and Policies\", Journal of Economic Literature, 2007, pp 374-400). They estimate the total external costs of driving at 228 cents per gallon of gas used, or at 10.9 cents per mile driven, with the typical car owned by American drivers. Their breakdown of this total among different sources is interesting and a little surprising. They attribute only 6 cents of the total external cost to the effects of gasoline consumption on global warming through the emission of carbon into the atmosphere from the burning of gasoline, and 12 cents from the increased dependency on imported oil. Perhaps their estimate of only 6 cents per gallon is a large underestimate of the harmful effects of gasoline use on global warming. Yet even if we treble their estimate, that only raises total costs of gasoline use due to the effects on global warming by 12 cents per gallon. That still leaves the vast majority of the external costs of driving to other factors.\nThey figure that local pollution effects amount to 42 cents per gallon, which makes these costs much more important than even the trebled cost of global warming. According to their estimates, still more important costs are those due to congestion and accidents, since these are 105 cents and 63 cents per gallon, respectively. Their figure for the cost of traffic accidents is likely too high –as the authors' recognize- because it includes the cost in damages to property and person of single vehicle accidents, as when a car hits a tree. Presumably, single vehicle accidents are not true externalities because drivers and their passengers would consider their possibility and internalize them into their driving decisions. Moreover, the large effect of drunk driving on the likelihood of accidents should be treated separately from a gasoline tax by directly punishing drunk drivers rather than punishing also sober drivers who are far less likely to get into accidents.\nOn the surface, these calculations suggest that American taxes on gasoline, totaling across all levels of government to about 45 cents per gallon, are much too low. However, the federal tax of 18.4 cents per gallon is almost exactly equal to their figure of 18 cents per gallon as the external costs of global warming and oil dependency. To be sure, a trebled estimate for global warming would bring theirs up to 30 cents per gallon. However, the federal government also taxes driving through its mandated fuel efficiency standards for cars, although this is an inefficient way to tax driving since it taxes the type of car rather than driving. Still, the overall level of federal taxes does not fall much short, if at all, from the adjusted estimate of 30 cents per gallon of damages due to the effects of gasoline use on global warming and oil dependency.\nAny shortfall in taxes would be at the state and local levels in combating externalities due to local pollution effects, and to auto accidents and congestion on mainly local roads. Here too, however, the discrepancy between actual and optimal gasoline taxes is far smaller than it may seem, and not only because single vehicle accidents are included in their estimate of the cost of car accidents, and accidents due to drunk driving should be discouraged through punishments to drunk drivers. One important reason is that congestion should be reduced not by general gasoline taxes, but by special congestion taxes- as used in London and a few other cities- that vary in amount with degree of congestion (see our discussion of congestion taxes on February 12, 2006). Congestion taxes are a far more efficient way to reduce congestion than are general taxes on gasoline that apply also when congestion is slight.\nIn addition and often overlooked, the sharp rise in pre-tax gasoline prices has partly accomplished the local pollution and auto accident goals that would be achieved by higher gas taxes. For higher prices have cut driving, just as taxes would, and will cut driving further in the future as consumers continue to adjust the amount and time of their driving to gasoline that costs more than $4 a gallon. Reduced driving will lower pollution and auto accidents by reducing the number of cars on the road during any time period, especially during heavily traveled times when pollution and accidents are more common.\nThe effects of high gas prices in reducing congestion, local pollution, and accident externalities could be substantial. These authors estimate the size of local driving externalities, aside from congestion costs, at 105 cents per gallon. Even after the sharp run up in gas prices, this may still exceed the 28 cents per gallon of actual state and local taxes, but the gap probably is small. It surely is a lot smaller than it was before gas prices exploded on the back of the climb in the cost of oil. In effect, by reducing driving, higher gasoline prices have already done much of the work in reducing externalities that bigger gas taxes would have done when prices were lower."}
{"text": "HAD Edmund Cartwright thought for one moment of the hardship and misery he was about to unleash on a vulnerable section of society, he would never have sat down to invent the power loom.\nCartwright (1743-1823) was a Church of England minister, with a clergyman's love for his fellow man, so he would have been mortified to watch the long, agonising death throes of the hand-loom weaving industry that his invention caused.\nThe 18th century was full of men who excelled in several different fields at the same time, but if anyone deserved the description of polymath, it was Cartwright. Born into a landed family in Marnham, Nottinghamshire, he was one of three brothers who all became nationally famous.\nJohn, born in 1740, would be one of Britain's best-known radical politicians while George, the eldest (born 1739) followed his army career by becoming a fur trapper and explorer in Canada. He earned the sobriquet of “Labrador Cartwright,” and was the first man to bring Eskimos to Britain – a family of five accompanied him back after one voyage and became favourites at Court.\nEdmund was educated at Wakefield Grammar School and University College, Oxford. He became a fellow of Magdalen College and while there, made a name for himself as a literary critic and a poet. His mythical poem Armine and Elvira ran to several editions and was described by Sir Walter Scott as “a “very beautiful piece.”Cartwright was marked down for the church and in 1772 he was appointed curate of Brampton, near Wakefield, moving, seven years later, to become vicar of Goadby Marwood in Leicestershire. It was here that his ingenuity first surfaced.\nAttending the sickbed of a young boy who was dying from putrid fever, or typhus, he spotted a tub of yeast in the room. Recalling an old tradition that rotting meat suspended over yeast would become pure and sweet again, he dosed the youngster with it – and cured him.\nHe treated several other parishioners in the same way and with the same result, and the treatment was widely adopted by 18th-century medics.\nStill, Cartwright might have settled for rural obscurity in his rectory had it not been for a chance holiday encounter.\nTHIS was Cartwright's first attempt at loom building - before he had seen how others did it.\nSo, how did a man of the cloth become a man who made cloth? Cartwright tells the story of his invention in his own words, in an interview later in life with a representative of the Encyclopædia Britannica:\n“HAPPENING to be at Matlock in the summer of 1784, I fell in company with some gentlemen of Manchester, when th conversation turned on Arkwright's spinning machinery. One of the company observed that as soon as Arkwright's patent expired, so many mills would be erected and so much cotton spun that hands would never be found to weave it.\n\"To this I replied that Arkwright must then set his wits to work to invent a weaving mill."}
{"text": "Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is an anxiety disorder that is characterized by excessive, uncontrollable and often irrational worry about everyday things that is disproportionate to the actual source of worry. This excessive worry often interferes with daily functioning, as individuals suffering GAD typically anticipate disaster, and are overly concerned about everyday matters such as health issues, money, death, family problems, friend problems, relationship problems or work difficulties. Physical symptoms can include fatigue, fidgeting, headaches, nausea, numbness in hands and feet, muscle tension, muscle aches, difficulty swallowing, bouts of difficulty breathing, difficulty concentrating, trembling, twitching, irritability, agitation, sweating, restlessness, insomnia, hot flashes, rashes, and an inability to fully control the anxiety. These symptoms must be consistent and on-going, persisting at least 6 months, for a formal diagnosis of GAD to be introduced. Generalized anxiety disorder is estimated to occur in 5% of the general population. Women are generally more affected than men .\nPage 1 of 2\nDating Advice For Men"}
{"text": "Like butterflies? Enjoy birds?\nGarden with Vermont plants.\nNative plants can help turn your yard into a wonderful wildlife preserve. They provide butterflies, birds and bees the habitat and food they need to survive and reproduce, in turn supporting other forms of wildlife that get energy directly from plants or by eating something that has already eaten a plant.\nWhen land is converted to lawn or planted with non-native plants imported from Europe or Asia, native insects have a hard time finding something to eat because they are adapted to use particular plant species for food, lay eggs and hide from predators. Insect diversity and populations drop significantly when native plant species disappear - gardens with native plants have three times as many insect species and 35 times as much insect biomass as those with non-natives. Smaller populations means insects are not fulfilling the critical role they play in an ecosystem's food web.\nHere are a few things you can do to create a wildlife and insect haven in your yard:\nPlant native perennials, shrubs and trees. They offer birds the best variety and most abundant source of seasonal seeds, fruits and insects. Click here for a list of native Vermont plants and the insects they support.\nReplace lawns with woodlands, meadows, native gardens and shrubs. Reduce the need for labor-intensive, gas-consuming lawn care by planting low-maintenance, native vegetation.\nProvide pollinators a range of species that bloom throughout the season. Perennial beds do not include the seasonal variety that bees and other pollinators need. Include late-blooming native asters, goldenrods and sunflowers in your borders and meadows.\nWhenever possible, leave leaf litter alone. Many insects overwinter in leaf litter, so leaving it on the ground allows many species of moths and butterflies to make it through Vermont’s long winters. For example, leaf litter frequently contains moth eggs, so those moths cannot survive if leaf litter is bagged and sent to the landfill.\nMaintain naturally \"messy\" areas - leave woody debris alone. Many bees live alone or in colonies in twigs, stumps, dead branches or wood, and some birds nest on the ground and forage in leaf litter for insects."}
{"text": "Please Note: By clicking a link to any resource listed on this page, you will be leaving the KidsHealth site.\nSickle Cell Disease Association of America\nThis group provides education, advocacy, and other initiatives to promote awareness of and support for sickle cell disease programs.\nNational Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)\nNINDS offers research information related to neurological disorders.\nUnited Cerebral Palsy\nThis organization provides information about cerebral palsy (CP) as well as new research and therapies.\nNational Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities (NICHCY)\nNICHCY is the national information and referral center that provides information on disabilities and disability-related issues for families, educators, and other professionals."}
{"text": "Take any point P inside an equilateral triangle. Draw PA, PB and PC\nfrom P perpendicular to the sides of the triangle where A, B and C\nare points on the sides. Prove that PA + PB + PC is a constant.\nCan you decide whether two lines are perpendicular or not? Can you\ndo this without drawing them?\nThe centre of the larger circle is at the midpoint of one side of an equilateral triangle and the circle touches the other two sides of the triangle. A smaller circle touches the larger circle and. . . .\nX is a moveable point on the hypotenuse, and P and Q are the feet\nof the perpendiculars from X to the sides of a right angled\ntriangle. What position of X makes the length of PQ a minimum?\nThe circumcentres of four triangles are joined to form a\nquadrilateral. What do you notice about this quadrilateral as the\ndynamic image changes? Can you prove your conjecture?\nIt is impossible to trisect an angle using only ruler and compasses\nbut it can be done using a carpenter's square.\nFind the area of the shaded region created by the two overlapping\ntriangles in terms of a and b?\nPosition the lines so that they are perpendicular to each other.\nWhat can you say about the equations of perpendicular lines?\nABCD is a square. P is the midpoint of AB and is joined to C. A line from D perpendicular to PC meets the line at the point Q. Prove AQ = AD.\nAt the time of writing the hour and minute hands of my clock are at\nright angles. How long will it be before they are at right angles"}
{"text": "Since 2002, when HAVA was enacted, computer scientists have released over three dozen studies of the software-based voting systems rushed in by HAVA. Every one of these studies has concluded that software-based optical scanners and DREs (direct record electronic systems, often known as “touch screens”) are vulnerable to undetectable manipulation and error. While any machine, including a lever voting machine, can be hacked, software enables a single individual to change thousands of votes in a few minutes without leaving a trace.\nThe inner workings of the software-based machine are invisible. Systematic exploits enable massive vote switching in minutes. In contrast, to affect the outcome of an election conducted with lever machines is labor-intensive since each machine must be individually rigged, increasing the likelihood that the crime would be caught; levers are not capable of systematic exploits. Vote flipping, common on electronic machines, is also not possible on a lever machine. Tampering to a lever machine can be detected because the working parts of the lever machine are visible, as contrasted with software, which is invisible to all but the programmers. Regardless of how the software has been programmed, self-erasing malware can be introduced into an electronic system but not into a lever system. Certification of computerized systems is a ruse because no amount of certification testing will make voting computers secure.\n- The National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Federal government’s own technical advisers, found that certification testing cannot provide security or reliability:\n[E]xperience in testing software and systems has shown that testing to high degrees of security and reliability is from a practical perspective not possible.” (Emphasis added.)\n- A 2007 report authorized by the California Secretary of State found that with software-based voting machines:\nAn attack could plausibly be accomplished by a single skilled individual with temporary access to a single voting machine. The damage could be extensive – malicious code could spread to every voting machine in polling places and to county election servers.\n- Finding error or fraud in software code has been shown to be prohibitively expensive and time-consuming due to self-erasing code and the fact that code can be several hundred thousand lines in length, according to the 2008 ACCURATE Report (A Center for Correct, Usable, Reliable, Auditable, and Transparent Elections):\n[N]o matter how hard one looks for errors or faults in voting system software, there is no way to guarantee that one has found them all. Even if no errors or faults are found, there is no way to guarantee that none exist….\n- Notwithstanding the pre-election certification of the optical scanners and even with security seals in place, in 2006 the University of Connecticut established how easily election results can be falsified on an optical scanner:\nAn Accu-Vote Optical Scan can be compromised with off-the-shelf equipment in a matter of minutes even if the machine has its removable memory card sealed in place. The basic attack can be applied to effect a variety of results, including entirely neutralizing one candidate so that their votes are not counted, swapping the votes of two candidates, or biasing the results by shifting some votes from one candidate to another….\nSuch vote tabulation corruptions can lay dormant until Election Day, thus avoiding detection through pre-election tests…. [V]oters could be unaware of any discrepancies between their cast votes and the internally recorded votes.\n- A 2007 Florida report demonstrated how viruses can be introduced and propagated from a single machine to every other computer in the jurisdiction as well as from one election to the next. Each county will use an Election Management System (EMS) computer (commonly known as a “central tabulator”). The central tabulator reprograms the optical scanners before every election using a memory card that tells the machine who is on the ballot and how to count it, and then accumulates and reports precinct-level results after an election. Florida’s study demonstrated how a virus introduced to a single machine would spread to every other machine in the county via memory cards:\nA cleverly constructed virus can cover its tracks so that infected machines could not be detected by ordinary means and an appropriately programmed virus could self-destruct and erase all its tracks…. [I]f carefully constructed, it can allow an attacker to transfer program control to her own malicious code. Once this happens, the attacker controls the machine.\n- A 2006 Princeton University report “describes how the virus propagates … via memory cards, without requiring any network.” NY’s wireless ban would not prevent this massive attack because all computers in a county communicate with the EMS central tabulator, which in turn communicates with each computer in the county:\nAn infected machine will infect any memory card that is inserted into it. An infected memory card will infect any machine that is powered up or rebooted with the memory card inserted. Because cards are transferred between machines during vote counting and administrative activities, the infected population will grow over time.\n- A 2006 report commissioned by California’s Secretary of State corroborated that these attacks to optical scanners cannot be discerned by election officials responsible for ensuring the accuracy of the election:\nThere would be no way to know that any of these attacks occurred; the canvass procedure would not detect any anomalies, and would just produce incorrect results. The only way to detect and correct the problem would be by recount of the original paper ballots.\n- A 2007 report commissioned by Florida’s Secretary of State reaffirmed that election results could be readily compromised by an individual with only brief access to an optical scanner, by replacing the memory card with one preprogrammed to read one candidate’s votes as counting for another. The report also found “The attack can be carried out with a reasonably low probability of detection….”\nFlaws in the Optical Scan software enable an unofficial memory card to be inserted into an active terminal. Such a card can be preprogrammed to swap the electronically tabulated votes for two candidates, reroute all of a candidate’s votes to a different candidate, or tabulate votes for several candidates of choice toward a different candidate.\n- In 2007, Ohio’s Secretary of State released the Evaluation and Validation of Election Related Equipment, Standards and Testing (EVEREST) study, which revealed, among other things, the ineffectiveness of requirements –such as NY’s — that the source code be escrowed to secure the software. The EVEREST team was able to penetrate all of Ohio’s voting systems, including Sequoia’s optical scanner, without the source code. None of these attacks could have been detected or prevented by knowing the source code. The EVEREST report concluded that software-based systems are “insufficient to guarantee a trustworthy election.”"}
{"text": "Life Club is what regular schools don’t provide: the opportunity for your child to become a creative and confident English speaker. Life Club brings students of a common age group together to participate in teacher-led activities, socialize, and have fun in an English-speaking environment.\nLife Club focuses on building your child’s confidence, communication skills, and awareness of English speaking cultures through fun performances, speech and drama activities, and authentic experience held outside of the traditional classroom setting.\nWe believe that the most effortless and effective learning happens while the student is having fun. The non-traditional environment of Life Club helps your child gain the skills and confidence to use real-life English.\nAs a component of the Efekta System, Life Club reinforces the language learned in the classroom and through iLAB.\nLife Club is made up of various activities including games, speech and drama performances, holiday parties, music appreciation, movement, social interaction, arts & crafts, and multi media presentation. All these in English, all the time!\nRead more about this product.\nThe Life Club Themes\nLife Club creates a link between English language learning and a broader educational curriculum. The Life Club themes are based on mainstream school subjects such as Science, Geography, History, Art, Mathematics, Music, and Health. This cross-curricular approach also offers students an ideal opportunity to refresh and to revise what they have done and learned in other subject areas, so that their knowledge becomes more active. This makes both learning and teaching English more interesting and memorable.\nThis theme is aimed at helping the students realize and nurture their talents and skills. The sessions will provide the students the opportunity to discover their and each other’s talents.\nRelated Subjects: Arts, Social Science, History, Sports, and Music.\nUnder the Sea\nThis theme presents the great bodies of water, the natural resources, and many fun things about the sea. Students will learn new interesting trivia through the game shows.\nRelated Subjects: Social Science, Natural Science, Geography, and Sports.\nThe Little Green Explorer\nThis theme is about the environment, natural resources and the world in general. It seeks to create awareness among students on how to take care of the environment. Students will learn the basics of news reporting and interviewing during the sessions.\nRelated Subjects: Natural Sciences, Geography, and Health.\nThis theme is about satisfying the curiosity about things and events around students. The Secret Detective theme seeks to open the students’ eyes to the value of research, experimentation, and inquiry.\nRelated Subjects: History and Science.\nEverybody, especially kids, is interested in animals, wild and domesticated alike. This theme helps the students discover the many creatures that surround them. Through the sessions, they will learn how to appreciate and care for animals and wildlife.\nRelated Subjects: Natural Science and Social Science.\nThis theme will specially focus on the beauty of the universe. Space Wonders presents the topic of space exploration and the science involved in it.\nRelated Subjects: Astronomy, Astrology, History, Science, and Technology.\nSuper Duper Heroes\nThis theme introduces universal heroes and their adventures to students. The theme can help the children to better understand the concept of good deeds, manners and social responsibility. The topics include famous heroes who made a difference to the world. Through role-play, students get to be their own heroes, with or without the superpowers.\nRelated Subjects: History and Social Science.\nThe World Over\nThis theme introduces culture in different English-speaking countries other than The United Kingdom, Australia and the United States of America. Students will become more familiar with countries and cultures around the world.\nRelated Subjects: History, Language and Social Science.\nHappy Birthday (For Small Stars only)\nOne’s birthday is probably the most important day of the year. This theme introduces the concept of western birthday parties to the students. They will learn the Happy Birthday song, decorate the room, play party games, make birthday cards, decorate birthday cookies, and make and wrap birthday gifts. The students will be involved actively in the preparation of an exciting birthday party for Roddy!\nRelated Subjects: Music, Arts, and Sports.\nThe Life Club Session\nA Life Club Session is composed of various activities such as Speech and Drama, Social Interaction, Games, Music, Movement, Visual Presentation, and Arts & Crafts, based on a relevant theme. Through these, students experiment with language in a low-stress, fun, and secure English environment. A typical Life Club session will involve the students practicing a range of language skills as they carry out the activities. These will be integrated into the activities and will be practiced together. As most of the sessions will have members who are at different levels and ages, there is a strong emphasis on open-ended tasks and activities. These will allow for more student involvement and will help to promote the students’ autonomy.\nThe teacher should be seen as a group leader or facilitator, assisting and guiding the students as they engage in the activities. The teacher aims to provide learning opportunities whenever possible.\nLife Club for Parents\nEF encourages active parental involvement in each student’s learning. To this end, Life Club for Parents is conducted in the school at least once a month. Life Club for Parents gives suggestions on how to support and reinforce at home what your child has learnt in class and in Life Club.\nEF introduces your child to foreign cultures in a playful, hands-on way, without very detailed background explanations. Through Life Club for Parents, EF can provide you with the background information necessary to understand cultural aspects at a level that is accessible only for adults.\nLife Club for Parents includes special interest sessions which have been designed to broaden your knowledge in the field of education in order to support your child’s learning development at home."}
{"text": "Press Release: First Comprehensive National Study Finds Centers Safest Form of Childcare\nChild care centers are much safer than all other forms of child care, according to a new national study.\nSociologists Julia Wrigley and Joanna Dreby of the City University of New York Graduate Center created a comprehensive database of child care failures, including fatalities, between 1985 and 2003. They found that child care is quite safe overall, and child care fatalities are rarer than outside of paid care. But the fatality rate for children who receive child care in private homes is sixteen times higher than the fatality rate for children in child care centers.\nThe study appears in the October issue of the American Sociological Review . It was funded by the Foundation for Child Development.\nWhile more than 8 million children are in paid child care every day, until now little has been known about their safety. Wrigley and Dreby analyzed reports of 1,362 fatalities (among 4,356 caregiving failures) from 1985 to 2003. The fatality data was gathered from media reports, legal cases, and state records. Three forms of child care were investigated: child care centers, nannies working in children's homes, and family day care providers working in their own homes.\n\"While accidents can happen anywhere, child care centers are almost 100% protective against children's deaths by violence. They are much safer than arrangements in private homes,\" explains Wrigley.\nInfants are by far the most vulnerable children in care. Their fatality rate from both accidents and violence is nearly seven times higher than that of children from one to four. Equally striking are differences in infant fatality rates across types of care. The infant fatality rate in the care of nannies or family day care providers is more than seven times higher than that in centers.\nWhy are centers the safest form of child care?\nWrigley and Dreby conclude that centers are the safest form of child care because they afford children multiple forms of protection. Most importantly, staff members do not work alone. They have others watching them and helping them cope with fussy infants or whining toddlers. This helps them maintain their emotional control. It also helps identify and remove unstable or volatile workers. Center teachers also have more training than most caregivers in private homes and they are supervised by professionally-trained directors. Finally, centers control access by outsiders more effectively to keep out people who might pose risks.\nThese protections help reduce risks of accidental deaths, such as suffocation and drowning. But they are especially important in preventing violent deaths. Not a single shaken baby fatality was found in a child care center, while 203 were reported in arrangements in private homes. The stress of infant crying, in particular, can drive caregivers to impulsive acts of violence. With little professional training, without supervisors or coworkers, and often paid very little for long hours of work, even some experienced caregivers can lose emotional control. Once children are past the toddler years, safety differences between centers and other forms of child care diminish.\nWrigley says, \"Child care is quite safe overall, but it could be made safer. We need to recognize what a stressful and demanding job it is to look after young children. Improved safety will only come with more resources and closer regulation of care.\"\nHow can we improve child care safety?\nA complete copy of the article, titled: \"Fatalities and the Organization of Childcare,\" can be found beginning November 1 on the website of the American Sociological Association www.asanet.org which will also be linked from The Graduate Center's website www.gc.cuny.edu . Hard copies may be obtained from by contacting Johanna Ebner at the American Sociological Association, 1307 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 700, Washington, D.C. 20005.\nWhile working on this research, Julia Wrigley was a Professor of Sociology at the CUNY Graduate Center, where she was recently appointed Acting Associate Provost. Her work focuses on social class and inequality. She is the author of Class Politics and Public Schools , on conflicts over the control and funding of Chicago's schools, and Other People's Children , on relations between middle-class parents and their children's caregivers. She edited Sociology of Education and chaired the ASA section on Children and Youth.\nJoanna Dreby is a Ph.D. student in Sociology at the CUNY Graduate Center. Her research interests include child care, the sociology of children, gender and families and immigration/transnational communities. She recently spent a year in Mexico on a Fulbright doing research for her dissertation on parent-child separation in Mexican transnational families.\nThe Foundation for Child Development is a national, private philanthropy dedicated to the principle that all families should have the social and material resources to raise their children to be healthy, educated, and productive members of society. PK-3, the Foundation's signature focus, seeks to create a new beginning for public education from prekindergarten through third grade. For more information, visit the Foundation's website, http://www.fcd-us.org.\nThe Graduate Center is the doctorate-granting institution of The City University of New York. The only consortium of its kind in the nation, the school draws its faculty of more than 1,700 members mainly from the CUNY senior colleges. Established in 1961, The Graduate Center has grown to an enrollment of about 4,000 students in 32 doctoral programs and six master's degree programs in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences. The Graduate Center also houses 28 research centers and institutes, administers the CUNY Baccalaureate Program as well as a number of other university-wide academic programs, and offers a wide range of continuing education and cultural programs of interest to the general public. Further information on The Graduate Center's programs and activities can be found on its website at: www.gc.cuny.edu.\nSubmitted on: NOV 1, 2005"}
{"text": "January 21, 2010\nAn estimated 430,000 children worldwide became infected with HIV in 2008, mostly through birth or breastfeeding from an HIV-infected mother. Many regions of the world are gaining increased access to complex antiretroviral drug regimens for preventing HIV transmission from a mother to her child. However, these strategies have not yet been directly compared with simpler antiretroviral drug regimens in terms of their safety, efficacy, feasibility and cost-effectiveness.\nOn January 15, a large, multinational clinical trial began to determine how best to reduce the risk of HIV transmission from infected pregnant women to their babies during pregnancy and breastfeeding while preserving the health of these children and their mothers.\nThe PROMISE (“Promoting Maternal-Infant Survival Everywhere”) study aims to enroll 7,950 HIV-infected women who are pregnant or have recently given birth and 5,950 HIV-exposed infants of these women. The participants will come from as many as 18 countries whose levels of resources range from high to low. The International Maternal Pediatric Adolescent AIDS Clinical Trials network is conducting the study with funding from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, both part of the National Institutes of Health. Led by protocol chair Mary Glenn Fowler, M.D., M.P.H., of the Makerere University–Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration in Kampala, Uganda, the study team expects results in five to six years.\nThe HIV-infected women eligible to participate in PROMISE do not yet qualify for treatment—that is, their CD4+ T cell count, a measure of immune health, exceeds the level (350 cells per cubic millimeter of blood) at which highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) generally is recommended. HAART consists of a potent combination of three or more antiretroviral drugs.\nThe study addresses four distinct research questions. Most volunteers will participate in multiple components of the study to answer these questions. The first component will examine which of two proven strategies is safer and more effective at preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission before and during delivery: giving HIV-infected pregnant women a three-antiretroviral-drug regimen beginning as early as 14 weeks of gestation, or giving them the antiretroviral drug zidovudine beginning as early as 14 weeks of pregnancy and a single dose of the antiretroviral drug nevirapine during labor. The regimen of zidovudine and nevirapine is the standard of care in many countries for women who do not yet require treatment for their HIV infection. Some 4,400 women will be assigned at random to receive either one of these two interventions.\nThe second component of the PROMISE study will compare the safety and efficacy of two methods of preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission during breastfeeding. The study team will assign 4,650 mother-infant pairs at random either to receive a daily dose of infant nevirapine or to have the mothers take a three-antiretroviral-drug regimen throughout breastfeeding.\nThe third component of the PROMISE study will examine the effects of short-term use of a three-antiretroviral-drug regimen during pregnancy and breastfeeding to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission on the health of HIV-infected mothers who do not yet need treatment. For such women, it remains unclear whether stopping the three-drug regimen after giving birth or ceasing to breastfeed would compromise their health. Although past studies have shown that interrupting treatment with antiretroviral drugs has a negative effect, the conditions in those studies are different enough from the conditions of the PROMISE study to make extrapolating the results difficult, according to the study investigators.\nThe 4,675 women participating in this third component of PROMISE will be assigned at random either to stop the three-antiretroviral-drug regimen after giving birth or weaning, or to continue the drug regimen indefinitely. The health of these two groups will be compared. In addition, the women who receive the time-limited three-drug regimen will be compared with the women who participated in the first component of PROMISE and did not receive the three-drug regimen, but rather took zidovudine during pregnancy and single-dose nevirapine during labor.\nThe last component of the PROMISE study involves protecting the health of HIV-exposed but uninfected infants. In resource-limited settings, it is standard to give the antibiotic cotrimoxazole once daily to infants exposed to HIV at birth until the infant has stopped breastfeeding and is known to be HIV-uninfected. While cotrimoxazole prophylaxis improves the survival rate of HIV-infected infants, it is not known whether continuing to administer the drug after weaning similarly would benefit HIV-exposed but uninfected children.\nIn this fourth component of the PROMISE study, nearly 2,290 HIV-exposed but uninfected, weaned infants under one year old will be assigned at random either to continue receiving cotrimoxazole or to receive a placebo through age 18 months. Neither the mothers of the infants nor the study team will know which infants are in which group. The study will determine whether continuing cotrimoxazole prophylaxis in HIV-exposed, uninfected infants from the time they stop breastfeeding through age 18 months decreases their risk of illness and death without causing side effects or generating bacterial resistance to cotrimoxizole.\nMedia inquiries can be directed to the NIAID Office of Communications at 301-402-1663, firstname.lastname@example.org.\nThe NICHD sponsors research on development, before and after birth; maternal, child, and family health; reproductive biology and population issues; and medical rehabilitation. For more information, visit the Institute’s Web site at http://www.nichd.nih.gov/.\nNIAID conducts and supports research—at NIH, throughout the United States, and worldwide—to study the causes of\ninfectious and immune-mediated diseases, and to develop better means of preventing, diagnosing and treating these illnesses. News\nreleases, fact sheets and other NIAID-related materials are available on the NIAID Web site at www.niaid.nih.gov.\nAbout the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S.\nDepartment of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research,\nand is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.\nNIH...Turning Discovery Into Health ®\nback to top\nLast Updated January 21, 2010"}
{"text": "When set to hair mode, particle system creates only static particles, which may be used for hair, fur, grass and the like.\nThe first step is to create the hair, specifying the amount of hair strands and their lengths.\nThe complete path of the particles is calculated in advance. So everything a particle does a hair may do also. A hair is as long as the particle path would be for a particle with a lifetime of 100 frames. Instead of rendering every frame of the particle animation point by point there are calculated control points with an interpolation, the segments.\nThe next step is to style the hair. You can change the look of base hairs by changing the Physics Settings.\nA more advanced way of changing the hair appearance is to use Children. This adds child hairs to the original ones, and has settings for giving them different types of shapes.\nYou can also interactively style hairs in Particle Mode. In this mode, the particle settings become disabled, and you can comb, trim, lengthen, etc. the hair curves.\nHair can now be made dynamic using the cloth solver. This is covered in the Hair Dynamics page.\nBlender can render hairs in several different ways. Materials have a Strand section, which is covered in the materials section in the Strands Page.\nHair can also be used as a basis for the Particle Instance modifier, which allows you to have a mesh be deformed along the curves, which is useful for thicker strands, or things like grass, or feathers, which may have a more specific look.\n- Regrow Hair for each frame.\n- Enables advanced settings which reflect the same ones as working in Emitter mode.\n- Set the amount of hair strands. Use as little particles as possible, especially if you plan to use softbody animation later. But you need enough particles to have good control. For a “normal” haircut I found some thousand (very roughly 2000) particles to give enough control. You may need a lot more particles if you plan to cover a body with fur. Volume will be produced later with Children.\nSettings for adding movement to hair see Hair Dynamics.\n- Draw hair as curves.\n- Draw just the end points if the hairs.\n- The number of segments (control points minus 1) of the hair strand. In between the control points the segments are interpolated. The number of control points is important:\n- for the softbody animation, because the control points are animated like vertices, so more control points mean longer calculation times.\n- for the interactive editing, because you can only move the control points (but you may recalculate the number of control points in Particle Mode).\n- 10 Segments should be sufficient even for very long hair, 5 Segments are enough for shorter hair, and 2 or 3 segments should be enough for short fur.\nHair can be rendered as a Path, Object, or Group. See Particle Visualization for descriptions.\n- Fur Tutorial, which produced (Image 4b). It deals especially with short hair.\n- Blender Hair Basics, a thorough overview of all of the hair particle settings."}
{"text": "Maui’s death in set net takes species one step closer to extinction\nWWF-New Zealand’s Executive Director Chris Howe says: “This death of a Maui’s dolphin is a tragedy for a species that is down to only about 100 individuals. Set nets in Maui’s habitat continue to pose an unacceptable risk to these dolphins. Until we get set nets out of the shallow coastal waters where they live, more Maui’s will needlessly get entangled and drown. The species could be extinct within our generation without urgent action.”\nMaui’s dolphins, a subspecies of the South Island’s Hector’s dolphins, are found only off the west coast of the North Island. They are the world’s rarest marine dolphin, classified internationally as critically endangered.\nThe Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) yesterday released a statement saying they believe that the dead animal was a Maui’s, not a Hector’s dolphin as originally reported, because of the location of its death. The dead dolphin was returned to the sea by the fisher. MAF claimed the death “occurred outside of the current known range of Maui’s dolphins, as well as outside the current restrictions.”\nHowever there have been independent verified sightings of Maui’s dolphins in the coastal waters off Taranaki in recent years, and WWF-New Zealand is urging MAF and the government to extend protection measures throughout the Maui’s historical range to give the species the best chance of survival and recovery.\nDespite fishing restrictions announced in 2008, Maui’s are not currently protected throughout their entire range. WWF is calling on the government to extend protection measures into harbours and the southern extent of their current range, along with better monitoring and policing of regulations.\nWWF- New Zealand is urging all members of the public who see a Maui’s dolphin – noted for their rounded dorsal fin - to report it to a special sightings hotline, 0800 4 MAUIS. Mr Howe says: “Every sighting of one of these rare and precious dolphins matters. The more we know about where Maui’s range and their movements, the better we can protect them.\n“WWF will continue to speak out on behalf of all those New Zealanders who want to stop the extinction of Maui’s dolphins, and urge the government to extend the current protection measures before it is too late.”"}
{"text": "DLTK's Crafts for Kids\nCone Santa Paper Craft\nSet Santa out on a coffee table or the mantle as a fun Christmas\ndecoration or put him on the top of a small Christmas tree as a tree topper\n- something to color with\nThe directions are appropriate for an older child or adult to\nassemble. Don't worry too much if younger children glue the pieces a bit\noff kilter -- part of the fun of watching them grow is seeing their\nprogress over the years!\n- Color and cut out the pieces.\n- Roll the large triangular piece and use the tab to glue it into a cone\n- Glue the nose onto the face using a dot of glue on the nose (this allows\nthe mustache to stick out from the edges a bit in a slightly 3d manner).\n- Glue the hat band around the top, just above the face.\n- Glue the beard around the top, just below the face. You can see how the\nmouth fits into the little notch in the beard.\n- Glue the belt around the center, just below the buttons.\n- Fold the arms in half and glue together (so they're coloured on both\nsides). Use a dot of glue on the top of the arms (shoulder) to position the\narms near the beard, leaving them sticking out in a slightly 3d manner. You\ncan have them sticking straight down, reaching forward, waving, etc...\nhowever you want Santa to look!).\n- Close template window when done printing to return to this screen.\n- Set page margins to zero if you have trouble fitting the template on one page (FILE, PAGE SETUP or FILE, PRINTER SETUP in most browsers).\nPrintable version of these instructions"}
{"text": "BJU Press' Spelling Grade 4 introduces new words to master for the 4th grade level. Word lists are primarily grouped by pattern, with lessons including the list of words plus two challenge words, and a \"word sort\" section that allows students to sort words by pattern. Additional exercises help students to master syllables, vocabulary knowledge, dictionary skills and more through a variety of fun activities. Thirty-two weekly spelling lists are included, and each list contains approximately 20 words. This 4th Edition has been completely revised to include colorful worktext pages with activities designed to strengthen spelling and communication skills. This resource is also known as Bob Jones Spelling Grade 4 Student Worktext, 2nd Edition.\n- Type: Other ()\n- Category: > Home Schooling\n- ISBN / UPC: 9781606821923/160682192X\n- Publish Date: 1/1/2010\n- Item No: 319704\n- Vendor: Bob Jones University Press"}
{"text": "There is an overwhelming amount of news coverage related to the state of the economy, international politics, and various domestic programs. The environment and environmental policy on the other hand, are being ignored. When environmental policy is discussed many citizens and representatives champion the need for substantial policy reform. However, when actual policies are introduced, they are typically ignored or delayed. Due to the current state of the environment, politicians need to place a higher priority on environmental policy.\nFirst, the public needs to understand exactly what environmental policy is and how it affects them. Environmental policy is defined as “any action deliberately taken to manage human activities with a view to prevent, reduce, or mitigate harmful effects on nature and natural resources, and ensuring that man-made changes to the environment do not have harmful effects on humans or the environment,” (McCormick 2001). It generally covers air and water pollution, waste management, ecosystem management, biodiversity protection, and the protection of natural resources, wildlife, and endangered species. Issues like these, affect everyone across the globe and cannot be ignored.\nEnvironmental policy became a national issue under Theodore Roosevelt, when National Parks were established in hopes of preserving wildlife for future generations. The modern environmental movement began in the 1970s during the Nixon administration, when a large amount of environmental legislation started rolling out. Nixon signed the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) which established a national policy promoting the enhancement of the environment and set requirements for all government agencies to prepare Environmental Assessments and Environmental Impact Statements. Nixon also established the President’s Council on Environmental Quality. Legislation of the time established the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), The Clean Air Act, and the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. The EPA has received a lot of notoriety recently, mostly for republican’s desire to get rid of it, though it is still a source vital to protecting the environmental.\nRising gas prices in the 1970s inspired a wave of greener vehicles, a phenomenon witnessed again in 2008. High energy costs motivated Jimmy Carter to install solar panels on the white house roof, a clear message that helping the environment was everyone’s responsibility.\nFocus on environmental policy began dwindling in the 1980s though, under the Regan administration. As the Soviet Union began to weaken and fall, the restructuring of Europe became a priority and the environment quickly slipped to the backburner.\nMany of the environmental issues that the public faced in the late twentieth century are still issues today, including: climate change, lack of fossil fuels, sustainable energy solutions, ozone depletion, and resource depletion. Today, with the plethora of issues currently affecting the environment, it needs to become a priority again.\nAs gas prices reached record highs in 2007 and 2008, there was a surge in Green Startups to help companies struggling with high fuel costs. As fuel costs decreased, the focus on these Green Startups decreased as well. However, now that gas prices are again on the rise, there will likely be a green resurgence in the market.\nThese green initiatives should not rise and fall with the cost of gas. Environmental issues have impacts and implications far greater than the bottom dollar.\nRising sea levels, droughts, and other extreme weather events have enormous human impacts, killing or displacing scores of people each year. In an Oxfam International study at the University of Belgium, the earth is currently experiencing approximately 500 natural disasters a year, affecting over 250 million people (Guitierrez 2008).\nIt is paramount that our government focus significant attention and funding on environmental policy. If we continue to disregard the environment, the planet might be degraded to the point where it is no longer habitable. We only have one Earth; we need to do our best to preserve it.\nGutierrez, David. “Natural Disasters Up More Than 400 Percent in Two Decades.”\nNaturalNews.com, June 5, 2008. Accessed March 10, 2012. http://www.naturalnews.com/023362.html."}
{"text": "E Numbers: Emulsifiers Sunday, Oct 16 2011\nEmulsification is the word scientists give to mixing liquids together. Specifically, it is the process by which immiscible liquids, liquids that cannot normally mix, are mixed together. The chemical agent used is called an emulsifier. Emulsifiers are not unique to food, we use emulsifiers to clean ourselves (soap), and in order to produce medical injections.\nEmulsifiers in Food\nThe most familiar emulsifier is probably the egg. Eggs are used as an emulsifier in everything from cakes and custard, to mayonnaise (Figure 1) and from hollandaise, to soufflés. What the egg is doing chemically is allowing the other ingredients to form a stable emulsion (mix). Interestingly, egg itself actually contains two types of emulsifier: one is protein, the other is lecithin (Figure 2). They both have chemical properties that are shared by both water and fatty substances. This helps mix things up sufficiently well to make a homogeneous mixture of water, fat and lecithin, that looks not unlike baby sick. There are others that are used regularly in cooking too. As well as the egg in mayonnaise, mustard powder is also added to many recipes. This also helps it to stay homogeneous.\nIn industrial food production, several harmless emulsifiers, not common-place in the home, have been used for some time. One such is xanthan gum. The name is perhaps misleading as it is not a gum as such when bought, but an off-white powder that is usually accused of being either cocaine or flour. The usage of the word gum is perhaps clearer when we consider the properties it has on being mixed with fat and water. Figure 3 shows the transformation. Here, I include weights and volumes so you can do this yourself if you want to.\nIn part A we see the oil (clear yellow layer, 10 mL) above the water (colourless layer, 25 mL). Adding the xanthan gum (B, 5 g) appears to do little initially (C), however a brief agitation of the system leads to homogenesis of the three substances (D). Not only do we have an homogenous mixture, but also one that is thicker than it was previously – squeezing it out gives the appearance of an off-white turd (E). Said turd goes brilliantly with a sprig of basil or rosemary and glass of chilled white Sancerre.\n2 Responses to “E Numbers: Emulsifiers”\nLeave a Reply\nYou must be logged in to post a comment."}
{"text": "U.S. Navy in Florida\nThe presence of the U.S. Navy in Florida officially began with the transfer of the peninsula by Spain to the U.S. in 1821, and the subsequent establishment of Florida as a U.S. Territory. Two of the earliest American military vessels which sank in Florida waters were actually American privateers captured by Britain's Royal Navy during the American Revolution, and which later sank while in Royal Navy service. The captured American privateer Who's Afraid was placed into the Royal Navy and renamed HMS Mentor. The captured American privateer Independence was placed into the Royal Navy and renamed HMS Racer. HMS Mentor was burned by the British at Pensacola in 1781 to prevent her capture by invading Spanish forces. HMS Racer foundered in a gale in the Gulf of Mexico in 1814. The first commissioned Navy ship lost in Florida waters was USS Alligator, which wrecked in the Florida Keys in 1822, while assigned to combat piracy. Many naval, and other military craft have been sunk in Florida waters since 1821, through military action, foundering, grounding, fire and explosion, deliberate sinking to create artificial reefs, and other causes. Such shipwrecks are the major focus of the Florida Navy Legacy Shipwreck Project.\nDuring its long history in Florida, the U.S. Navy has established a number of naval bases and stations. The most strategically significant of these have been at Pensacola, Key West, and Jacksonville. There has been a U.S. Navy presence at Pensacola since 1825, at Key West since 1822, and more recently at Jacksonville since the Second World War. There have been several military conflicts in Florida since 1821 in which the U.S. Navy has played an important role. These were the First Seminole War (1816-1818), the Second Seminole War (1835-1842), the Third Seminole War (1855-1858), the Civil War (1861-1865), the Spanish American War (1898), the First World War (1917-1918), the Second World War (1941-45), and events such as the Cuban Missile Crisis (1963).\nDuring the Seminole Wars, the Spanish American War, and First and Second World Wars, there were a number of smaller Naval stations established along Florida's vast coastline. During the Seminole Wars, these stations were often operated as supply depots, intended for the joint Army-Navy operations being conducted. One example is the Naval Depot established on Key Biscayne in 1836, which lasted until 1926. During the First and Second World Wars, with new developments in aviation technology, these coastal naval stations were outfitted to serve as stations for lighter than air craft (dirigibles), conventional aircraft, and smaller surface craft, used to patrol Florida's coastline and offshore waters. Between the spring of 1942, and the fall of 1943, German submarines attacked and sank large numbers of ships on Florida's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. The Navy's system of coastal defense was ultimately one of the major factors which turned the tide against the U-Boats and caused Germany's Naval Command to redirect its effort to other locations where targets were easier to attack.\nSince the Second World War, the U.S. Navy has continued to maintain a significant presence in Florida. The Key West Naval Station became a major staging area for the Navy during the Cuban Missile Crisis, for example. Recognizing the on-going strategic significance of the Key West Naval Station, the Navy invested large amounts of money in the early 1980s to upgrade its facilities. Since the stationing of the Navy's first aircraft carrier at Pensacola in 1925, Pensacola has become the focus for naval aviation activities and training. A Naval Training Center was in operation at Orlando from 1968 to 1994. Today in Florida, there are naval facilities at Pensacola, Panama City, Key West, Homestead, Mayport and Jacksonville, as well as some other smaller stations.\nThe U.S. Navy's history in Florida spans 175 years, from the earliest days of U.S. territorial expansion to the Space and Nuclear Age. Although much valuable work has already been done, much of this interesting chapter of U.S. Naval history remains to be studied and written by future historians."}
{"text": "by Nate Jones, Vertebrate Ecology Lab\n(still in the Bering Sea) … Of course the bad weather I’ve been writing about was nothing compared to what happens on the Bering during the months of February or March, and the Gold Rush fishes regularly during that time of year, so I had complete faith in the seaworthiness of the ship and the judgment and skill of the crew. I took comfort in that thought, and stumbled down to my bunk for what became a grueling 72 hours of bumps, rolls, and queasy stomachs. During this stormy time the crew exchanged watches at the helm, keeping the ship pointed into the fury.\nWe all hoped for the best, but by the time the seas had calmed to (a more manageable?) 8-10’, the hungry ocean had damaged and ripped off much of our scientific equipment, snapping several ¼” steel bolts and ripping welds clean apart!\nThe Gold Rush itself weathered this storm in fine shape (wish we could say the same of our scientific equipment!), and there were no major injuries to anyone on board. It really was quite a minor event in the context of the Bering Sea; just another blowy, bumpy day or two out on the water.\nBut, it impressed me and I couldn’t help contemplating darker scenarios – what happens when there is a true emergency? What if someone had been swept overboard, or, worse yet, what if the ship itself had been damaged or taken on water and started to go down? Such things do happen, although not as frequently now as they have in the past (coast guard regulations and improvements in technology and crew training have contributed to much increased safety).\nIn my next post I’ll put up some images from training exercises that are routinely undertaken to help prepare crew and passengers (scientists) for emergencies at sea…"}
{"text": "Antoine Pierre Joseph Marie Barnave\nBarnave, Antoine Pierre Joseph Marie (äNtwänˈ pyĕr zhōzĕfˈ märēˈ bärnävˈ) [key], 1761–93, French revolutionary. A member of the States-General of 1789 from Grenoble, he was a brilliant speaker and leader of the Jacobins. After Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette fled to Varennes in 1791, Barnave believed that the king might finally be persuaded to accept a constitutional government, thereby avoiding the impending political anarchy. He began a correspondence with Marie Antoinette, encouraging her to convert the monarchy to the Revolution; this correspondence was later used as evidence of Barnave's treasonous activities. In July, 1791, he spoke in the assembly in favor of the restoration of the king as a constitutional monarch and appealed for an end to the Revolution. He retired to Grenoble, and was tried for treason and guillotined (1793). His history of the French Revolution, written during his imprisonment, is considered a major work that tried to put the Revolution into a broader political and social framework.\nSee E. Chill, Power, Property, and History: Barnave's Introduction to the French Revolution and Other Writings (1971).\nThe Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.\nSee more Encyclopedia articles on: French History: Biographies"}
{"text": "There was no question that the monarch was in charge. Elizabeth I (1558-1603) and James I (1603-25) both made it very clear that they ruled the country. They made the laws, they fought the wars, they appointed the top ministers and so on. However, the monarchy worked on the basis of cooperation between the monarch and the political nation.\nThe political nation was the nobles and gentry. The nobles were the very rich landowners. The gentry were the wealthy smaller landowners and also rich merchants in the towns. They were a tiny minority of the population, but they held most of the wealth and power in the kingdom. They saw themselves as the protectors of the ordinary people. They were the Members of Parliament and they collected the king’s taxes. The local gentleman or merchant was usually the local magistrate. The gentry were in charge of the local militia (armed forces). They were also in charge of law and order because there was no police at this time. Their estates and businesses made them the biggest employers.\nThe court was the gathering of people around the monarch. Wherever the monarch was, the court would also be. It included all the top nobles and officials. James I ran a very informal court. In fact he had a reputation for being too informal – he sometimes got drunk and there were lots of stories of very bad behaviour. It was quite easy for a top noble to get to talk to the king. The noble might want to do this because he was concerned about a particular law or policy that he did not agree with. James was usually prepared to explain his policies, and he often made compromises with the nobles. The court was one way that the top nobles could communicate with the king.\nParliament was made up of the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The House of Lords contained the great nobles from the richest and most powerful families. The MPs in the House of Commons were elected. Members of the gentry and wealthy merchant classes elected men from their own class to sit in Parliament.\nParliament was an important way that the political nation and the monarch could communicate. The monarch made speeches to Parliament. MPs also made speeches and wrote letters of advice to the monarch.\nJames I and most other monarchs preferred to rule without Parliament. However, James often ran short of money. He needed the support of MPs to agree to new taxes to raise money. He also needed the cooperation of MPs to collect these taxes. As a result, he usually agreed to listen to the concerns of MPs and accepted some of their advice.\nCharles I was James I’s son. He came to the throne in 1625. He was the ruler of three kingdoms – England, Ireland and Scotland. It was a hard job to rule three kingdoms. They had different laws, churches, languages and traditions.\nCharles spent most of his time in his richest and most powerful kingdom – England. His biggest problem was working with the MPs in England’s Parliament. Charles believed very strongly in the Divine Right of kings. This meant that the right to rule was based on the law of God. The King was responsible to God alone therefore nobody could question the King or disobey him. Unfortunately for Charles, the political nation was not happy about such views. They expected to be able to talk to the monarch, discuss policies and reach agreements. Charles was not suited to this approach. He was a private man who did not speak much and who liked order and discipline in all aspects of his life. He never developed his father’s political skill in working out compromises to tricky problems.\nCharles was shy, small and had a stammer. This probably made him insecure. This may help to explain why his court was very grand and formal. It was held in magnificent palaces like Whitehall, full of riches. Charles invited great painters like Anthony van Dyck to his court. The people there wore expensive, impressive clothes. There were rules about how everyone should behave. Charles also restricted the number of people who could come and talk to him. They had to have an appointment. His right-hand man, the Duke of Buckingham, controlled access to Charles.\nCharles tended to rely too heavily on one or two officials he trusted. His closest minister was George Villers, usually known as Buckingham. Buckingham used his position of power and influence with Charles to make himself and his family rich. He made sure that his friends and family were appointed to the top jobs in the government. As a result, he was widely hated by many Lords and MPs. What was worse, Buckingham was not particularly good at his job. Charles I gave him command of a military expedition against Spain in 1625. It was a failure, with many of the troops being killed by disease or made ill by cheap Spanish wine. He led another disastrous military campaign in 1627. The following year Buckingham was assassinated."}
{"text": "If genealogy books were rated by the pound, the book I examined this week would be number one. I don't recall ever picking up a single genealogy book as thick and heavy as this one. Of course, genealogy books are not graded by heft. Nonetheless, this particular book is the definitive guide to descents from the Magna Carta Barons of 1215 A.D. for over 200 individuals who emigrated from the British Isles to the North American colonies in the 17th century.\nMagna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, by Douglas Richardson is a 1,099-page reference to those descents, combining both research in original records with the use of published literature to provide well-documented ancestral lines for American colonists with Magna Carta ancestry. Yes, that is one thousand ninety-nine pages. Best of all, nearly every page is full of high-quality, well-researched genealogy information.\nMagna Carta (Latin for \"Great Charter\") is a document written in 1215 A.D. that serves as the charter of England which limited the power of English monarchs. King John was the ruler at the time, and he ruled with an iron fist, much to the chagrin of his noblemen. The barons of England organized numerous uprisings. In the face of such strong and well-organized opposition, King John was forced to renounce certain rights and to grant a charter of liberties. This document stated that the King would respect certain legal procedures and accept the premise that the will of the king could be bound by law. Magna Carta is widely considered to be the first step in a long historical process leading to the rule of constitutional law.\nMagna Carta was signed in the meadow at Runnymede on June 15, 1215. Numerous disagreements arose immediately, and King John soon refuted it. A civil war then erupted. In the midst of this war, King John died of dysentery on October 18, 1216. His death quickly changed the nature of the war. His nine-year-old son, King Henry III, was soon crowned King of England. The civil war stopped, and a somewhat modified Magna Carta was issued. When he turned eighteen in 1225, Henry III himself reissued Magna Carta a third time, this time in a shorter version with only 37 articles.\nThe twenty-five barons who signed the Magna Carta were the leading nobles of England at the time. Most were married, and many had large families. Hundreds of thousands, possibly millions, of people alive today can trace their ancestry back to one or more of these twenty-five barons. Indeed, this book, Magna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, lists 238 Colonial-era immigrants to the United States with proven descent from the Magna Carta barons. If one of these immigrants is in your family tree, this book will trace your ancestry back to the meadow at Runnymede in 1215 A.D.\nThis scholarly book features thousands of biographical sketches of people who lived in medieval England and their descendants through to those who immigrated to America. The book also contains more than 28,000 source citations to published materials, making it the most documented source book of its kind. In fact, the extensive cross-referencing makes the text simple to follow. The book also contains a 93-page bibliography, probably the most exhaustive listing of medieval genealogy and history ever published. Finally, Magna Carta Ancestry contains an index of over 18,000 entries.\nAuthor Doug Richardson has refuted numerous published genealogies in this new book, pointing to source citations that disprove many lineages that have been accepted for decades. If you believe that you have royal or noble English ancestry, you need to check this book!\nMany new additions to the book show the lineages of colonial immigrants that previously were unknown. As a result, many people will be able to claim noble ancestry for the first time.\nWhile the primary audience for this book is anyone with American ancestry in the Colonial era, the book contains extensive biographical information about thousands of individuals who lived in England between 1215 and the 17th century. As such, the information will be of interest to anyone with ancestry in England, even if their later ancestors moved to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, or elsewhere.\nA complete list of the 17th-century American immigrants with proven Magna Carta ancestry can be found on the publisher's web site at http://www.genealogical.com/item_detail.asp?afid=&ID=4887\nMagna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, by Douglas Richardson will be the standard reference for many, many years. This huge scholarly work with more than 28,000 source citations belongs on the shelf at every genealogy library as well as in many private collections.\nMagna Carta Ancestry sells for $100 and is available directly from Genealogical Publishing Company at http://www.genealogical.com/item_detail.asp?afid=&ID=4887 as well as from Amazon.com and from many other bookstores. You can order it by specifying ISBN 0806317590."}
{"text": "Fragmented across Central Asia, China, and Tibet, snow leopards (Uncia uncia) roam through mountain corridors and montane habitats. Today, scientists think there are between 4,000 and 7,500 snow leopards exist in the wild with most of them living within China. But accurate estimates are difficult to make when dealing with this elusive master of camouflage in its unwelcoming home.\nSnow leopards have developed many interesting characteristics that help it survive in the cold, mountainous terrain they call home. Their long tails help them balance on steep, rocky terrain, and their large paws and furry feet act as snow shoes in deep mountain snows. Living at heights of 2,000 to 6,000 kilometers, they also have special nasal cavities that help them breath low-oxygen mountain air.\nDid you know? Snow leopards can leap vertically 6-10 meters (20-30 feet). This helps them hunt prey on steep, rocky mountainsides.\nBecause food is scarce at such high altitudes, snow leopards are solitary animals, hunting and eating whatever meat they are able to find – including deer, marmots, boars and farm livestock. This also means, however, that they are not as possessive of their home ranges. In areas where food is more plentiful, a snow leopard might have a small range of 12-15 km2, whereas if food is not available, a snow leopard may roam up to 40 km2 to find sufficient food.\nThreats to the Snow Leopard\nSnow leopards are hunted for their bones, which are in demand to replace tiger bones in Chinese medicinal traditions. Additionally, in eastern Asia, fur coats and similar items made from snow leopard skins have become increasingly popular.\nHabitat loss and changing patterns of land use have also threatened snow leopard populations. In the Central Asian mountains, the animals that snow leopards prey on have been hunted to dangerously low numbers, threatening the food supply of these sleek animals. Decreasing wild food supplies have often driven snow leopards to small farms, resulting in unfortunate clashes between these threatened animals and local farmers.\nAlthough some conservation projects have been put in place to conserve the habitats and environments for the snow leopard populations, additional projects focusing on local education and corridor-building would make an important contribution to snow leopard conservation."}
{"text": "PROVIDENCE, RI -- Shifting glaciers and exploding volcanoes aren't confined to Mars' distant past, according two new reports in the journal Nature.\nGlaciers moved from the poles to the tropics 350,000 to 4 million years ago, depositing massive amounts of ice at the base of mountains and volcanoes in the eastern Hellas region near the planet's equator, based on a report by a team of scientists analyzing images from the Mars Express mission. Scientists also studied images of glacial remnants on the western side of Olympus Mons, the largest volcano in the solar system. They found additional evidence of recent ice formation and movement on these tropical mountain glaciers, similar to ones on Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa.\nIn a second report, the international team reveals previously unknown traces of a major eruption of Hecates Tholus less than 350,000 million years ago. In a depression on the volcano, researchers found glacial deposits estimated to be 5 to 24 million years old.\nJames Head, professor of geological sciences at Brown University and an author on the Nature papers, said the glacial data suggests recent climate change in Mars' 4.6-billion-year history. The team also concludes that Mars is in an \"interglacial\" period. As the planet tilts closer to the sun, ice deposited in lower latitudes will vaporize, changing the face of the Red Planet yet again.\nDiscovery of the explosive eruption of Hecates Tholus provides more evidence of recent Mars rumblings. In December, members of the same research team revealed that calderas on five major Mars volcanoes were repeatedly active as little as 2 million years ago. The volcanoes, scientists speculated, may even be active today.\n\"Mars is very dynamic,\" said Head, lead author of one of the Nature reports. \"We see that the climate change and geological forces that drive evolution on Earth are happening there.\"\nHead is part of a 33-institution team analyzing images from Mars Express, launched in June 2003 by the European Space Agency. The High Resolution Stereo Camera, or HRSC, on board the orbiter is producing 3-D images of the planet's surface.\nThese sharp, panoramic, full-color pictures provided fodder for a third Nature report. In it, the team offers evidence of a frozen body of water, about the size and depth of the North Sea, in southern Elysium.\nA plethora of ice and active volcanoes could provide the water and heat needed to sustain basic life forms on Mars. Fresh data from Mars Express – and the announcement that live bacteria were found in a 30,000-year-old chunk of Alaskan ice – is fueling discussion about the possibility of past, even present, life on Mars. In a poll taken at a European Space Agency conference last month, 75 percent of scientists believe bacteria once existed on Mars and 25 percent believe it might still survive there.\nHead recently traveled to Antarctica to study glaciers, including bacteria that can withstand the continent's dry, cold conditions. The average temperature on Mars is estimated to be 67 degrees below freezing. Similar temperatures are clocked in Antarctica's frigid interior.\n\"We're now seeing geological characteristics on Mars that could be related to life,\" Head said. \"But we're a long way from knowing that life does indeed exist. The glacial deposits we studied would be accessible for sampling in future space missions. If we had ice to study, we would know a lot more about climate change on Mars and whether life is a possibility there.\"\nThe European Space Agency, the German Aerospace Center and the Freie Universitaet in Berlin built and flew the HRSC and processed data from the camera. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) supported Head's work.\nAAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system."}
{"text": "Teachers, register your class or environmental club in our annual Solar Oven Challenge! Registration begins in the fall, and projects must be completed in the spring to be eligible for prizes and certificates.\nWho can participate?\nGreenLearning's Solar Oven Challenge is open to all Canadian classes. Past challenges have included participants from grade 3 through to grade 12. Older students often build solar ovens as part of the heat unit in their Science courses. Other students learn about solar energy as a project in an eco-class or recycling club.\nHow do you register?\n1. Registration is now open to Canadian teachers. To register, send an email to Gordon Harrison at GreenLearning. Include your name, school, school address and phone number, and the grade level of the students who will be participating.\n2. After you register, you will receive the Solar Oven Challenge Teacher's Guide with solar oven construction plans. Also see re-energy.ca for construction plans, student backgrounders, and related links on solar cooking and other forms of renewable energy. At re-energy.ca, you can also see submissions, photos and recipes from participants in past Solar Oven Challenges.\n3. Build, test and bake with solar ovens!\n4. Email us photos and descriptions of your creations by the deadline (usually the first week of June).\n5. See your recipes and photos showcased at re-energy.ca. Winners will be listed there and in GreenLearning News."}
{"text": "KDL Recommends For Kids > PLAY-GROW-READ! - Books for Early Literacy > Katie L. Talks: Books that Invite Participation\nShout! Shout It Out!\nTitle: Shout! Shout It Out!\nAuthor: Denise Fleming\nCONCEPT E FLEMING\nMouse invites the reader to shout out what he or she knows as they review numbers, letters, and easy words.\nKids are often told to sit still and be quiet. But Denise Fleming encourages them to shout, shout it out! By taking basic learning concepts like numbers, letters, and colors and putting them on display, she asks kids to shout out what they know—and her readers will be happy to oblige.\nWith bold colors and her unique handmade paper art, Denise Fleming makes learning into a game. Long-time fans and sharp-eyed newcomers will be happy to see that Mouse returns on every page, shouting along with the crowd!"}
{"text": "Entomological Survey of Rio Bravo Conservation and Management Area, Belize\nPeter Kovarik, John Shuey, and Chris Carlton\nDuring the mid-late 1990's, lepidopterist John Shuey became interested in testing the widely touted concept that insect communities are useful in evaluating impacts to ecological integrity in tropical forest communities. At that time the literature had been advocating insects, especially butterflies, as appropriate indicators for assessing the impacts of specific management activities on tropical forests. People were already using insects as indicators, despite the fact that this simple premise had yet to be tested. John enlisted coleopterist Peter Kovarik as a partner in this study. The two decided that in addition to butterflies, scarabaeine scarabs and hister beetles would become part of the study. The taxa that were selected were chosen in part because of their susceptibility to bait and or passive trapping techniques. In fact the beauty of this study was that we envisioned relatively little active collecting. This way we could quasi enjoy ourselves while our traps were filling with insects!\nThe site chosen for our study was Rio Bravo Conservation Area located in Orange Walk Province, Belize. Rio Bravo is a 230,000 acre nature preserve in the northwestern corner of the country near the corner where Belize, Guatemala, and Mexico meet. Rio Bravo is a beautiful mosaic of semitropical moist forest, savanna, and wetland habitats with over 230 species of trees, 70 species of mammals, and approximately 400 species of birds. Among large animals, the area has healthy populations of jaguar, puma, Baird's tapir, and two species of monkeys. There are also significant Mayan archeological sites, and the area has a colorful recent history of mahogany logging, chicl? extraction, and marijuana farming. This preserve is ministered by Programme For Belize (PfB), a private conservation organization that holds Rio Bravo in trust for the people of Belize. PfB integrates elements of sustainable forestry and natural product harvesting, ecotourism, and education into a single comprehensive long-term management plan. For a location map of Rio Bravo click on the PfB logo above. For additional information about The Nature Conservancy's role, click on that logo.\nRio Bravo turned out to be an ideal setting for our study. In addition to extensive areas of oak-pine savanna, there were huge expanses of contiguous limestone rainforest without excessive topographic variability. Within this expanse of fairly homogenous habitat, there were areas along trails or roads through the forest that had been fairly recently logged. We sought to imbed our sample sites within areas that were both recently disturbed by man and others which had been relatively untouched for quite some time. Because Rio Bravo is a preserve and PfB encourages research activities, we felt confidant that human impact on both the ecosystem and our sampling devices would be minimal. Thus, it seemed probable that any potential differences we observed in insect communities between our sample sites would be primarily due to forest integrity rather than extraneous factors.\nOur core studies were conducted once during the dry season and twice during the rainy season. They were completed in 1996. Since neither John nor Pete knew much about scarabaeine scarabs, expert Bill Warner was coaxed into participating by promising him many scarabs with no strings attached. In fact Bill eventually joined us in Rio Bravo in July 1996. We are still awaiting some of our quantitative insect data, but we have botanical assessments of each forest tract, and data from the sample events for butterflies and hister beetles in hand. As soon as the last of our insect data is cleaned up, we will finish off the ecological end of this work.\nLike many studies, this one began small and focused and eventually expanded into a full blown entomological survey. Coleopterist Chris Carlton became the third major player in our survey. Chris has made several trips to Rio Bravo and done some intensive leaf litter work and set up many a flight intercept trap in search of tiny pselaphid beetles. We collected massive amounts of insects and have spent the last several years processing our samples and farming specimens out to various specialists who have generously provided us with identifications. We have learned, with little surprise that many of the insects that inhabit the forests and savannas of Rio Bravo are new to science. Many others are new country records. This is not surprising either since the entomofauna of Belize is poorly known. What is perhaps a bit of a surprise are the many unusual range extensions for some of the described insect species. This indicates that knowing the insect fauna of Belize will improve our understanding of the zoogeography of Mexico and Central America.\nThe following checklists and are now available and more will be added as they mature. Available images may be accessed through links within the checklists.\n- Anthribidae, by Charles O'Brien\n- Cerambycidae, by Robert Turnbow\n- Chrysomelidae, by Shawn Clark\n- Curculionidae, by Charles O'Brien\n- Elateroidea, by Paul Johnson\n- Erotylidae, by Paul Skelley\n- Mordellidae, by John Jackman\n- Staphylinidae: subfamily Pselaphinae, by Chris Carlton\n- Tenebrionidae, by Charles Triplehorn and Otto Merkl\nFor questions and comments contact Peter Kovarik."}
{"text": "UK Telegraph had the original report\nThis astounding achievement is a big step toward protecting sensitive electronics and the delicate human body against the radioactive effects of manned missions between the planets.\nEarlier paper from 2008 - The interaction of a flowing plasma with a dipole magnetic field: measurements and modelling of a diamagnetic cavity relevant to spacecraft protection\nMinimag presenation from Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, early 2010\nIn results just published in the journal Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, they have devised a system no bigger than a large desk that uses the same energy as an electric kettle. Two mini-magnetospheres will be contained within two mini satellites located outside the spaceship. Should there be an increase in solar wind flux, or an approaching cloud of energetic particles from a flare and/or coronal mass ejection (CME), the magnetospheres can be switched on and the solar ions are deflected away from the spacecraft.\nIf you liked this article, please give it a quick review on ycombinator or StumbleUpon. Thanks\nOcean Floor Gold and Copper\nOcean Floor Mining Company"}
{"text": "You are here: PureEnergySystems.com\n> News > October\nE-Cat Test Validates Cold Fusion Despite Challenges\nThe test of the E-Cat (Energy Catalyzer) that took place on October 6, 2011 in Italy has validated Andrea Rossi's claim that the device produces excess energy via a novel Cold Fusion nuclear reaction. Despite its success, the test was flawed, and could have been done in a way that produced more spectacular results -- as if confirmation of cold fusion is not already stunning enough.\nAndrea Rossi stands in front of his E-Cat\napparatus, October 6, 2011\nPhoto by Maurizio Melis of Radio24\nby Hank Mills\nPure Energy Systems News\nAndrea Rossi has made big claims for the past year, about his cold fusion \"E-Cat\" (Energy Catalyzer) technology. He has claimed that it produces vast amounts of energy via a safe and clean low energy nuclear reaction that consumes only tiny amounts of nickel and hydrogen. A series of tests had been performed earlier this year that seemed to confirm excess energy is produced by the systems tested. Some of the tests were particularly impressive, such as one that lasted eighteen hours, and was performed by Dr. Levi of the University of Bologna. Unfortunately, the tests were not planned out as well as they could have been and had flaws.\nThe most recent test that took place on October 6, 2011 in Bologna, Italy, was supposed to address many of the concerns about the previous tests, and be performed in a way that would put to rest many issues that had been discussed continually on the internet. Despite showing clear evidence of excess energy -- which is absolutely fantastic -- this most recent test failed to live up to its full potential. It was a big success in that it validated the claim the E-Cat produces excess energy via cold fusion, but it was not nearly as successful as it could have been. Or as successful as we, the outsiders looking in, would like for it to have been.\nThe Inventor's Mindset\nOne thing that should be stated is that inventors do not always think like the people who follow their inventions. They have their own mindset and way of looking at things. This should be obvious, because they are seeing *everything* from a different perspective. For example, when we think seeing the inside of an important component would be exciting and informative, they consider it a threat to their intellectual property. Or, for example, when we would like to see a test run for days, they are thinking that a few hours is long enough. In their mind, they know their technology works, and running it for hours, days, or weeks would be more of a chore to them than an exciting event.\nIn Rossi's case, he has worked with these reactors for many years. He has tested them time and time again. In fact, he has built hundreds of units (of different models), and has tested every one of them. He is aware of how the units operate and how they perform. Actually, for a period of many months to a year or more, he had an early model of E-Cat heating one of his offices in Italy. Satisfying the curiosity of internet \"chatters\" by operating a unit for an extended period of time -- beyond what he thinks is needed to prove the effect -- is just a waste of his time, according to his thinking. He could spend the time getting the one megawatt plant ready to launch.\nDon't forget, Rossi is a busy person. In addition to finishing the one megawatt plant, he has a new partner company to find, a wife at home, and a life to live! We need to consider that he works sixteen to eighteen hours a day building units, testing them, addressing other issues about the E-Cat. Although he is a very helpful person in many ways (willing to communicate with people and answer questions), he simply does not have the time to grant all of the many requests made of him. If he did, he could not get any work done at all, and the E-Cat would never be launched, or ever make it to the market place!\nThe Outsider's Mindset\nI consider myself an outsider. I have never built a cold fusion device, have never spent years working to develop a technology, and have never gone through the grueling process of trying to bring a product into the market place. Although I spend a lot of time researching various technologies on the internet, I don't work sixteen to eighteen hours a day. In addition, I have no vested interest in the success of any technology, other than simply wanting at least one to hit the market place, ASAP.\nAs an outsider, I do not think like Rossi thinks. I don't think the majority of people think like Rossi thinks, because they are not in his shoes. They are not working to the point of exhaustion, and do not have years of their life invested in an exotic technology. Due to the fact we do not think like Rossi, his actions or sometimes lack thereof can seem strange, bizarre, or odd. Sometimes, they can make us want to smack ourselves, to make sure we are not in some sort of strange dream.\nThe recent test on October 6, 2011 is an example of a situation in which outsiders would have liked to have seen a very different test. Here are examples of how an outsider would have liked to see the test performed, compared to Rossi's possible mindset.\n(Please note that I am making speculations about what Rossi is thinking, and his mindset. I do not know for sure if my guesses are accurate. If they are not, then I would like to apologize to Rossi, and give him the chance to respond in any way he sees fit.)\nIn the recent test, the output producing capability of the reactors was throttled down for safety reasons. This may have been done by keeping the hydrogen pressure low, or adding less of the catalyst to the nickel powder. Also, only one out of the three reactors that were inside of the module, were used in the test. For an experimental test to prove the effect beyond a shadow of a doubt, I, as an outsider, would have loved to have seen the device fully throttled up, despite the safety risks. Even if it meant everyone that attended would have had to sign long legal disclaimers, it would have been worth it.\nI think it would have been great if all three reactors were utilized, and they all were adjusted to produce their maximum level of output. This would have increased the amount of output produced dramatically, and would have reduced the amount of input needed. The more heat produced by the system, the less heat would have needed to be input via the electric resistors.\nRossi, on the other hand, probably thought throttling up the device to a high level was not worth the risk, and was not needed to prove that excess energy was being produced. It is true that an explosion causing injuries -- while probably VERY unlikely -- could result in a setback of his project, and possible legal ramifications. Also, in reality, the test proved excess energy was being produced even with only one, throttled down reactor being used.\nSo even though a test of the device adjusted to operate at full power would have been useful and exciting, it was not absolutely needed for what Rossi wanted to accomplish.\nI would like to ask Rossi to consider performing a demonstration with a module both adjusted to operate at full power, and utilizing all three reactor cores. Even if he has to limit the number of people involved, perform the test remotely with cameras monitoring the module, utilize a blast shield, or only allow certain individuals (who have signed disclaimers) to go into the room in which the module is running.\nA Longer Self Sustain\nAs an outsider, I have not had the chance to look at test data from these devices self-sustaining for long periods of time -- 12 hours, 24 hours, days, weeks, etc. I would really like to see one of these units self sustain for a *very* long period of time. This is not because I think the output of the E-Cat during the recent test was due to stored energy being released (the 'thermal inertia' theory being floated around the internet). In fact, I think that the flat line in NyTeknik's graph -- showing self sustain mode for three and a half hours without any drop in output temperature -- provides clear evidence against the thermal inertia theory. The reason I would like to see a longer period of self sustain, is that it would not only document a huge gain of energy, but one that no individual could rationally deny!\nRossi has claimed that these devices represent an alternative energy solution that could change the world. I think this is true. However, to show just how much potential this technology has, an even more extended test of the E-Cat in self sustain mode (at full power or at least with all three reactors inside the module being used), would have been much more impressive. I am not saying the Oct. 6 test was not impressive -- it was very significant because it demonstrated excess energy and proof of cold fusion -- but that a longer test would have been better. It would have done more to shut up the cynics (a few of which will never change their minds), and help the technology get into the mainstream (dumbstream) media.\nI really don't think Rossi cares too much about showing off the technology's full potential, at this point. He also does not seem to appear to want the attention of the mainstream media, or at least any more than he thinks he needs. If he did, the test would have been far different, and would have produced such a gigantic amount of excess energy everyone's jaws would have dropped. My jaw dropped when I saw the flat line during self sustain mode (because it proved beyond a doubt the system was producing excess energy), but my jaw did not drop as far as it could have, if the period of operation had lasted longer.\nInterestingly, I have known inventors, of unrelated energy technologies, that purposely held back from showing the *best* version of their technology. They did not want to show off too much, because they did not want to deal with the fallout of attracting too much attention. Instead of performing an amazing demonstration, they performed one that proved the point -- at least to their satisfaction -- but would not attraction too much attention. I think Rossi may feel the same way. If he had his way, he would have never done a single test before the launch of the one megawatt plant. It was Focardi that convinced him to do a public test, because he feared that (due to health problems) he may not live long enough to see the technology be revealed to the world.\nA longer test (at least 12 hours) in self sustain mode would have been great, exciting, and would have produced even more excess energy. However, in Rossi's mind, it was not needed, for potentially valid reasons (at least from the perspective of someone on the inside).\nI would simply like to humbly plead with Rossi, to try and step in the shoes of the outsider, and at the next test allow the module to run for a longer period in self sustain mode.\nModern Testing Methods and Tools\nI have looked at the data acquired during the test, but have not had a chance to study it as in depth as I would like to. The data shows a clear gain of energy in my opinion, and confirms that the E-Cat is producing excess energy. As I said before, the test was a success. However, it could have been performed in a more modern way.\nFor example, all of the temperature measurements, power input measurements, and water flow measurements should have been fed into the same computer, to be recorded in a real time manner. This way all the data would have been automatically recorded into one data set, including the hour and second of every measurement. It seems data collection was not done this way at the test, and some of the data was actually taken by hand!\nBecause the data was not all automatically recorded into one computer during the test, NyTeknik (who had the exclusive right to be the first to post a report on the test) has not yet posted a graph that charts all the measurements of all the factors of the test. What I would like to see is a single high resolution graph, that shows all of the measurements that were taken of every parameter of the test. If one graph showing everything would be too complex for a non-expert to easily interpret, then a series of graphs would be ideal. This would allow everyone to more simply determine the total energy in, and the total energy out.\nThe data collected and the manner in which it was collected is good enough to show there was a significant amount of excess energy produced, especially during self sustain mode. It may also be good enough to show even more details about the excess energy produced. Sadly, I'm not an expert in scientific data interpretation, so it takes me more time to interpret data than an expert who does so full time (like Rossi).\nI hope that when I have had the time to examine the data in more depth, I will see that Rossi's claims about the results of the test (not just excess energy but a six fold gain of energy, in a worst case scenario) are accurate. At this point, I am not going to doubt him. He is the expert, and there are many people going over the data, and hopefully more data from the test will be coming in the near future.\nWhat I would like to do, is request that he upgrade his data acquisition methods for any upcoming public tests. However, from Rossi's perspective, the way the data was acquired was good enough, and proved the point he wanted to make. I respect his view, but I do hope that he will change his mind in the future.\nFor the record, I am not stating that I think better data acquisition techniques are needed to verify his technology produces excess energy, and even significant amounts of it. I simply think it would make analysis of test data much simpler, quicker, and precise.\nOne of the most useful tools in the scientific method is a control. A control is an object or thing that you do not try to change during the experiment. For example, if you were giving an experimental drug to a hundred people, you might want to have a number of additional people who do not receive the drug. You would compare how the drug effects the people who consumed it, to those who did not receive the drug at all. By comparing the two sets of people, those who consumed the drug and those who did not, you could more easily see the effectiveness of the drug -- or if it was doing harm.\nIn Rossi's test, a control system would have been an E-Cat module that was setup in the exact same way, except it would have not been filled with hydrogen gas. It would have had the same flow of water going through it, the same electrical input, and it would have operated for the same length of time as the E-Cat unit with hydrogen. By comparing the two, you could easily see the difference between the \"control\" E-Cat (that was not having nuclear reactions take place), and the \"real\" E-Cat (that was producing excess heat).\nIf a control had been used in the experiment, the excess heat would be even more obvious. It would have been so obvious, that it could have made the test go from a major success (with some flaws), to the most spectacular scientific test in the last hundred years.\nYes, a control would have made that much of a difference!\nI understand that Rossi may not see the need for a control, when the test that was performed clearly showed excess energy without it. A control might have made the experiment so mind blowingly amazing, it could have attracted too much media attention, too many scientists that would want to get involved, and too many individuals wanting additional information. The result could have been that Rossi would not even have the time to finish his one megawatt plant.\nHowever, from the view point of an outsider, I think a control would have greatly benefited the experiment. If it created too much media attention, perhaps someone could volunteer to work for a month as an unpaid intern, filtering through all of the requests from media representatives, and taking care of many non-technical tasks, so Rossi could focus on getting the one megawatt plant ready!\nI sincerely hope that during the test of the one megawatt plant, and any tests before then, a control run will be performed, in which no hydrogen is placed in the reactors.\nRossi's Statement about the Test Results\nAndrea Rossi responded to an email we sent him that had questions about the test. Here is the email, and his responses.\nTHANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUOUS ATTENTION. PLEASE FIND THE ANSWERS IN BLOCK LETTERS ALONG YOUR TEXT:\nDear Andrea Rossi,\nIn regards to the latest test of the Energy Catalyzer, I have a number of questions I hope you can answer.\n1) My understanding is that if a reactor core is not adjusted to be under-powered (below its maximum potential) in self-sustain mode, it can have a tendency to become unstable and climb in output. If the reactor is left in an unstable self-sustaining mode for too long, the output can climb to potentially dangerous levels. Can you provide some information about how the reactor core in the test was adjusted to self-sustain in a safe manner?\nNO, VERY SORRY\na) For example, there was only one active reactor core in the module tested. How was the single reactor core adjusted to be under-powered?\nb) Is adjusting the reactor core as simple as lowering the hydrogen pressure?\n2) What is the power consumption of the device that \"produces frequencies\" that was mentioned in the NyTeknik article? Although the power consumption of this device is probably insignificant, providing a figure could help put to rest the idea (that some are suggesting) that a large amount of power was being consumed by the frequency-generating device, and transmitted into the reactor.\nTHE ENERGY CONSUMED FROM THE FREQUENCY GENERATOR IS 50 WH/H AND IT HAS BEEN CALCULATED, BECAUSE THIS APPARATUS WAS PLUGGED IN THE SAME LINE WHERE THE ENERGY-CONSUME MEASUREMENT HAS BEEN DONE\na) Can you tell us anything more about this frequency generating device and its function?\nNO, SORRY, THIS IS A CONFIDENTIAL ISSUE\nb) Is the frequency-generating device turned on at all times when a module is in operation, or only when a module is in self-sustain mode?\nc) Some are suggesting that this device is \"the\" catalyst that drives the reactions in the reactor core. However, you have stated in the past that the catalyst is actually one or more physical elements (in addition to nickel and hydrogen) that are placed in the reactor core. Can you confirm that physical catalysts are used in the reactor?\nYES, I CONFIRM THIS\n3) Does the reaction have to be quenched with additional water flow though the reactor, or is reducing the hydrogen pressure enough to end the reactions on its own?\nNEEDS ADDITIONAL QUENCHING\na) If reducing the hydrogen pressure (or venting it completely) is not enough to turn off the module, could it be due to the fact some hydrogen atoms are still bonded to nickel atoms, and undergoing nuclear reactions?\nb) If there is some other reason why reducing hydrogen pressure is not enough to quickly turn off the module, could you please specify?\nThank you for taking the time to answer these questions, and for allowing a test to be performed that clearly shows anomalous and excess energy being produced. Hopefully, the world will notice the significance of this test.\nTHANK YOU VERY MUCH, AND, SINCE I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NOT TIME TO ANSWER (I MADE AN EXCEPTION FOR YOU) PLEASE EXPLAIN THAT BEFORE THE SELF SUSTAINING MODE THE REACTOR WAS ALREADY PRODUCING ENERGY MORE THAN IT CONSUMED, SO THAT THE ENERGY CONSUMED IS NOT LOST, BUT TURNED INTO ENERGY ITSELF, THEREFORE IS NOT PASSIVE. ANOTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION: IF YOU LOOK CAREFULLY AT THE REPORT, YOU WILL SEE THAT THE SPOTS OF DRIVE WITH THE RESISTANCE HAVE A DURATION OF ABOUT 10 MINUTES, WHILE THE DURATION OF THE SELF SUSTAINING MODES IS PROGRESSIVELY LONGER, UNTIL IT ARRIVES TO BE UP TO HOURS. BESIDES, WE PRODUCED AT LEAST 4.3 kWh/h FOR ABOUT 6 HOURS AND CONSUMED AN AVERAGE OF 1.3 kWh/h FOR ABOUT 3 HOURS, SO THAT WE MADE IN TOTAL DURING THE TEST 25.8 kWh AND CONSUMED IN TOTAL DURING THE TEST 3.9 kWh. IN THE WORST POSSIBLE SCENARIO, WHICH MEANS NOT CONSIDERING THAT THE CONSUME IS MAINLY MADE DURING THE HEATING OF THE REACTOR DURING THE FIRST 2 HOURS, WE CAN CONSIDER THAT THE WORST POSSIBLE RATIO IS 25.8 : 3.9 AND THIS IS THE COP 6 WHICH WE ALWAYS SAID. OF COURSE, THE COP IS BETTER, BECAUSE, OBVIOUSLY, THE REACTOR, ONCE IN TEMPERATURE, NEEDS NOT TO BE HEATED AGAIN FROM ROOM TEMPERATURE TO OPERATIONAL TEMPERATURE.\nWARMEST REGARDS TO ALL, ANDREA ROSSI\nHe claims that the test produced 25.8 kilowatt hours of power, and consumed only 3.9 kilowatt hours, not considering the losses from using two circuits of water and a heat exchanger. This would be very impressive for a system that is only using one reactor core (out of three), that has been adjusted to only produce a fraction of its maximum potential power.\nHowever, from my analysis of the data so far (still trying to wrap my head around it), I have not been able to confirm his claim of a COP of 6. I am not saying it is not the case, or not in the data. I simply have yet to fully examine the data, and I am waiting for more data to be released.\nActually, I hope that someone will release all the data in one file and/or graph that will be easier to interpret. Perhaps NyTeknik, if they have not done so already, could contact Rossi or someone else who attended and recorded the data, and ask for any test data they are missing.\nBottom Line - Cold Fusion Is Here\nThe fact of the matter was that the October 6th test was a success in many ways.\n- It documented a gain of energy.\n- It documented a gain of energy in self-sustain mode.\n- It documented massive \"heat after death.\"\nMost importantly, it proved beyond a doubt, that cold fusion is a reality.\nItalian scientific journalist Maurizio Melis of Il Sole 24 Ore, who witnessed the test in Bologna,\n\"In the coming weeks Rossi aims to activate a 1MW plant, which is now almost ready, and we had the opportunity to inspect it during the demonstration of yesterday. If the plant starts up then it will be very difficult to affirm that it is a hoax. Instead, we will be projected suddenly into a new energetic era.\"\nThe test could have been made better in many ways. It had flaws. However, it was the most significant test of the E-Cat so far, for one reason in particular....\nThis graph shows that the E-Cat is a device producing excess energy, because the red line does not go down until after the hydrogen is vented.\n- Some may legitimately argue about how much energy was produced, because we don't yet have all the test data in one easy to interpret graph or file.\n- Some may point out the flaws in the test, such as the lack of a control, the lack of another several hours of operation in self sustain mode.\n- Some may point out ways the test could be improved.\nHowever, that graph by NyTeknik makes it clear the test was a success -- not a failure.\nMainstream media, your alarm clock is buzzing, it's time to wake up!\n# # #\nThis story is also published at BeforeItsNews.\nWhat You Can Do\n- Pass this on to your friends and favorite news sources.\n- Join the H-Ni_Fusion\ntechnical discussion group to explore the details of the technology.\n- Once available, purchase a unit and/or encourage others who are able, to do so.\n- Let professionals in the renewable energy sector know about the promise of\n- Subscribe to our newsletter\nto stay abreast of the latest, greatest developments in the free energy\n- Consider investing in Rossi's group once they open to that in October.\n- Help us manage the PESWiki\nfeature page on Rossi's technology.\nOther PES Coverage\nPESN Coverage of E-Cat\nFor a more exhaustive listing, see News:Rossi_Cold_Fusion\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- June 6, 2013 - EU Parliament gives LENR thumbs\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- May 30, 2013 - additional info on the E-Cat\n3rd party test report (PESN)\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- May 23, 2013 - E-Cat 3rd Party Results Posted (PESN)\nE-Cat Validation Creates More Questions (PESN;\nMay 21, 2013)\nThird-Party E-Cat Test Results\nPosted - posted on ArXiv.org\nMay 20, 2013)\nInterview with E-Cat Distributor License Broker, Roger Green (PESN;\nMay 17, 2013)\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- May 9, 2013 - Interview with Rossi about recent 1 MW plant delivery\nInterview with Andrea Rossi About 1 MW E-Cat Plant Delivery (PESN;\nMay 7, 2013)\nLENR-to-Market MONTHLY -- April 29, 2013 - E-Cat teases with April 30\ndelivery date (PESN)\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- March 28, 2013 - E-Cat 3rd-Party testing\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- March 7, 2013 - more on NASA (PESN)\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- February 21, 2013 - NASA on nuclear reactor in\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- February 14, 2013 - Piantelli self-sustains 2\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- February 7, 2013 - CF 101 week 2 (PESN)\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- January 31, 2013 - CF 101 week 1 at MIT (PESN)\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- January 24, 2013 - Piantelli gets CF patent,\nRossi rebuffs (PESN)\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- January 17, 2013 - Defkalion joint venture\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- January 10, 2013 - Rossi having problems\nfinding certification for home application (PESN)\nLENR-to-Market Weekly -- January 3, 2013 - Hot-Cat creating\nelectromotive force? (PESN)"}
{"text": "\"Have you ever passed a nail salon gasping from the chemicals seeping through the open door, while a dozen women patrons and their handlers are breathing in those same chemicals without a trace of discomfort?\"\nThere was a time shortly before the human genome was sequenced that many believed genetic science was on the cusp of a medical revolution. Our sequenced DNA was thought to hold the key to understanding the onset of disease. Why are some children afflicted with autism? Why do some adults stop producing enough insulin? Why do some otherwise healthy individuals who reach their senior years lose mental functions and memory? Ten years after the human genome was sequenced, biomedical scientists have become more cautious in their optimism about how DNA sequencing will change medicine by revealing the existence of a disease years before its onset or by introducing new therapies with the tools of molecular medicine and stem cells.\nThe terms \"gene-environment interaction\" and \"epigenetics\" are now recognized as the clue to many disease conditions. The switches that turn genes on and off may be more important in understanding clinical pathology than mutations in coding sequences of DNA. These switches, which may stop or modify gene expression, are in the form of protein complexes that overlay the DNA code, such as histones or methyl groups, or the RNA interference molecules that reside in the genome.\nOn the website of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences we find the following statement: \"A good part of who we are is 'written in our genes,' inherited from Mom and Dad. Many traits, like red or brown hair, body shape and even some personality quirks, are passed on from parent to offspring. But genes are not the whole story. Where we live, how much we exercise, what we eat: These and many other environmental factors can all affect how our genes get expressed.\"\nDespite the growing awareness that environmental factors interact with and affect the human genome, most of the research remains focused on the mechanisms operating at the molecular level. Thus, there is much discussion about sequencing the epigenome to gain an understanding of the genetic switches or to probe deeply into non-coding DNA for discovery of RNA sequences that interfere or modulate gene expression.\nMeanwhile, we know that around 100,000 people die from adverse drug reactions. Some people are highly sensitive to chemicals in perfumes or outgassing from carpets or plastic. The detoxification mechanisms of people vary widely. Without a sufficient quantity of enzyme production, our bodies cannot break down certain chemicals fast enough before experiencing harm. If we expect to make any major inroads into preventing the many environmentally-induced diseases, each of which may affect a small percentage of the population, then we must use the human genome and the epigenome to acquire an understanding of why some people are more adversely affected by environmental agents. What we need is a massive effort to unravel the \"gene-environment\" interaction in disease causation. We have over 100,000 chemicals in current industrial use. Many of these chemicals were introduced into commerce without much toxicological evaluation. It takes between 25-50 years to regulate or ban a chemical that has been shown to be harmful to humans. The United States has only banned about a half dozen chemicals over half a century. In part this is because the regulatory system is geared toward industrial interests. The government requires very minimal safety studies to permit a chemical into industrial use, but demands an extraordinary body of replicable scientific studies and cost-benefit analyses before a chemical is removed from the marketplace.\nThe one area where there have been major contributions in deciphering the gene-environment interaction is in the study of the genetic effects of ionizing radiation. Perhaps radiation effects on health is the low hanging fruit because of the mutations the radiation produces, although low level radiation effects remains highly controversial.\nHow can we learn what chemicals are adversely affecting the healthy human genome and what chemicals have differential effects on different genomes? How can we detect the detoxification potential of each individual toward a chemical? The differences in people's ability to detoxify a chemical may be the result of shorter genes coding for the relevant detoxifying enzymes, or the enzyme-producing gene is switched off.\nMost of the commercial interest in the sequenced human genome has been focused on risk factors for certain diseases that are read from the individual's DNA. There is nothing in direct-to-consumer testing kits that reveals the cause of any disease other than what is encrypted in the code itself. And there are only a small number of illnesses where there is a one-to-one correlation between having a particular form of a gene and a disease, such as cystic fibrosis, sickle cell anemia and Canavan's disease.\nOf course, a massive effort to determine how chemicals interact with the human genome may have unintended consequences. Instead of banning the chemical, it may result in a genetic classification of people-those hypersensitive to chemical X, those with peanut allergies, etc.-putting the onus on them about how to navigate through life. Many people have figured out they are hypersensitive to new carpets, latex or perfumes and learn how to keep away. But if we had a mechanism that showed us these people were not psychologically challenged but rather had a normal genome with less capacity to metabolize chemical toxins, we would have a new regulatory mechanism for removing the chemicals from the environment.\nBiomedical scientists have been able to titrate chemotherapy agents to individuals based on genomic information. Gene expression patterns associated with sensitivity and/or resistance to chemotherapy may be used to help provide more effective treatment.\nScientists have used genetic testing to identify patients at high risk of bleeding from the drug warfarin. Two genes account for most of the risk. Recently, genetic variants in the gene encoding Cytochrome P450 enzyme CYP2C9, which metabolizes warfarin, and the Vitamin K epoxide reductase gene (VKORC1), has enabled more accurate dosing that takes account of the genome of an individual. Genotyping variants in genes encoding Cytochrome P450 enzymes (CYP2D6, CYP2C19, and CYP2C9), which metabolize antipsychotic medications, have been used to improve drug response and reduce side-effects. Pain killers like codeine affect people differently. Tests for certain enzymes (P450-2D6) can determine whether someone will be an ultra-rapid metabolizer of codeine, which could induce life-threatening toxicity.\nIf we can understand through certain enzyme pathways that individuals react differently to drugs and that some of us cannot efficiently metabolize certain chemicals, why couldn't we do the same for industrial toxins within the next 20 years? Once we learn that many people cannot de-toxify a chemical that bioaccumulates in their body, it provides new grounds for finding a substitute for that chemical rather than waiting a quarter century to complete hundreds of studies with mixed results.\nSheldon Krimsky, PhD, is Chair of the Board of Directors and a founder of the Council for Responsible Genetics. He is a Professor of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning at Tufts University."}
{"text": "A rising tide of drug-resistant staph infections\nSpider bites and pimples that just won't heal.\nThat's how parents are describing their children's skin infections that turn out to be caused by a deadly strain of drug-resistant \"staph\" bacteria, says C. Buddy Creech, M.D., M.P.H., assistant professor of Pediatric Infectious Diseases.\nCreech has been following the rising tide of cases of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, MRSA, and he's concerned.\nHe describes deaths of children, particularly adolescents, who are healthy and then develop sudden, devastating disease.\n\"These are cases where a child has a fever on Saturday night, feels bad on Sunday, collapses in the pediatrician's office on Monday, and then dies. It's horrible.\"\nSkin abscesses are the most common presentation, and recent MRSA outbreaks have occurred among athletes, prisoners and tattoo recipients, with the germ spreading through skin contact or shared items like towels.\nOf the skin abscesses treated in the adult and pediatric emergency departments at Vanderbilt from Nov. 1, 2004 to Oct. 31, 2005, about 70 percent were\npositive for MRSA, according to a study conducted by Thomas Talbot, M.D., assistant professor of Medicine.\nThese findings mirror the national scene. A study published this summer\nin the New England Journal of Medicine reported that 59 percent of all skin infections among adults treated in emergency rooms in 11 U.S. cities in August 2004 were caused by MRSA.\n\"We culture every abscess now,\" Creech says. \"Not only do we want to know if it's MRSA, we want to keep tabs on what MRSA is doing – is it becoming resistant to the drugs that we think still work?\"\nPhysicians have been able to turn to some \"old\" antibiotics to treat community-associated MRSA, sulfa-type drugs like Bactrim that were not being routinely used because other germs had developed resistance to them, Creech says.\n\"There are two MRSA treatment arms right now – we still have a small number of drugs that are easy to give to people at home for uncomplicated MRSA infections, and we have several intravenous drugs, such as vancomycin, that we reserve for the critically ill patients.\"\nWith any of these antibiotics, Creech warns, \"it's the finger in the proverbial dike. We will inevitably see resistance – it's just a matter of time.\"\nWendy Inman, a 30-year-old mother of three from Waynesboro, Tenn., knows about resistance firsthand.\nShe has battled skin abscesses caused by MRSA for the past three years. Because of repeated boils in her underarm area, both wearing clothing and letting her arms hang at her side have been painful.\nBactrim would help for only about six weeks, then the pus-filled cysts would return. She was referred to Vanderbilt's Patty Wright, M.D., assistant professor of Medicine, in June, and prescribed Bactrim and a decontaminating-cleansing regimen that has kept the skin abscesses at bay.\nTwice a day, for the first week of each month, Inman cleanses with a surgical-type scrub and uses an antibiotic nasal ointment. She also takes diluted bleach baths twice a week during that week, and takes a daily dose of Vitamin C. \"People who have never had this don't realize how bad this is,\" she said. \"It's like living with a toothache, a constant pain. But, now, it's such a blessing to be free of pain,\" she says.\n- Leigh MacMillan and Nancy Humphrey"}
{"text": "In ancient China one’s Zodiac sign was fixed by the position of the planet Jupiter during the year of one’s birth (it takes twelve years for Jupiter to orbit the sun). On this level, Ai Weiwei Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads represents a system of measuring time and distinguishing characteristics of the human psyche linked to the heavens above.\nIn the mid-eighteenth century the Qianlong Emperor, ruler of the Qing (Ch’ing) dynasty—a Manchu (not Chinese) by birth—was fascinated by European technology. On the condition that they not proselytize, he invited European Jesuit priests into the Forbidden City, where they worked as scientists, engineers, architects, and artists. These priests spoke, read, and wrote Chinese fluently; in this way they could easily communicate with the most eminent Chinese and Manchu scholar-officials in the Forbidden City. Sent to China by the Vatican with the mission of converting China to the Catholic Church (in which they largely failed), these priests nonetheless had an enormous influence on Chinese intellectual and artistic life.\nAmong the projects commissioned by the Emperor from the Jesuits was a grand palace known as the Yuan Ming Yuan, or “Palace of Perfect Brightness.” It consisted of a mix of styles: sections built in traditional Chinese wooden architecture and others made of marble, imitating such European palaces as Versailles. In front of one building in the European manner was a large fountain, with twelve animal-headed waterspouts. These functioned as symbols of the Zodiac and of the hours of the day (the Chinese measured the day in units equivalent to two Western hours, which when multiplied by twelve makes up a twenty-four hour day).\nIn an astonishing irony, in 1860 the entire Palace was destroyed and looted by British and French troops as part of military actions of the Second Opium War. Of the twelve original bronze heads, seven survive. In casting his new Zodiac Heads, Ai Weiwei carefully followed the style of the originals, but exercised considerable artistic license in designing the five heads whose models are missing (including the dragon).\nAi Weiwei’s Zodiac Heads are thus a multi-layered meditation on political power, the nature of time, and the often tormented relationship between China and West, at the same time calling into question the arbitrary nature of such concepts as “national treasure.” That all of this is accomplished with considerable humor is a tribute to Ai’s detachment. I am proud that LACMA is showing this work by one of China’s greatest artists and most courageous social critics.\nStephen Little, curator, Chinese and Korean Art"}
{"text": "All rights reserved\nPrinted in the United States of America\nNo part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior permission of the publisher.\nRequests for permission should be directed to: email@example.com, or mailed to: Cambria Press 20 Northpointe Parkway, Suite 188 Amherst, NY 14228Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data\nLively, Donald E., 1947-\nThe Constitution, race, and renewed relevance of original intent : reclaiming the lost opportunity of federalism / Donald E. Lively.\nIncludes bibliographical references and index.\nISBN 978-1-60497-562-8 (alk. paper)\n1. Slavery—Law and legislation—United States—History.\n2. Race discrimination—Law and legislation—United States—History.\n3. Segregation—Law and legislation—United States—History.\n4. African Americans—Civil rights—History.\n5. Constitutional amendments—United States—History.\n6. Constitutional history—United States.\n7. Equality before the law—United States.\n8. Federal government—United States. I. Title."}
{"text": "Nutrition basics (19)\n- Dietary fiber: Essential for a healthy diet\n- Artificial sweeteners and other sugar substitutes\n- Added sugar: Don't get sabotaged by sweeteners\n- see all in Nutrition basics\nHealthy diets (12)\n- DASH diet: Tips for dining out\n- DASH diet: Tips for shopping and cooking\n- DASH diet: Healthy eating to lower your blood pressure\n- see all in Healthy diets\nHealthy cooking (14)\n- Healthy chicken recipes\n- Meatless meals: The benefits of eating less meat\n- Healthy cooking for 1 or 2\n- see all in Healthy cooking\nHealthy menus and shopping strategies (13)\n- Free range and other meat and poultry terms\n- Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight Pyramid: A sample menu\n- Healthy breakfast: Quick, flexible options to grab at home\n- see all in Healthy menus and shopping strategies\nNutritional supplements (3)\n- Herbal supplements: What to know before you buy\n- Calcium and calcium supplements: Achieving the right balance\n- Supplements: Nutrition in a pill?\nWhole grains: Hearty options for a healthy diet\nFind out why whole grains are better than refined grains and how to add more whole grains to your diet.By Mayo Clinic staff\nGrains, especially whole grains, are an essential part of a healthy diet. All types of grains are good sources of complex carbohydrates and some key vitamins and minerals. Grains are also naturally low in fat. All of this makes grains a healthy option. Better yet, they've been linked to a lower risk of heart disease, diabetes, certain cancers and other health problems.\nThe healthiest kinds of grains are whole grains. The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that at least half of all the grains you eat are whole grains. Chances are you eat lots of grains already. But are they whole grains? If you're like most, you're not getting enough whole grains in your diet. See how to make whole grains a part of your healthy diet.\nTypes of grains\nAlso called cereals, grains and whole grains are the seeds of grasses cultivated for food. Grains and whole grains come in many shapes and sizes, from large kernels of popcorn to small quinoa seeds.\n- Whole grains. These are unrefined grains that haven't had their bran and germ removed by milling. Whole grains are better sources of fiber and other important nutrients, such as selenium, potassium and magnesium. Whole grains are either single foods, such as brown rice and popcorn, or ingredients in products, such as buckwheat in pancakes or whole wheat in bread.\n- Refined grains. Refined grains are milled, a process that strips out both the bran and germ to give them a finer texture and extend their shelf life. The refining process also removes many nutrients, including fiber. Refined grains include white flour, white rice, white bread and degermed cornflower. Many breads, cereals, crackers, desserts and pastries are made with refined grains, too.\n- Enriched grains. Enriched means that some of the nutrients lost during processing are added back in. Some enriched grains are grains that have lost B vitamins added back in — but not the lost fiber. Fortifying means adding in nutrients that don't occur naturally in the food. Most refined grains are enriched, and many enriched grains also are fortified with other vitamins and minerals, such as folic acid and iron. Some countries require certain refined grains to be enriched. Whole grains may or may not be fortified.\n(1 of 2)\n- Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/DGAs2010-PolicyDocument.htm. Accessed June 30, 2011.\n- Dole Food Company, et al. Encyclopedia of Foods: A Guide to Healthy Nutrition. San Diego, Calif.: Academic Press; 2002.\n- Whole white wheat FAQ. Whole Grains Council. http://www.wholegrainscouncil.org/whole-grains-101/whole-white-wheat-faq. Accessed June 30, 2011.\n- Maras JE, et al. Whole grain intake: The Baltimore longitudinal study of aging. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis. 2009;22:53.\n- Choosing whole grains FAQ. Eat right Ontario. http://www.eatrightontario.ca/en/viewdocument.aspx?id=39. Accessed June 30, 2011.\n- Duyff RL. American Dietetic Association Complete Food and Nutrition Guide. 3rd edition. Hoboken, N.J.:John Wiley & Sons; 2006.\n- What foods are in the grains group? U.S. Department of Agriculture. http://www.choosemyplate.gov/foodgroups/grains.html. Accessed June 30, 2011.\n- O'Neil C., et al. Whole-grain consumption is associated with diet quality and nutrient intake in adults: The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1999-2004. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2010;110:1461.\n- Zeratsky KA (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. July 5, 2011.\n- Nelson JK (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. July 7, 2011."}
{"text": "Job Description: To Explore the Unknown\nCuriosity about how life might have evolved on Mars could help reveal more about our own planet.\nPlanetary studies can spark the imagination. We want to go to Mars. Humans have dreamed of going to another planet and looking for life throughout the ages. We want to better understand the nature of the Solar System and we want to know if we're alone.\nWe're finding out as much as we can about our nearest habitable neighbor in order to lay the groundwork for the eventual colonization of Mars. There is nothing scientifically stopping us.\nA passion for exploration\nThe discovery of hundreds of worlds around other stars has shown that planets orbit at least 5 to 10 percent of all stars. But how many of these planets are Earth-size, and possibly Earth-like?"}
{"text": "This speciesis classified as Vulnerable because remote-sensing data indicate that there has been a dramatic loss of lowland forest across its range and that it is therefore likely to be undergoing a rapid population decline.\nDistribution and population\nNinox odiosa is endemic to the island of New Britain Papua New Guinea where although it is rather poorly known, it appears to be not uncommon in suitable habitat. It is suspected to have declined rapidly in recent years owing to ongoing clearance of lowland forest (Buchananet al. 2008).\nThe population is estimated to be in the band 10,000-19,999 mature individuals, equating to 15,000-29,999 individuals in total, rounded here to 15,000-30,000 individuals.\nBuchanan et al. (2008) calculated the rate of forest loss within the species's range on New Britain as 33.8% over three generations. Hence, this decline is expected to continue.\nIt inhabits lowland rainforest up to 1,200 m. It is thought to tolerate some degree of habitat degradation.\nLowland forest clearance on New Britain for conversion to oil palm plantations has been intense in recent decades and the island accounts for approximately half of Papua New Guinea's timber exports (Buchanan et al. 2008). Over 30% of suitable habitat has been cleared in the last 10 years and this trend is ongoing (Buchanan et al. 2008).\nConservation actions underway\nNone is known.\nConservation actions proposed\nIdentify and effectively protect a network of reserves, including some containing large areas of unlogged lowland forest, on New Britain. Continue to monitor trends in forest loss. Research its tolerance of degraded forest. Monitor populations in a number of primary forest and degraded forest sites across the island.\nRelated state of the world's birds case studies\nthank you for your interest to save the Russet Hawk-owl (Ninox odiosa)\nIf everything looks correct, click sign now. Your signature will not be added until you click the button below."}
{"text": "London: No matter how bright you think your child is, until the age of seven, children are no brainier than the birds.\nResearchers at the University of Cambridge during simple experiments found out that birds did just as well as children up until the age of seven, The Daily Mail reported.\nBy pitting birds against boys and girls using tests inspired by the Aesop's fable in which a thirsty crow is able to drink from a pitcher after using pebbles to raise the water level to within its reach.\nIn two of the three tests the birds, Eurasian jays, did just as well as the seven-year-old children.\nAfter this, the human mind proved superior to the bird brain.\nThe experiments built on earlier work in which jays quickly learned that adding stones to a cylinder half-filled with water would bring a tasty treat floating on the surface within reach of their beaks.\nIn a second task the jays, colourful members of the crow family and about the same size as jackdaws, realized it was better to use pebbles, which sink, than corks, which float.\nWhen Cambridgeshire children, aged four to ten, were set similar tasks, they did as well as the jays on the first, up to the age of seven.\nFrom the age of eight, the pupils learned more quickly than the birds. The pattern was similar with the second task, except four-year-old children did worse than the jays.\nHowever, a third, more complex, task separated the youngsters from the birds.\nIt again involved dropping objects into water to raise its level. But this time, a U-shaped tube was used, with the join at its bottom hidden; giving the impression it was two separate tubes.\nThis appeared to confuse the birds. However, the children did as well as before. The researchers said this shows children are better at putting preconceptions aside.\nLucy Cheke, a PhD student, said: \"It is a child's job to learn about the world. They can't do that if they're limited by a preconceived idea about what is or is not possible. For a child, if it works, it works. The birds, however, found it much harder to learn what was happening because they were put off by the fact it shouldn’t be happening.\"\nFirst Published: Thursday, July 26, 2012, 16:22"}
{"text": "Photo: James Duncan Davidson\nDrawn into controversy\nWearing his wide-brimmed hat, climate scientist James Hansen starts his TEDTalk by asking, ”What do I know that would cause me, a reticent midwestern scientist, to get arrested in front of the White House, protesting?”\nHansen studied under professor James Van Allen, who told him about observations of Venus — there was intense microwave radiation — because it’s hot, and it was kept that way by a thick C02 atmosphere. He was fortunate enough to join NASA and send an instrument to Venus. But while it was in transit, he became involved in calculating what would be the effect of the greenhouse effect here on Earth.\nIt turns out the atmosphere was changing before our eyes and, “A planet changing before our eyes is more important, it affects and changes our lives.” The greenhouse effect has been understood for a century. Infrared radiation is absorbed by a layer of gas, working like a blanket to keep heat in.\nHe worked with other scientists and eventually published an article in Science in 1981. They made several predictions in that paper: There would be shifting climate zones, rising sea levels, an opening of the northwest passage, and other effects. All of these have happened or are underway.\nThat paper was reported on the front page of the NY Times, and led to him testifying to congress. He told them it would produce varied effects, heat waves and droughts, but also (because warmer atmosphere holds more water vapor) more extreme rainfall, stronger storms and greater flooding.\nAll the global warming ‘hoopla’ became too much, and was distracting him from doing science. In addition, he was upset that the White House had altered his testimony, so he decided to leave communication to others.\nThe future draws him back in\nThe problem with not speaking was that he had two grandchildren. He realized he did not want them to say, “Opah understood what was happening, but he didn’t make it clear.”\nSo he was drawn more and more into the urgency.\nAdding carbon to the air is like throwing a blanket on the bed. “More energy is coming in than is going out, until Earth is warm enough to raiate to space as much energy as it recieves from the Sun.” The key quantity is the imbalance, so they did the measurements. It turns out that continents to depths of tens of meters were getting warmer, and the Earth is gaining energy from heat. That amount of energy is equivalent to dropping 400,000 Hrioshima bombs every day, over a year, and there is as much in the pipeline as has already occurred.\nIf we want to restore energy balance and prevent further warming, we need to reduce the carbon levels from 391 parts per million to 350.\nThe arguments against\nDeniers contend that it’s the sun driving this change. But Hansen notes the biggest change occurred during the low point of the solar cycle — meaning that the effect from the sun is dwarfed by the warming effect.\nThere are remarkable records in the Earth of what has come before, and we’ve studied them extensively. There is a high correlation between the overall temperature, carbon levels, and sea level. The temperature slightly leads carbon changes by a couple centuries. Deniers like to use that to trick the public. But these are amplifying feedbacks, even through it’s instigated by small effect, a cycle is set up that feed in on itself: More sun in the summer means that ice sheets melt, which means a darker planet, which means more warming. These amplifying feedbacks account for almost entire paleoclimate changes.\nThe same amplifying feedbacks must occur today. Ice sheets will melt, carbon and methane will be releaseed. “We can’t say exactly how fast these effects will happen, but it is certain they will occur. Unless we stop the warming.”\nThe view of the future\nHansen presents data showing that Greenland and Antarctica are both losing mass, and that methane is bubbling from the permafrost. That does not bode well. Historically, even at today’s level of carbon, the sea level was 15 meters higher than it is now. We will get least one meter of that this century.\nWe will have started a process that is out of humanity’s control. There will be no stable shoreline, and the economic implications of that are devastating — not to mention the spectacular loss of speices. It’s possible that 20-50% of all species could be extinct by end of century if we stay on fossil fuels.\nChanges have already started. The Texas, Moscow, Oklahoma and other heat waves in recent memory were all exceptional events. There is clear evidence that these were caused by global warming.\nHansen’s grandson Jake is super-enthusiastic, “He thinks he can protect his 2 and a half day old little sister. It would be immoral to leave these people with a climate system spiraling out of control.”\nThe tragedy is that we can solve this. It could be addressed by collecting a fee for carbon emissions, distributed to all residents. That would stimulate the economy and innovation, and would not enlarge the government. Instead of doing this, we are subsidizing fossil fuels by $400-500 billion per year worldwide.\nThis, says Hansen, is a planetary emergency, just as important as an asteroid on its way. “But we dither, taking no action to divert the asteroid, even though the longer we wait, the more difficult and expensive it becomes.”\n“Now you know some of what I know that is sounding me to sound this alarm. Clearly I haven’t gotten this message across. I need your help. We owe it to our children and grandchildren.”"}
{"text": "Fluoride in Drinking Water: A Scientific Review of EPA's Standards (2006)Board on Environmental Science and Toxicology\nEach report is produced by a committee of experts selected by the Academy to address a particular statement of task and is subject to a rigorous, independent peer review; while the reports represent views of the committee, they also are endorsed by the Academy. Learn more on our expert consensus reports.\nMost people associate fluoride with the practice of intentionally adding fluoride to public drinking-water supplies for the prevention of tooth decay. However, fluoride can also enter public water systems from natural sources, including runoff from weathering of fluoride-containing rocks and soils and leaching from soil into groundwater. Fluoride pollution from various industrial emissions can also contaminate water supplies. In a few areas of the United States, fluoride concentrations in water are much higher than normal, mostly from natural sources. Because it can occur at toxic levels, fluoride is one of the drinking water contaminants regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In 1986, EPA established a maximum allowable concentration for fluoride in drinking water of 4 milligrams per liter (mg/L), a guideline designed to prevent the public from being exposed to harmful levels of fluoride. After reviewing research on various health effects from exposure to fluoride, including studies conducted in the last 10 years, this report concludes that EPA\\u0092s drinking water standard for fluoride does not protect against adverse health effects. Just over 200,000 Americans live in communities where fluoride levels in drinking water are 4 mg/L or higher. Children in those communities are at risk of developing severe tooth enamel fluorosis, a condition that can cause tooth enamel loss and pitting. A majority of the report\\u0092s authoring committee also concluded that people who drink water containing 4 mg/L or more of fluoride over a lifetime are likely at increased risk for bone fractures.\n- A few studies of human populations have suggested that fluoride might be associated with alterations in reproductive hormones, fertility, and Down's syndrome, but their design limitations make them of little value for risk evaluation\n- Assessing whether fluoride constitutes a risk factor for osteosarcoma is complicated by the rarity of the disease and the difficulty of characterizing biologic dose because of the ubiquity of population exposure to fluoride and the difficulty of acquiring bone samples in nonaffected individuals.\n- Bone fluoride concentrations increase with both magnitude and length of exposure. Empirical data suggest substantial variations in bone fluoride concentrations at any given water concentration.\n- Case reports and in vitro and animal studies indicated that exposure to fluoride at concentrations greater than 4 mg/L can be irritating to the gastrointestinal system, affect renal tissues and function, and alter hepatic and immunologic parameters. Such effects are unlikely to be a risk for the average individual exposed to fluoride at 4 mg/L in drinking water. However, a potentially susceptible subpopulation comprises individuals with renal impairments who retain more fluoride than healthy people do.\n- Fluoride is an endocrine disruptor in the broad sense of altering normal endocrine function or response, although probably not in the sense of mimicking a normal hormone. The mechanisms of action remain to be worked out and appear to include both direct and indirect mechanisms.\n- Gaps in the information on fluoride prevented the committee from making some judgments about the safety or the risks of fluoride at concentrations of 2 to 4 mg/L.\n- Groups likely to have increased bone fluoride concentrations include the elderly and people with severe renal insufficiency.\n- In light of the collective evidence on various health end points and total exposure to fluoride, the committee concludes that EPA�s MCLG of 4 mg/L should be lowered.\n- Little data is available on immunologic parameters in human subjects exposed to fluoride from drinking water or osteoporosis therapy, but in vitro and animal data suggest the need for more research in this area.\n- On the basis of information largely derived from histological, chemical, and molecular studies, it is apparent that fluorides have the ability to interfere with the functions of the brain and the body by direct and indirect means.\n- On the basis of pharmacokinetic modeling, the current best estimate for bone fluoride concentrations after 70 years of exposure to fluoride at 4 mg/L in water is 10,000 to 12,000 mg/kg in bone ash. Higher values would be predicted for people consuming large amounts of water (>2 L/day) or for those with additional sources of exposure. Less information was available for estimating bone concentrations from lifetime exposure to fluoride in water at 2 mg/L. The committee estimates average bone concentrations of 4,000 to 5,000 mg/kg ash.\n- Pharmacokinetics should be taken into account when comparing effects of fluoride in different species. Limited evidence suggests that rats require higher chronic exposures than humans to achieve the same plasma and bone concentrations.\n- Studies of the effects of fluoride on the kidney, liver, and immune system indicate that exposure to concentrations much higher than 4 mg/L can affect renal tissues and function and cause hepatic and immunologic alterations in test animals and in vitro test systems.\n- The committee did not find any human studies on drinking water containing fluoride at 4 mg/L where GI, renal, hepatic, or immune effects were carefully documented.\n- The committee finds that the available epidemiologic data for assessing bone fracture risk in relation to fluoride exposure around 2 mg/L are inadequate for drawing firm conclusions about the risk or safety of exposures at that concentration.\n- The committee's conclusions regarding the potential for adverse effects from fluoride at 2 to 4 mg/L in drinking water do not address the lower exposures commonly experienced by most U.S. citizens. The charge to the committee did not include an examination of the benefits and risks that might occur at these lower concentrations of fluoride in drinking water.\n- The damage to teeth caused by severe enamel fluorosis is a toxic effect that the majority of the committee judged to be consistent with prevailing risk assessment definitions of adverse health effects.\n- The degree to which moderate enamel fluorosis might go beyond a cosmetic effect to create an adverse psychological effect or an adverse effect on social functioning is also not known.\n- The single most important contributor to fluoride exposures (approaching 50% or more) is fluoridated water and other beverages and foods prepared or manufactured with fluoridated water."}
{"text": "Filed underWebMD News\nFor more trusted health\nnews and information,\nvisit CBS Denver's\nResearchers have revealed a simple trick that may help athletes keep their cool during a game’s high-pressure moments. Their advice to avoid choking under pressure: Clench the fist of your non-dominant hand.\nThe findings appear in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General.\nIn the study, right-handed athletes who squeezed a ball with their left hand or clenched their left fist before a competition were less likely to choke in high-stress matches.\nHere’s why: The left side of the body is controlled by the right side of the brain.\n“Increasing activation in the right hemisphere decreases activation in the left hemisphere,” says study researcher Juergen Beckmann, PhD.\nChoking under pressure seems to be caused by a dominant activation in the left hemisphere, which controls key areas of the brain that help us psych ourselves out when under the gun.\nClenching Technique May Reduce Choke Risk\nBrain scans show that a decrease of activation in the brain’s left hemisphere boosts performance, says Beckmann. He is the chair of sport psychology at the Technical University of Munich in Germany.\nThe researchers conducted three studies involving soccer players, judo experts, and badminton players. They tested the athletes’ skills during normal practice and during important matches that took place before a large crowd or video cameras. The researchers only tested right-handed people.\nThe athletes were less likely to choke under pressure when they squeezed a ball in their left hand than when they squeezed it in their right hand.\nThis technique seems to work best in situations where movements such as kicking a ball are automatic. Overthinking them, however, can impair performance.\n“So far, we know that the technique seems to work only with complex motor tasks which have become automated,” says Beckmann. “It should not only work with sports but also … could be helpful for elderly people to maintain balance when they are afraid that they might fall.”\nBreak the Thought Cycle\nBeckmann and his team are now studying the technique among expert musicians.\n“It might also be useful for surgeons or other professions in which precision, pressure, and highly automated tasks combine,” he says. To date, the team has conducted 13 studies, including one with gymnasts. “Whenever the specified conditions were given, the technique never failed.”\nDavid Straker, MD, says some athletes start thinking the worst when they step up to the plate in a baseball game or need to take a foul shot on the basketball court — and then they choke.\n“They have likely done this thousands of times. And 99% of the time, they do it perfectly, but still they choke,” he says. Straker is an adjunct assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center in New York City. He often recommends a short course of therapy to help people change how they think and overcome self-defeating thoughts.\n“See a therapist and try to work on changing how you think in these situations,” he says. “When you start ruminating, take a step back and remind yourself that you have done this so many times and you do it well,” he says. “The fist- or ball-clenching technique used in the new study may also help distract people from the negative thoughts.”\nIn the Zone\nAnd performance anxiety is not just an issue for athletes. “We know that elderly people are more likely to fall if they are thinking about it, and people also choke during exams even though they know the subject cold,” Straker says. Whatever the scenario, changing the thought process can make a difference.\nSports performance expert Todd Stofka puts it like this: “You think you can or think you can’t.” He is the founder of Philly Hypnosis Performance in Philadelphia and regularly helps athletes think that they can. “Your confidence dictates whether you do better or worse. It is more than positive thinking. It’s desired-results thinking.”\nHe often tells clients to visualize what they want in that high-stress moment. This process starts with breaking the initial connection.\n“Think of it as a series of light switches,” he says. “You can pull your ear or adjust your shirt or do something to stop the negative thoughts, and from there can move toward visualizing hitting the ball out of the park.”\nBeing calm is also important. “Top performers play their very best when they are relaxed and in the zone,” he says. Getting in the zone starts with stopping anxiety-producing thoughts and anticipation."}
{"text": "CHOSEN PEOPLE.(Redirected from PECULIAR PEOPLE.)\nName for the Jewish people expressive of the idea of their having been chosen by God to fulfil the mission of proclaiming His truth among all the nations. This choice does not imply a superior claim, but a superior duty and responsibility on the part of the Jewish people, inasmuch as they have been pledged by the covenant which God concluded with Abraham, their ancestor, and again with the entire nation on Sinai, to testify, by precept and example, to the truth revealed to them, to lead a holy life as God's priest-people, and, if needs be, sacrifice their very lives for the sake of this truth. In this peculiar sense they are called God's own people; their religious genius, as manifested in their patriarchs, prophets, inspired poets, sages, and heroes, having rendered them the chosen people of religion to a far greater extent than the artistic and philosophical genius of the Greeks made that nation the chosen people of art and philosophy, or the juridical and political genius of the Romans made them the chosen people of law and politics.Consciousness of Selection.\nUnlike any other nation, the Jewish people began their career conscious of their life-purpose and world-duty as the priests and teachers of a universal religious truth; and their whole history, with all its tragic sternness, was and to the end of time will be devoted to the carrying out of this purpose and the discharge of this duty. This view is expressed in all the Biblical and rabbinical passages referring to Israel as the chosen people, or to Abraham as their ancestor. \"For I have singled him out [A. V., \"have known him\"] to the end that he may command his children and his house after him, that they may keep the way of the Lord to do justice and judgment\" (Gen. xviii. 1, Hebr.; compare Neh. ix. 7, \"Thou art the Lord, the God who didst choose Abram\").Conditions of Choice.\nThat Israel's character as the chosen people is conditioned by obedience to God's commandments is stated in the very words of the Sinai covenant: \"Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people; for all the earth is mine: and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation\" (Ex. xix. 5, 6). \"The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people; but because the Lord loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers\" (Deut. vii. 7, 8). The great obligation imposed upon Israel as the chosen people is especially emphasized by the prophet Amos (iii. 2): \"You only have I singled out [R. V., \"known\"] of all the families of the earth: therefore will I visit upon you all your iniquities.\" Compare Deut. xiv. 2: \"Thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God, and the Lord hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all peoples that are upon the face of the earth,\" and ib. xxiv. 18, 19, R. V.God's Witnesses and Their Inheritance.\nParticularly is the world-mission of the chosen people dwelt upon by Deutero-Isaiah, the seer of the Exile (Isa. xli.; xlii. 1-7; xliii. 10. \"Ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen\"; ib. verse 21, R. V., \"The people which I formed for myself that they might set forth my praise\"; compare xliv. 1, 2; xlix. 6, 7).\nAs God's chosen people, Israel is also called His \"inheritance\" (Deut. iv. 20; ix. 26, 29; xxxii. 9; Ps. xxxiii. 12: \"The people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance\"; I Kings viii. 53, Jer. x. 16; and elsewhere). As the children of the Patriarchs they are His chosen ones (Ps. cv. 6).—In Rabbinical Literature:\nAccording to the Rabbis, Israel has not been chosen as the people of the Law on account of its racial superiority. \"Israel is of all nations the most wilful or headstrong one [\nIn the Jewish liturgy, praise is frequently offered to God for having chosen Israel from among all thenations of the earth: in Ahabah Rabbah, in the benediction before the reading from the Law, and in the seven benedictions of the holy days and New Moon; concerning which see Geiger's \"Jüd. Zeit.\" vii. 55; and Einhorn, in \"Protocolle der Zweiten Rabbinerversammlung,\" p. 75, Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1845.\n\"The character of Israel as the chosen people,\" writes Güdemann (\"Das Judenthum,\" 1902, p. 44) \"does not involve the inferiority of other nations. The universality of Israel's idea of God is sufficient proof against such an assumption. Every nation requires a certain self-consciousness for the carrying out of its mission. Israel's self-consciousness was tempered by the memory of its servitude in Egypt and the recognition of its being 'the servant of the Lord.' It was the noblesse oblige of the God-appointed worker for the entire human race.\""}
{"text": "run the given instructions\nMajor Section: PROOF-CHECKER-COMMANDS\nExample: (do-all induct p prove)Run the indicated instructions until there is a hard ``failure''. The instruction ``succeeds'' if and only if each instruction in\nGeneral Form: (do-all &rest instruction-list)\ninstruction-listdoes. (See the documentation for\nsequencefor an explanation of ``success'' and ``failure.'') As each instruction is executed, the system will print the usual prompt followed by that instruction, unless the global state variable\ndo-all ``fails'', then the failure is hard if and only if\nthe last instruction it runs has a hard ``failure''.\nObscure point: For the record,\n(do-all ins_1 ins_2 ... ins_k) is\nthe same as\n(sequence (ins_1 ins_2 ... ins_k))."}
{"text": "Tata teams up with Aussies for India’s first floating solar plant\nThe pilot project, which is due to start operations by the end of the year, is based on a Sunengy patented Liquid Solar Array (LSA) technology which uses traditional concentrated photovoltaic technology - a lens and a small area of solar cells that tracks the sun throughout the day, like a sunflower\nLSA inventor and Sunengy executive director and chief technology officer, Phil Connor, said that when located on and combined with hydroelectric dams, LSA provides the breakthroughs of reduced cost and \"on demand\" 24/7 availability that are necessary for solar power to become widely used.\nFloating the LSA on water reduces the need for expensive supporting structures to protect it from high winds. The lenses submerge in bad weather and the water also cools the cells which increases their efficiency and life-span.\nAccording to Connor, hydro power supplies 87 percent of the world's renewable energy and 16 percent of the world's power but is limited by its water resource. He said an LSA installation could match the power output of a typical hydro dam using less than 10 percent of its surface area and supply an additional six to eight hours of power per day. Modeling by Sunengy shows that a 240 MW LSA system could increase annual energy generation at the Portuguese hydro plant, Alqueva, by 230 percent.\n\"LSA effectively turns a dam into a very large battery, offering free solar storage and opportunity for improved water resource management,\" said Connor. \"If India uses just one percent of its 30,000 square kilometers of captured water with our system, we can generate power equivalent to 15 large coal-fired power stations.\"\nConstruction of the pilot plant in India will commence in August 2011. Sunengy also plans to establish a larger LSA system in Australia's Hunter Valley by mid-2012 before going into full production."}
{"text": "Smartphones have been around for at least several years now, but they still have certain limitations. Despite having a plethora of wireless technologies built-in--Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 3G, etc.--there's no simple way to transfer \"clippings\" of data from one device to another. But a new research project at MIT called Sparsh is aiming to fix that oversight.\nSparsh (the Hindi word for \"touch\") isn't an app, at least not in the way we generally use the word. It's a tool that's supposed to be part of a mobile operating system, like \"undo\" or \"select all,\" running within apps at all times. It creates a virtual cloud-based clipboard where any data, like a phone number or photograph, can temporarily live until it's \"pasted\" to another device.\nFor it to work, at least two devices need to be Sparsh-enabled. A user wanting to share data becomes, in concept, an avatar for a copy-and-paste-like function. The person touches data on a device, such as a photo or text, and Sparsh sends it to the cloud. The same person then touches another device, and presto! The relevant information is pasted in as if it had been copied from the same machine.\nSparsh isn't the only tool for transferring small amounts of device-to-device data on the scene. Indeed, a popular iPhone app called Bump allows people to trade photos, apps, contact info, and even music from one phone to another simply by bumping the devices together.\nBump is very cool, but it requires both the sender and recipient to be running the app. In addition, it's not open with what it can send or where it can send it--it only works from phone to phone, and while there are many options for things it can send, there are more things it simply can't. Sparsh aims to live in the devices we use at the operating-system level, meaning it would seem intuitive to use and be available within any app for almost any type of data. … Read more"}
{"text": "Fuel cells and the electric motor are examples of highly-efficient, electric drive trains. Electric vehicles are expected to one day outstrip sales of combustion engines vehicles. Innovative technologies such as fuel cells, electric motors and electric vehicles will influence our future mobility. The market for electric vehicles boasts the most potential.\nFuel cells, electric motors and electric vehicles are currently experiencing a breakthrough. Fuel cells are being used in new applications such as automobiles or laptop computers. Like electric vehicles, fuel cells are still in the development phase however. The potential is far from being exploited. Because a genuine fuel cell boom is anticipated, mass production is already underway. Like fuel cells, the application potential for electric motors and electric vehicles is still in its infancy stage. The discovery of the relationship between magnetic fields and electricity laid the foundation for the electric motor, and thus the electric vehicle. The electric motor that eventually resulted from this discovery is driven by the Lorentz force, which is the force on an electric charge as it moves through a magnetic field. The development of traditional technologies such as fuel cells and the electric motor has led to a rise in environmentally-friendly electric vehicles. Hybrid vehicles are still dominating the market in the segment for environmentally-friendly automobiles however. Utilizing a combination of combustion and electric motors, hybrid vehicles are slimmed-down versions of the electric vehicle.\nFuel cells are based on the principle of a galvanic process. The composition of a fuel cell is influenced by both electrodes. The fuel cell energy stems from the electrode potential, which is created by the charging of the anode and cathode. The charging results in a potential difference in the fuel cell, which is eventually transformed into electric energy. From its discovery, to today's high-technology status, the fuel cell has experienced an astounding development. Fuel cells are already being used in a variety of applications today. But its impressive career is far from over. Because of their simple operation, the use of fuel cells in electric vehicles represents the market of the future.\nTheelectric motor began as an electromechanical transformer. As the description implies, the electric motor is capable of transforming electricity into mechanical energy. The electric motor functions by transforming its mechanical force into motion. Like fuel cell technology, the electric motor is a popular drive train alternative in electric vehicles. The development of the electric motor as a drive train for electric vehicles is still a work in progress however. The first genuine electric motor was produced as early as 1834. Today, state-of-the-art, innovative technologies are still based on discoveries made by researchers nearly 200 years ago, as illustrated by the examples of the fuel cell, electric motor and electric vehicle.\nWhile electric motors and fuel cells were originally used in industrial machine applications, electric vehicles are the technology of the future. At the beginning of their development, electric motors were initially used in locomotives . At this point, the focus is on the development of roadworthy electric vehicles. The key drivers of modern research into the electric vehicle are the electric motor's high degree of efficiency and low CO2 output, two factors that are behind current efforts to combat energy resource and climate change issues. The major issue is energy storage , which is the why researches are focused primarily on this aspect. For this reason, hybrid model electric vehicles - the combination of electric and combustion motors - are still in their infancy stage.\nAutomotive Engineering highlights issues related to automobile manufacturing - including vehicle parts and accessories - and the environmental impact and safety of automotive products, production facilities and manufacturing processes.\ninnovations-report offers stimulating reports and articles on a variety of topics ranging from automobile fuel cells, hybrid technologies, energy saving vehicles and carbon particle filters to engine and brake technologies, driving safety and assistance systems.\nFraunhofer-Institut für Werkstoffmechanik IWM13.08.2008 | Read more\nThe National Academies21.07.2008 | Read more\nFraunhofer Institute for Information and Data Processing IITB11.07.2008 | Read more\nDu Pont de Nemours (Deutschland) GmbH11.07.2008 | Read more\nUniversity of Portsmouth02.07.2008 | Read more\nDOE/Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory06.06.2008 | Read more\nFraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS04.06.2008 | Read more\nFraunhofer-Institut für Betriebsfestigkeit und Systemzuverlässigkeit LBF09.05.2008 | Read more\nFraunhofer Institute for Open Communication System02.05.2008 | Read more\nDu Pont de Nemours (Deutschland) GmbH09.04.2008 | Read more\nNational Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)04.04.2008 | Read more\nUniversity of Stuttgart17.03.2008 | Read more\nDOE/Argonne National Laboratory26.02.2008 | Read more\nDOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory25.02.2008 | Read more\nDu Pont de Nemours (Deutschland) GmbH20.02.2008 | Read more\nUniversiti Putra Malaysia (UPM)14.02.2008 | Read more\nA fried breakfast food popular in Spain provided the inspiration for the development of doughnut-shaped droplets that may provide scientists with a new approach for studying fundamental issues in physics, mathematics and materials.\nThe doughnut-shaped droplets, a shape known as toroidal, are formed from two dissimilar liquids using a simple rotating stage and an injection needle. About a millimeter in overall size, the droplets are produced individually, their shapes maintained by a surrounding springy material made of polymers.\nDroplets in this toroidal shape made ...\nFrauhofer FEP will present a novel roll-to-roll manufacturing process for high-barriers and functional films for flexible displays at the SID DisplayWeek 2013 in Vancouver – the International showcase for the Display Industry.\nDisplays that are flexible and paper thin at the same time?! What might still seem like science fiction will be a major topic at the SID Display Week 2013 that currently takes place in Vancouver in Canada.\nHigh manufacturing cost and a short lifetime are still a major obstacle on ...\nUniversity of Würzburg physicists have succeeded in creating a new type of laser.\nIts operation principle is completely different from conventional devices, which opens up the possibility of a significantly reduced energy input requirement. The researchers report their work in the current issue of Nature.\nIt also emits light the waves of which are in phase with one another: the polariton laser, developed ...\nInnsbruck physicists led by Rainer Blatt and Peter Zoller experimentally gained a deep insight into the nature of quantum mechanical phase transitions.\nThey are the first scientists that simulated the competition between two rival dynamical processes at a novel type of transition between two quantum mechanical orders. They have published the results of their work in the journal Nature Physics.\n“When water boils, its molecules are released as vapor. We call this ...\nResearchers have shown that, by using global positioning systems (GPS) to measure ground deformation caused by a large underwater earthquake, they can provide accurate warning of the resulting tsunami in just a few minutes after the earthquake onset.\nFor the devastating Japan 2011 event, the team reveals that the analysis of the GPS data and issue of a detailed tsunami alert would have taken no more than three minutes. The results are published on 17 May in Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences, an open access journal of ...\n22.05.2013 | Life Sciences\n22.05.2013 | Ecology, The Environment and Conservation\n22.05.2013 | Earth Sciences\n17.05.2013 | Event News\n15.05.2013 | Event News\n08.05.2013 | Event News"}
{"text": "Located 2,341 feet beneath the surface, in an old iron mine, the lab is deep enough that particle physics experiments see less than 100,000 times the cosmic radiation than on the surface, allowing sensitive searches for exotic particles like neutrinos and dark matter.\nThe MINOS neutrino experiment and the CDMS2 dark matter search are the two largest projects supplemented by several smaller experiments taking advantage of low background radiation to search for dark matter, measure neutron background underground, and assay experimental equipment to ensure radiopurity.\nSummer visitors take tours of the lab and learn about particle astrophysics, and during the school year field trips are popular with Minnesota science classes.\nThe only operational deep underground lab in the US. Space and infrastructure available for a wide range of neutrino, dark matter, and low background counting experiments."}
{"text": "Human nature and the nature of war\nTwenty years ago, Canadian military historian and journalist Gwynne Dyer fascinated the public in 45 countries with his award-winning television series on the nature of war. He followed up that success with an equally remarkable book that grew out of the research that went into the television series. Now Dr. Dyer has published, in his words, \"a completely rewritten and updated new edition\" of War.\nPeople who have never read the book should certainly do so, but should people who read it back in the 1980s reread it? Yes. It cannot be said too often that modern warfare threatens the very existence of human life on this planet.\nDr. Dyer argues that, with the proliferation of nuclear weapons, there is every reason to suppose that sooner or later a country made desperate by its fear of defeat in a conventional war will resort to the ultimate weapon. In so doing, that country has the potential to destroy or contaminate much of the rest of the world. Every adult needs to understand the nature of war, its evolution into an all-engulfing process, why it is so difficult to stop once it has begun, and what our best hopes are for ending war or at least limiting its dangers.\nSeveral important developments have taken place since Dr. Dyer published the first edition. The Cold War has ended, and the United States is now the world's only superpower. However, the author notes that it won't be long before China and India develop into superpowers, and the danger of an all-out war is bound to increase when some powers are in decline while others, hitherto excluded from the inner circle, are coming to the fore. Nuclear proliferation, the development of chemical and bacterial weapons and the spread of ballistic missile technology means that poor nations or even guerrilla groups can now be a threat to world peace. Finally, the U.S. government decision to adopt unilateral measures, bypassing the United Nations and the International Court of Justice, has jeopardized the slow, tentative process of creating a world body that can prevent war or limit its destructiveness.\nNew social developments also played a role in Dr. Dyer's decision to write a new edition of War. Recently published findings on primates and the nature of early man, especially the behaviour of hunter-gatherer societies, have caused him to change some of his views about the nature of modern man. The new research has overturned previous assumptions that early man was an essentially peaceful fellow who respected his environment, and the prospect of changing our ingrained behaviour patterns now appears more difficult and challenging. But, he writes, we have to understand the nature of that beast, man, if we are to avoid the path to extinction. For the moment, extinction seems to be the route we have chosen.\nSeveral chapters shed light on today's situation. One chapter describes how the U.S. Marine Corps trains young recruits to become killers and willingly offer themselves up as cannon fodder. Even mature men, given the right kind of indoctrination, will put themselves in the forefront of battle.\nDespite such pessimistic accounts of how easy it is to train people to do what is irrational, Dr. Dyer argues that human beings do not enjoy the prospect of killing their fellow humans. Humans have a strong egalitarian, democratic streak; if it's allowed expression, we opt for rational solutions to the disputes that inevitably crop up between nations, ethnic groups, religions and clans.\nConsequently, Dr. Dyer believes that spreading democracy is one way of checking the tendency to go to war, since democracies generally do not wage war on other democracies. He argues that those who best understand the problem - diplomats and soldiers - are the ones most likely to see the value of strengthening international bodies like the UN and the International Court at the expense of national sovereignty.\nThe problem is to convince the peoples of the world and the politicians in charge that this is what we must learn to do. The end of the Cold War has given us a temporary reprieve. But if we do not use this opportunity to strengthen the UN, we may not be able to avoid the doom that surely awaits us.\nWar by Gwynne Dyer, Toronto, 2004, 484 pages, $39.95, cloth.\nDr. Benazon is a retired English professor from Champlain Regional College, Quebec."}
{"text": "Safety in the gym begins with the design and equipping of the gym. In order to do everything possible to ensure the safety of gymnasts, certain design concepts must be incorporated into the building and layout or redesign of any gymnastics facility.\nEmergency Response Equipment and System\nWhile we plan to make sure the safety of all gymnasts is so aggressively protected that no serious injury will ever occur, it is a prime responsibility of a gym designer to design and provide an emergency response system. A proper emergency response system will include both emergency response equipment and hardware and safety plans and safety training for all staff.\nEmergency Situations to Plan for and Provide Emergency Response Equipment for\n- Emergencies when the coach is alone in the gym (no other coaches or office staff)\n- Emergencies when no other staff person notices the problem.\n- Emergencies when the coach cannot leave the accident area at all\n- Emergencies in the waiting areas or other parts of the facility other than the gym\nThe concept of clear pathways to emergency exits is a commonly ignored gym design problem. In any emergency, especially in case of fire, clear, quick access to exits is necessary. Clear pathways are also needed to provide easy access to all gym areas for emergency personnel. When gym areas are not separated for age groups, walkways provide safe passage for preschoolers and other young gymnasts through areas where larger, older gymnasts are working out.\nSeparate Cordoned-Off Preschool Areas\nMixing small inexperienced preschoolers with older larger gymnasts in the same areas can be a prescription for accident and injury. Separate areas can still be a problem when preschoolers must travel from preschool area to preschool area but must travel through areas with older larger gymnasts. It is also probably a very good idea to provide separate areas for younger beginner gymnasts as well as preschoolers.\nPits are one of the biggest safety feature innovations in the history of gymnastics and sports training. As a minimum there should be pits available for training bar dismounts and release moves and also vault and tumbling pits. Pits for beam dismounts, p-bar dismounts, ring dismounts should also be available for maximum safety.\nTraining pits should logically be longer and wider than competition matting requirements. Since gymnasts have not yet mastered the skills they are performing, like they would be in competitions, they need a larger margin of safety in the size of the safe landing areas. Gymnasts landing in pits may fall backwards or sideways striking the edge of the pit if the pit is not wide or ling enough.\n8″ Pit Side Mats\nFor the same reasons as above, falls backwards or sideways, the sides of the pit should be fully padded with mats soft enough to really cushion a fall against them. The commonly used inch and a ¼ mats over concrete are not really enough protection.\nType of Pits Must Match Training Style and Systems\nThere are loose foam bungee pits, loose foam pits, bungee resi-pits and resi-pits. It is extremely common for coaches to place 8″ foam or competition mats over loose foam pits for more stable landings as gymnasts progress. Ideally all of those pits would be available for training progressions providing the full range of landing and release move safety progression. If only one pit type is available, it should likely be the softest landing, the loose foam bungee pit. The style of training progressions normally used by the coaches should match the type of pit being used. More gymnast skill and experience is required for safe landings on the harder pit surfaces as opposed to the softer ones.\nUnless gymnasts are training for competitive trampoline competition, it is much safer for all trampolines in the gym to be sunk in the ground with the bed level with the rest of the floor. Then, in case an athlete should fly off of the trampoline, the fall is to a level floor (suitably matted) and not down and additional four and a half feet fall from an above ground trampoline.\nOpen View of Whole Gym for General Supervision Visibility\nAll gyms should have at least one person or more designated with responsibility for general supervision of the gym at all times. General supervision means that someone should be watching the entire gym, not just one class to look for possible dangerous situations, like wandering preschoolers or non-class members, accidents, etc. In order for this to happen the gym must be completely open so that one person can see the whole gym.\nView into Gym from all Offices and other Rooms\nFor the same general supervision reasons as above, ideally all offices and other rooms in the gym should have a view into the gym so as much supervision as possible occurs, including from staff members not in the gym itself. Windows or other openings into the gym from all, or as many as possible, rooms in the building make general supervision of the gym easier and more effective.\nAvailable Hydration and Air Conditioning for Safe Summer Workouts\nIn certain climates or during certain seasons of the year, heat stroke or heat exhaustion are things all coaches should be aware of and taking precautions to prevent. From a design perspective, this means that where applicable, air conditioning should be available in the gym to lessen the possibilities. Equipment or a system should be in place to allow proper hydration for gymnasts. This would show up in gym design by having a sufficient number of water fountains or water sources, spread throughout the gym.\nComplete Matting and Safety Margins\nOne of the most important safety measures for gym design, in terms of gym equipment layout is allowing sufficient space for safe matting and allowing for a sufficient matting margin of error. To us, that means that matting should extend to any and all places that might even possibly need to be padded against a fall from the equipment. Sufficient space for and sufficient matting should always be designed into any gym design.\nFire Control Detection and Suppression System\nConsidering the dangers from the smoke from burning foam and smoke inhalation in general, smoke detectors or a smoke detector system should be a requirement for gymnastics facilities. In addition, because of the flammability of foam, it would be good policy to have a fire detection and suppression system throughout the entire gym.\nYou can learn much more about designing a safer gym in our Secrets to Gymnastics Gym Design e-book."}
{"text": "Office of Environment and Energy\nThe Energy web site describes HUD energy initiatives, policies and how federal government wide energy policies affect HUD programs and assistance.\nHUD faces many challenges when it comes to energy policy. For an overview, see Implementing HUD's Energy Strategy, a report to Congress dated December 2008, that includes a summary of progress toward implementing planned actions .\nFirst, utility bills burden the poor and can cause homelessness. There is a Home Energy Affordability Gap Index based on energy bills for persons below 185 percent of the Federal Poverty Level. The gap was $34.1 billion at 2007/2008 winter heating fuel prices . The burden on the poor is more than four times the average 4 percent others pay.Twenty-six percent of evictions were due to utility cut-offs in St. Paul, MN.\nSecond, HUD programs are affected by energy costs. HUD's own \"energy bill\" - the amount that HUD spends annually on heating, lighting, and cooling its portfolio of public and assisted housing and section 8 vouchers - reached the $5 billion mark in 2007 . Public Housing utilities cost more than $1 billion per year.\nThird, energy costs affect economic development. Importing fuel drains millions of dollars from local economies .\nDatabase of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency (DSIRE)\nInformation on state, local, utility and federal incentives and policies that promote renewable energy and energy efficiency from a database funded by the U.S. Department of Energy.\nEdison Electric Institute’s Electric Company Programs\nInformation on energy efficiency and low-income assistance programs offered by various utilities across the nation.\nHUD’s Public and Indian Housing Environmental and Conservation Clearinghouse\nSources of funding for energy conservation and utility cost reduction activities from HUD’s Public and Indian Housing Environmental Clearinghouse.\nPromoting Energy Star through HUD’s HOME Investment Partnerships Program\nResources for promoting Energy Star through the HOME program.\nAdditional HUD Resources\nUseful documents, publications, and information related to resource conservation in public housing from HUD’s Public and Indian Housing Environmental Clearinghouse.\nEnergy Star For New Construction Assisted By The Home Program\nHUD has worked with EPA to promote the use of ENERGY STAR standards in construction of houses. Here are the results of that production by the HOME Program for Fiscal Year 2009.\nEnergy Star for Grantees\nEnergy Efficiency with CDBG HOME\nEnergy Star Awards for Affordable Housing\nRegional Energy Coordinators reviewed applications for Energy Star Awards for Affordable Housing in 2008, 2009, and 2010.\nHUD CHP Screening Tools\nHUD's 2002 Energy Action Plan committed HUD to promote the use of combined heat and power (cogeneration) (CHP) in housing and community development. HUD developed a Q Guide explaining CHP to building owners and managers. HUD and DOE Oak Ridge National Laboratory then developed a Level 1 feasibility screening software tool to enable them quickly to get a rough estimate of the cost, savings and payback for installing CHP. The Level 1 screening tool requires only monthly utility bills and a little information about the building and its occupants.\nPDF | Download Software | more...\nHUD and ORNL have now produced a Level 2 Combined Heat and Power (CHP) analysis tool for more detailed analysis of the potential for installing combined heat and power (cogeneration) in multifamily buildings. Level 2 works from hourly utility consumption and detailed information about the building and its equipment.\nORNL Level 2 Tool\n\"HUD CHP Guide #3 Introduction to the Level 2 Analysis for Combined Heat and Power in Multifamily Housing\" explains how it was developed and provides links to ORNL for downloading the tool, its Users' Manual and training material. It also provides an exercise to demonstrate how it works. The tool is complex and calls for analysis by those with advanced ability to understand building energy use and simulation.\nGreen Homes and Communities\nThis website has very good energy information, including references to Sustainable Communities, DOE EECBG funding etc.\nEnergy Efficiency in CPD Programs\n - See Table on page 13 for planned actions developed by the Energy Task Force.\n - See Fisher, Sheehan and Colton, On the Brink 2008; The Home Energy Affordability Gap\n - See Table B-1, in \"Implementing HUD's Energy Strategy\"\n - See Energy and Economic Development Phase I | Phase II."}
{"text": "Project looked at massive mobile launch platform, shuttle transporter\nALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - Sandia National Laboratories recently conducted a series of tests to help NASA understand the fatigue on the space shuttle caused during rollout from the Kennedy Space Center assembly building to the launch pad - a four-mile trip.\nThe tests are part of NASA's return-to-flight mission, with the first flight scheduled between May 15 and June 3.\nSandia, a National Nuclear Security Administration laboratory, helped NASA design the test and instrumentation to measure the dynamic vibration environment during rollout. Sandia also computed the input forces the crawler applies to the Mobile Launch Platform (MLP). These computations are being used by Boeing and NASA to determine the fatigue life for critical shuttle components.\nSandia engineer Tom Carne assisted in a series of tests beginning in November 2003 to develop the data necessary to understand the environment and the response of the space shuttle vehicle during rollout.\n\"NASA requested Sandia to assist them in this project because of our expertise in planning and conducting structural dynamic tests on very large structures,\" Carne says.\nSandia's solid mechanics/structural dynamics group has done numerous structural analysis projects on large structures including the I-40 Rio Grande bridge in Albuquerque, large wind turbines up to 110 meters tall, and the Department of Energy's Armored Tractor. One of the group's main missions is analysis and testing of the shock and vibration environments for weapons.\nThe three-million-pound shuttle sits on the eight-million-pound mobile launch platform, which is carried by a six-million-pound crawler. The crawler transports the vehicle and platform four miles from the Vehicle Assembly Building to the launch pad.\nMoving the shuttle that distance, which normally takes five to six hours at 0.9 mph, had been considered a relatively low-stress process during most of the life of the shuttle system. As the equipment ages, however, more emphasis is being given to understanding how the rollout may fatigue the transport system.\nData were collected for rollouts of the MLP-only and the MLP with the two solid rocket boosters, at five different speeds ranging from 0.5 to 0.9 mph. For the tests more than 100 accelerometers were placed on the MLP, crawler, and solid rocket boosters. A data acquisition system installed inside the MLP for the road test measured and recorded the accelerations. The data were analyzed so that the character of the rollout environment is understood and can be analytically imposed on the shuttle using a finite-element computer model to predict fatigue damage to critical components. Even though these stresses are much lower than those seen during the launch, the five- to six-hour duration of the transport and the low-frequency vibration could cause fatigue in components within the orbiter.\nCarne says the rollout analysis team determined that there are two families of forcing harmonics caused by the crawler drive train that vibrate the platform as a function of crawler speed, in addition to the random inputs induced by the road bed. Fortunately, he says, the harmonic forcing frequencies can be adjusted by merely changing the drive speed of the crawler, resulting in less damaging frequencies.\nThe team used a Sandia-developed algorithm, the Sum of Weighted Accelerations Technique (SWAT), to estimate the applied forces. Carne says the SWAT results were beneficial in choosing a new rollout speed that will extend the fatigue life of the shuttle components that were affected by rollout.\nThe SWAT-generated input forces have subsequently been used as the force input for NASA's NASTRAN structural analysis of the mobile launch platform, emulating the test conditions. The correlation between the rollout-measured data and the predictions from the NASTRAN analysis has engendered confidence in both the SWAT-computed forces and the NASTRAN model of the MLP and solid rocket boosters, he says.\nThe analyses showed that the shuttle's vibration response can be much reduced when the driving frequencies are shifted away from the shuttle's own resonant natural frequencies. They helped NASA determine that merely reducing crawler speed from 0.9 mph to 0.8 mph would significantly reduce the vibrations in the shuttle by shifting the impact frequency of the crawler treads.\nSource: Eurekalert & othersLast reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 21 Feb 2009\nPublished on PsychCentral.com. All rights reserved.\nAffirmations are like prescriptions for certain aspects of yourself you want to change.\n-- Jerry Frankhauser"}
{"text": "This coin represent King Eukratides I of Bactria, a land in central Asia (Afghanistan) that was conquered by Alexander. The adoption of the title 'Great King', implying imperial rather than merely royal status, followed some years after Eukratides' consolidation of control over Bactria. He established himself as king of \"the thousand cities of Bactria\" and set out to enlarge his kingdom in all directions. While returning from one of his campaigns, he was killed by one of his sons, who seized the throne. Bactrian coins were made to the Greek Standard, and this is one of the most beautiful coins of the late Hellenistic period. Known for their strongly realistic portraits, this tetradrachm of Eukratides is no exception. He is depicted as a formidable warrior, wearing a cuirass and a bronze helmet over his diadem. His features are individualized, his expression stern. On the reverse, his parents, Heliocles and Laodice, have been memorialized.\nHow many hands have touched a coin in your pocket or your purse? What eras and lands have the coin traversed on its journey into our possession? As we reach into our pockets to pull out some change, we rarely hesitate to think of who touched the coin before us, or where the coin will venture to after us. More than money, coins are a symbol of the state that struck them, of a specific time and place, whether contemporary currencies or artifacts of long forgotten empires. This stunning hand-struck coin reveals an expertise of craftsmanship and intricate sculptural detail that is often lacking in contemporary machine-made currencies. This coin is a memorial an ancient king and his kingdom passed from the hands of civilization to civilization, from generation to generation that still appears as vibrant today as the day it was struck. - (LC.025)"}
{"text": "Robert Bridges, ed. (18441930). The Spirit of Man: An Anthology. 1916.\nFrom Pulvis et umbra\nRobert Louis Stevenson (18501894)\nPOOR1 soul, here for so little, cast among so many hardships, filled with desires so incommensurate and so inconsistent, savagely surrounded, savagely descended, irremediably condemned to prey upon his fellow lives: who shd have blamed him had he been of a piece with his destiny and a being merely barbarous? And we look and behold him instead filled with imperfect virtues: sitting down, amidst his momentary life, to debate of Right and Wrong and the attributes of the Deity .. To touch the heart of his mystery, we find in him the thought of Duty; the thought of something owing to himself, to his neighbour, to his God: an ideal of decency, to which he would rise if it were possible; a limit of shame, below which, if it be possible, he will not stoop .. It matters not where we look, under what climate we observe him, in what stage of society, in what depth of ignorance, burthened with what erroneous morality; by camp-fires in Assiniboia, the snow powdering his shoulders, the wind plucking his blanket, as he sits, passing the ceremonial calumet and uttering his grave opinions like a Roman senator; in ships at sea, a man inured to hardships and vile pleasures; in the slums of cities, moving among indifferent millions to mechanical employments,.. a fool, a thief, the comrade of thieves, even here keeping the point of honour and the touch of pity, often repaying the worlds scorn with service, often standing firm upon a scruple, and at a certain cost rejecting riches:everywhere some virtue cherished or affected, everywhere some decency of thought and carriage, everywhere the ensign of mans ineffectual goodness:ah! if I could show you this! if I could show you these men and women, all the world over, in every stage of history, under every abuse of error, under every circumstance of failure, without hope, without help, without thanks, still obscurely fighting the lost fight of virtue, still clinging, in the brothel or on the scaffold, to some rag of honour, the poor jewel of their souls! They may seek to escape, and yet they cannot; it is not alone their privilege and glory, but their doom; they are condemned to some nobility; all their lives long, the desire of good is at their heels, the implacable hunter .."}
{"text": "Bonding, Sealing and Gasketing\nBonding and sealing equipment for an array of materials, products, markets and end-uses\nBonding is joining two work pieces with a liquid or semi-liquid material to create a long-lasting bond\nAutomotive Hem-Flange Bonding\nBonding solutions for automotive metal\nAdhesive dispensing equipment for structural adhesives\nEquipment solutions for creating a secondary seal on insulating glass.\nAdhesive handling equipment for bonding filter elements into assemblies\nEquipment to create liquid gasketing from beads of two-component silicone or polyurethane\nEquipment to create liquid gasketing from single-component RTV silicone\nRoll coating refers to coating a laminate with an adhesive.\nSealing is the process of closing or securing a part or assembly with a fluid-tight, air-tight adhesive."}
{"text": "Many soldiers fighting in the First World War suffered from trench foot. This was an infection of the feet caused by cold, wet and insanitary conditions. In the trenches men stood for hours on end in waterlogged trenches without being able to remove wet socks or boots. The feet would gradually go numb and the skin would turn red or blue. If untreated, trench foot could turn gangrenous and result in amputation. Trench foot was a particular problem in the early stages of the war. For example, during the winter of 1914-15 over 20,000 men in the British Army were treated for trench foot. Brigadier-General Frank Percy Crozier argued that: \" The fight against the condition known as trench-feet had been incessant and an uphill game.\"\nArthur Savage pointed out that trench foot had serious consequences: \"My memories are of sheer terror and the horror of seeing men sobbing because they had trench foot that had turned gangrenous. They knew they were going to lose a leg.\" Brigadier-General Frank Percy Crozier explained how the officers tried to solve the problem: \"Socks are changed and dried in the line, thigh boots are worn and are dried every four days when we come out.\"\nThe only remedy for trench foot was for the soldiers to dry their feet and change their socks several times a day. By the end of 1915 British soldiers in the trenches had to have three pairs of socks with them and were under orders to change their socks at least twice a day. As well as drying their feet, soldiers were told to cover their feet with a grease made from whale-oil. It has been estimated that a battalion at the front would use ten gallons of whale-oil every day.\nThe trenches were wet and cold and at this time some of them did not have duckboards and dug-outs. The battalion lived in mud and water. Altogether about 200 men were evacuated for trench feet and rheumatism. Gum boots were provided for the troops in the most exposed positions. Trench feet was still a new ailment and the provision of dry socks was vitally important. Part of the trench was reserved for men to go two at a time, at least once a day, and rub each other's feet with grease.\nIf you have never had trench feet described to you. I will tell you. Your feet swell to two or three times their normal size and go completely dead. You could stick a bayonet into them and not feel a thing. If you are fortunate enough not to lose your feet and the swelling begins to go down. It is then that the intolerable, indescribable agony begins. I have heard men cry and even scream with the pain and many had to have their feet and legs amputated.\nMy memories are of sheer terror and the horror of seeing men sobbing because they had trench foot that had turned gangrenous. They knew they were going to lose a leg. Memories of lice in your clothing driving you crazy. Filth and lack of privacy. Of huge rats that showed no fear of you as they stole your food rations. And cold deep wet mud everywhere. And of course, corpses. I'd never seen a dead body before I went to war. But in the trenches the dead are lying all around you. You could be talking to the fellow next to you when suddenly he'd be hit by a sniper and fall dead beside you. And there he's stay for days.\nSome of their feet were horrible to look at: raw skin and bleeding blisters and big, angry sores. Their army boots rarely fitted comfortably. They were made in a few standard sizes, and a man was lucky if he got a pair that was neither too big nor too small. To march all day in them with blistered feet must have been a torment... The men marched like beasts of burden with heavy packs on their backs, rifles and bandoliers of ammunition slung across their shoulders. Sometimes they would break into a marching song to ease the misery, but now and then, as I marched at the head of my platoon, I would hear a clatter behind me and turn to see a man lying prostrate in the road.\nThe sergeants were instructed to prod them and order them to get up. There was always the possibility that the man had decided that he had taken as much as he could bear and had staged his collapse to get out of it. But most of them were genuine - down and out.\nThe fight against the condition known as \"trench-feet\" had been incessant and an uphill game. However, science and discipline had conquered, and now we seldom have a case, and if we do there is trouble. Socks are changed and dried in the line, thigh boots are worn and are dried every four days when we come out. Things are better, but the weather gets worse."}
{"text": "Image: Blazing volcano\n\"This is an erupting volcano, showing the process of releasing lava and smoke. Volcanoes erupt because heat within the Earth melts rocks and creates a substance called magma. Magma rises and pushes through the Earths surface and the volcano erupts. Once out of the volcano, magma is called lava. Volcanoes are one of the landforms of the Earth\"\n- Brix Orolfo, age 12yrs.\n- © Brix Orolfo\nWinner, Geology rocks drawing competition 2011, secondary school category"}
{"text": "Understanding SQL's underlying theory is the best way to guarantee that your SQL code is correct and your database schema is robust and maintainable. On the other hand, if you're not well versed in the theory, you can fall into several traps. In SQL and Relational Theory, author C.J. Date demonstrates how you can apply relational theory directly to your use of SQL. With numerous examples and clear explanations of the reasoning behind them, you'll learn how to deal with common SQL dilemmas, such as:\n- Should database access granted be through views instead of base tables?\n- Nulls in your database are causing you to get wrong answers. Why? What can you do about it?\n- Could you write an SQL query to find employees who have never been in the same department for more than six months at a time?\n- SQL supports \"quantified comparisons,\" but they're better avoided. Why? How do you avoid them?\n- Constraints are crucially important, but most SQL products don't support them properly. What can you do to resolve this situation?\nDatabase theory and practice have evolved since Edgar Codd originally defined the relational model back in 1969. Independent of any SQL products, SQL and Relational Theory draws on decades of research to present the most up-to-date treatment of the material available anywhere. Anyone with a modest to advanced background in SQL will benefit from the many insights in this book."}
{"text": "How will the technology and policy changes now sweeping through the industry affect the architecture of the utility grid? Will America build an increasingly robust transmission infrastructure, or...\nUnforeseen consequences of dedicated renewable energy transmission.\nGrowth in renewable electricity (RE) generation will require major expansion of electricity transmission grids, and in the U.S. this could require building an additional 20,000 miles of transmission over the next decade—double what’s currently planned. To facilitate this, government policymakers are planning to build what are sometimes called “green” transmission lines that are restricted to carrying electricity generated by renewable sources, primarily wind and solar.\nHowever, state and local jurisdictions are resisting siting of transmission unless it serves local constituents and existing power plants. If such transmission is built and local access is allowed, then the major beneficiaries of the added transmission might be existing power generation facilities, especially coal plants. Many of these facilities have very low electricity generating costs and their capacity factors are transmission-constrained. Their access to added transmission lines could enable them to sell electric power at rates against which RE can’t compete.\n20,000 Miles of Wire\nJP Morgan studied a possible federal renewable energy standard (RES) and its impact on the growth rate of RE. 1 We used JP Morgan data to estimate the potential impact of an RES and the transmission required to facilitate it on the existing fleet of power plants. The analysis focused primarily on coal plants because they can increase their capacity factors, whereas U.S. nuclear plants already have capacity factors above 90 percent. Given the location of the coal plants throughout the U.S. and their current capacity factors, we estimated the impact of expanded electricity transmission lines on RE generation and costs and on conventional electricity generation and costs.\nThe locations of the RE central station technologies and their distances from major load centers largely determine the new transmission that will be required. Geothermal will be installed in a small number of Western states, 2 while biomass will be installed primarily in the northern Great Plains, the Pacific Northwest, and perhaps parts of the South. Solar thermal (ST) and photovoltaics (PV) will be installed in some Western and Southwestern states, and wind will be installed primarily in the northern Great Plains.\nThe major load centers are primarily metropolitan areas in the coastal states, the Boston-Washington corridor, the West Coast corridor, and major Midwestern cities. In general, increased transmission capability is desirable, because a robust interstate electric transmission system is in everyone’s interest—consumers, power producers, and governments. An expanded transmission network will allow for power system growth, provide greater flexibility in expanding generation at existing plant sites, and facilitate construction of new generating plants at optimal locations.\nHowever, there’s a mismatch between RE resources and load centers: Most of the best RE sites are west of the Mississippi river, but most of the load centers are east of the river or on the West Coast. Even West Coast load centers are far from the best RE sites. We estimated how much new transmission needs to be built to"}
{"text": "05-11-2009 / Fluvirin – Fighting Against Influenza\n04-30-2009 / Fluzone For Children\n04-14-2009 / Flu Vaccines And Protein Chemistry\n04-10-2009 / X Ray, Viral Structure And Flu Vaccines.\n04-07-2009 / The History Of Influenza\n04-06-2009 / Flu Vaccine Contamination And Quality Control\n03-22-2009 / Egg Allergies And Flu Vaccines\n03-12-2009 / Australian Discovery May Improve Existing Vaccines\n03-06-2009 / How Humidity Affects Flu Outbreaks\n03-05-2009 / Preservative-Free Flu Shots\n03-04-2009 / Flu Strains Developing Resistance to Tamiflu\n03-03-2009 / The History Of Influenza\n02-23-2009 / Preservative-Free Flu Vaccines\nEgg Allergies And Flu Vaccines\nThe majority of flu vaccines are made using processes that employ fertilized hen eggs. This process of manufacturing causes the vaccines to pick up small amounts of egg proteins. Even the nasal mist flu vaccine has as much or more egg protein as the injectable variety.\nFor most people, this is no problem. The majority of us pick up hundreds of times more egg protein from our diet than in a flu shot. Even excluding the obvious source, eggs, we get exposed to egg proteins from baked goods or foods processed with eggs on a regular basis. But there is a small, yet real section of the population that has an allergy to eggs. For those individuals, the flu shot can be a serious problem.\nThis is not a matter of one manufacturer against another: the fertilized hen's egg method is used throughout the vaccine industry. There are some different vaccine development methods on the horizon, however, that will use bacteria that have been genetically engineered to make flu vaccines. But until that day, the egg method and the egg protein in flu vaccines are here to stay.\nThe amount of egg protein varies from one vaccine manufacturer to another. If you are concerned about allergic reactions, you should talk with your doctor and request a vaccine with the least egg protein available. A skin test to determine whether or not you will have an allergic reaction to the vaccine is a good idea before getting a flu shot. If it is determined that you can have the vaccine, the best course of action is not to leave the medical facility for at least 30 minutes afterwards, so that the staff can observe you and respond promptly to any distress that you may have.\nIf your allergies are too severe for vaccination, there’s still a way to minimize the effects of the vaccine. You can have the vaccine administered in small doses over a period of time, instead of getting the full dose in one sitting. This, of course, should also take place under close medical supervision. In the cases of the most severe egg allergies, it will probably be safer to not have the vaccine at all and take antiviral medications if you are exposed to or catch the flu.\nSign Up For Your"}
{"text": "June 1st 1584\nPerth's HammermenThe Hammermen’s Incorporation of Perth embraced a whole collection of crafts including silversmiths, goldsmiths, clocksmiths and watchmakers, gunsmiths, locksmiths, blacksmiths and others. At the head of the organisation was the Deacon who was responsible, not only for the testing and quality of the articles made by the various crafts, but also for such matters as the employment of apprentices and the times and places of public selling. He had the authority to punish either by fines or in extreme cases by expulsion.\nAnother important member was the boxmaster or treasurer who had responsibility for ‘Saint Eloyis Box’, a wooden chest which contained money, valuables and securities of all kinds. As a rich and powerful organisation, the Hammermen were able to safeguard the interests of their group and also to provide welfare and education for the widows and orphans of their former members. This was considered to be an important aspect of their work.\nFrom 1584 all transactions and business transacted by the Hammermen were recorded in the Hammermen’s Book. The book itself was provided by “William Lauder, burgess of Perth, as maister joynit with the Craft of the Hammermen as buik binder and pearchment maker.” From 1589, the Hammermen had their own seats in the gallery of St John’s Kirk.\nThere are few records of the early work of silversmiths or goldsmiths and the unsettled political conditions of the time were not conducive to the production of fine silverware. It was not until the late 18th Century that there was something of a boom in the trade. Even so it continued to be strictly functional, plain communion cups, plain spoons and teapots with the minimum of decoration.\nIt was early in the 19th Century before more ornate work appeared. This came in particular from Robert Keay the elder and his nephew Robert Keay the younger who between them carried on business for sixty five years, until 1865. Other well known names were John Pringle, John Hogg, Charles Murray, John Scott, Charles Sheddon and David Greig the elder. But already there were two factors which between them were to kill the craft of silversmithing in Perth. In 1836 an Act was passed requiring all silver to be essayed in Glasgow or Edinburgh. This had the effect of concentrating production in these cities. Then by 1850 the new cheaper process of electro-plating took over much of the cheaper end of the market.\nPerhaps the last successful Perth silversmith was David MacGregor who was active from 1860 until his death in 1908."}
{"text": "Author:Inam Abidi Amrohvi\n“The tyrant dies and his rule ends, the martyr dies and his rule begins.” — Soren Kierkegard\nThe straight path or the right path is always the most difficult one to travel but one that rewards the most, and so we are told when young. This battle of good versus the evil is an age old phenomenon. Every religion has some story or the other to show us the ‘right’ path from the ‘wrong’ one.Hinduism celebrates the victory of Lord Krishna over the demon Narakasura (among other stories) as Diwali, Christians remember the crucification of Jesus Christ as a supreme sacrifice in the way of God, and so do Muslims observe Moharram (the month in which the tragedy of Karbala took place) to commemorate the supreme sacrifice of Imam Husain, the grandson of the Prophet [PBUH].\n“Think not of those who are slain in Allah’s way as dead. Nay, they live, finding their sustenance in the presence of their Lord.”—Surah Aal-e-Imran (Chapter 3), Verse 169\nThe tragedy of Karbala took place some 49 years after the death of Prophet Mohammad [PBUH] in 61 Hijri (AD 680).\nThe Events Leading Up To Karbala\nThe Muslim Caliphate briefly came to Imam Hasan (elder grandson of the Prophet [PBUH]) after the martydom of Ali bin Abi Talib (son-in-law of the Prophet [PBUH] and the Fourth Caliph of Islam). Sensing a possible split in the Muslim empire Hasan entered into a peace treaty with Amir Mu’awiyah, the son of Abu Sufyan and father of Yazid.\n“Hasan agreed to relinquish all authority to Mu’awiyah in exchange for an agreement not to harm any of the supporters of Ali, and to govern by the book of God and the examples of the Prophet. This he would do by letter and by word, explaining to the congregation in the Kufa mosque that he had ceded his right to rule ‘for the best interest of the community and for the sake of sparing blood’. Mu’awiyah acknowledged that ‘the reign would belong to Hasan after him’ (though this would soon be quietly forgotten) and that to avoid all future strife the next Caliph was to be decided by a formal council.”\n—The Heirs of the Prophet Muhammad and the roots of the Sunni-Shia Schism, Barnaby Rogerson\nAll the first four Caliphs had first been acclaimed by the people of Medina but this right and duty had now been brushed aside in favour of the courtiers at Damascus. The solemn pledge to hold a ’shura’ was broken. None of the previous Caliphs had thought to impose their own sons on the community, and had looked beyond the narrow loyalties of a family, towards their brother in faith. When Mu’awiyah died, Yazid was acclaimed as the Caliph. It marked the decisive emergence of dynastic monarchy triumphing over the religion of God.\nThe moment Yazid came to power he started demanding the oath of allegiance (bay’ah) from everyone using unfair means. Paying allegiance was an old Arab practice which was carried out in important matters such as that of rulership and authority. Those who were ruled, and specially the well known among them, would give their hand in allegiance, agreement and obedience to their king or the one in authority and in this way would show their whole-hearted support for his actions without any opposition to him. The approach of Yazid was proof enough of the kind of Muslim he was. He showed complete disregard for the tenets of Islam.\n*Ibne Aseer (A renowned historian Allamah Ali bin Abil Karam more famous as Ibne Aseer Jazari) in his Tareekhe Kamil has this to say for Yazid, “Yazid was notorious and well known for his love of numerous musical instruments, passion for hunting and play with young boys, dogs, monkeys, etc. Every morning he rose still drunk. His monkeys and young boys wore gold caps. If a monkey died, he spent a considerable time in mourning it.”\n“Traditions inform us that Yazeed loved worldly vices, would drink, listen to music, kept the company of boys with no facial hair, played drums, kept dogs, making frogs, bears and monkeys fight. Every morning he used be intoxicated and use to bind monkey with the saddle of a horse and make the horse run.”\n—Al Bidayah Wal Nihayah, Ibn Kathir\nYazid’s message was delivered to Imam Husain as well but he said a firm no. Acknowledging Yazid’s authority by the Prophet’s [PBUH] grandson at this point would have meant confirmation of his evil deeds and Caliphate. For Yazid, Husain’s seal of approval was the one most needed.\n*Abul Hasan Ali bin Husain Mas’oodi in his Muroojuz Zahab wa ma’adinul Jawahir reported, “Whoever accepted the slavery of Yazid by swearing fealty at his hands was spared, otherwise he was subjugated. Thus the meaning of allegiance to Yazid was not merely the acceptance of a new caliph, but it meant to sell one’s Religion and faith in slavery to a tyrant.”\nThe Kufans urged Husain in Medina to ride north and lead them against the usurpation of the Islamic world by Yazid, and to reclaim his rightful place as the head of the Muslim nation. Husain, encouraged by the chief men of Medina, decided to respond and rode out of the oasis to assume the leadership of the true army of Islam. But not a soul left the garrison city to join him on the desert trail. The Kufans too would betray him! When Husain settled at a land devoid of water or vegetation named Karbala (‘Karb’ in Arabic means grief and ‘bala’ is for trials) he had just 72 loyal soldiers with him.\nBattle For Truth\nThe battle of Karbala finds great similarity with the one at Badr – Islam’s first battle. It was the holy Prophet [PBUH] at Badr who fought with 313 die-hard supporters against a formidable army of some 1000 men. That day against all odds the small group won a decisive victory, and paved the way for a future Muslim empire. 56 years later it was his grandson with just 72 loyal men, who fought against an impossible opposition of several thousands to save Islam from the clutches of tyranny.\nKarbala was a battle of truth against falsehood, humanity against villainy, righteousness against evil, justice against corruption. The much loved grandson of the Prophet [PBUH] stood in the scorching heat of Karbala along with his companions, devoid of water but determined. His loved ones, including his six month old son, fell martyr one after the other. In spite of this he repeatedly invited the other party towards righteousness and forbade them from evil and immorality, but it all fell on deaf ears. When the time arrived for him to march ahead all alone, he did it in a fashion which was reminiscent of his illustrious father Ali.\nOne of those who fought the battle of Karbala against him says, “I have never seen a person bereaved of his sons, menfolk and his companions more Lion-hearted than him. The foot soldiers were scattering to his right and left like goats when a wolf come upon them.” —–Ibne Aseer, Tareekh Kamil\nHusain fell in the desert of Karbala on that fateful Friday, the 10th of Moharram 61H. Worse was to follow. The bodies of the martyrs including the Imam were not only refused a proper burial but were trampled under the horses’ hooves and were left for the birds. The Kufan army looted the belongings of Husain. Imam’s family including his women-folk and tender children were humiliated and taken captives after burning down their camps. The women were paraded with uncovered heads. It wasn’t Islam!\n“If Hussain fought to quench his worldly desires, then I do not understand why his sisters, wives and children accompanied him. It stands to reason therefore that he sacrificed purely for Islam.” —Charles Dickens\nThe severed heads of the martyrs including Husain were raised on spears. How Yazid played with Husain’s head and the emotions of Imam’s family is a well documented fact. Karbala to this day remains a heart-wrenching story of exemplary courage and bravery to uphold the real principles of Islam.\n“In a distant age and climate, the tragic scene of the death of Husain will awaken the sympathy of the coldest reader.”—Edward Gibbon\nAbdullah Yusuf Ali, the famous English translator of Qurán, has beautifully summed up the whole essence of this epic battle.\nThere is of course the physical suffering in martyrdom, and all sorrow and suffering claim our sympathy, —- the dearest, purest, most outflowing sympathy that we can give. But there is a greater suffering than physical suffering. That is when a valiant soul seems to stand against the world; when the noblest motives are reviled and mocked; when truth seems to suffer an eclipse. It may even seem that the martyr has but to say a word of compliance, do a little deed of non-resistance; and much sorrow and suffering would be saved; and the insidious whisper comes: “Truth after all can never die.” That is perfectly true. Abstract truth can never die. It is independent of man’s cognition. But the whole battle is for man’s keeping hold of truth and righteousness. And that can only be done by the highest examples of man’s conduct – spiritual striving and suffering enduring firmness of faith and purpose, patience and courage where ordinary mortals would give in or be cowed down, the sacrifice of ordinary motives to supreme truth in scorn of consequence. The martyr bears witness, and the witness redeems what would otherwise be called failure. It so happened with Husain. For all were touched by the story of his martyrdom, and it gave the deathblow to the politics of Damascus and all it stood for.\nLessons From Karbala\nKarbala stands for courage, self-sacrifice, integrity, honesty, vision, and bravery beyond words. It symbolises all that is pure and true. Karbala teaches us that real battles are always fought in the minds and not on ground. Yazid was powerful and yet he lost the battle for truth.\n“I learned from Hussain how to be wronged and be a winner.” —Mahatma Gandhi\nAlso, being in the majority need not necessarily make you right.\n“The best lesson which we get from the tragedy of Karbala is that Hussain and his companions were the rigid believers of God. They illustrated that numerical superiority does not count when it comes to truth and falsehood. The victory of Hussain despite his minority marvels me! —Thomas Carlyle\nAs the old adage goes, “Nothing lasts for ever.” Husain and his followers made sure that their martyrdom gave a fatal blow to Yazid’s oppressive rule. Karbala haunted Yazid till his eventual death two years later.\n“Imam Husayn uprooted despotism forever till the Day of Resurrection. He watered the dry garden of freedom with the surging wave of his blood, and indeed he awakened the sleeping Muslim nation. Husayn weltered in blood and dust for the sake of truth. Verily he, therefore, became the bed-rock (foundation) of the Muslim creed; la ilaha illa Allah (There is no god but Allah).”—Sir Muhammad Iqbal\nIt also teaches us to be patient and stand up against any form of wrong treatment. We curse Yazid and his army for their inhuman treatment of people, yet the cruel treatment of captives by the so called jihadis meets little protest. Muslims must recognize and protest against the savagery of inhuman treatment at all times, no matter who does it and where it takes place.\n“If a man kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell, to abide therein (For ever): And the wrath and the curse of Allah are upon him, and a dreadful penalty is prepared for him.”— Surah An-Nisa (Chapter 4), Verse 93\nThe best homage that we can pay to the great tragedy is to do some soul-searching. Do we have the right to be called the followers of the Prophet [PBUH]? Have we really understood the message of Imam Husain? Are the tears for Husain drawn merely by the scenes of mere butchery? Would we ever stand up to the false narrations of the events at Karbala by some maulanas to generate excessive grief? Was Karbala a political war or a struggle for true faith? Are we ready to shed aside our differences and respect each others’ view during our religious discourses during Moharram?\nAnd when we finally have all the answers then we would understand the real message of Karbala.\n“Shah ast Hussain, Badshah ast Hussain,\nDeen ast Hussain, Deen e Panah ast Hussain,\nSar dad, na dad dast, dar dast-e-yazeed,\nHaqaa key binaey La ila ast Hussain”\n“It’s Hussain the Prince, it’s Hussain the king,\nHe is Faith, and Faith’s Defender most daring,\nHe preferred death to Yazid’s allegiance,\nWith his blood, Islam has verily been living.”\n—Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti"}
{"text": "A mobile phone user outside a mobile payment facility in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.\nour goal: to alleviate poverty by expanding access to digitally-based financial tools and services.\nAt A Glance\nIncreasing poor people’s access to financial services can help them weather personal financial crises and increase their chances of climbing out of poverty.\nAbout 80 percent of the world’s poor adults do not have a bank account or use other formal financial services—not only because of poverty but also due to costs, travel distance, and other barriers.\nOur strategy aims to capitalize on rapid advances in mobile communications and digital payment systems to connect poor households to affordable and reliable financial tools.\nOur Financial Services for the Poor strategy, updated in 2012, is led by Rodger Voorhies, director, and is part of the foundation’s Global Development Division.\nPoor people do not live in a static state of poverty. Every year, many millions of people transition out of poverty by successfully adopting new farming technologies, investing in new business opportunities, or finding new jobs. At the same time, large numbers of people fall back into poverty due to health problems, financial setbacks, and other shocks. If available at critical moments, effective tools for savings, payment, credit, and insurance can help households capture an opportunity to climb out of poverty or weather a crisis or emergency without falling deeper into poverty.\nWorldwide, approximately 2.5 billion people do not have a formal account at a financial institution, according to the World Bank’s Global Financial Inclusion Database. As a result, most poor households operate almost entirely in the cash economy, particularly in the developing world. This means they use cash, physical assets (such as jewelry and livestock), or informal providers (such as money lenders and payment couriers) to meet their financial needs—from receiving wages to saving money for fertilizer. However, these informal mechanisms tend to be insecure, expensive, and complicated to use. And they offer limited recourse when major problems arise, such as a serious illness in the family.\nA growing body of evidence suggests that increasing poor people’s access to better financial tools can help accelerate the rate at which they move out of poverty and help them hold on to economic gains. However, it is costly to serve poor people with financial services, in part because most of their transactions are conducted in cash. Storing, transporting, and processing cash is expensive for banks, insurance companies, utility companies, and other institutions, and they pass on those costs to customers.\nA foundation-supported initiative allows Rwandan farmers to access markets for their beans and maize using mobile phones.\nIn wealthier countries, people conduct most of their financial activities in digital form, and value is stored virtually and transferred instantaneously. The global revolution in mobile communications, along with rapid advances in digital payment systems, is creating opportunities to connect poor households to affordable and reliable financial tools through mobile phones and other digital interfaces.\nIn fact, research has shown that the most effective way to significantly expand poor people’s access to formal financial services is through digital means. In addition to cost savings, digital financial services offer a wide array of benefits:\n- They connect poor people to the formal financial sector and enable them to become customers and suppliers within the wider economy.\n- Financial flows can be accurately tracked, resulting in safer and speedier transactions and less corruption and theft.\n- Providers can use financial histories to develop products that are better suited to customers’ needs, cash flow, and risk profiles, including fee-for-service offerings and smaller-unit transactions.\n- Direct deposits (including wages and government assistance) allow money to “bypass” the home, helping users save rather than spend and often giving women more financial authority within the family.\n- Automatic reminders, positive default options, and other choices offered via mobile phone menus offer convenience and save time.\nThe Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Financial Services for the Poor program aims to play a catalytic role in broadening the reach of digital payment systems, particularly in poor and rural areas, and expanding the range of services available on these platforms. Until the infrastructure and customer base are well established, this might involve a combination of mobile banking services that are accessible via cell phones and brick-and-mortar stores where subscribers can convert cash they earn into digital money (and vice-versa).\nOur approach has three mutually reinforcing objectives:\n- Reducing the amount of time and money that poor people must spend to conduct financial transactions\n- Increasing poor people’s capacity to weather financial shocks and capture income-generating opportunities\n- Generating economy-wide efficiencies by digitally connecting large numbers of poor people to one another, financial services providers, government services, and businesses\nA tea vendor in Uttar Pradesh, India, checks her bank balance on her mobile phone.\nWe are not focused on a particular product or distribution channel, but rather on innovative ways to expand access and encourage markets. At the same time, we are aware that interventions in this and other areas too often involve technologies that are made available to the intended users but are not adopted. To address this demand-side challenge, we are supporting research and product design experiments to identify design features, price incentives, and marketing messages that will encourage poor people to adopt and actively use digital financial services. We are also supporting policymakers as they work to develop policies and regulations that facilitate these developments.\nWe believe that the combined effect of these interventions will accelerate the rate at which poor people transition out of poverty and decrease the rate at which they fall back into poverty. Our strategy also recognizes that countries are at different stages in developing an inclusive digital financial system and that we must tailor our interventions accordingly.\nAreas of Focus\nOur work falls into four areas:\nDigital payment systems\nIn countries with a minimum level of connectivity in poor and rural areas, we work with in-country providers to extend the reach of digital payment systems into those communities and encourage poor people to adopt these systems through a mobile phone or other digital interface. Payment systems are crucial because they enable people to collect payments from customers, buy goods, pay for water and electricity, and send money to friends, family, and business partners. They also enable governments to collect taxes and disburse social payments. When these transactions are costly and inconvenient, economic activity is impeded.\nDigital financial services\nIn countries where digital payment systems have taken hold in poor and rural communities, we work with banks, insurance companies, and other providers to increase the range of financial services that people can access in digital form. Many of these services are designed to meet the specific household management needs of low-income people, particularly smallholder farmers and women.\nWe work at the global level with governments, donors, financial standards-setting bodies, and the private sector to maximize our collective impact on poor people’s access to financial services.\nResearch and innovation\nWe collect data to measure the impact of our grants and interventions and to help key stakeholders make better decisions. We also conduct research and nurture innovations that could lead to longer-term improvements in delivering digital financial services on a broad scale."}
{"text": "A new carbon cycle model developed by researchers in Europe indicates that global carbon emissions must start dropping by no later than 2015 to prevent the planet from tipping into dangerous climate instability.\nThe finding is likely to put new pressure on the world’s top two carbon emitters — China and the US — both of which were widely blamed for failure to reach a binding global accord on carbon reductions in Copenhagen last December. Furthermore, the non-binding outcome of Copenhagen has global carbon emissions peaking in 2020 — five years too late, according to the latest model.\nThe model, developed by researchers at Germany’s Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, suggests the world’s annual carbon emissions can reach no more than 10 billion tonnes in five years’ time before they must be put on a steady downward path. After that, the researchers say, emissions must drop by 56 per cent by mid-century and need to approach zero by 2100.\nThose targets are necessary to prevent average global temperatures from rising by more than 2 degrees C by 2100. Under that scenario, though, further warming can still be expected for years to come afterward.\n“It will take centuries for the global climate system to stabilise,” says Erich Roeckner, a researcher at the Max Planck Institute.\nThe new model is the first to pinpoint the extent to which global carbon emissions must be cut to prevent dangerous climate change. Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide have risen by 35 per cent, to around 390 parts per million today. Stabilising the climate will require concentrations to climb to no higher than 450 parts per million.\n“What’s new about this research is that we have integrated the carbon cycle into our model to obtain the emissions data,” Roeckner says."}
{"text": "Conservation work completed on one of Glasgow’s most historic buildings\n27 February 2013\nGlasgow Cathedral has recently received £30,000 worth of conservation work by Historic Scotland to repair the damage inflicted by last year’s gales.\nDespite being the only medieval cathedral on the Scottish mainland to have survived the 1560 Reformation virtually complete, the weathercock and spike on top of the landmark did not escape last year’s merciless strong winds unscathed.\nThe spike of the church was no longer vertical due to corrosion and a closer examination of the weathercock showed damage to some of the rivets with the tail being completely blown off. A further structural inspection also found an area of the steeple was in need of re-pointing.\nOverseeing the conservation work was Historic Scotland's District Architect, Ian Lambie. While the conservation itself was a fairly simple task, it was made more complex by the height of the building and the narrow conditions.\nIan Lambie said: “The only way of accessing the spire head was by climbing up inside the steeple using steep narrow ladders and squeezing and crawling through small windows at the apex. Making repairs at this sort of height has its challenges but it's always worth it for the view!”\nNow that the necessary repairs are complete, the weathercock should be able to withstand the worst of the wind and the re-pointing should hold for at least another ten years.\nNotes for editors:\nHistoric Scotland around the web:\n- Historic Scotland is an executive agency of the Scottish Government charged with safeguarding the nation’s historic environment. The agency is fully accountable to Scottish Ministers and through them to the Scottish Parliament."}
{"text": "Essentials oils have been used throughout history medicinally and as Fragrance, and interest has revived over the past several years with an increase in the popularity of aromatherapy. Natural essential oils stimulate our mind and body, promote circulation and support skin cell function, and contain fungicidal and anti-bacterial properties making them a valuable component in beauty and health products. In fact tea tree oil for example, is the strongest known antibiotic in the world.\nWhat are Essential Oils?\nEssential oils are concentrated oils extracted from fruit, flowers, leaves, and stems of plants. These fragrant oils help plants to attract insects and protect them against harmful organisms.\nEach plant's oil carries a distinctive scent (or essence) with unique properties from the plant, flower, or fruit from which they are derived. Some, like Lavender and rose, are used to soothe and calm. Other essential oils are more invigorating — basil and rosemary — and used to boost energy and bring about mental clarity.\nHow are Essential Oils Produced?\nEssential oils are generally produced via two main methods of extraction; steam distillation and cold-pressing. During steam distillation, oil is released from the plant. Oil and water then separate providing the plant's essential oil, called hydrosol or floral water. Lavender, peppermint, and eucalyptus oils are obtained through distillation.\nMost citrus oils are produced using the cold-press method of extraction. The rinds are ground down and pressed mechanically, releasing a mixture of oil and liquid.\nUse in Cosmetics\nMany natural cosmetics manufacturers use a blend of natural essential oils to compose their individual product fragrances, Lavera included. These oils are a much safer alternative to synthetic Fragrance, which have been linked to skin irritation, headaches, and even birth defects.\nEssential oils are also used as a preservative method in cosmetics. We utilize a blend of 18 essential oils and vitamins to preserve our products and prevent bacterial growth. As a result, Lavera products have a 2-3 year shelf life from date of manufacture, without the use of Parabens and other synthetic preservatives.\nConcerns Over Safety\nSome essential oils, like citrus peel extracts, are very effective insecticides and considered to be of low toxicity to mammals. While these oils may be detrimental to the safety of insects and small mammals, the doses used are much higher than those used in cosmetic products, and the subject is much smaller than a human. Essential oils are highly concentrated and should not be applied directly to the skin, but diluted with a base oil, like Jojoba or Sweet Almond. Essential oils should be avoided in high concentrations and not ingested unless prescribed by a health practitioner.\nEssential Oils Used in Lavera Products\nThe essential oils used in Lavera products are 100% natural and pharmaceutical-grade. Our essential oil blend used to impart the Lavera scent is listed on Lavera labels as \"Fragrance (Parfum)\" with a footnote stating that only natural essential oils are used, never synthetic fragrance. For more information on fragrance labeling in cosmetics please read The Dirty Dozen on our blog.\nThe primary essential oils used in Lavera products for preservation are:\n- Citral — found in Lemon Oil, Orange Oil, Lemon-Grass Oil and Bergamot Oil\n- Citronellol – found in Geranium Oil, Muscatel Sage, Sandalwood and Citronella Oil\n- Eugenol – found in Clove Oil\n- Coumarin – found in Sweet grass and sweet clover\n- Geraniol – found in Rose Oil, Geranium Oil, Palmarosa Oil, Lavender Oil and Ylang-Ylang Oil\n- Limonene – found in Lemon Oil, Orange Oil, Grapefruit Oil, Bergamot Oil, Fennel Oil and Lavender Oil\n- Linalool – found in Lavender Oil, Bergamot Oil, Geranium Oil and Ylang-Ylang Oil\nEach of these natural essential oils is used in Lavera products at a range of 0.1% or less to ensure safety and gentleness. These are safe levels of essential oils that not only provide our natural and unique aroma blends, but keep our products fresh and help to prevent harmful bacterial growth. A much healthier alternative to products with synthetic fragrance and preservatives.\nNatural essential oils, when used properly, are a safe and effective means of conveying fragrance in a cosmetic product, as well as ensuring the product’s safety."}
{"text": "Early Detection is Key in the Fight Against Ovarian Cancer\nNorthwestern Memorial experts urge women to recognize warning signs; receive appropriate screenings\nOvarian cancer is a rare but often deadly disease that can strike at any time in a woman’s life. It affects one in 70 women and in the past was referred to as a silent killer, but researchers have found that there are symptoms associated with ovarian cancer that can assist in early detection. Experts at Northwestern Memorial say the best defense is to make use of preventive methods, understand the risks and recognize potential warning signs of ovarian cancer.\n“Currently, there is no reliable screening test to identify early ovarian cancer. Women need to focus on good health habits, listen to their bodies and tell their doctor if a change occurs,” said Diljeet Singh, MD, gynecological oncologist and co-director of the Ovarian Cancer Early Detection and Prevention Program at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.\nCatching ovarian cancer early increases five-year survival odds from 30 percent to more than 90 percent. But the symptoms of ovarian cancer often mimic other less dangerous conditions making it difficult to recognize. Singh says women should be aware of possible early warning signs which include:\n• Pelvic or abdominal pain\n• Difficulty eating or feeling full quickly\n• Urinary symptoms (urgency or frequency)\n• Increased abdominal size (pants getting tighter around waist)\nSingh comments that the frequency and number of symptoms is important and women who experience a combination of these symptoms almost daily for two to three weeks should see their doctor.\nDoctors say it is not clear what causes ovarian cancer but there are factors that increase the odds of developing the disease including carrying a mutation of the BRCA gene, having a personal history of breast cancer or a family history of ovarian cancer, being over the age of 45 or if a woman is obese. If a woman is high-risk, doctors recommend screening begin at age 20 to 25, or five to 10 years earlier than the youngest age of diagnosis in the family. In addition, there are genetic tests available that can identify women who are at a substantially increased risk.\nWhile ovarian cancer is difficult to detect, specialized centers such as the Northwestern Ovarian Cancer Early Detection and Prevention Program, a collaborative effort between the hospital and the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Centerof Northwestern University, have strategies for monitoring women at risk. Patients are monitored with physical examinations, ultrasound and blood tests every six months. “The goals of the program are to help women understand their personal risks and what they can do to decrease their risk, to help develop methods of early detection and prevention and to identify women who would benefit from preventive surgery,” said Singh, also an associate professor at the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and member of the Lurie Cancer Center.\nStudies have shown there are ways to reduce the risk of developing the disease. Women who use birth control pills for at least five years are three-times less likely to develop ovarian cancer. In addition, permanent forms of birth control such as tubal ligation have been found to reduce the risk of ovarian cancer by 50 percent. In cases where women have an extensive family history of breast or ovarian cancer, or who carry altered versions of the BRCA genes, may receive a recommendation to remove the ovaries and fallopian tubes which lowers the risk of ovarian cancer by more than 95 percent.\n“Eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, getting regular exercise, maintaining a normal body weight and managing stresses are all ways women can help decrease their risk of ovarian cancer,” added Singh.\nTreatment for ovarian cancer usually begins with surgery to determine if the cancer has spread. Doctors at Northwestern Memorial also use a form of chemotherapy called intraperitoneal chemotherapy, which is injected directly into the abdominal cavity and has been linked to a 15-month improvement in survival.\n“The best scenario would be to prevent this cancer entirely but until that day comes women need to focus on good health behaviors, listen to their bodies and know their family history” stated Singh.\nFor more information please call 312-926-0779.\nJennifer Monasteri, Manager"}
{"text": "A large-scale screen in Drosophila cells has shown how RNA interference can provide insights into the pathways controlling cell morphology.\nWhen thinking of genetic screens in Drosophila, the Nobel-prize-winning screens for embryonic developmental phenotypes spring to mind. Loss-of-function mutational analysis has proved to be a powerful approach for dissecting complex processes such as morphogenesis and wing development. But historically the fruitfly community has focused much less on the study of cells in culture. All that may now be about to change. In this issue of Journal of Biology , Amy Kiger and colleagues describe the results of a powerful strategy for conducting high-throughput systematic loss-of-function screens in Drosophila tissue-culture cells (see 'The bottom line' box for a summary of the work).\nPicking apart signaling pathways\nThe study was led by Norbert Perrimon, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator who runs a Drosophila laboratory at Harvard Medical School in Boston, USA. Perrimon has focused his lab on developing large-scale genetic screens to dissect signal transduction pathways by analysis of mutant phenotypes. The Perrimon lab has a collection of hundreds of mutants with interesting developmental defects, each one waiting for a creative postdoc to track down the gene and work out what it does. \"One can assume that genes with similar phenotypes are related and act in the same pathways,\" says Perrimon. This approach had allowed the lab to define groups of mutants, which have then been used to dissect conserved signal transduction pathways, such as those involving the Wnt family of intercellular signaling molecules and the Jak-Stat intracellular signal transducers.\nCompletion of the Drosophila melanogaster genome-sequencing project three years ago  encouraged the fly community to explore new approaches. \"Now we had 16,000 pieces of the puzzle, and working out what they each did was going to be an enormous challenge,\" says Perrimon. When RNA-interference (RNAi) technology appeared on the scene as a new way of inactivating genes whose sequence is known (see the 'Background' box), it seemed an appealing way to speed up the task of dissecting complex genetic pathways: genes could be systematically inactivated and loss-of-function phenotypes studied on a large scale. But applying the RNAi approach - which had worked so spectacularly in Caenorhabditis elegans [3,4] - to Drosophila proved not to be so straightforward, and early attempts at injecting interfering RNAs into embryos were plagued by technical problems and inconsistent results. It was not until Jack Dixon's group at the University of California in San Diego showed that gene silencing by RNAi works well in fly cells in culture  that the stage was set for a screen on the scale that fly geneticists are used to.\n\"The cell biology community has a real 'nuts and bolts' view of the way that nature works,\" says Buzz Baum, who was a postdoctoral fellow in the Perrimon group. \"Lots of cell biologists were beginning to use RNAi [when we began this work], but they still hadn't learnt to think as geneticists. What I wanted to do when I joined Norbert's lab was to take genetics to cell biology.\" So, he and Amy Kiger began to set up the methodologies for a large-scale screen. \"We began exploring ways in which RNAi in cell culture could be used in a much more far-reaching way,\" recalls Amy Kiger, a postdoc in the Perrimon lab and lead author on the study.\nScreening for cell morphology\n\"We needed to set up a pilot screen to work out the methodologies,\" says Perrimon. \"We were interested in genes involved in morphogenesis, so we decided to focus on changes in cell morphology and genes that regulate the cytoskeleton.\" They hoped that some of the genes identified would be on the same pathways as those that they had already studied in flies. The Perrimon group was fortunate to be surrounded by a number of laboratories with experience of cell-based screening and robotic technologies, including automated microscopes.\n\"The thing that can be difficult about taking an assay to high throughput is that the way that the cells and microscopes behave can be quite different when you scale up,\" says Baum, who now runs his own laboratory at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research in London, UK. \"The most important thing was finding cell lines where we could study the sort of things that we were interested in. We had to learn quite a bit about fly cell culture. We got cell lines from all over the world and tested them with thirty-odd RNAs. We got all these specific cellular phenotypes - it was really quite magical!\" They selected two hemocyte cell lines for the screen; these were chosen because of their different shapes - Kc167 cells are small and round, whereas the S2R+ cells are large, flat and strongly adherent (Figure 1). It seemed likely that defining the sets of genes that generated the cell shape in these two cell lines would give clues about basic cell morphology and fly morphogenesis.\nPerrimon and colleagues then scaled up operations by constructing a library of double-stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) representing around a thousand genes that could be used as a 'tool kit' for exploring cell morphology phenotypes; the kit included genes thought to be involved in regulating the cytoskeleton, such as putative GTPases and kinases. The library of dsRNAs was introduced into cells in 384-well optical-bottom plates, to allow image-based screening. The team recorded all visible changes three days after introduction of the RNA, using automated microscopy. Around 16% of the genes gave visible phenotypes in at least one of the two cell lines.\nThe group then had to work out a formalized process for dealing with all the information that came out of the screen. After familiarizing themselves with the range of phenotypes that appeared, they developed a system of 'phenotypic annotation' to record the effects of silencing each one of hundreds of genes, starting out by defining seven major phenotypic categories on the basis of defects in actin filaments, microtubules, DNA, cell shape, cell size, cell number and cell viability. Each class was then further subdivided into a number of categories that describe specific morphological attributes; for example, changes in cell shape were categorized using descriptions such as round or flat, retracted, bipolar, spiky or stretchy. Obviously these phenotypes overlap in many cases, so that the effects of each RNAi can be defined in terms of its phenotypic profile. Christophe Antoniewski, at the Institut Jacques Monod in Paris, notes that \"the use of a 'phenotype matrix' provides an opportunity for statistical analysis of the results using clustering approaches on qualitative traits instead of quantitative traits.\" As with all genetic screens, genes with similar profiles might be expected to participate in common morphogenetic functions. For example, RNA specific for the Rho1 GTPase and the Pebble Rho-GTP exchange factor, as well as for an uncharacterized predicted kinase (CG10522), all generated enlarged, multinucleated cells, reflecting defects in cytokinesis; Kiger et al. suggest that CG10522 may be a novel effector, downstream of Rho1 and with a role in cytokinesis.\nThe most commonly seen phenotypes were changes in actin organization and cell shape. Several of the genes identified are thought to limit the rate of formation of filamentous (F) actin and encode proteins with F-actin capping functions. Some of these regulators seemed to play similar roles in both the adherent or non-adherent fly cell lines. But by comparing the adherent S2R+ cells with the round Kc167 cells, Kiger et al. were able to study genes involved in maintaining a particular (round or flat) cell shape. They expected to identify a set of genes that were differently expressed in the two cell lines and were responsible for their distinct morphologies. Indeed, they found that 78% of the morphological RNAi phenotypes were seen in only one of the cell types. For example, dsRNAs targeting genes involved in actin filament formation caused Kc167 cells to flatten, whereas dsRNAs for genes involved in cell-matrix adhesion functions caused S2R+ cells to round up and detach. Analysis of the levels of expression of the integrin adhesion receptors, which are known to mediate cell-matrix adhesion, showed that they are not expressed at lower levels in Kc167 cells, although the expression of the cytoskeletal component talin was significantly lower. The authors conclude that both integrin-mediated adhesion and reorganization of the cortical F-actin network are necessary to determine cell spreading.\nThe Perrimon group was very satisfied to see how successfully this pilot screen worked. Having established the 'proof of principle' they have now scaled up to perform whole-genome screens in Drosophila cells in culture (see the 'Behind the scenes' box for more on the development of the work). \"It's really changing completely the way we do science,\" says Perrimon enthusiastically. \"Everything now comes down to the assays that we design. You can be as imaginative as you want. We need to do more and more screens and to compile databases of annotated information so that we can build correlations between components of different pathways. The long-term experiment is to see how much of the complexity in the cell can actually be reduced by finding these kinds of correlations.\"\nOthers in the field agree. \"It's exciting to see RNAi technology in cultured cells being adapted to a high-throughput format and being used to screen for genes involved in cell morphogenesis and cytoskeletal function,\" says Matthew Welch, a cell biologist working at the University of California, Berkeley. \"Although the classical genetic approach has been used very successfully for many years to study cell morphogenesis in yeast and other organisms, the ability to systematically silence a large number of genes in cultured animal cells using RNAi has brought this approach to new systems and will help answer outstanding questions in new ways.\" And Antoniewski concurs. \"This type of approach is fascinating because it actually combines both 'forward' and 'reverse' genetics in a single screen. Kiger et al. have coupled systematic knock-down technology to a phenotypic screen, so systematic 'reverse genetics' is guided by the functional assay. This is new and important.\" Baum predicts that deciphering the meaning of such large datasets will probably require new ways of thinking and the help of mathematicians and physicists. These approaches are being incorporated into the broad field of 'systems biology'.\nTo help the application of this technology throughout the fly and cell biology communities, Perrimon and collaborators have set up the Drosophila RNAi Screening Center (DRSC) , to make the relatively expensive and sophisticated technology accessible to all interested researchers; it also has the advantage of permitting valuable functional comparisons across many studies and the creation of an information database with a standardized format. The DRSC is currently performing screens for cell growth and viability and is accepting applications for potential collaborative screens. \"We may need many different assays to dissect a single pathway,\" says Perrimon. He is interested in any proposal with a good cell-based assay. The Center is able to perform a whole-genome screen in just one week. But at a cost of US$10,000 per screen the DRSC will be carefully selecting screens with a high chance of success.\nThe cell biology community is keen to use the RNAi approach to probe basic questions about cell functions. \"This type of approach, like classical genetics, is very flexible and can be applied to a wide range of cellular processes,\" says Welch. \"What's also exciting is that open access to information from large-scale efforts like this one will be extremely useful for other researchers interested in a range of issues, from the function of their favorite gene or protein to more global issues of how gene function is integrated and coordinated during complex processes like cell morphogenesis.\" And as Antoniewski points out, \"in a third of cases, an RNAi phenotype identified a previously uncharacterized gene that lacked a corresponding mutant allele in Drosophila. This is extremely important, because it shows that RNAi screens can identify new functions that could not have been identified by classical genetics using mutagenesis.\" An additional aspect of the potential for this type of approach is highlighted by Kiger. \"Now that large-scale reverse-genetic or 'functional genomic' approaches are possible in yeast, worms and fly cells, it is interesting to consider how we might eventually be able to make functional comparisons across species that could shed light on common (or contrasting) cellular mechanisms throughout evolution.\"\nOther groups are using RNAi technology in a more focused way to tackle biological questions. Ronald Vale's group at the University of California in San Francisco has used RNAi targeting specific gene families to investigate cytoskeletal function in Drosophila S2 cells. They targeted dynein and all 25 Drosophila kinesins to investigate the role of molecular motors during mitosis , and also identified sets of genes important for regulating actin dynamics during lamella formation . Rogers et al.  suggest, \"If proper cues are provided to these cells, cell migration and cell polarity may be amenable to investigation as well.\" A combination of genome-wide screens and studies focused on specific gene families will be needed to identify and then characterize components of the specific pathways involved in complex cellular processes. It will also be interesting to apply the tricks of the classic geneticists' trade, such as screens for modifiers and suppressors.\n\"I think the power of the RNAi screens will come when we combine RNAi screening data with data from other sources, like genomic sequence, microarray data, proteomic data, and so on,\" adds Baum. \"This opens up the possibility of real systems biology: generating a more global understanding of the logical circuitry that underlies cell behavior. This approach is going to have a big impact - because I think that a lot of the apparent complexity in cell biology is a product of over-expression studies, and loss-of-function data can clarify some of these situations.\"\n\"And then we will have to go back to the fly,\" says Perrimon. \"The next step will be to take what we have learned from the cell-based assays and validate them in vivo, either using defined existing mutations or by trying to generate them using classical methods or a promising gene-knockout methodology. Or we can also express [RNA] hairpins, which basically give an in vivo RNAi effect.\" Many of the lessons learnt by classical fly genetics have subsequently been confirmed and explored further in cellular systems. Now it looks as though researchers can begin by doing genetics in cells and then return to the whole fly to investigate further.\nGonczy P, Echeverri G, Oegema K, Coulson A, Jones SJ, Copley RR, Duperon J, Oegema J, Brehm M, Cassin E, et al.: Functional genomic analysis of cell division in C. elegans using RNAi of genes on chromosome III."}
{"text": "Problem 367Published on Saturday, 14th January 2012, 10:00 pm; Solved by 247\nBozo sort, not to be confused with the slightly less efficient bogo sort, consists out of checking if the input sequence is sorted and if not swapping randomly two elements. This is repeated until eventually the sequence is sorted.\nIf we consider all permutations of the first 4 natural numbers as input the expectation value of the number of swaps, averaged over all 4! input sequences is 24.75.\nThe already sorted sequence takes 0 steps.\nIn this problem we consider the following variant on bozo sort.\nIf the sequence is not in order we pick three elements at random and shuffle these three elements randomly.\nAll 3!=6 permutations of those three elements are equally likely.\nThe already sorted sequence will take 0 steps.\nIf we consider all permutations of the first 4 natural numbers as input the expectation value of the number of shuffles, averaged over all 4! input sequences is 27.5.\nConsider as input sequences the permutations of the first 11 natural numbers.\nAveraged over all 11! input sequences, what is the expected number of shuffles this sorting algorithm will perform?\nGive your answer rounded to the nearest integer."}
{"text": "This book provides readers with an overview of how Americans have commemorated and remembered the Civil War.\nThe Civil War was one of the most divisive, dramatic, and deadly events in the course of American history. It involved not just northerners and southerners, but whites and blacks, women and men, and the elites, and the lower class. Not surprisingly, the ways in which this conflict is remembered and commemorated varies widely.\nMost Americans are aware of statues or other outdoor art dedicated to the memory of the Civil War. Indeed, the erection of Civil War monuments permanently changed the landscape of U.S. public parks and cemeteries by the turn of the century. But monuments are only one way that the Civil War is memorialized.\nThis book describes the different ways in which Americans have publicly remembered their Civil War, from the immediate postwar era to the early 21st century. Each chapter covers a specific historical period. Within each chapter, the author highlights important individuals, groups, and social factors, helping readers to understand the process of memory. The author further notes the conflicting tensions between disparate groups as they sought to commemorate \"their\" war. An epilogue examines the present-day memory of the war and current debates and controversies.\n• Presents events related to the commemoration of public memory of the Civil War chronologically, from 1865 to the present\n• Illustrated with photographs of monuments, individuals, and events related to commemoration activities, as well as selected political cartoons related to Civil War memory from popular publications\n• Bibliography includes both primary and secondary sources on the subject of Civil War memory\n• Provides readers with a broad overview of an extremely popular topic in Civil War history in an easy-to-read, narrative form\n• Summarizes the most recent scholarship on the subject into one volume\n• Provides both in-depth critical analyses and clear summaries of the key themes\n• The role of memory in shaping historical consciousness is a timely scholarly topic"}
{"text": "NSAIDs include both prescription and over-the-counter medication. They are often used to relieve pain or reduce inflammation from conditions such as arthritis. However, NSAIDs can make your body retain fluid and decrease the function of your kidneys. This may cause your blood pressure to rise even higher, putting greater stress on your heart and kidneys.\nCommon NSAIDs that can raise blood pressure include:\nYou may also find NSAIDs in over-the-counter medication for other health problems. Cold medicine, for example, often contains NSAIDs. It's a good idea whenever you purchase an over-the-counter drug to check the label for NSAIDs. Ask your doctor if any NSAID is okay for you to use. Your doctor may be able to recommend alternatives, such as using acetaminophen instead of ibuprofen.\nCough and Cold Medications\nMany cough and cold medications contain NSAIDs to relieve pain. As mentioned above, NSAIDs may increase your blood pressure. Cough and cold medications also frequently contain decongestants. Decongestants can make blood pressure worse in two ways:\nDecongestants may make your blood pressure and heart rate rise.\nDecongestants may prevent your blood pressure medication from working properly.\nPseudoephedrine (Sudafed) is a specific decongestant that can increase blood pressure.\nWhat can you do? Avoid using cough and cold medicine that contains NSAIDs or decongestants, especially pseudoephedrine. Ask your doctor for suggestions about other ways to ease congestion symptoms such as antihistamines or nasal sprays which should minimize cardiovascular effects.\nMigraine Headache Medications\nSome migraine medications work by tightening blood vessels in your head. This relieves migraine pain. However, they also constrict blood vessels throughout your body. This makes your blood pressure rise, perhaps to dangerous levels.\nIf you have high blood pressure or any other type of heart disease, talk with your doctor before taking a drug for migraines or severe headaches.\nWeight Loss Drugs\nSome weight loss drugs may make heart disease worse:\nAppetite suppressants tend to \"rev\" up your body. This can make blood pressure rise and put more stress on your heart.\nBefore using any weight loss drug, whether prescription or over-the-counter, be sure to check with your doctor. These medications can be useful for weight loss but may do you more harm than good.\nMore Tips for Avoiding Medication Problems\nBe sure any medications you choose to use are safe for people who have high blood pressure. These suggestions can help:\nGive a list of ALL the medications you use, both prescription and over-the-counter, to every doctor you visit.\nRead medication labels before buying over-the-counter products. Make sure the medicine doesn't contain ingredients that could make your high blood pressure worse, such as NSAIDs or decongestants.\nTalk to your doctor before using any over-the-counter medication, herbal preparation, vitamins, or other nutritional supplements. Ask for alternatives to potentially harmful medicines."}
{"text": "Profile: In the late 1600s, King Louis XIV of France brought Breton and Norman horses to the region of North America now known as Canada. They are believed to be the ancestors of the modern Canadian Horse, which still possesses traits similar to the Arabian, Andalusian and Barb bloodlines that the Breton and Norman horses also displayed. These French horses bred with little interference for hundreds of years, and the resulting breed became known as the Canadian Horse, or Cheval Canadien. Met with harsh weather and sparse food supplies, the Canadian Horse became a sturdy animal and remains hardy today. In the mid-1800s, the Canadian Horse could be found in Canada and the United States, and was crossbred to improve the strength of other breeds. The Morgan, Tennessee Walking Horse, Standardbred and American Saddlebred are said to trace back to the Canadian Horse. Canadian Horses were exported to southern Africa for the Boer War, to work on sugar plantations in the West Indies, and for the Civil War in America. With this exportation and the introduction of machinery replacing horse power, the Canadian Horse nearly became extinct. The first studbook was produced in 1886 by a group of concerned enthusiasts, and the Canadian Horse Breeders Association was formed in 1895. Today, the breed is still listed as critical by the American Livestock Conservancy. Characteristics: The Canadian Horse has a beautifully arched neck with a long, flowing mane and tail. Its head is refined with a short forehead and small throatlatch. The chest is deep and the back is short and strong. Long, sloping shoulders and broad hindquarters give way to muscular legs with clean joints and bone structure."}
{"text": "Animal bites and scratches, even when they are minor, can become infected and spread bacteria to other parts of the body. Whether the bite is from a family pet or an animal in the wild, scratches and bites can carry disease. Cat scratches, for example, even from a kitten can carry \"cat scratch disease,\" a bacterial infection. Other animals can transmit rabies and tetanus. Bites that break the skin are even more likely to become infected.\nFor superficial bites from a familiar household pet who is immunized and in good health:\nFor deeper bites or puncture wounds from any animal, or for any bite from a strange animal:\nCall your doctor or other health care provider for any flu-like symptoms, such as a fever, headache, malaise, decreased appetite, or swollen glands following an animal bite.\nRabies is a viral infection of certain warm-blooded animals and is caused by a virus in the Rhabdoviridae family. It attacks the nervous system and, once symptoms develop, it is 100 percent fatal in animals, if left untreated.\nIn North America, rabies occurs primarily in skunks, raccoons, foxes, coyotes, and bats. In some areas, these wild animals infect domestic cats, dogs, and livestock. In the U.S., cats are more likely than dogs to be rabid.\nIndividual states maintain information about animals that may carry rabies. It is best to check for region specific information if you are unsure about a specific animal and have been bitten.\nTravelers to developing countries, where vaccination of domestic animals is not routine, should talk with their health care provider about getting the rabies vaccine before traveling.\nThe rabies virus enters the body through a cut or scratch, or through mucous membranes (such as the lining of the mouth and eyes), and travels to the central nervous system. Once the infection is established in the brain, the virus travels down the nerves from the brain and multiplies in different organs.\nThe salivary glands are most important in the spread of rabies from one animal to another. When an infected animal bites another animal, the rabies virus is transmitted through the infected animal's saliva. Scratches by claws of rabid animals are also dangerous because these animals lick their claws.\nThe incubation in humans from the time of exposure to the onset of illness can range anywhere from five days to more than a year, although the average incubation period is about two months. The following are the most common symptoms of rabies. However, each individual may experience symptoms differently. Symptoms may include:\nRabies: Stage 1\nRabies: Stage 2\nThe symptoms of rabies may resemble other conditions or medical problems. Always consult your doctor for a diagnosis.\nIn animals, the direct fluorescent antibody test (dFA) performed on brain tissue is most frequently used to detect rabies. Within a few hours, diagnostic laboratories can determine whether an animal is rabid and provide this information to medical professionals. These results may save a person from undergoing treatment if the animal is not rabid.\nIn humans, a number of tests are necessary to confirm or rule out rabies, as no single test can be used to rule out the disease with certainty. Tests are performed on samples of serum, saliva, and spinal fluid. Skin biopsies may also be taken from the nape of the neck.\nUnfortunately, there is no known, effective treatment for rabies once symptoms of the disease occur. However, there are effective new vaccines (HDCV, PCEC) that provide immunity to rabies when administered soon after an exposure. It may also be used for protection before an exposure occurs, for persons such as veterinarians and animal handlers.\nBeing safe around animals, even your own pets, can help reduce the risk of animal bites. Some general guidelines for avoiding animal bites and rabies include the following:\nIf you or someone you know is bitten by an animal, remember these facts to report to your health care provider:\nClick here to view the\nOnline Resources of Non-Traumatic Emergencies"}
{"text": "Want to stay on top of all the space news? Follow @universetoday on Twitter\nWhen astronauts return to the moon for long duration missions, they will need reliable sources of power. Solar energy will be plentiful for the 14 Earth-day- long lunar daytime, but what about the equally as long lunar night? NASA engineers are exploring the possibility of nuclear fission to provide the necessary power. If you’re having visions of a Three Mile Island nuclear reactor on the moon, put your fears to rest. A nuclear reactor used in space is much different than Earth-based systems, says Lee Mason of the NASA Glenn Research Center, who is the principal investigator for testing a fission powered system for the moon. There are no large concrete cooling towers, and the reactor is about the size of an office trash can. Of course, it won’t produce as much energy as the big reactors on Earth, but it should be more than adequate for the projected power needs of a lunar outpost.\n“Our goal is to build a technology demonstration unit with all the major components of a fission surface power system and conduct non-nuclear, integrated system testing in a ground-based space simulation facility,” said Mason. “Our long-term goal is to demonstrate technical readiness early in the next decade, when NASA is expected to decide on the type of power system to be used on the lunar surface.”\nA fission surface power system on the moon has the potential to generate a steady 40 kilowatts of electric power, enough for about eight houses on Earth. It works by splitting uranium atoms in a reactor to generate heat that then is converted into electric power. The fission surface power system can produce large amounts of power in harsh environments, like those on the surface of the moon or Mars, because it does not rely on sunlight. The primary components of fission surface power systems are a heat source, power conversion, heat rejection and power conditioning, and distribution.\nGlenn recently contracted for the design and analysis of two different types of advanced power conversion units as an early step in the development of a full system-level technology demonstration. These power conversion units are necessary to process the heat produced by the nuclear reactor and efficiently convert it to electrical power.\nTwo different companies have designed concepts that can produce a total of 12 kilowatts of power. One uses piston engines and the other a high speed turbine coupled with a rotary alternator.\n“Development and testing of the power conversion unit will be a key factor in demonstrating the readiness of fission surface power technology and provide NASA with viable and cost-effective options for nuclear power on the moon and Mars,” said Don Palac, manager of Glenn’s Fission Surface Power Project.\nA contractor will be selected after a year of design and analysis. Testing of the non-nuclear system is expected to take place in 2012 or 2013 to verify the performance and safety of the systems and determine if these systems can easily be used on the moon, or even on Mars."}
{"text": "for National Geographic News\nTo swat a fly can be a lesson in futility. The insect darts from each swipe with uncanny precision, altering its course to zip off in nearly the opposite direction.\nPrecisely how a fly achieves its aerial acrobatics is more than a curiosity of annoyance for Michael Dickinson, a bioengineer at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. Dickinson has built an entire research lab, not to mention professional career, seeking an answer to just how a fly's brain controls its muscles in precision flight.\n\"An interest in the brain led to an interest in flight and aerodynamics,\" said Dickinson. \"I've spent a lot of time with folks in the lab trying to figure out the basic aerodynamics of insect flight.\"\nTogether with Steven Fry, a biologist at the University of Zurich in Switzerland, and Rosalyn Sayaman, a research assistant also at the California Institute of Technology, Dickinson determined how common fruit flies use their wings to make 90-degree turns at speeds faster than a blink of the human eye, let alone the swoosh of a swatter.\nThe researchers discovered that the mechanics of how flies execute such turns were contrary to what they initially believed.\nTo turn, a flying creature must generate enough twisting force, or torque, to offset two forces working against itthe inertia of its own body (think forward motion on a bicycle, once you stop pedaling) and the viscous friction of the air, which for small insects is thought to be like syrup.\nScientists had long assumed that the viscosity of the air, and not inertia, was the greater force for insects such as flies to overcome. Inertia, they believed, was primarily the bane of larger animals like birds.\n\"No one challenged the notion because there was no indication that it might be different,\" said Fry. \"The results actually proved the opposite.\"\nThe research team found that fruit flies make subtle changes in the tilt of their wings relative to the ground and the size of each wing flap to generate the forces that allow them to turn. Flies then create an opposite twisting force with their wings to stop the inertia of the turn, preventing an out of control spin.\nThis finding, say the researchers, indicates that inertia, and not friction, is the greater force for the fruit fly to overcome in the turn.\nRon Fearing, an electrical engineer at the University of California at Berkeley who is developing a tiny robotic insect capable of autonomous flight, said that the research team has \"shown a quite surprising result, in that very subtle changes in wing motion are responsible for rapid maneuvers.\"\nThe Fly Tests\nSOURCES AND RELATED WEB SITES"}
{"text": "Statement of Purpose\nTHE CIVIL WAR CENTER\nThe Civil War was arguably the most important event in the history of the United States. The conflict fundamentally altered the relationship of the states to the federal government, freed four million slaves, and changed the socio-economic development of the nation. Few states were affected more by this tumultuous period than Georgia. Georgia furnished substantial natural resources, manpower, and political and military leadership to the Southern Republic’s war effort. Important figures such as Vice President of the Confederacy Alexander Stephens, General William J. Hardee, and General James Longstreet led the way in the South’s fight for its independence. Critical battles at Dalton, Resaca, Dallas, New Hope Church, and Kennesaw Mountain were fought only a short distance from our own Kennesaw State University. Georgia’s society – men and women, white and black, slave and free – experienced change on a scale never witnessed before or since. However, despite Georgia’s key role in the war, no research center exists in the state where scholars, students, and interested citizens can go to find out about Georgia’s experience in the nation’s greatest calamity.\nThe Civil War historian in Kennesaw State University’s Department of History and Philosophy recognized this void and secured the support of the College of Humanities and Social Science to begin developing the Center. After nearly a year of planning and designing, the Civil War Center became a functioning unit within the college. Thus, the mission and purpose of the Center is clear: compile and organize key resources and help educate the public on all aspects of the South's role in the Civil War period.\nNo other event in American history affected the development of the United States more than the Civil War. The Civil War era is defined broadly to include primarily the nineteenth century, yet events before and after are related to the war as well. The nineteenth century witnessed dramatic social, economic, and political changes that reshaped American life and culture. While the Civil War is central to the experience, the decades before and after contain the seeds and bitter harvest of the national ordeal. The Center will, therefore, include resources on the causes, course, and repercussions of the war within the historic South. This region encompasses the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.\nTo summarize, then, the Civil War Center is committed to the following:\nWHY KENNESAW STATE UNIVERSITY IS AN\nThe Atlanta area is an ideal location to house such a center because of its transportation networks, historic sites, and the abounding enthusiasm the Civil War generates among the citizens of the state and region. First and foremost an educational repository, the Civil War Center will offer the following advantages to instructors and students in the area:\nKENNESAW STATE UNIVERSITY’S ROLE\nKennesaw State University is the third largest university out of thirty-five institutions in the University System of Georgia. It supports a growing student population of approximately 20,000 from 132 countries. KSU lies in the center of an area replete with key resources, events, and expertise with which to study Georgia's and the historic South's role in the Civil War. Critical battles at Dalton, Resaca, Dallas, New Hope Church, and Kennesaw Mountain were fought only a short distance from our own KSU, making the university a logical site to house the Civil War Center. Enthusiasm for the period abounds among the citizens of the area, and KSU's proximity to Atlanta, the Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, nearby historic Civil War sites, and interstate access will no doubt attract visitors from across the state, region, and country.\nThe Center will, in both the present and future, enhance KSU's reputation through the following:\nKSU and the College of Humanities and Social Science are committed to supporting the Center through funding from the capital campaign, staffing as needed and budget allows, purchasing of equipment and other materials, and housing for the collection.\nCreated in 2006, the Center has already generated a flurry of interest and excitement in the area. Fundraising efforts are gaining momentum, and the archival collections are growing rapidly. In its brief tenure, the Center has made great strides in perpetuating its mission to educate the public on the importance of the Civil War to the nation's history."}
{"text": "- Digital Resources\nPositive Health Information\nPattern number within this pattern set:74\nHealth information in the developed world exists in vast quantities, not only for the general public but also for health professionals. Much of this information depicts good health in terms of vigilance against the failings of our own bodies. This serves to create dependency on a high tech, commodity health system.\nThe style of language and the content of information are very important in how information makes people perceive the world. Authors in many fields have noted patterns of communication that create distrust and enforce dependency by emphasizing danger from external, uncontrollable forces. If people have a sense of helplessness in the face of this threat, they do not act upon their own feelings and perceptions.\nNegative language has the effect of emphasizing threats, magnifying fears, and creating dependency. Reminding people of their mortality tends to make them hold more closely to traditional culture (Pyszczynski, Solomon, & Greenberg, 2003); this has implications for mental health, and can also be used to influence mass opinion and behavior. A recent example is the US administrations use of language to create fear and mistrust among the public by creating the specter of a constant external threat (Brooks, 2003).\nMuch health information, especially advertising from hospital corporations and pharmaceutical companies, uses this technique. A paternalistic (doctor knows best) and commodity-driven medical system produces an endless stream of information that encourages the perception that natural processes, such as growing older or pregnancy, are fraught with danger. This inhibits the spread of health information that is not based on the treatments that this system has to offer.\nLanguage may not only be negative; it can also be empty (Brooks, 2003); complex issues are broken down into broad statements with little meaning. In health care information, this pattern of communication places the cause of ill health on the individual. The complexity of individuals relationships to the world they live in and the effects on individual health of pollution, poverty, and unhealthy social norms and values are ignored. People come to construe healthy behavior in terms of dependency on a medical industry that constantly invents not only new cures, but new diseases for the cures it already possesses (Blech, 2006).\nEmpty language is like empty calories. It tastes good and you can eat a lot of it, but you dont obtain much benefit. A great deal of health information tempts us to feel that we are well-informed. We are bombarded by advertising and public health campaigns that do little more than create mistrust of the inherent healthy processes we possess. To reduce complex health issues to taking a pill ignores peoples emotional needs and the complex connection between body and mind; instead it emphasizes the negative aspects of their health.\nThe use of estrogen replacement in post-menopausal women illustrates this. Estrogen replacement was pushed on women as a way if combating the problems of growing old such as osteoporosis, heart disease, memory loss and drying skin. The unspoken message was that there was something wrong with growing old that taking medication could correct it. Preventative approaches, that emphasized a lifetime of healthy behaviors and the inherent correctness of aging, were ignored.\nIn pattern 47, Health Center, Alexander et al. (1977) describe a medical system that emphasizes sickness over health. By contrast, they show the Pioneer Health Center in Peckham, an experiment from the 1930s, as an example of medical care that focuses on health instead of sickness. In the same manner, health information must distinguish between healing and medicine. We need to hear messages of what is right with us and what needs to be done to stay in touch with the inherent health of our bodies.\nMany alternative health practices, such as yoga, polarity treatment, or acupuncture focus on the inherent healthiness of the body. In these practices, the underlying concept is on healing, the natural process by which the body repairs itself. The rise of alternatives to conventional medicine reflects, in part, the lack of substance people feel from the information they receive after a visit to a doctor. Health-related discussion forums, that include both lay and professional perspectives but avoid the disease-mongering (Marshall & Aldhous, 2006) influence of industry funding, offer a way to make sense of information from various health related sources without falling victim to negative language and information; people put information into the context of everyday life and validate positive perceptions of themselves. This type of information has substance to it, not only because it is active rather than passive; it has the positive effect of engaging people in independent, creative thinking.\nHealth information should emphasize the idea that people are inherently healthy. It must inspire trust in the bodys ability to heal itself, once a healthy path has been taken. Where information of this kind is insufficient, either create it or supplant it with participant-controlled interactive forums.\nVerbiage for pattern card:\nHealth information in the developed world often depicts health in terms of vigilance against external, uncontrollable forces. This fosters distrust and dependency on a high-tech, commodity health system. Positive Health Information is built on the fact that people are inherently healthy. It inspires trust in the body's ability to heal itself, once a healthy path has been taken."}
{"text": "Twas on the thirty-first of May,\nIn eighteen sixty-two,\nThe rebels met our Union force,\nTo see what they could do.\nMcClellan was near Richmond then,\nThat nasty rebels den,\nWhere whites the gentlemen are crowned,\nWhere Negroes are not men.\nThey met and fought with iron will\nEach eager to obtain\nThe mend that every solider loves—\nThe victor’s glorious name.\nThe cannon sent her iron hall,\nThe market, showers of lead,\nWhich filled the air with dying groans,\nAnd strewed the field with dead\nThe Ninety-Second stood firm in front,\nIn Palmer’s bold brigade,\nUntil in “Dixie’s land” they had\nSome scores of widows made.\nBut when they saw they were out-flanked,\nThey wheeled about and fled,\nWhile many of our Northern braves\nWere numbered with the dead\nThe double guide our soldiers took,\nSoon left me far behind—\nThat aimble step I could not take,\nAlthough so well inclined.\nThe rebels came with savage yells,\nA Yankee they had found,\nWith curses bid me “face about,”\nAnd march away to town.\nThey marched me down with many more,\nThrough mud and mire to town,\nAnd there with bars and prisons walls,\nYours honor did surround.\nThey [?] tobacco with in those walls,\nIn times of peace and trace,\nBut now the bedbugs and the lice\nHold nightly dress parades.\nThey gave us rations twice each day,\nBut nothing for our beds,\nWith fleas and bedbugs without number\nGently crawling round our heads.\nOur morning rations were of bread,\nA slice of sinking meat,\nWhich hunger made us soon devour,\nAnd ever lasted sweet.\nAt night we had a little soup,\nSome water bolled with peas,\nAnd then we took our prison beds,\nTo dream of lice and fleas.\nWe were confined three days and nights\nWithin those iron bars,\nWhen, oh! the welcome news then came,\nTo get abound the cars.\nThey marched us through their nasty streets,\nThat all the crowd might see,\nThe “hiding Yankees” from the North,\nThat in than land run free.\nThe crowd was dense on either side,\nComposed of whites and blacks,\nWhile many shouted in the crowd,\nTo shoot them in their tracks.\nWe traveled all this days and night,\nOppressed by dust and heat;\nWe got some muddy water,\nBut nothing for to eat.\nAt length each man face crackers got,\nAll counted our with care,\nAnd this they thought a liberal thing,\nConsidering who we were.\nAgain we traveled all day and night,\nAs we had the day before,\nWith nothing for our rations,\nWhile our seats were getting sore.\nAgain our scanty breakfast came;\nFive crackers as before,\nAnd this thought a heavy draft\nOn old Jeff’s three years store.\nThis morning found us all within\nThe north Carolina state,\nWith Salisbury’s prison walls ahead,\nWhere we could read our face,\nWe found Carolina on the fence,\nA leg on either side;\nShe says it’s Southern fashion\nFor ladies so to ride.\nShe sends her troops to help the North,\nThen Northern Prisoners keep;\nBut vengeance sure is on her track,\nAnd Vengeance never sleeps.\nOur prison walls were large and high,\nFor Spinning cotton made,\nWhen “old King Cotton” ruled as king,\nAnd Negroes were in trade.\nBut when they found his glory gone,\nAnd cotton would not sell,\nThey turned their fields into burying-grounds,\nTheir factories into hells.\nThey fired upon our stars and stripes,\nThey stole our arms and money,\nAnd then they cried, “let us alone,”\nIn accents sweet as honey.\nThe rebels sung throughtout the South,\nIn Dixie’s land they’d stand,\nAnd, if they ever lived to die,\nThey’d die in Dixie’s land.\nWe found them standing when we came,\nWhen not too drunk or tipsy\n“Right smost” they’d rather run and live,\nThan die to live in Dixie.\nThe people here are ignorant,\nAnd iced as tools by rouges,\nThey’ve herded with the blacks so long,\nThey’ve got the laugh and brogue.\nSchool houses here you never find,\nSuch sights are seldom seen,\nWith truant boys and red-checked girls,\nA romping on the green.\nI’m proud to say I’m from the North,\nWhere no one lacks for knowledge,\nFor every mile or two you go,\nYou’ll find a school or college.\nThey keep their slave pens and often sell\nTheir very blood and bone,\nFor crosses with the negro slave,\nThere gently never own.\nThey keep their slaves in ignorance,\nThey’re never taught to read,\nFor knowledge and old slavery\nHave never yet agreed.\nThey breed and sell the negro here\nAs Northern men would cattle,\nThe whiter they can get the skin,\nThe more come in the chattle.\nThey buy our huts, caps, coats and rings,\nAnd trinkets we have wrought,\nAs keepsakes of those Yankee boys\nThey, in their battles caught.\nThe only way they have to live,\nAnd save our preclous lives,\nIs to manufacture rings from bones,\nAnd trade for cakes and pies.\nIf they should get to Heaven’s gate,\nAnd find all Union there,\nThey would serve at once to Hell,\nAnd Join their kindred there.\nAnd now we’ve sung about the South,\nAnd of their doings there,\nNow let us step within the bars,\nAnd learn the prisoners face.\nThey give us rations twice each day,\nTheir coarsest negro’s fare,\nAnd this they think is generous,\nConsidering who we were.\nOur morning rations are of bread,\nThe loves are very small,\nA little slice of bacon,\nFrom which the maggots fall.\nThey take the liquor from this meat,\nStir in a little rice,\nAnd this we have for supper,\nIts flavor very nice.\nOur rations here are always fresh,\nBecause they have no salt,\nAnd if they hear a man complain,\nHe’s told it’s his even fault.\nAt night we sleep upon the floor,\nWe often lay in tiers,’\nWhile body lice in whose battalions,\nCharge upon our fronts and rears.\nThey turn us out a while each day,\nUpon our prison health,\nTo pick the lice from off our clothes,\nThe maggots from our teeth.\nThey keep a bake house near our den,\nTo bake our daily bread,\nYou’d think some children had the dough,\nTo make some from cats heads.\nThe bakers lake our flour and rice,\nTo make sweet cake and pie,\nThe half-starved Yanks think they must eat,\nSo to bakers fly.\nThey give the prisoner scanty fare,\nTo rob them of their money;\nThey say our hungry boys must have,\nSome cakes as sweet as honey.\nOur generous keeper says to us,\nTells to us one and all,\nI fear your dally rations\nMay sometimes be too small.\nIf any want more rations here,\nTo keep your souls alive,\nJust step into my sutler’s shop,\nAnd buy sweetmeats and ples.\nIf any lack the dime of scrip,\nOr think his fare is hard,\nJust take him to the guard-house,\nOr “buck” him in the yard.\nAnd now we’ve sung about our den,\nAnd how we live in there;\nNow let us sing about our dead,\nIn “Dixie’s land so fair.”\nWhen any of the prisoners die,\nNo matter what their grades,\nThey get a negro with his cart\nTo take him to the shades.\nThey’d get a negro with his cart,\nDrawn by a stubborn mule,\nTo show their height of chivalry\nIf southern power could rule.\nThe fifteenth of August Carolina called,\nAnd to the prisoners said,\nJust jump aboard my cattle cars,\nWith some of my “nice bread.”\nI’m pledged to take you to your lines,\nMy pledges seldom fall,\nYou’ll find my seats are rather hard,\nBut easier than my rail.\nWith bounding hearts we heard her through,\nThen through the gate did spring,\nAnd when aboard her cattle cars,\nWe made the welkin ring.\nIn highest glee we started off,\nNo joys our tongues could tell;\nBut instead of going to our lines,\nWe went to “Island Belle.”\nBelle Island is a sandy plain,\nWithout a tree or shade,\nOr cooling spring to quench the thirst,\nThat heat and hunger made.\nOur rations here are very small,\nSome bread and stinking beef,\nWhich only sharpens appetite,\nAnd gives but saint relief.\nWhen beef is scarce we sometimes get\nA soup of hugs and files;\nAnd if perchance there should be bears,\nThey seldom show their eyes.\nThis nasty, stinking, scorch fare,\nWe often fail to get;\nAnd then with rage we’d gnash our teeth,\nLike madmen in a fit.\nHere many of the prisoners lie\nUpon the burning sand;\nTwo weak by far to walk around,\nWhile many cannot stand.\nStarvation stares us in the face,\nHis laws are open wide;\nUnless our friends send quick relief,\nWe down his throat must glide.\nOur numbers here grow less and less,\nThe strongest soon must fall,\nFor old Grim death is on our track,\nAnd soon will on us call.\nSome six or eight die every day,\nThis face none can deny;\nWhile many with their dying breath,\nFor food and rations cry.\nIt’s hard to die in distant lands,\nWithout a kindred near,\nTo wipe the death sweat from our face,\nOr drop one friendly tear.\nA lady came into our camp,\nTo bring us small supplies;\nThey dragged her to the old guard-house,\nFor selling cakes and pies.\nThey “gagged” and “bucked” a prisoner here\nUntil he could not stand,\nThe blood flowed freely from his mouth\nUpon the burning sand.\nThe only crime he did commit,\nThe only wrong he’d done—\nHis Northern pride it would not stoop\nTo [?] those southern guns.\nWe are ragged set of men,\nThis prison has no charms;\nBut “Uncle Sam” will own his boys,\nAnd give them all a farm.\nI long to see my friends again,\nOf which I fondly dreampt;\nBut I’d rather see my country free,\nAnd old Jeff. pulling hemp.\nOld Jeff. you’d better pack your kit,\nFor Richmond soon must fall,\nFor little Mac is stepping back\nTo mount upon your wall.\nYour only hope, “the Old Stone Wall,”\nMust soon to ruin go;\nHe’s run around your land so long,\nYou thought all safe you know.\nAnd now your health is failing fast,\nAnd your blood is getting low;\nYou’d better call your boys all home,\nBefore you go below.\nThe Stars and Stripes again must float,\nO’er Dixie’s sunny land:\nAnd Southern rebels must soon obey,\nOld Abram’s just demands.\nNow here’s a toast for Uncle Abe,\nMay he live one thousand years;\nAnd for his firmness in this war,\nWe’ll give three hearty cheers.\nNow here’s another for Jeff.—\nMay the gallows claim its own:\nAnd when he dangles from the rope,\nWe’ll give three doleful groans.\nFarewell old Richmond’s prison wall,\nFarewell old Salisbury too;\nAnd now farewell to Island Belle—\nFour weeks on you will do.\nAnd now you’ve heard my story through,\nThat happy day has come,\nWhen I can bid Secesh farewell,\nAnd leave this Isle for—ANNAPOLIS."}
{"text": "Eating and drinking\nMy partner is so restless now that he can’t seem to sit and finish a meal. But he’s happy to take a sandwich and eat it as he goes.\nI used to get so upset when my sister ate with her fingers in company. I used to try to make her use her fork and for a while I didn’t invite anyone round. But then I thought about it and I decided that it really didn’t do anyone any harm. She wasn’t worried and my friends all said they didn’t mind – it was just me being embarrassed. So I decided not to worry about it any more.\nYou may have found that mealtimes are becoming more and more difficult. Perhaps the person with dementia makes a mess eating and you need to help them handle knives and forks. This might irritate you or make you feel embarrassed in front of guests. You may find that they eat more often because they forget having eaten or that they forget to eat altogether. They might start to eat everything or just one thing. They might also be perturbed by the difficulties they are experiencing. They might feel embarrassed or frustrated at not being able to eat correctly and suffer from other problems such as constipation, forgetting to chew food and loss of or disturbance of their sense of taste. Eating and drinking can clearly be problematic for you both. However, there are a number of ways you can help the person to maintain a healthy diet and enjoy meals, whilst at the same time contributing to maintaining a certain level of independence.\nHow to cope with eating and drinking\nProvide assistance, whilst encouraging independence\nSo as not to make the person with dementia feel like a child or embarrassed, it is best to encourage them to do as much as possible themselves. For example, if they cannot handle a knife, instead of spoon-feeding, you could prepare bite-sized pieces of food or cut it up before serving it. By changing the way to eat or serve food, you can leave the person with the chance to remain independent longer. Sometimes, a simple reminder (e.g. to use a spoon instead of a fork) may be all that is needed. It might help to have your own meal at the same time. However, at some stage, you may find that spoon-feeding is necessary. If this occurs, you should be careful not to try when the person is drowsy, agitated or lying down, as otherwise they could choke. Certain medication can lead to problems swallowing as food becomes lodged in the person’s mouth. If they have difficulty swallowing, the following guidelines might be useful to bear in mind.\nMake sure that the person sits upright, keeps their chin down and takes small sips of drink. Avoid vessels which force the head back too much (specially designed cups and mugs exist). Alternate food and drink to help clear the mouth. Encourage the person to try to swallow each mouthful of food twice (e.g. to swallow a second time even if the mouth is empty). If they have not swallowed, it can be useful to present an empty spoon. Encourage frequent swallows to counteract dribbling. Avoid mixtures of liquid and solid food (e.g. certain soups or cornflakes), stringy textures (e.g. cabbage, runner beans); floppy textures (e.g. lettuce, cucumber) and small, hard textures (e.g. peanuts and sweet corn).\nMaking mealtimes a pleasant experience\nAs a result of these difficulties, the person with dementia may start to dislike mealtimes, seeing them as an ordeal rather than a pleasant experience. However, giving the person enough time to try to manage alone or a little assistance may help them to feel more relaxed. Background music might also help contribute to a relaxed atmosphere. They might not manage to eat without being slightly messy or untidy, but in this case, it is perhaps best not to draw attention to it, as it could make them less inclined to try. Finally, they might want to be more involved, e.g. help to prepare food or clear the table. Mealtimes provide an ideal opportunity to give the person with dementia the chance to remain active and feel useful.\nHow to prevent problems with eating and drinking\nYou may be able to prevent some problems from occurring, by taking certain precautions or slightly adapting the way you normally prepare food and serve it.\n- The routine : Give more time; serve plates of food instead of having self-service; remove condiments once used; have smaller meals more often if the person forgets having eaten; serve the main meal at midday to prevent night-time indigestion, etc.\n- The utensils and layout : Try to find out about specially designed utensils, non-breakable dishes, non-slip mats and drinking containers that cannot be knocked over; use mugs if possible for certain food as the ability to hold a mug tends to be retained longer than the ability to use a knife and fork; provide a sharp contrast between plates and the table and avoid strong patterns on table cloths as this can cause confusion.\n- The kind of food served : Prepare finger foods if the person has difficulty handling a knife and fork or is restless and cannot stay long at table; bite sized pieces avoid the need to use a knife; prepare food in a liquidiser rather than serving baby food if they cannot manage solid food so as to avoid embarrassment; avoid milk or citrus juice which tends to produce more mucus and can aggravate respiratory problems and drooling, if this is a problem.\nEnsure a sufficient amount of liquid per day\nIt is important that you try to give the person with dementia enough to drink to avoid dehydration, constipation and more confusion. If possible, try to encourage them to drink 1½ litres (8 cups) of liquid per day. However, there are certain cases where even more attention needs to be taken, e.g. with people who have vomiting, diarrhoea or diabetes and people who are taking diuretics (water pills) or heart medication. On the more practical side, you will need to make sure that drinks are not too hot, as otherwise the person might scald themselves without realising. If they tend to become agitated, it is best to limit drinks which are stimulants (e.g. coffee, tea, hot chocolate, etc.). Possible alternatives include fruit and milk drinks, as well as decaffeinated drinks. Otherwise let them drink what they are used to.\nConsult a doctor in case of loss of appetite\nYou should not worry too much if the person with dementia loses weight, as this can be a natural consequence of the disease. They might even be eating normally. However, it is nevertheless a good idea to contact your doctor just to check that there is not a physical cause and in case nutritional supplements should be given.\nLast Updated: jeudi 06 août 2009"}
{"text": "By Isaac Sever, Cypress Semiconductor\nStepper motors convert electrical energy into discrete mechanical rotation. They are ideally suited for many measurement and control applications where positional accuracy is important. Stepping motors have the following advantages:\n- Full torque when rotation is stopped. This is in contrast to brushed and brushless DC motors, which cannot provide full torque continuously when the rotor is stopped. This aids in maintaining the current position.\n- Precise open-loop positioning and repetition. Stepper motors move in discrete steps as long as the motor stays under the maximum torque and current limits. This allows the rotor position to be determined by the control sequence without additional tracking or feedback. High quality stepping motors have three to five percent precision within a single step.\n- Quick starts, stop, and reverse capability.\n- High reliability because there is no brush or physical contact required for commutation. The life span of a stepping motor is dependent on the performance of the bearings.\n- Microstepping mode can be used allowing direct connection to a load without intermediate gearing.\n- A wide speed range can be controlled by varying the drive signal timing.\n- Inherent resonance can cause noise, jerky rotation, and at extreme levels, loss of position.\n- It is possible to lose position control in some situations, because no feedback is natively provided.\n- Power consumption does not decrease to zero, even if load is absent.\n- Stepping motors have low-power density and lower maximum speed compared to brushed and brushless DC motors. Typical loaded maximum operating speeds for stepper motors are around 1000 RPM.\n- Complex electronic controls are required.\nFigure 1: Structure of motors.\nTypes of stepping motors\nThere are several basic types of stepping motors:\n- Variable reluctance motors with metal teeth.\n- Permanent magnet motors.\n- Hybrid motors with both permanent magnets and metal teeth.\nVariable reluctance stepping motors have three to five windings and a common terminal connection, creating several phases on the stator. The rotor is toothed and made of metal, but is not permanently magnetized. A simplified variable reluctance stepping motor is shown in Figure 2. In this figure, the rotor has four teeth and the stator has three independent windings (six phases), creating 30 degree steps.\nFigure 2: Simple variable reluctance stepping motor.\nThe rotation of a variable reluctance stepping motor is produced by energizing individual windings. When a winding is energized, current flows and magnetic poles are created, which attracts the metal teeth of the rotor. The rotor moves one step to align the offset teeth to the energized winding. At this position, the next adjacent windings can be energized to continue rotation to another step, or the current winding can remain energized to hold the motor at its current position. When the phases are turned on sequentially, the rotor rotates continuously.\nThe described rotation is identical to a typical BLDC motor. The fundamental difference between a stepper and BLDC motor is that the stepper is designed to operate continuously stalled without overheating or damage.\nRotation for a variable reluctance stepping motor with three windings and four rotor teeth is illustrated in Figure 3.\n1, 2, 3, 1 → 3 steps → quarter turn\n12 steps per rotation\nAs shown in Figure 3, energizing each of the windings in sequence moves the rotor a quarter turn, 12 steps are required for a full rotation.\nTable 1: Variable reluctance stepper motor in Figure 3.\nThe three steps shown in Figure 3 move the rotor a quarter turn. A full rotation requires 12 steps for a variable reluctance stepper motor.\nTypical variable reluctance motors have more teeth and use a tooth pole along with a toothed rotor to produce step angles near one degree.\nFigure 3: Rotation control of variable reluctance stepping motor.\nPermanent magnet stepping motor\nA permanent magnet stepping motor consists of a stator with windings and a rotor with permanent magnet poles. Alternate rotor poles have rectilinear forms parallel to the motor axis. Stepping motors with magnetized rotors provide greater flux and torque than motors with variable reluctance. The motor, shown in Figure 4, has three rotor pole pairs and two independent stator windings, creating 30 degree steps.\nMotors with permanent magnets are subjected to influence from the back-EMF of the rotor, which limits the maximum speed. Therefore, when high speeds are required, motors with variable reluctance are preferred over motors with permanent magnets.\nFigure 4: Permanent magnet stepping motor.\nRotation of a permanent magnet stepping motor is produced by energizing individual windings in a positive or negative direction. When a winding is energized, a north and south pole are created, depending on the polarity of the current flowing. These generated poles attract the permanent poles of the rotor. The rotor moves one step to align the offset permanent poles to the corresponding energized windings. At this position, the next adjacent windings can be energized to continue rotation to another step, or the current winding can remain energized to hold the motor at its current position. When the phases are turned on sequentially the rotor is continuously rotated.\nRotation for a permanent magnet stepping motor with two windings and three pairs of permanent rotor poles (six poles) is shown in Figure 5.\nWinding in sequence:\n1 +/-, 2 +/-, 1 -/+, 2 -/+ → 3 steps → quarter turn\n12 steps per rotation\nTable 2: Permanent magnet stepping motor in Figure 5.\nWith one winding energized, the three steps move the rotor a quarter turn. A full rotation requires 12 steps for a permanent magnet stepper motor (bipolar) with both windings energized in each step. As shown in Figure 5, energizing each winding in sequence through each polarity moves the rotor a quarter turn. As before, 12 steps are required for a full rotation.\nFigure 5: Rotation control of permanent magnet stepping motor, sequencing individual windings.\nAnother alternative to rotate a permanent magnet rotor is to energize both windings in each step. The vector torque generated by each of the coils is additive; this doubles the current flowing in the motor, and increases the torque. More complex control is also required to sequence the turning on and off of both windings.\nAs shown in Figure 6, energizing two windings in each step, sequencing through each combination of polarities moves the rotor a quarter turn. As before, 12 steps are required for a full rotation.\nTable 3: Permanent magnet stepping motor in Figure 6.\nFigure 6: Rotation control of permanent magnet stepping motor using both windings together.\nTypical permanent magnet motors have more poles to create smaller steps. To make significantly smaller steps down to one degree, permanent magnet rotors can add metal teeth and toothed windings. This hybrid motor is described in the next section.\nHybrid stepping motor\nHybrid stepping motors combine a permanent magnet and a rotor with metal teeth to provide features of the variable reluctance and permanent magnet motors. Hybrid motors are more expensive than motors with permanent magnets, but they use smaller steps, have greater torque, and have greater maximum speeds.\nA hybrid motor rotor has teeth placed on the directional axes. The rotor is divided into parts between constant magnet poles. The number of rotor pole pairs is equal to the number of teeth on one of the rotor’s parts. The hybrid motor stator has teeth creating more poles than just the main poles containing windings. The rotor teeth provide a smaller magnetic circuit resistance in some rotor positions, which improves static and dynamic torque. This is provided by corresponding teeth positioning; some parts of the rotor teeth are placed opposite the stator teeth and the remaining rotor teeth are placed between the stator teeth. Dependence between the number of rotor poles, the stator equivalent poles, and the phase number define step angle:\nFigure 7: Hybrid stepping motor.\nRotation of a hybrid stepping motor is produced with the same control method as a permanent magnet stepping motor, by energizing individual windings in a positive or negative direction. When a winding is energized, a north and south pole are created, depending on the polarity of the current flowing. These generated poles attract the permanent poles of the rotor and the finer metal rotor teeth. The rotor moves one step to align the offset magnetized rotor teeth to the corresponding energized windings.\nStepping motor control\nA step motor is a synchronous electric motor. Its fixed rotor equilibrium position occurs when aligned with the stator magnetic field. When the stator changes position, the rotor rotates to occupy a new equilibrium position.\nThere are several stepper motor drive modes:\n- Full-step mode.\n- Double-step mode.\n- Half-step mode.\n- Microstep Mode.\nStepping motors can be controlled in a variety of ways, trading off implementation requirements with greater accuracy and smoother transitions. Rotation control with full-steps, half-steps, and microsteps is described as follows:\nFull-step mode for a permanent magnet and hybrid stepping motor is detailed in the Stepper Motor Introduction. Figure 5 illustrates one-phase full-step mode in which only one winding is turned on at a time. In this mode, the rotor’s balanced position for each step is in line with the stator poles. With only half of the motor coils used at a given time, the full torque obtained is limited.\nTwo-phase, full-step mode shown in Figure 6 uses both windings energized in each step. This doubles the current through the motor and provides 40 percent more torque than when only one phase is used at a time. With two windings energized, the rotor’s balanced position for each step is halfway between the two energized stator poles.\nThe full-step and double-step drive modes can be combined to generate half-steps of rotation for half-step mode. First one winding is turned on, and then the second winding is energized, moving the rotor half a step towards the second, as shown in Figure 8.\nA half-step with the combination of one and two windings energized in full-step mode produces higher resolution, but does not provide constant torque throughout rotation.\nFigure 8: Three half steps, 1/8 of a rotation.\nMicrostepping mode is an extension of the half-step drive mode. Instead of switching the current in a winding from on to off, the current is scaled up and down in smaller steps. When two phases are turned on and the current of each phase is not equal, the rotor position is determined by the current phase ratio. This changing current ratio creates discrete steps in the torque exerted on the rotor and results in smaller fractional steps of rotation between each full-step. Microstep mode reduces torque ripple and low-speed resonance present in the other modes and is required in many situations.\nMicrostepping creates rotation of the rotor by scaling the contributions of the two additive torque vectors from the two stepper motor windings.\nFigure 9: Torque in microstepping control mode.\nThe total torque exerted on the rotor is the vector addition of the torque from the two rotors. Each of the torques is proportional to the position of the rotor and the sine/cosine of the step angle.\nThese equations can be combined and solved for the position of the rotor.\nFractional steps are created by scaling torque contributions between windings. Because torque is proportional to magnetic flux that is proportional to the current in the winding, the position of the rotor can be controlled by controlling the current flowing in each winding. To create smooth microsteps between full-steps, the current is varied sinusoidally with a 90 degree phase shift between the two windings as shown in Figure 10.\nThe current is scaled by controlling the root mean square (RMS) current using a current mode buck converter, commonly called a chopper drive when used with stepper motors. The phase current is converted into a voltage using a sense resistor in each phase ground path. This voltage is routed to a comparator that disables the output whenever the phase current rises above a reference. The comparator reference is provided by a voltage digital-to-analog converter (VDAC). By changing the VDAC supplied current limit for each microstep, the total motor torque remains approximately constant for each step of the sinusoidal current waveform.\nFigure 10: VDAC current limit for microstep mode.\nMicrostepping allows the rotor position to be controlled with more accuracy and also has advantages in the rotation. Advantages of microstepping are:\n- Position is controlled with more accuracy.\n- Rotation can be stopped at specific fraction of a step.\n- Transitions are smoother.\n- Damp resonance creates fewer oscillations as motor steps (especially at startup and slowdown).\nFigure 11: Smooth transitions between steps and limited oscillations and settling in microstep mode.\nPSoC 3 introduction\nThe CY8C3866AXI device is in the PSoC 3 architecture. A block diagram of the device is shown in Figure 12 with the blocks used in the stepper application highlighted.\nFigure 12: PSoC 3 (CY8C3866AXI) block diagram.\nThe PSoC 3 digital subsystem provides unique configurability of functions and interconnects. The stepper motor control uses these digital resources to implement timers, pulse width modulator (PWM) blocks, control registers, and a hardware lookup table (LUT).\nThe PSoC 3 analog subsystem provides the device the second half of its unique configurability. The stepper motor uses dedicated comparators, voltage DACs, and programmable gain amplifiers (PGA).\nStepper motor control based on PSoC 3\nThe block diagram of the stepper motor control based on the CY8C3866AXI is shown in Figure 13. The PSoC Creator™ schematic is shown in Figure 14.\nFigure 13: Block diagram of PSoC 3 stepper motor controller.\nInput control signals to the PSoC 3 device are:\n- Motor Current Sensing: Analog input pins to detect motor phase current on shunt resistor. Used to limit current of the motor phases. See details in the following section.\n- User Interface Pins\n- User Input: Analog pin to read potentiometer for parameter input. Two digital pins for Menu control buttons.\n- Character LCD: Digital output port (seven pins) to drive the character LCD on the DVK for menu options and user feedback.\n- PWM signals to the high-side drivers (four digital output pins).\n- PWM signals to the low-side drivers (four digital output pins).\nFigure 14: PSoC Creator schematic for stepper motor control.\nThe PWMs are not used to produce the typical pulse width modulation output used with other motors. Instead, the PWMs act more as a timer to ensure a maximum chopping frequency to avoid overheating the drivers. Additionally, the PWM ‘kill circuit’ natively includes the cycle kill mode that implements the chopper drive method by disabling the drive outputs for the remainder of the current PWM cycle after the comparator trips.\nThe PWM signals are routed to a look up table (LUT) logic block, along with the current stepping stage index. This logic block implements a LUT using the PLD capabilities of a universal digital block (UDB) and routes the PWM signals to the eight legal output control combinations based on the current polarity of each phase. These control signals are routed through GPIOs to the external power driver circuits that drive the stepper motor. In the demonstrated chopper drive topology, transistors or MOSFETs are typically used to switch the high voltages and currents used to drive the stepper motors. The sequencing of the PWM control signals on the external power drivers produces the step by step rotation of the motor.\nA timer generates periodic interrupts that generate each step (or microstep) of the motor. This timer can be used to run the motor at a specific speed, or to a specific position (exact number of steps). To set the speed of the motor, the interrupt period of the timer is updated by firmware.\nPSoC 3 also implements current limiting for motor overcurrent protection and microstepping in hardware. This is described in the following section.\nMicrostepping and current protection implementation\nMicrostepping limits the current flowing in the motor windings to create smooth and well-controlled transitions between full-steps. This functionality also builds protection in hardware for overcurrent that shields the motor from damage. The block diagram of the system with the current feedback sensing paths is shown in Figure 15.\nFigure 15: Overcurrent protection block diagram for microstepping.\nMotor current is measured with two shunt resistors in the ground paths of the power driver MOSFETS (R1 and R2 in Figure 15). This voltage is low-pass filtered on the board and connected to two analog pins on PSoC 3 (labeled Curr_A and Curr_B).\nThe input voltages are fed into programmable gain amplifiers (PGA) implemented with the analog continuous time (CT) blocks. The PGA buffers the input voltage and drives it to a continuous time comparator. This voltage level from the sense resistor is compared to the current limit, set by an 8-bit voltage DAC. For microstepping the DACs’ output, sine and cosine waveforms are generated from a software lookup table. This limits the motor current sinusoidally for smooth microstepping.\nThe output of the comparator is connected to the PWM block and kills the PWM output when the current limit threshold is exceeded. This provides cycle-by-cycle current limiting to the motor and creates smooth microstepping transitions. The implementation of the current limiting protection in PSoC Creator is shown in Figure 16.\nFigure 16: PSoC Creator schematic implementation of current limiting block for microstepping.\nThe PSoC 3 resources used in current limiting are:\n- Two continuous time (CT) blocks implement the PGAs.\n- Two fixed analog comparators are dedicated analog resources and do not use any SC/CT blocks.\n- Two 8-bit PWMs implemented in UDBs (the same PWMs used to control the power device drivers). The output of the comparator triggers the kill input to the PWM when a current limiting condition is detected.\n- Two 8-bit VDACs. These built in 8-bit voltage DACs are used to set the threshold for the comparator current limit.\nShown in Figure 17 are the settings for each DAC and rotation index, and the microstep pointer (ramping 1-128).\nFigure 17: Current limit versus time step for 128 step microstepping.\nThe currents flowing in the two windings are measured with small sense resistors between the power devices and ground. The value of the current detection shunt resistor is a trade-off between power efficiency and robustness of the detection blocks. For a given current limit, enough change in voltage must be generated by the motor current to accurately detect the change with the comparator, but increasing the resistor increases heat and reduces efficiency.\nThe current limiting protection mechanism implemented in PSoC 3 hardware is an on-chip low-cost solution.\nThe output PWM drivers are controlled by a hardware lookup table. The table takes inputs from the two PWM blocks and a control register that holds the rotation index (as shown in Figure 18).\nIn Table 4, the PWM control hardware LUT receives the stage index and PWM signals as inputs and outputs the eight PWM driver signals.\nTable 4: PWM control hardware LUT.\nFigure 18: PSoC Creator schematic LUT implementation of PWM output control.\nWhen operating with microstep drive mode, the PWM outputs for PWM_A and PWM_B cycle through 01, 10, and 11. When the stepper motor operates under full-step mode, both PWMs are on (11). In this case, the LUT simplifies to the following table the rotation sequence described in the full-step descriptions earlier.\nIn Table 5, the simplified MPhase output control hardware LUT receives the stage index and PWM signals as inputs and outputs the eight PWM driver signals.\nTable 5: MPhase output control hardware LUT.\nThe stepper motor can be run at a fixed speed or to a desired position. To run at a fixed speed, the timer period that triggers each step (or microstep) is adjusted. The 16-bit timer terminal count triggers an interrupt that is used to initiate each step. Input frequency of the timer is 100 kHz to ensure precision speed control. PSoC 3 is also able to receive step pulse commands from an external controller such as a PLC.\nIn Figure 19, the timer terminal count triggers an interrupt that initiates each step.\nFigure 19: PSoC Creator schematic implementation of speed control timer.\nTo run in position control mode, the stepper motor turns a specific number of steps and then stops. (Position control mode is not supported with the user interface in the stepper motor demo). An internal counter is used to count the desired steps. When the desired position is reached, the step control from the timer interrupt is masked until the user requests another action.\nWhen the motor stops, phase current is lowered automatically to save power and reduce heating.\nThe ability to control the position in an open loop configuration by counting steps (or microsteps) is dependent on the stepper motor operating within the torque and motor load limits. If the torque/load limits are exceeded, the motor can miss steps and the absolute rotational position information is lost.\nThere is one main loop and one interrupt service routine (ISR) for control of the motor, the timer ISR. The timer ISR generates an interrupt that triggers the step control function (see Figure 19). Each time the step function is called, the motor takes one step (or microstep). The step function looks up the sinusoidal values from a table and sets the DAC output voltage to control the phase currents. A flow chart of the firmware operation is shown in Figure 20. Other ISRs for the UART and ADC are also used for the demo project UI and GUI interfaces.\nFigure 20: Stepper motor control firmware flow chart.\nPSoC resource utilization\nThe stepper motor uses resources from the digital and analog portions of the PSoC 3 device. The highest use of resources stem from the VDACs and comparators. Two VDACs and two comparators are used for the stepper motor microstepping control. This constraint limits the CY8C3866AXI-040 device to a maximum of two stepper motor controllers.\nTable 6: Stepper motor demo CY8C3866AXI-040 resource utilization (blocks with none used are not shown).\nTable 7: Stepper motor demo on CY8C3866AXI-040 memory utilization (Keil™ Complier, Level-5 optimization)\nCypress’ stepper motor control with PSoC 3 incorporates current limiting and microstepping control for an optimized solution. Up to 128 microsteps is suitable for precision position control. The PSoC 3 stepper motor control solution has low total system cost and leaves significant PSoC 3 resources available for additional system functions.\n- Cypress Application Note AN2229, “Motor Control - Multi-Functional Stepping Motor Driver” by Victor Kremin and Ruslan Bachinsky.\nDiscover the benefits of becoming a My Digi-Key registered user.\n• Enjoy faster, easier ordering with your information preloaded.\n• View your order status, web order history\n• Use our BOM Manager tool\n• Import a text file into a RoHS query"}
{"text": "Pacific ecosystem: An ochre sea star makes a kelp forest home in Monterey Bay, California.\nImage courtesy of Kip F. Evans\nOcean Literacy - Essential Principle 5\nThe ocean supports a great diversity of life and ecosystems.\nFundamental Concept 5a.\nOcean life ranges in size from the smallest virus to the largest animal that has lived on Earth, the blue whale.\nFundamental Concept 5b.\nMost life in the ocean exists as microbes. Microbes are the most important primary producers in the ocean. Not only are they the most abundant life form in the ocean, they have extremely fast growth rates and life cycles.\nFundamental Concept 5c.\nSome major groups are found exclusively in the ocean. The diversity of major groups of organisms is much greater in the ocean than on land.\nFundamental Concept 5d.\nOcean biology provides many unique examples of life cycles, adaptations and important relationships among organisms (symbiosis, predator-prey dynamics and energy transfer) that do not occur on land.\nFundamental Concept 5e.\nThe ocean is three-dimensional, offering vast living space and diverse habitats from the surface through the water column to the seafloor. Most of the living space on Earth is in the ocean.\nFundamental Concept 5f.\nOcean habitats are defined by environmental factors. Due to interactions of abiotic factors such as salinity, temperature, oxygen, pH, light, nutrients, pressure, substrate and circulation, ocean life is not evenly distributed temporally or spatially, i.e., it is “patchy”. Some regions of the ocean support more diverse and abundant life than anywhere on Earth, while much of the ocean is considered a desert.\nFundamental Concept 5g.\nThere are deep ocean ecosystems that are independent of energy from sunlight and photosynthetic organisms. Hydrothermal vents, submarine hot springs, methane cold seeps, and whale falls rely only on chemical energy and chemosynthetic organisms to support life.\nFundamental Concept 5h.\nTides, waves and predation cause vertical zonation patterns along the shore, influencing the distribution and diversity of organisms.\nFundamental Concept 5i.\nEstuaries provide important and productive nursery areas for many marine and aquatic species.\nShop Windows to the Universe Science Store!\nThe Winter 2009 issue of The Earth Scientist\n, focuses on Earth System science, including articles on student inquiry, differentiated instruction, geomorphic concepts, the rock cycle, and much more!\nYou might also be interested in:\nAbout 70% of the Earth is covered with water, and we find 97% of that water in the oceans. Everyone who has taken in a mouthful of ocean water while swimming knows that the ocean is really salty. All water...more\nOxygen is a chemical element with an atomic number of 8 (it has eight protons in its nucleus). Oxygen forms a chemical compound (O2) of two atoms which is a colorless gas at normal temperatures and pressures....more\nThe deep ocean is very cold, under high pressure, and always dark because sunlight can not penetrate that far. The only light comes from bioluminescence – a chemical reaction inside the bodies of some...more\nPhotosynthesis is the name of the process by which autotrophs (self-feeders) convert water, carbon dioxide, and solar energy into sugars and oxygen. It is a complex chemical process by which plants and...more\nMethane is gas that is found in small quantities in Earth's atmosphere. Methane is the simplest hydrocarbon, consisting of one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas....more\nThe intertidal zone is the area along a coastline that is underwater at high tide and above the water at low tide. Whether it’s a rocky coast, a sandy beach, or a salt marsh, life in the intertidal zone...more\nThe ocean makes Earth habitable. Fundamental Concept 4a. Most of the oxygen in the atmosphere originally came from the activities of photosynthetic organisms in the ocean. Fundamental Concept 4b. The first...more"}
{"text": "Rurik DynastyArticle Free Pass\nRurik Dynasty, princes of Kievan Rus and, later, Muscovy who, according to tradition, were descendants of the Varangian prince Rurik, who had been invited by the people of Novgorod to rule that city (c. 862); the Rurik princes maintained their control over Kievan Rus and, later, Muscovy until 1598.\nRurik’s successor Oleg (d. 912) conquered Kiev (c. 882) and established control of the trade route extending from Novgorod, along the Dnieper River, to the Black Sea. Igor (allegedly Rurik’s son; reigned 912–945) and his successors—his wife, St. Olga (regent 945–969), and their son Svyatoslav (reigned 945–972)—further extended their territories; Svyatoslav’s son Vladimir I (St. Vladimir; reigned c. 980–1015) consolidated the dynasty’s rule.\nVladimir compiled the first Kievan Rus law code and introduced Christianity into the country. He also organized the Kievan Rus lands into a cohesive confederation by distributing the major cities among his sons; the eldest was to be grand prince of Kiev, and the brothers were to succeed each other, moving up the hierarchy of cities toward Kiev, filling vacancies left by the advancement or death of an elder brother. The youngest brother was to be succeeded as grand prince by his eldest nephew whose father had been a grand prince. This succession pattern was generally followed through the reigns of Svyatopolk (1015–19); Yaroslav the Wise (1019–54); his sons Izyaslav (1054–68; 1069–73; and 1077–78), Svyatoslav (1073–76), and Vsevolod (1078–93); and Svyatopolk II (son of Izyaslav; reigned 1093–1113).\nThe successions were accomplished, however, amid continual civil wars. In addition to the princes’ unwillingness to adhere to the pattern and readiness to seize their positions by force instead, the system was upset whenever a city rejected the prince designated to rule it. It was also undermined by the tendency of the princes to settle in regions they ruled rather than move from city to city to become the prince of Kiev.\nIn 1097 all the princes of Kievan Rus met at Lyubech (northwest of Chernigov) and decided to divide their lands into patrimonial estates. The succession for grand prince, however, continued to be based on the generation pattern; thus, Vladimir Monomakh succeeded his cousin Svyatopolk II as grand prince of Kiev. During his reign (1113–25) Vladimir tried to restore unity to the lands of Kievan Rus; and his sons (Mstislav, reigned 1125–32; Yaropolk, 1132–39; Vyacheslav, 1139; and Yury Dolgoruky, 1149–57) succeeded him eventually, though not without some troubles in the 1140s.\nNevertheless, distinct branches of the dynasty established their own rule in the major centres of the country outside Kiev—Halicz, Novgorod, and Suzdal. The princes of these regions vied with each other for control of Kiev; but when Andrew Bogolyubsky of Suzdal finally conquered and sacked the city (1169), he returned to Vladimir (a city in the Suzdal principality) and transferred the seat of the grand prince to Vladimir. Andrew Bogolyubsky’s brother Vsevolod III succeeded him as grand prince of Vladimir (reigned 1176–1212); Vsevolod was followed by his sons Yury (1212–38), Yaroslav (1238–46), and Svyatoslav (1246–47) and his grandson Andrew (1247–52).\nAlexander Nevsky (1252–63) succeeded his brother Andrew; and Alexander’s brothers and sons succeeded him. Furthering the tendency toward fragmentation, however, none moved to Vladimir but remained in their regional seats and secured their local princely houses. Thus, Alexander’s brother Yaroslav (grand prince of Vladimir, 1264–71) founded the house of Tver, and Alexander’s son Daniel founded the house of Moscow.\nAfter the Mongol invasion (1240) the Russian princes were obliged to seek a patent from the Mongol khan in order to rule as grand prince. Rivalry for the patent, as well as for leadership in the grand principality of Vladimir, developed among the princely houses, particularly those of Tver and Moscow. Gradually, the princes of Moscow became dominant, forming the grand principality of Moscow (Muscovy), which they ruled until their male line died out in 1598.\nWhat made you want to look up \"Rurik Dynasty\"? Please share what surprised you most..."}
{"text": "There are really two decisions that must be made regarding the hidden layers: how many hidden layers to actually have in the neural network and how many neurons will be in each of these layers. We will first examine how to determine the number of hidden layers to use with the neural network.\nProblems that require two hidden layers are rarely encountered. However, neural networks with two hidden layers can represent functions with any kind of shape. There is currently no theoretical reason to use neural networks with any more than two hidden layers. In fact, for many practical problems, there is no reason to use any more than one hidden layer. Table 5.1 summarizes the capabilities of neural network architectures with various hidden layers.\nTable 5.1: Determining the Number of Hidden Layers\n|Number of Hidden Layers||Result|\n|none||Only capable of representing linear separable functions or decisions.|\n|1||Can approximate any function that contains a continuous mapping from one finite space to another.|\n|2||Can represent an arbitrary decision boundary to arbitrary accuracy with rational activation functions and can approximate any smooth mapping to any accuracy.|\nDeciding the number of hidden neuron layers is only a small part of the problem. You must also determine how many neurons will be in each of these hidden layers. This process is covered in the next section.\nDeciding the number of neurons in the hidden layers is a very important part of deciding your overall neural network architecture. Though these layers do not directly interact with the external environment, they have a tremendous influence on the final output. Both the number of hidden layers and the number of neurons in each of these hidden layers must be carefully considered.\nUsing too few neurons in the hidden layers will result in something called underfitting. Underfitting occurs when there are too few neurons in the hidden layers to adequately detect the signals in a complicated data set.\nUsing too many neurons in the hidden layers can result in several problems. First, too many neurons in the hidden layers may result in overfitting. Overfitting occurs when the neural network has so much information processing capacity that the limited amount of information contained in the training set is not enough to train all of the neurons in the hidden layers. A second problem can occur even when the training data is sufficient. An inordinately large number of neurons in the hidden layers can increase the time it takes to train the network. The amount of training time can increase to the point that it is impossible to adequately train the neural network. Obviously, some compromise must be reached between too many and too few neurons in the hidden layers.\nThere are many rule-of-thumb methods for determining the correct number of neurons to use in the hidden layers, such as the following:\nThese three rules provide a starting point for you to consider. Ultimately, the selection of an architecture for your neural network will come down to trial and error. But what exactly is meant by trial and error? You do not want to start throwing random numbers of layers and neurons at your network. To do so would be very time consuming. Chapter 8, “Pruning a Neural Network” will explore various ways to determine an optimal structure for a neural network."}
{"text": "Friday Flyby May Trigger 'Asteroid-Quake' on Space Rock\nThe close flyby of Earth by asteroid 2012 DA14 on Friday (Feb. 15) could trigger a quake on the space rock, scientists say.\n\"We are going to be looking closely for evidence of seismic activity on 2014 DA14 as it passes by,\" Richard Binzel, a professor of planetary science at MIT, said in a statement. \"This is the first case of an object coming close enough to experience quakes and where we have enough notice to plan observations.\"\nDuring the unprecedented close approach, 2012 DA14, which is about half the size of a football field, will cruise within 17,200 miles (27,700 kilometers) of the planet. It poses no threat to Earth, but the flyby marks the first time scientists like Binzel have had the chance to observe such a big space rock this close-up.\nBinzel believes many near-Earth asteroids get shaken up when they fly too closely to our planet's gravitational field, which could help explain why some space rocks seem to shed a worn-looking outer coating caused by \"space weathering.\" [Asteroid 2012 DA14's Flyby: Complete Coverage]\n\"As asteroids move through space, they slowly turn dark red,\" Binzel said. \"This phenomenon, called space weathering, is caused by long exposure to cosmic rays and solar radiation. For decades, however, we have known about a handful of small asteroids that looked [light and fresh]; they were not space-weathered.\"\nBinzel and his colleagues calculated the orbits of those squeaky-clean asteroids and found out what they all had in common: close encounters with Earth in the past million years.\n\"Gravitational forces during the flybys can stretch, rattle and torque these asteroids, causing dark, space-weathered material on the surface to be overturned, revealing the fresh stuff underneath,\" Binzel said.\nCompared to quakes on Earth, asteroid-quakes would look quite minor. Binzel said an astronaut floating next to an asteroid during a tremor might notice its surface sway by a few centimeters or spot \"gentle avalanches\" on the space rock's steepest crater slopes.\n\"These asteroids experience [seismic activity] in the milli- to micro-g range,\" he said. \"That might not sound like much, but remember these are small bodies. Gravity is not very strong, so just a little shaking or stretching goes a long way.\"\nBinzel and his colleagues will be looking for changes in the color, spin, shape and reflectivity of asteroid 2012 DA14 as it passes by.\nSPACE.com is providing complete coverage of asteroid 2012 DA14's flyby. Visit SPACE.com on Friday for day-long coverage as the asteroid buzzes Earth.\nABOUT THE AUTHOR\nMORE FROM SPACE.com"}
{"text": "The World Heritage Committee,\n1. Having examined Documents WHC-08/32.COM/8B and WHC-08/32.COM/INF.8B1,\n2. Inscribes the Al-Hijr Archaeological Site (Madâin Sâlih), Saudi Arabia,on the World Heritage List on the basis of criteria (ii) and (iii);\n3. Adopts the following Statement of Outstanding Universal Value:\nThe archaeological site of Al-Hijr is a major site of the Nabataean civilisation, in the south of its zone of influence. Its integrity is remarkable and it is well conserved. It includes a major ensemble of tombs and monuments, whose architecture and decorations are directly cut into the sandstone.\nIt bears witness to the encounter between a variety of decorative and architectural influences (Assyrian, Egyptian, Phoenician, Hellenistic), and the epigraphic presence of several ancient languages (Lihyanite, Talmudic, Nabataean, Greek, Latin).\nIt bears witness to the development of Nabataean agricultural techniques using a large number of artificial wells in rocky ground. The wells are still in use.\nThe ancient city of Hegra/Al-Hijr bears witness to the international caravan trade during late Antiquity.\nCriterion (ii): The site of Al-Hijr is located at a meeting point between various civilisations of late Antiquity, on a trade route between the Arabian Peninsula, the Mediterranean world and Asia. It bears outstanding witness to important cultural exchanges in architecture, decoration, language use and the caravan trade. Although the Nabataean city was abandoned during the pre-Islamic period, the route continued to play its international role for caravans and then for the pilgrimage to Mecca, up to its modernisation by the construction of the railway at the start of the 20th century.\nCriterion (iii): The site of Al-Hijr bears unique testimony to the Nabataean civilisation, between the 2nd and 3rd centuries BC and the pre-Islamic period, and particularly in the 1st century AD. It is an outstanding illustration of the architectural style specific to the Nabataeans, consisting of monuments directly cut into the rock, and with facades bearing a large number of decorative motifs. The site includes a set of wells, most of which were sunk into the rock, demonstrating the Nabataeans' mastery of hydraulic techniques for agricultural purposes.\nThe testimony borne by Al-Hijr to the Nabataean civilisation is of outstanding integrity and authenticity, because of its early abandonment and the benefit over a very long period of highly favourable climatic conditions.\nThe State Party has begun to set up an extremely comprehensive Local Management Unit, and this process is now under way. The announced management plan should enable satisfactory protection of the property. With this in mind, the plan should organise systematic monitoring of the conservation of the site, and prepare a project for the presentation of the Outstanding Universal Value of the property for the benefit both of visitors and of the population of the region.\n4. Requests the State Party to:\n- a) implement the established management plan;\n- b) in the framework of the management plan and the Local Management Unit, conduct regular monitoring;\n5. Recommends that:\n- a) the new framework law on the Kingdom's Antiquities and Museums be promulgated;\n- b) care be taken to ensure that the development of reception facilities at the property and future developments in the wider surroundings of the property do not impact on the expression of the property's Outstanding Universal Value."}
{"text": ": Grade-2 English Games\nSight Words is a simple vocabulary and memory exercise for kids. It is designed to introduce kids to some common dolch sight words. Early readers recognize sight words from having memorized them. In this exercise, kids will learn to recognize and recall dolch sight words by flipping the cards and making a pair of the matching words. Kids will enjoy as they sharpen their memory skills and build their vocabulary. This will help kids in improving their reading skills also."}
{"text": "Last week a curious, free release popped up on Steam: Moonbase Alpha, a NASA-funded game where up to six players can team up in order to save a near-future Lunar base crippled by a meteor strike. The game is just the first release from NASA's Learning Technologies program, which aims to help raise interest in the space program through gaming.\nArs spoke with Daniel Laughlin, project manager of Learning Technologies, to learn more about the game and what we can expect to see in the future.\nThe game was codeveloped by Army Game Studio and Virtual Heroes, two of the leading developers of \"serious games.\" And according to Laughlin, NASA's decision to move into the game space was influenced a great deal by the success of the studios' previous releases. \"The project was inspired in part by America's Army,\" Laughlin told Ars. \"It started as an effort to prove we could create a commercial quality game using NASA content that is fun. NASA was looking for a project at the same time the Army Game Studio was looking to branch out from America’s Army. It helped that Army Game Studio and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center are co-located at Redstone Arsenal in Alabama. Virtual Heroes has a history for with America’s Army so we were excited to see them selected to support the Army Game Studio on the game.\"\nThough development of the game didn't start until last year, Laughlin actually began researching the prospect of using games as an educational tool back in 2004. The main impetus for the project was the decline in interest in STEM education—science, technology, engineering and mathematics—amongst the American population.\n\"The US is facing a crisis in technical fields,\" explained Laughlin. \"There are not enough students studying science, technology, engineering and mathematics to fill our national needs in those areas. NASA literally cannot function without STEM graduates. The big goals for NASA Education are to get more students into STEM fields of study and graduating into STEM careers. It’s also the president’s goal with the Educate to Innovate initiative. Moonbase Alpha was developed in support of those goals.\"\nIn addition to funding the game, NASA also had a hand in ensuring that it was as accurate as possible, going so far as to have several engineers and scientists review the game for accuracy. Meanwhile, all of the models for the structures, vehicles and space suits were based on NASA’s lunar architecture plans.\nThe game itself only takes around 20 minutes to play, and despite its sophisticated 3D visuals—the game utilizes Unreal Engine 3—Moonbase Alpha is really just a proof of concept. NASA has another, much more ambitious project in the works: an MMO tentatively titled Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond.\nAnd, according to Laughlin, the success of Moonbase Alpha could have a big affect on the development of the MMO.\n\"Summaries of the player feedback from Moonbase Alpha will be going to the design team for Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond,\" he told Ars. \"Even more importantly, Moonbase Alpha has the potential to make or break the MMO project. A big negative reaction would mean revisiting the rationale for the MMO and reconsidering the project. A big positive reaction will give momentum and support to Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond.\"\nMoonbase Alpha is currently available as a free download on Steam."}
{"text": "NICAEA, ARABIC CANONS OF, name applied to several series of canons that are missing in the Greek or Latin canonical collections. They appear to have been reworked from the Syriac, at least in part. In the latter language the texts attributed to the Council of NICAEA in 325 are said to have come from the pen of the bishop Maruta of Maipherkat (in Arabic Mayyafaraqin, today a town in Turkey). At all events, who the translator, or rather the adapter, was is not known, nor at what date the canons were adopted by the Copts. It will be noted—this is not a proof that they were previously unknown—that in his Nomocanon the twelfth-century patriarch GABRIEL II IBN TURAYK knew only the twenty canons counted in the Greek collections, while MIKHA’IL, bishop of Damietta, cited two series of canons of Nicaea, one of twenty canons and one of eighty-four. Given that the grouping of these texts diverges greatly in the manuscripts, it has seemed better to follow the exposition given by Abu al-Barakat IBN KABAR in his religious encyclopedia Misbah al-Zulmah. This passage was translated into French in J. M. Vansleb's Histoire de l'église d'Alexandrie (1677, pp. 265ff.).\nIbn Kabar divides the documents attributed to the Council of Nicaea into three books. In the first book (according to him, it is the second in the Greek collections) he groups a history of CONSTANTINE I and his mother, Helena, as well as a presentation of his incentives for the convocation of the council, which forms a kind of introduction. The collection of Macarius, a monk of Dayr Abu Maqar in the fourteenth century, adds at this point a list of heresies and sects and a list of the 318 bishops who participated. Then comes the series of twenty authentic canons, according to the Melchite recension, followed by the Coptic series of thirty (sometimes thirty-three) canons concerning anchorites, monks, and the clergy. W. Riedel (1968, pp. 38, 1791) asked if this was not a reworking of the Syntagma ad monachos attributed to Saint Athanasius.\nAs to the second book, Ibn Kabar tells us, \"The Melchites and the Nestorians have translated [the second book] and the Jacobites have adopted it.\" It is a series of eighty-four (sometimes eighty) canons. This division would perhaps indicate that the original text was continuous.\nThe third book contains the \"Books of the Kings,\" which are themselves divided into four books and also exist independently. This is a collection of the legislation enacted by the Byzantine emperors Constantine, Theodosius, and Leo. Here these canons are attributed to the Council of Nicaea. It appears that the Christians of the Orient adopted these texts in defiance of the Muslims, who referred to the Shari‘ah, or Muslim sacred law, for guidance in purely civil matters such as marriages, inheritances, and the like.\nThese texts provide numerous translations. The first book gives a history of the emperor Constantine and his mother and relates the story of the council, as well as the reasons for the convocation of the bishops. It includes the twenty authentic canons followed by the thirty canons called Arabic and gives the history, or prehistory, of the Council of Nicaea in a rather free Latin translation by Abraham Ecchellensis (Ibrahim al-Haqilani), a celebrated Maronite deacon. The \"Thirty Canons Relative to the Monks and Clergy\" are given in Latin by the same author in a paraphrase rather than a true translation. The list of heresies is given in German translation by A. Harnack (1899, pp. 14-71). The list of the bishops according to the Coptic texts is examined by, among others, F. Haase (1920, pp. 81-92). As for the eighty-four canons, they will be found in a paraphrase by Abraham Ecchellensis in J. D. Mansi (cols. 1029-1049).\nThe enormous mass of the documents relating, rightly or wrongly, to the first council, which played a considerable role in the East more than anywhere else, is organized in the collection of Macarius into four books. The difference between his division and that of Ibn Kabar is that Macarius' second book comprises not all the eighty-four canons but only the first thirty-two. Canons forty-eight to seventy-three, combined with the thirty concerning anchorites, monks, and clergy, form the third book, the fourth containing only the Coptic recension of the twenty official canons. The \"Four Books of the Kings\" have with him a place apart.\nThe Arabic Canons of Nicaea are, in the strict sense, the eighty-four canons adapted from the Syriac by the Melchites and borrowed by the Copts. In addition to this series of eighty-four canons in Arabic literature, the literature in the Coptic language contains a series that has not survived in Arabic translation, called Gnômès. It is credited to the Council of Nicaea and gives moral exhortations, which probably reflect the discipline in force in the fourth century in the church of Alexandria. It was published and translated into French by E. Revillout (1873, pp. 210-88; and 1875, pp. 5-77, 209-266).\nClick tabs to swap between content that is broken into logical sections."}
{"text": "Delahoyde & Hughes\nA 6th-century BCE Greek philosopher and mathematician, originally from Samos (an island off the coast of Asia Minor settled by the Greeks), and born about 570 BCE, he left home around 530 BCE to escape the tyranny of the autocrat Polycrates. He lived in southern Italy, influencing city politics until the turn of the century when the citizens revolted against his influence and forced him to settle in Metapontum instead. Followers venerated him and they formed some sort of religious order. Although he did not set down his ideas in written form, Pythagorean centers sprang up throughout the Greek mainland during the 5th century BCE, including in Thebes and Athens, so he certainly influenced Socrates and therefore Plato. Legends include an instance of a superhuman voice wishing Pythagoras good morning as he was crossing the river Casas, and his being able to appear in both Croton and Metapontum on the same day at the same hour.\nPythagoras' concepts included the mathematical order of the cosmos, and he may have been led to this assessment from the mathematical order of music (consonants of octaves, fifths, and fourths being produced by simple ratios in the lengths of the vibrating strings). We know \"the square of the hypotenuse of a right triangle is equal to the sum of the squares of the sides containing the right angle.\" But Pythagoras had an all-inclusive vision, which also included the \"music of the spheres\" (the sound that no doubt had to be produced by the planets encircling earth).\nPythagoras believed in reincarnation and claimed to remember previous incarnations. [Transmigration of souls is not a Greek leaning, so one school of thought says Pythagoras travelled east beyond Egypt and came back with the notion (but they say this of Jesus too).] A later report claims he told followers that he has once been Aethalides, a son of Hermes, who allowed him one wish excluding immortality. He wished to remember what happened to him, alive and dead. One of his remembered incarnations was as Euphorbus, who was wounded by Menelaus. Afterwards, he became Hermotimus, who in a temple of Apollo identified the shield of Menelaus (dedicated to Apollo when he sailed back from Troy). His next incarnation was as Pyrrhus the Delian fisherman, and then Pythagoras.There is a famous story that he once stopped an animal from being beaten because he insisted he recognized the voice of a dead friend. (I wonder if that might not have been merely a humane device to stop the beating of an animal.) (Asimov 535)Due partly to his belief in metempsychosis, he opposed the taking of life, the eating of flesh, and association with those who benefit by the slaughter business. He supposedly coined the term \"Philosophy\" first as a word to signify the love and pursuit of wisdom, which helps the soul bring itself into attunement with the cosmos.\n- Do you agree with the philosophy of Pythagoras?Without transmigration of souls as a foundation, Metamorphoses still works because of its notions of the earth being generous, its commentary on pollution, and in general its environmentalism which seems almost modern in essence.\n- But we don't sacrifice to the gods anymore.Uh huh, well, in celebration of the Pilgrims infiltrating North America we butcher countless turkeys; and there is a trend of celebrating the birth and rebirth of our Lord and Saviour with roast pigs; and there's this sanctimony about grilling ground flesh in honor of \"the boys\" who died in the big war; and we certainly sacrifice millions of animals now to the \"god\" Science. So what we consider \"religion\" may have changed more than the nature of the practices (or the excuses).\n- The final connection to all the previous books?Metamorphoses celebrates the joy of change, of the natural world being animated, and in the ongoing process of wondrous creation. The stories are intended to inspire respect for the wonders of nature (however based in speciesistic assumptions that stories must be about humans). In this ongoing creation and active context, we have responsibilities too -- according to Pythagoras. The world, its flora, and its fauna: all have past lives and life stories worthy of some respect.\nFerguson, Kitty. The Music of Pythagoras. NY: Walker & Co., 2008.\nOrpheus: Roman Mythology"}
{"text": "The wide variety of national origins and the USA's relatively short history has resulted in a rich blend of cultural and traditional customs. All Americans are renowned for their openness and friendliness to visitors. As a rule, dress is casual; although smart restaurants, hotels and clubs insist on suits and ties or long dresses. Smoking is becoming increasingly unpopular and is often considered offensive; in fact, it's forbidden on city transport and often in public buildings. There will usually be a notice where no smoking is requested, and most restaurants have smoking and non-smoking sections.\nMost people are Protestant with significant Roman Catholic, Jewish and ethnic minorities.\nArchaeological finds suggest that Florida had been inhabited for thousands of years before any European settlements. Juan Ponce de Leon, a Spanish conquistador, named Florida in honour of his discovery of the land in 1513, during Pascua Florida - a Spanish term for the Easter season.\nOver the following century, both the Spanish and French established settlements with varying degrees of success. The area of Spanish Florida diminished with the development of English colonies to the north and French to the west. Great Britain gained control of Florida diplomatically in 1763 through the Peace of Paris, but Spain regained it after Britain's defeat by the American colonies and the subsequent Treaty of Versailles (1783). Finally, in 1819, Spain ceded Florida to the United States in exchange for the American renunciation of any claims on Texas. On March 3, 1845, Florida became the 27th state of the United States of America.\nUntil the mid-twentieth century Florida was the least populated Southern state. However, the local climate - helped by the growing availability of air conditioning - made the state a desirable location, and migration sharply increased the population. Economic prosperity led to the Florida land boom of the 1920s, which brought a brief period of intense development before the Great Depression brought it all to an end. Florida's economy didn't fully recover until World War II. But today, it's the most populous state in the South besides Texas, and the fourth most populous in the United States.\nBefore the American Civil War, when slavery was legal, African Americans made up nearly half of the state's population. This proportion declined over the next century, as many moved north in the Great Migration while large numbers of northern whites moved to the state. Recently, the state's percentage of black residents has begun to grow again. Today, large concentrations of black residents can be found in northern Florida (especially in Jacksonville, Gainesville and Pensacola), the Tampa Bay area, and South Florida (where their numbers have been bolstered by significant immigration from Haiti and Jamaica).\nFlorida's Hispanic population includes large communities of Cuban Americans in Miami and Tampa, Puerto Ricans in Tampa and Orlando, and Central American migrant workers in inland West-Central and South Florida. The Hispanic community continues to grow more affluent and mobile.\nWhites of all ethnic groups are present in all areas of the state. Those of British ancestry can be found in large numbers in the coastal cities, there's a large German population in South West Florida, a sizeable Italian community in the Miami area, and white Floridians of longer-present generations in parts of inland and northern Florida. Native white Floridians, especially those who have descended from long-time Florida families, affectionately refer to themselves as \"Florida Crackers.\"\nAs far as language is concerned, around 75% of Florida residents speak only English at home, while around 15% speak Spanish. Haitian Creole is the third most spoken language at around 2%.\nOrlando holiday resorts\n|International Drive Holidays||36 Hotels, Villas + Apartments|\n|Kissimmee Holidays||21 Hotels, Villas + Apartments|\n|Walt Disney World Resort Holidays||17 Hotels, Villas + Apartments|\n|Lake Buena Vista Holidays||9 Hotels, Villas + Apartments|\n|Disney Area Holidays||6 Hotels, Villas + Apartments|"}
{"text": "From Sioux Falls to Rapid City, fire weather meteorologists are watching conditions closely. And until we receive widespread, heavy moisture they'll be monitoring what is known as the Keetch-Byram Drought Index or KBDI.\nIt measures the amount of precipitation needed to return the soil to full saturation. It uses a system rating of zero to 800, which represents the moisture amount of zero to eight inches of water. It's what is needed to reduce the drought index to zero, which is saturation.\nMuch of KELOLAND is at 500 or above. The KBDI of 400 to 600 is typical of late summer and early fall.\nWhen it gets to 600 and above, that's when intense, deep burning fires can be expected with an emphasis on downwind new fires occuring.\nThe highest spots are in south central, north central and northeast South Dakota. Just this week, the area near Lake Andes is also considered at 800.\nIt's an important number to know this time of year, whether you're harvesting or off road for hunting.\n© 2012 KELOLAND TV. All Rights Reserved."}
{"text": "- Media Center\n- Library Overview\n- Library User Information\n- Collections Overview\n- Library Catalog\n- Programs & Services\n- Research Resources\n- Collections Online\n- Rights & Reproductions\n- Donations and Support\n- Projects & Partnerships\n- Library News & Updates\n- Plan a Visit\n- Support MdHS\nMaryland’s Largest Civil War Exhibit Now Open\nBaltimore, Maryland (April 21, 2011) -The Maryland Historical Society’s (MdHS) Museum opened Maryland’s largest and most comprehensive Civil War exhibit on April 16. The impact of the war on the people of Maryland is being told in personal terms in “Divided Voices: Maryland in the Civil War.” The largest Civil War exhibit in the museum’s 167-year history occupies over 5,000 square feet and tells the story of a tragedy in three acts: the romantic war, the real war and the long reunion. For more information on this 150th anniversary of the Civil War exhibit go to www.mdhs.org or call 410-685-3750.\nThe exhibit takes visitors back in time with 3-D videos that leads them back to 1861. There are also be interactive exhibits designed for children and adults as well as storyteller guides in period costumes. On Saturdays and Sundays the Maryland Historical Society Players perform short vignettes of major events that took place in Maryland. Admission - $6 adults, $5 seniors, 3-18 $4, under 3 free. Museum is free on first Thursday of each month.\nThe romantic war was the first year or so of the conflict, when both sides saw the war as an adventure and patriotic duty. The real war over the next three years of bloodshed left hundreds of thousands of young men dead. The long reunion focuses on the reuniting of the country, which some say is not complete to this day.\nMaryland sent 60,000 men to serve in the Union Army. Over 20,000 more served in the Confederacy. The first bloodshed of the war took place in Baltimore. The human stories of these men and women are told by bringing letters to life with today’s technology, as well as the display of hundreds of rare objects, many of which have not been shown publicly since the 19th century. Museum visitors see Robert E. Lee’s camp chair, John Brown’s carbine, Abraham Lincoln memorabilia as well as compelling and heartbreaking photographs of the period.\nVisitors will learn of Maryland’s major battles like Antietam and of lesser-known battles like the Battles of Monocacy and Silver Spring. They will come to understand how the soldiers suffered. More than 600,000 men died in the Civil War, compared to 400,000 American deaths in World War II. It was the deadliest war in American history.\nMuseum goers will discover why the first widely-used bullet made this one of history’s bloodiest wars and how this spurred advances in medical care. Triage, the ambulance corps, field hospitals and many significant surgical advances all began during the Civil War.\nThe war’s impact on Maryland’s citizens is revealed. Baltimore, for example, was under martial law and occupied by Union troops for the entire war. Lincoln’s suspension of the writ of habeas corpus ( people can’t be jailed without trial or a hearing) was famously used against John Merryman of Cockeysville, Maryland. Lincoln was willing to break the law to keep Maryland from joining the Confederacy and cutting the capital off from the North. The State legislature moved from Annapolis to Frederick to keep Maryland from joining the Confederacy.\nVisitors also learn the important role that African Americans played in the war. Over 10,000 African Americans served in the Union Army. Harriet Tubman served as a spy for the Union Army. Black soldiers such as Christian Fleetwood of Baltimore led African American troops into battle and earned America’s highest military honor.\nWomen’s growing role in society during those years will be revealed. They began serving as nurses for the first time. Women on the home front mourned their dead, creating the “Vacant Chair” tradition at dinner tables in Maryland and elsewhere.\nThe Civil War exhibit will run for the next four years with annual updates. Visitors to the museum will also find major exhibits of famous Maryland paintings, silver, furniture, maritime history and children’s toys from the last 300 years.\nThe Maryland Historical Society was founded in 1844 and is the world’s largest museum and library dedicated to the history of Maryland. Occupying an entire city block in the Mount Vernon district of Baltimore, the society’s mission is to “collect, preserve, and interpret the objects and materials that reflect Maryland’s diverse cultural heritage.” The Society is home to the original manuscript of the Star Spangled Banner and publishes a quarterly titled “Maryland Historical Magazine.” More information about the Maryland Historical Society can be found online at http://www.mdhs.org/\nThree Union soldiers are stationed on Federal Hill overlooking what is now the Inner Harbor of Baltimore (1862 photo). Their cannon is trained on the city as Baltimore was under martial law throughout the Civil War. Lincoln was afraid that Maryland would secede from the Union cutting Washington D.C. off from the North. The background is a contemporary photo of Baltimore from the same angle. The historic photo is part of the Maryland Historical Society's Civil War exhibit, Divided Voices: Maryland in the Civil War, the largest and most comprehensive display on the subject in the state."}
{"text": "Dora Bas Rivka Silver O'H\nThe Sideways Ark\nG-d told Moshe to go among the Jews and accept donations for building the Mishkan (Tabernacle). These donations could consist of gold, silver, copper, colored wool and other fabrics, skins, wood, gems, oil and spices. G-d would instruct Moshe in building the Mishkan, where His Presence would reside.\nThe first vessel G-d described was the Aron (Ark), a wooden box overlaid with gold. There were rings on the corners, through which poles were placed to carry the Aron; these poles were never to be removed. (The Ark is popularly depicted with the poles running along the longer sides but, really, the poles ran along the shorter ends. See Talmud Menachos 98a-b)."}
{"text": "LACMA May Fund The Fading Watts Towers\nDue to a severe budget crisis, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art is interested in stepping into the breach as curator and conservator of the Watts Towers this summer to maintain the historic landmark.\nThe Towers were built by Italian immigrant construction worker Sabato Rodia in his spare time over a period of 33 years, from 1921 to 1954. He created the framework of steel, wire and concrete and ornamented the three main spires and their 14 surrounding sculptural elements with colorful bits of broken glass, pottery and seashells. His work is an example of non-traditional vernacular architecture and American Naïve art. Article LA Times."}
{"text": "Mercury findings raise new questions\nOne of a kind New data from NASA's Messenger spacecraft has surprised scientists showing the planet Mercury has some of the most unusual internal dynamics ever seen.\nThe findings, which will appear in the journal Science, mean the planet closest to the Sun has evolved differently compared to the other terrestrial planets in the solar system.\nAfter its first full year in orbit around Mercury, Messenger has returned a detailed picture of the planet's northern hemisphere suggesting a deep reservoir of high-density material exists below a thin crust surface.\nUsing the Messenger data, Dr Maria Zuber, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and colleagues created a detailed elevation model showing the planet's northern hemisphere is far flatter than Mars or the Moon.\nThey also found extensive lowlands and a vast northern volcanic plain.\nThe researchers were also surprised to discover that the floor of several craters are tilted. For example, the 1500-kilometre wide Caloris impact crater is tilted to the extent that parts of its floor are now taller than the rim.\nUnlike the Moon\n\"Prior to Messenger's observations, many scientists believed Mercury was much like the Moon,\" says Zuber.\n\"We thought it cooled off very early in solar system history, and has been a dead planet throughout most of its evolution.\"\nNow Zuber and colleagues say there's compelling evidence that Mercury must have sustained intense geophysical activity for most of its history.\nMessenger's also provided scientists with the first measurements of Mercury's gravity field showing the planet's crust is thicker at low latitudes and thinner toward the northern polar region.\nThey believe Mercury's outer shell is denser than previously thought, indicating a deep layer of iron sulfide below the surface.\nThe data also suggests Mercury has a huge iron rich liquid outer core and perhaps a solid inner core, together comprising about 85 per cent of the planet's radius.\nBy comparison Earth's core is about half our planet's radius.\nThe data means Mercury's mantle and crust occupy only the outer 15 percent or so of the planet's radius giving it a different internal structure compared to other terrestrial planets.\nStrange and interesting world\nPlanetary scientist Dr Craig O'Neill from Sydney's Macquarie University says the new data shows Mercury is a far more interesting planet than previously thought.\n\"It seems the internal dynamics of Mercury is doing a lot more to the planet's crust than we gave it credit for,\" says O'Neill.\n\"The tilted crater floors are interesting and we don't really know what would have caused this.\"\nAccording to O'Neill the discovery of what may be a liquid core, could also explain the magnetic field detected around Mercury.\n\"We used to think it was just residual traces of magnetism in the rocks,\" says O'Neill.\n\"But thanks to Messenger we now know there's something going on in Mercury's core.\""}
{"text": "This week I was visited by a woman inventor who created a way to reduce one seemingly small contributor to the landfill. You know those little tiny plastic spoons they give you in the ice cream shop so you can taste lots of flavors before you make a selection or that are distributed along with little samples of a new soup in the supermarket? Well they're not reused, recycled, or biodegradable.\nThat's why Peggy Cross developed the EcoTaster (shown left),a paperboard tasting spoon made from recycled materials that will decompose in compost in just two weeks.\nFor full-size portions, she also offers the EcoTensil (shown right) which is made of the same type of paperboard as a milk carton and will also biodegrade, although a little bit more slowly.\nCross also pointed out that these made-in-the-USA tools are made of less material and take up less space than other disposable utensils (see photo at left), making for a much smaller carbon footprint. Stonyfield Farms recently used the spoons for yogurt samplings at the US Open tennis championship--we hope they start popping up in supermarkets, trade shows, and sports events all over the country. Voskos Yogurt, Solgar Vitamin and Herb Company, and Schoolhouse Kitchen are other companies that are already using them.\nHere at GHRI we've demonstrated our commitment to the environment with our Green Good Housekeeping Seal which helps you make wise choices for the earth, when you're out shopping."}
{"text": "Crew: Filipchenko, Grechko. Soyuz s/n 18 would have been the active spacecraft of the first dual-spacecraft test of the Kontakt docking system. A crew transfer using the Krechet spacesuit would presumably have taken place. Backup crew: Lazarev, Makarov.\nSoyuz s/n 18 would have been the active spacecraft of the first dual-spacecraft test of the Kontakt docking system. A crew transfer using the Krechet spacesuit would presumably have taken place.\nBy December 1970, there were four crews in training for two pairs of Soyuz spacecraft to be launched to test the Kontakt lunar rendezvous/docking system. During the Salyut 1 mission, in June 1971, six crews were identified and assigned to specific Soyuz spacecraft serial numbers for these tests. These would have been launched in three pairs beginning in early 1972, depending on the schedule for the DOS-2 station. In the event, the death of the Soyuz 11 crew, and subsequent redesign of the Soyuz spacecraft, led to these Kontakt missions being cancelled and the whole Kontakt test series being reformulated with new crew members in early 1973. Soyuz Kontakt 1 would have been the active spacecraft of the first mission.\nAKA: Soyuz s/n 18.\nMore... - Chronology...\nFirst Launch: 1972 Early.\nLazarev Lazarev, Vasili Grigoryevich (1928-1990) Russian physician cosmonaut. Flew on Soyuz 12, Soyuz 18-1. Survived first manned spaceflight abort during launch. More...\nFilipchenko Filipchenko, Anatoli Vassilyevich (1928-) Russian pilot cosmonaut. Flew on Soyuz 7, Soyuz 16. More...\nGrechko Grechko, Georgi Mikhailovich (1931-) Russian engineer cosmonaut. Flew on Soyuz 17, Salyut 6 EO-1, Salyut 7 EP-5. More...\nMakarov Makarov, Oleg Grigoryevich (1933-2003) Russian engineer cosmonaut. Flew on Soyuz 12, Soyuz 18-1, Salyut 6 EP-1, Salyut 6 EO-5. Survived first manned spaceflight abort during launch. More...\nLunar L3 The Soviet program to land a man on the moon and return him safely to earth. More...\nSoyuz sn 18 Chronology\n1971 June 15 -\n- Soyuz Kontakt and DOS-2 crew assignments made. - .\nNation: USSR. Related Persons: Filipchenko; Grechko; Lazarev; Makarov; Vorobyov; Yazdovsky; Yakovlev; Porvatkin; Kovalyonok; Isakov; Shcheglov; Leonov; Rukavishnikov; Kolodin; Gubarev; Sevastyanov; Voronov; Klimuk; Artyukhin; Bykovsky; Alekseyev, Semyon; Gorbatko. Program: Salyut; Lunar L3. Flight: Soyuz 11; Soyuz 12 / DOS 1; Soyuz sn 18; Soyuz sn 19; Soyuz sn 20; Soyuz sn 21; Soyuz sn 22; Soyuz sn 23; DOS 2-1; DOS 2-2; DOS 2-3; DOS 2-4. Spacecraft: Soyuz Kontakt; Salyut 1. Crews are formed for six Soyuz (Kontakt?) flights. Soyuz s/n 18 - Filipchenko and Grechko; Soyuz s/n 19 - Lazarev and Makarov; Soyuz s/n 20 - Vorobyov and Yazdovsky; Soyuz s/n 21 - Yakovlelv and Porvatkin; Soyuz s/n 22 - Kovalyonok and Isakov; Soyuz s/n 23 - Shcheglov and [illegible]. Five crews are training for Salyut flights: Crew 1, Leonov, Rukavishnikov, and Kolodin; Crew 2, Gubarev, Sevastyanov, and Voronov. TsKBEM engineer cosmonauts are to be selected will round out the last three crews, but VVS members will be: Crew 3, Klimuk, Artyukhin; Crew 4, Bykovskyy, Alekseyev; Crew 5, Gorbatko. Leonov and Gubarev will have their crews fully ready for Soyuz 12 by 30 June, for a launch date between 15-20 July. Leonov is asking to go to East Germany for two to three days in the first week of July. Kamanin is fully opposed to this - he is thinkng not of his upcoming flight, but the exhibition of his paintings at the Prezdensk Gallery!\n1972 Early -\n- Soyuz sn 18 (cancelled) - .\nCrew: Filipchenko; Grechko. Nation: USSR. Related Persons: Filipchenko; Grechko. Program: Lunar L3. Flight: Soyuz sn 18. Spacecraft: Soyuz Kontakt. Summary: Soyuz s/n 18 would have been the active spacecraft of the first dual launch to test the Kontakt lunar orbit rendezvous system. A crew transfer using the Krechet spacesuit would presumably have taken place..\nHome - Browse - Contact\n© / Conditions for Use"}
{"text": "Ismaili Community: History\nThe Shia Imami Ismaili Muslims, generally known as the Ismailis, belong to the Shia branch of Islam. The Shia form one of the two major branches of Islam, the Sunni being the other. The Ismailis live in over 25 different countries, mainly in Central and South Asia, Africa and the Middle East, as well as in Europe, North America and Australia.\nAs Muslims, the Ismailis affirm the fundamental Islamic testimony of truth, the Shahada, that there is no God but Allah and that Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) is His Messenger. They believe that Muhammad was the last and final Prophet of Allah, and that the Holy Quran, Allah's final message to mankind, was revealed through him. Muslims hold this revelation to be the culmination of the message that had been revealed through other Prophets of the Abrahamic tradition before Muhammad, including Abraham, Moses and Jesus, all of whom Muslims revere as Prophets of Allah.\nIn common with other Shia Muslims, the Ismailis affirm that after the Prophet's death, Hazrat Ali, the Prophet's cousin and son-in-law, became the first Imam - the spiritual leader - of the Muslim community and that this spiritual leadership (known as Imamat) continues thereafter by hereditary succession through Ali and his wife Fatima, the Prophet's daughter. Succession to Imamat, according to Shia doctrine and tradition, is by way of Nass (Designation), it being the absolute prerogative of the Imam of the Time to appoint his successor from amongst any of his male descendants.\nHis Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan is the 49th hereditary Imam of the Shia Imami Ismaili Muslims. He was born on 13 December 1936 in Geneva, son of Prince Aly Khan and Princess Tajuddawlah Aly Khan and spent his early childhood in Nairobi, Kenya. He attended Le Rosey School in Switzerland for nine years and graduated from Harvard in 1959 with a BA (Honours) in Islamic History. He succeeded his grandfather Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan on 11 July 1957 at the age of 20.\nSpiritual allegiance to the Imam and adherence to the Shia Imami Ismaili tariqah (persuasion) of Islam according to the guidance of the Imam of the Time, have engendered in the Ismaili Community an ethos of self-reliance, unity, and a common identity. In a number of the countries where they live, the Ismailis have evolved a well-defined institutional framework through which they have, under the leadership and guidance of the Imam, established schools, hospitals, health centres, housing societies and a variety of social and economic development institutions for the common good of all citizens regardless of their race or religion.\nDuring the course of history, the Ismailis have, under the guidance of their Imams, made significant contributions to Islamic civilisations, the cultural, intellectual and religious life of Muslims. The University of al-Azhar and the Academy of Science, Dar al-Ilm, in Egypt and indeed the city of Cairo itself, are testimony to this contribution. Among the renowned philosophers, jurists, physicians, mathematicians, astronomers and scientists of the past who flourished under the patronage of Ismaili Imams are Qadi al-Numan, al-Kirmani, Ibn al-Haytham (al-Hazen), Nasir e-Khusraw and Nasir al-Din Tusi."}
{"text": "By A. M. Sullivan\nCHAPTER IX. (continued)\nFrom the Atlas and Cyclopedia of Ireland (1900)\nIt was to the rugged and desolate Hebrides that Columba turned his face when he accepted the terrible penance of Molaise. He bade farewell to his relatives, and, with a few monks who insisted on accompany him whithersoever he might go, launched his frail currochs from the northern shore. They landed first, or rather were carried by wind and stream, upon the little isle of Oronsay, close by Islay; and here for a moment they thought their future abode was to be. But when Columba, with the early morning, ascending the highest ground on the island, to take what he thought would be a harmless look toward the land of his heart, lo! on the dim horizon a faint blue ridge—the distant hills of Antrim! He averts his head and flies downward to the strand! Here they cannot stay, if his vow is to be kept. They betake them once more to the currochs, and steering further northward, eventually land upon Iona, thenceforth, till time shall be no more, to be famed as the sacred isle of Columba! Here landing, he ascended the loftiest of the hills upon the isle, and \"gazing into the distance, found no longer any trace of Ireland upon the horizon.\" In Iona accordingly he resolved to make his home. The spot from whence St. Columba made this sorrowful survey is still called by the islesmen in the Gaelic tongue, Carn-cul-ri-Erinn, or the Cairn of Farewell—literally, The back turned on Ireland.\nWriters without number have traced the glories of Iona. Here rose, as if by miracle, a city of churches; the isle became one vast monastery, and soon much too small for the crowds that still pressed thither. Then from the parent isle there went forth to the surrounding shores, and all over the mainland, off-shoot establishments and missionary colonies (all under the authority of Columba), until in time the Gospel light was ablaze on the hills of Albyn; and the names of St. Columba and Iona were on every tongue from Rome to the utmost limits of Europe!\n\"This man, whom we have seen so passionate, so irritable, so warlike and vindictive, became little by little the most gentle, the humblest, the most tender of friends and fathers. It was he, the great head of the Caledonian Church, who, kneeling before the strangers who came to Iona, or before the monks returning from their work, took off their shoes, washed their feet, and after having washed them, respectfully kissed them. But charity was still stronger than humility in that transfigured soul. No necessity, spiritual or temporal, found him indifferent. He devoted himself to the solace of all infirmities, all misery and pain, weeping often over those who did not weep for themselves.\n\"The work of transcription remained until his last day the occupation of his old age, as it had been the passion of his youth; it had such an attraction for him, and seemed to him so essential to a knowledge of the truth that, as we have already said, three hundred copies of the Holy Gospels, copied by his own hand, have been attributed to him.\"\nBut still Columba carried with him in his heart the great grief that made life for him a lengthened penance. \"Far from having any prevision of the glory of Iona, his soul,\" says Montalembert, \"was still swayed by a sentiment which never abandoned him—regret for his lost country. All his life he retained for Ireland the passionate tenderness of an exile, a love which displayed itself in the songs which have been preserved to us, and which date perhaps from the first moment of his exile. . . . 'Death in faultless Ireland is better than life without end in Albyn.' After this cry of despair follow strains more plaintive and submissive.\"\n\"But it was not only in these elegies, repeated and perhaps retouched by Irish bards and monks, but at each instant of his life, in season and out of season, that this love and passionate longing for his native country burst forth in words and musings; the narratives of his most trustworthy biographers are full of it. The most severe penance which he could have imagined for the guiltiest sinners who came to confess to him, was to impose upon them the same fate which he had voluntarily inflicted on himself—never to set foot again upon Irish soil! But when, instead of forbidding to sinners all access to that beloved isle, he had to smother his envy of those who hard the right and happiness to go there at their pleasure, he dared scarcely trust himself to name its name; and when speaking to his guests, or to the monks who were to return to Ireland, he would only say to them, 'you will return to the country that you love.' \"\n \"We are now,\" said Dr. Johnson, \" treading that illustrious island which was once the luminary of the Caledonian regions; whence savage clans and roving barbarians derived the benefits of knowledge and the blessings of religion....Far from me and from my friends be such frigid philosophy as may conduct us indifferent and unmoved over any ground which has been dignified by wisdom, bravery, or virtue. That man is little to be envied whose patriotism would not gain force upon the plain of Marathon, or whose piety would not grow warmer among the ruins of Iona.\"—Boswell's \"Tour to the Hebrides.\"\nFrom a sad, comfortless childhood Giles Truelove developed into a reclusive and uncommunicative man whose sole passion was books. For so long they were the only meaning to his existence. But when fate eventually intervened to have the outside world intrude upon his life, he began to discover emotions that he never knew he had.\nA story for the genuine booklover, penned by an Irish bookseller under the pseudonym of Ralph St. John Featherstonehaugh.\nFREE download 23rd - 27th May\nJoin our mailing list to receive updates on new content on Library, our latest ebooks, and more.\nYou won't be inundated with emails! — we'll just keep you posted periodically — about once a monthish — on what's happening with the library."}
{"text": "Artificial intelligence research is ushering in a new era of sophisticated, mass-market transportation technology. While computers can already fly a passenger jet better than a trained human pilot, people are still faced with the dangerous yet tedious task of driving automobiles. Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) is the field that focuses on integrating information technology with vehicles and transportation infrastructure to make transportation safer, cheaper, and more efficient. Recent advances in ITS point to a future in which vehicles themselves handle the vast majority of the driving task. Once autonomous vehicles become popular, autonomous interactions amongst multiple vehicles will be possible. Current methods of vehicle coordination, which are all designed to work with human drivers, will be outdated. The bottleneck for roadway efficiency will no longer be the drivers, but rather the mechanism by which those drivers' actions are coordinated. While open-road driving is a well-studied and more-or-less-solved problem, urban traffic scenarios, especially intersections, are much more challenging.\nWe believe current methods for controlling traffic, specifically at intersections, will not be able to take advantage of the increased sensitivity and precision of autonomous vehicles as compared to human drivers. In this article, we suggest an alternative mechanism for coordinating the movement of autonomous vehicles through intersections. Drivers and intersections in this mechanism are treated as autonomous agents in a multiagent system. In this multiagent system, intersections use a new reservation-based approach built around a detailed communication protocol, which we also present. We demonstrate in simulation that our new mechanism has the potential to significantly outperform current intersection control technology -- traffic lights and stop signs. Because our mechanism can emulate a traffic light or stop sign, it subsumes the most popular current methods of intersection control. This article also presents two extensions to the mechanism. The first extension allows the system to control human-driven vehicles in addition to autonomous vehicles. The second gives priority to emergency vehicles without significant cost to civilian vehicles. The mechanism, including both extensions, is implemented and tested in simulation, and we present experimental results that strongly attest to the efficacy of this approach."}
{"text": "Diabetic Ketoacidosis Symptoms\nThe body's cells need two energy requirements to function. The blood stream delivers both oxygen and glucose to the front door of the cell. The the oxygen is invited in, but the glucose needs a key to open the door. The insulin molecule is that key. When we eat, the body senses the levels of glucose in the blood stream and secretes just the right amount of insulin from the pancreas so that cells and the body can function.\nPeople with diabetes don't have the luxury of that auto-sensing. They need to balance the amount of glucose intake with the amount of insulin that needs to be injected. Not enough insulin and the glucose levels in the blood stream start to rise; too much insulin, and they plummet.\nThe consequences of hypoglycemia (hypo=low, glycemia=glucose in the blood) are easy to understand. No energy source, no function - and the first organ to go is the brain. It needs glucose to function and without it, the brain shuts down quickly. Confusion, lethargy, and coma occur quickly. It's interesting that brain cells don't need insulin to open their doors to glucose, so when people develop coma from low blood sugar, they waken almost instantaneously upon treatment. Blood sugar is one of the first things checked on scene of a comatose patient, because it's so easy to fix and very embarrassing for an EMT to miss."}
{"text": "Patent Models: Textile and Sewing Machines - Introduction\nFor much of the nineteenth century, inventors submitted a model with their patent application to the United States Patent Office. The National Museum of American History’s patent model collection began with the acquisition of 284 models from the Patent Office in June 1908, and reached more than 1,000 models by the end of that summer. In 1926, Congress decided to dispense with the stored collection of models and gave the Smithsonian Institution the opportunity to collect any models it wanted. Today, the Museum’s collection exceeds 10,000 patent models dating from 1836 to 1910.\nThe Museum’s Textile Collection contains over four thousand patent models. The collection includes many examples of carding machines, spinning machines, knitting machines, rope making machines, looms, baskets, carpets, fabrics, and sewing machines. Even the simple clothespin is well represented, with 41 patent models.\nThis sampling of patent models from the Textile Collection describes the two major groupings, textile machinery and sewing machines. In both groups, the examination of the models begins with the earliest of the inventions. In this early group of patent models, the textile machinery models date from 1837 to 1840, and the sewing machine models from 1842 to 1854.\nFor more information about the Museum’s patent model collection, see Patent Model Index, Guide to the Collections of the National Museum of American History.\n\"Patent Models: Textile and Sewing Machines - Introduction\" showing 1 items.\n- Spinning Wheel Patent Model\n- Patent No. 710, issued April 25, 1838\n- Hiram F. Wheeler of Springville, Pennsylvania\n- Hiram Wheeler’s domestic wheel was for spinning wool. He titled his invention “inclined spinner,” referring to the fact that the operator would sit at the wheel as opposed to standing and walking when using the typical wool wheel. When the treadle was forced down by the operator’s foot, a cord pulled the carriage and spinning wheel head away from the spinner. A weight brought both of them back toward the spinner. This movement of the carriage was equivalent to the spinner walking forward to the spindle tip for the draw out and then back to the wheel. Wheeler specifically claimed as his invention this sliding action of the wheel head.\n- Currently not on view\n- model constructed\n- before 1838-04-25\n- patent date\n- Wheeler, Hiram F.\n- ID Number\n- catalog number\n- accession number\n- patent number\n- Data Source\n- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center"}
{"text": "Belmont Station \"Quality\" Physical Education\nMr. Comins and Mrs. Martin\nWhat is \"Quality\" Physical Education?\nA program that involves moderate/vigorous activity 90% of the time or more\nIntentional fitness - Use of functional equipment\nTeacher role modeling of all lessons\nCore curriculum content integration\nPhysical fitness and nutrition integration\nOur lessons for the 2012-2013 school year will reflect a physical education program that stresses physical fitness, nutrition, and motor skills. Belmont Station will continue to teach the Five for Life program. Children in grades one through five will participate at moderate to vigorous levels of physical activity for much of the time they attend physical education class. All activities will be centered around the academic content presented in the Five for Life curriculum. Intensity levels, the five components of fitness, nutrition, the muscular system, and the skeletal system are several of the units that will be taught this upcoming year. Feedback technologies such as pedometers and heart rate batons will continue to be used as well. Please take some time to check out our web page. It will be updated each month so that our students and parents can see what we will be doing. It's going to be another productive year in physical education class!"}
{"text": "Includes bibliographical references (p. -491) and indexes.\nPART ONE: FRAMEWORK Guide to This Book Qualitative Research: Why and How To Do It Qualitative and Quantitative Research Ethics of Qualitative Research PART TWO: FROM THEORY TO TEXT Making Use of the Literature in Qualitative Research Theoretical Positions Underlying Qualitative Research Epistemological Background: Construction and Understanding of Texts PART THREE: RESEARCH DESIGN The Qualitative Research Process Research Questions Entering the Field Sampling How to Design Qualitative Research: An Overview PART FOUR: VERBAL DATA Interviews Narratives Focus Groups Verbal Data: An Overview PART FIVE: OBSERVATION AND MEDIATED DATA Observation and Ethnography Visual Data: Photography, Film, and Video Using Documents as Data Qualitative Online Research: Using the Internet Observation and Mediated Data: An Overview PART SIX: FROM TEXT TO THEORY Documentation of Data Coding and Categorizing Analyzing Conversation, Discourse, and Genres Narrative and Hermeneutic Analysis Using Computers in Qualitative Analysis Text Interpretation: An Overview PART SEVEN: GROUNDING AND WRITING QUALITATIVE RESEARCH Quality Criteria in Qualitative Research The Quality of Qualitative Research: Beyond Criteria Writing Qualitative Research PART EIGHT: QUALITATIVE RESEARCH: INTEGRATION AND OUTLOOK Qualitative Research At Work I: Grounded Theory Qualitative Research At Work II: Triangulation Qualitative Research: State of the Art and the Future Glossary References Author index Subject index About the Author.\n(source: Nielsen Book Data)\n'The fourth edition of Uwe Flick's \"Introduction to Qualitative Research\" remains the most comprehensive and thorough text in qualitative research. It is student - and user-friendly, thoroughly up-to-date in terms of the latest developments in the field, imminently practical. It is the single most important introductory book on qualitative inquiry in the social sciences today' - Norman K. Denzin, University of Illinois. The new edition of Uwe Flick's bestselling textbook has been fully revised, expanded and updated. \"An Introduction to Qualitative Research\" guides the student step-by-step through the research process of qualitative research. This classic text covers all of the main theoretical approaches to qualitative research, and provides unmatched coverage of the full range of different qualitative methods and approaches now available to researchers. A range of new features have been added to the new edition including: new structure to better meet the needs of teaching qualitative research; a new chapter on Grounded Theory plus updated coverage on the full range of other qualitative methods; a summary section discussing the state-of-the-art in qualitative research; a glossary; and, updated cases studies, exercises and guided questions. This new edition will continue to ensure that. \"An Introduction to Qualitative Research\" remains an essential introductory text for all students of qualitative research. (source: Nielsen Book Data)"}
{"text": "First of all, these phrases sound very strange to me (I should have the context they are used into, in order to have a better understanding of them).\nIn Spanish such phrases may be an example of that is knoun as \"Complemento del Nombre\". I'm not sure if such a concept exists in English grammar. In Spanish you must think of that complement as some sort of adjective that specifies the role of the main noun.\nIts structure is:\n[Main Noun] de [Specifier Noun]\nSo, with the phrase \"Fiestas de árboles\", you have:\n- Fiestas is the main noun.\n- árboles is the specifier.\nthen you may have these meanings (among others, depending on the context):\n- Parties attended by trees (should be better expressed with: Fiestas de los árboles).\n- Parties made out of trees (parties whose main element are trees).\nOn the other hand, \"Árboles de fiestas\" may have these meanings:\n- Abbreviation of Árboles que están de fiestas: trees which are going or attending to a party.\n- Trees used within parties (should be also expressed with: Árboles para fiestas).\nAs you can see, at least the meanings I can think of these phrases are very similar for both cases."}
{"text": "Sudoku Puzzle #11\nEducation World's weekly Sudoku Puzzle\nfeature offers a perfect tool for building students' critical thinking skills. It can be used in class, assigned for homework, or offered as a challenge or reward activity. The best part of all: as students learn to complete the puzzles they will be building confidence in their ability to tackle challenging tasks and building critical thinking skills that will carry over into all aspects of their classroom performance.\nEach Suduko puzzle challenges students to use the numbers provided to help them fill in the blank squares so that each number, 1 to 9, appears in every Column, Row, and Block of the completed puzzle.\nClick for a PDF [portable document format] printable page. (If you are unable to view the printable page, download the free Adobe Acrobat Reader.)\nClick for the answers to this week's puzzle.\nClick for Sudoku Puzzles from previous weeks.\nClick for tips for teaching students to do Sudoku puzzles.\nCopyright © 2006 Education World"}
{"text": "Recently there has been a substantial increase in the attention being paid to Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) by the media, state and federal natural resource agencies, and hunters and outdoor enthusiasts. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) developed this page to provide background information on CWD and explain what is being done to determine if the disease is in Florida, and if it is not, what we are doing to make sure it never gets here.\nWhat is Chronic Wasting Disease?\nChronic Wasting Disease is a progressive, neurological, debilitating disease that belongs to a family of diseases known as Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (TSEs). It is believed to be caused by an abnormal protein called a prion. CWD has been diagnosed in mule deer, white-tailed deer, and Rocky Mountain elk in captive herds and in the wild. Other cervids (antlered animals) may also be susceptible.\nCWD attacks the brains of infected animals, causing them to become emaciated, display abnormal behavior, and lose bodily functions. CWD is a fatal disease. Clinical signs include excessive salivation and grinding of teeth, increased drinking and urination, dramatic loss of weight and body condition, poor hair coat, staggering, and finally death. Behavioral changes, including decreased interaction with other animals, listlessness, lowering of the head, blank facial expression, and repetitive walking in set patterns also may occur.\nHow is CWD transmitted?\nTransmission of CWD occurs by direct contact with body fluids (feces, urine, saliva) or by indirect contact (contaminated environment). The prion is persistent in the environment and premises may remain infective for years. Crowding, such as in deer farms or by artificial feeding, facilitates transmission. There is no evidence that CWD can be transmitted to livestock or humans.\nWhere is CWD found?\nCWD has been found in captive and/or free-ranging cervids in Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta, and South Korea. In the US, the core endemic area is contiguous portions of Wyoming, Colorado, and Nebraska. The prevalence of CWD in this area is approximately <1% - 15% in mule deer and <1% in elk, although this varies greatly by location. Virginia and West Virginia are the only Southeastern states where CWD has been detected. CWD has not been found in Florida.\nHow is CWD diagnosed?\nCurrently the only practical method for diagnosing CWD is through analysis of brain stem tissue or lymph nodes from dead animals. There is no practical live-animal test. A tonsilar biopsy may be done on live animals; however, this is difficult and deer have to be held until diagnosis.\nHow is CWD controlled in a population?\nControl is extremely difficult once CWD becomes established in a natural population. This is because of the lack of a practical live-animal test, long incubation periods, and the persistence of the prion in the environment. Also, there is no vaccine or treatment once an animal gets the disease. If detected early in free-ranging populations, i.e. when prevalence is low, then eradication may be an achievable goal. This is not currently considered possible in the core endemic area; Wisconsin, however, has initiated an aggressive eradication program in the portion of the state where CWD has been found.\nWhat steps is FWC taking to determine if CWD is in Florida, and if it is not, what is being done to keep it from getting here?\nThe FWC has initiated a comprehensive monitoring program to make sure CWD is not already in Florida. We are asking the general public to keep their eye out for deer showing symptoms indicative of CWD. If you see a sickly, extremely skinny deer (see photo) report its location to the CWD hotline, toll free (866) 293-9282. If you harvest such a deer, do not handle it but call the CWD hotline. A biologist will collect the deer and take it to a lab for a necropsy. In addition, we will be collecting and testing tissue samples from hunter-killed deer during the hunting season. All CWD test results will be posted on this site as they are received. Click here for Florida CWD test results.\nThe number one objective in CWD management is to prevent it from spreading into new areas. One theoretical mode of disease transmission is through infected deer, elk or moose carcasses. Therefore, in an effort to minimize the risk of the disease spreading, Florida has adopted regulations affecting the transportation of hunter-harvested deer, elk and moose from CWD-infected areas.\nIt is illegal to bring into Florida carcasses of any species of the family Cervidae (e.g. deer, elk and moose) from 21 states and two Canadian provinces where CWD has been detected. At this time, CWD has been detected in Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, and the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta. Visit the United States Department of Agriculture's Web site for state-to-state CWD reports.\nHunters still can bring back de-boned meat from any CWD-affected region, as well as finished taxidermy mounts, hides, skulls, antlers and teeth as long as all soft tissue has been removed. Whole, bone-in carcasses and parts are permitted to be brought back to Florida if they were harvested from non-affected CWD states.\nThe most likely way CWD will get to Florida is through importation of live infected animals. To prevent this, live cervids (mule deer, white-tailed deer and elk) cannot be imported into Florida unless they come from a herd certified CWD-free by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.\nAny illegal importations of cervids should be reported to 1-888-404-FWCC.\nPublic health and wildlife officials advise hunters to take the following precautions when pursuing or handling deer that may have been exposed to CWD:\n- Do not shoot, handle or consume any animal that is acting abnormally or appears to be sick. Contact the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) toll free at (866) 293-9282, if you see or harvest an animal that appears sick.\n- Wear latex or rubber gloves when field dressing your deer.\n- Bone out the meat from your animal. Don't saw through bone, and avoid cutting through the brain or spinal cord (backbone).\n- Minimize the handling of brain and spinal tissues.\n- Wash hands and instruments thoroughly after field dressing is completed.\n- Avoid consuming brain, spinal cord, eyes, spleen, tonsils and lymph nodes of harvested animals. (Normal field dressing coupled with boning out a carcass will remove most, if not all, of these body parts. Cutting away all fatty tissue will remove remaining lymph nodes.)\n- Avoid consuming the meat from any animal that tests positive for the disease.\n- If you have your deer commercially processed, request that your animal is processed individually, without meat from other animals being added to meat from your animal.\nFor additional information on Chronic Wasting Disease check out these sites:\nUSDA - Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services\nUSGS - National Wildlife Health Center\nSoutheastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study\nFlorida Department of Health - Disease Control\nChronic Wasting Disease Alliance\nOther FWC Resources:\nFlorida Monitoring Program 2002-2009\nIf you see a sickly, extremely skinny deer report its location to the CWD hotline, toll free (866) 293-9282."}
{"text": "Someone with cataracts sees the world as if they were looking through a pair of foggy glasses in the winter.\nEverything looks blurry and doing normal things, like driving, becomes extremely difficult if not impossible. The description is perfectly accurate because cataracts are actually the fogging up of the eyes natural lenses.\nThe lens of the eye focuses light into the retina and controls the eye’s ability to focus between short and long distances. The iris and pupil are both in front of the lens.\nThe lens is clear and composed of both protein and water. Aging, disease and injury can cause the proteins to mass together and a small part of the lens to become clouded up. The cataract can then become larger over time and vision becomes more and more difficult.\nCataracts are not dangerous to your overall health. They can be extremely frustrating because of the loss of vision, though. There are rare circumstances when a cataract becomes white. This is called an overripe cataract, or hypermature cataract. This type of cataract affects your vision so much that it can cause other symptoms like a headache or other types of pain. Hypermature cataracts usually require surgery because they are such a nuisance.\nIf you notice your vision declining you should go talk with your doctor or optometrist. There are several tests they can give you to quickly determine if you have cataracts. A visual acuity test is the standard eye test where you read letters and numbers (like when you get your drivers license). A slit-lamp exam is a specialized microscope that examines your eye closely. Retinal exam is performed by putting special drops into your eye, which dilate your pupils, so the doctor can better see what is going on with your eye lens.\nThe most common treatment for cataracts is surgery. People tend to wait as long as possible before surgery even though it can be performed in the early stages of vision loss.\nThere are several herbs that can help strengthen your eye if you opt out of surgery in the early going. Bilberry is great if you are looking to make your eye capillaries stronger and restore your eyes to their once strong state. Roobios and Sutherlandia Frutescens are very helpful in allowing the body to deliver plenty of oxygen, blood and other nutrients to the eyes. This gives your eyes all they need to be able to recover and become stronger.\nVizu-All Plus is a natural remedy that may help maintain healthy eyes and circulatory health. Vizu-All Plus may also help lessen common problems associated with night vision and eye sensitivity often associated with the normal aging process.\nIt is a good idea to use the right type of vitamins or herbs as you advance in age. This will help ensure that you keep your vision well into your golden years.\nRelated Natural Product\nVizu-All Plus is a natural, safe, effective and powerful herbal formula containing carefully selected herbs to promote healthy eye functioning and to guard against eye disorders such as cataracts, macular degeneration and visual problems associated with diabetes. Use this remedy to promote healthy eye functioning; counteract cell damage caused by free radicals; strengthen blood capillaries in the eye; help the retina adapt to both dark and light; prevent macular degeneration and cataracts; prevent and treat glaucoma Formulated by a clinical psychologist, Vizu-All Plus is pharmaceutically manufactured to the highest standards.Free PDF Health Ebook..."}
{"text": "Other Qs & As\nWhat is pleurisy? I have been prescribed amoxycillin 500mg three times daily but cannot find any information about this condition or where I got it from.\nHow long will it last and will it affect me in the future?\nOther times when I got a bad dose of the flu, my breathing has been strained and sore – then I get a cold like a tight band round my chest.\nCould this be connected or not?\nThank you for your email. Pleurisy is simply an inflammation of the membrane that covers your lungs inside your chest.\nIt is usually caused by a lung infection such as pneumonia, which can easily result from a bad cold.\nThe antibiotic you have been prescribed is to remedy just such an infection. Pleurisy is not uncommon and its main symptom is a fairly sharp pain on breathing deeply in following on from having a cold.\nIt usually lasts no more than a week to 10 days once antibiotics have been started, and there is no reason why it should affect you in the future.\nSome people do seem to have ‘weak’ chests in that infection tends to move downwards from the head onto the lungs fairly easily, but if you are one of these people, having antibiotics by you to take at the first sign of any chestiness is a good idea and preventative.\nFinally, I would only recommend that you ask your GP to test you for asthma as mild undiagnosed asthma can sometimes be a predisposing factor for pleurisy and also for the feeling of having a tight band around the chest when exercising, suffering from a cold or even breathing cold air.\nIncidentally, I see that you are taking an anti-inflammatory agent, ibuprofen, for pain in joints as well as cimetidine to prevent inflammation of the lining of the stomach which anti-inflammatory medication can in itself cause.\nTo answer your other question, you should have some investigations for these joint pains to rule out any form of arthritis, and you should not be having repeat prescriptions without these investigations or having your medication reviewed.\nThe NetDoctor Medical Team"}
{"text": "Australian Bureau of Statistics\n2901.0 - Census Dictionary, 2001\nPrevious ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 24/04/2001\n|Page tools: Print Page RSS Search this Product|\nThis variable identifies holders of Australian citizenship.\nCitizenship data are used to obtain information on the tendency of different migrant groups to take out citizenship and to measure the size of groups eligible to vote. The data are useful cross-classified with birthplace, year of arrival in Australia and age data.\nThis page last updated 27 July 2006\nUnless otherwise noted, content on this website is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 Australia Licence together with any terms, conditions and exclusions as set out in the website Copyright notice. For permission to do anything beyond the scope of this licence and copyright terms contact us."}
{"text": "War: The Jacobite Rebellion of 1745\nDate: 21st September 1745 (Old Style) (2nd October 1745 New Style). The dates in this page are given in the Old Style. To translate to the New Style (current dating system) add 11 days.\n“The Highland Attack”\nPlace: South East of Edinburgh in Scotland\nCombatants: The Highland Army of Prince Charles and the Royal Troops of King George II\nGenerals: Prince Charles, Lord George Murray and Sir John Cope\nSize of the armies: Royal Army: 2,300 men and 6 guns. Highlanders: 2,500 men.\nWinner: Prince Charles’ Army\n“A contemporary print showing Sir John Cope arriving at Berwick to announce his defeat at Prestonpans”\nBritish Regiments: This battle is not a battle honour for British Regiments. The regiments present at the battle were: Gardiner’s (13th) and Hamilton’s (14th) Dragoons, Guise’s (6th), Lee’s (44th), Murray’s (46th) and Lascelles (47th) Foot\nOn 25th July 1745 Prince Charles landed near Moidart in the Highlands of Scotland with seven companions. He raised his standard at Glenfinnan and assembled an army from the clans that supported his bid for the throne. This army marched into Edinburgh on 17th September 1745. The two royal dragoons regiments fled at the highland approach in the infamous “Colterbrigg canter”.\nGeneral Sir John Cope, the commander of the small royal force in Scotland, had marched to Inverness with his four regiments of foot. Cope brought his troops south to Dunbar by sea and met up with the dragoons. None of his troops, dragoons or foot, were experienced or even adequately trained. Cope’s artillery can only be described as a “scratch” force comprising invalids and seamen under headed by one aged gunner. Cope marched North along the coast road towards Edinburgh.\nThe cavalry found the rebel army to be inland and to the south, causing Cope to form his army against the sea behind a marsh. During the night of 20th September 1745 the rebels made use of a path through the marsh to come up on the left flank of the royal army.\nCope reformed his line to the left with the foot in the centre, the guns and mortars on their right and dragoon regiments on each end of the line. The highland army launched a charge at which the gunners fled leaving two officers to fire the six guns and six mortars.\nThe Battle of Prestonpans\nOn being threatened the dragoon regiments also fled and the foot began to give way. Finally under the impact of the highland attack the whole royal army, other than small groups of men under officers such as Lieutenant Colonel Peter Halkett, fled the field. Only the dragoons were able to get away in any numbers. All the foot bar some 170 were killed, wounded or captured. The injuries inflicted by the highlanders using broad swords and bill hooks are reported to have been horrific.\nCasualties: The royal casualties are said to have been: around 300 killed, 400 to 500 wounded and 1,400 to 1,500 captured. Only 170 of the foot got away.\nThe highlanders probably lost less than 30 killed and 70 wounded.\nFollowing the battle most of Scotland was in Prince Charles’ hands bar Edinburgh Castle held by General Guest and Stirling Castle held by the stalwart General Blakeney.\nRegimental anecdotes and traditions:"}
{"text": "paramagnetism n (Physics) the phenomenon exhibited by substances that have a relative permeability slightly greater than unity and a positive susceptibility. The effect is due to the alignment of unpaired spins of electrons in atoms of the material Compare →\nelectron paramagnetic resonance\nn (Physics) another name for →\nelectron spin resonance (Abbrev.)\nEnglish Collins Dictionary - English Definition & Thesaurus\nAdd your entry in the Collaborative Dictionary.\n- Create your own vocabulary list\n- Contribute to the Collaborative Dictionary\n- Improve and share your linguistic knowledge\n\"Collins English Dictionary 5th Edition first published in 2000 © HarperCollins Publishers 1979, 1986, 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000 and Collins A-Z Thesaurus 1st edition first published in 1995 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995\""}
{"text": "This interactive resource gives students practice in identifying and working with the parts of speech to improve reading and writing skills. The CD is divided into six sections, each focusing on a different part of speech: nouns/pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions, and prepositions. Each section:\n- Defines the part of speech and its usage\n- Gives examples to illustrate the definition\n- Provides a range of interactive exercises to develop and consolidate understanding\n- Offers additional printable activity sheets to extend the learning.\nIdeal for interactive whiteboards, or as individual activities on a computer, this engaging CD makes learning the parts of speech fun and challenging for the entire class.\nPC: Windows XP and up\nMac: OS X (10.1) and up\nResolution: 800 x 600 or higher"}
{"text": "A garden path needs to take you where you're going, but it can do so much more if properly designed.\nA path should enhance the experience of your garden, says Darcy Daniels of Bloomtown Garden Design and Nursery. The route of the path, the materials used to make it, the plantings along its sides and its scale all combine to send a message about the experience you want to have in your garden.\nA straight path, for example, allows people to move more quickly and might be fitting for the connection between the house and the everyday dining area. You'll also want to cover this area with smooth materials so you don't trip while balancing plates of food.\nOn the other hand, a path with sinuous curves and a somewhat uneven surface will cause people to move more slowly and appreciate the journey. If there's no room for curves, Daniels suggests using screens or a trellis to break up the space; you can \"green\" them with climbing plants.\nRepeat plants or colors along the path to lure the eye forward and create continuity. For example, says Daniels, place a beautiful grass on one side of the path, then a bit farther down the path, an identical grass on the opposite side, and so on.\nPlacing a taller plant -- say a hydrangea -- at the inside of a curve will help obscure the view and provide a bit of discovery as you walk along.\nMany designers recommend that paths be at least 3 feet wide, but Daniels doesn't abide by such rules. Instead, she recommends that you keep your path in scale with the garden and your plantings.\nNow that your head is full of these general concepts, Daniels suggests that you stand back and look at the space:\n• How will the trees develop over time?\n• Consider the existing hardscape, buildings and plants that you are working with.\nYou also need to consider function:\n• The path has to get you to such places as the back gate and the compost pile, for example, so it has to be practical for the purpose.\nNow pull out all of your garden hoses and start defining your path:\n• Outline the path's route and leave it in place for a few days.\n• Walk the path as you use the garden -- take the trash out, go to your favorite sitting area, take the wheelbarrow for a spin.\n• You might even want to put empty pots or other objects along the path where you intend to place plants.\nAgain, think about the experience:\n• Is this section going to have lush plantings and a jungle-like effect?\n• What does that mean for the path?\n• Adjust the hoses until you're comfortable with the route and width of the path.\nNEXT WEEK'S BLOG: We'll start the real work of building a path yourself. In the meantime, if you've got some design tips to share, please post a comment here.\n-- Kay Balmer; email@example.com"}
{"text": "U.S. Power Plant Carbon Emissions Zoom in 2007\nWASHINGTON, DC, March 18, 2008 (ENS) – The biggest single year increase in greenhouse gas emissions from U.S. power plants in nine years occurred in 2007, finds a new analysis by the nonprofit, nonpartisan Environmental Integrity Project. The finding of a 2.9 percent rise in carbon dioxide emissions over 2006 is based on an analysis of data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.\nNow the largest factor in the U.S. contribution to climate change, the electric power industry’s emissions of carbon dioxide, CO2, have risen 5.9 percent since 2002 and 11.7 percent since 1997, the analysis shows.\nTexas tops the list of the 10 states with the biggest one-year increases in CO2 emissions, with Georgia, Arizona, California, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Iowa, Illinois, Virginia and North Carolina close behind.\nThe top three states – Texas, Georgia and Arizona – had the greatest increases in CO2 emissions on a one, five and 10 year basis.\nTXU’s coal-fired Martin Lake power\nplant in east Texas (Photo\nDirector of the Environmental Integrity Project Eric Schaeffer said, “The current debate over global warming policy tends to focus on long-term goals, like how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent over the next 50 years. But while we debate, CO2 emissions from power plants keep rising, making an already dire situation worse.”\n“Because CO2 has an atmospheric lifetime of between 50 and 200 years, today’s emissions could cause global warming for up to two centuries to come,” he warned.\nData from 2006 show that the 10 states with the least efficient power production relative to resulting greenhouse gas emissions were North Dakota, Wyoming, Kentucky, Indiana, Utah, West Virginia, New Mexico, Colorado, Missouri, and Iowa.\nThe report explains why national environmental groups are fighting to stop the construction of new conventional coal-fired power plants, which they say would make a bad situation worse.\n“For example” the report points out, “the eight planned coal-fired plants that TXU withdrew in the face of determined opposition in Texas would have added an estimated 64 million tons of CO2 to the atmosphere, increasing emissions from power plants in that state by 24 percent.”\nSome of the rise in CO2 emissions comes from existing coal fired power plants, the analysis found, either because these plants are operating at increasingly higher capacities, or because these aging plants require more heat to generate electricity. “For example, all of the top 10 highest emitting plants in the nation, either held steady or increased CO2 output from 2006 to 2007.”\nRobert W Scherer Power Plant is a coal-fired\nplant just north of Macon, Georgia.\nIt emits more carbon dioxide than\nany other point in the United States.\n(Photo credit unknown)\nGeorgia Power’s Scherer power plant near Macon, Georgia is the highest emitting plant in the nation. It pumped out 27.2 million tons of CO2 in 2007, up roughly two million tons from the year before.\nIn view of these facts, the Environmental Integrity Project recommends that the nation’s oldest and dirtiest power plants should be retired, and replaced with cleaner sources of energy. That will require accelerating the development of wind power and other renewable sources of energy.\nAnother good solution is cutting greenhouse gases quickly by reducing the demand for electricity, the authors advise. Smarter building codes, and funding low-cost conservation efforts, such as weatherization of low-income homes, purchase and installation of more efficient home and business appliances will reduce demand and yield greenhouse gas benefits.\nTexas tops every state measurement in the report from the most carbon dioxide measured in total tons to the largest increases in CO2 emissions over the last five years between 2002 and 2007.\nKen Kramer, director of the Lone Star chapter of the Sierra Club based in Austin, Texas, says his state not only has more emissions than any other state – it has solutions to offer, such as a recent boom in wind power installations.\n“The bad news is that Texas is #1 in carbon emissions among the 50 states, and our emissions have grown in recent years,” Kramer said. “The good news is that Texas has the potential to play a major role in addressing global warming if we embrace smart energy solutions such as energy efficiency and renewable energy, solutions which pose tremendous economic as well as environmental benefits.”\nIn Des Moines, Mark Kresowik, Iowa organizer of the Sierra Club’s National Coal Campaign, said, “Energy efficiency and renewable energy are powering a renaissance in rural Iowa and creating thousands of new manufacturing jobs for our state. By rejecting coal plants and reducing pollution through energy efficiency and renewable energy our states will prosper and attract new businesses and young workers for the future.”\nThe consumption of electricity accounted for more than 2.3 billion tons of CO2 in 2006, or more than 39.5 percent of total emissions from human sources, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Coal-fired power plants alone released more than 1.9 billion tons, or nearly one third of the U.S. total.\nThe Department of Energy projects that carbon dioxide emissions from power generation will increase 19 percent between 2007 and 2030, due to new or expanded coal plants.\nAn additional 4,115 megawatts of new coal-fired generating capacity was added between 2000 and 2007, with another 5,000 megawatts expected by 2012."}
{"text": "Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women\nThe first Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women was held on May 9, 1837. Approximately 200 women gathered in New York City to discuss their role in the American abolition movement. Mary S. Parker was the President of the gathering. Other prominent women went on to be vocal members of the Women's Suffrage Movement, including Lucretia Mott, the Grimké sisters, and Lydia Maria Child. The attendees included women of color, the wives and daughters of slaveholders, and women of low economic status. The convention was a monumental step, both for the women's rights movement, and the abolition movement as a whole. Despite the event's significance, it receives very little historical attention."}
{"text": "Humans are intimately connected with the physical environment, even though we have only been present for a fraction of the vast history of the Earth. We strive to understand how the Earth has evolved since its formation over 4 billion years ago and what types of processes have fostered these changes. Our knowledge of the Earth is critical, not only for piecing together its history, but also to aid in the understanding of issues relevant to our present-day lives, such as: availability of natural resources, pollution, climate change, and natural hazards.\nDuring this course, we will perform a general survey of the physical Earth. We will examine the minerals and rocks of which the solid Earth is composed, the processes that generate Earth's landforms, natural hazards associated with geologic processes, geologic time, and surface processes (e.g., glaciers, streams, groundwater).\nFinal Exam (May 17: 10:30-12:30)\nThe final exam will be on materials presented during the final quarter of the course (lectures and materials in chapters 16, 15, 18, 19, 12). The exam will be comprehensive and will include material from the entire course. To get the most recent copies of the study guides click at left.\nThe field trip to Great Falls (MD) took place on Saturday April 22. About 100 students attended on a morning that set a record for rainfall at Dulles Airport (over 3 inches of rain). The field trip was teh only opportunity for extra credit in the course. To see some photos from previous trips, click here."}
{"text": "The commerce of the ancient world was gathered into the warehouses of Tyre. \"Tyrian merchants were the first who ventured to navigate the Mediterranean waters; and they founded their colonies on the coasts and neighbouring islands of the Aegean Sea, in Greece, on the northern coast of Africa, at Carthage and other places, in Sicily and Corsica, in Spain at Tartessus, and even beyond the pillars of Hercules at Gadeira (Cádiz)\".\nIn the time of King David (c. 1000 BC), a friendly alliance was entered into between the Kingdoms of Israel and Tyre, which was ruled by Hiram I.\nThe city of Tyre was particularly known for the production of a rare and extraordinarily expensive sort of purple dye, produced from the murex shellfish, known as Tyrian purple. This color was, in many cultures of ancient times, reserved for the use of royalty, or at least nobility.\nIt was often attacked by Egypt, besieged by Shalmaneser V, who was assisted by the Phoenicians of the mainland, for five years, and by Nebuchadnezzar (586–573 BC) for thirteen years, without success, although a compromise peace was made in which Tyre paid tribute to the Babylonians. It later fell under the power of the Persians.\nIn 332 BC, the city was conquered by Alexander the Great, after a siege of seven months in which he built the causeway from the mainland to the island, but it continued to maintain much of its commercial importance until the Christian era. The presence of the causeway affected water currents nearby, causing sediment to build up, making the connection permanent.\nIn 315 BC, Alexander's former general Antigonus began his own siege of Tyre, taking the city a year later.\nIn 126 BC, Tyre regained its independence (from the Seleucids) and was allowed to keep much of its independence when the area became a Roman province in 64 BC."}
{"text": "Researchers report some success in using a gene therapy technique to treat one form of congenital blindness. Two teams of scientists have used modified viruses injected into the eye to partially restore vision to people suffering from Leber congenital amaurosis, or LCA, a congenital illness that results in the degradation of the retina. People with LCA slowly lose all vision, and typically are completely blind by their 20s or 30s. The modified virus used in the therapy carries a replacement gene to the retina, allowing it to produce a missing protein responsible for the disease. In this segment, Ira talks with one of the authors of one report on the research, which was published this week in two studies in the New England Journal of Medicine.\nProduced by Annette Heist, Senior Producer"}
{"text": "Answer the question referring to each photograph above the question.\nTo find the answer, pass the cursor over the photo to see the \"title\" of the photo.\n1. Identify the number of chomatids in this cell during this stage of mitosis\n2. Identify the structure indicated by the arrow:\nB) Zona Occludens\nC) Junctional complex\nD) Mitotic Cell\nE) Terminal web\n3. Identify the stage of cell division in this photograph.\nA) Prophase of mitosis\nB) Anaphase I of meiosis\nC) Metaphase II of meiosis\nD) Anaphase of mitosis\n4. In this section through the testes, what is the C amount of DNA in the nucleus of the cell noted by the arrow?\n5) In this section through the testes, what is the stage of cell division of the cell noted by the arrow:\nA) Anaphase of Meiosis\nB) Metaphase of Mitosis\nC) Prophase of Mitosis\nD) Metaphase of Meiosis\nE) Prophase of Meiosis\n6) Identify the process shown by the arrowhead\nA) Gap junction formation\nC) Desmosome formation\nD) Spindle apparatus formation\nE) Formation of the nuclear membrane\n7. Identify the structures noted by the horizontal arrows:\nA) Nuclear pore complex\nC) Gap junctions\nD) Zonula occludens\n8. Identify the structures supporting and moving the chromosomes.\nA) Actin filaments\nD) Intermediate filaments"}
{"text": "SINCE evidence of the existence of the belief that the soul lives on is so indubitable, the question arises--what is its condition? In what state does the discarnate spirit find itself after final separation from the body? And first, as to what we may be allowed to call, for want of a better term, its physical condition.\nWe have already noted that soul is conceived as having both form and substance, the latter, so to speak, greatly rarefied. Moreover, it has been brought to our attention that the most common idea concerning form is that the soul is a replica of the body it inhabited. Consistency in primitive thinking is not to be assumed, as we have seen, nor are logical processes among primitives quite the same as ours. Yet when a disembodied soul took up its post-mortem residence in a serpent, for example, we may not suppose that that soul was still regarded as human in shape. But so far as the author has discovered, no decisive evidence exists on this point. The probabilities favor greatly the supposition that in such cases transformation of the soul shape was supposed to have taken place. Evidence of the common idea, retention by the soul of its human shape, has been before us. We have noted that some tribes mutilate the body of the dead, thinking that by so doing they inflict like wounds upon the soul and thus impose incapacity for harm upon the ghost, the double of the body. The Omahas slit the soles of a murdered man's feet that his spirit may be unable to return and cause damage to the people. Mangaeans prefer death in battle--men are then in their full strength; disease weakens them, and souls have the nature of the body at death. Barongo believe that souls are young or old, according to the age at death, and so do the Indians of Gran Chaco. Naga tribes of Manipur think that ghosts bear whatever tattoo marks, mutilations, or other blemishes or embellishments occurred on the body. Some people carry this idea so far as to prefer\n[1. Fletcher and La Flesche, 27th Report, etc., p. 215.]\ndeath before decay of natural powers sets in, and so commit suicide or are buried alive, that the soul may continue to exist in full vigor.\nHaving form and substance, the soul has certain physical needs. It hungers, thirsts, feels cold and heat. The degrees of grossness of these wants vary greatly. Sometimes the hunger, thirst, and wants and passions may be appeased by the mere spirit or ghost of food, drink, etc.; and the ghosts are served by the spirits or (as our theosophical friends might be imagined as saying) the astral bodies of dishes, implements, or weapons which are destroyed (i.e., killed) that their spirits may accompany the ghost into the spirit land. Indeed, this is by all odds the most prevalent conception. Sometimes it is the more evanescent or the more vital elements, such as the blood, which are used by the ghost, as in the celebrated case of Tiresias in the Odyssey. The cases already cited of food, drink, weapons, utensils, and the like possessing souls and being offered or placed with the dead, oftentimes being broken or mutilated so as to \"kill\"\n[2. Cases are cited in Frazer's Dying God, pp. 9-14.\n3 Book XI.]\nthem, furnish direct testimony to the supposed needs of the ghost. The hunger felt by the disembodied soul is vividly expressed by most African tribes, whose belief is that ghosts can and do eat even human bodies A Ghosts also suffer from cold, hence New Guineans, and others, make fires at the graves, and even build huts, so that when the ghosts come up from the body they may find comfort.'\nGhosts have voices, too, but thin and shadowy like themselves. They chirp like crickets or utter their words in whistling tones. So the wizards by ventriloquistic art impose upon the credulous, and by wheezing utterance produce the effect of communications from a shadowy being or from the ground. Note the indications of shamanistic practice in the Prophet Isaiah (8:19- 29:4).\nWhat we may regard as the disposition of the ghost is by most peoples held to be fixed by the character of the person while on earth.\n[4. Talbot, In the Shadow of the Bush, pp. 224-225, 232-233, 238, etc.; ERE, vi. 65 ff. The testimony is being exhaustively collected in Frazer, Belief in Immortality--see the Index, under \"Food.\"\n5. Brown, Melanesians and Polynesians, pp. 442 ff.; Neuhass, Deutsch Neu-Guinea, iii. S18; Frazer, Belief in Immortality, i. 150-152.]\nWas he cruel, warlike, passionate, generous, revengeful in the body, so will he be as a discarnate ghost. So, for instance, the New Guineans hold. Only account must be taken of a very common notion, that the ghost is endowed with increased power. One might find many reasons for this common idea. The general fearsomeness of the unknown and invisible, the fad that the ghost has joined the terrible host of free spirits, its very remoteness, combine to add the idea of power. That which is distant in space or time gains enchantment and enlargement from the imagination, which is the faculty most employed in this sphere. Australians credit to their ancestors deeds to themselves impossible, though they are themselves their ancestors reincarnate. The greed and liking for possessions which existed on earth are attributed in some parts to the spirit, and among the Bakongo, for instance, this desire is satisfied by placing all the deceased's wealth about the grave. The soul's assumed mobility,\n[6. Neuhass, Deutsch Neu-Guinea, iii. 142 ff.\n7. Roscoe, Baganda, pp. 282 ff.\n8. Spencer and Gillen, Northern Tribes, pp. 489 ff\n9. Weeks, Primitive Bakongo, p. 278.]\nsuch as was displayed in its power to leave the body during life and to make investigations at even a considerable distance, is not lost but rather enhanced. It has become a free agent, no longer bound by the body's necessities and limitations of locomotion, at liberty to roam unfettered, to use in the wide universe its powers--those that remain or are acquired in its new condition. If it in earthly life could leave the body temporarily and like the lightning speed hither and thither, now, disfleshed, its mobility has gained by the change.\nEspecially is it believed that spirits acquire a larger knowledge. Not only do they gain a completer survey of the past and the present, but a knowledge of the future becomes theirs. According as their dispositions prompt, they become helpers of their survivors or hostilely active against them.\nParticularly interesting in this connection is the relationship of the ghost and other beings to warning and prediction. Among the powers of the soul is that of return and manifestation to survivors. Melanesian, Andaman, and African ghosts, for instance, reappear to and converse with their people and become a medium of information. Particularly through dreams do they mediate--a performance recorded in antiquity and attested by present day belief over a large area. Indeed, it is through the dream that approach to human comprehension is most easily made by divine, superhuman, or discarnate powers, the spirit in this condition being loosed from fleshly trammels. The human spirit in sleep is regarded as not bound by quite the same inflexible laws to the bodily limitations. The employment of the dream as a means of information or warning at once occurs to the reader--Jacob, Joseph, Pharaoh, Nebucbadrezzar; clasctical cases will be found in Pindar, Olympiacs, XIII, 105 and Pausanias, X, xxxiii, II. It will be remembered that in an earlier section the importance of the dream as an index to animistic thought was dwelt upon at some length. One specimen of developed classical and philosophical thought on this has been summarized from Jamblichus.\n[10. Seligmann, Melanesians, pp. 190 ff.; Klosts, In the Andamans, p. 296; Weeks, Congo Cannibals, pp. 264-265.\n11. Herodotus, IV, 172; Pomponius Mela, I. viii. 8; Mauss, Origines des pouvoirs magiques, p. 15; Haddon, Anthropological Essays, p. 179.]\n\"There is nothing unworthy of belief in what you have been told concerning sleep and the meaning of dreams. I will explain it thus. The soul has a twofold life, a lower and a higher. In sleep the soul is released from the constraint of the body, and enters as one emancipated on its divine life of intelligence. Then as the noble faculty which beholds the objects that truly are, the objects in the world of intelligence, stirs within and awakens to its power, who can be surprised that the mind, which contains within itself the principles of all that happens, should in this, the state of liberation, discern the future in those antecedent principles which will make that future what it is to be? The nobler part of the soul is thus united by abstraction to higher natures, and becomes a participant in the wisdom and foreknowledge of the gods. Recorded examples of this are numerous and well authenticated; instances too occur every day. Numbers of sick by sleeping had their cure revealed to them in dreams. Would not Alexander's army have perished but for a dream in which Dionysius pointed out the means of safety? Was not the siege of Aphritis raised through a dream sent by Jupiter Ammon to Lysander? 'The night time of the body is the daytime of the soul.'\"\nThe student of anthropology will at once recognize here the advanced justification for beliefs which go back very far for their origins. But even in the advanced stage of thought represented by Jamblichus there are present elements that are duplicable today in the most primitive regions.\nSeveral doors open here to alluring bypaths--to inspiration, prediction, oracles, on the one side, these presuming a favoring: disposition on the part of the ghost; and, on the other, to necromancy and the \"black art\" or black magic, if the ghost or his control be evil. Melanesians and Africans say that the soul may return to seize and inspire the unconscious shaman or prophet to pregnant utterance. We have said \"unconscious\"--for it seems practically established that, in the earlier stages of culture, prediction and the delivery of the oracle took place only when the medium was in ecstasy. Vergil's description of the\n[12. Theurgia or the Egyptian Mysteries, Part III, chap. vii.\n13. Codrington, Melanesians, pp. 218 ff.; Roscue, Baganda, p. 113.]\nraging sybil will recur to the classical student. Plato says that \"inspired and true divination is not attained to by anyone in his full senses, but only when the power of thought is fettered by sleep or disease, or some paroxysm of frenzy.\" It is well known that the American Indians regarded the simple or mentally incompetent as peculiarly endowed and in closer touch with the supernatural than those possessed of all their mental powers. In the Old Testament there is an unconscious testimony to the veracity of many parts of the narrative, guaranteed by psychological conclusions, in the fact that the earlier phases of prophecy and prediction are described as involving the ecstatic state or a condition of unconsciousness. Such are the use of the dream, the case of Balaam, the prophets among whom Saul found himself, this form of affection being communicable or \"catching\"--compare the \"dancing mania\" of the middle ages-and Elisha, for whom music was in at least one case a prerequisite to the delivery of the oracle--the \"hand of the Lord \" (2 Kings 3:15) being the Old Testament expression for the modern psychological term\n[14. Æneid, V1, 45 ff., 77ff.\n15. Timæus, 71.]\n\"ecstasy\" adopted from the Greek. So among perhaps most primitive peoples, like the Melanesians and Africans referred to above, warnings from the supernatural and even knowledge of other matters, as of charms, are supposed to be received under such conditions.\nGhosts do not figure merely as indicators of coming events or as guardians against evil fortune. Their larger capacity for action may make them powerful intercessors with still higher supernatural beings or spirits, through shamans who control them or know them intimately. Or their own success in their earthly vocation makes them interested in survivors who follow their trade. In Africa the spirit of a dead hunter is powerful to help in the chase, and is propitiated to that end. In Melanesia the help of ghosts in securing the right kind of weather, in performing feats of healing, in success with the fishing net or line, and in agriculture is obtained by sacrifices\n[16. So the Australians: Howitt, Native Tribes, pp. 435-437. On the facts at large of Carpenter, Comparative Religion, pp. 181, 182.\n17. Carruthers, Unknown Mongolia, i. 243.\n18. Weeks, Primitive Bakongo, pp. 181-183.]\nand offerings. Indeed, from the inhabitants of Ghosttown may come some of the good gifts, agricultural, for instance, which make life worth living. The spirits of the dead may keep a watchful eye upon survivors, preventing or punishing infractions of tribal customs that involve offence to themselves, and warning against repetition by inflicting sickness or failure in various enterprises. Foundation sacrifice had the purpose of procuring for the structure the protection of the spirits of the dead.\nOn the other hand, ghosts may be among the spirits whose malevolence needs to be guarded against. In fact, among the post mortem transformations may be that into ill disposed spirits. Usually, when this is conceived to be the case, the cause is found in some misfortune in life or death. Among the Ibo, for instance, a childless woman, a wifeless or moneyless man, or a suicide may as ghosts attempt to increase the population\n[19. Codrington, Melanesians, pp. 132. ff.: Lambert, Murs et superstitions, pp. 24, 26, 218, 224 ff., 293 ff.; Turner, Samoa, pp. 345 ff.\n20. Talbot, In the Shadow of the Bush, pp. 238-239.\n21. Seligmann, Melanesians, pp. 192, 310.\n22, B. D. Eerdmans, in Expositor, Nov. 1913, p. 197.]\nof the underworld by attacks upon those left on earth. Similarly in New Guinea those who die in childbirth, suicides, and those who have lost their heads become maleficent. The Omahas hold that ghosts of the murdered return and inflict punishment by disease, or by causing the wind to blow from hunter to game and so to spoil his sport. Among Congo cannibals the soul seen in dreams is a wandering human spirit aiming at evil in its travels, and the witch doctor may be hired to kill it. The nostrils of the dead are plugged immediately after death to keep the spirit in the body as long as possible. If the ghost is for any reason unwelcome in the nether world and is driven out, it becomes malicious and aims at mischief, either inflicting positive ills by sending storms and like disasters or preventing success in various pursuits. In some cases ghosts are normally neutral, and their disposition and consequent actions depend upon the treatment they receive from\n[23. Thomas, Anthropological Report, p. 312\n24. Frazer, Belief in Immortality, i. 212.\n25. Fletcher and La Flesche, 27th Report, p. 212.\n26. Weeks, Congo Cannibals, p. 263-264, 269.]\nthe living. So that the well-being of survivors depends on propitiation by gifts and ceremonies or on manifestations of abiding affection. The duties of classic Greeks and Romans to their dead--careful and honorable burial, celebration by games at the funeral or on anniversaries--recur at once to the mind: and in these and other matters these peoples handed down in memory at least and often in ritual the doings and beliefs of far away ancestors. Close parallels to classic customs have been observed among African, Melanesian, and Polynesian peoples, where not only is the funeral offering placed on the ground, but dramatic performances in honor of the dead take place. Among some races, such as British New Guineans and the Mafulu, ghosts are always malevolent.\nAmong the exercises of the enlarged powers\n[28. Williamson, South Sea Savage, pp. 65, 68, 74, 75, 76, 81 ff.; Roscoe, Baganda, pp. 116, 278, 286.\n29. Taplin, Narrinyeri, p. 19; Curt, Australian Race, i. 87; Howitt, Native Tribes, pp. 461, 463, 473; Spencer and Gillen, Northern Tribes, p. 507, and Native Tribes, p. 511.\n30. Talbot, In the Shadow of The Bush, p. 18; Brown, Melanesians and Polynesians, pp. 214 ff.; Milligan, Fetish Folk, pp. 233-236.\n31. Williamson, South Sea Savage, p. 281 and Mafulu Mountain People, pp. 243 ff., 266 ff., 297 ff.; JAI, xxviii (1899), 216 ff.]\nattributed to ghosts by quite diverse peoples is one which, as we shall see later, they possess in common with non-human spirits. This is the infliction of disease in an access of malignancy. Such a belief is held by American Indians, South Sea islanders, Hindus, New Guineans, and many others. They may inflict lockjaw by a blow, cause death, induce phthisis, and bring pestilence. Shamans and medicine men may use them to secure revenge or haunt the living; and this again calls up the need for exorcism. This gives rise to various devices and taboos, aiming at propitiating or deceiving the ghosts, such as change of names assigned to things belonging to the dead, or dropping out of the language words which contained the name borne in life, this going so far in some cases as to involve the destruction of huts, plantations, trees, and other possessions.\" It is quite in keeping with the\n[32. Folk-lore, ii. 420 ff., 431; Kloss, In the Andamans, p. 305; Declé, Three years in Savage Africa, pp. 236, 344.\n33. Talbot, In the Shadow of The Bush, p. 230; Weeks, Congo Cannibals, p. 266; Roscoe, Baganda, p. 100; Williamson, South Sea Savage, pp. 81 ff.; Crooke, Tribes and Caste, iii. 436.\n34. Williamson, South Sea Savage, pp. 81 ff.; Roscoe, Baganda, p. 126.\n35. Seligmann, Melanesians, pp. 631 ff.; Cambridge Anthropological Expedition, v. 250.]\nwhole conception of things that ghosts should be especially dangerous at night.\nFrom all this, to anticipate slightly what is yet to come, fear of discarnate spirits may lead to a cult, a worship, which is apotropaic, deprecatory, or propitiatory in character. On the other hand, the sense of favors received or to come gives the rationale of a cultus which embodies more of gratitude and pleasure than of fear. With both these varieties of mental qualities attributed to ghosts, shared by them in common with non-human powers, it seems to require somewhat of ingenuity and a miscalculation or misappreciation of native human traits to force one to derive all worship from fear. Timor fecit deos is now hardly tenable in its original sense, in view of abundance of ascertained fads. Most of the animals, especially those domesticated, display amiable traits, including gratitude. We can hardly hold, therefore, that man, whether the product of evolution or of special creation, developed one of his noblest exercises, that of worship, from a sense of fear alone.\n[36. Neuhass, Deutsch Neu-Guinea, iii. 64, 147.\n37. Chalmers and Gill, Work and Adventure, pp. 84 ff.]"}
{"text": "WEDNESDAY, July 4 (HealthDay News) -- For safety's sake, Americans should avoid using fireworks of any kind this Independence Day, experts say.\nPrevent Blindness America urges consumers to attend only authorized public fireworks displays conducted by licensed operators. Individuals should not buy, use or store fireworks, including sparklers, the nonprofit organization added.\nAlthough sparklers are sometimes considered to be safe, they were responsible for 17 percent of the injuries, including 36 percent of those sustained by children under 5 years of age, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Injuries from sparklers and other novelties also made up two out of five emergency room injuries, the CPSC found.\nOverall, an estimated 6,200 people went to the emergency room between June 17 and July 17, 2011, for injuries they sustained while using fireworks, according to the CPSC. Their 2011 Fireworks Annual Report noted that children younger than 15 accounted for 26 percent of those injuries.\nPrevent Blindness America announced it supports bans on the importation, sale and use of all fireworks and sparklers by non-licensed operators, such as bans established in Delaware, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York.\nLast year alone, there were also more than 1,100 reported eye injuries, according to the CPSC report. To help Americans avoid the emergency room this July 4th, Prevent Blindness America offered the following safety tips:\nIf there are specks in the eye:\n- Do not rub the eye.\n- Allow tears to wash out the particles or use an eye wash.\n- Lift the upper eyelid outward and down over the lower lid.\n- If the speck doesn't wash out, see a doctor or visit the emergency room.\nIf the eye or eyelid is cut or punctured:\n- Do not rinse the eye with water.\n- Do not try to remove any object stuck in the eye.\n- Cover the eye with a stiff shield, such as the bottom of a paper cup, without applying any pressure.\n- Visit a doctor or an emergency room immediately.\n\"The 4th of July should be a time when we come together to honor our country by celebrating our great nation safely and responsibly,\" Hugh Parry, president and CEO of Prevent Blindness America, said in an organization news release. \"We hope all Americans have a wonderful holiday with their loved ones, not in the emergency room.\"\nThe U.S. National Library of Medicine has more about eye injuries.\nSOURCES: Prevent Blindness America, news release, June 15, 2012; June 2012, 2011 Fireworks Annual Report, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission\nCopyright © 2013\nHealthDay. All rights reserved.\nHealthDayNews articles are derived from\nvarious sources and do not reflect federal policy. healthfinder.gov\ndoes not endorse opinions, products, or services that\nmay appear in news stories. For more information on\nhealth topics in the news, visit\nHealth News on healthfinder.gov."}
{"text": "Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/08/21/mars_geysers/\nMartian pole freckled with geysers\nUnlike anything on Earth\nEvery spring, the southern polar cap on Mars almost fizzes with carbon dioxide, as the surface is broken by hundreds of geysers throwing sand and dust hundreds of feet into the Martian \"air\".\nThe discovery was announced in the journal Nature by researchers at the Arizona State University, based on data from the Thermal Emission Imaging System on the Mars Odyssey orbiter.\nImages sent back by the probe showed that as the sun began to warm the pole, the polar cap began to break out in dark spots. Over the days and weeks that followed, these spots formed fan-like markings, and spidery patterns. As the sun rose higher in the Martian sky, the spots and fans became more numerous.\n\"Originally, scientists thought the spots were patches of warm, bare ground exposed as the ice disappeared,\" said lead scientist Phil Christensen. \"But observations made with THEMIS on NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter told us the spots were nearly as cold as the carbon dioxide ice, which is at minus 198 degrees Fahrenheit.\"\nThe team concluded that the dark spots were in fact geysers, and the fans that appeared were caused by the debris from the eruptions.\nChristensen said: \"If you were there, you'd be standing on a slab of carbon-dioxide ice. Looking down, you would see dark ground below the three foot thick ice layer.\n\"The ice slab you're standing on is levitated above the ground by the pressure of gas at the base of the ice.\"\nHe explains that as the sunlight hits the region in the spring, it warms the dark ground enough that the ice touching the ground is vaporised. The gas builds up under the ice until it is highly pressurised and finally breaks through the surface layer.\nAs the gas escapes, it carries the smaller, finer particles of the soil along with it, forming grooves under the ice. This \"spider\" effect indicates a spot where a geyser is established, and will form again the following year. ®"}
{"text": "The United Nations Convention on Narcotic Drugs readmitted Bolivia into its fold on Friday, universally recognizing the right of Bolivians to chew the coca leaf. This gives President Evo Morales one of his most important victories thus far in his global efforts to decriminalize the coca leaf.\nBolivia had voluntary withdrawn from the UN group a year ago because it classified the coca leaf as an \"illicit drug.\" On Friday, however, a majority of the convention's members voted to allow Bolivia back into the committee and also approved a statute which says that chewing the coca leaf is legal within Bolivia's borders.\nIt's a largely symbolic victory, as this UN commission lacks the power to regulate coca leaf consumption in Bolivia in the first place. But the UN declaration has been welcomed by the Bolivian government, which is planning to invite the country's coca growers to massive coca-chewing events in the cities of La Paz and Cochabamba next Monday.\nThe coca leaf is the base material for cocaine. But for centuries indigenous people in the Andean mountains have chewed this leaf in its natural form to gain energy and decrease hunger. Some groups in the region also consider the coca leaf to be a sacred plant, and use it regularly for social and religious rituals.\nEvo Morales, who is himself a former coca grower, has championed the decriminalization of the leaf since he came into office in 2006, chewing coca in international forums, praising its nutritional qualities, and even asking Sean Penn to be his global ambassador for the coca leaf.\nBut the UN's decision to tolerate coca leaf chewing in Bolivia was not well taken by U.S. diplomats, who claim that most of Bolivia's coca crops are being used for cocaine production, and not for traditional chewing.\n\"We oppose Bolivia's reservation and continue to believe it will lead to a greater supply of cocaine,\" a senior U.S. State Department official, told the AP.\n\"While we recognize Bolivia's capacity and willingness to undertake some successful counternarcotics activities, especially in terms of coca eradication, we estimate that much of the coca legally grown in Bolivia is sold to drug traffickers, leading to the conclusion that social control of coca (allowing some legal growing) is not achieving the desired results,\" the official said in a statement.\nOnly a handful of UN member states voted against the readmission of Bolivia into the antinarcotics group. These included big cocaine consumers like the United States, Russia and the United Kingdom, but also Mexico, a key U.S. ally and the main transit point for most cocaine headed to the United States.\nMost member states did not object to Bolivia's readmission into the antinarcotics group or to the new statute which says that chewing, and growing the coca leaf, is fine within Bolivia. The non-objectors included Colombia and Peru which are the world's two biggest cocaine producers and also have very large crops of the coca leaf. U.S. diplomats may want to chew on that dilemma."}
{"text": "Most of you probably don't remember. I don't, besides that I was in residency.\nI bet you have no idea how close you came to dying (it was 2 minutes). Or, if you didn't die, having your life dramatically altered.\nA Black Brant is a type of goose. It's also the name of a Canadian rocket routinely used for atmospheric experiments. It's launched with a bunch of instruments (depending on what's being studied) and the instruments are monitored during the flight. They then parachute back to Earth and are recovered for further data.\nBlack Brants are commonly used by Canada, the U.S., and several other countries for research. And so it was on this day in 1995.\nA team of U.S. and Norwegian scientists launched a Black Brant from northwest Norway to study the Aurora Borealis. It contained standard scientific instruments.\nBut things - almost - went horribly wrong.\nRoutine notification of scientific and test launches is customary, and this one was no exception. 30 countries were told, including Russia. But due to layers of bureaucracy, the notice wasn't passed along their military chain. After all, the cold war had been over for 4 years.\nAs the rocket climbed, it was picked up by Russian radar early warning systems. It was on a trajectory that matched a predicted Trident missile launch from U.S. nuclear submarines in the Arctic circle. As it flew it also crossed an air corridor between American ballistic missile silos in North Dakota and Moscow, which resulted in Russian satellites tracking it.\nThe Russians read it as an American first strike. Both sides had practiced war games where a single high-altitude nuclear explosion from a submarine would be used to blind radar and satellites from the real attack, while the electromagnetic pulse would paralyze their defenses.\nThe Russian military went to full alert. Their ballistic missile submarines in the Arctic were all ordered to prepare for immediate launch. Silo crews on land were notified. Their targets would be the major cities of North America and western Europe. They knew the American/NATO forces would respond in kind.\nThe Black Brant used in this case was a 4-stage rocket. As it separated the radar pattern matched that of a ballistic missile with multiple re-entry warheads coming down, further convincing the Russians that an attack was underway.\nThe nuclear briefcase, with its launching codes, was brought to Russian President Boris Yeltsin. Like the Americans, the Russians use a mandatory 10 minute launch window (the time needed for a submarine-launched missile to reach either country). Yeltsin activated his nuclear keys to launch a counterattack- but waited for final verification.\nAt 8 minutes into the alert the rocket's course became clearer, and the Russians realized it was not incoming. With 2 minutes left before the mandatory nuclear launch time, Yeltsin deactivated the briefcase and ordered all nuclear forces off alert. The incident wasn't reported at the time.\nThe Black Brant rocket completed it's planned flight, landing near Spitsbergen and recovered. The scientists involved had no idea what had happened.\nDid that story scare you? Then think about this: It's a single incident.\nOn November 9, 1979 the U.S. military was testing a radar training tape of what an incoming missile strike would look like. Unfortunately, while being tested, the tape was accidentally broadcast on screens at the American nuclear missile headquarters (NORAD).\nThe long range nuclear bombers in Alaska were ordered to take off to bomb Russia, while the command tried to verify the attack with other radar systems and satellites (which didn't show anything unusual). It took 6 minutes before an anonymous officer discovered the error, and the bombers were recalled.\nWe've all heard of Yeltsin, but have you ever heard of Stanislav Petrov? He's a retired Soviet military officer, now living in Fryazino, Russia.\nIn September, 1983 U.S.-Soviet relations were likely at their worst point since the Cuban Missile Crisis. To top it off, the Russians had just installed a new early-warning system.\nOn September 26, 1983, Petrov was the shift officer in command of the Soviet early-warning radar defenses. The system twice reported an incoming nuclear strike from North America, once with a single missile, a second time with 4.\nPetrov, in a remarkably gutsy move, overrode the computer both times. He declared it an error and didn't pass the information to his superiors. His reasoning was based entirely on his gut instinct that the new system couldn't be trusted. As it turned out, he was right.\nPetrov himself couldn't launch a strike. But both sides were on such a hair trigger at the time that if he'd passed the information farther up the line, most historians agree that his superiors would have assumed the worst and ordered a retaliatory attack.\nYou want more? During the Cuban Missile Crisis Vasili Arkhipov was First Officer on a submarine stationed in the Caribbean. His submerged boat was surrounded by American destroyers, who were trying to identify it.\nThe captain thought war between the U.S. and U.S.S.R. had started, and wanted to launch a nuclear torpedo. To do so required a unanimous opinion of the boat's 3 top officers. The other 2 wanted to launch, and Arkhipov refused. He argued so forcefully against doing so that the captain decided to surface, identify himself, and check with Moscow. The movie \"Crimson Tide\" was based on his story.\nIn only one incident was it actually a world leader who averted disaster. In the rest (and there are many others, read here, or over here) it was a few people (even one), considerably lower in the chain.\nOn this day in 1995 it was only 2 minutes. Just 120 seconds. Less time than it took you to read this.\nLife on the edge is precarious."}
{"text": "New Scientist has an article on the contenders for the Google Lunar X Prize. If you haven’t heard of this, it is a contest sponsored by Google to see who can land a rover on the Moon and accomplish a set of pre-assigned tasks. Do this and your team gets a great deal of recognition and $20 million.\nThe Google Lunar X Prize site details what the rovers need to accomplish: “The Google Lunar X PRIZE is a $30 million international competition to safely land a robot on the surface of the Moon, travel 500 meters over the lunar surface, and send images and data back to the Earth. Teams must be at least 90% privately funded and must be registered to compete by December 31, 2010. The first team to land on the Moon and complete the mission objectives will be awarded $20 million; the full first prize is available until December 31, 2012. After that date, the first prize will drop to $15 million. The second team to do so will be awarded $5 million. Another $5 million will awarded in bonus prizes. The final deadline for winning the prize is December 31, 2014.”\nSo, on the New Scientist site there photos of some of the more interesting and unique entries. They cover the range of hoppers, wheeled rovers, and, in one case, a sphere-shaped robot reminiscent of a hamster ball. You can see this planned lunar bot in the photo below. Click on the photo to go to the page in the New Scientist article about this creation by Team Frednet, one of the Google X Prize entrants. And look at the video on You Tube of the PicoRover, as it is called. This innovative approach to a lunar rover is very intriguing because it weighs only 500 grams. It certainly won’t need a Saturn 5 to get it to the Moon. And besides, if this design doesn't make it to the Moon, it certainly has a future as a cat toy.\nImage: Team Frednet/Joshua Tristancho\nMore than a dozen teams are racing to claim a $30 million prize for landing a robot rover on the moon – see the most advanced prototypes so far…\nHamster balls and lunar hoppers: meet the X Prize teams\nWed, 12 Aug 2009 14:50:14 GMT"}
{"text": "King cobra is the longest venomous snake in the world. Although its venom is not much powerful like Black mamba or other snakes. But his large size make him more deadly. This huge snake can grow up to (19ft) and 20 kg in weight which is a lot for venomous snake. In ancient times peoples worshiped king cobra and some peoples are still doing so.\nKing Cobra mostly lives in forested areas. This huge snake can be found in Southeast Asia and some parts of India. It normally eats other small snake that’s why its genus name is Ophiophagus , which means “snake- eater”. It can also eat pythons which is size able snakes. Its color is pale olive, tan, yellow olive color or something like this.\nThis huge snake mostly hunt at day time and very little at night time. It hunts with their long fangs which may be growing up to 0.5 inches which make this snake more deadly. It swallows its prey and his toxins help him in digestion of prey. King Cobra venom is also very dangerous. The bite taken from king cobra can lead you to death. Its mortality rate of a bite is 75%.\nDefense Against Enemy\nThe great predator of King cobra is mongoose, which is quite resistance to neurotoxins. King cobra will try to fight with its hood flatten this help him in closed mouth strikes. If all fails, he will generally try to flee. But it is also hard for mongoose to defeat such a long snake.\nDue to king cobra long size and deadly venom make him perfect predator. Although his venom is not much powerful like black mamba or Russell viper. But it is five times faster reactive venom then black mamba. With every bite king cobra inject 6 mil of venom to prey with the help of its fangs. Which is enough for killing elephant in three hours. Venom is produced in salivary glands. When this huge snake injects his venom to a prey his fastest venom paralysis it in two minutes, thus the prey go in comma due to respiratory system failure and prey died.\nThe female King cobra lay about 20 to 50 eggs but before laying eggs she make a nest or mound with leaf litter to lay eggs in it. She guards her eggs and prevents any big animal to come near it. When eggs hatch a new king cobras arise from it and the life cycle of king cobra remains continuous.\n- King cobra is the world longest venomous snake.\n- King Cobra average life span is 20 years.\n- King Cobra fastest venom allows him to kill elephant in three hours.\n- King Cobra is used by snake charmers for dancing and for fun.\n- King Cobra can smell blood from far away.\n- King Cobra is one of the snakes who create nest or mound.\n- The natural predator of king cobra is mongoose which is small mammal.\n- Ancient peoples worshiped king cobras some are still doing so."}
{"text": "On April 30, 1803, the United States government made one of the greatest land transactions of all time when it purchased from the French Republic for $15 million dollars, a piece of real estate extending from the Gulf of Mexico north to Canada, and from the Mississippi River Basin west to the Rocky Mountains. Called the Louisiana Purchase, this transaction added 830,000 square miles of uncharted wilderness to the territory of the United States.\nThe Louisiana Purchase opened the west for settlement by Europeans and Americans and had grave implications for American Indians, who would soon find their ancestral homelands taken from them. It allowed for the extension of slavery, brought an end to French and Spanish domination in Arkansas and allowed a diversity of settlers to develop and perpetuate their own cultures in the six distinct geographic regions of the state.\nPlay the games below or download the lesson plans and activity sheets to learn more about the Louisiana Purchase.\nDownload these lesson plans and activity sheets for use in your classroom. All documents are in PDF Format.\nPlay the Games\nClick on the following images to play the game! You'll need Shockwave Flash to play.\n©2013 Department of Arkansas Heritage. All Rights Reserved Aristotle Web Design ®"}
{"text": "Nappies and the environment\nBoth reusable and disposable nappies have some environmental impact stemming from the production, cleaning and disposal of the both nappy products.\n- Many cloth nappies are made from cotton, which is a crop that uses large amounts of pesticides and water in its production. Two other choices are hemp and bamboo which are slowly becoming more popular choices.\n- The soaking, rinsing and washing of cloth nappies uses water and energy in the heating of the water. This process also releases detergents into the environment.\nYou can educe the environmental impact of cloth nappies by:\n- Choosing to use biodegradable, phosphate-free detergents\n- Using a cold water cycle and then using solar power (on the washing line) to dry the nappies\n- Only wash your nappies when you have a full load, thereby avoiding wasting water\n- Choosing not to use a fabric softener\n- Buying affront-loading washing machine which uses less water than a top-loader\n- Considerably add to the world's landfill each year\n- use chemicals in their manufacture and disposal\n- can cause fecal pollution on disposal.\n- 1. Best pregnancy books and DVDs\n- 2. Bathing your toddler\n- 3. Your diet and healthy teeth and gums\n- 4. Best baby car seat guide\n- 5. Toy safety\n- 6. Water safety\n- 7. First aid and emergencies\n- 8. Your baby and immunisation\n- 9. Baby cold and cough\n- 10. Your baby and hot weather\n- 11. Teething\n- 12. Personal fitness for mums\n- 13. 10 benefits of exercise during pregnancy"}
{"text": "The OED “is widely regarded as the accepted authority on the English language. It is an unsurpassed guide to the meaning, history, and pronunciation of 600,000 words— past and present—from across the English-speaking world. As a historical dictionary, the OED is very different from those of current English, in which the focus is on present-day meanings. You’ll still find these in the OED, but you’ll also find the history of individual words, and of the language—traced through 3 million quotations, from classic literature and specialist periodicals to films scripts and cookery books.” For more information about this resource, visit their site.\nTo access this database, please visit the Databases A-Z page or visit the English Literatures LibGuide. Contact Sue Samson, firstname.lastname@example.org, with questions or for more information on how this database can help you with your research or teaching."}
{"text": "During this week's close encounter with Earth, astronomers tracked the aircraft-carrier-sized asteroid 2005 YU55 with radar instruments, infrared cameras, visible-light telescopes — and an ultraviolet-sensitive space telescope as well.\nThis video shows the view from NASA's Swift satellite, which trained its Ultraviolet/Optical Telescope on the space rock as it zoomed away from Earth at 24,300 mph on Wednesday. Swift is best-known for its observations of high-energy outbursts and cosmic explosions, but it turns out that the spacecraft has been involved in 10 asteroid-observing sessions as well.\nSwift's scientists had the satellite watch a couple of patches of sky that YU55 was predicted to pass through, and during the second observing opportunity, the telescope got a good fix on the asteroid.\n\"We observed the asteroid with Swift's Ultraviolet/Optical and X-ray telescopes but, as expected, we saw it only in the UV,\" Dennis Bodewits, a Swift team member at the University of Maryland in College Park, said in today's video advisory from NASA.\nDuring the 27-minute long exposure, Swift detected short-term variations in brightness caused by the asteroid's rotation.\n\"The result is a movie of 2005 YU55 at ultraviolet wavelengths unobtainable from ground-based telescopes,\" NASA reported today. \"For planetary scientists, this movie is a treasure trove of data that will help them better understand how this asteroid is put together, information that may help make predictions of its motion more secure for centuries to come.\"\nMore about the asteroid encounter:\n- Parting shots from the asteroid\n- Passing asteroid puts on a show\n- Your guide to the asteroid encounter\n- How to save our planet from a killer asteroid\n- Could the asteroid destroy the moon? (No)\n- Why radar's the best for tracking near-Earth objects\n- Interactive: Close encounters of the asteroid kind\nConnect with the Cosmic Log community by \"liking\" the log's Facebook page, following @b0yle on Twitter or following the Cosmic Log Google+ page. You can also check out \"The Case for Pluto,\" my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for new worlds."}
{"text": "Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers have developed a new type of miniature endoscope that produces three-dimensional, high-definition images, which may greatly expand the application of minimally invasive diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. In the October 19 issue of Nature, the team from the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at MGH describes their prototype device and a demonstration of its use in a mouse model.\n\"This new ultraminiature endoscope is the first to allow three-dimensional imaging of areas inside the body,\" says Guillermo Tearney, MD, PhD, of the MGH Wellman Center, the report's senior author. \"Its ability to go places that other imaging tools cannot reach opens new possibilities for medical diagnosis and eventually treatment.\"\nStandard miniature endoscopic devices – which give physicians access to hard-to-reach internal organs and structures – utilize bundles of optical fibers to supply light to and transmit images from the areas of interest. Larger endoscopes that use image sensors to produce high-quality, two-dimensional images can be a centimeter or more in diameter. Existing miniature endoscopes using smaller fiber bundles may be more flexible but have difficulty producing high-quality images.\nThe new device developed at MGH-Wellman uses a technology called spectrally encoded endoscopy (SEE). Multicolored light from a single optical fiber – introduced through a probe about the size of a human hair – is broken into its component colors and projected onto tissue, with each color illuminating a different part of the tissue surface. The light reflected back is recorded, and the intensity of the various colors decoded by a spectrometer, which analyzes the wavelengths of light. Another device called an interferometer, which calculates structural information based on the interaction between two waves of light, provides the data required to create three-dimensional images.\nTo demonstrate the device's application in a live animal, the researchers used the system to image metastatic ovarian tumors on the abdominal wall of a mouse. The SEE probe was passed into the abdominal cavity through a fine-gauge needle. The resulting three-dimensional image showed several raised areas of tumor nodules, the presence of which was confirmed by histologic analysis of the tissue.\n\"The most important feature of this new endoscope is the ability to obtain three-dimensional images, something we don't believe is offered by any commercially available miniature endoscope system,\" says Dvir Yelin, PhD, first author of the Nature paper. \"While the image resolution we achieved in this demonstration is similar to existing small-diameter endoscopes, with further optimization of the optics it is possible to obtain images with 10 times the number of pixels provided by other miniature endoscopes.\"\n\"This new technology will offer physicians and surgeons the capability to bring many more procedures into outpatient settings, reduce anesthesia requirements and minimize tissue damage,\" Tearney adds. \"The device's size and flexibility should allow safer navigation through such delicate structures as the salivary ducts, the fallopian tubes and the pancreatic duct. Fetal and pediatric procedures may also benefit from this tool. Eventually, SEE could give rise to new procedures that permit diagnosis and microsurgery in previously inaccessible areas of the body.\"\nTearney is an associate professor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School. He and his colleagues are working on adapting the SEE device for human studies in the near future. Additional co-authors of the Nature report are Imran Rizvi, Matthew White, MD, Jason Motz, PhD, Tayyaba Hasan, PhD, and Brett Bouma, PhD – all of the Wellman Center. The research was supported by grants from the Center for the Integration of Medicine and Innovative Technology, the National Science Foundation and the Whitaker Foundation.\nMassachusetts General Hospital, established in 1811, is the original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. The MGH conducts the largest hospital-based research program in the United States, with an annual research budget of nearly $500 million and major research centers in AIDS, cardiovascular research, cancer, computational and integrative biology, cutaneous biology, human genetics, medical imaging, neurodegenerative disorders, regenerative medicine, transplantation biology and photomedicine. MGH and Brigham and Women's Hospital are founding members of Partners HealthCare System, a Boston-based integrated health care delivery system.\nLast reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 21 Feb 2009\nPublished on PsychCentral.com. All rights reserved."}
{"text": "The loss of biodiversity affects us in many ways. For some of us, its loss is felt in the same way that we regret the destruction of a great work of art- it may not affect us directly, but the indirect impact is strong. For others, its loss is felt in changes in lifestyles and livelihoods- the measurable costs are high. Striking the right balance between the conservation/sustainable use and the loss of biodiversity requires accounting for all the impacts of its destruction. Weighing the loss against any potential benefits will ensure that the social, as well as economic, well-being of every one are at the best levels possible. Market based economic systems have the potential to ensure that such a balancing occurs, but require that all the impacts of its loss, or use, have been fully internalised into market transactions. This book shows how public policy in the form of market creation can be used to internalise the loss of biodiversity. It promotes the use of markets to ensure that our collective preferences for conversation and sustainable use are reflected in economic outcomes.\nExecutive Summary available.\nHow to obtain this publication\nReaders can access the full version of Handbook of Market Creation for Biodiversity: Issues in Implementation choosing from the following options:\n- Subscribers and readers at subscribing institutions can access the online edition via SourceOECD, our online library.\n- Non-subscribers can purchase the PDF e-book and/or paper copy via our Online Bookshop.\n- The report is available to journalists from the OECD Media Relations Division (Media Relations Division)\nExecutive Summary Handbook of Market Creation for Biodiversity: Issues in Implementation"}
{"text": "Serious illness or the death of a child is a tragedy that touches all of our hearts. Over this past week four seriously ill children have been hospitalized in Oregon after drinking unpasteurized milk contaminated with E. coli O157, and although the milk in question is no longer being distributed, additional cases may yet occur. The lives of these children currently hang in the balance.\nThese tragedies are made even more distressing when one considers that those who gave this milk to these children undoubtedly believed they were doing what was best for them. As a parent, my heart goes out to those adults.\nUnpasteurized, or \"raw,\" milk, like many unprocessed food products, may sound healthier, but it is not. Hundreds of years of experience have demonstrated that raw milk can carry many kinds of harmful bacteria that can make you very sick or kill you, and that's why pasteurization was invented in the 19th century. While it is possible to get food-borne illnesses from many different foods, raw milk is one of the riskiest of all, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.\nPasteurization is a simple but very effective process. It involves heating up milk for a brief period. No chemicals are added, and pasteurization can be done on organic or regular milk. This simple heat treatment is enough to kill a host of bad germs that can get into the milk from the cow's skin, udder or feces, such as salmonella, listeria, yersinia, campylobacter, mycobacterium tuberculosis and staphylococcus aureus, in addition to E. coli. While there are occasional outbreaks from pasteurized dairy products, the rate of outbreaks from unpasteurized products, per unit consumed, is about 150 times greater than from pasteurized products. So pasteurization works.\nWhile there is great value in eating locally sourced foods and strengthening the connections between consumers and farmers, those strategies are not enough to prevent contamination of milk with dangerous bacteria. Nor is it a matter of preventing lax procedures used by farmers; it would be impossible for even the most conscientious farmer to prevent contamination, and that is why pasteurization is required for commercially distributed milk. The milk implicated in this outbreak came from a \"herd-share,\" and so was legally distributed to 48 members, even though it was not pasteurized.\nIn the wake of this outbreak, I had occasion to review some clippings from 1922 in The Oregonian documenting 13 deaths and many illnesses from an outbreak caused by a different type of bacteria transmitted by unpasteurized milk from the Pleasant View Dairy. But we don't have to go back to the 1920s to find these outbreaks. In the past two decades we have had at least six outbreaks linked to raw milk in Oregon alone, and many others nationwide.\nMilk is good for most people. It is packed with vitamins, calcium and protein. But history has taught us over and over again that milk needs to pasteurized to be safe. These latest events have taught us that painful lesson yet again.\nMel Kohn is director of the Oregon Public Health Division of the Oregon Health Authority."}
{"text": "Hundreds of years ago, settlers who came to Fort Worth were greeted by rolling prairies for as far as the eye could see. Today, those welcoming fields have been replaced by growing cities and towns, but Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT) remembers this heritage and culture with the annual celebration of Prairie Day.\nBRIT's Prairie Day offers family-friendly education about the beauty and importance of the North Texas landscape through hands-on events and activities that kids will love. Kids will be encouraged to get a little dirty as they help to make seed balls, a Prairie Day tradition. Using a Native American technique, visitors will combine seeds, humus, and red clay into tiny packets of life that will be tossed into the fields surrounding BRIT to populate the area with native plants. Imagine the fun of returning to the BRIT next spring to see the plants you helped to grow!\nOther activities throughout the day will combine fun family games with opportunities to learn about nature, including face painting, balloon twisting, and a variety of games provided by the Log Cabin Village. In addition, live music and cowboy poets will be on hand to entertain the crowd.\nDon't miss these other great activities:\n- Beekeeping demonstrations\n- Soap and candle making\n- Children’s coloring contest\n- Basket Weaving\n- Solar Cooking Demonstrations\n- Meet two special guest prairie dogs\nThe 3rd annual Prairie Day event will be held on Saturday, May 18th from 10 am to 2 pm at BRIT Headquarters 1700 University Drive."}
{"text": "No flood, no money. What a trade!\nWhen asked about his future, Nguyen Van Nghe, a fisherman in Dong Thap Province answered: “No flood, no money. What a trade!” He was referring to the fact that over the last 10 years the construction of high dykes in Dong Thap and the Long Xuyen Quadrangle has blocked the annual replenishment of freshwater, nutrients, and sediment on which fish depend. In turn, this has destroyed the wild fisheries on which the landless, including Nghe, who make up 20% of the Mekong Delta’s population, depend. Wild fish production has declined by 40% over the last 10 years and species that were once used as fertilizer now sell for VND180,000/kg. The predatory snakehead, which once occupied the top of the aquatic food chain, has disappeared. The high dykes have also greatly reduced the annual flushing. This has resulted in the accumulation of pathogens and toxins in the surface water and growing public health problems.\nHigh dykes were built to allow a third, or autumn-winter, rice crop to be grown because of the high prices this off-season crop can fetch on the international market. In 2011, 560,000 hectares of autumn-winter rice were planted, up from 520,000 hectares in 2010. But because of the loss of sediment, rice productivity can only be maintained through the heavy use of fertilizer. Nguyen Huu Thien, a wetland specialist based in Can Tho, questions whether the third rice crop is profitable once you take into account the increased use of fertilizer and pesticide, the cost of dyke maintenance, the loss of wild fish, and, inevitably, the cost of dyke failure: when dykes failed in 2011, 50 people were killed and tens of millions of dollars of houses, roads, and other infrastructure was destroyed. The intensification of rice production has also resulted in the virtual extinction of the traditional long-stem floating rice varieties, which in Brazil sell for $3,500/ton, almost ten times the price of autumn-winter rice.\nDr. Ngo Van Be of the Dong Thap Muoi Institute of Research and Development says that the floods that used to be “mild” are now “fierce” and unpredictable. In hydrological terms, what the high dykes have done is to separate the Mekong River from its 1.5 million-hectare floodplain. According to Dr. Le Anh Tuan of Can Tho University, these dykes have narrowed the floodplain during the peak October-November flood from 150 kilometers to a few tens of kilometers. This has accelerated the water flow and displaced flooding to residential areas downstream. Reduction of the flooded area has also reduced groundwater recharge, reduced river base flows, and increased dry season saline intrusion, which increases the cost of drinking water supplies. The violent floods of 2011 call into question the value of the third rice crop and instead argue for a more natural hydrology that provides multiple benefits, including greater resilience to climate change, which is likely to result in more intense rainfalls and flash flooding.\nTo learn more about these issues, watch this 30-minute file produced by the Center for Water Resources Conservation and Development (WARECOD) and VTC16."}
{"text": "Both the Crusades in the late eleventh century and the harsh persecution of Jews by the Bohemian king Vratislav II led to the migration of Jews from Bohemia, Germany and Austria to Hungary, where they found refuge; some of them settled in Slovakia. Under a \"Jewish law\" enacted by the Hungarian king Kalman, Jews were permitted to live only in cathedral towns and on bishops estates. In 1241 the Mongols (also known as Tartars) invaded Hungary, wreaking havoc and destruction. Jewish merchants made a major contribution to rebuilding the economy. A letter from King Bela IV refers to Jews in the cities of Pressburg (Bratislava), Senica, Trnava, Pezinok, Nitra, and Trencin. In 1251 the King granted the Jews a \"privilege\", a document promising them protection against attacks by Christians, a permanent legal status and other benefits. At the time, most Jews made their living in finance, a minority worked in commerce and the importing of goods, and others held positions in public administration or were involved in the minting of coins, to the displeasure of the Pope and Church leaders.\nFrom the thirteenth century on the Jews were wards of the king and paid taxes to the royal treasury. They lived primarily in the cities, on separate Jewish streets allotted to them by the authorities in order to segregate them from the Christians. In some towns there was an organized community life and Jewish public institutions. Nitra, a major administrative and economic center in the Middle Ages, had a longstanding Jewish community that is considered one of the oldest in Slovakia. A document from the year 1113 mentions Mons Judaeorum in Nitra, where there was a Jewish cemetery. In the thirteenth century Jews also lived in the nearby suburb of Parovce, which was known as Castrum Judaeorum, i.e., \"fortified Jewish settlement\". Jewish sources also mention the Jewish community in Nitra; for example, in his book Or Zarua, written in the late thirteenth century, a leading halakhic authority, Rabbi Isaac ben Moses of Vienna, refers to a question asked by the community regarding marriage laws. At about the same time, Jewish refugees from Bohemia and Germany founded a community in Pressburg. In the fourteenth century the Pressburg community numbered close to 800 people and seems to have been the largest in the kingdom. In the late fourteenth century the spiritual leader of Trnava was Rabbi Isaac Tyrnau (the German name of Trnava), known as the leading Torah sage in Hungary and the author of Sefer Ha-minhagim, which describes the religious practices of the Jews of Hungary and the neighboring countries.\nAs the Christian population turned increasingly to religious extremism and social ferment in the fifteenth century, the Jews' situation grew worse. Anti-Jewish riots broke out in several places. In 1491 the authorities in Trnava spread a blood libel against the Jews, and twelve men and four women were burned at the stake on August 22 of that year. After the Turks defeated the Hungarians in 1526, the Jews were expelled from Pressburg, Trnava, and several other localities. In 1529 a blood libel was lodged against the Jews of Pezinok. Thirty members of the community were burned at the stake and the rest of the Jews fled the city. Mistreatment of Jews occurred in other communities as well. By the end of the sixteenth century the old communities of Slovakia had disintegrated, their members scattering in all directions. As a result of the severe persecution, the continuity of the community life in Slovakia was severely disturbed.\nThe immigration of Jews, beginning in the mid-seventeenth century and intensifying during the eighteenth century, gave rise to the Jewish communities of Slovakia that existed until the Holocaust. Some members of the Hungarian aristocracy realized the advantages that might be gained from the Jews economic activity and, unlike the townspeople, made efforts to encourage Jews to settle on their estates. The Jewish immigrants came mainly from the neighboring countries of Moravia, Poland and Austria. Jewish refugees settled in Nitra County in 1649 and later in the counties of Pressburg and Trencin. New edicts in Moravia and hardships in Poland spurred migration to Slovakia, and the area of Jewish settlement expanded northward and eastward. Most inhabitants of the regions in which new communities were established were Slovakian subsistence farmers, serfs of Hungarian feudal lords. The socioeconomic conditions created an interdependency between the two sectors of the population, especially in economic affairs. A census from 1746 shows that almost half the Jewish heads of household in Slovakia were natives of Moravia and Bohemia, 10 percent of Poland, 5 percent of Austria, and 35 percent of various locations in Slovakia or elsewhere in Hungary. By the middle of the eighteenth century there were several fairly large Jewish communities in Slovakia, some with populations in the hundreds. As Jews resettled Slovakia, an interesting encounter occurred between Jewish ethnicities and cultures. The Jews in the west were chiefly of the Ashkenazi type, who tended to be more educated and more open to influences of the surrounding culture and society. The Jews in eastern Slovakia, in contrast, followed Hasidic customs, spoke Yiddish, and resembled the Jews of Poland and Galicia in their way of life and dress. The two cultures were slow to blend, completing the process only in the second half of the nineteenth century.\nThe Jews' living conditions deteriorated drastically during the reign of Empress Maria Theresa (1740-l780). The regime promulgated various edicts and even threatened to expel the Jews from the empire. In 1749 the Jews were subjected to a special \"tolerance tax\" (taxa tolerantialis), a heavy burden for the immigrant families. However, their situation improved when Emperor Joseph II (l780-l790) instituted changes and innovations in the governance of the empire. In 1783 he issued an Edict of Tolerance (Sistematica Gentis Iudaicae Regulatio) for the Jews of Hungary, which referred mainly to place of residence, occupation, and educational matters. The Jews were granted permission to work in almost any occupation and to live in most parts of the empire, except in and around mining towns. Following the Edict of Tolerance, the areas of Jewish settlement expanded and new communities were founded. Jews became financially well off and in some places flourished spiritually and culturally. The Jewish community of Hungary also grew rapidly during this time, attaining a population of 83,000, about a half of them in Slovakia and the nearby Burgenland (Austria). Throughout most of the eighteenth century Jews lived in a relatively small area covering a few counties in the west and east. Large portions of central and northern Slovakia, defined as mining areas, were still off limits to Jewish settlement.\nIn the early nineteenth century the Jewish population of Slovakia grew quite vigorously. In the 1820s the region contained about one hundred organized communities, mostly in small towns and rural villages. The increase in the Jewish population and the gradual improvement in their economic condition were accompanied by a thriving religious life and the emergence of the first Torah centers. At that time there were seven relatively large yeshivas in Slovakia, headed by well-known rabbis and scholars. The most important of them was the Pressburg yeshiva, headed by Rabbi Moses Sofer (Schreiber), known as the Hatam Sofer, who was considered the leading halakhic authority of his day. In the midst of a liberalization wave in 1840, the Hungarian parliament passed several important legislative amendments pertaining to the Jews, mainly concerning places of residence and economic matters. Many Slovakian Jews moved to other parts of the empire around that time, and the old, traditional Jewish communities began to decline in number. New communities were founded in central and northern Slovakia, and the map of Jewish settlement in Slovakia attained geographic contiguity.\nThe \"Spring of Nations\" and the Hungarian uprising against Austrian rule (1848-1849) were not beneficial to the Jews. In March 1848 riots broke out in Pressburg (Bratislava) and nearby localities and spread to other regions. In many Jewish communities, especially in western Slovakia, houses were plundered and community institutions were destroyed; in some places there were casualties. Several localities were abandoned for some time.\nIn the second half of the nineteenth century, after the situation had stabilized, there were about 115 major Jewish communities in Slovakia with recognized rabbinical offices and 200 smaller communities with their own public institutions, chiefly in villages. Several dozen yeshivas, with thousands of students, became important Torah centers. Slovakian Jews played a significant economic role as mediators between the agricultural sector and the growing cities and were involved in trade in agricultural produce. They included merchants, tenant farmers and estate managers, but many worked in petty commerce as artisans or peddlers occupations that Jews in the Oberland had practiced for generations.\nWhereas manifestations of socioeconomically motivated anti-Semitism that had erupted in the early nineteenth century declined when the revolution of 1848-1849 was suppressed, nationally based anti-Semitism increased over time. The Slovakian intelligentsia, which advocated a Slovakian national revival, regarded the Jews as tools of the hated Hungarian regime and, therefore, one of the causes of the plight of the Slovakian people. After Hungarian Jewry attained equal rights in 1867, anti-Semitic activity increased in Slovakia. Church representatives were actively involved in stirring up hatred of the Jews. In July 1882 some two hundred priests gathered in Topolcany to discuss the \"Jewish question\". The upshot of their deliberations was to urge the Hungarian parliament to revoke or limit the equal rights that it had granted to Jews in 1867.\nFrom the beginning of the eighteenth century the empire had been undergoing a modernization process that was paralleled by similar changes in Hungarian Jewry. The ideas of the Enlightenment that seeped into Hungary during those years influenced many Hungarian Jews to cast aside their traditions and seek their future in European culture. Hungarian liberals encouraged Jews to abandon their traditional lifestyle and adopt the customs of enlightened Hungarian society. Attempts to amend or reform religious rules were met with vigorous opposition from both the religious leadership in Slovakia and a large portion of the Jewish population, which was characterized by a conservative way of life and a strong affinity for religion and tradition. The opposition to the reform trends was led, from the very beginning, by Rabbi Moshe Sofer of Pressburg. As a result of his vehement stance Pressburg became the center of the struggle against the Haskala (Jewish Enlightenment) movement and religious reforms. In the mid-nineteenth century the Kulturkampf within Hungarian Jewry intensified; and in 1865 dozens of Orthodox rabbis gathered in Michalovce, Slovakia. They adopted stringent resolutions including a boycott of synagogues that had instituted changes, and a strict injunction against sermons in German and Hungarian, secular education, and the study of foreign languages. The resolutions were given the force of a halakhic ruling, thereby further deepening the fissure among Hungarian Jewry and precluding all attempts to heal the rift. At the initiative of the authorities, representatives of Hungarian Jewry were invited to Budapest in December 1868 to promote the emancipation and to establish a countrywide umbrella organization for all Jewish communities in the country. The Liberal Jews welcomed the initiative, but the Orthodox regarded it with great suspicion. They feared that such an organization, supported by the authorities and the Liberal Jews, would diminish the communities' independence and undermine the status of the rabbi as supreme religious authority and sole arbiter. After all attempts at compromise failed, the Orthodox delegates walked out of the congress. The conflict between the camps reached its peak, causing a rupture between the communities and a deep polarization of Hungarian Jewry. As a result, two separate organizations of communities were established one for the Orthodox and one for the Liberals (Neologs). Some communities did not join either organization and retained their previous status; these communities were known as status quo ante. The Jews of Slovakia were more united in their affinity for religion than those in the rest of Hungary. Two-thirds of the communities, especially the old, traditional ones in the small towns and villages, joined the Orthodox organization. In parallel, most new communities, primarily in central Slovakia, joined the Neologs. In several locations two communities formed, one Orthodox and one Neolog, and they vied for control of community institutions and assets that had previously belonged to the joint administration.\nOn the eve of World War I the Jewish population of Slovakia numbered 140,000. Collectively they were quite diverse, comprising several religious factions whose members differed in their way of life, affinity for religion, origins, and cultural backgrounds. They spoke four different languages among themselves and with the Christians, belonged to various socioeconomic classes, and were divided among national groups. Most Slovakian Jews originated in villages and small towns and had traits characteristic of post-rural society.\nAfter World War I social agitation grew in Slovakia. Economic hardship\nincreased following the return and demobilization of soldiers, and the\nfrustration was soon vented in several weeks of violent acts against Jews. The\nburglary and looting of homes and businesses affected Jews of all classes, poor\nand rich alike.\nThe new government adopted the Habsburg monarchies legislation regarding the Jews: namely, in the Czech province the Austrian laws remained in effect, whereas in Slovakia the Hungarian laws remained but with slight modifications. Attempts to establish a countrywide organization of communities representing all Jews in Czechoslovakia were foiled by the Orthodox leadership in Slovakia, which feared that this would undermine its hegemony among the religious Jews. Meanwhile, a new source of friction further exacerbated the tense relations between the factions. Under the Czechoslovakian constitution members of the Jewish religion could declare that they belonged to the Jewish nation. The Orthodox were vehemently opposed to defining Judaism as a national entity. To them Jewry was solely a religious community and would remain so until the Jews were redeemed from exile. Nevertheless, Jewish nationalism, represented by the Zionist movement, managed to establish itself and make inroads even among traditional Jews. Many Zionists, especially the young, came from Orthodox families; they joined Jewish national and Zionist organizations despite the opposition of the Orthodox religious leadership.\nAfter Czechoslovakia was established the organizations of Jewish communities formed their institutions. The Organization of Autonomous Orthodox Congregations in Slovakia (OAOCS) included 170 of 228 congregations and about 75 percent of Slovakian Jews. Over time it became one of the most authoritative, powerful and influential Jewish organizations in Czechoslovakia. Meanwhile, Agudath Israel, which had close ties to the OAOCS, complemented it by carrying out a wide range of activities in dozens of branches. Agudath Israel focused primarily on individual life and on education consistent with Orthodoxy. The ties between the two organizations, strong to begin with, became even stronger when Rabbi Samuel David Ungar, one of the leaders of the OAOCS, was named president of Agudath Israel in Czechoslovakia. Agudath Israel and its youth movements engaged in ramified social and welfare activities and educational initiatives, including preschools, a Beth Yaakov school system for girls, and camps for children and teenagers. At the end of World War I there were twenty-nine Neolog communities in Slovakia. Cut off from their center in Hungary, they encountered complex organizational problems that threatened their survival. In 1925 the Neologs decided to form a joint organization with the fifty-five Status Quo Ante communities, which since 1928 had been known as Jeshurun.\nIn 1920 there were seventy-seven Jewish primary schools in Slovakia and two high schools. Forty-six of the schools were Orthodox; the rest were liberal. Noteworthy, only 45 percent of Jewish children attended Jewish schools; the majority attended public schools. Due to the growing percentage of students in schools that taught in Slovakian, the language spoken by the young Jews changed. Instead of German and Hungarian, the main languages used by Slovakian Jews in the past, the young people adopted Slovakian as their vernacular. Alongside the formal educational system, an extensive system of Torah education institutions functioned in Slovakia, including boys' schools (cheder and Talmud Torah), Beth Yaacov seminaries for religious girls, and more than thirty yeshivas that were accredited as religious educational institutions. In 1930 the Pressburg (Bratislava) yeshiva and three other yeshivas were accredited by the Czechoslovakian Ministry of Education as institutions of higher education.\nVibrant Zionist activity was enjoyed in inter-war Slovakia and new branches of the movement were established in dozens of cities and towns. In addition to the Zionist Organization, there was a Jewish National Party (Zidovska Strana) that focused on domestic Jewish policy and representation of the Jews national, religious, economic, and social interests vis-a-vis the authorities. The party did well in elections for town councils and county and regional assemblies. Although the Orthodox establishment doggedly fought Zionism and the Jewish National Party, the Zionists penetrated even the Orthodox communities. In the mid-1930s about 20 percent of Slovakian Jews purchased the Zionist \"Shekel\", thereby becoming formal members of the Zionist Movement.\nZionist youth movements predated World War I. In 1919-1920, after the wartime turmoil in Slovakia had waned, Zionist youth groups reorganized and opened clubs in all the major cities and some small towns. In 1924, representatives of Zionist youth groups met in Nitra and together founded He-haluts. Religious teenagers established Mizrachi Youth. Organizational and social activity in the Zionist youth movements reached its peak in the 1930s, with tens of thousands of young members from all strata of Jewish society. Hundreds of them emigrated to Palestine after undergoing training for this purpose in Slovakia. The Maccabi sports association launched social and cultural activity with Zionist national leanings. Thousands of youngsters and adults, Orthodox and Liberal alike, were active in clubs throughout Slovakia.\nDuring the period of the Republic of Czechoslovakia, Slovakian Jewry did not undergo any major demographic changes. In the 1930s about 140,000 Jews lived in 2,337 localities. Some 55 percent of them lived in villages and small towns with populations of less than 5,000; 18 percent lived in the two largest cities (Bratislava and Kosice), and only 25 percent lived in cities of l0,000-25,000 residents. The socioeconomic status of Slovakian Jews also remained constant during this period: 72 percent of Jewish breadwinners were self-employed, 15 percent were wage earners, and 13 percent were practitioners of liberal professions, white-collar workers, and brokers.\nIn the second half of the 1930s, as political tensions mounted in\nCzechoslovakia, anti-Semitic sentiments increased among large segments of the\nSlovakian people. The nationalist parties that agitated for Slovakian national\nautonomy, especially the Slovak Peoples Party, held strong anti-Semitic\npositions and incited against the Jews. On October 6, 1938, after the Munich\nagreement in late September had forced Czechoslovakia to cede territory to the\nThird Reich, the Slovak Peoples Party declared extensive autonomy in Slovakia\nand instituted a one-party totalitarian regime. On November 2 large portions of\nsouthern Slovakia home to more than 45,000 Jews were annexed to\nHungary. The Slovakian government blamed the Jews regarding their supposed\nsupport of the annexation and started removing thousands of Jewish families who\nheld foreign citizenship to the Hungarian and Polish borders. Few of the\ndeportees were permitted to return to their homes.\nWhile the deportations were in progress, an underground cell known as the Working Group, headed by Rabbi Michael Dov Weissmandel and Gisi Fleischmann, formed within the Center of Jews in an attempt to stanch the deportations and aid the deportees. The Working Groups success in halting the deportations from Slovakia encouraged its members to intensify their efforts to save all of European Jewry by negotiating with the Nazis. The resulting initiative, devised by Rabbi Weissmandel, was known as the Europa Plan. In April 1944 two Slovakian Jews, Alfred Wetzler and Walter Rosenberg (Rudolf Vrba), escaped from Auschwitz. The Working Group took detailed testimony from them about the nature of the Auschwitz camp and the extermination methods used there. A sketch of the extermination facilities, based on the description given by the two men, was attached to their testimony. The Auschwitz Protocols, as the document was known, were sent from Slovakia to the free world, where they reached Jewish organizations. The Working Groups purpose in releasing the Protocols was to sound an alarm and marshal worldwide public opinion in favor of extensive rescue activities and bombing of the railroads leading to Auschwitz and the extermination facilities themselves.\nJews joined the first resistance groups that organized in Slovakia in 1942. Most of them were active in the Communist and Czechoslovakian underground movements. A Jewish underground group was also formed in the Novaky labor camp in 1942. These groups tried to prevent a resumption of the deportations and started preparing for active resistance. On August 29, 1944, an armed uprising broke out in Slovakia in an attempt to overthrow the pro-Nazi regime and reestablish the Republic of Czechoslovakia. As the partisan attacks intensified, the German army invaded Slovakia. The Jewish group from the Novaky camp was assigned to halt the advance of the SS troops along one of their main attack routes. The German invasion of Slovakia augured ill for the last remaining Jews. Many tried to reach the rebel-controlled area in the hope of surviving, and thousands of destitute Jewish refugees gathered in the rebels main stronghold, Banska Bystrica. Parachutists sent by the Yishuv (the pre-Israel Jewish community in Palestine), headed by Haviva Reik, mobilized to help them. Although the uprising was quelled two months after it began, rebel units, including Jews, fled to the mountains, where they continued to engage the enemy until the liberation. About 1,600 Jews fought in various partisan units; approximately 170 of them were killed.\nAfter the uprising was suppressed, the Germans took over the authority for Jewish affairs. SS officer Alois Brunner, one of Eichmanns assistants, went to Slovakia to deport all Jews irrespective of their status or their \"certificates of exemption\". Those Jews who were captured by the Nazis and their Slovakian accomplices were taken to the Sered camp. The deportation of the remaining Jews in Slovakia resumed on September 30, 1944. From then until March 31, 1945, some 12,000 Jews were deported from Slovakia; only half survived. Another 2,500 Jews were murdered on Slovakian soil during this period. Additional victims among Slovakian Jews were those who had fled to Hungary and were deported from there to the extermination camps.\nThe Jews in the territories annexed to Hungary in 1938-1939 met the same fate\nas those in the rest of Hungary. After the annexation of these territories,\nHungarians began to persecute the Jews and accused them of supporting\nCzechoslovakia. Of the 10,600 business owners only 4,500 were permitted to keep\ntheir establishments going. Beginning in 1940, close to 7,500 men from southern\nSlovakia were taken to work in labor battalions; few survived. Several thousand\nJews lacking Hungarian citizenship were deported in 1941 to the occupied part\nof Ukraine, where most of them were murdered. After the Germans occupied\nHungary (March 19, 1944), new anti-Jewish edicts were promulgated.\nGhettoization of the Jews began in the second half of April 1944. The first\ntransports from the territories annexed to Hungary left for Auschwitz in the\nsecond half of May 1944; the rest of the deportations occurred in June of that\nyear. Of some 45,000 Jews who lived in those territories, 10,000 survived.\nAbout 100,000 Slovakian Jews 73 percent of their number in 1938\nperished during World War II.\nJewishGen, Inc. makes no representations regarding the accuracy of\nthe translation. The reader may wish to refer to the original material\nJewishGen is not responsible for inaccuracies or omissions in the original work and cannot rewrite or edit the text to correct inaccuracies and/or omissions.\nOur mission is to produce a translation of the original work and we cannot verify the accuracy of statements or alter facts cited.\nPinkas Hakehilot, Slovakia Yizkor Book Project JewishGen Home Page\nCopyright © 1999-2013 by JewishGen, Inc.\nUpdated 23 Dec 2006 by LA"}
{"text": "Welfare state in capitalism\nSince the eruption of the sub-prime mortgage crises of 2007 to 2009, there have been hot debates on how the current “greedy capitalism” must change into sustainable capitalism.\nThe “Occupy Wall Street” protests were against the far-reaching negative consequences of neo-liberal capitalism.\nIn the wake of the global financial meltdown, the notion of Capitalism 4.0 has suddenly made headlines and the Davos Forum early this year also addressed how to make capitalism sustainable.\nTo what extent is this debate and the search for a new version of capitalism relevant to Korea?\nUnlike advanced Western capitalist states with more than 300 years of history, Korea’s modern development of capitalism occurred in the past half century but is regarded as the representative economy of East Asian miracle performers.\nKorea formally adopted capitalism in the post-liberation era after 1945 by formulating a constitution containing a market economy as its basic tenet to promote economic freedom and encourage creativity.\nAs a corollary of this fundamental principle, the Korean constitution dictates that the government can regulate and adjust economic matters to supplement market economic principles to achieve social justice and economic democracy.\nEmpirical analysis suggests that the Korean economy has achieved both growth and equity.\nIronically, at the outset of Korea’s modern economic development, the Korean War (1950-1953) allowed everyone in Korea to be on equal footing.\nFurthermore, Korea, with the birth of a new democratic government, carried out two institutional reforms: land reform based on owner-cultivator principles and a compulsory education system for school-age children to be enrolled at a primary school, at the very least.\nIn the past half century, Korea’s rapid economic growth has evolved around the creation of chaebol (large conglomerates), administered credit allocation with easy monetary policies from banks to priority sectors and export-oriented outward-looking policies to concentrate economic power highly in favor of them.\nHowever, in the post-1997/98 Asian financial crisis era, and with the recent global crisis, Korea’s compressed growth model has resulted in worsening income polarization and jobless growth.\nKorea now faces serious challenges on its way to introducing a welfare state paradigm. As part of the campaigns for the general elections concluded last week, left-wing opposition parties introduced a series of free programs involving everything from school lunches, school tuition, universal welfare and college tuition reduction to tax hikes for the rich and a chaebol tax.\nThe conservative government party also put forward its own welfare policy platforms largely based on selective and prudential principles.\nWhat type of welfare state Korea should design is likely to be a key issue in the December presidential election.\nKorea should consider a welfare state as a distinct combination of democracy, welfare and capitalism, as implemented with different degrees of emphasis by Germany, all the Nordic countries, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.\nGiven Korea’s transition to a matured advanced economy and ongoing income polarization, the country must address how to balance growth dynamism and equity.\nAbove all, the government should do its best to construct a social safety net for those in need.\nWithout due consideration of fiscal sustainability, we should avoid the popular approach to embrace “something for nothing.”\nKorea may also consider privately channeled welfare measures within corporate social responsibility mandates as given in the United Nation’s new norm for shared growth.\nIn this regard, Korea’s large conglomerates need to be proactive in nurturing human capital for a high-tech society.\nIndeed, highly skilled manpower is the core element to ensuring a sustainable endogenous growth model.\nKoreans should keep in mind that the provision of welfare should not discourage the incentive to work. We should not let our next generation bear the burden of financing excessive welfare expenditure for the present generation.\nWe should be aware of the fact that capitalism is not a static set of institutions but an evolutionary system that reinvents and reinvigorates itself through challenges and crisis. The present case of Greece’s demise makes this clear."}
{"text": "If you take your ears for granted, listen up: hearing loss is the third most common health problem in the U.S. It's also on the rise. Compared to a 1971 federal survey that estimated 13.2 million Americans had hearing loss, up to 36 million Americans now report lost hearing. When hearing goes, it may affect quality of life and relationships.\nIn this article, WebMD looks at the causes, symptoms, and treatment of hearing loss. If you have lost some of your hearing, you'll find strategies to keep lines of communication open with friends and family. If your hearing is still intact, this article could help you keep it that way for years to come.\nThe following suggestions will help you care for hearing aids:\nKeep hearing aids away from heat and moisture.\nReplace dead batteries immediately.\nClean hearing aids as instructed.\nDo not use hairspray or other hair care products while wearing hearing aids.\nTurn off hearing aids when they are not in use.\nKeep replacement batteries and small aids away from children and pets.\nCertain conditions, including age, illness, and genetics, may contribute to hearing loss. Over several generations, modern life has added a host of ear-damaging elements to the list, including some medications and plenty of sources of loud, continuous noise.\nAdvanced age is the most common cause of hearing loss. One out of three people aged 65-74 has some level of hearing loss. After age 75, that ratio goes up to one out of every two people.\nResearchers don't fully understand why hearing decreases with age. It could be that lifetime exposure to noise and other damaging factors slowly wear down the ears' delicate mechanics. Genes also play a role.\nNoise wears down hearing if it's loud or continuous. In some workplaces, ears are exposed to dangerous noise levels every day. To understand the impact of noise, consider this: 44% of carpenters and 48% of plumbers report some hearing loss. Other noisy lines of work include the military, mining, manufacturing, agriculture, and transportation.\nEven musicians, who literally create music for our ears, are at risk for noise-induced hearing loss. Some now wear special earplugs to protect their ears when they perform. The earplugs allow them to hear music without harming their ears' inner workings.\nCertain medications can impair hearing and/or balance. More than 200 medications and chemicals have a track record of triggering hearing and/or balance side effects in addition to their disease-fighting capabilities. These include some antibiotics and chemotherapy drugs, aspirin, loop diuretics, a drug used to treat malaria, and several drugs for erectile dysfunction.\nSudden hearing loss, the rapid loss of 30 decibels or more of hearing ability, can happen over several hours or days. (A normal conversation is 60 decibels.) In nine out of 10 cases, sudden hearing loss affects only one ear. Though there are about 4,000 new cases of sudden hearing loss a year, the cause can only be found in 10% to 15% of cases.\nCertain illnesses, such as heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes, put ears at risk by interfering with the ears' blood supply. Otosclerosis is a bone disease of the middle ear and Ménière's disease affects the inner ear. Both can cause hearing loss.\nTrauma, especially that which involves a skull fracture or punctured eardrum, puts ears at serious risk for hearing loss.\nInfection or ear wax can block ear canals and reduce hearing."}
{"text": "- Consul (abbrev. cos.; Latin plural consules) was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic. — “Consul - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia”,\n- Roman Consuls - names and dates of the consuls of Rome during the Roman Republic. — “Consuls of Rome”,\n- Below is a list of the consuls of the Roman Republic from its foundation until the battle of Actium in 31 B.C. There were normally two consuls elected for each year. If during that year a consul resigned from office or died, a \"suffect\" (replacement) consul was elected in his place. — “Consuls of the Roman Republic”, ualberta.ca\n- Welcome to the Website of the Federation of European Associations of Honorary Consuls - F.U.E.C.H ! Ses objectifs – précisés a l'article 2 de nos statuts – sont de promouvoir l'harmonisation des droits, tâches et devoirs des Consuls Honoraires en Europe. — “Index”,\n- Consuls definition, an official appointed by the government of one country to look after its commercial interests and the welfare of its citizens in another cou See more. — “Consuls | Define Consuls at ”,\n- Consuls 1st Century AD. List of Consuls. The following list of Consuls, beginning with the foundation of the Republic in 509 BC, is taking largely from the list of Varro compiled in the 1st century BC. Prior to 300 BC, the list has some known. — “List of Consuls”,\n- During the time of ancient Rome as a Republic, the consuls were the highest civil and military magistrates, serving as the heads The Napoleonic Roman Republic (15 February 1798 – 23 June 1800) was headed by multiple consuls:. — “Consul - Reference”,\n- Roman Magistrates: Consuls, Tribunes, Praetors, Censors and Aediles Consuls. After the last king Tarquin the Proud was expelled the rule of Rome was awarded to two elected Consuls and a pyramid of more or less. — “Roman Magistrates: Consuls, Tribunes, Praetors, Censors and”,\n- Consul: Roman magistrate, comparable with a prime minister or a president. The consuls were the chairmen of the Senate, which served as a board of advisers. — “Consul”,\n- Under the Republic, two (2) elected consuls shared the head of government. Consuls were members of the Senate, who had been elected to serve for a one year term in the position of Consul, the highest position in government under the Republic. — “Ancient Rome for Kids - Government under the Republic - the”,\n- During the Roman Republic, the consuls were the highest civil and military magistrates, serving as the heads of government for the Republic. New consuls were elected every year. There were two consuls and they ruled together. However, after. — “Consuls”,\n- Genius - the dynamic portal engine and content management system. — “CONSUL-ONLINE - Web Links”,\n- Definition of Consuls in the Legal Dictionary - by Free online English dictionary and encyclopedia. What is Consuls? Meaning of Consuls as a legal term. What does Consuls mean in law?. — “Consuls legal definition of Consuls. Consuls synonyms by the”, legal-\n- The Consuls were the chief executives of the Republic. In them were vested broad powers to arbitrate, legislate adjudicate, and govern. They were the chief military officers, they represented Rome in foreign matters, and they led the Senate. — “Consuls”,\n- Home / Foreign Policy / The 4th Conference of the Hungarian Honorary Consuls / The Institution of Honorary Consuls - The Hungarian Honorary Consular Corps / Honorary Consuls - Short History. The short history of honorary consular representations. — “Honorary Consuls - Short History”, mfa.gov.hu\n- Multiple words are searched together as one phrase. Example : world health organization for 1-5 characters, '**' for open-ended truncation, '?' to replace a single character. — “CONSULS | Catalog of the CSU Libraries & The CT State Library”,\n- consul n. ( Abbr. Con. or Cons. ) An official appointed by a government to reside in a foreign country and represent his or her government's. — “consul: West's Encyclopedia of American Law (Full Article”,\n- Under the Republic the minimum age of election to consul for patricians was 40 years of age, for plebeians 42. Two consuls were elected each year, they served together with veto power over each other's actions, and the year of their service was known by their names. — “Consul - Wikinfo”,\n- Under the Republic, the minimum age of election to consul for patricians was 40 years of age, for plebeians 42. Two consuls were elected each year, serving together with veto power over each other's actions. Consuls executed both religious and military duties; the reading of. — “Consul - Definition”,\n- Consuls & diplomats in Australia from the German-speaking countries. — “Consuls & diplomats in Australia from the German-speaking”, .au\n- The Consuls will be responsible for publishing the first Roman newsletter after entering office. No Consul may be removed from office before the end of his/her term. — “Roman Consuls”,\nrelated images for consuls\n- PTJ13 220609 CONSULS jpg\n- photo02 600 jpg time=1240696876\n- Représentants des collectivités locales De g à d B Casaurang CG 30 J P Boré Région D J Valade Ville Consuls généraux De g à d Espagne Italie Allemagne\n- quai consuls big img 2 jpg\n- Saint Antonin Noble Val Tarn et Garonne Maison des Consuls which housed a court of justice ferocious mutual beard pullers on a capital The best of all from the ruined Abbey of La Sauve Majeure Gironde and now in the Cloisters\n- Les Consuls\n- PTJ11 220609 CONSULS jpg\n- The Maison des Consuls Mirepoix proposes you its 8 rooms Secured online booking La Maison des Consuls is situated in a beautiful and widely visited medieval square in the heart of Mirepoix\n- consuls jpg\n- agrandir le plan masse\n- with no separate chassis and MacPherson front struts were used for the first time on a British car It had a live axle with leaf springs at the rear hydraulic drum brakes front rear The Consul had a 1508cc 4 cylinder engine which developed 48bhp mated to a 3 speed column change gearbox with synchromesh only on second and top gear The handbrake was operated by a pull\n- poisson jpg\n- Nous allons voir la cathédrale Saint Maurice qui possède la nef la plus large de France Sa flèche de pierre est très belle mais nous apprécions aussi les très nombreuses gargouilles\n- consuls jpg\n- PTJ10 220609 CONSULS jpg\n- photo06 600 jpg time=1240696876\n- Une délégation conduite par S E l ambassadeur Richard Zady a pris part aux travaux de la première Conférence des Consuls Honoraires de la Cote d Ivoire du 17 au 22 septembre Palais des\n- http i108 photobucket com albums n b dscf0008 jpg http i108 photobucket com albums n ob consuls jpg http i108 photobucket com albums n e2b0735c b jpg\n- Tiberi jpg\n- Deseas contactar con esta empresa\n- JPEG 111 7 kb\n- Klik voor meer foto s Consuls zijn vrijwilligers die inzetbaar zijn voor allerlei verschillende taken op de werkterreinen van de ANWB Zij spelen al sinds de oprichting van de ANWB een\n- Gubbio le palais des consuls\n- Ajoutez cette photo à votre Facebook\n- Girsa Consuls Apt 3 172140446 large JPG\n- 700 garde des consuls 1775 jpg\n- Consuls From the Capitoline Hill Museum\n- cohen jpg\n- photo07 600 jpg time=1240696876\n- XIIème siècle le péché et le châtiment du péché La rédemption n est pas représentée la justice n étant pas concernée par ce concept Sur la gauche de l image on peut voir Adam et Ève vus en gros plan sur la page précédente symbolisant l acte de pécher\n- > Voir tous les programmes\n- Mr Howard James Pym Honorary Consul Of Latvia attended the 4th meeting of Honorary Consuls in Riga on the 3rd and 4th of July Latvias Consuls of the World Mr Howard J Pym Honorary Consul of Latvia Pictured above 1st from right 2nd row together with His Excellency Ivars Godmanis Prime Minister of Latvia pictured\n- la royauté Le Conseil d État eut une activité très importante sous le Consulat et le Ier Empire 1799 1814 C est à lui que l on dut notamment la préparation des codes napoléoniens\n- Ajoutez cette photo à votre Facebook\n- The Boys\n- St Front La cathédrale St Front Centre ville 640x480 640x480 640x480\n- moustachus étant punis par les aigles symboles du pouvoir divin d autres pécheresses leurs tresses postiches faits avec les cheveux de religieuses et d indigentes saisies par les becs des aigles aux\n- Other capitals show a sinful woman in the clutches of a monster though in the context of the Maison des Consuls it might be Justice triumphing over Injustice a pair of mutual beard pullers symbol of strife\n- Ajoutez cette photo à votre Facebook\nrelated videos for consuls\n- Lake tahoe with the consuls lake tahoe, with the consuls!! me falling!!! Funny\n- University of Pangasinan: Consuls of Goodwill Faculties/CI's Dance Presentation bonggah! lots of yells! watch it! wink!\n- British Ambassador & consuls chat to Phuket press Comments by new British Ambassador, Asif Ahmad, on first visit to Phuket; recorded at Millenium Hotel, Patong, on Sunday 27 February 2011 Video starts with his comments on free trade area in ASEAN; then new requirement for UK visa residency applicants who are spouses of British citizens having to pass an English language test before entry is given; then on safety issues for tourists, jet skis and tuk tuks, to be raised with the Phuket Governor in a meeting today; the quarterly meeting of Hon Consuls with Governor; declining comment on Thai PM's possible dual nationality status; Thai visa rules on foreign resident's applications; help for Thai police who lack English skills; (after about 15 mins) British Hon Consul Martin Carpenter joins in with comments on tourist & normal police assistance; his contact details not currently being on Embassy website; any upgrading to consulate level & requests for visa applications in Phuket; police help in accidents; (after 20 mins) Ambassador said Consular staff would soon visit Phuket for temporary services 'surgery' (after 21 mins) British Consul Micheal Han*** comments on UK staff being cut back and replaced by local staff; decision on whether to upgrade to a consulate here; (after 23 mins) Hon Consul on the number of British residents, prisoners, and tourists in Phuket & region; assistance in other southern provinces (after 27 mins) Ambassador on Locate system for British residents to register on but increasing use of social media ...\n- Massey - Shout (Little Ceasar and the Consuls)\n- two pro street consuls at classic ford\n- MFA met Hon Consuls in Phuket pt 1 of 2 (raw video footage of beginning of meeting) International diplomatic representatives in the Andaman region met with senior officials from Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Phuket authorities to lay out clear channels of communication, strengthen relations and enhance mission efficiency It was a busy day on Monday for Consul-Generals and Honorary Consuls representing at least 18 foreign countries as they attended two important meetings in Phuket, both gearing towards improving communication channels among themselves and the Thai authorities. In the morning about 17 Consul-Generals and Honorary Consuls, who are mostly covering Phuket, Phang-Nga and Krabi, had a friendly session with officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Protocol Department at the Adamas Resort and Spa on Nai Yang beach. The session was chaired by the Chief of Protocol Department, Mr. Bansarn Bunnag. German Ambassador to Thailand, HE Dr. Hanns Heinrich Schumacher was also present. The meeting discussed clear channels of communication, both in normal times, but with contingency plans in case of emergencies, following international practice. The meeting was shown what's called a 'Phuket Model' design with concise channel of contacts and communication in the wake of any needs to handle stressful situations. The Thai Chief of Protocol told the international representatives that the ministry designated the Chief of the Passport Office in Phuket, Thanawat Sirikul, as the first contact person in the Andaman ...\n- CONSULS AND YOU.mov Elihu Burrit Library instructional video about Consuls.\n- Amadou Ballaké et Les 5 Consuls - Ligda remba. 45 rpm disc : Amadou Ballaké et Les 5 Consuls - A la mémoire du regretté Demba / Ligda remba. Amadou Balaké was born in 1944 in Ouahigouya, in the northern-east of Burkina Faso. After the death of his father, he relocated with his mother in the capital of the country, Ouagadougou, where he began to meet several local musicians. Shortly after he went to Mali to work as a chauffeur apprentice, and only returned to Ouagadougou six years later. He worked some time in construction, and then became a taximan. After the loss of his vehicle, he went to Mali and was engaged as a professional musician in the Grand Hotel orchestra. In 1963 he left Mali to play in the Tropicana orchestra in Abidjan, capital of the Ivory Coast, but only six months later he went to Guinea. Leader of the Bafinf Jazz band, he participated there in many musical competitions, and regularly played for president Sékou Touré meetings across the country. He returned to Burkina at the end of the 60's, and became very popular in the country thanks to his work with the Harmonie Voltaïque band. Convided by the Nigerian producer Aboudou Lassissi, he went back to Abidjan at the beginning of the 70's .\n- Balitang America: Opera Consuls Don Tagala meets up with French Consul Members who are trained by Filipinas to take the stage.\n- Interview with Bryan Mejia model and the consuls of new york ... Bryan Mejia MODEL INTERVIEW WITH CONSULS SHARING OF NEW YORK AND SOME COMMUNITIES New Yorker,Bryan Mejia MODEL INTERVIEW WITH CONSULS SHARING OF NEW YORK AND SOME NEW COMMUNICATORS YORKEL speech on the launch of his book''ME DETUVE EN EL TIEMPO''\n- MFA met Hon Consuls in Phuket pt 2 of 2 (raw video footage of beginning of meeting) International diplomatic representatives in the Andaman region met with senior officials from Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Phuket authorities to lay out clear channels of communication, strengthen relations and enhance mission efficiency It was a busy day on Monday for Consul-Generals and Honorary Consuls representing at least 18 foreign countries as they attended two important meetings in Phuket, both gearing towards improving communication channels among themselves and the Thai authorities. In the morning about 17 Consul-Generals and Honorary Consuls, who are mostly covering Phuket, Phang-Nga and Krabi, had a friendly session with officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Protocol Department at the Adamas Resort and Spa on Nai Yang beach. The session was chaired by the Chief of Protocol Department, Mr. Bansarn Bunnag. German Ambassador to Thailand, HE Dr. Hanns Heinrich Schumacher was also present. The meeting discussed clear channels of communication, both in normal times, but with contingency plans in case of emergencies, following international practice. The meeting was shown what's called a 'Phuket Model' design with concise channel of contacts and communication in the wake of any needs to handle stressful situations. The Thai Chief of Protocol told the international representatives that the ministry designated the Chief of the Passport Office in Phuket, Thanawat Sirikul, as the first contact person in the Andaman ...\n- Consuls General iftar Dinner,August 2010\n- Little Caesar & the Consuls - (My Girl) Sloopy One of many versions of this song (originally by the Vibrations), this was a #1 hit in Canada in July of 1965. It peaked at #50 in the US. This version is slower and more emotional than the McCoys more pop oriented version (retitled Hang on Sloopy) which went to #1 in the US later that same year.\n- (Part 1 of 2)Call by the Delegates of the 5th Ambassadors/Consuls General and Tourism Directors Rizal Hall, Malacanang Palace July 11, 2009\n- Jump Jeremiah - Mike Ford & the Consuls British group formed in the 1950s - my handsome and talented nephew, Geoffrey, was part of the group.\n- Consuls - Runaway Doo Wop\n- The evolution of gaming consuls Most of the popular consuls and their prices at retail. Final multimedia project. You'll notice i left out the Wii and computer systems. sorry i was time limited when i made this.\n- university of pangasinan-phinma consuls of goodwill-muriel's talent single ladies\n- Massey Hall - Hey Baby, Lets Hang On (Little Ceasar and the Consuls)\n- Consuls Meeting Following the success of the honorary consuls' meetings in Phuket, the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced that a nationwide gathering of al honorary consuls will be held at the ministry in Bangkok next month.\n- The Dancing Consuls Philippine Independence Day Party June 15, 2008, Osaka Japan. Can you find Consul General Garcia?\n- 24 February 2010 The Society of Foreign Consuls in NY NYSE Euronext Opening Bell. The Society of Foreign Consuls in New York rang The Opening Bell.\n- 4th Ambassadors'/Consuls' General and Tourism Directors' Tou at the Philippine Consulate\n- SBC Seychelles: Closure of the Honorary Consuls Conference 22-10-09\n- HSE 200 Med Relay - 2010 HS State Meet - Consuls Molly Milborn and Kate Henry's Last HS Swim.\n- CLANS YOUTUBE SUBSCRIBE FOR 10TH LOBBY AL CONSULS SUBSCRIBE\n- 5th Ambassadors Consuls General and Tourism Directors Tour of the Philippines Join us as we embark on another unforgettable trip to the Philippines: The 5th Ambassadors, Consuls General, and Tourism Directors Tour (ACGTDT) of the Philippines. The one-of-a-kind tour takes place on July 9-17, 2009. For only $1399, inclusive of round trip international airfare, to and from Manila and San Francisco, Los Angeles, or Las Vegas, 3-night hotel accommodations at the Dusit Hotel in Makati with daily breakfast, Dinners with cultural shows and entertainment, city tour of Manila, choice of day tour to famous out of town destinations, business opportunities activities, a visit and lunch at Malacanang Palace with tour of the museum, and a photo opportunity with Her Excellency Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Log on to www.experiencphilippines.ph for more details.\n- French Military March Marche Garde Consuls\n- Massey Hall - Hang on Sloopy (Little Ceasar and the Consuls)\n- Former Consuls SMK Sacred Heart '09 / '10 This video is about former consuls at SMK Sacred Heart Sibu( '09 / '10). This video is ONLY for those who knows about it.\n- university of pangasinan-phinma consuls of goodwill-edcell's talent beautiful in my eyes\n- Penang set up Council of Foreign Consuls Komtar, June 1st 2010 - Penang has set up the Council of Foreign Consuls which consist of 19 foreign Hon. Consul, Consul-General and other representatives. At the same time, CM Lim Guan Eng also introduced Khoo Kay Peng and Liew Chin Tong as two of several members who will represent Penang in Kuala Lumpur to promote Penang with all the diplomatic offices.\n- Green Man - Mike Ford & the Consuls 1960s British group. Lead guitar played by the talented Geoff Rich.\n- Consul Li, Qing and Consul Zhang, Yan At Davis NewStar Chinese School Chinese New Year Celebration 2010 Video by Xu, Feng\n- Sri Lankan Consuls urged to counter ill informed charges 19/01/2009 President Rajapakse has called on Sri Lankas Consuls abroad to inform the world of the achievements made towards restoring democracy and freedom in the North. They should do so and counter the ill informed charges being made about the plight of the innocent Tamil people there..\n- Los consuls\n- Governor met Hon Consuls in Phuket (raw video footage of beginning of meeting) International diplomatic representatives in the Andaman region met with Phuket authorities to lay out clear channels of communication, strengthen relations and enhance mission efficiency (story continued from 2 videos of morning meeting) In the afternoon, the group had a meeting with the Phuket authorities, chaired by Phuket Governor Wichai Praisa-Ngob at the Provincial Hall. The Chief of Protocol Department, MFA, his deputy and German Ambassador to Thailand were again present. The governor told the foreign envoys that he will make sure that his Thai officials are efficient and friendly to welcome tourists and visitors starting from the airport, emphasizing safety as a main priority for visitors and residents. Apart from establishing concise channels of communication to facilitate work efficiency, the focal issue in the afternoon centred around cases concerning foreigners in Phuket and how people involved are treated. The Provincial Police Commander Pikad Thantipong reported the number of cases concerned with foreign nationals. It was agreed earlier that the ambassadors, consuls or representatives be notified in writing when such cases occurred. Pol. Major General Pikad however admitted that there may be delays in some cases. He pointed out the comparative figure of fatal cases for foreigners in Phuket, stating that in 2008 there was 61 cases, in 2009 there was 28 cases and this year up to August there was 52 fatal cases. In ...\n- Little Ceasar & The Consuls - You've Really Got A Hold On Me Oldies\n- National Security Interview: Pro Consuls Frank Sesno talks with Dana Priest and Admirals James Loy and Charles Abbot about the national security issues facing the next administration.\n- (Part 2 of 2)Call by the Delegates of the 5th Ambassadors/Consuls General and Tourism Directors Rizal Hall, Malacanang Palace July 11, 2009\ntwitter about consuls\nBlogs & Forum\nblogs and forums about consuls\n“Archived from groups: rec.games.miniatures.warhammer (More info?) Howdy, with the release of 4th, I've divorced the Angels of Vengeance I had from the DA codex, and turned them into Black Consul”\n— Black Consuls, force review request - Games-General,\n“Gideon's Blog. Girl On The Right. Glaivester. Gringo Malo's Blog. HBD Books. Hibernia Girl Press Society. Internet128. Issues & Views - The Blog. Jerry Pournelle. Joanne Jacobs. John Derbyshire. John Ray”\n— : Blog Articles \" Mexican Consuls Increase Budget,\n“ Rome, Historic Battles, History Blog, World History. The senate, considering that the great difficulty and danger, viz. The Consuls. The Roman consuls, in time of war, took command of the armies. The name of the consul upon whom it devolved to carry”\n— History Blog \" Roman consuls,\n“TRAINING WORKSHOP AND UPDATES FOR CONSULS OF ECUADOR IN THE UNITED STATES updates are directed towards the Consuls of Ecuador in the United”\n— Embajada de Ecuador - Washington, DC \" Blog Archive,\n“Dallas Fort Worth Architecture, Urban Development, City Issues, City Planning, Public Policy, Public Affairs, Urban Photos, Skyscrapers, High Rises, Towers, Buildings, Discussion Forum with Chat”\n— Dallas Fort Worth Urban Forum - Dallas Protocol to host,\n“Re: Update on your consuls. hadji hadji@- New provinces II \"Antonio Grilo\" amg@- Re: The Plebeian cults of Ceres, Liber and Libera. jmath669642reng@-) Alexander I.C.P.M.. Claudia Aprica Re: Update on your consuls. SFP55@- Re: Praefecti/Hispania”\n— Forum Romanum,\n“Website design and marketing firm, serving Orange County, Los Angeles County, blog posts about SEO, search engine optimization, social media optimization, SMO, blogs, audio and video podcasts, mobi sites, google, and social networks”\n— How much does a website cost?: Facebook and Internet Explorer 8,\n“Groups: Accreditation Editors, Railway Construction, Regional Consuls, The GrapeVine, Turner & Townsend Groups: Brazil, IT Engineering Projects, Regional Consuls. Hello, I think that besides the forum, we need an agenda. We should”\n— This Regional Consul Forum | The world-wide leader in planning,\n“this blog. Email. a friend. Contact. Us. Navigate. Site Map. Tuesday 2nd November 2010. Posts Tarn in the beautiful Hotel des Consuls, right in the centre of the”\n— Hotel Des Consuls | Gordon Frickers' Blog,\n“New Phuket governor meets honorary consuls on first day at work Gov Tri Augaradacha pays his respects at the statue of King Rama V in front of Phu”\n— New Phuket Governor Meets Honorary Consuls On First Day At,\nsimilar for consuls\n- state library\n- csu libraries\n- ct state\n- search tips\n- boolean operators\n- the connecticut\n- state university libraries\n- connecticut state university\n- the box\n- press enter\n- submit button\n- indian food\n- together as one\n- world health organization\n- roman consuls\n- roman republican\n- head of state\n- list of roman consuls\n- free encyclopedia\n- the roman republic\n- city states\n- ancient rome\n- chief magistrates\n- first consul\n- roman consul\n- consul suffectus\n- the roman\n- suffect consul\n- foreign country\n- american law\n- britannica concise encyclopedia\n- titus flavius vespasi***\n- titus flavius domiti***\n- tiberius claudius nero\n- military officers\n- military command\n- legal term\n- classical literature\n- unanswered questions\n- roman magistrate\n- the roman empire\n- highest office"}
{"text": "An EV’s speed controller is the equivalent of the carburetor or fuel-injection system in an ICE vehicle. To control the vehicle’s speed, the controller takes the energy from the battery pack and feeds it to the motor in a regulated manner. Modern controllers do this by pulse-width modulation, taking the full voltage from the battery pack and feeding it to the motor in thousands of tiny on–off pulses per second. The longer the duration, or “width” of the “on” pulses, the more electricity the motor receives and the faster the vehicle moves. Because the pulses are so tiny, the process feels completely smooth to the driver.\nEVs can have AC motors or DC motors, and each needs its own kind of controller. In EVs with AC motors, an AC controller must first convert the DC from the batteries into AC before feeding it to the motor.\nHow does the controller know how much energy to give the motor? The potbox tells it. This linear potentiometer is a sensor that produces a resistance output proportional to its displacement or position. It responds to the driver’s foot pressure on the throttle pedal and sends a corresponding signal to the controller. The throttle pedal in an EV works just as it does in an ICE vehicle—the more you depress it, the faster you go.\nThe motor is the brawn of the EV, converting electrical energy from the batteries into mechanical energy to propel the vehicle. Instead of invisible electrons flowing through wires, we now have rotating components.\nIt’s the relationship between electricity and magnetism that enables the motor to do work. Passing electricity through a wire creates a magnetic field around the wire. By winding wire in a motor and running electricity through it, magnetic poles that repel each other are created, causing the shaft of the motor to spin.\nIf the EV has regenerative braking, the motor can also act as a generator. When the vehicle is coasting or braking, the momentum of the car drives the motor—rather than the motor driving the car. The magnetic fields induce current in the wires, the flip side of the process described above. The electricity flows backward through the controller (which rectifies it from AC back into DC) and into the battery pack. This process also creates drag on the motor—the “braking” part of regenerative braking, which is very similar to what happens in an ICE car when you lift your foot off the throttle in a low gear. Though it’s an intrinsic part of AC drive systems, regenerative braking is more rare in DC systems, where a special controller and extra wiring are required to allow the motor to serve as a generator.\nThe energy output from the spinning shaft of the motor now needs to reach the drive wheels. On a very small EV, the motor might drive the wheels directly, but with full-size vehicles, at least one level of gear reduction is necessary to reduce the revolutions per minute (rpm) of the motor to a usable speed at the wheels. A “direct-drive” vehicle will have a single gear reduction, which might be a gearbox or a belt-and-pulley arrangement. No shifting is necessary. This is common with AC motors that have upper limits of 8,000 to 13,000 rpm. DC motors with limits of about 5,000 to 6,000 rpm usually use the same kind of multiple-gear manual transmissions found in ICE cars. In EVs with manual transmissions, the clutch is usually retained and works the same as in an ICE vehicle."}
{"text": "Towards the end of the XIXth century, the Eaton’s and Simpson’s department stores in Toronto and, slightly later, that of Dupuis Frères in Montreal, published magnificent catalogues which were distributed practically everywhere in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada. Some stores went so far as to publish a special Christmas catalogue.\nThis new way of shopping, by mail-order, turned consumers’ habits upside down. From now on they could buy their gifts in advance without having to wait for the frantic rush in the last days before Christmas. This new sales promotion tool also reached a completely different clientele in rural areas. Dupuis Frères (the only Montreal department store managed by French Canadians) used this sales method to make massive inroads in retail sales, betting quite rightly on the loyalty of Quebec Francophones.\nCanadian Heritage Information Network\nMission de la recherche et de la technologie, Direction des Musées de France, Musée de la civilisation, Provincial Museum of Alberta, Musée national des arts et traditions populaires, Département de l'organisation des systèmes d'information,"}
{"text": "|Catechism of the Catholic Church|\nIntraText - Text\nIN THE AGE OF THE CHURCH\n2623 On the day of Pentecost, the Spirit of the Promise was poured out on the disciples, gathered \"together in one place.\"92 While awaiting the Spirit, \"all these with one accord devoted themselves to prayer.\"93 The Spirit who teaches the Church and recalls for her everything that Jesus said94 was also to form her in the life of prayer.\n2624 In the first community of Jerusalem, believers \"devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and the prayers.\"95 This sequence is characteristic of the Church's prayer: founded on the apostolic faith; authenticated by charity; nourished in the Eucharist.\n2625 In the first place these are prayers that the faithful hear and read in the Scriptures, but also that they make their own - especially those of the Psalms, in view of their fulfillment in Christ.96 The Holy Spirit, who thus keeps the memory of Christ alive in his Church at prayer, also leads her toward the fullness of truth and inspires new formulations expressing the unfathomable mystery of Christ at work in his Church's life, sacraments, and mission. These formulations are developed in the great liturgical and spiritual traditions. the forms of prayer revealed in the apostolic and canonical Scriptures remain normative for Christian prayer."}
{"text": "The study was carried out by researcher Rosa Binimelis of the UAB Institute of Environmental Science and Technology. Binimelis is working on the European project ALARM (Assessing Large Scale Risks for Biodiversity with Tested Methods) and analyses the application of the concept of coexistence between Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) and conventional organic agriculture in the European Union. The results of the research have been published in the Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics (April 2008).\nSince GM cultivation was introduced in\nThus the concept of coexistence, after applying technical measures, should make it possible to operate freely in the market while reducing the political conflicts linked to GMOs. The European Commission is planning this year to evaluate how the policy of coexistence has been implemented in the past ten years."}
{"text": "- Reading Rockets: Classroom Strategies (MUST SEE includes teacher examples)\nThe classroom strategy section is designed to share with teachers what research suggests are the most effective ways to build fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and writing skills. Not ESL specific, see Colorin Colorado for ESL bilingual, but helpful strategies. Well organized, includes teacher examples. You can submit your own.\nin Literacy > Reading Strategies\n- 6+1 Trait® Spanish Writing\nScoring Guides 6+1 Trait® Spanish Writing- Rúbricas para la evaluación The 6+1 Trait Spanish Writing model is not a direct translation of the 6+1 Trait (English) Writing Model. While some aspects and traits of English and Spanish correspond, not all do. This model is intended for native Spanish speakers who are not fluent in English, yet need to learn the basic principles of writing without the additional challenge of being forced to use an unfamiliar language. Read examples of real student papers that have been assessed with the 6+1 Trait scoring guides.\nin Bilingual Resourses > Bilingual Literacy\n- Brent Loken Student Videos\nBrent Loken's website with student videos from his classes. Links to related articles and blogs that support creative, student-centered, project-based learning.\nin Student Projects\n- FlamingText.com Examples\nin Technology by 3 users\nexamples from all users"}
{"text": "March 1996 – The United Kingdom's Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, the main government agency responsible for licensing U.K. embryo research, issues its first license for human embryonic stem cell research to the University of Edinburgh's Institute for Stem Cell Research.\nFebruary 1997 – Ian Wilmut and other scientists from Scotland's Roslin Institute announce the creation of the sheep Dolly, the world's first successful clone of an adult mammal.\nMarch 1997 – Don P. Wolf and a team of researchers at the federally-funded Oregon National Primate Research Center announce that they have produced rhesus monkeys from cloned embryos, the first successful use of cloning-related technology in primates.\nMarch 1997 – Citing the technology used to create Dolly as raising \"profound ethical issues,\" President Clinton prohibits the allocation of federal funds for human cloning.\nJune 1997 – The Group of Eight, consisting of the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United Kingdom, adopts a resolution agreeing on \"the need for appropriate domestic measures and close international cooperation to prohibit the use of somatic cell nuclear transfer to create a child.\"\nNovember 1997 – UNESCO adopts the Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights. Article 11 specifically prohibits the reproductive cloning of human beings.\nJanuary 1998 – Physicist Richard Seed announces he has formed a team to attempt human cloning before the advent of legislation banning the technology.\nJanuary 1998 – The Council of Europe amends its Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine to prohibit reproductive and therapeutic cloning of human beings. To date, the revised convention has been ratified and implemented by 14 countries.\nJanuary 1998 – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration claims authority to regulate, and pre-approve, experiments involving human cloning in the United States.\nJune 1998 – Michigan becomes the first state to enact a law prohibiting human cloning.\nNovember 1998 – Two separate teams of scientists, one led by James A. Thomson of the University of Wisconsin and Joseph Itskovitz-Eldor of Israel's Rambam Medical Center, the other by John D. Gearhart of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, announce that they have successfully isolated human embryonic stem cells for the first time.\nNovember and December 1998 – In claims greeted with skepticism, researchers at Advanced Cell Technology in Massachusetts and Kyunghee University Hospital in South Korea separately announce the successful creation of the first cloned human embryos. Neither organization has ever provided proof to verify their claims.\nNovember 2000 – Japan becomes the first Asian country to pass comprehensive legislation outlawing human reproductive cloning.\nJanuary 2001 – Italian fertility specialist Severino Antinori and U.S. scientist Panayiotis Zavos provoke world-wide condemnation following the announcement of their goal to be the first scientists to clone a human being.\nJanuary 2001 – Gerald P. Schatten and a team of researchers at the federally-funded Oregon National Primate Research Center create a rhesus monkey named \"ANDi,\" the world's first genetically altered primate.\nJuly 2001 – The U.S. House of Representatives passes the Human Cloning Prohibition Act to outlaw both reproductive and therapeutic cloning, but the bill dies in the Senate, the closest any national ban has yet come to enactment in America.\nAugust 2001 – President Bush restricts federally funded human embryonic stem cell research to existing stem cell lines. The announcement receives criticism both from pro-life advocates opposed to any use of human embryos and from health and research advocates who claim that it will severely limit the development of treatments for various diseases including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and juvenile diabetes.\nNovember 2001 – Scientists at Massachusetts-based Advanced Cell Technology announce that they have successfully created human embryos using the process of somatic cell nuclear transfer.\nDecember 2001 – Britain passes the Human Reproductive Cloning Act, outlawing reproductive cloning.\nDecember 2001 – The United Nations General Assembly passes a resolution creating a committee to address the issues of reproductive and therapeutic cloning.\nMarch 2002 – An article published in the Wall Street Journal details various advances in human cloning research being carried out in China. Chinese scientists, led by Lu Guangxiu of Xiangya Medical College, have been successfully cloning human embryos for two years while Sheng Huizen of Shanghai No. 2 Medical University has created embryonic stem cells from human-animal hybrids.\nSeptember 2002 – California becomes the first state to approve a law legalizing therapeutic cloning.\nOctober 2003 – Both Costa Rica and Belgium introduce competing resolutions addressing cloning in a United Nations committee. The Costa Rican resolution, backed by the United States and 43 other countries, calls for an international treaty banning all cloning while the resolution sponsored by Belgium and 13 other countries seeks a treaty that would allow for the possibility of cloning for research. In December, the General Assembly moved to address the issue in its Autumn 2004 session.\nDecember 2003 – Clonaid, the biotechnology company founded by the leader of the Raelian religious movement, announces the birth of its first successful clone, a girl, Eve, but provides no proof to substantiate its claims.\nJanuary 2004 – China and South Korea each adopt regulations that would ban reproductive cloning but would permit human embryo cloning for research.\nFebruary 2004 – Veterinary professor Hwang Woo-suk of Seoul National University in South Korea and a team of researchers announce that they have succeeded in cloning human embryos and extracting stem cells from them.\nMay 2004 – Singapore unveils a draft law that would allow embryo cloning for research but would ban attempts at reproductive cloning, providing a maximum possible penalty of five years imprisonment and a fine of S$100,000.\nMay 2004 – The world's first embryonic stem cell bank opens in Britain. The government's Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority also announces that a developer of one of the bank's stem cell lines, the Newcastle Fertility Centre at Life, has filed the first-ever application for permission to conduct therapeutic cloning research. The HFEA has yet to issue a license for therapeutic cloning.\nAlexander Cohen put together this timeline."}
{"text": "17 entries found for ball. The first 10 are listed below.\nTo select an entry, click on it.\nMain Entry: 1ball\nEtymology: Middle English bal \"ball\" 1 a: something round or roundish <a ball of twine> b: a usually round object used in a game or sport c: a usually round shot for a firearm d: the rounded bulge at the base of the thumb; also: the rounded wide part of the bottom of the human foot between the toes and arch 2: a game or sport (as baseball) played with a ball <play ball> 3: a pitched baseball that fails to pass through the strike zone and is not struck at by the batter"}
{"text": "The riveting stories of two former slaves\nRecently surfaced manuscripts recount the rigors of both slavery and freedom.\n\"Slave narratives, some of the most powerful records of our past, are extremely rare,\" David Blight tells us on the first page of A Slave No More. Only 55 post-Civil War narratives exist and of these, Blight notes, \"a mere handful\" are first-person accounts by slaves who ran away and freed themselves.Skip to next paragraph\nSubscribe Today to the Monitor\nSo it is remarkable indeed that two such accounts should now surface – and almost at the same moment. Both had been handed down over the years by family and friends and both finally landed in the lap of Blight, who is director of Yale University's Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance, and Abolition.\nEven for Blight, with his expertise in the field, these manuscripts were a revelation. Reading them, he says, \"I have come to understand emancipation as never before.\"\n\"A Slave No More\" contains both the unedited manuscripts and analysis by Blight, which gives the manuscripts context and offers additional information about the lives of the narrators, John Washington and Wallace Turnage.\nAs far as is known, Washington and Turnage never met. They have much in common – yet there is also much that divides them. Washington was an urban slave, living in Fredericksburg, Va. He was 24 on the day in April 1862, when he slipped across Union Army lines and won his freedom. Turnage was a field hand on an Alabama cotton plantation. Four times he attempted escape and finally, on his fifth try in 1864, he succeeded in reaching the Union Army in Mobile Bay. Both men had white fathers, although Turnage knew his while Washington did not.\nBoth men went on to live for many years as free men. Washington settled in Washington, D.C., and became a house painter, enjoying a reasonably comfortable life. Turnage had a more hardscrabble existence in New York City, where he worked as a watchman, waiter, and other occupations.\nTheir narratives are powerful and poignant and help to fill in the cracks of history in voices too rarely heard.\nWashington describes the day the Union Army marched toward the Rappahannock River. Every white person in Fredericksburg, he says, was in the streets, attempting to flee, while all the black people were \"out on the house top looking over the River at the Yankees for their glistening bayonets could Easily be seen.\"\nInside, Washington writes, \"I could not begin to Express my new born hopes, for I felt already like I was certain of My freedom Now.\" When he crossed the river and met the Union soldiers, one asked him where his master was. In the Rebel Navy, he replied.\n\"Well you don't belong to anybody then,\" the soldiers told him, explaining that two days earlier the District of Columbia had freed its slaves. \"I did not know what to say for I was dumb with joy and could only thank God and laugh.\"\nBoth men's narratives depict the ugliness of slavery, but Turnage's experience was far harsher than Washington's. Washington recalls, as a small boy, waiting all day for the commands of an elderly white woman, even as he could see other children playing outdoors.\nBut Turnage was whipped and beaten in the fields. He was also, for a time, forced to work in an auction house, where he saw his fellow slaves flogged, chained, cataloged, and sold. Yet he begins his account: \"I do not mean to speak disparagingly of those who sold me, nor of those who bought me. Though I seen a hard time, it had an attendency to make a man of me.\"\nWhile nothing can match the power of the men's own words, Blight's commentary does much to round out the portrait of the slave and former-slave experience. He tells of the \"contraband colonies\" that for many former slaves were the first stop after escape. He notes the eagerness of even the best-treated slaves to find their freedom, quoting a Georgia slave owner who confessed, \"Those we loved best, and who loved us best – as we thought, were the first to leave us.\"\nHe also describes the netherworld of urban blight through which many former slaves – Turnage included – struggled to make their way after emancipation.\nWashington offers a heartbreaking account of being separated from his mother as a boy. The night before, she came to his bed. \"Her tears mingled with mine amid kisses and heart felt sorrow ... I would rather die\" than leave her.\nBoth Turnage and Washington did eventually reunite with their mothers. Of Turnage's mother, Blight writes, \"her story, like her son's so ordinary and yet so extraordinary, makes us wish we could know her even better.\"\nReaders will agree – and yet will also be powerfully grateful for the fascinating bits and pieces that they are given here."}
{"text": "Start Your Visit WithHistorical Timelines\nGeneral Interest Maps\nAl Capone was born in Brooklyn, New York, on January 17, 1899, to Neapolitan immigrants Gabriel and Teresa Caponi. Originally named Alphonse Caponi, his name was Americanized to \"Al Capone.\"\nIn 1904, at the age of five, young Alphonse started his school career at Public School 7 in Brooklyn. School was tough for Capone. The teachers were not tolerant of immigrant children and often used physical force as a means of discipline. Capone always had a problem with authority, and by the time he entered sixth grade, his grades began to drop drastically. At 14, Capone started a fist fight with a teacher, was expelled, and never returned to school again.\nShortly after he was expelled, his father moved the family to 21 Garfield Place, in the neighborhood that would influence the direction of Capone's life and ultimately, his future. Capone joined two local street gangs, the Brooklyn Rippers and the Forty Thieves Juniors. Among the members were Johnny Torrio and Lucky Luciano.\nAs a young man, Capone held many odd jobs, from a candy store clerk to a bowling alley pinboy. Capone entered organized crime when he went to work for gangster Frankie Yale, at his club the Harvard Inn. It was here that Capone received his nickname, “Scarface,” after being attacked by a man for insulting his sister. It also was here that Capone was arrested for the first time.\nWhile attending a dance in 1918, Capone met Mary “Mae” Coughlin. On December 4, 1918, she gave birth to their son, Albert “Sonny” Francis. Shortly after, they were married and Capone moved his family to Chicago.\nOnce in Chicago, Capone went to work for Johnny Torrio, an influential lieutenant in the Colosimo Mob. Soon after, the leader, Big Jim Colosimo, was murdered and Johnny Torrio took over with Capone at his side. By 1922 Capone had become a full partner with Torrio in his gambling houses, saloons, and brothels.\nIn 1925, after being seriously wounded, Torrio retired and Capone became boss. By then, rival gang members considered Capone ruthless, and posed little threat to his plans for taking over the Chicago “racketeering rights.” Any rival gang posing a threat to his plans was either destroyed, or diminished greatly in size, leaving full reign to Capone.\nBetween 1925 and 1930, Capone controlled the majority of Chicago's vice industry, including speakeasies, bookie joints, brothels, horse and race tracks, gambling houses and distilleries. His reported income was estimated to be $100 million a year. Along with all his illegal holdings, Capone also held a large interest in Chicago's largest cleaning and dyeing plant chain.\nAlthough Capone was responsible for several murders, he always had an alibi and was usually out of town when the killings occurred. The most notorious killing was committed on February 14, 1929, which became known as “The St. Valentine's Day Massacre.” Capone ordered four of his men, dressed in police uniforms, to enter a garage on North Clark street. This was the headquarters of George “Bugs” Moran's bootleg operations and North Side Gang. When the Moran gang dropped their guns and put their hands against the wall, Capone's men gunned them down. Six Moran gang members and an innocent friend were shot. Moran, who was the intended target, was across the street at the time.\nAlthough Capone both ordered and committed murders himself, he also had another side. Shortly after the stock market crash of 1929, he opened soup kitchens and arranged for local merchants to give away food and clothing to needy people, at his own expense.\nDue to gangland's traditional refusal to press charges, Capone was neither charged nor tried for many of his crimes. In 1926 he was arrested for murdering three people, spent the night in jail and then was released due to lack of evidence. Capone's first jail sentence was in May 1929, but he was charged only for carrying a gun. By 1930, Capone topped Chicago's list of the 28 worst criminals and designated as “Public Enemy Number One.”\nIn 1931, after years of criminal activity, Capone was indicted on twenty-three counts of income tax evasion. Judge James H. Wilkerson found him guilty on five of the twenty-three counts and sentenced him to 10 years in federal prison and fines in the amount of $50,000. He also was sentenced to one year in county jail for an earlier contempt-of-court charge.\nIn May 1932, Capone was sent to Atlanta State Prison, where he quickly established himself as a kingpin within the prison and began taking control. In order to stop his influence, he was transferred to Alcatraz to finish out his sentence. Alcatraz was cut off from the rest of the world, and with no other gang members residing there, Capone soon found there was nothing over which to gain control. Capone tried to earn time off for good behavior by becoming the model prisoner.\nDuring his stay at Alcatraz, Capone began to show signs of syphilitic dementia and spent the balance of his felony sentence in the hospital. On January 6, 1939, he was transferred to Terminal Island to carry out his misdemeanor sentence. On November 16, 1939, Capone was released from prison.\nAfter a short stay in the hospital, Capone returned to his home in Palm Island, Florida, to spend the rest of his life in peace and quiet. Due to his dementia, his mind was rapidly deteriorating and he was no longer strong enough to run the outfit. On January 21, 1947, Capone suffered an apoplectic stroke and was hospitalized. On January 24, pneumonia set in and Capone died the next day.\nCapone was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery between the graves of his father and brother until March 1950, when the remains of all three were moved to Mount Carmel Cemetery on the far West Side of Chicago.\n---- Selected Quotes ----\nQuotes by Al Capone.\nYou can get much farther with a kind word and a gun than you can with a kind word alone.\nI make my money by supplying a public demand. If I break the law, my customers, who number hundreds of the best people in Chicago, are as guilty as I am. Everybody calls me a racketeer. I call myself a businessman.\nComment in 1925\n- - - Books You May Like Include: ----\nCicero Revisited by Douglas Deuchler.\nStrategically located seven miles west of Chicago’s Loop, multifaceted Cicero is one of the oldest and largest municipalities in Illinois. In the late...\nOnly Yesterday by Frederick L. Allen.\nProhibition. Al Capone. The President Harding scandals. The revolution of manners and morals, Black Tuesday. These are only an inkling of the events a...\nGet Capone: The Secret Plot That Captured America's Most Wanted Gangster by Jonathan Eig.\nBased on newly released government documents and wiretaps, Get Capone tells the story how the nation's most-wanted criminal was really caught. This bo..."}
{"text": "Small businesses are starting smaller and staying smaller. That’s the conclusion of a study released by entrepreneurship advocate Kauffman Foundation.\n“Starting Smaller; Staying Smaller: America’s Slow Leak in Job Creation” said its analysis of government data shows that since the middle of the last decade and perhaps longer, the growth path and survival rate of new businesses means they are generating fewer new jobs.\nThe businesses that started in 2009, for example, are on course to create 1 million fewer jobs in the next decade than historical averages would predict, the study says.\nThe trend started long before the Great Recession and is likely to continue into the future, the study says.\nThat trend signals an important shift for the U.S. economy, which needs to create a minimum of 125,000 new jobs a month merely to keep up with adult population growth.\nThe Kauffman research distinguishes between numbers of businesses and numbers of businesses that have employees.\nCiting data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the study found that the number of new employer businesses has fallen 27% since 2006. The total number of startups (employer businesses and self-employed) has increased since the recession, according to the Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity. But “firms that support only the self-employed owner do not scale to generate the new jobs needed to support overall economic growth.”\nThe Bureau of Labor Statistics says startups created about 4.65 million new jobs annually from 1997 to 2000 compared to 2.5 million in 2010, the study notes. The Census sets the drop off from 7 million jobs in 2006 to 4.5 million in 2009.\nPart of the decline is that about 27% fewer businesses with employees are being started, the study says.\nA second significant factor is that new small-business survival has declined. Before the recession, 45% to 50% of new businesses survived five years, the study says. Now fewer than 45% of businesses started in 2004 were still in business in 2009.\nAnd a third factor is that new businesses are hiring fewer employees than in the past. In the 1990s, new establishments opened with an average of 7.5 jobs. By 2010, the number of jobs at the average startup was 4.9 jobs, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics.\nAnd those businesses that survive never accelerate their hiring to make up for their smaller initial staffs, the study says. So over their lifetimes, these businesses created fewer jobs.\nThe study does not address why businesses are making do with fewer workers. Are they using technology instead of human labor? Are they doing work that requires fewer employees? Do minimum wage laws and health insurance mandates affect staffing levels?\nThe study concludes:\n“In many cases, companies or individuals that once would have been hired as employees of a business now are performing the work on a temporary basis as contractors through other professional service organizations or under their own self-employment contracts. … No matter how laudable their individual efforts, these sole proprietors… are not likely ever to be major employers.\n“The clear challenge for the U.S. economy instead is to start more employer businesses, ensure that they are starting larger, and nurture their growth.”\nThe study doesn’t suggest how.\nClick here to read the entire report.\nWant the latest on small business? Text OCRSMALLBIZ to 56654 to get free news alerts for small businesses.\nOther business stories…"}
{"text": "How to grow a reader\nTips for turning a fledgling reader into a voracious one.\nBy Peg Tyre\nOnce your child has figured out how to decode words and can actually read in a sustained way, then a chunk of his schooling should be focused on helping him squeeze meaning and richness out of the experience. You may remember the whole-language ideas about exposing kids to print through fiction, poetry, newspapers, and drama? It is the wrong way to teach kids to read. But getting kids excited about the written word is a great way to turn fledgling readers into voracious readers.\nAnd here's where all parents should step up to the plate. You've been reading to your child, great. Don't stop. Books on tape in the car work, too. But now that she is a reader, surround her with print. Get a newspaper delivered. Get her a library card and make the library a regular stop, like the grocery store and the dry cleaner. And get over your view of what \"proper\" book reading looks like — fiction, nonfiction, comic books, how-tos, mysteries, sports biographies, magazines about current events, fast cars, sleek airplanes, or video gaming. Open the door wide. Find ways to bring what she is reading into the conversation. Ask questions like: What kind of book is it? What is the setting? What happens? What do you like/not like about the way the author writes?\nWord by word\nSimilar but more formal versions of this should be happening at school, but parents can reinforce this learning at home. Watch for it. If your child is reading and sampling a wide enough variety of material, he will be encountering a lot of words in print that he doesn't know. He should be able to sound out unfamiliar words. First, encourage him to figure out the meaning of unfamiliar words from their context, for example, what could propulsion mean based on the words that came before and after it? Then, see if he can tease out the meaning of the word by finding its root. For instance, the word propel is hidden in propulsion and gives a strong hint for the meaning of the word.\nTeachers help students build comprehension through the systemic study of words. Yes, weekly vocabulary words. Kids who study words — by this I mean systematically learning their meanings — have larger vocabularies but are also better readers. It's not too effective for the teacher to hand out a list of ten words and have kids look them up and then take a test. They need to hear the words, see them, speak them, and write them that week and in the weeks that follow.\nWord lists alone, though, aren't enough. Kids encounter an average of three thousand new words a year — more than eight a day. Unless the entire school day is going to be given over to word study (and no one thinks this is a good idea), teachers must instruct children on how to shave off chunks of an unfamiliar word and tease out its meaning by studying suffixes, prefixes, and the meaning of common root words.\nComprehension, fluency, and stamina should be growing steadily stronger as your child moves through school. Schools need to ensure that happens. So do parents. Do your part."}
{"text": "Seeing wildlife when on a camp out can be a real highlight of your adventure. These sightings can be a real treat but can also be dangerous. Attacks by mountain lions on humans have happened but are rare. Knowing what to do when you’re caught in this situation is very important.\nMountain lions are also known as pumas, panthers, or cougars. Another name for them is catamount. These creatures are shy and isolated so they are seldom seen. If you happen to come upon one of these cougars, think smart. Cluster together with your hiking companions, representing yourself as a big, noisy group. If you’re hiking alone, extend your arms or pack up as high as you can so you look bigger. Wave your trekking poles and shout. Never run or bend down as this will make you look like prey. Call children to come next to you.\nThese cats roam anywhere from central Canada down to Patagonia. They can be anywhere from sea level up to the high alpine areas. They can survive from swamps to forests to timberline.\nThe female will fiercely protect its young. Don’t even approach that darling, little kitten. Back away slowly if you happen to come upon an adult or baby. If the cat continues to follow you, throw sticks or rocks while backing away.\nA camper’s fear of mountain lions is unjustified. They’re not going to come and get you in your tent while you sleep. These animals are rarely seen, but you may be able to catch a fleeting glimpse of one. Even though sightings are rare, be sure to use caution at all times. These cats’ stealth and adaptability allow them to survive well in a wide environment.\nThey’ve been known to jump 20 feet in one leap. The puma creeps up on its prey until it’s close enough to leap upon it. Their diet consists of deer, rabbits, turkeys, and grouse. Juvenile cats are trying to establish their territory while the mother cats will protect their young.\nMy own personal sightings have occurred in areas with an abundance of young rabbits. My sightings have been in the morning hours or at dusk. When my wife and I were in the High Uintahs, we witnessed a Canadian Lynx. It was in an area where lots of naïve, young cottontail rabbits abound."}
{"text": "A new anti-bullying program combats an ever increasing issue among Utah schoolchildren: bullied because of body-size issues, either being overweight or underweight, a University of Utah study released Sunday concluded.\nMaya Miyairi, a College of Health doctorate-candidate student, said that a survey found a 7 percent decrease in reports of students being bullied after the new, eight-week anti-bullying program.\nMiyairi said that now is more important than ever for kids to understand body-image and racial issues related to bullying, citing a recent suicide by a Taylorsville teen.\nFamily members said David Phan, who shot himself in front of peers two months ago, could not deal with the bullying and the burden of being a gay Asian student in a school they believe did not support him.\nMiyairi created the new anti-bullying program specifically to address these issues.\n\"It's important for [students] to understand the media messages and how our society views men and women,\" Miyairi said Sunday. \"Those students were not too young to be educated about treating everyone equally regardless of appearance, color of skin, or body size.\"\nThe new program met with applause from other counseling professionals. Miyairi conducted the new program at the beginning of the school year at Albion Middle School in Sandy.\n\"Middle school is such a difficult time for most students and weight-body image concerns make this time even more challenging,\" said Albion counselor Cathy Nelson in an email. \"This program's goals were to address weight-related bullying and to empower students with the confidence that they are beautiful just the way they are. This is a message that all students need, and need often.\"\nAt the beginning of the program, 41 percent of students reported experiencing bullying, while 34 percent did so after the two-month program.\nMoises Prospero, a Utah research consultant on criminal and social justice issues with a doctorate in social work, said many students take their messages about the body from the media.\n\"People don't remember how many factors are related to body images and the role models being pushed upon our children,\" said Prospero, who was a mentor of Miyairi. \"The social norm has been females anorexic looking and males extremely muscular, but now we're seeing some of the men being extremely thin.\"\n\"The message is it's your fault if you're overweight or underweight because we're an individualistic culture,\" Prospero said. \"But we've taken away PE, there are preservatives in food, and we have these extreme views of what is the look of health ⦠rather than the mental health of the individual. Maya's intervention is trying to address those issues.\"\nMiyairi, who is finishing up her research for a doctorate in health promotion and education, said her program highlights the gap between what children know about bullying and how they actually behave in school around peers.\n\"We're educating the kids that this is not acceptable and to become leaders for others,\" Miyairi said. \"We want to teach empathy as a core value. We tell the students: Next year, new students will come here and copy what you do now.\"\nMiyairi, who came to Utah from her native Japan, said a significant component of her program includes healthy communication skills.\n\"We role-play,\" she said. \"The students are shy at first but then they get into it. They learn how to express their emotions in healthy ways.\"\nAlbion Middle School does not have more of a bullying issue than other schools, Miyairi said, but school officials were open to her conducting her research an openness that is not always easy to find.\nAlbion Middle School has other anti-bullying programs: anti-bullying lessons, Internet safety/cyber-bullying lessons, and anti-bullying video clips delivered through home-room classes. Â\n\"We are so fortunate to be able to partner with Maya and the University of Utah to provide this intervention program for our students,\" Nelson said. \"With only two counselors for 900 students, it's wonderful to take advantage of as many resources as possible to address the needs of our students.\"\nBefore pursuing her doctorate, Miyairi worked for four years at Avalon Hills in Logan, where she helped treat those with eating disorders.\n\"I'm hoping more school districts and researchers can work together,\" said Miyairi, who will get her doctorate sometime this summer. \"My next plan is to expand this project to educate parents, teachers and school administrators. If we create a nonjudgmental environment in the community, I believe bullying incidents will be reduced.\"Â\nPeople in need of help with bullying or other issues can call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or the Utah CrisisLine 1-801-587-3000.\nNew anti-bullying program\nAs part of her University of Utah doctorate thesis, Maya Miyairi created a two-month anti-bullying program designed to address issues not often found in such programs: ideal-body image, body esteem and racial issues, among others.\nHer study at a Utah middle school measured students' perceptions on teasing as well as bullying experiences, which decreased by 7 percent after the program. The new anti-bullying program had the following schedule.\nWeek 1: Introduction and ground rules.\nWeek 2: Helping students claiming their strengths.\nWeek 3: Core values such as empathy.\nWeek 4: How the media manipulates ideal-body images.\nWeek 5: Media literacy and how it stigmatizes weight.\nWeek 6 & 7: Role playing to foster healthy communication.\nWeek 8: Students finishing by creating bullying-awareness posters."}
{"text": "Stretching from Céadaoin an Spiaire to Máirt Chásca, there are enough special days surrounding Easter to give a specific Irish name for each day of the week. Since there are already several forms for each day, aside from Easter usage, let’s look at them grouped together in a chart. That will enable us to focus on changes like initial mutation (séimhiú, urú), h-prefixation, and endings (an tuiseal ginideach)\nEven for ordinary purposes, each day has at least two forms, one for the day as a subject or concept (like “An Luan,” Monday, lit. “the” Monday) and one used to say when something is happening (like “Dé Luain,” lit. “on the day of” Monday).\nThis chart has four columns, the first one giving forms that would rarely occur on their own. For these, I have followed the linguistic practice of putting a réiltín in front of them. It’s not that these forms are completely hypothetical (as we might find in historical linguistic reconstruction), it’s just that they would almost always be part of a two-word phrase, sometimes an even longer phrase. From this “root,” we get the subject form (An Luan), and, by following genitive case rules, we get the preposition form (Dé Luain). Hmmm, you might ask, why genitive case (possessive) rules when using a preposition phrase? It’s because “Dé,” when preceding a day of the week, functions as a preposition but is really a noun. This “Dé” comes from the word “dia” (note lower-case), which is an alternate word for “day” in Irish, now somewhat archaic, or, we could say, fossilized. This process is much like what happens with “cois” in the phrase “cois na tine,” where “cois” (from “cos,” foot, leg) is really a noun but functions like a preposition, resulting in the meaning “by the fire” (lit. “at the foot of the fire”).\nSome of the words in the chart will also be changed if they’re in a prepositional phrase starting with “ar an,” as in “ar an gCéadaoin” (lit. on “the” Wednesday). Ulster Irish will have lenition in these cases (Chéadaoin).\nUnlike “lá,” which seems to be unique in the Indo-European panorama of languages (except for Scottish Gaelic “latha” and Manx “laa”), the word “dia”/”dé” is a cognate to other European words for “day,” such as “dies,” “dydd,” “tag,” and even “day” itself (plus, less directly, “jour” from Latin “diurnus”). So, somewhat unusually, the word “lá” isn’t used in the names of the days of the week. But you probably noticed that already!\nThe “dia” form of “day” also shows up in the old spellings of the Irish words for “today” and “yesterday,” which are “indiu” and “indé.”\nSo here’s the chart. Hope you find it helpful. There are additional notes for three of the terms below.\n|“Root”||Subject Form||“Dé” Form (w “tuiseal ginideach” ending)||“ar an” Form||Easter Terms|\n|*Domhnach||An Domhnach||Dé Domhnaigh||ar an Domhnach||Domhnach Cásca|\n|*Luan||An Luan||Dé Luain||ar an Luan||Luan Cásca|\n|*Máirt||An Mháirt||Dé Máirt||ar an Máirt, alt., ar an Mháirt (U)||Máirt Chásca (2)|\n|*Céadaoin||An Chéadaoin||Dé Céadaoin, or alt., Dé Céadaoine (U)||ar an gCéadaoin, alt. ar an Chéadaoin (U)||Céadaoin an Spiaire, (? Céadaoin Naofa) (3)|\n|*Déardaoin||An Déardaoin||Déardaoin (1)||ar an Déardaoin, ar Déardaoin||Déardaoin (na) Mandála|\n|*Aoine||An Aoine||Dé hAoine (h-prefix)||ar an Aoine||Aoine an Chéasta|\n|*Satharn||An Satharn||Dé Sathairn||ar an Satharn, alt. ar an tSatharn (U)||Satharn Cásca|\n1) Although it’s not often explicitly stated, “Dé” is not needed before “Déardaoin” because it’s already built into the word. Having said that, a recent Google search brought up about 300 hits for “Déardaoin” with “Dé” in front of it! Either the usage is changing, or these are all just slip-ups. Bhur mbarúlacha, a léitheoirí?\n2) I noted last year (http://blogs.transparent.com/irish/?s=Eastertide) that I found no instances of “Máirt Chásca” being used online for “Easter Tuesday,” but, interestingly, this year I found three hits. The three are duplicates (sigh!) and all refer to the founding of the Kilkenny branch of the Gaelic League in 1897. However else the phrase may be used or not used, it’s interesting to note this designation as opposed to just saying “April 20th,” which was the date of Easter Tuesday in 1897, if http://www.easterbunny.com/date-of-easter/easter-date-for-1897.html serves me right. Go raibh maith agat, a Choinín Cásca! An ceann ponc com, that is!\nOf course, there is a long-standing tradition in both Irish and British writing of dating certain events by referring to a holiday, instead of a date, as in the réamhráite of “An Fear Eagair,” in Myles na gCopaleen’s parody An Béal Bocht being written on “Lá an Ghátair” [Day of Distress] and “Lá an Luain” [Day of Doom]. Or, more straightforwardly, the preface to C. S. Lewis’s That Hideous Strength, dated “Christmas Eve, 1943.” It’s not a practice I’ve seen used much in American literature.\nAs for the general significance of Easter Tuesday, as noted last year, I still see it listed as a public holiday in just one place, An Tasmáin. There it is described as a “restricted public holiday currently observed by certain awards/agreements and the State Public Service (http://www.wst.tas.gov.au/employment_info/public_holidays). Suimiúil! A New Zealand site (http://www.principalskit.org.nz/support-staff/) discusses Easter Tuesday as a potential holiday for employees of New Zealand Educational Institute, but they must have served 10 years and they must incorporate it into their annual leave. I don’t quite get that last bit, but I guess it doesn’t really matter. Suffice it to say that Easter Tuesday may have greater recognition elsewhere than seems apparent in 21st-century America. Many American school districts simply make their Spring Break surround Easter and avoid all discussion as to whether the break has anything to do with Easter at all.\n3) There are plenty of references to the Wednesday before Easter being called “Céadaoin an Spiaire” (Wednesday of the Spy) in Irish, but for “Céadaoin Naofa” (the presumed form for “Holy Wednesday”), my search online turned up one questionable reference (in a very mixed-up hybrid site) and in dictionaries I found nothing. As I understand it, the term “Spy Wednesday” has been changed to “Holy Wednesday,” but I simply don’t find much evidence of this usage in Irish and I also can’t find an exact year for the change. Vatican II? If it were that long ago, I’d expect to find more evidence of “Céadaoin Naofa” online. Maybe I’m just barking up the wrong tree, but between Google searches, online dictionaries and hard-copy dictionaries, I usually find some evidence of what I’m looking for, vocabulary-wise. Of course, I always try to build on what I’ve heard and read in everyday usage for years, but I do like to check these sources for more specific information. Btw, I also found nothing under the old spelling, which would be “Céadaoin Naomhtha,” but of course, the formal date of the change, assuming there is one, might preclude that. Hmmm. Lenited and eclipsed versions of the above? Amas ar bith! (No hits) and no luck in dictionaries. Sin sin go dtí an bhliain seo chugainn, is dócha.\nAnd, last but not least, a bit of Google-based trivia that some of you may find amusing as I did. When I tried searching for “Máirt Chásca” without comharthaí athfhriotail and without sínte fada, the first hit (of 7,360,000!) that came up was for the K-Mart in Chaska, Minnesota. Wonders never cease! On that bemused note, SGF, Róislín\nP.S. Anyone still wondering about the phrase “Aimsir na Cásca”? Why “weather”? Answer: here it’s not “weather.” “Aimsir” can mean “time,” “tense,” or “tide” in the sense of “time.” So “Aimsir na Cásca” is “Eastertide.”"}
{"text": "History of Rapa Nui\nYour location: Welcome! (Main page) / Culture, history / History of Rapa Nui\nWas the first highest rank leader of Easter Island, he is believed to have brought his people on 2 boats more than 1.000 (perhaps even 1.700) years ago to the island.\nWestern literature refers to Hotu Matu'a as to \"Rapa Nui's first king\", although it is known that there were no real kings, but rather tribal rulers in Polynesia, we continue to use this term. Hotu Matu'a was considered the \"Ariki Mau\" by the locals, this meaning sort of a \"major leader\" or \"highest ruler\".\nThe settlement of the island\nWith certainly we can affirm that Easter Island has been inhabited for over 1.200 years. But, specialists still debate on when the first settlers lead by the legendary Hotu Matu'a arrived.\nSpecialists consider that the island was colonized sometime between 300 BC and 800 BC. Pollen analysis, DNA analysis and also the studies of local legends point out to various periods between this interval. Of course, some people might have arrived later and others earlier, but it is generally accepted by the great public that the island was uninhabited before 300 BC, despite the fact that there is scientific evidence that Easter Island was inhabited before Hotu Matu'a's arrival.\nAccording to the legends, the Ariki Mau, Hotu Matu'a arrived from an island or group of island called Hiva. Linguistic analysis of the Rapa Nui language suggests that the place of origin was the Marquesas Islands.\nLegends say that a person called Hau-Maka (Haumaka) had a dream in which his spirit travelled to an island located far away in order to look for new land for the ruler Hotu Matu'a.\nHau-Maka's dream trip took him to the Mata Ki Te Rangi, meaning \"Eyes that look to the Sky\", an island located in the center of the Earth. This piece of land was called \"Te Pito 'o the Kainga\", meaning \"center of the Earth\".\nAfter Hau-Maka woke up, he told about his dream to Motu Matu'a, the supreme leader who ordered 7 men to travel to the island. So they did and they return to Hiva with the news that indeed, there is new land far away. Following this discovery, Hotu Matu'a traveled with 2 boats with settlers and colonized what we call today \"Easter Island\".\nSeveral hundreds of years ago a bloody conflict had broken out on Easter Island. This is attributed to a variety of factors: remoteness, overpopulation, deforestation, tribal rivalry.\nEaster Island is one of the most isolated islands\nin the World. Even today, if you fly with a modern airplane from Santiago,\nChile, it takes 5-6 hours to get there. Imagine how difficult it was about\n1.500 years ago!\nIt is believed that this island was formed by ancient volcanic eruptions.\nRoggeveen, the Dutch discoverer of the island had estimated a number of 2.000 - 3.000 inhabitants in 1722. But specialists analyzed the bones, the legends and have come to the conclusion that around the 1500s and the 1700s there could have been as many as 10.000 - 15.000 people living on the island.\nOverpopulation could have been the primary reason why the locals started fighting each other. This is believed to have lead to the splitting of the population into several tribes, families. Some think there were 2 tribes fighting, others believe there were multiple families.\nDuring the fights, many moai statues and ahu platforms were destroyed, magnificent statues pulled down. Perhaps it was a revenge against the god(s)? Or just because of anger at the constructors? Perhaps the towards the ancestors who had cut down so many trees in order to move the statues?\nThe tribal wars have even lead to cannibalism.\nDuring Roggeveen's visit it was noticeable that life on the island has degenerated due to deforestation and the depletion of the island's natural resources.\nToday, Easter Island has very few trees, this is due to the fact that the locals had used up all wood for firewood, boat and house construction, but certainly have irresponsibly cut down large amounts of trees for building tools to move and put the moai into place.\nOnce there were forests of palm trees on Rapa Nui, now the only palm trees that exist were planted. So are all other trees which were brought here from other islands and the Americas.\nThe disappearing of forests has coincided with the conflict on the island. There was not enough wood to make fishing boats, therefore the islands could forget about going out for fishing and also about leaving the island! The disappearance of wood has also led to the decrease of the number of bids, which could not construct nests anymore. The locals found themselves stuck for good on what they believed to be the \"Center of Earth\".\nThe discovery of Easter Island\nOn Sunday, April 5th, 1722, the first Europeans arrived to the island called by locals \"Te Pito 'o Te Henua\".\nBecause it was discovered on Easter, it was named \"Easter Island\".\nThe discoverer was Jacob Roggeveen, a Dutch captain.\nThe name we hear so often, \"Rapa Nui\" is a newer one, given to the island by Polynesians in the mid 1800.\nThe oldest name known for this island is \"Te Pito 'o Te Henua\".\nOver 800 statues are today on the island, but when Roggeveen discovered Easter Island, these were in pretty good shape, many in place. Afterwards many have fallen. It is generally believed that there were revolts, conflicts and the islanders pulled them down. There even are theories that point out to the possibility of tsunami tidal waves, which could have demolished moai statues, for example it is strongly suggested that the site of Ahu Tongariki was destroyed by such a force coming from the ocean.\nRecovery from the conflicts, colonization and more tragedy\nFollowing the drastic decrease of population induced by the tribal violence and famine, Rapa Nui had recovered only by the mid 1800s, when about 4.000 people lived there. But in the 1800s and the 1900s, more and more Europeans and South Americans arrived to Easter Island, which had become part of Chile in 1888.\nTragically many Rapa Nui people were forcefully deported to Peru and Chile, many others died of diseases brought in by the white man.\nAll these have almost lead to the extermination of the whole population. In 1877 only 111 Rapa Nui people existed on the island.\nLater, the island's population took a positive turn and many Polynesians, Amerindians and white men from Chile and Peru came to settle here.\nToday tourism, fishing, some agriculture account for the main economic resources of the island. In fact, tourism which so far helped the island may be its biggest threat as more and more people flock to this tiny triangular land on a weekly basis."}
{"text": "In a commentary in the February issue of the journal Nature, a team of scientists from University of California, San Francisco has suggested that sugar should be regulated like alcohol and cigarettes.\nIn an article entitled ‘The toxic truth about sugar’, the UCSF group suggests that like alcohol and tobacco, sugar is a toxic, addictive substance that should be highly regulated with taxes, laws on where and to whom it can be advertised, and even age-restricted sales.\nIn response, the American Beverage Association issued the following statement:\n\"The authors of this commentary attempt to address the critical global health issue of non-communicable diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. However, in doing so, their comparison of sugar to alcohol and tobacco is simply without scientific merit. Moreover, an isolated focus on a single ingredient such as sugar or fructose to address health issues noted by the World Health Organization to be caused by multiple factors, including tobacco use, harmful alcohol use, an unhealthy diet and lack of physical activity, is an oversimplification.\n“There is no evidence that focusing solely on reducing sugar intake would have any meaningful public health impact. Importantly, we know that the body of scientific evidence does not support that sugar, in any of its various forms - including fructose, is a unique cause of chronic health conditions such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease or metabolic syndrome.\"\nSource: American Beverage Association\n- If you enjoyed this article, you may also like this: ABA puts calorie information at your fingertips\n- Caffé Culture 2013, in pictures\n- Tetra Pak receives DuPont Continuing Innovation Award\n- Pom-Bear Zoo snacks from Intersnack"}
{"text": "Date: September 16th 2006\nHair loss is experienced by all of us at one or the other time. To know the causes of hair fall, it is very essential to know the structure of hair and its normal growth cycle.\nStructure of hair\nThe hair on our scalp can be divided into two parts, the root and shaft. The root part of hair is in the skin (epidermis) of scalp. The hair root is surrounded by a pouch like structure called follicle. The base of hair root is in the shape of a bulb. This bulb is indented by capillaries and nerve fibers. The cells in the center of bulb divide. The newly divided hair cells push the previous cells up. The cells which move upwards die slowly forming hard hair shaft. The hair shaft has three layers the cuticle, medulla and cortex.Cuticle is the outer layers and protects the inner layers. It is transparent. Healthy cuticle gives a shiny appearance for hair and unhealthy cuticle gives lifeless look. The medulla is the innermost layer composed of large cells. The cortex is the layer between cuticle and medulla. This contains pigment and keratin. Cortex determines the bulk and strength of hair. The hair follicle contains oil secreting glands which make the hair shiny .Stress and illness diminish secretion of oil and pigments causing graying of hair.According to Ayurveda the hair is considered as a tissue which uses the same nutrients of bone and considered as a tissue which is formed as bi-product of bone tissue.\nNormal cycle of hair growth.\nAbout 10 % of the hair on the scalp is in a resting phase at any given time. The resting hair falls after 2 to 3 months and new hair starts growing in its place. The growing phase continues for 2.25 to 6 yrs. During this phase each hair grows approximately 1 cm per month. At any given time about 90% of the hair on scalp will be in growing phase. Few strands of hair fall as the part of normal hair growth cycle. But some people may experience excessive hair fall which is more than normal cycle. Excessive hair loss can affect men, women and children.\nCauses of hair loss\n1. Hormonal imbalance in men and women: In men high concentration of dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in hair follicles causes hair fall. In women hormonal imbalances during pregnancy and after delivery cause hair fall.\n2. High amount of sebum in scalp clogs pores of scalp and prevent nutrition to hair follicle.\n3. Inadequate nutrition causes hair fall.\n4. Stress, worry, lack of sleep, worry and anxiety cause hair fall\n5. Long standing diseases like typhoid, viral infections, anemia, surgery etc cause general debility which lead to hair fall\n6. Some medicines used for gout, chemo therapy of cancer , birth control pills , antidepressants etc cause hair fall\n7. Diseases like lupus, diabetes cause hair fall.\n8. Tying hair tightly pulls the hair from follicles and cause traction alopecia.\n9. Heredity also causes hair fall.\n10. Dandruff or Fungal infection of scalp. 11. Accumulation of dirt on scalp causes blocking of pores and weakens hair roots. This leads to hair fall.\nAccording to ayurveda the causes of hair loss are described as follows:-\n1. Too much exposure to dust, sunlight, water and other pollutants.\n2. Too much of sweating.\n3. Irregular sleeping pattern.\n4. Anxiety, depression, insomnia.\n5. Unhygienic way of living\n7. Alcohol consumption.\nHair Loss Remedies\n1. Liberal intake of vitamins.\n2. High protein and iron rich diet.\n3. Consumption of raw vegetables, fresh fruits, salads, green leafy vegetables regularly.\n4. Washing hair regularly ( twice weekly ) with suitable shampoo.\n5. Using relaxing techniques to overcome stress, anxiety and sleeplessness.\n6. Preventing fungal infections of scalp.\n7. Preventing hairstyles which pull hair.\nDue to these causes the tridoshas get vitiated and cause hair loss. The vitiated doshas affect the scalp skin and cause hair fall occurs. Medicated oil with the herbs Bhringaraja ( Eclipta Alba ), Amalaki ( Embelica officinalis ), Haritaki ( Terminalia chebula ) and Vibhitaki ( Terminalia bellirica ) is a best remedy for hair fall.\nLeave a Reply\nYou must be logged in to post a comment."}
{"text": "WILDLIFE organisations have issued a reminder about the impact of recent hot waves on native birds.\nWith sweltering conditions, and temperatures in the 40s predicted again over the coming weeks, head of research at Bird Life Australia James O’Connor is encouraging people to fill their birdbaths and leave water out.\nMr O’Connor said over the past few weeks, thousands of native birds had felt the effects of the heat wave, both in the city and in the country.\n“Hot weather always takes its toll, but if it only lasts for a day or two, birds can usually survive until the weather cools down again,” he said.\n“However, when it’s hot for day after day, like the rest of us they start to feel the effects.”\nHe said, like everyone else, birds needed to drink lots of water and shelter from the heat during the hot weather.\n“Unlike the rest of us, they can’t turn on a tap for some cold water, or switch on an air-conditioner to cool down,” he said.\n“Just a few months ago, wetlands were brimming with water, but now many are just parched expanses of cracked mud.\n“Birds need water to drink every day, and when the wetlands dry out, they need to find water somewhere else or they will die.”\nMr O’Connor suggested the best thing people could do to lend the birds a hand was to place a dish of water in the shade.\n“So that the birds can have a drink or cool off in it,” he said.\n“And make sure it’s not too deep so that birds won’t drown in it!\n“Also, if you have a birdbath in your garden, make sure it’s topped up regularly and placed in the shade so the water doesn’t heat up too much.”\nHe added it was important to keep the water out of the reach of the neighbourhood cats.\n“Heat-stressed birds are easy prey for them,” he said."}
{"text": "The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) was established in 2002 by the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences to provide educators, policymakers, and the public with a central and trusted source of scientific evidence of what works in education. The WWC is administered by the Department, through a contract to a joint venture of the American Institutes for Research and the Campbell Collaboration.\nTo provide information needed by decision-makers, the WWC reviews and reports on existing studies of interventions (education programs, products, practices, and policies) in selected topic areas. WWC reviews of the evidence apply a set of standards that follow scientifically valid criteria for determining the effectiveness of these interventions. The WWC provides its findings in accessible, user-friendly, online reports, which include the following:\n- Reports on evaluation studies that pass the WWC standards\n- Reports on the research base for each identified intervention\n- Reports that synthesize the evaluation studies of interventions within defined topic areas\nA Technical Advisory Group (TAG) composed of the nation's leading experts in research design, program evaluation, and research synthesis advises on the standards for evaluation research reviews and monitors and informs the methodological aspects of WWC reviews and reports.\nThe WWC is committed to ensuring that its products and services meet user needs and invites input from educators, policymakers, researchers, and members of the public. All products are available through the WWC website at www.whatworks.ed.gov"}
{"text": "Do you cringe at the word “xeriscape”? Does that mean boring, thin-leaved, un-colorful plants to you? Well think again. Xeriscape gardening can look lush, colorful and be a snap to maintain. To help people learn how to have a beautiful garden while being water consious, Colorado Springs Utilities has created two xeriscaped demonstration gardens for denizens to learn about and apply water thriftiness in their own gardens. The display at these gardens provides a lesson for everyone, even if you don’t live in a drought prone area. Can you imagine not having to water much *at all* between rains?\n(Editor's Note: This article was originally published on September 1, 2008. Your comments are welcome, but please be aware that authors of previously published articles may not be able to promptly respond to new questions or comments.)\nEven if you don't live in Colorado Springs, the Rocky Mountains, or even in a dry climate, the suggestions from these demonstration gardens will help you save time watering and money on your next water bill. Colorado and areas like it have wonderfully dry climates due to low humidity and unfortunately sometimes high winds.For most gardeners, this means both dry skin and dry soil.Besides a good moisturizer, here's how to cope.Plant water-wise plants and irrigate intelligently!\nOnce the plants on this list get established (one-two weeks) they don't need much water, if any, at all.With the growing water shortage in Colorado and many other states, this is an important feature for sustainability in the coming years.The Mesa Road Xeriscape Garden (one of CSU's featured demonstration gardens) is actually a lush, colorful and peaceful place that requires very little water.Come along for a tour and a xeriscaping lesson, Colorado style.\nWhy should you xeriscape?\nThe biggest and most widely misunderstood lesson of xeriscaping is planting in water-usage zones, or hydrozones. That is, putting plants that need lots of water next to ones that need lots of water, and putting plants that can don't need any water with the like. Seems logical right? If you put an iris next to a nasturtium, you are bound to do one of three things: overwater the iris, underwater the nasturtium, or kill both. It just makes sense to put your irises with your Blanketflowers and your Nasturtium next to your cannas. That doesn't sound all that boring, right?\nWhen you really get down to it though, xeriscaping does mean planting flora that does not require much additional water than the average rainfall of your area. Once established, they should practically grow themselves.\nCSU (the utilities company, not the university) has created two demonstration gardens to showcase how good xeriscaping can look: the Mesa Xeriscape Demonstration Garden and the Cottonwood Creek Park Xeriscape Garden in Colorado Springs. Along with some planting tips and the right plants, xeriscaping never has to be humdrum.\nBee Balm - Monarda\nBlanketflower - Gaillardia\nTexas Red Yucca surrounded by other colorful xerics\nLavender and Creeping Thyme\nPlants you'll find at the Mesa Xeriscape Demonstration Garden (and you should try!)\nSilver Blade Evening Primrose\nDwarf Garden Phlox\nRocky Mountain Sumac\nMullein 'Southern Charm'\nMexican Feather Grass\nDwarf Goldenrod 'Goldenbaby'\nBlue Mist Spirea\nPale Purple Coneflower\nGray Creeping Germander\nCalifornia Fuchsia 'Orange Carpet'\nSome more hardy xeric plants to check out:\nRed Hot Poker\nAutumn Joy Sedum\nThe Mesa Garden also has a demonstration rock garden, which usually are made up of small xeric plants. Some great xeric rock garden plants are sedums, Penstemon, Dwarf Barberry, Edelweiss, Lamb's Ear, Oregano, Hens and Chicks, Rupturewort, and Cattail Iris. The list of attractive rock garden plants is just about endless.\nFor more information on fantastic, hardy xeric plants, here is a great link:\nXeric gardening does not have to be colorless or boring as you can see from all of these beautiful flowers showcased at the Mesa Xeriscape Demonstration Garden. Even if you just put in a few xerics, you can benefit from the decreased water usage.\nAll photos taken at Mesa Xeriscape Demonstration Garden, Colorado Springs, Colorado. Copyrighted to Susanne and Kyle Talbert\nAbout Susanne Talbert\nI garden in beautiful Colorado Springs, half a mile from Garden of the Gods. Since we bought our first house two years ago, I have been busy revamping my 1/4 acre of ignored decomposed granite.\nMy garden passions include water gardening, vines, super-hardy perennials, and native xerics. By day, I am a high school ceramics teacher as well as a ceramicist and painter."}
{"text": "Simply begin typing or use the editing tools above to add to this article.\nOnce you are finished and click submit, your modifications will be sent to our editors for review.\nuse in Native American music\n...Native Americans developed lingua francas in order to facilitate trade and social interaction; in these areas, song texts may feature words from a lingua franca. Many Native American songs employ vocables, syllables that do not have referential meaning. These may be used to frame words or may be inserted among them; in some cases, they constitute the entire song text. Vocables are a fixed...\nWhat made you want to look up \"vocable\"? Please share what surprised you most..."}
{"text": "Blocking production of a pyruvate kinase splice-variant shows therapeutic promise\nCold Spring Harbor, N.Y.\n– Cancer cells grow fast. That’s an essential characteristic of what makes them cancer cells. They’ve crashed through all the cell-cycle checkpoints and are continuously growing and dividing, far outstripping our normal cells. To do this they need to speed up their metabolism.\nCSHL Professor Adrian Krainer and his team have found a way to target the cancer cell metabolic process and in the process specifically kill cancer cells.\nNearly 90 years ago the German chemist and Nobel laureate Otto Warburg proposed that cancer’s prime cause was a change in cell metabolism – i.e., in cells’ production and consumption of energy. In particular cancer cells have a stubborn propensity to eschew using glucose as a source to generate energy. This is known as the Warburg Effect.\nWhile metabolic changes are an important feature in the transformation of normal cells into cancer cells they are not now thought to be cancer’s primary cause. Despite this, metabolic changes remain an attractive target for cancer therapy, as Krainer and colleagues show in a paper published online today in Open Biology\n, the open-access journal of Great Britain’s Royal Society.This image compares glioblastoma cells untreated or treated with antisense oligonucleotides (ASO) that modulate splicing for PK-M. The cells are visible under light microscopy in the left column, and the DNA in their nuclei shows up when using the blue dye DAPI in the second column. PK-M2 is visualized using a red stain in the third column, with the merge of the images in each row in the forth column. The 2nd and 3rd rows show cells that have been treated with ASOs. The red dye is nearly all gone indicating that there is less PK-M2 and that the ASOs have worked. Image courtesy of Zhenxun Wang and Adrian Krainer. (click to enlarge)\nOne difference between metabolism in cancer and normal cells is the switch in cancer to the production of a different version, or isoform, of a protein produced from the pyruvate kinase-M (PK-M) gene. The protein version produced in normal cells is known as PK-M1, while the one produced by cancer cells is known as PK-M2.\nPK-M2 is highly expressed in a broad range of cancer cells. It enables the cancer cell to consume far more glucose than normal, while using little of it for energy. Instead, the rest is used to make more material with which to build more cancer cells.\nPK-M1 and PK-M2 are produced in a mutually exclusive manner -- one-at-a-time, from the same gene, by a mechanism known as alternative splicing. When a gene’s DNA is being copied into the messenger molecule known as mRNA, the intermediate template for making proteins, a cellular machine called the spliceosome cuts and pastes different pieces out of and into that mRNA molecule.\nThe non-essential parts that are edited out are known as introns, while the final protein-coding mRNA consists of a string of parts pasted together known as exons. The bit that fits into the PK-M1 gene-coding sequence is known as exon 9, while it is replaced in PK-M2 by exon 10. In this way alternative splicing provides the cell with the ability to make multiple proteins from a single gene.\nKrainer, an authority on alternative splicing, previously published research\non the protein regulators that facilitate the splicing mechanism for PK-M. His team showed that expression of PK-M2 is favored in cancer cells by these proteins, which act to repress splicing for the PK-M1 isoform. In the study published today the team explains that it decided to target the splicing of PK-M using a technology called antisense, rather than target the proteins that regulate the splicing mechanism.\nUsing a panel of antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs), small bits of modified DNA designed to bind to mRNA targets, they screened for new splicing regulatory elements in the PK-M gene. The idea was that one or more ASOs would bind to a region of the RNA essential for splicing in exon 10 and reveal that site by preventing splicing of exon 10 from occurring.\nIndeed, this is what happened. “We found we can force cancer cells to make the normal isoform, PK-M1,” sums up Krainer. In fact, a group of potent ASOs were found that bound to a previously unknown enhancer element in exon 10, i.e., an element that predisposes for expression of the PK-M2 isoform, thus preventing its recognition by splicing-regulatory proteins. This initiated a switch that favored the PK-M1 isoform.\nWhen they then deliberately targeted the PK-M2 isoform for repression in cells derived from a glioblastoma, a deadly brain cancer, all the cells died. They succumbed through what is known as programmed cell death or apoptosis -- a process whereby the cell shuts down its own machinery and chops up its own DNA in committing a form of cellular suicide.\nAs to why the cells die when PK-M2 is repressed: the team found it was not due to the concomitant increase in PK-M1 (the cells survived even when extra PK-M1 was introduced). Rather, it was the loss of the PK-M2 isoform that was associated with the death of the cancer cells. How this works is still unclear but a subject of investigation in the Krainer laboratory.\nThe next step will be to take their ASO reagents into mouse models of cancer to see if they behave the same way there. While there are some technical and methodological obstacles to overcome, Krainer is optimistic.\n“PK-M2 is preferentially expressed in cancer cells, a general feature of all types of cancer -- it’s a key switch in their metabolism,” he says. Thus targeting the alternative splicing mechanism of PK-M2 using ASOs has the potential to be a cancer therapeutic with many applications.\nThe paper can be obtained online at the following link: Zhenxun Wang, Hyun Yong Jeon, Frank Rigo, C. Frank Bennett and Adrian R. Krainer. 2012 Manipulation of PK-M mutually exclusive alternative splicing by antisense oligonucleotides. Open Biology 2: 120133. http://rsob.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/2/10/120133.full\nThe research described in this release was supported by the National Cancer Institute grant CA13106, the St. Giles Foundation, and a National Science Scholarship from the Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore. About Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory\nFounded in 1890, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) has shaped contemporary biomedical research and education with programs in cancer, neuroscience, plant biology and quantitative biology. CSHL is ranked number one in the world by Thomson Reuters for impact of its research in molecular biology and genetics. The Laboratory has been home to eight Nobel Prize winners. Today, CSHL's multidisciplinary scientific community is more than 360 scientists strong and its Meetings & Courses program hosts more than 12,500 scientists from around the world each year to its Long Island campus and its China center. Tens of thousands more benefit from the research, reviews, and ideas published in journals and books distributed internationally by CSHL Press. The Laboratory's education arm also includes a graduate school and programs for undergraduates as well as middle and high school students and teachers. CSHL is a private, not-for-profit institution on the north shore of Long Island. For more information, visit www.cshl.edu.\nWritten by: Edward Brydo\nn, Science Writer"}
{"text": "Plant Care GuidesPerennials | Bulbs | Trees and Shrubs | Vegetables | Fruits | Herbs\nMesclun and Salad Greens\nAbout This PlantSweet corn varieties include yellow, white, and bi-colored types. Because corn is wind-pollinated, it should be planted in blocks of at least four rows rather than in long single rows. By planting early, mid, and late-season varieties you can extend the harvest over several weeks. Plant corn on the north side of the garden to prevent it from shading nearby crops.\nSite SelectionSelect a site with full sun and well-drained soil. Prepare the garden bed by using a garden fork or tiller to loosen the soil to a depth of 12 to 15 inches, then mix in a 2- to 4-inch layer of compost and/or aged manure.\nPlanting InstructionsPlant corn directly outdoors after all danger of frost has passed and the soil temperature is about 60 degrees F. Corn requires a good deal of nitrogen for optimum growth, so work plenty of aged manure into the soil the previous fall and plan to fertilize with additional nitrogen during the growing season if necessary. Plant corn seeds in blocks of at least four rows with 2 to 4 feet between rows, sowing the seeds 1-1/2 to 2 inches deep and 6 to 8 inches apart.\nCareThin the corn to stand 12 to 16 inches apart when the plants are 4 to 5 inches tall. Provide at least 1 inch of water a week. Control weeds with frequent shallow cultivation until the plants are knee high. Then apply a 3- to 5-inch layer of mulch. Watch for signs of nitrogen deficiency (yellowing leaves) and respond with quick side-dressings of a nitrogen-rich fertilizer such as fish emulsion. Contact your local County Extension office for controls of common corn pests such as corn earworms and European corn borers.\nHarvestingSweet corn should be harvested when its ears are completely filled out and a pierced kernel shows a milky white liquid. Sweet corn varieties (except for supersweet varieties) lose their sweetness soon after harvest. Immediately after picking prepare the ears for eating or preserving."}
{"text": "The talk, made available by the Center for Design Innovation (via The Next Web), was from 1983's International Design Conference at Aspen, at which a 20-something Steve Jobs spoke to how personal computers would change the world forever. His insight was eerily prescient as he described a day when email would dominate the communications landscape, people would use portable network-connected computing devices and users would be able to interact with machines in new and innovative ways.\nIn about 20 minutes, Jobs summarized the then-current state of personal computing, noting that the market was about to see a significant boom. He also said that computers would likely be poorly designed, a theory that became reality with the early beige boxes of the 80s and early 90s, including Apple's own Apple II.\nJobs' vision of \"good design\" meant not only building aesthetically pleasing machines, but devices that had a utility of function like user-friendly GUIs akin to those seen on early Macs.\nNear the end of his talk, Jobs looked even further into the future, hinting that technology like artificial intelligence and predictive computing could one day be a possibility.\nHe recalls how books helped him learn straight from the source instead of being filtered through interpretation when he was in school, citing Plato and Aristotle as two examples. The problem, Jobs said, was that the great minds couldn't be tapped once they were dead. To this, he proposed a machine that can collect data, compiling it into a type of artificial intelligence.\n\"I think as we look toward the next 50 to 100 years, if we really can come up with these machines that can capture an underlying spirit, or an underlying set of principles, or an underlying way of looking at the world so that then when the next Aristotle comes around?\" Jobs said. \"Maybe if he carries around one these machines with him his whole life and types in all this stuff, then maybe someday after the person's dead and gone we can ask this machine, 'Hey, what would Aristotle have said?what about this?' And maybe we won't get the right answer?but maybe we will. And that's really exciting to me.\"\nA video of the speech as well as an accompanying audio file can be found at the Center for Design Innovation's blog."}
{"text": "Individual differences |\nMethods | Statistics | Clinical | Educational | Industrial | Professional items | World psychology |\nMindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is a method of therapy which blends features of two disciplines:\n- Cognitive therapy aims to identify and alter cognitive distortions (warped or inaccurate thoughts);\n- Mindfulness is a meditative practice from Buddhism, which aims to help people identify their thoughts, moment by moment, but without passing judgement on the thoughts.\nIn MBCT, the patient is urged to recognize and accept undesired feelings as they come and go instead of trying to push them away. Traditional cognitive therapy, or cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), focuses on changing negative content of thoughts while MBCT emphasizes the process of paying attention to thoughts and feelings moment by moment and without judgment. Changing the patient's relationship to the suffering caused by negative thoughts is the key because there is no possible way to alleviate all suffering. No therapy or meditation will prevent unpleasant things from happening in our daily lives but the two practices combined may provide more objectivity from which to view these unpleasant things.\nMBCT's main technique is based on the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) eight week program, developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn in 1979 at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. Research shows that MBSR is enormously empowering for patients with chronic pain, hypertension, heart disease, cancer, and gastrointestinal disorders, as well as for psychological problems such as anxiety and panic. People often misunderstand the goal of therapy and especially mindfulness. Relaxation and happiness are not the aim, but rather a \"freedom from the tendency to get drawn into automatic reactions to thoughts, feelings, and events\" . Patients change the relationship to chronic pain so the pain becomes more manageable.\nMindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy grew largely from Jon Kabat-Zinn's work. Zindel V. Segal, J. Mark G. Williams and John D. Teasdale helped adapt the MBSR program so it could be used with people who had suffered repeated bouts of depression in their lives. Currently, MBCT programs usually consist of eight-weekly two hour classes with weekly assignments to be done outside of session. The aim of this program is to enhance awareness so we are able to respond to things instead of react to them. \"We can respond to situations with choice rather than reacting automatically. We do that by practicing to become more aware of where our attention is, and deliberately changing the focus of attention, over and over again\". The structure of MBCT requires strong commitment and work on the clients' part but the rewards can be lasting.\nEffectiveness of MBCT Edit\nResearch is now showing the effectiveness of mindfulness in the prevention of relapse. The UK National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) has recently endorsed MBCT as an effective treatment for prevention of relapse. Research has shown that people who have been clinically depressed three or more times (sometimes for twenty years or more) find that taking the program and learning these skills helps to reduce considerably their chances that depression will return. In a study conducted with 145 participants, all the patients had previously recovered from depression and then relapsed. These sufferers were split randomly into groups providing different methods of treatment. Within a year, patients who were undergoing MBCT \"reduced relapse from 66% (control group) to 37% (treatment group)\". \"Whereas most people might be able to ignore sad mood, in previously depressed persons a slight lowering of mood might bring about a potentially devastating change in thought patterns\". The core skill of MBCT is to teach the ideas of recognizing these thought patterns in order to break away from the false constructs of our mind. Relapse is avoided because the onset of depression is recognized before it has fully developed. The vicious cycle is stopped before it even gets started.\nBenefits of MBCT and mindfulness practice Edit\nMindfulness meditation is a useful tool in dealing with many different scenarios. Practicing mindfulness aids patients, laypersons, and therapists. This approach to meditation focuses our attention back to the present, to what is happening right now in this exact moment. When one is mindful, the attention is focused on the present so judgment cannot be placed. Often, our pain and mental discomfort are caused by the judgment placed on the present moment and not by what is actually happening. This judgment and negative thinking is what can possibly lead to depression. MBCT prioritizes learning how to pay attention or concentrate with purpose, in each moment and most importantly, without judgment.\nSegal and his partners found that \"thoughts and feelings could interact with each other in a damaging, vicious spiral\". Through the practice of mindfulness, we recognize that holding onto some of these feelings is ineffective and mentally destructive. Viewing things mindfully requires not turning away from any feeling but instead being open to the experience while trying not to engage defense mechanisms. All thoughts are welcomed into the mind equally so that one does not judge the thought or herself for thinking the thought. Gaining perspective on one's own thoughts allows us to escape the mental grooves and ruminative thinking that plagues us. Through mindfulness practice the spiral of negative thought is stopped before one finds herself at the bottom looking up.\nNot only is this practice helpful to laypersons but to the actual therapist doing this type of MBCT. As a therapist, mindfulness can be implemented into therapy sessions, and used as a means of self-care in the therapist's personal life. \"Meditating therapists often report feeling more 'present', relaxed, and receptive with their patients if they meditate earlier in the day\". Mindfulness incorporates not judging thought. By having that non-judgment, the therapist allows the patient to fully express true feelings by having that openness. \"As the therapist learns to disentangle from her own conditioned patterns of thoughts that arise in the therapy relationship, the patient may discover the same emotional freedom\". The concentration development from mindfulness also helps the therapist be able to stay fully engaged with the patient. The mind naturally wanders to other things but mindfulness is the answer to being unfocused. There is a degree of perspective that also comes with mindfulness meditation. This new perspective allows a therapist to see other solutions or options to a patient's problem he or she may not have been originally aware of. \"Having this [perspective] enables the therapist to have some flexibility in finding a formulation that accords with the patient's understanding\". As therapists help their patients come to these solutions and become more fully functioning, it may be easy to think they are powerful and all knowing. Maintaining perspective prevents therapists from 'buying their own press'.\nAs means of self-care, P. Fulton and his fellow authors would say \"offering love and care to ourselves replenishes the physical and emotional reservoirs that are necessary to care for others\" (p. 87). When looking at burn-out rates in the social service fields, one can see that self-care is absolutely necessary whether one thinks they need it or not. Meditating saturates these reservoirs so compassionate, sincere work can continue. Also by dealing with personal suffering through this practice, therapists develop greater empathy and become more openhearted to the needs of their clients.\nDepression as the inspiration of MBCT Edit\nDepression is a more serious problem than how it is presently seen. The World Health Organization (WHO) conducted a study and came up with the following projection for the year 2020: \"of all diseases, depression will impose the second largest burden of ill health worldwide\". Research shows that at any given time, ten percent of the United States has experienced this type of clinical depression in the last year alone. Women being affected at a significantly higher rate (20-25%) than men (7-12%). The people who are affected with this common mental disorder are also the least likely to get help or treatment.\nDepression is a severe and prolonged state of mind in which normal sadness grows into a painful state of hopelessness, listlessness, lack of motivation, and fatigue. Depression can vary from mild to severe. When depression is mild, one may find himself brooding on negative aspects of himself or others. He may feel resentful, irritable or angry much of the time, feeling sorry for himself, and needing reassurance from someone. Various physical ailments could also occur that have no correlation to physical illness.\nDepression is classified as clinical when the episode inhibits a person's ability to accomplish routine daily tasks for at least two weeks. If suddenly 'normal' activities become difficult to do or the interest to do them is lost completely for a sustained amount of time, clinical depression could be a possibility. A change in basic bodily functions may also be experienced. The usual daily rhythms seem to go 'out of kilter'. One can't sleep, or one sleeps too much. One can't eat, or one eats too much. Others may notice that the sufferer may become agitated or slowed down. One may find that required energy for activities that used to be enjoyed is now gone. He or she may even feel that life is not worth living, and begin to develop thoughts that he or she would be better off dead.\nCurrently the most commonly used treatment for major depression is antidepressant medication. These medications are relatively cheap, and easy for family practitioners (who treat the majority of depressed people) to prescribe. However, once the episode has past, and the client has stopped taking the antidepressants, depression tends to return, and at least 50% of those experiencing their first episode of depression find that depression comes back, despite appearing to have made a full recovery. After a second or third episode, the risk of recurrence rises to between 80% and 90%. Also, those who first became depressed before 20 years of age are particularly likely to suffer a higher risk of relapse and recurrence.\nThe main method for preventing this recurrence is the continuation of the medication, but many people do not want to stay on medication for indefinite periods, and when the medication stops, the risk of becoming depressed again returns. People are turning to new ways of helping them stay well after depression. To see what it is most helpful to do, we need to understand why it is that we may remain at high risk, even when we've recovered. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy seems to be a complementary method to treating acute and chronic depression.\nWhy do we remain vulnerable to depression? Edit\nNew research shows that during any episode of depression, negative mood occurs alongside negative thinking (such as 'I am a failure', 'I am inadequate, 'I am worthless') and bodily sensations of sluggishness and fatigue. When the episode is past, and the mood has returned to normal, the negative thinking and fatigue tend to disappear as well. However, during the episode a mental association has formed between the mood that was present at that time, and the negative thinking patterns.\nThis means that when negative mood happens again (for any reason) a relatively small amount of such mood can trigger or reactivate the old thinking pattern. Once again, people start to think they have failed, or are inadequate - even if it is not relevant to the current situation. People who believed they had recovered may find themselves feeling 'back to square one'. They end up inside a rumination loop that constantly asks 'what has gone wrong?', 'why is this happening to me?', 'where will it all end?' Such rumination feels as if it ought to help find an answer, but it only succeeds in prolonging and deepening the mood spiral. When this happens, the old habits of negative thinking will start up again, negative thinking gets into the same rut, and a full-blown episode of depression may be the result.\nThe discovery that, even when people feel well, the link between negative moods and negative thoughts remains ready to be re-activated, is of enormous importance. It means that sustaining recovery from such depression depends on learning how to keep mild states of depression from spiralling out of control.\nFuture of MBCT Edit\nFurther research is being conducted to identify all the different uses of MBCT. Significant decreases in anxiety, depression, with a resulting increased sense well being, have been found so far. Research being conducted will evaluate MBCT as a useful technique with patients who are diagnosed with cancer or haematological illness. Mindfulness practice is being done over various cultures and demographics. Ellen Langer has been focusing on the future of mindfulness.\n- Jon Kabat-Zinn\n- Dialectical behavior therapy\n- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy\nReferences & BibliographyEdit\n- REDIRECT Template:Reflist\n- Segal, Z.V., Williams, J.M.G. & Teasdale, J.D, 2002, Mindfulness–based Cognitive Therapy for Depression. A New Approach to Preventing Relapse. Guilford Press.\n- Teasdale, JD, Segal, ZV, and Williams, JMC. How does cognitive therapy prevent depressive relapse and why should attentional control (mindfulness) help? Behav Res Ther (1995) 33:25-29.\n- Teasdale, JD, Segal, ZV, Williams MG, Ridgeway, VA, Soulsby, JM, Lau, MA. Prevention of Relapse/Recurrence in Major Depression by Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy. J. of Consulting and Clinical Psychology (2000) 68:615-623.\n- Williams JMG, Teasdale JD, Segal ZV and Soulsby J. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy reduces overgeneral autobiographical memory in formerly depressed patients. J Abnorm Psychol (2001).\n- [http://www.mbct.co.uk/ Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (UK). Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Homepage. Very complete website with information on books, founders, and workshops.\n- What is Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction?\n- The Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practice\n- Oxford Cognitive Therapy Centre\n- MBSR & MBCT\n- How to do Mindfulness Meditation[[Category:Mindfulness\n|This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia (view authors).|\n<ref>tags exist, but no\n<references/>tag was found"}
{"text": "POMEROY — George Wright has always been somewhat of a conservationist at heart, so it was no surprise to see him transplanting king-sized hickory nuts into a tub of dark soil.\n“King hickory nut trees are scarce here,” he says. “My goal is to help get them re-established in this part of the country.”\nAsked where he got his “seed” hickory nuts, he said a couple of places, one being underneath a tree near Annie Chapman’s Morgan Rest Bed and Breakfast on Lincoln Hill in Pomeroy.\nThe whole process of starting King hickory nut tree starters began a number of months ago. George said it takes storage of the nuts in a cold place six to eight months in order for them to germinate. So they remained refrigerated until the weather began to warm a few weeks ago at which time he planted them in a tub and then waited and watched until little sprouts finally came up and growth began.\nHis goal has always been to plant enough so he could keep a few for himself and have enough left to give away to others interested in propagating the king-sized hickory nuts.\nThe plants have now grown into little trees four to six inches high and are ready to be planted in areas large enough to accommodate a tall tree which in a dozen or more years from now will yield hickory nuts.\nGeorge is ready to give them away to someone like him who wants to see the King Hickory Nut trees more plentiful in Meigs County.\nAnyone interested in getting one of the dozen or so tree plants can leave their name and telephone number with his daughter, Susan Clark Dingess, at Clark’s Jewelry Store and George will get in touch with them. He has some specific instructions on how to handle the planting and care for the delicate plants so that they will survive."}
{"text": "National Conservative Political Action Committee\nThe National Conservative Political Action Committee (NCPAC; pronounced \"nick-pack\") was a New Right political action committee in the United States that was a major contributor to the ascendancy of conservative Republicans in the early 1980s, including the election of Ronald Reagan as President, and that innovated the use of independent expenditures to circumvent campaign finance restrictions.\nIn 1979 Time magazine characterized NCPAC, the Conservative Caucus and the Committee for the Survival of a Free Congress (headed by Paul Weyrich) as the three most important ultraconservative organizations making up the New Right.\nNCPAC was founded in 1975 by conservative activists John Terry Dolan, Charles Black and Roger Stone, with help from Richard Viguerie and Thomas F. Ellis. The group got its start through direct mail solicitations. \"The shriller you are, the better it is to raise money,\" explained co-founder Terry Dolan.\nNCPAC became one of the first groups to circumvent the contribution limits of the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) by exploiting the \"independent expenditure\" loophole permitted under a 1976 U.S. Supreme Court ruling. Although federal law restricted political action committees' expenditures to $10,000 per candidate, an organization could spend unlimited amounts of money supporting or opposing a particular candidate as long as their campaign activity was not coordinated with a candidate. NCPAC pooled independent contributions in order to make independent expenditures on campaign attack ads. Not only did this circumvent campaign finance restrictions, but it prevented candidates from being associated with advertising created on their behalf. NCPAC Chairman Terry Dolan was quoted as saying, \"A group like ours could lie through its teeth, and the candidate it helps stays clean.\" Dolan later said he was describing a hypothetical situation, not NCPAC's actual tactics.\n1978 election \nNCPAC's first major target was Democratic Senator Dick Clark of Iowa in the election of 1978. Three weeks before the November 1978 election, incumbent Clark had a 30 percentage-point lead in campaign polls, but he lost to Republican Roger Jepsen, 52 to 48 percent. Clark's defeat was attributed to intense anti-Clark campaigning conducted by direct mail, mailgrams, and leaflet distribution during the final weeks of the campaign, attacking Clark for his positions on abortion, gun control, and the Panama Canal Treaty. NCPAC took credit for Clark's defeat and was encouraged to expand its efforts in the 1980 election.\n1980 election \nClark's defeat, for which NCPAC took credit, encouraged NCPAC and other allied organizations to expand their efforts in the 1980 election, when NCPAC spent at least $1.2 million. Four of the six incumbent Democratic Senators targeted by NCPAC in 1980, John Culver (Iowa), George McGovern (South Dakota), Frank Church (Idaho), and Birch Bayh (Indiana), were defeated. Senators Alan Cranston of California and Thomas Eagleton of Missouri were also targeted, but achieved re-election.\n1982 election \nNCPAC hoped to repeat its success in the 1982 election. Initially the group targeted a list of 20 Senators for defeat, including Pat Moynihan of New York, Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts, Paul Sarbanes of Maryland, and John Melcher of Montana. The organization later trimmed its target list to five incumbents, and spent $4.5 million in the 1982 elections. However, only one of its targets, Democrat Howard Cannon of Nevada, failed to win re-election. Sarbanes was charged with being \"too liberal for Maryland,\" but voters did not respond to the NCPAC message. Sarbanes made NCPAC's tactics a major issue in his campaign. Democratic Senator John Melcher, a veterinarian, countered a commercial that claimed he was \"too liberal for Montana\" by running a TV commercial of his own featuring cows. After a shot of \"out-of-staters\" carrying a briefcase full of money off an airplane, one cow remarked, \"Did ya hear about those city slickers bad-mouthing Doc Melcher? One of 'em was stepping in what they've been trying to sell.\"\nLater years \nL. Brent Bozell succeeded Dolan as the group's head after Dolan's death in 1986.\nThe organization is based in Alexandria, Virginia.\n- The New Right Takes Aim, Time magazine, August 20, 1979\n- Thomas Frank, \"The Tilting Yard: Charlie Black's Cronies\" Wall Street Journal July 2, 2008\n- Running with the PACs Time magazine, October 25, 1982\n- The Washington Post, August 10, 1980, p. F1, as cited at http://www.bartleby.com/73/150.html\n- Richard F. Fenno, Jr., Richard F. Fenno, Senators on the Campaign Trail, University of Oklahoma Press, 1998 ISBN 0-8061-3062-8, ISBN 978-0-8061-3062-0, page 111\n- Richard F. Fenno, Jr., Richard F. Fenno, Senators on the Campaign Trail, University of Oklahoma Press, 1998 ISBN 0-8061-3062-8, ISBN 978-0-8061-3062-0, page 114\n- Richard F. Fenno, Jr., Richard F. Fenno, Senators on the Campaign Trail, University of Oklahoma Press, 1998 ISBN 0-8061-3062-8, ISBN 978-0-8061-3062-0, page 115\n- No Thunder from the Right, by Jane O'Reilly, Time magazine, Nov. 15, 1982\n- A Bag of Tricks: Independent Expenditures, Center for Responsible Politics opensecrets.org website, archived January 13, 2008.\n- New Resolve by the New Right, by Edwin Warner, Time magazine, December 1, 1980\n- NCPAC's Waterloo, by Chuck Lane, The Harvard Crimson, September 25, 1982\n- Attack PAC Time magazine, Oct. 25, 1982"}
{"text": "Dating photos relies on a combination of:\n- internal evidence - clothing, subject matter, composition, props, etc\n- identification of people in it - what age were they when the photo was taken? how does this fit with known birth dates?\n- production processes - different materials (eg. type of photographic paper) and chemical processes resulted in characteristic types of photo. Standard sizes of commercial prints have changed over time.\n- photographer - photographer's marks and advertising can be used to identify the photographer, hence the period the business operated.\nJayne Shrimpton and Maureen Taylor's books are good references, but they concentrate on the 1850-1950 period.\nThe scanned image shows a black-and-white print. The informal outdoor setting suggests it was taken by an amatuer photographer. I think this print has been cut down from a larger original because prints usually had white borders on all sides.\nCommercially processed prints tended to come in standard sizes, which is derived from the size of the negative. Typically commercial processesing produced contact prints (exactly the same size as the negative) and enlargements of the whole negative, which maintain the aspect ratio of the negative. Unfortunately in this case, we do not know the size of the original print, so we can't deduce the size of the negative.\nAs othe answers have suggested, the 1950s is strongly indicated. At that time, colour photography existed, but was not as widely popular and affordable as black-and-white."}
{"text": "Open source software is becoming more popular and its price is certainly drawing raves.\nOpen source software is software that is distributed along with its source code. This is usually done free and it is done with the purpose of allowing the improvement of the software be driven by the general user and developer base. This way, the software can definitely apply to user needs and interests as well as draw closer to perfection in the most efficient way possible. Many organizations have adopted the open source philosophy in order to produce the premier software of their markets and many nonprofit organizations have coalesced in support of open source software. Even governments have heralded their support of open source software and some have even gone as far as to initiate mandates that render the distribution of open source software all but compulsory.\nFree? Free? Free?\nCorporations benefit from open source software as it gives them the capacity to penetrate the market in one of the most effective and cost-efficient ways. These entities can garner loyalty, market presence, and increased stability with the proliferation of open source as opposed to proprietary software. Developers benefit from open source software in that they have the capacity to learn and perfect their methods as well as apply their methodologies and innovation to other large-scale enterprises. This can benefit them as both something they can put on their resume as well as something that they can apply to later projects. Individual users benefit from open source software in that they desires and needs are what drives the development of software that is usually free, especially during its initial stages.\nManaging Free Software?\nOpen source management is usually handled cooperatively, but can also be taken care of through several software tools. On one hand, the Open Source Initiative and the debian-legal mailing list offer networking solutions to open source software management, while on the other, individual teams and firms can track the development of open source software through tools created for that purpose. There is a multitude that is available on the market, many of which also happen to be open source.\nThe Asian open source software movement has been gaining steam almost at a faster rate than in the Western World. Not only are there many organizations that are dedicated to the development and distribution of open source software, many Asian governments have spearheaded initiatives to make open source software the most-used software development approach. These initiatives have largely been due to a desire to become technologically independent of proprietary software from United States-based corporations. As a result of these pursuits, though, many essential sectors of Asian society, including education and healthcare, have been improved through open source software.\nOpen source software differs from free software or “freeware” in that it is distributed with the source code and with the intention to initiate the gradual improvement of such software. As a result, open source software is often distributed to a larger segment of the market and is not normally used as an advertising method, while freeware is. Accordingly, open source software is available to and can be used by absolutely anyone.\nThe development of open source software is contingent on each respective program or platform’s developers. Alternately, its presentation, purpose, and distribution are based on the open source philosophy, which may alter how the software is initially presented. For example, while proprietary software is often produced as a “finished version,” open source software is presented as a work-in-progress, with the expectation that members of the market base will work to gradually improve the software."}
{"text": "Butter Flavoring Linked To Alzheimer's\nIf you've been looking for one more thing to worry about, here it is.\nIf you're a fan of butter-flavored microwave popcorn, a new study finds a flavoring used in the product may trigger Alzheimer's disease. University of Minnesota drug-design expert Robert Vince, PhD, and colleagues found that diacetyl causes brain proteins to misfold into the Alzheimer's-linked form called beta amyloid. Vince's team also found that diacetyl has an architecture similar to a substance that makes beta-amyloid proteins clump together in the brain -- clumping being a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease. Even more, the popcorn butter flavorant can pass through the blood-brain barrier and can inhibit the brain's natural amyloid-clearing mechanisms. Diacetyl, already linked to lung damage in people who work in microwave popcorn factories, is also used to produce the distinctive buttery flavor and aroma of margarines, snack foods, candy, baked goods, pet foods, and even some chardonnays.(Tipped by JMG reader SIdan)"}
{"text": "MYSTIC, Conn. (AP) — Oceanographer Robert Ballard, best known for discovering the Titanic wreck, has new plans to plumb the depths of the seas.\nBallard said Thursday that his latest deep-sea venture will send crews combing through the Black, Aegean and Mediterranean seas for artifacts from ship wrecks and ancient civilizations.\nHis research vesse set out from a port in Turkey last week on a four-month mission that will use four remote-operated vehicles and sonar technology to explore lost cities.\nAt a news conference, Ballard said that while he has a general idea what his crew might find, the exploration is about looking for the unknown.\n\"We're fascinated by extremely confusing parts of our planet and we say 'let's go there and see if we can figure it out,' \" said Ballard.\nThe 211-foot ship, carrying a team of about 15 scientists, will travel through waters including the Hellenic and Aeolian Arcs, the Gorringe bank and the Straits of Sicily — a course that will take it near deep trenches, continental faults and cities under the surface of the Mediterranean that are more than 2,000 years old. The journey is expected to wrap up in November off the coast of Israel.\nBallard, who is also a professor at the University of Rhode Island, founded the Institute for Exploration at the Sea Research Foundation, the nonprofit environmental organization that also runs Mystic Aquarium. In addition to leading an international team that discovered the RMS Titanic in 1985 on the floor of the North Atlantic, Ballard found the wrecks of the battleship Bismarck and the PT-109 torpedo patrol boat that John F. Kennedy commanded during World War II.\nThe 69-year-old explorer said his ship will dispatch video and audio feeds from this newest venture to connect with the public as he pursues new discoveries. The material will be available online and at a theater at Mystic Aquarium, and teams of educators will rotate aboard the ship to host information sessions and explain the latest finds.\nMission co-leader Katherine Croff Bell said the live technology lets the ship expand beyond the knowledge of the scientists onboard.\n\"If we don't have the proper expertise on the ship we can call somebody on shore and have them be a part of the exploration in real time,\" Bell said.\nPaul Johnson, an oceanographer at the University of Washington who has worked with Ballard, said these types of expeditions help stir public interest in deep-sea research. He said the voyage was not a traditional research mission and would likely involve a mixture of education, entertainment and \"probably some science mixed in there.\"\nThe ship's primary mission is to make discoveries, not try to extract artifacts or disturb the seabed. For Ballard and the E/V Nautilus, that means setting themselves up for to find something new by planning trips over unusual or unknown areas.\n\"What really excites me is when you go looking for one thing and find something more important,\" Ballard said.\n\"So we are all about creating moments of discovery by trying to get a little lucky,\" he said.\nOn the Web:\nE/V Nautilus website: http://nautiluslive.org/"}
{"text": "The man behind ‘Twin Bridges,’ Gen. Thaddeus Kosciuszko, remembered as the Revolutionary War hero he was\nHALFMOON — To countless Northway travelers, the span over the Mohawk River is simply a way to get to and from work, or fun Adirondack vacations.\nMost people call it the “Twin Bridges.”\nTo veterans advocate Carol Hotaling, of Clifton Park, the structure has a much deeper meaning – a tribute to the Revolutionary War hero that it’s officially named after — Gen. Thaddeus Kosciuszko.\nThe bridge, which first opened in 1959, underwent a major reconstruction project this fall.\n“I would like to propose a rededication of this bridge,” she said. “He (Kosciuszko) was born in Poland, came to a struggling America, volunteered his services to the Continental Army and became chief engineer.”\nHotaling, the “Yellow Ribbon Lady,” has made countless yellow decorations for veterans-themed events, celebrations and observances, and works tirelessly to support troops stationed overseas.\nKosciuszko’s accomplishments were many, including the fortification of West Point. But his most important contribution was designing the American defenses for the 1777 Battles of Saratoga, which proved to be the Revolution’s turning point.\nGen. Horatio Gates, the American commander, gets most of the credit for the victory at Saratoga. Without Kosciuszko, though, it never would have happened.\n“It was his use of topography and design of defenses that gave Americans an extremely strong and defensible position,” said Bill Valosin, a Saratoga National Historical Park ranger.\nSpecifically, artillery placed atop Bemis Heights stopped the flow of British supplies on the Hudson River, directly below, and kept them from using the main north-south river road. Continued...\nThe southward advancing British army, under Gen. John Burgoyne, was trying to reach Albany, where it would meet British forces moving up the Hudson Valley led by Gen. William Howe. The goal was to split the colonies in two, and bring the American rebellion to a quick end.\nAt Saratoga, however, the river forms a bottleneck and thanks to Kosciuszko’s well-designed defenses, the Americans controlled it. Burgoyne’s army split up into three separate columns – one near the river; the other two about a mile and two miles inland, respectively.\nHowever, Kosciuszko built an L-shaped three-quarter-mile long line to the west, and another about two-thirds of a mile to the south and west, to hold off attacks from those directions, too.\nNone of this work began until Sept. 12, one week before the first battle.\n“He (Kosciuszko) wasn’t directly in the (battle) lines,” Valosin said. “But his fortifications, where and the way that he placed them, forced the British to abandon the direct route south.”\nBorn in February 1746, Kosciuszko came to America looking to gain experience and make a name for himself, which he unquestionably did. In Europe, he’s considered one of the Revolution’s greatest heroes, perhaps second only to George Washington.\nAfter the war, he helped lead an insurrection against the Russian occupation of Poland.\nIn August 1797, still suffering from battle wounds during the insurrection, he came back to the U.S. and lived in Philadelphia. That historic home is now the smallest site, one fifth of an acre, in the entire National Park system.\nThe next spring, Kosciuszko left Philadelphia for France. He dreamed of seeing a unified and free Poland, but Napoleon’s rise to power dashed those hopes. He spent the last two years of his life in Soleure, Switzerland where he died in 1817.\nRecently, there’s been some debate because of constantly changing European borders, about whether Kosciuszko was born in Poland, Lithuania or Belarus. Continued...\nRegardless, there is no question about his role as a hero during the American fight for independence.\nHis good friend Thomas Jefferson called him “as pure a son of liberty as I have ever known.”\nHotaling would like people to remember that during the course of their busy travels over the bridge that bears Kosciuszko’s name.\n“It’s one way we can show him the respect he deserves,” she said.\nSee inaccurate information in a story? Other feedback and/or ideas for us to consider? Tell us here.\nWhat should we investigate? Have a tip you want us to look into? Tell us here.\nLocation, ST | website.com\nNational News Videos\n- Police & Courts: May 19, 2013 (744)\n- Corinth woman dead, two injured in Lake Luzerne crash (698)\n- Saratoga Springs Democratic Committee endorses slate of candidates (342)\n- Skidmore College's Class of 2013 celebrates commencement (278)\n- Public to vote Tuesday on Saratoga Springs City School District's proposed $113 million budget, choose board of education members (267)\n- High school athletes, coaches survive respective budget proposals (205)\n- Police & Courts: May 17, 2013 (177)\n- Creating jobs a goal for Wilton town board in 2010 (5)\n- PHOTOS: Saratoga Springs High School Prom 2013 (1)\n- Corinth woman dead, two injured in Lake Luzerne crash (1)\n- Saratoga Springs Democratic Committee endorses slate of candidates (1)\n- Saratoga Rowing Association takes 4 gold medals in early stages of championship regatta (1)\n- Skidmore College's Class of 2013 celebrates commencement (1)\nRecent Activity on Facebook\nBarbara Lombardo is the managing editor of The Saratogian.\nUpdates on Spa City and Saratoga County business news and trends.\nThis blog aims to supplement the daily coverage published online and in the paper.\nReporter Caitlin Morris offers insights into the issues affecting Saratoga County residents."}
{"text": "Stuttering: Risk Factors\nDuring an evaluation for Reference stuttering Opens New Window, a health professional will consider a child's risk factors to help find out whether the problem is temporary (normal disfluency) or likely to persist (developmental stuttering).\nRisk factors (things that increase risk) for stuttering include:Reference 1\n- Having a family member whose stuttering did not resolve on its own.\n- Being male. Boys are more likely than girls to keep stuttering.\n- The age that it starts. Children who start to stutter before age 3½ are more likely to outgrow it than children who start to stutter at an older age.\n- The amount of time that it's lasted. A child who has stuttered for at least 6 months may be less likely to outgrow it on his or her own. If it's lasted longer than 12 months, there's even less of a chance that a child will outgrow it on his or her own.\n- How clear the speech is. A child who speaks clearly with few, if any, speech errors may be more likely to outgrow stuttering than a child whose speech errors make him or her hard to understand.\n- Having speech irregularities that have lasted 18 months or more.\nUsually each risk factor taken individually is not significant. Rather, the strength of each risk factor and how many are present can help a health professional determine whether stuttering is likely to be a long-term problem.\n|By:||Reference Healthwise Staff||Last Revised: Reference August 7, 2012|\n|Medical Review:||Reference Susan C. Kim, MD - Pediatrics\nReference Louis Pellegrino, MD - Developmental Pediatrics"}
{"text": "My Child Has These Odd Behaviors!\nAutism in Children with Down Syndrome\nby Cyndi Ringoen\nAustin’s parents have taken him to the doctor. They have a few concerns to discuss. Austin rejects hugs and kisses from them; he won’t leave his shirt on; he screams every time his mom needs to vacuum the house; he sits for hours by himself quietly humming while lining up cars in a neat row. The doctor observes the child in front of him. Austin won’t make eye contact. He isn’t responding to directions (seems almost not to hear), instead he is quietly sitting while continually flipping the pages of a book. “Ah hah!” thinks the doctor. His diagnosis is Autism.\nThere is a small, but consistent and significant portion of children with Down syndrome who also become labeled as autistic. Once parents have come to terms with the diagnosis of Down syndrome and all it entails, the addition of yet another label, another set of obstacles often becomes overwhelming. In this article I hope to provide families with demystifying information regarding the label of “autistic,” proactive observation techniques to detect autistic-like or sensory behaviors, and practical ideas for eliminating the behaviors.\n|Understanding the Autism Label||What Parents Should Look For|\n|What Can a Parent Do?||Conclusion|\nThe label of “autistic,” whether for a person with Down syndrome or not, is a symptomatic label. This means you receive this label if you have a certain number of symptoms on a list. It is important to know that “autism” is not a disease that you can take a blood test or x-ray to detect. What I see in my work with children and families is that many doctors throw around this label rather haphazardly because of a few symptoms. Having the label or not having the label doesn’t change the fact that the family is dealing with a number of behaviors and symptoms that need to be addressed. The earlier that parents can identify and eliminate the symptoms, the better the chance of the child developing without autistic-like behaviors.\nAutism is basically a dysfunction of the sensory channels. This means that some senses are hyperactive (over active) and some are hypoactive (under active). Because of this there are atypical responses to different stimuli. We have five main sensory channels and each of them may be affected with hyper- or hyposensitivities.\nSound. For example, it is common for those affected with autism to be hypersensitive to sound. Sound can actually cause pain and discomfort. Parents may notice the following: covering of ears with hands to block out the sound, extremely negative behavior in certain locations, physical withdrawal or auditory shut down in noisy environments, inconsolable crying that only stops when the child is removed from the noise, or hearing and reacting to sounds before others can even perceive them. If the sounds are too uncomfortable the child will learn to totally turn off the hearing and then cease to make progress in speech and language development—sometimes almost appearing deaf. Often when a person is hypersensitive to certain sounds there are other sounds to which they are hyposensitive, or that they do not process at all. This greatly affects speech, as it is the ability to hear and process tones well that culminates in the ability to produce sound and speech effectively. To onlookers this behavior appears strange and inappropriate but most people would react the same way if they were dealing with auditory hypersensitivity. The solution is to address the problem of the hypersensitivity to sound. Then the “strange” behavior will dissipate.\nTouch. Touch, or tactility (the ability to interpret tactile input) can be oversensitive causing withdrawal or reactions to deep touch (hugs) or light touch (tickling, tags, clothing material), discomfort with haircuts or hair combing, aversion to water at certain temperatures, aversions to textures—both on the skin and in the mouth, or overactive gag reflex. Tactility can be hyposensitive, meaning the brain doesn’t even acknowledge that something has touched the body. Instead of overreaction there is a lack of reaction. Parents may notice falling and bruising without the normal response, lack of response to hot and cold, lack of ticklish response, and lack of mouth response to hot and cold.\nSmell. Hypersensitivity to odors can cause odd behaviors such as hand sniffing, object and person sniffing, aversion to food odors causing gagging or rejection of food. Hyposensitivity to odor can cause problems with lack of motivation to eat, and inability to distinguish between edible and inedible objects.\nTaste. Hypersensitivity to taste can cause gagging or rejection of food. Hyposensitivity to taste can cause lack of motivation to eat, and inability to distinguish between edible and inedible objects. Problems with appropriate sensory information for odors and smell can cause serious eating difficulties.\nSight. We have two main types of vision, peripheral and macular/central. Peripheral vision picks up on edges and motion. Central or macular vision is what we use to learn with, we see details with it, we are able to line up rows and columns, and clearly distinguish letter, numbers, words etc. When a person has overdeveloped or hyperperipheral vision they attend to “odd” things–things which have edges and movement: dangling strings, fans, open and shutting doors/drawers, edges of walls, and often their hands and fingers. Underdeveloped macular vision or hypomacular vision causes difficulties such as lack of eye contact, lack of interest in pictures, books, and television.\nPersons diagnosed with “autism” have a combination of the above sensory dysfunctions. One of the most common profiles I find in a person labeled autistic is: hypersensitive to light touch, hyposensitive to deep touch, hyperauditory, hyperperipheral vision and hypomacular vision. Austin, described above, has this set of dysfunctions. This type of person is not receiving information in the same way as you and I, and therefore, is not responding to stimuli in their environment as you and I would.\nThe most likely reason a child with Down syndrome would begin to be labeled “autistic” is because of something called “sensory play.” Sensory stimulation, self-stimulation behaviors, self-stim, and sensory play are all terms referring to the same type of actions. They are behaviors that a child engages in that are “odd,” repetitive, sometimes obsessive, but they are all inputting information into the “broken” sensory channel. This is so negative because it reinforces what is already wrong. Sensory play does more than just stop the positive development for the moment. It seems to create endorphins in the brain. Endorphins produce happy feelings. As the child engages in sensory play he wants to do it more and more; he craves it; and often it can become an addiction.\nThere are many, many types and variations of sensory play. A majority of sensory play is visual, often stimulating the peripheral vision. But sensory play can also be auditory or tactile, too. Following is a list of some common sensory play activities:\n|Repeatedly opening and shutting doors or drawers, flipping pages of books, flipping books or toys, flicking toys with fingertips, wiggling fingers in front of face, wiggling fingers at side of face, hand flapping, holding toys to the side of face and shaking, twirling or shaking strings and ropes, nose up to the TV, watching TV sideways, spinning wheels of cars, spinning toys, spinning self, head shaking, rocking, continuous humming, echolalia (repeating videos, ads, or conversation but not communicating), hand wringing, excessive touching/sweeping with fingertips, wall walking, non-language repetitive auditory sounds, banging, pounding, tongue sucking, tongue play, excessive picking of their own skin, pacing/walking in patterns or circles, lining up toys.|\nThis is not meant to be a complete list, but rather a general description that may help parents when observing the behavior of their children. Most of these activities are not inappropriate in and of themselves. Some are even developmentally appropriate at certain stages. They become inappropriate and turn into sensory play when they are done repeatedly or obsessively. I have found that parents usually are very good judges of what might be potential sensory play. If I point out some behavior that they should try to eliminate, they often confess that they had a funny feeling about it, or thought it wasn’t positive.\nAs the child spends more time in sensory play they are undoing the positive developmental input that their parents or caregivers are trying to impart to them. Sensory play does more than just undo current input. It can actually cause significant regression in the developmental and cognitive ability of a child.\nOne of the most severe examples I ever assessed was a child who had a very involved family. They were spending a lot of time each day with him on his developmental progress. In addition, they were ensuring that he was supervised almost constantly so he could not engage in any type of sensory play. His short-term memory was growing; he was able to speak to me in short sentences; he was reading some words and he was very tuned in and following directions. I saw him about four months later. He was not following any directions; he was totally tuned out, engaging in sensory play constantly. His short-term memory had regressed by two to three years, and he wasn’t able to communicate at all with me.\nWhat happened during the four months to cause this? His mother had given birth to a baby who was understandably taking up much of the family’s time and energy. The older child was then left to engage in sensory play as much as desired for four months. No blame should be put on the family. They were dealing with a real life situation. But this situation illustrates the extreme urgency and importance of stopping any and all sensory play so that a child’s development will continue progressing in a positive manner.\nMy suggestion is for parents to become expert observers of their children’s play. If you notice some of the above-mentioned repetitive behaviors, try to immediately distract and redirect the child’s attention to something more appropriate. Changing this behavior at the beginning is relatively easy compared to the task of trying to change it after it becomes addictive and obsessive. Along with eliminating the sensory play, it is of the utmost importance to have a neurodevelopmental evaluation of the child, which can then pinpoint any sensory dysfunctions and provide you with specific methods of stimulation and activities to normalize the sensory channels. This will offer you the very best possibility of eliminating the “autistic” symptoms, thereby providing your child with the best possible opportunities for continuing in their development.\nNormalizing the sensory channels is part of the plan for anyone with sensory dysfunction. What follows are some quick, general ideas regarding appropriate sensory input for helping children develop optimally.\nHearing. I suggest the use of Samonas Sound Therapy, which has a proven track record in reducing sound sensitivities. It can also help normalize the hearing of any frequencies that the child is not hearing well. Used correctly, Samonas or Sonas Therapy should be done very gently with short durations for optimal results. In addition, parents can provide lots of good quality auditory input—reading stories to the child, the child listening to stories on tape, talking face to face to the child.\nTouch. Parents can provide tactile input to their child for a few minutes several times a day. Provide deep pressure (squeezing), starting at the fingertips and working toward the shoulders and starting at the toes and squeezing up to the thighs. Deep pressure often calms children who display autistic-like symptoms. Give deep hugs (bear hugs) lots of times a day. You can also provide light touch with tickling (fingertips) or a feather on the limbs.\nSmell. Provide the child with the opportunity to smell a variety of pleasant odors, i.e. orange oil, peppermint, coffee grounds. Provide the input for a few minutes, several times a day.\nTaste. Allow opportunity to taste sweet, sour and salty tastes to stimulate the taste buds. Use only minute amounts for a child that is hypersensitive to taste. Provide the input for a few minutes, several times a day.\nVision. Provide lots of opportunity to develop good central/macular vision. Talk face to face as much as possible. Play catch; pop bubbles. Practice visual tracking by holding small toy away from face and moving it slowly side to side and up and down for child to follow. Discourage inappropriate use of peripheral vision (described above as sensory play). High interest television and videos, if monitored by parents, can be used to help develop central vision. The child must sit at least three feet away and be looking directly at the TV, and not out of the corner of the eyes. Looking at books and picture cards is also a positive visual stimulation exercise.\nStopping Sensory Play. By far the most important thing you can do for a child with autistic behaviors is to stop all the sensory play and spend as much one-on-one time with them as possible. If you detect sensory play early, then all you need to do is to distract and redirect the child’s activity and it will not likely develop into anything more serious. However, if you are the parent of an older child who has done some of these behaviors on a consistent basis your job will be more difficult. By structuring the child’s down time so that someone is with them, interacting and playing with them, you will reduce the sensory play because there will be less time for the child to engage in it. Sometimes it means removal of certain types of toys that seem to increase the sensory play.\nInputting the appropriate information to the sensory channels will help the child to gradually become interested in their environment in a more typical way. Stopping sensory play in a child for whom it has become a way of life is difficult. But usually this only lasts a certain amount of time, until the “addiction” quality wears off from lack of stimulation. As the sensory play decreases, the parents start to enjoy interacting with and discovering a new side of their child—a child who is more “tuned in,” less withdrawn, more interactive, and easier to teach.\nAutism is just a word. It is a word for a group of symptoms. If your child acquires the “autistic” label or begins to display sensory dysfunctions, you will need to address each of the individual issues. The good news is sensory problems respond very well to intervention, thereby eliminating the original symptoms.\nCyndi Ringoen is a certified neuro-developmentalist who writes individual, home-based educational programs for parents to do with their children. Her expertise covers a range of disabilities and “labels” including Down syndrome and autism. As a mother and foster mother of many children with disabilities over the years, she has conducted neurodevelopmental programs in her own home with her children. She is a founding member of ICAN, an association of neuro-developmentalists, and through ICAN can refer parents to a neurodevelopmental practice near their home."}
{"text": "Major depression and other mood disorders account for a substantial proportion of medical disabilities in the United States. They can also worsen the outcome of other medical disorders, including diabetes, heart disease and cancer.\nThis has led Washington University physicians to practice and develop new and more effective treatments for this devastating disorder, focusing on the use of brain stimulation methods.\nThese include electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), a core treatment for severe and refractory mood disorders.\nResearchers are developing new methods for use of vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), two novel approaches that have received FDA approval in recent years. Several physicians also have expertise in deep brain stimulation (DBS), a form of treatment that is in its infancy as a tool for treating highly refractory psychiatric disorders.\nRepetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS): Brain activity is triggered through weak electric currents, changing the excitability of corticospinal and corticocortial pathways."}
{"text": "Cyber Bullying Leaflet Launch\nSue Ball Consultant for BRAG and Parents from Nechells Parents Forum launched a leaflet of advice for parents and carers about how to prevent and tackle cyber-bullying. Cyber-bullies use the internet, mobile phones or any other form of digital technology to threaten, tease or abuse someone.\nThis useful resource, produced by Birmingham City Council’s Young People and Families Directorate, in association with Nechells Parents Forum and the POD, helps parents understand how to be cyber-safe, how to spot the signs if their child is a victim of or an instigator of cyber-bullying and what steps to take to stop it. The leaflet provides useful, practical advice with local and national contacts for further support and guidance.\nThe launch took place at Nechells Zone Olympics at the Alexander Stadium on June 15th Noran Flynn, Director of the POD, and organiser of the Olympics Event said “Nechells parents are keen to support their children at our Olympics, and promote the values of respect, excellence and friendship. They are also very concerned about the rise in cyber-bullying and have worked hard, with Birmingham’s Bullying Reduction Action Group (BRAG) to produce this leaflet to help parents across Birmingham deal with cyber-bullying and keep their children safe”\nHow to tackle cyber-bullying:\nNew technologies are amazing. Mobile phones, smart phones, the internet and social networking slites like facebook allow us to keep in touch with our friends and family more easily and to have access to a wide range of information on the world-wide web. They can help children with their learning, prepare them for life in a technological world and improve their communication skills.\nBut as well as the positives, we all know that there are some negatives and that cyber-bullying is on the increase. Because many children and parents are worried about cyber-bullying Nechells Parents Forum have worked with Birmingham City Council’s Bullying Reduction Action Group (BRAG) to produce an advice leaflet for parents called How to Tackle Cyber-bullying.\nThis leaflet helps parents understand what cyber-bullying is, how to spot the signs if their child is a victim of or an instigator of cyber-bullying and what steps to take to stop it. It also gives useful, practical advice with local and national contacts for further support and guidance.\nSue Ball said “The Olympic values of respect, excellence and friendship are important to us all. Thank you to the POD and all the members of Nechells Parents Forum, who helped to create this leaflet. It gives great advice to parents and carers across Birmingham about how they can best help their children to lead happy and bully-free lives, build respectful friendships and stay safe from cyber-bullying.”\nFor more information about Anti-bullying work in Birmingham\nEvents This Month\nLatest Blog Posts\nTue, 14th May 13 at 4:00pm\nSome pupils from year 5 in our Nechells EAZ schools: Cromwell, Nechells, St Clement's, St Joseph's and St Vincent's all went to Aston University today for a day of fun, experiments, experiences and inspiration for their future careers. The young people learnt all about team work, had a tour of the campus and then became mini scientists extracting DNA from kiwi fruits. The Nechells Schools and their pupils would all like to say a big thank you to Bal and her team of student volunteers at Aston University for the opportunity they give every year to some our most Gifted and Talents pupils, they really enjoy this fantastic experience, we hope that our pupils will all continue to study hard and in time become the graduates of the future."}
{"text": "There are many interactions between fisheries, including aquaculture and capture fisheries as well as their intermediate forms in freshwater and marine environments, and other uses of the aquatic systems such as agriculture, flood control, power generation, tourism, mining, transportation, land development (e.g. housing), and urban and industrial effluent disposal.\nSynergistic interactions between fisheries and agriculture are primarily derived from the recycling of livestock or farming wastes and nutrients and optimal use of scarce land and water resources. In aquaculture, the active search for synergies has led to a number of development and management concepts such as Integrated Agriculture-Aquaculture (IAA), Integrated Irrigation-Aquaculture (IIA), as well as to livestock-fish or rice- fish production systems. These synergies have been enhanced by improving the use of water and reducing agricultural impacts on aquatic systems, e.g. through the Integrated Pest Management concept (IPM). These improvements have been beneficial in improving water and fish quality and productivity. Unexpected synergies have also been detected in marine fisheries where the nutrients of continental origin (e.g. phosphates, nitrates), often a source of eutrophication and red tides, are believed to have increased productivity (e.g. in the Mediterranean and the North Sea).The development of reservoirs and other small-water bodies for agricultural and other purposes offers additional opportunities for both aquaculture, culture-based fisheries through stocking, and capture fisheries.\nAntagonistic interactions between agriculture and fisheries occur where these two sectors compete for the same kinds of resources, especially land and water, where rising productivity in one production system leads to reducing productivity in the other. For example, bad farming practices and deforestation impact on aquatic habitats and water resources - and therefore on fishery resources productivity and quality - through erosion, siltation, pollution and eutrophication (and red tides) resulting from excessive use of pesticides and fertilisers. Similarly, extensive saltwater or brackish water culture on coastal land areas affects the quality of soils (salinization, water logging) and the quality and level of the water table. Dams established for the purpose of irrigation, flood control or energy production impair fish migration and reproduction routes and change the qualitative nature of the habit which in turn influences the aquatic communities, e.g. changing species composition from riverine to lacustrine species. Efficiency in the use of water, primarily fresh water, and land resources is becoming of central importance to sustain increases in fisheries so as to provide for rural village communities and supply urban areas with the needed quantity, quality and variety of food. In many areas where human activities have rapidly expanded during the last decade, there is increasing pressure on limited land and water resources.\nThere are also interactions between capture fisheries and aquaculture. Development of aquaculture may adversely impact capture fisheries through habitat change associated with farming systems or impacts of introduced species. There is competition for space between the production systems; for habitat and resources between wild and farmed species; for the market between respective harvests and products; for wild seeds. Pollution from aquaculture may also be a problem. On the other hand, aquaculture may provide alternative employment in overexploited areas or additional resources for fishing through enhancement, and may be an important alternative source of fish for rural communities thus reducing the fishing pressure and helping in the rehabilitation of wild fish stocks.\nThe negative sides of these numerous interactions is progressively being recognised by Governments and industry and integrated management of natural resources is the strategy of choice to improve efficiency despite obvious implementation difficulties. The integrated management of watersheds, river basins and coastal areas (and of productive ecosystems in general) aims at managing sectoral components as parts of a functional whole. The overall objective of better integration between fisheries and other sectors in policy development and management is to maximize synergistic interactions and minimize antagonistic ones.\nAwareness of inter-sectoral dependencies, through the environment and the global economy, is rapidly rising, stimulated inter alia by growing media coverage of ecological catastrophes, advances in data processing and information technology, development of ecological economics, increased mobilisation of social forces through NGOs communications. The abilities of local communities to participate in information gathering, analysis, decision-making and enforcement is better recognised together with the need to involve them directly in decisions regarding common property resource use. All of this has created favourable conditions to fully realize the benefits of better integration between fisheries and agriculture as well as of these sectors with the rest of the economy.\nNumerous difficulties remain on the way towards better integration. Among these:\n- the technical difficulty of integrated development planning;\n- the political and economic difficulty of an equitable allocation of resources;\n- the organisation of a balanced leadership of the interaction between sectors;\n- the decentralisation of rights and responsibilities;\n- the development of the human resources necessary for effective decentralisation;\n- the cost of better understanding of the ecosystems functioning and resilience;\n- the application of the precautionary approach when information is lacking;\n- the development of integrated indicators of sustainability."}
{"text": "From a hotel room in Vancouver, Krista and Diamond discuss education, cognitive neuroscience, the importance of play, and more\nWhat Adele Diamond is learning about the brain challenges basic assumptions in modern education. Her work is scientifically illustrating the educational power of things like play, sports, music, memorization and reflection. What nourishes the human spirit, the whole person, it turns out, also hones our minds.\nAn improvisational storytelling class of 5th and 6th graders draw on Adele Diamond's educational philosophy and demonstrate three important executive functions.\nPertinent Posts from the On Being Blog\nPrevious \"On Being\" guest, Adele Diamond, tells a story about meeting the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala, India at a Mind and Life Institute dialogue. We highlight some of the passages Adele Diamond presented to the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala — including texts from Rabbi Heschel, Bashevis Singer, Rachel Naomi Remen, and Henri Nouwen.\nA bit of the backdrop for producing a slideshow about executive function.\nKaren Armstrong prefers Hillel's version; Adele Diamond prefers Jesus' variation. Both take away a call to action. Hear them both.\nA New York Times article features Adele Diamond's work the weekend before our interview.\nAbout the Image\nVoices on the Radio\nHost/Producer: Krista Tippett\nManaging Producer: Kate Moos\nAssociate Producer: Nancy Rosenbaum\nAssociate Producer: Shubha Bala\nTechnical Director/Producer: Chris Heagle\nSenior Editor: Trent Gilliss\nAssociate Web Developer: Anne Breckbill\nA renowned Tibetan Buddhist teacher shares his thoughts on the meaning of happiness, and how he understands spirituality as \"contemplative science.\"\nStuart Brown, a physician and director of the National Institute for Play, says that pleasurable, purposeless activity prevents violence and promotes trust, empathy, and adaptability to life's complication. He promotes cutting-edge science on human play, and draws on a rich universe of study of intelligent social animals."}
{"text": "Indigenous Websites:Information Networks\nIndigenous Websites: Opinion\nAborigines Milton- Ulladulla region\nProduced in consultation with the Kupa Piti Kungka Tjuta, the Senior Aboriginal\nWomen from Coober Pedy, South Australia. Documents their knowledge of atomic\ntests in the 1950's and 60's and their continued struggle against the proposed\nwaste dump in their traditional lands.\nfor Native Title and Reconciliation; their site has some great information,\nand things you can join in on, - the Sea of Hands etc.\nEvents, newsletters, competitions and more, organised by ANTaR and Lets\nTalk, all for the purpose of reconciliation.\nAustralia National reconciliation\nbody with partners in each State - includes archives of the old Council\nsign in if you still want to say sorry...\nNative Title Another group doing things,\nincluding the Sorry Books, Sea of Hands, and Fax Direct.\nNational Public Discussion - Native Title and Reconciliation .\nMedia Coverage of Indigenous Issues:\nABC Indigenous Online\nNATIONS) RECENT PRESS RELEASES Committee on the Elimination of Racial\nDiscrimination - in particular covering UN\ncomments on Australia's racism.\nThe Koori Mail\nExcellent coverage of current Indigenous issues. It is a newspaper,\nso students needing published articles: this is for YOU!\nAustralian Native Title Documents\nWorld Indigenous Links:\nback to AAR Homepage\ntext marked up by Sarah\nlast updated 12th Feb 2006\nBegun February 1996."}
{"text": "Over the top of the atomic stitch is the main song line, and these patterns are recognized holistically by the shaman as the main identifying characteristic of the corresponding icaro. When I observed the shamans singing a cloth, they would trace their index finger along this main song line pattern, the melody rising or descending in general accordance with the rise and fall of the line. Again we see the visual metaphor of the shamanic staircase, represented as a descending song line.\nAlong the main song line itself and at various points of intersection along its path, can be seen the beautiful geometric designs called the floras. These flowers represent turning points where the song may take a new direction, such as a new verse or chorus. According to Herlinda, it is also the point where new life is born into the cosmos.\nThe colors of these flowers have significance as well, and they are woven in eight colors; black and white as the base colors of the cloth and primary stitch patterns; red corresponding with blood, childbirth, and the historical conflict between the Amazonian tribes; yellow for sunlight; green for the jungle; and blue for the rivers and lakes. Other colors include purple and orange their significance is not yet known.\n*Source: \"Woven Songs Of The Amazon\" (Icaros and Weavings of The Shipibo Shamans) by Barrett H. Martin\nWrite Your Own Review\nShipibo-Conibo, Village of San Francisco, Amazon, Peru\nThe Shipibo are one of 14 indigenous tribes living in the Amazon basin in Peru and at present consist of around 35,000 people living in over 300 villages in the Pucallpa area situated mainly along the Rio Ucayali. They believe that the universe was sung into being by a giant anaconda, and as she sang, the patterns of her skin covered the universe. The intricate weavings created for centuries by the Shipibo are an ornate representation of the serpent's skin and, at the same time, are the actual, written music for the songs (icaros). Traditionally, the knowledge of the weaving patterns and songs has been passed down through the women, but due to the recent presence of western influences on the younger generations of women, these traditions are rapidly being lost.\nThe textile you see here is from the family of the late Herlinda Augustine and other women of the village of San Francisco. Herlinda Fernandez Augustine was one of a few Shipibo-Conibo indigenous woman healers – onaya or auahuasca shaman, whose life work is a unique repertoire of ancient songs (called icaros) which she uses to affect healing of her people and change in the world around her. Her songs speak of the power of plants and the importance of harmony between Man and Nature. She was featured in the award winning documentary film by Anna Stevens and her icaros are featured in a CD by the same name. Herlinda is survived by her husband Enrique, mother Manuela, daughter Magdalena and son Henry.\nView other products from Herlinda"}
{"text": "Some folks laugh at the notion of Uncle Sam reaching his hand literally into our backyards and regulating almost every drop of water. But, a bill in Congress would do just that. And if it passes, not just farmers and ranchers would be affected, but all landowners.\nThe Clean Water Restoration Act, or S. 787, gives the government the right to extend its reach to any body of water from farm ponds, to storm water retention basins, to roadside ditches, to desert washes, even to streets and gutters. The legislation leaves no water unregulated and could even impact standing rainwater in a dry area.\nPrivate property owners beware.\nWhile it has \"restoration\" in its title, it does anything but. The Clean Water Restoration Act is not a restoration of the Clean Water Act at all. It is a means for activists to remove any bounds from the scope of Clean Water Act jurisdiction to extend the government's regulatory reach. But, what the activists won't tell you is that the Clean Water Act is working, and has been for the last 36 years.\nPut simply, this legislation would replace the term \"navigable waters\" from the Clean Water Act with \"all interstate and intrastate waters.\" Farm Bureau supports the protection of U.S. navigable waters, as well as rivers and streams that flow to navigable waters -- all of which are already protected under current law. But, if the Clean Water Act is applied to all waters, farmers and ranchers would be significantly impacted due the number of farming activities that would require permits.\nUnder this new law, areas that contain water only during a rain would be subject to full federal regulation. Further, not only would many areas not previously regulated require federal permits, those permits would be subject to challenge in federal court, delaying or halting these activities resulting in a huge impact on rural economies.\nFarmers and ranchers do a good job taking care of the land. As I often say, they are America's first environmentalists. They use modern conservation practices to protect our nation's water supplies. Many times these efforts are put in place voluntarily because farmers are driven by a strong stewardship ethic.\nHowever, the restoration bill largely disregards the positive conservation role farmers and ranchers are playing. It replaces good works with strict rules. Rather than restore the Clean Water Act, it just brings a new truckload of restrictions for the people who do most to protect our water.\nThe Clean Water Restoration Act is regulatory overkill. It is written to give the federal government control of structures such as drainage ditches, which are only wet after rainfall. Taking these changes one step further, it would likely give federal regulators the ability to control everyday farming activities in adjacent fields.\nHard-working farm families can't afford, nor do they deserve, Uncle Sam's hand reaching into their backyards, their fields or even their puddles of rainwater.\nBob Stallman is president of the American Farm Bureau Federation."}
{"text": "Encyclopedia of Southern Jewish Communities\nHistory of Congregation B'nai Israel, Little Rock\nB’nai Israel congregation was first organized at the close of the Civil War, as increasing numbes of Jewish merchants and businessmen settled in Little Rock. In the summer of 1866, residents raised money to purchase a Torah scroll and ram’s horn for the upcoming High Holy Day services. Originally called the Little Rock Congregation, the group formally incorporated as B’nai Israel in 1867 and elected Morris Navra as its first president. Samuel Peck joined the congregation as a spiritual leader the following year. Many early congregants were adherents to Reform Judaism, and in accordance with the practices of some Reform congregations at the time, they referred to their leader as Reverend Samuel Peck. B’nai Israel was one of the founding members of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, now the Union for Reform Judaism.\nThe group met in a small room on East Markham Street during its early years. The single room was officially dedicated on July 13, 1867. Soon, the young congregation began to work toward to building a suitable synagogue. In 1869, they purchased land on Center Street. In 1871, they laid the cornerstone for their first building. The congregation hosted a benefit ball to raise funds for a temple at 304 Center Street, which was dedicated in September of 1872. That same year, the congregation acquired land for a cemetery. Congregants also established a Sabbath School called Talmud Yelodim. The school enrolled 69 students in the first six months and began holding confirmation classes the following year. B’nai Israel also offered other communal organizations, including a Temple choir and a Board of Relief established to care for Jewish burials and illnesses. Rabbi Jacob Block served B’nai Israel from 1872 to 1880.\nDisagreements about religious observances and liturgy led to a rift in the 1870s as the Jewish community of Little Rock began to divine along denominational lines. After disagreements over religious observances and liturgy, a group of more traditional members left to establish a separate Orthodox service. In time, this group evolved into the congregation Agudat Achim.\nDuring this same period, B’nai Israel was finding it hard to keep a rabbi in Little Rock. From 1881 to 1891, they had three different rabbis, and went over a year without a full-time rabbi. Rabbi Charles Rubenstein came in 1891, and stayed for six years, playing a leading role in convincing the congregation to build a new home.\nThe increasing arrivals of Jewish newcomers to Little Rock swelled the congregation’s ranks. By the close of the 1800s, B’nai Israel had nearly 200 members and had outgrown the Center Street Temple. In 1897 the congregation erected a large ornate structure on the corners of Broadway and Capitol Streets. The magnificent yellow-bricked edifice bore a Byzantine-inspired dome capping a Romanesque tower as well as tall Gothic windows and spires. The interior, designed to seat up to 700, incorporated elements of Grecian and Roman theater architecture.\nRabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, founder of the UAHC, dedicated the new temple on May 9, 1897. Rabbis from Memphis, Camden, Pine Bluff, and Fort Smith were also part of the dedication ceremony. The congregation continued to grow under a series of capable and popular rabbis trained at Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati. Under the leadership of Rabbi Louis Wolsey, who served from 1899 to 1907, the congregation was so successful that in 1907 the temple was enlarged to accommodate the new members. That same year, B’nai Israel had 220 member families, and an annual income of over $7000. They had 156 students in their weekly religious school. A Ladies Temple Aid Society had been founded in 1903, and boasted 170 members by 1907. B’nai Israel grew over the next decade, and by 1917 it had 300 members.\nThe pulpit at B’nai Israel continued to experience high turnover during the first quarter of the 20th century. Rabbi Louis Witt had the longest tenure, serving from 1907 to 1919. In 1926, Rabbi Ira Sanders assumed the pulpit at B’nai Israel. He had formerly served as associate Rabbi at a large, cosmopolitan synagogue in New York. On Decoration Day of that year (now called Memorial Day), Sanders gave a speech titled: “Why the North and the South Should Meet Together.” Members of the Little Rock community happened to be in the audience, and they were so impressed that they enticed Sanders to accept the rabbinate at B’nai Israel. Sanders agreed and served as the beloved rabbi of B’nai Israel for the next 37 years. The days of the revolving door rabbis were over, another sign in the development of B’nai Israel.\nDuring the Civil Rights era, Sanders was an eloquent and vociferous advocate of integration, at a time when many of his congregants avoided the subject for fear of reprisals. The late 1950s saw a spate of synagogue bombings across the south, and in October of 1958 Sanders received a threat that B’nai Israel would be bombed the following Friday eve. Rabbi Groner of Agudat Achim received a similar threat. Sanders decided to proceed with services, and that Shabbat undoubtedly became one of great joy for the Jewish community when the appointed hour passed without incident.\nThe congregation flourished under Sanders inspired leadership. The physical structure continued to expand, adding an education wing in 1949, a memorial library and an art gallery. The Temple was remodeled in 1953 and 1954, and the congregation continued to see strong attendance even as the Jewish population dwindled in smaller Arkansas towns. Rabbi Sanders retired in 1963 and assumed the role of Rabbi Emeritus, a role he served until his passing in 1985. His replacement as the congregation leader, Rabbi Elijah E. Palnick, maintained Sanders legacy of supporting civil rights and facilitating dialogue between Little Rock residents of diverse religious and racial backgrounds. Palnick was followed by Rabbi Eugene Levy, who has led B’nai Israel since 1987.\nIn 1975, congregants made the difficult decision to leave their building and build a new temple in West Little Rock. Many of the furnishings and even edifice stones from the old temple were lovingly preserved. The spacious, modern structure better served the community’s needs, and today the congregation continues to offer a complete range of educational, religious and social programming."}
{"text": "Nestled in a quiet residential neighborhood in Long Beach, Calif., are 4.7 acres of Spanish, Mexican and American history, where families helped transform southern California from its ranching beginnings to a modern, urban society.\nRancho Los Cerritos includes an 1844 adobe building, formal gardens and landscaped grounds. It is a national, state and local landmark, owned and operated by the city as a public museum and historic site since 1955.\nAs the country’s economic crisis works its way to the regional and local municipal forefront, the Rancho has found itself on the list for possible budget cuts. It begs the question, “Can one put a price on historic culture?”\nWhile the answer seems obvious, the reality from a fiscal viewpoint is that this rare community treasure does not sustain itself financially.\nFrom The Start\nThe original Rancho site was 27,000 acres of pastures for cattle and sheep that, starting in the late 19th century, gave way to development of the cities of Long Beach, Lakewood, Signal Hill, Bellflower and Paramount.\nThe site boasts a two-story adobe building with 22 ground-floor rooms and a serene central courtyard. It possesses outstanding potential for an interpretation of historical themes, beginning with the period of Native American occupation and continuing through the romanticized Spanish Colonial Revival Period of the 1920s and 1930s. The rich artisan materials of the area are present throughout the building. The 2- to 3-foot thick walls tell the story of the Native Americans who made adobe blocks using mud from the site. The beams were hand-hewn redwood from the Monterey area, and a majority of the rooms in the east wing contained redwood planked floors.\nThe construction of the ranch house began in 1844 by then-owner John Temple. The building was one of the largest and most impressive domestic adobes of its time for colonial Southern California, and its extensive gardens were unique for the time period. Temple built the ranch house as a country home and headquarters for his cattle-ranching operation. Its second owners, Flint, Bixby & Co., stocked the land with sheep. During the 19th century, horses, carriages and buggies were saddled and prepared in the courtyard. There were troughs and hitching posts, and blacksmithing and cooking facilities.\nThe ”milk room” opened onto a second courtyard north of the house, and contained rows of shining pans filled with cream both for churning and for the table–“clotted cream, thick enough to spread with a knife upon hot baking-powder biscuits, or a steaming baked potato.” Other original buildings on the site were a barn, corn crib, adobe brick oven, wool barn, a dip for the sheep after they had been sheared, a sheep barn and a granary. The large, 2-acre garden planted by Temple appeared to be a mixture of New England and subtropical influences.\nIn 1930, the well-known landscape architect, Ralph Cornell, created a garden plan for the new owners of Rancho Los Cerritos. He incorporated native plants, preserved many of the trees and plants surviving from previous owners, and reintroduced some plant species from the 19th-century garden. Surviving landscape elements included an osage orange, three pomegranate, two citrus, two olive and three Italian cypress trees. Several black locust trees also survived, along with a large Moreton Bay fig.\nCornell’s overall plan called for a sweeping driveway for the southern entrance and western boundary, bordered by curving layers of trees and shrubs. Outside the south wing, he planted a grid of both familiar and exotic fruit trees. A central lawn surrounded the Moreton Bay fig, bordered by trees and shrubs along a walkway. Through his use of rich materials and plantings, Cornell created a pleasant garden atmosphere to surround the remodeled living quarters. Even today, over 80 years after he created the gardens, many of the historic plantings are still alive and well.\nA Red-Carpet Reputation\nIn March 1934, a Historic American Building Survey was made of Rancho Los Cerritos. Three years later, it was designated by the Department of the Interior as possessing “Exceptional historic or architectural interest,” being “most worthy of careful preservation for the benefit of future generations.”\nIn 1943, the city began working to acquire the Rancho as a historic site. The city opened a museum, and completed the purchase in 1956 for use as a historical monument, park and library. Rancho Los Cerritos was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1970.\nPresently, the city administers the Rancho through the Department of Parks, Recreation and Marine. The city holds title to the site and provides the entire funding for its operations. The Friends of Rancho Los Cerritos is a volunteer support group, which assists the site with its programming, and supports the educational and preservation mission. The Rancho Los Cerritos Foundation, a non-profit arm of the organization, was established in 1994, and is tasked with fundraising and development for restoration, capital projects and educational enhancements.\nAs the city faces a looming $52-million budget deficit next year, policymakers will be faced with difficult decisions. What public programs and services can be eliminated with the least impact? With public health and safety as a priority, fire, police and health services should take precedence.\nLibraries and parks are further down the list. How important are the cultural and historic resources to overall city operations and function? Many say these resources are “optional” and not core services.\nIn 2007 and 2008, Rancho Los Cerritos raised $37,700 in revenue from programs, donations and gift-shop sales. The operational cost has a $467,000 price tag, subsidized by the city. Can the city afford to keep the site open during a financial crisis?\nThese are extraordinary times. Numbers on a spreadsheet tell a very different story than the one that is tangible at the Rancho. Translation is lost between profit and loss statements and the general atmosphere of the site.\nGazing at the magnificence of the 130-year-old Moreton Bay fig that sits on the back lawn area of the Rancho, one wonders about the Native Americans, the families and visitors who have enjoyed its grandeur and elegance over the centuries. This place, which represents a lifestyle reminiscent of the earlier tranquil days of ranch living. This place, where the owners entertained guests and played bridge after Sunday dinner, lit the large, two-story Christmas tree with real candles, and was the site of the annual Easter-egg hunt.\nThese were real experiences, of real people. It is the story of many generations from all walks of life–entrepreneurial businessmen, close-knit families, people who helped shape the community and region. Theirs are stories about land and economic development, cultural diversity and the growth of the city. And if there remains no choice but to close down this historic landmark, what is in store for this tree and these buildings that have survived and been a part of so much?\nDespite the engaging history of Rancho Los Cerritos, these modern times force us to deal with funding realities.\nRancho Los Cerritos will soon turn a new page in its history book. One can only hope that the vivid memories can be kept alive through continued education about this neighborhood jewel, and a bookmark will steadfastly remain in its place until we are again able to forge ahead in better times.\nSandra Gonzalez, FASLA, is the manager for the Planning & Development Bureau for the city of Long Beach’s Parks, Recreation and Marine Department. She can be reached via e-mail at email@example.com"}
{"text": "OLMOS CREEK (UVALDE COUNTY)\nOLMOS CREEK (Uvalde County). Olmos Creek rises (at 29°08' N, 100°04' W) in far southwestern Uvalde County two miles southeast of Dabney and runs south for twelve miles to its mouth (at 29°01' N, 100°04' W) on Muela Creek, fourteen miles northwest of La Pryor in northwestern Zavala County. The creek name is Spanish for \"elm trees.\" The stream rises in flat to gently sloping terrain with local depressions or sinkholes; the land here is surfaced by very shallow to shallow and stony clays and loams that support scrub brush and grasses. The creek continues through low-rolling hills and prairie with deeper clayey and loamy soils that support chaparral, some mesquite, and grasses. Toward the mouth of Olmos Creek the terrain becomes low relief, surfaced by deep loams and clays that support pecans and other hardwoods and various grasses.\nThe following, adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this article.\"OLMOS CREEK (UVALDE COUNTY),\" Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/rbo19), accessed June 19, 2013. Published by the Texas State Historical Association."}
{"text": "Researchers at the EMBL-European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI) have created a way to store data in the form of DNA a material that lasts for tens of thousands of years. The new method, published today in the journal Nature, makes it possible to store at least 100 million hours of high-definition video in about a cup of DNA.\nThere is a lot of digital information in the world about three zettabytes' worth (that's 3000 billion billion bytes) and the constant influx of new digital content poses a real challenge for archivists. Hard disks are expensive and require a constant supply of electricity, while even the best 'no-power' archiving materials such as magnetic tape degrade within a decade. This is a growing problem in the life sciences, where massive volumes of data including DNA sequences make up the fabric of the scientific record.\n\"We already know that DNA is a robust way to store information because we can extract it from bones of woolly mammoths, which date back tens of thousands of years, and make sense of it,\" explains Nick Goldman of EMBL-EBI. \"It's also incredibly small, dense and does not need any power for storage, so shipping and keeping it is easy.\"\nReading DNA is fairly straightforward, but writing it has until now been a major hurdle to making DNA storage a reality. There are two challenges: first, using current methods it is only possible to manufacture DNA in short strings. Secondly, both writing and reading DNA are prone to errors, particularly when the same DNA letter is repeated. Nick Goldman and co-author Ewan Birney, Associate Director of EMBL-EBI, set out to create a code that overcomes both problems.\n\"We knew we needed to make a code using only short strings of DNA, and to do it in such a way that creating a run of the same letter would be impossible. So we figured, let's break up the code into lots of overlapping fragments going in both directions, with indexing information showing where each fragment be\n|Contact: Mary Todd-Bergman|\nEuropean Molecular Biology Laboratory"}
{"text": "In the above applet, there is a pull-down menu at the top to select which function you would like to explore.\nThe selected function is plotted in the left window and its derivative on the right.\n1. Exponential function with a fixed base\nThe initial example shows an exponential function with a base of k, a constant (initially 5 in the example). What does the derivative look like? It sort of looks like the original exponential function, but rising more steeply. Move the k slider around and notice what happens to the shape of the derivative.\nAre there some values of k for which the derivative rises less steeply than the original curve? What value of k makes the two curves look similar? You can get even closer to this magic value for k by setting x = 1 and then watching the value of f '(1) (shown in a box in the right hand graph) as you move the k slider. Since f (1) = k, when f ' (1) = k, the two curves are identical. Once you get close using the k slider, you can also fine tune the value of k using the left and right arrow keys on your keyboard. You should find that for k ≈ 2.718 the function and its derivative are the same. The exact answer is k = e. In fact, you can type \"e\" into the k input box to make the curves the same. So,\nWhat about when the base is a number other than e? It appears that the derivative is like the original exponential, but stretched or squished. In fact, that is what happens, and the shortcut is\n2. Exponential function with a base between 0 and 1\nWhat about for 0 < k < 1? Select the second example from the drop down menu. This is the same function, but now the k slider will let you select values from 0 to 5 (instead of just from 1 to 5, as in the previous example). What happens to the derivative curve? Why? What is the sign of the logarithm of a number between 0 and 1? The rule given above still works in this case."}
{"text": "By 2003, plenty of data suggested that pesticide drift was harming communities, but the pesticide industry and regulators refused to act.\nFor 20 years, the California Air Resources Board had been conducting experiments, looking for pesticides in the air around fields sprayed with pesticides. They found them. In 2003, PAN pulled together and analyzed this information in a breakthrough report, Secondhand Pesticides. We found that many pesticides remained in the air near fields at high levels for hours, or even days after application. Anyone in the vicinity of such applications faced exposure.\nSept. 9, 2008 Drift Catcher selected as 2008 Tech Awards Laureate by the Tech Museum of Innovation\nPAN's air monitoring device, invented by chemist and senior scientist Dr. Susan Kegley, was designated a 2008 Tech Awards Laureate, one of 25 global innovations recognized each year for applying technology to benefit humanity and spark global change.\nThe Tech Awards, a signature program of The Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose, California, selected the Drift Catcher from among hundreds of nominations representing 68 countries, for \"empowering communities for health and sustainability\" to measure concentrations of hazardous pesticides as evidence to prevent exposure to pesticide drift.\nIn over 20 years of our own direct field work with agricultural communities, PAN's international network had heard countless stories about how drift-affected communities had come to expect illness, nausea, rashes, and worse in the hours and days after fields had been sprayed. So, with communities across the country asking us to do something about drift, we invented the an air monitoring system we call the \"Drift Catcher.\" It's affordable, robust and based on the same technology used by the California Air Resources Board in its studies.\nThe big idea? Put the tools necessary to prove pesticide drift into the hands of people who live through it. Make sure those tools are reliable and useable - the rest is just science.\nSince its 2003 launch, Drift Catchers have been used in 27 projects in nine states by scores of trained volunteers and community leaders. Below are two case studies.\nSouth Woods Elementary School in St. Johns County, Florida, is bordered on three sides by a large seed farm that sprays pesticides throughout the school year. Motivated by concerns about the health of the children at the school, residents of the county have been using the Drift Catcher to monitor the air near the school since 2006.\nExposure to the chemicals we found by South Woods Elementary are associated with a wide range of adverse health effects: endosulfan interferes with hormones and is linked with autism, birth defects and delayed puberty; diazinon is neurotoxic; and trifluralin and chlorothalonil are suspected to cause cancer. All are particularly dangerous for children.\nMaybe now the school board will recognize the pesticide problem & take more serious actions to prevent future drift.– Alex Lowe, student in Hastings\nIn addition to focusing local, regional, and national media attention on the issue of pesticide drift, the reports on the 2006 and 2007 sampling have led the formulation of state policy recommendations on school siting and have been used by PANNA it’s campaign for the phaseout of endosulfan.\nLindsay, CA, is a predominately Latino community in California’s fertile San Joaquin Valley. The town grew up around orange trees, and most of its homes and schools are situated right next to groves where neurotoxic organophosphates are routinely sprayed. Acute exposure to these insecticides can cause nausea and vomiting, tremors and seizures, and even death; studies link chronic exposure with asthma and learning disabilities.\nA local group, El Quinto Sol de America, used Drift Catchers from 2004 to 2006 to document the movement of chlorpyrifos (a neurotoxic, organophosphate insecticide) out the groves and into their yards. Here's a map of the Lindsay project, and a 4-pg summary of the results.\nResults from biomonitoring and drift catching in Lindsay have since become the bedrock of efforts to win no spray buffer zones around schools and residential areas. Local activists in Tulare, Kern, and other agricultural counties across California have used these result to successfully push their County Agriculture Commissioners for buffer zones around schools and other sensitive sites."}
{"text": "Man vs. Meltdown\nWill Japan's nuclear crisis end in catastrophe?\nWhen the unexpected happens, even at a nuclear power plant, don't freak out. All you have to do is cool the cores. Just add water. If you can't deliver it through a pump, you can spray it from a truck or dump it from a helicopter. If pressure builds up, you can vent it. Yes, that might entail releasing some radiation. But releasing radiation isn't the end of the world. It's better to go nuclear in small doses than in a catastrophic blast.\nWhile the workers at Fukushima wage this fight, the rest of us should rethink power plant construction with the same innovative urgency. American plants built with a container design similar to Fukushima's have already been upgraded to relieve pressure in the event of overheating. The Japan crisis suggests other fixes as well. Put diesel generators on higher ground. Require longer-lasting batteries to power the cooling system when the electrical grid goes out. And for crying out loud, build some robots.\nNothing is more exasperating than reading reports about all the things that can't be done at Fukushima—fixing valves, pumping water, ascertaining damage, dousing spent-fuel pools—because of heat, radiation, or the risk of explosion. Last year, BP plugged an oil leak a mile under the Gulf of Mexico with the aid of remotely operated vehicles. Why doesn't Japan, the world's most robotically advanced country, have unmanned vehicles on hand to do simple but dangerous jobs at a radiation-contaminated nuclear power plant? Ten minutes ago, I got a newsletter from the unmanned-vehicles industry about all the cool things robots are doing to help Japan. It has not a word about the nuclear reactors. That's disgraceful.\nTo head off the next nuclear accident, we need to rethink the parameters of plant design. Why do we build backup cooling pumps for reactors but not for spent-fuel pools? And we need layers of protection that are truly independent. If some safety mechanisms require electricity, others should be functional without it. Store cooling water above the reactor so you can deliver it with plain old gravity if you lose power. And diversify the layers. At Fukushima, all the gizmos failed, but the containers have largely held firm. Build in different kinds of protection—barriers, gizmos, training, manual tools—so that if one kind fails, another can intercede.\nIf everything goes wrong, and your reactor melts down, don't give up. You still have evacuation and iodine. And even if Fukushima becomes another Chernobyl, nuclear energy still has a much better safety record than fossil fuels, just as stocks have a better track record than bonds over the long term, despite the occasional crash. But that safety record depends on us. We have to learn from Fukushima, just as we learned from Chernobyl. We have to diversify our means of managing disasters and averting meltdowns. We have to give ourselves a fighting chance when things go wrong, as they sometimes will. Fukushima's workers haven't surrendered. We shouldn't either.\nHuman Nature's latest short takes on the news, via Twitter:\nWill Saletan covers science, technology, and politics for Slate and says a lot of things that get him in trouble.\nPhotograph by Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Images."}
{"text": "Harvard economist Andrei Shleifer has a new paper on The Age Of Milton Friedman that begins with:\nThe last quarter century has witnessed remarkable progress of mankind. The world’s per capita inflation-adjusted income rose from $5400 in 1980 to $8500 in 2005.Schooling and life expectancy grew rapidly, while infant mortality and poverty fell just asfast. Compared to 1980, many more countries in the world are democratic today.\nThe last quarter century also saw wide acceptance of free market policies in both rich and poor countries: from private ownership, to free trade, to responsible budgets, to lower taxes. Three important events mark the beginning of this period. In 1979, Deng Xiao Ping started market reforms in China, which over the quarter century lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. In the same year, Margaret Thatcher was elected Prime Minister in Britain, and initiated her radical reforms and a long period of growth. A year later, Ronald Reagan was elected President of the United States, and also embraced free market policies. All three of these leaders professed inspiration from the work of Milton Friedman. It is natural, then, to refer to the last quarter century as the Age of Milton Friedman."}
{"text": "Cruisin' Comet (December 21, 2004)\nHi-res TIF (3.0M)\nCasually arcing above the Sun (from right to left in these SOHO LASCO views) this\nweek, comet SOHO-884 was first\nseen by SOHO on Dec. 16, 2004. For the first couple of days in the video clip the\ncomet's tail is clearly\ndiscernible, but then due to our viewing angle it seems to fade.|\nThe comet was first spotted in four images taken by SOHO's ultraviolet, interstellar medium-viewing SWAN instrument by Michael Mattiazzo, but he was not certain about it. On Dec. 16th, a bright comet entered C3 and was first reported by John Sachs. Shortly after, Sebastian Hoenig pointed out that this comet had the very real possibility of being Michael's SWAN comet, a connection that was soon confirmed. So many hands were involved in making the discovery. The comet is not a member of any known group of comets, but instead one that does not appear on a regular schedule as some do. SOHO has now discovered over 160 comets this year alone and as can be seen in the name \"SOHO-884\", this is the 884th comet discovered by SOHO since its launch in December, 1995.\nComets are frozen balls of ice and dust that are believed to have been created when the universe was very young. In fact, scheduled for July 2005, NASA's Deep Impact's spacecraft will arrive at Comet Tempel 1 and become the first mission to impact the surface of a comet. You can learn about this mission at http://deepimpact.jpl.nasa.gov/.\nSOHO began its Weekly Pick some time after sending a weekly image or video clip to the American Museum of Natural History (Rose Center) in New York City. There, the SOHO Weekly Pick is displayed with some annotations on a large plasma display.\nIf your institution would also like to receive the same Weekly Pick from us for display (usually in Photoshop or QuickTime format), please send your inquiry to email@example.com."}
{"text": "10 Tips for Parents of Prospective College Students\n1. Choosing a Career/Choosing a Major\nUltimately, your son or daughter should make the choice. Of course, you may want to mention factors to consider, such as job market demand, salary ranges, long-range opportunities, skills required, etc. Just because an occupation is \"hot\" now does not mean it will be equally in demand in 10 years or that your child has the aptitude or motivation for it.\n2. Choosing to Double Major/Choosing a Major and Minor\nMost employers do not place a premium on a double major. It usually requires an extra one or two semesters to obtain a second major and does not particularly enhance a student's marketability. Exceptions would be a second major or a major and minor chosen for a specific career, such as English and chemistry for technical writing, or a health policy major and business minor for hospital administration.\n3. Grade Point Average (GPA)\nSome students who get off to a rocky start eventually pull up their grades; however, this can be very difficult to do. Many employers stress the student's overall background: work experience, number of hours worked during the school year to finance college, leadership activities, etc. Encourage your son or daughter to make academics a high priority beginning with his or her freshman year. It is important to remember that it may take him or her a while to adjust to the rigorous academic demands of college.\n4. Obtaining Marketable Skills\nMost employers today put more emphasis on graduates' skills than on their academic majors. Encourage your son or daughter to develop strengths in at least two or three of the following areas:\n- Computer skills (e.g., programming, word processing, spreadsheets, data base management, e-mail, Internet);\n- Quantitative skills (e.g., accounting, statistics, economics);\n- Communication skills (e.g., written and oral);\n- Marketing/selling skills (e.g., sales, publicity, fundraising);\n- Scientific skills (e.g., lab skills, scientific research);\n- Foreign language skills (e.g., especially Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, or Russian);\n- Leadership skills (e.g., supervisory, extracurricular leadership roles, teamwork/team leader).\n5. Leadership Activities\nMany employers rate leadership activities even more highly than GPA. Students who were very active in high school activities may be less involved in college extracurricular activities. However, employers regard high school as \"ancient history\" for a college senior. It is more valuable for a student to be involved in a few meaningful leadership roles on campus than to be in a \"laundry list\" of many campus clubs.\nYou may want your son or daughter to work in his or her hometown every summer. However, the experience gained as a lifeguard or ice cream shop counter clerk does not compare to that which comes from an internship (paid or unpaid) in the career field that he or she aspires to enter. Future employers will seek graduates with relevant, real-world work experience. Some students have little to write about on a resume if their summers were spent in school, traveling, or working at low-level jobs. We strongly suggest that students seek career-related experience for their sophomore and junior summers even if they must live away from home or accept an unpaid internship. Students needing financial support can combine an unpaid internship with a paid job such as waiter/waitress, etc.\n7. Graduating Early, Graduating Late\nSome students graduate early through advanced placement credits, heavy course loads, and summer school courses. The advantages are lower educational expenses and the ability to start employment or graduate school earlier. The disadvantages may include the sacrifice of academic honors, work experience, and extracurricular and volunteer activities that may contribute to a student's maturity level and qualifications. Other students graduate late due to light course loads, academic difficulties, changing majors, poor academic advising, lack of direction, or reluctance to leave the cocoon of the college environment. Advantages to late graduation include the ability to improve grades with light class loads, extra time to change majors, the ability to take additional electives to improve marketability, and extra time to gain more career-related or leadership experience. Disadvantages to late graduation are increased college costs and possible disapproval of employers and graduate schools.\n8. Planning for Graduate/Professional School\nAbout 88 percent of the nation's college freshmen indicated in a recent survey that they plan to go to graduate or professional school, yet only about 24 percent do so within a year of completing their bachelor's degree. Students aspiring to graduate or professional school should: Be clear about the reasons they want to go on for further education; research the qualifications required for admission and be realistic about their chances of acceptance; and always have a \"Plan B\" or back-up plan in case they are not accepted. Students should discuss their interest in graduate or professional school well before their senior year with their academic adviser; the college's graduate or professional school adviser (e.g., the pre-law or pre-med adviser); and a college career adviser to obtain advice and guidance from three different perspectives.\n9. Taking Time Off\nMany students want to take time off after college graduation from college before attending graduate school or taking a career-related job. Future employers will want to know how the student has spent the intervening time. Do activities during this period demonstrate relevance to future career goals and/or a good work ethic? While short-term travel may be personally broadening, it does not increase a student's marketability to employers unless it is seen as career related. Therefore, the time off may result in a longer job search. For example, management trainee programs, which often begin shortly after graduation and hire large numbers of new graduates, may be filled by the time your child is ready to begin a job search.\n10. Using the College Career Services Office\nStudents should begin using their campus career office in their freshman year. Virtually all career offices provide individual career counseling/advising, career planning workshops, internship assistance, and career fairs and programs. Your son or daughter should seek help early with choosing a career and preparing for it. Competition for good jobs, particularly in certain fields, is stiff. The career office can advise students about how to become a strong candidate for their field of interest.\nSource: Article by Marcia B. Harris and Sharon L. Jones"}
{"text": "The Future of Salmon and Trout Stocking in Lake Michigan\nFive species of salmon and trout support a world-class recreational fishery in Lake Michigan. Stocking has played an important role in maintaining the balance between predators and forage fish, such as the non-native alewife, since the late 1960s. If too many salmon and trout are in the lake, forage fish decline and salmon starve or fall prey to disease. If too few salmon and trout are in the lake, the non-native alewife could foul beaches and affect native species populations.\nOngoing research is being used to investigate the possibility that changes to stocking policy could improve fisheries and limit the risk of predator-prey imbalance. Fisheries managers in Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana will set a stocking policy for Lake Michigan salmon and trout by fall of 2012.\nLAKE MICHIGAN SALMON STOCKING SURVEY RESULTS\nSurvey results are now available and are being considered along with biological data and other factors as managers move toward a decision on future stocking policy.\nSee: Survey Results\nLake Michigan Salmon Stocking Workshop\nLake Michigan College, Benton Harbor, Michigan\nSaturday, April 14, 2012\nThis half-day workshop was free and open to the public. Participants learned more about specific options for stocking policy and had the opportunity to speak with fisheries managers about the future of Lake Michigan fisheries. Check out the recorded webinar for more details.\n- Lake Michigan Salmon Stocking Strategies Briefing (PDF)\nIncludes overview of collaborative decision-making process, status of fishery and forage base, and stocking options under consideration."}
{"text": "Elementary School • Holidays\nEncyclopedia of American Holidays and National Days: Volume 1 http://0-ebooks.abc-clio.com.ilsweb.lvccld.org/main.aspx?l=E&t=title\nEncyclopedia of American Holidays and National Days: Volume 2 http://0-ebooks.abc-clio.com.ilsweb.lvccld.org/reader.aspx?isbn=9780313014918\nHolidays - Kids InfoBits http://0-galenet.galegroup.com.ilsweb.lvccld.org/servlet/KidsInfoBits?subTopic=Social%2BStudies&locID=lvccld_main&failover=0&topic=History%252C%2BGovernment%2B%2526%2BSocial%2BStudies&c=1&searchTerm=Holidays&ste=5&tbst=tsrch&tab=1&bConts=55\nMore of the Best Holiday Crafts http://ebooks.lvccld.org/ContentDetails-Subject7.htm?ID=EADCA235-983B-45A5-916E-06827FD39655\nA collection of 65 holiday-based craft projects. In addition to Valentine’s Day, Earth Day, Easter, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Kwanza, and Christmas, a number of new holidays have been added, including Flag Day, Memorial Day, 4th of July, President’s Day, and St. Patrick’s Day. There are creative decorations, favors, cards, and gifts designed to enhance holiday celebrations throughout the year.\nHooray for Halloween! http://whyfiles.org/097halloween/index.html\nThis site examines \"the science of Halloween: bats, brains and cemeteries\" (THE WHY FILES). Learn about the biology of bats, the study of the human brain, and the archaeology of burials through this humorous, Halloween-themed article.\nNew Crafts for Thanksgiving http://ebooks.lvccld.org/ContentDetails-Subject7.htm?ID=F513FEF0-6D4C-4DE2-BF26-4E3A2E82016F\nIt features crafts such as gourd turkeys, pilgrim place cards, and a stick trivet.\nHolidays, Festivals, and Celebrations of the World Dictionary http://0-go.galegroup.com.ilsweb.lvccld.org/ps/i.do?id=GALE|9780780809826&v=2.1&u=lvccld_main&it=etoc&p=GVRL&sw=w\nDescribes 2,500 holidays, festivals, commemorations, holy days, feasts and fasts, and other observances from all parts of the world. Entries cover popular, ethnic, religious, and historic events of international, national, regional, and local significance.\nWorld Holidays: A Rosen Guide for Children http://0-go.galegroup.com.ilsweb.lvccld.org/ps/i.do?id=GALE|5QVJ&v=2.1&u=lvccld_main&it=aboutBook&p=GVRL&sw=w\nA guide to celebrations and holidays around the world, including religious, civic, and cultural practices."}
{"text": "HAND-HELD computers have many uses -- but who would have thought they could take art home from a museum?\nThat is just what is happening at the current Biennial exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York. At a special kiosk, visitors can download ''Tap,'' a digital artwork by James Buckhouse, into electronic organizers equipped with the Palm operating system, and with that download, receive their own digital dancer (male or female, the viewer picks). The dancer practices, learns from other dancers and gives recitals.\nTechnology in museums, especially the artistic kind, has traditionally meant audio guides. This was not a deliberate oversight; many museums began testing an array of Jetsons-style gadgetry a few years ago, but the dot-com bust and the economic downturn have delayed progress. Museums are now slowly recapturing their momentum. Many are experimenting with the latest technology, and soon their galleries may be wired (or go wireless) for the Internet, allowing visitors to use their hand-held computers to download information about an entire collection or a single object, to explore a museum's hidden archives or bookmark Web pages.\nThe Exploratorium, a science and art museum in San Francisco, is developing the Electronic Guidebook Project, which will not only allow visitors to download additional material on their hand-held computers, but also create a password-protected personal Web page, meaning people can revisit their own selection of the museum's collections from any computer.\nThe American Museum of the Moving Image in New York is testing eDocent, a wireless network in its galleries that will allow visitors to download information into their hand-held computers and bookmark Web pages. The network may also give audiences viewings of what they cannot see in the gallery. Like many museums, the Museum of the Moving Image can display only a small percentage of its collection, 1,200 of 90,000 objects. When eDocent becomes a reality, which is not expected until 2003, audiences could see much of this hidden collection.\n''Because our collection is so extensive, we have a huge amount of material to link,'' said Rochelle Slovin, the museum's director. ''The ultimate goal of eDocent is for the information to be so rich and extensive that you could go deeper and deeper into the layers.''\nThe Walker Art Center in Minneapolis is preparing for a $90 million renovation and expansion project, which will break ground in 2003. Central to the renovation is a wireless network that will provide visitors with more information about objects in the museum, said Andrew Blauvelt, the museum's design director.\nHe thinks that hand-held computers will not be the only way to download material. Indeed, Mr. Blauvelt is interested in what he calls ''social computing,'' which is a shared or collaborative computer experience. This could involve a group sitting at a ''smart'' table, where touch screens embedded in the tabletop would allow many users to tap into Walker's collections and resources, and simultaneously interact and discuss the information with others. To explore other social computing possibilities, Mr. Blauvelt has invited more than 30 artists, designers and architects to submit ideas.\nHe is also interested in futuristic options, like wearable computer guides. ''Technically, the iPAQ is wearable,'' he said, referring to Compaq's hand-held device. ''This is more radical, where circuitry is stitched into a fabric or a scarf.''\nMany museums hope that the new technology lures younger audiences. ''We have an entire generation coming up speaking digital as a first language,'' said Leonard Steinbach, a program creator at the Cleveland Museum of Art."}
{"text": "When you lose weight, you not only feel better, but your fat cells are much healthier.\nSo says endocrinologist Andrew Greenberg, director of the Obesity Metabolism Laboratory at Tufts University in Boston.\nYour body needs fat cells to be healthy, but in obese individuals when fat cells get very big, those cells are at risk of dying, he says.\n\"A fat cell is 95% fat. If it dies, it leaves behind insoluble fat, and the body views it as a foreign body, much like it would splinter,\" Greenberg says.\nThat excess fat is scooped up by macrophages, scavenger cells that are part of the immune system. During this process, some of the fat and other inflammatory proteins get released into the blood stream, which can significantly increase a person’s risk of developing diabetes, he says.\nHowever, there is evidence that if you lose weight, you have fewer dying fat cells and significantly fewer fat-engorged macrophages, Greenberg says.\nThink fat just hangs around and does nothing? It doesn’t\nBy Nanci Hellmich, USA TODAY\nPHOENIX — Most people think of fat as an inert blob, but fat cells release powerful chemicals.\nIn obese people, the fat tissue often produces too many bad hormones and too few good ones, says Susan Fried, director of the Clinical Nutrition Research Unit of Maryland at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore.\nBETTER LIFE: The skinny on losing weight\nFried and other scientists discussed the latest research on fat cells here at the annual meeting of the Obesity Society. Fried talks about the relationship between obesity and fat cells.\nQ: Do people have different numbers of fat cells?\nA: A person at a healthy weight might have 10 billion to 20 billion, and an obese person can have up to 100 billion. Babies are born with about 10 billion. You naturally increase the number of fat cells, like other kinds of cells, as you grow.\nQ: Is everybody born with the same number of fat cells?\nA: No. There is a genetic component to how many you have, but I would say less than 5% of obese people have a genetic tendency to have a greatly excess number. It appears in animal experiments that animals that are overnourished in the womb and shortly thereafter tend to have more fat cells.\nThe number can increase at any time if you overeat long enough and hard enough. When your fat cells get to a maximum size, they send a signal to (fat-precursor) cells to become full-fledged fat cells. It may be that having too many hungry fat cells somehow makes us eat more.\nBut overweight people (those who are not obese but are one to 30 pounds over a healthy weight) don’t generally have an excess number. You can gain 30 pounds easily by increasing the size of current fat cells and not adding new ones.\nQ: What do white fat cells do?\nA: White fat cells store energy and produce hormones that are secreted into the blood. In theory, if we overeat, our fat cells will produce a little more of the hormone leptin, which will go to our brain and tell us we have plenty of energy down here; not to eat any more. If it worked perfectly, no one would get fat, but it doesn’t work perfectly, so many of us do get fat.\nWhen fat cells are small, they produce high amounts of some hormones such as adiponectin. It is a good guy because it keeps the liver and muscles very sensitive to insulin and fights diabetes, heart disease and other diseases. But in obese people, fat cells tend to shut down the production of adiponectin, and that has bad effects on health, and it’s one reason people develop diabetes and heart disease.\nQ: Does losing weight shrink the size of your fat cells?\nA: If you are eating less energy than you require, your cells release fat for fuel and then shrink. If you are obese and have 100 billion fat cells and you lose a lot of weight, your fat cells may go down to a normal size, but you still have 100 billion. So you may still be overly fat, but you will be healthier since small fat cells produce more of the good fat hormones like adiponectin.\nQ: Can you explain the new discoveries about brown fat?\nA: While a white fat cell stores energy, a brown fat cell’s job is basically to generate heat. We always thought brown fat was only in human babies and helped keep them warm. Now there is more evidence that there are more brown fat cells in adults than we originally thought. Brown and white are not really related because they don’t come from the same precursor cell or stem cell.\nBrown fat cell comes from the same kind of precursor cell as a muscle cell. Even though there are very few brown fat cells in adult humans, it looks like there is a lot of variability between people. There is increasing evidence that some humans, particularly lean ones, tend to have brown fat cells mixed in with their white fat cells in some regions of their body. So if we can figure out how to persuade the body to make more brown fat cells, we may be able to fight the tendency to gain excess weight."}
{"text": "Next: My Tiles are Cracking in the Corners\nMy tiles are wearing out\nTiles are well known for their durability and wear resistance. But, we need to always remember that tiles are not indestructible. If mistreated, or subjected to harsh conditions, or wrongly selected for purpose, the glaze on a ceramic tile will scratch or it can wear.\nThere needs to be an understanding of the difference between 'wearing' and 'scratching.' Wearing is where the glazed surface is thinning and eventually actually work through. Scratching is damage to the surface from a harder substance that scratches the glaze. Heavy scratching can actually dull the surface of a glazed tile. It is damage to the surface, but it is not actually wearing through. Much like granite in a heavy traffic area will dull off from scratching, but is not worn.\nThe best way to avoid tiles becoming worn is to get good advice when selecting them. This way, tiles that are suited to the area can be chosen and that includes for reasons such as colour, ease of cleaning, durability, and resistance to wear.\nThe other way is to keep the floor clean and free from sand and abrasive dirt. This is especially important at doorways to the outside of a home or building. Abrasive grit is brought in under shoes and if there is a doormat, this grit is removed and left on the doormat. Even gravel (which can be equally as hard as granite) can be trapped under a shoe and then trodden onto the tiled surface.\nWhat can cause the problem?\n• Absense of doormats at doorways to the outside of a home. These remove grit and sand from shoes which can be very abrasive on tiled surfaces. Think of sandpaper, which can actually just be sand trapped on the paper, yet is highly abrasive.\n• Incorrectly specified tiles that are not suited to the traffic conditions of an area. Always heed the advice of the Beaumont Tiles consultant and explain clearly the conditions to which the tiles will be subject.\n• Keep your tiles clean. A clean tile won't have a film of accumulated grinding dirt on the surface.\n• Avoid the use of unnecessary chemicals, especially acid based ones and the use of hard cleaning implements such as steel wool. These too will deteriorate the surface of a tile.\nSo what can I do now?\nOnce the glaze on tiles has worn, it can't be rejuvenated in any way.\nLikewise, damage by harsh scratching cannot be reversed.\nScratched tiles will continue to perform as a tile should. But, once a tile surface has worn through, and the protective glazed surface is gone, the tile will need to be replaced."}
{"text": "Chronic diseases such as asthma, arthritis, cancer, heart disease and diabetes are ongoing, generally incurable illnesses. Collectively, chronic diseases are the number one cause of death and disability in the U.S. With a better understanding of the molecular basis of health and disease, biotech scientists are developing improved methods for diagnosing, treating and preventing chronic disease.\nDiabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S., and the number of new cases continues to rise by epidemic proportions. Diabetes patients use insulin, a biotech therapy, to control their critically important glucose levels. Insulin use can also reduce the risk of diabetes complications like eye, kidney and nerve disease by 40 percent.\nScientists have been studying the cone snail since the 1970s to better understand our nervous system. Through this research, scientists were able to isolate the peptides in the venom of the cone snail, A synthetic version of one of those peptides, manufactured by Elan under the brand name PRIALT®, was approved by the FDA in 2004 as a treatment for adults with severe chronic pain."}
{"text": "Who's most likely to get Parkinson's disease?\nIn the U.S., the disease is more likely to affect men than women, more likely to affect white or Hispanic individuals than black or Asian people and much more likely to affect those over sixty than those younger, according to a study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology in 2003.\nOther research suggests that globally, you're more likely to get Parkinson's if you live in an industrialized country like the U.S. than if you live in a less developed nation. However, there's no clear-cut data on the demographics.\n\"It's hard to believe that we don't have that data now,\" says Dr. J. William Langston, founder and director of the Parkinson's Institute, \"but ... it's not available anywhere in the world.\" In part, this is because Parkinson's disease affects a relatively small population -- at most one to two percent in the United States -- and because of difficulties in consistently diagnosing the disorder.\nIs the risk of getting this disease growing?\nThere's even less data on how the rate of Parkinson's cases have changed since it was first identified in 1817. The number of cases is rising as the global population ages, but it's not clear whether Parkinson's is affecting a larger percentage of the population than it has in the past. Some research has found that the risk of getting Parkinson's in the U.S. rose slightly between 1935 and 1985, but when it comes to tracing the history of the disease, major data holes remain.\n\"Certainly, there have been individuals described hundreds and hundreds of years ago that have what sounds very much like Parkinson's disease,\" says Dr. Michael Zigmond, a Parkinson's researcher at the University of Pittsburgh. However, he adds, \"We can't easily evaluate people who are not here now, even through the eyes of a neurologist 50 or 100 years ago.\" What we call Parkinson's today, doctors might have diagnosed differently in the past. What doctors used to call Parkinson's we may now have identified as something else.\nHowever, there are some new projects underway on the demographics of the disease. For example, the California Parkinson's Disease Registry will collect detailed information on every Parkinson's diagnosis in that state. Says Dr. Langston, \"This will tell us for the first time, is the disease increasing, changing with time? Are there pockets or clusters of the disease? Are there differences in rural versus urban areas, socioeconomic differences, etc.?\"\nWhat causes Parkinson's?\nEven though Parkinson's was formally identified almost 200 years ago, scientists are still trying to find out what causes it. \"We still don't have a smoking gun, that's for sure,\" says Dr. Langston. \"But that's what we're looking for.\"\nThe greatest obstacle to pinpointing what causes it is that there seems to be no single cause. In some cases, the disease appears to be a genetic defect, while in others, exposure to toxic substances or certain viruses seems to be a factor. Some scientists believe a mix of environmental exposures and underlying genetic sensitivities may ultimately explain what triggers the disease.\nWhat about environmental factors?\nSorting out the possible environmental influences on Parkinson's disease is a big challenge.\nIn the early 1980s, after discovering the toxin MPTP -- very similar to a compound found in a common pesticide -- could induce Parkinson's virtually overnight, scientists expected to track down the chemicals responsible for causing the disease in a matter of a few years. Nearly three decades later, \"Very few individual specific compounds have been identified,\" says Dr. Langston. \"Most of these are modest risk factors, two to threefold increase in risk.\"\nScientists have tracked disparate leads in search of an environmental explanation. They've researched Parkinson's-like symptoms in an individual who ingested petroleum products, in Taiwanese women who'd contracted a herpes virus and in people from Guam who eat a type of seed known to contain a neurotoxin. While finding a common thread among these scenarios has proved nearly impossible, much of the research has led back to pesticide exposure as the leading suspect in causing a large number of Parkinson's cases.\nHow clear is the link between pesticide exposure and Parkinson's?\nAccording to Dr. William Langston, \"I don't think we're yet at the point of being able to say unequivocally that if you live in an area where there's more pesticides than other areas, you're at a higher risk.\" But new research may illuminate the link.\nOne study is mapping Parkinson's cases in California against areas known to have high pesticide use. Another is collecting data from over 50,000 licensed pesticide applicators in two states to track whether these individuals face an increased risk of getting Parkinson's. \"This, I think, may really answer the question of not only whether pesticides are an increased risk, but also, specifically, which pesticides,\" Dr. Langston hopes. \"Because it's their profession, they know what they use, as opposed to, I couldn't tell you what I sprayed with in the garage last week.\"\nIs there a gene, or genes, that causes Parkinson's?\nSo far scientists have identified six forms of genetic Parkinson's and are searching for more. However, the number of cases with a genetic link is a tiny portion of the overall number of cases. Still, doctors hope that better understanding the genetic form of the disease could help unravel the mysteries about other forms of Parkinson's.\nBut the genetic component of Parkinson's has also proved more complicated than once thought. Scientists have determined there's no single gene for Parkinson's -- one gene may trigger the disease in one family, while a different gene triggers it in another family.\nScientists also suspect that in some cases, developing genetic Parkinson's may require having multiple trigger genes, because studies of families with a high incidence of the disorder have shown that some individuals can carry the main gene identified as causing Parkinson's yet never develop symptoms.\nHow far along are scientists in figuring out the interaction -- the connection -- between genes and the environment?\nA large study of over 20,000 identical twins -- who share the same genetic code -- is underway to trace when different environmental exposures can trigger Parkinson's in one twin but not the other and under what circumstances both twins develop Parkinson's.\nWhy is Parkinson's so hard to diagnose?\nDiagnosing Parkinson's can be a challenge in part because some mild Parkinson's symptoms at first just seem like the universal effects of aging -- a tremor in the hand, difficulty balancing and shuffling the feet.\n\"I think everybody gets a little Parkinsonian as you get older,\" says Dr. Clive Svendsen, who is studying stem cell therapies for Parkinson's at the University of Wisconsin. \"And in fact, most of the literature points out a gradual reduction in dopamine neurons\" -- the neurons whose death causes Parkinson's best-known physical symptoms -- \"over time in everybody.\"\nWhat are the hallmark symptoms? Do all patients have the same symptoms?\nThere's no clear epidemiological record of whether the specific symptoms doctors look for and patients express have evolved over time, but the hallmark of Parkinson's has always been tremors throughout the body. Making a definitive diagnosis has often proved difficult, however, because the exact nature of the symptoms can vary widely from patient to patient. Recent studies show that even members of the same family who share a single genetic form of Parkinson's may display very different symptoms. One patient may have foot tremors accompanied by difficulty sleeping, while another may have hand tremors and difficulty keeping his balance.\nWhat are the new discoveries about Parkinson's symptoms?\nIn recent years scientists have found that Parkinson's is much more than a disease of shaking limbs.\n\"When I started my residency, this was a very simple disease,\" recalls Dr. William Langston. \"A number of cells die in a small area of the brain that made a chemical called dopamine. When they died, you had no more dopamine. Without dopamine, it's difficult to move. ... And that's the way we diagnosed it. When dopamine's down, you got rigid, you developed a tremor, gait became slowed and shuffling, etc. Any neurologist can diagnose that.\"\nBut now, says Langston, \"At this point in time, we know that Parkinson's is a much more complicated disorder. Many different areas of the brain can be affected. It probably evolves in a very specific order, starting in the low brain stem and then eventually affecting other areas, including the nigra, which causes Parkinsonism [the tremors]. But all of these other areas of the brain that are affected can also cause symptoms.\"\nThese newly-recognized symptoms range from loss of the sense of smell to digestive problems to depression.\nWhy has it taken doctors so long to recognize the wide array of symptoms now connected to Parkinson's? \"Because [patients] don't come to neurologists if they have, say, sleep disorders or loss of sense of smell or even constipation, which is a very bothersome symptom in Parkinson's,\" says Langston.\nHow close are we to having an earlier, more accurate diagnosis of Parkinson's?\nThe National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, part of the National Institutes of Health, is working on improving its guidelines for diagnosing Parkinson's to reflect the latest science. Other researchers are focusing on finding new ways of identifying the disease altogether. Some are searching for a Parkinson's biomarker -- a biological trait displayed only in people who have or are at risk of developing the disease.\nAnd now that sense of smell has been tied to Parkinson's, a study led by the Institute for Neurodegenerative Disorders and the University of Pennsylvania is seeking to determine if how well a person performs on a test to identify 40 common odors can predict the individual's likelihood of developing Parkinson's. So far, they've found the average person can identify 35 of the odors, while the average diagnosed Parkinson's patient can only correctly name 20.\nHow close are scientists to finding a cure?\nAs scientists learn more about the great complexity of Parkinson's disease, hopes for finding a cure within the next few years is fading. But all the new information is paving the way for inventing better treatments that won't cure Parkinson's completely but will minimize the disease's effects.\n\"What we have to think about is whether the patient would be happy with still having constipation, still having other side effects of the disease, but being able to maintain a movement without arresting tremor and being able to initiate their own movement,\" says Dr. Clive Svendsen. \"We're looking for a treatment that ... isn't curing it, but it's making the quality of life better.\"\nIf there's no cure in sight in the near future, what are the treatment options?\nSince the 1960s, the leading treatment for Parkinson's has been the drug Levodopa, or L-dopa, a compound that can counteract the loss of dopamine neurons that causes the tremor symptoms of the disease. In the past couple of decades, deep brain stimulation -- a treatment that involves implanting a pacemaker-like device to deliver electric shocks to the parts of the brain that are damaged in Parkinson's patients -- has become another widely-employed treatment that generally produces positive results.\nBut the effectiveness of L-dopa decreases the longer a patient uses it, and deep brain stimulation requires a highly invasive operation, so scientists continue to look for better Parkinson's treatments.\nAs explored in My Father, My Brother and Me, doctors have recently started studying the power of exercise as a therapy to not only keep Parkinson's patients physically healthy but beneficially alter their brain chemistry.\nWhat are some of the newer treatments being pursued?\nAnother area that offers great promise is neuroprotection, explained by Dr. Langston as \"the idea of protecting nerve cells from dying or damage, ... another great Holy Grail in the field of neurology.\"\nScientists studying neuroprotection are looking for chemical substances that, when introduced into the brain, could either blunt the effects of Parkinson's disease on a patient after he is diagnosed or, better yet, prevent Parkinson's altogether. \"The problem is,\" according to Dr. Langston, \"I think it's a laboratory concept that jumped into the clinical all too quickly. In a laboratory animal, you can actually measure nerve cells after an experiment. We can't do that in humans. We have no way to really show we've slowed down the progress of cell death in living humans.\"\nWith thousands of potentially helpful chemicals to test, and without the scientific ability to widely screen substances for their ability to protect human brains against damage, Langston suggests researchers focus less on the effects of these substances on the brain itself and more on their effects on the patient as a whole.\n\"For the moment, where I think we need to focus in clinical trials is delaying disability. We clinicians can measure that. So start a patient on your neuroprotective agent. We can't prove [the neuroprotection], but if disability is really delayed or completely stopped, I think that would be very compelling.\"\nOther scientists are working on refining the mode of delivery for a known neuroprotective substance. \"There are some very powerful drugs for Parkinson's disease that are very difficult to get into the brain,\" says Dr. Svendsen. \"GDNF [glial cell derived neurotrophic factor] is one of those drugs. ... Even at late stage Parkinson's, you have lots of neurons left, they just don't have any dopamine left in them, and they're very shrunken. And in that sense, [growth factors like GDNF] might again be like the fertilizer. Put it onto those cells, and even though they've practically disappeared, the growth factor will make them rejuvenate and start to produce dopamine again.\"\nThe problem, says Svendsen, is, \"You can give [GDNF] peripherally in the blood, but it doesn't penetrate the blood-brain barrier [to get into the brain]. The idea is to design stem cells that make this drug, put the stem cells in the brain, and then they'll deliver it -- rather like a Trojan Horse. The brain accepts the stem cell because it's [a brain cell] and it's going to integrate and migrate and get into the brain tissue. ... And that's how we can sneak drugs into the brain, [overcoming] this powerful blood-brain barrier, which usually blocks this process.\"\nThe major obstacle Svendsen needs to solve to implement this type of therapy is creating an off switch of sorts for the cells that will produce GDNF. \"It does remind me of the Walt Disney Fantasia movie and 'The Sorcerer's Apprentice,'\" he says, \"when Mickey Mouse is in the basement with the sorcerer and he gets a great way to make the broomsticks carry the water up and down. And, of course, it goes horribly wrong because [they] carry too much water, and it's overflowing, [so he] chops the broomsticks in half [but] they just keep carrying the water up and down.\n\"I wake up at night with that dream in my head, thinking, boy, if we put cells in the brain that produce [GDNF] that we think it's great and then it has a toxic effect, we can't switch it off. ... But on the other hand, we need to move forward in these diseases. ... It's a difficult one.\"\nCould Parkinson's be a \"gateway disease?\" Could solving it clear the way to understanding -- even curing -- other neurological conditions?\n\"I think there's a general sense in the scientific and medical community that solving any of these major diseases -- Parkinson's, Lou Gehrig Disease, Alzheimer's -- could have an enormous impact on the others,\" says Dr. William Langston. But for many years, Parkinson's received special attention.\n\"For many years, the thought was Parkinson's was the perfect disease to lead the way in terms of solving these diseases,\" Langston explains. \"The main reason for that is we were totally focused on one small area of the brain known as substantia nigra -- literally, black stuff -- [a] small pigmented dark area in the brain that sits atop the brain stem. Now, that looked like a pretty easy target, not a big nucleus. We fix that, we get more of the normal chemistry restored in the brain, and we fix the disease. To some degree, I think, that's still true. But we're now learning that Parkinson's is actually much more complex.\"\nAs scientists have learned that the symptoms of Parkinson's go far beyond the movement problems linked to the decay of the substantia nigra, they've realized that the simplicity that once made this seem like an easy neurological disorder to crack -- the best candidate for a cure -- was an illusion.\nDoes that mean what's learned about Parkinson's will have no effect on our ability to solve neurological diseases?\nNo. The complex nature of Parkinson's doesn't rule out the ability of breakthroughs studying this disease to have an impact on the understanding and treatment of other disorders.\n\"I think you're going to see most surgical therapies carried out first in Parkinson's disease,\" says Langston, citing the disease's pronounced effect on a small area of the brain. \"And that's already happening with gene therapy, where genes are inserted in the brain to try to make cells healthier. ... If we get to the point of stem cells going in, all of that will probably be done with Parkinson's first.\"\nDr. Clive Svendsen is studying how to use stem cells to deliver growth factor -- a chemical that can regenerate important nerve cells in the brain -- as a treatment for Parkinson's. He points out that, \"The Department of Defense has funded work in Parkinson's disease for a number of years. ... I think some of this comes through lobbying of people like Muhammad Ali and Michael J. Fox, and certain senators, to try and get funds appropriated specifically for Parkinson's disease. A number of veterans get Parkinson's disease. [With] Gulf War syndrome, there's an increased performance of ALS [another neurodegenerative disease]. And just neuro injury in wartime conditions is important to the Army. They're looking to stem cells releasing growth factors as a potential treatment for their troops on the field and for their veterans.\" Solving even a part of Parkinson's could still help solve parts of other brain disorders.\nAre stem cells key to finding a cure?\nTheoretically, stem cells should be able to replace the damaged brain cells whose degeneration leads to Parkinson's symptoms.\n\"We have shown very clearly that our basic science work in the laboratory ... proved that we can restore ... brain function in patients,\" says Dr. Ole Isacson of the Parkinson's Research Center at Harvard Medical School. \"But we do need a lot of work to overcome the obstacles of making this happen [in] every case and in a reliable way.\"\n\"When we started with neurotransplants -- and we started with fetal cells first, and eventually the hope was stem cells would replace those -- we thought this was gonna be easy,\" Dr. William Langston explains. \"We just put the cells in, fix this one small area of the brain, and we cure the disease. And we were very disappointed when that didn't happen. I think now with our evolving concept of Parkinson's disease, treating this one small area of the brain that we can already treat pretty well with surgical therapies, [stem cell therapy is] important but I think it is no longer the Holy Grail.\"\nSome patients who've received experimental cell transplants have seen their symptoms improve, while others have experienced no change or even gotten worse.\n\"Some more extreme critics of this field,\" says Dr. Clive Svendsen, \"would say that we now have two types of Parkinson's. We have Parkinson's disease and Parkinson's plus transplant disease.\"\n[Editors' Note: Researchers at MIT's Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research have developed a new method of reprogramming the skin cells of Parkinson's patients into \"an embryonic-stem-cell-like state,\" using \"the resulting cells to derive dopamine-producing neurons, the cell type that degenerates in Parkinson’s disease patients.\" According to The New York Times, this method, \"would in principle allow the brain cells that are lost in Parkinson's to be replaced with cells that carried no risk of immune rejection.\"]\nWhy haven't stem cell transplants worked so far?\nThere are many reasons scientists have encountered obstacles in engineering successful stem cell treatments for Parkinson's.\n\"The comparison I always use is, imagine trying to wire your house after it was built,\" says Langston. \"I mean, when you build a house, all the wiring goes in very early. When the house is built, if you had to do all the wiring afterwards, that would be pretty tricky. Now imagine you're trying to do that in a living brain with 4 billion neurons.\"\nSome stem cells revert from the type of cells they've been cultivated to become -- generally dopamine neurons when dealing with Parkinson's -- back into generic stem cells when they're placed in the brain. And an adult brain seems to have ways of recognizing embryonic stem cells as not belonging. \"We're learning there're all types of signals in the adult brain that tell these little guys to go away,\" says Langston.\nFurthermore, a stem cell's inherent ability to develop into any kind of cell -- the property that makes them useful -- can also be a hazard. Says Isaacson, \"While we know that we can generate the dopamine neuron, it also tends to generate other cell types, including skin, and maybe even bone. So the challenge is, even though we can get the cell we want, [we need] to eliminate the other unwanted cells, lest they would grow into tissues that would be very problematic and even dangerous to the patient.\"\nIn some cases, says Langston, \"We don't even understand the reasons why the attempts we've already done have failed.\"\nThe risk of stem cell procedures compared to the safety of other relatively effective Parkinson's treatments gives some scientists pause. \"The patients will have [to] think about this,\" says Svendsen. \"Am I gonna risk a new procedure that hasn't been tried or go with the steady state procedures which we know work?\"\nTwo perspectives on the promise of stem cells...\nBecause of the practical difficulties surrounding stem cell procedures, some scientists no longer think of them as a potential wonder cure-all.\n\"It's not popular to say that stem cells aren't the answer, but I now believe they are not,\" says Langston. \"I don't think we should give up with them. I think they're gonna help other diseases, and eventually they may really help Parkinson's. But I don't think that should be our major focus. The brain is not a pincushion. We can't keep plucking cells in all over the place.\"\nOthers are more optimistic, although they point out it may take many years to fix the current problems with stem cell transplant technologies.\n\"What we're facing is the same kind of problems that you see almost in engineering. If you think of the early development of airplanes, or flight, the first airplane crashed very quickly,\" says Ole Isacson.\n\"But many years, in a way, is still a short time in my world, because if you think about the kind of discoveries that are necessary to make a medical treatment available to a large group of patients, decades is the norm rather than the exception.\"\n\"We're looking at this through the Parkinson's window,\" says Clive Svendsen, \"but if you look outside the Parkinson's window and go to the rest of the world, [there are] lots of places that this technology will be used, I'm sure.\""}
{"text": "Dermatology is the a branch of medical science dealing with the skin, its structure, functions, and diseases.\nDermatologists specialize in diagnosing and treating conditions related to the skin, hair, and nails, including concerns related to cosmetic issues, such as sun damage and aging, as well as skin cancer, and other medical skin conditions.\nDermatologists who have additional interest and skill in performing surgical procedures are referred to as dermatologic surgeons or dermasurgeons.\nSpecialty terms like \"dermatologist\" and \"dermatologic surgeon\" are often unregulated and may be used in some states by any doctor, regardless of their training and credentials.\nSo, for instance, a doctor who has an active medical license and is board certified in Internal Medicine but who has not undergone any specialty training in dermatology may refer to him or herself as a dermatologist or dermasurgeon, despite the fact that their training and credentials may not reflect specialization in this area of medical practice.\nThe skin is the largest organ of the human body, and as a result, dermatologists typically offer a wide variety of treatments for it.\nWhether you wish to correct wrinkles, crepey skin, or razor bumps, a board certified dermatologist or dermasurgeon may help you by offering a single treatment or any combination of the following:\nCosmetic dermatology - Non-surgical procedures\n- Laser treatments\n- Chemical peel\n- Injectable fillers\n- Botox and Dysport\n- Lip augmentation\n- Non-surgical nose job\n- Non-surgical facelift\n- Acne treatment\n- Acne scar removal\n- Vein treatment\n- Scar removal\n- Skin tightening\nCosmetic dermatology - Surgical procedures\nMost dermatologists and dermasurgeons also offer treatments for a variety of medical skin conditions, in addition to cosmetic treatments. Although most skin problems can create aesthetic concerns, the following conditions are usually considered medical issues, and treatment may be covered by insurance.\nMedical dermatology - Conditions treated\n- Skin cancer"}
{"text": "Dec. 8, 2011 \"Dressing\" atoms with laser light allows high angular momentum scattering to be seen for the first time in long-lived atomic Bose-Einstein condensates at ultracold temperatures.\nScientists at the Joint Quantum Institute (JQI) have for the first time engineered and detected the presence of high angular momentum collisions between atoms at temperatures close to absolute zero. Previous experiments with ultracold atoms featured essentially head-on collisions. The JQI experiment, by contrast, is able to create more complicated collisions between atoms using only lasers. This innovation may facilitate the creation of exotic quantum states that can be exploited for practical applications like quantum computing. The key to the JQI approach is to alter the atoms' environment with laser light. They \"dress\" rubidium atoms by bathing them in a pair of laser beams, which force the atoms to have one of three discrete values of momentum. In the JQI experiment, rubidium atoms comprise a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC). BECs have been collided before. But the observation of high-angular-momentum scattering at such low energies is new.\nThe new JQI results are being reported in the journal Science.\nOne of the cardinal principles of quantum science is that matter must be simultaneously thought of as both particles and waves. When the temperature of a gas of atoms is lowered, the wavelike nature of the atom emerges, and the idea of position becomes fuzzier. While an atom at room temperature might spread over a hundredth of a nm, atoms at nano-kelvin temperatures have a typical wavelength of about 100 nm. This is much larger than the range of the force between atoms, only a few nm. Atoms generally collide only when they meet face to face.\nHowever, to study certain interesting quantum phenomena, such as searching for Majorana particles -- hypothetical particles that might provide a robust means of encoding quantum information -- it is desirable to engineer inter-atomic collisions beyond these low-energy, head-on type. That's what the new JQI experiment does.\nScattering experiments date back to the discovery of the atomic nucleus 100 years ago, when Ernest Rutherford shot alpha particles into a foil of gold. Since then other scattering experiments have revealed a wealth of detail about atoms and sub-atomic matter such as the quark substructure of protons.\nA convenient way of picturing an interaction between two particles is to view their relative approach in terms of angular momentum. Quantized angular momentum usually refers to the motion of an electron inside an atom, but it necessarily pertains also to the scattering of the two particles, which can be thought of as parts of a single quantum object.\nIf the value of the relative angular momentum is zero, then the scattering is designated as \"s-wave\" scattering. If the pair of colliding particles has one unit of angular momentum, the scattering is called p-wave scattering. Still more higher-order scattering scenarios are referred to by more letters: d-wave, f-wave, g-wave, and so on. This model is referred to as the partial waves view.\nIn high energy scattering, the kind at accelerators, these higher angular-momentum scattering scenarios are important and help to reveal important structure information about the particles. In atomic scattering at low temperatures, the s-wave interactions completely swamp the higher-order scattering modes. For ultralow-temperature s-wave scattering, when two atoms collide, they glance off each other (back to back) at any and all angles equally. This isotropic scattering doesn't reveal much about the nature of the matter undergoing collision; it's as if the colliding particles were hard spheres.\nThis has changed now. The JQI experiment is the first to create conditions in which d-wave and g-wave scattering modes in an ultracold experiment could be seen in otherwise long-lived systems.\nIan Spielman and his colleagues at the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) chill Rb atoms to nano-kelvin temperatures. The atoms, around half a million of them, have a density about a millionth that of air at room temperature. Radiofrequency radiation places each atom into a superposition of quantum spin states. Then two (optical light) lasers impart momentum (forward-going and backward-going motion) to the atoms.\nIf this were a particle physics experiment, we would say that these BECs-in-motion were quantum beams, beams with energies that came in multiples of the energy kick delivered by the lasers. The NIST \"collider\" in Gaithersburg, Maryland is very different for the CERN collider in Geneva, Switzerland. In the NIST atom trap the particles have kinetic energies of a hundred pico-electron-volts rather than the trillion-electron-volt energies used at the Large Hadron Collider.\nAt JQI, atoms are installed in their special momentum states, and the collisions begin. Outward scattered atoms are detected after the BEC clouds are released by the trap. If the atoms hadn't been dressed, the collisions would have been s-wave in nature and the observed scattered atoms would have been seen uniformly around the scattering zone.\nThe effect of the dressing is to screen the atoms from s-wave scattering in the way analogous to that in some solid materials, where the interaction between two electrons is modified by the presence of trillions of other electrons nearby. In other words, the laser dressing effectively increased the range of the inter-atom force such that higher partial wave scattering was possible, even at the lowest energies.\nIn the JQI experiment, the observed scattering patterns for atoms emerging from the collisions was proof that d-wave and g-wave scattering had taken place. \"The way in which the density of scattered atoms is distributed on the shell reflects the partial waves,\" said Ian Spielman. \"A plot of scattered-density vs. spherical polar angles would give the sort of patterns you are used to seeing for atomic orbitals. In our case, this is a sum of s-, p-, and d- waves.\"\nSimulating Solids Using Gases\nUltracold atomic physics experiments performed with vapors of atoms are excellent for investigating some of the strongly-interacting quantum phenomena usually considered in the context of condensed matter physics. These subjects include superconductivity, superfluids, the quantum Hall effect, and topological insulators, and some things that haven't yet been observed, such as the \"Majorana\" fermions.\nSeveral advantages come with studying these phenomena in the controlled environment of ultracold atoms. Scientists can easily manipulate the landscape in which the atoms reside using knobs that adjust laser power and frequency. For example, impurities that can plague real solids can be controlled and even removed, and because (as in this new JQI experiment) the scattering of atoms can now (with the proper \"dressing\") reveal higher-partial-wave effects. This is important because the exotic quantum effects mentioned above often manifest themselves under exactly these higher angular-momentum conditions.\n\"Our technique is a fundamentally new method for engineering interactions, and we expect this work will stimulate new directions of research and be of broad interest within the physics community, experimental and theoretical,\" said Spielman. \"We are modifying the very character of the interactions, and not just the strength, by light alone.\"\nOther social bookmarking and sharing tools:\n- R. A. Williams, L. J. Leblanc, K. Jiménez-García, M. C. Beeler, A. R. Perry, W. D. Phillips, I. B. Spielman. Synthetic Partial Waves in Ultracold Atomic Collisions. Science, December 8 2011 DOI: 10.1126/science.1212652\nNote: If no author is given, the source is cited instead."}
{"text": "Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. is about to replace all residential gas and electric meters with smart meters, saying the meters manage consumers' energy usage better, and in time, save money.\nSome customers are questioning whether the new technology would be bad for your health.\nSmart meters basically reads itself then sends the energy usage reading wirelessly to BGE. The utility company has touted the benefits to customers, eventually saving customers money.\n\"You are going to be able to actually go onto your computer, you are going to be able to see in near real time -- 24 hours, roughly -- your energy usage,\" BGE spokesman Rob Gould said.\nBut not everyone is looking forward to smart meter technology, including Junghie Elky, who said she suffers from something called electromaganetic sensitivity, and believes radio frequencies make her sick.\n\"I'm a little bit nervous about that, a bit worried about the health effects,\" Elky said. \"At my worst, I was so sensitive, I could not touch things with electricity without feeling pain. I couldn't watch TV because the radiation from the screen would make me dizzy.\"\nElky said she would experience headaches, fatigue and ear aches that forced her to take a leave of absence from work.\nMagda Havas, an associate professor of environmental and resource studies at Trent University in Ontario, Canada, has studied electromagnetic sensitivity for decades. She said 3 to 5 percent of the population suffer severe symptoms, and up to a third of the population have mild to moderate symptoms.\n\"There are so many sources of radiation, so smart meters are just one additional source,\" Havas said. \"We have a lot of it in our home. We live near cell phone antennas and they all emit radio frequency. What seems to happen is once the smart meters go in, people seem to be fine, and then a few of them become quite ill.\""}
{"text": "Guest blogger Jon Bowermaster is a writer and filmmaker. His most recent documentary is \"SoLa, Louisiana Water Stories\" and his most recent book is OCEANS, The Threats to the Sea and What You Can Do To Turn the Tide.\nTypically at this time of year a certain breed of shopper purposefully wanders the fish stalls of their favorite grocer taking stock of the piles of fresh oysters carefully arranged on crushed ice or to pick up and judge the heft in their hands of tightly packed tins of caviar, which sell for anywhere from $50 to $2,000.\nBut maybe this is the year to lay off those two favored treats and replace them with something slightly less traditional: squid.\nI know, a big bowl of calamari hardly compares to one of caviar… but, man, there’s a lot of squid out there these days. I’m sure some of those very popular sustainable fish chefs have already dreamed up some special calamari entrée to take advantage of the boom.\nHow much squid is out there? It’s estimated that around-the-world squid in mass outweighs the human population. And that’s with sperm whales alone munching down more than 100 million tons of squid each year.Squid are one of the most important foods in the ocean, along with other prey like sardines and pollock. Whales and seabirds depend on abundant squid to raise their young, particularly during breeding season.\nAlong the coast of California, the market squid season has been so abundant the state Department of Fish and Game reports its annual limit of 118,000 tons has already been taken and the squid season is now closed until March 31. Marine biologists credit a rush of colder-than-normal water for the banner year; usually February is prime time.\nAt the same time, certain squid are booming thanks to a slight warming of sea temperatures, in places like Alaska and Siberia. Many squid, octopuses and other sucker-bearing members of the cephalopod family don't appear to be too troubled by the minor increase. In fact, when it's a little warmer, some thrive. The populations are thought to be exploding because of the overfishing of other fish that used to dine on young squid.\nWarmer waters can help squid “balloon” in size because their enzymes work faster when warm. A young giant squid can grow from 2 millimeters to a meter in a single year, the equivalent of a human baby growing to the size of a whale in twelve months.\nThere’s also been a boom in Humboldt squid along the Pacific coastline ranging from Peru to California, now expanding northward to places they’ve never been seen before. The big tentacled variety can grow more than seven feet long and weigh more than one hundred pounds. A feisty fish, once on the line, the big squids can be slightly dangerous to haul into your boat. They have a nasty, pecking beak, like to spray black ink and have the ability to expel up to two gallons of water into the faces of unsuspecting fishermen (“like a giant squirt gun”).\nA downside to the boom in giant squid is that they also have giant appetites, which means they are making a big hit on salmon, for example, thus reducing the amount of the pink fleshy fish for human tables.\nThe giant squid are also proving to be a menace to divers, being both aggressive and carnivorous, a mean combo when the tentacles of one of the rust-colored, six-foot long creatures latches onto your air tank, or leg.\nEditor’s note: It’s typical for squid and other prey species to boom and bust in response to changing environmental conditions. Oceana is working to establish regulations that adapt fishing to this rollercoaster, fishing more during the boom and cutting back during lean times to protect food for whales. As an added complexity, cephalopods are seeing their numbers expand as the fishing industry captures more and more of the big predatory fish that eat squid, such as tuna.\n- Stocks Show Signs of Recovery, But Still Work to Do Posted Fri, May 17, 2013\n- What Do Historic CO2 Levels Mean for the Oceans? Posted Tue, May 14, 2013\n- U.S. Coast Guard Captures Illegal Fishermen in Texas Posted Tue, May 14, 2013\n- Victory! Delaware Becomes Seventh State in U.S. to Ban Shark Fin Trade! Posted Thu, May 16, 2013\n- It's Endangered Species Day! Posted Fri, May 17, 2013"}
{"text": "Climate change is the defining human development challenge of the 21st Century. Failure to respond to that challenge will stall and then reverse international efforts to reduce poverty. The poorest countries and most vulnerable citizens will suffer the earliest and most damaging setbacks, even though they have contributed least to the problem. Looking to the future, no country—however wealthy or powerful—will be immune to the impact of global warming.\nClimate change is not just a future scenario. Increased exposure to droughts, floods and storms is already destroying opportunity and reinforcing inequality. Meanwhile, there is now overwhelming scientific evidence that the world is moving towards the point at which irreversible ecological catastrophe becomes unavoidable. Business-as-usual climate change points in a clear direction: unprecedented reversal in human development in our lifetime, and acute risks for our children and their grandchildren.\nIn a divided but ecologically interdependent world, it challenges all people to reflect upon how we manage the environment of the one thing that we share in common: planet Earth. It challenges us to reflect on social justice and human rights across countries and generations. It challenges political leaders and people in rich nations to acknowledge their historic responsibility for the problem, and to initiate deep and early cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. Above all, it challenges the entire human community to undertake prompt and strong collective action based on shared values and a shared vision.\nThe IPCC2000 report, based on the work of some 2,500 scientists in more than 130 countries, concluded that humans have caused all or most of the current planetary warming. Human-caused global warming is often called anthropogenic climate change.\nIndustrialization, deforestation, and pollution have greatly increased atmospheric concentrations of water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, all greenhouse gases that help trap heat near Earth’s surface. Humans are pouring carbon dioxide into the atmosphere much faster than can be absorbed by plants and oceans.\nIt is expected that environmentally friendly methods of electricity generation will help to lower the CO2 being produced during power generation. Some of this methods include solar and wind energy power generators.\nTHE SUN IS NOT TO BLAME\nIt’s global warming, it’s climate change, it’s our fault, no it’s volcanoes… wait, actually it’s the sun! Or maybe not.\nThe arguments about climate change have been raging for years. Some say that the warming is a natural occurrence, some blame humanity and then others simply say ‘what warming?’ One idea now at least can be put to rest – the sun is not to blame.\nIt has been very popular to cite that the planet goes through many warming and cooling periods as a direct result of changes in solar activity. It sounds fair enough, if the sun produces more heat we get warmer. And this was very much the idea put forward by Britain’s Channel 4 in their documentary called ‘The great global warming swindle.’ There is one main problem with blaming the sun – it’s just not true.\nIt is true that up until about 1980 all the information showed that solar activity was increasing. This is exactly what they showed on all of their graphs, and it looks both convincing and logical. The sun was outputting more energy, the planet was getting warmer, bingo, we have our culprit! But this is just not the case, the trend in solar activity changed.\n“This paper is the final nail in the coffin for people who would like to make the sun responsible for present global warming,” Stefan Rahmstorf, a climate scientist at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany, told the journal Nature.\nGLOBAL MEAN TEMPERATURES\nMike Lockwood, from Oxford’s Rutherford-Appleton Laboratory and Claus Fröhlich, from the World Radiation Centre in Switzerland recently published their paper in the UK’s Royal Society’s journal, stating clear evidence that the warming of the past two decades is not due to the sun – we need to look elsewhere.\nNot only does the sun fail to explain any rise in temperature but it would actually suggest a cooling, as clearly stated in the abstract of the paper, “There is considerable evidence for solar influence on the Earth’s pre-industrial climate and the Sun may well have been a factor in post-industrial climate change in the first half of the last century. Here we show that over the past 20 years, all the trends in the Sun that could have had an influence on the Earth’s climate have been in the opposite direction to that required to explain the observed rise in global mean temperatures.”\nCOUNTERING GLOBAL WARMING\nThis study has compiled data about solar activity spanning the last one hundred years and have shown that solar activity peaked between 1985 and 1987.\n“This is an important contribution to the scientific debate on climate change. At present there is a small minority which is seeking to deliberately confuse the public on the causes of climate change. They are often misrepresenting the science, when the reality is that the evidence is getting stronger every day. We have reached a point where a failure to take action to reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions would be irresponsible and dangerous,” said a representative of the Royal Society.\nEven though one theory countering global warming has been overturned new ones will come up every day. People will continue to say that the whole idea of climate change is nothing but government propaganda and a dozen or so other conspiracy theories. Now more than ever it is important for the public to be properly educated about what is going on. There are far too many places citing ‘scientific’ reasons as to why global warming is nothing but a lie. And sadly, with the way the media and the internet works, this is unlikely to change. Let’s just hope the politicians listen to the scientists and not to members of the public who are being confused and misled by far too many sources.\nSHEEP BLAME HUMANS\nTwo years after scientists concluded that a breed of wild sheep on a remote Scottish island was shrinking over time, a study released Thursday revealed why: milder winters tied to global warming.\nDue to milder winters, lambs on the island of Hirta do not need to put on as much as weight in the first months of life to survive to their first year, according to the study in the peer-reviewed journal Science. As a result, even the slower-growing ones now have a chance of surviving.\n“In the past, only the big, healthy sheep and large lambs that had piled on weight in their first summer could survive the harsh winters on Hirta,” lead author Tim Coulson, a researcher at Imperial College London, said in a statement.\n“But now, due to climate change, grass for food is available for more months of the year, and survival conditions are not so challenging — even the slower growing sheep have a chance of making it, and this means smaller individuals are becoming increasingly prevalent in the population.”\nEVOLUTIONARY THEORY UPENDED\nThe study upends the belief that natural selection is a dominant feature of evolution, noting that climate can trump that card.\n“According to classic evolutionary theory,” Coulson added, the sheep “should have been getting bigger, because larger sheep tend to be more likely to survive and reproduce than smaller ones, and offspring tend to resemble their parents.”\nThe sheep on Hirta have been examined closely since 1985 and experts concluded in 2007 that average body size was shrinking. By this year, it had decreased by 5 percent since 1985.\nCoulson’s team analyzed body-weight measurements and key life milestones for a selected group of female sheep. They then plugged the data into a computer model that predicts how body size will change over time due to natural selection and other factors.\nThe results suggest that the decrease in average size is primarily an ecological response to warming, the authors said, and that natural selection has contributed relatively little."}
{"text": "The election of Egypt’s president Muhammad Mursi momentarily threw a spotlight on the long-forgotten Palestinians exiled to Gaza after the Israelis’ infamous siege of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem in the West Bank 10 years ago.\nStill kicking their heels in Gaza the exiles called on Mursi to continue efforts to end the squabble between political rivals Hamas in Gaza and Fatah in the West Bank. They were optimistic that the new Egyptian president would work towards easing Israel’s blockade on the Gaza Strip and press for Palestinians rights, including the right of exiles to return home.\nIt is expected Mursi will at least allow greater freedom to travel across Gaza’s Rafah crossing into Egypt, the besieged enclave’s only door to the outside world.\nHow did the exiles find themselves in the prison Gaza has become? In 2002 a young girl from a refugee camp triggered events that led to a 40-day siege of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. This is probably the oldest Christian church in the world, built by Constantine the Great and dating from AD330. A member of the girl’s family had been killed by Israeli occupation troops. Grief-stricken, she took revenge by turning herself into a suicide bomber.\nThe Israelis responded by sending 250 tanks and armoured personnel carriers, F-16 fighter jets, Apache gunships and hundreds of soldiers into West Bank towns like Nablus, Jenin and Bethlehem late at night. In Bethlehem they cut the electricity supply and invaded the old township with helicopter gunships and occupied all key points around Manger Square. Many innocent Palestinians were killed by shelling and army snipers, and the market and some shops were set on fire as troops tried to hunt down suspected ‘fighters’. Civilians tried desperately to hide from the troops and a large number of people took refuge or arrived for other reasons at the Church and found themselves trapped, unable to leave.\nA few years ago I interviewed one of the survivors, who recalled that “248 took refuge there. They included 1 Islamic Jihad, 28 Hamas, 50 to 60 Al-Aqsa Martyrs. The remainder were ordinary townsfolk and included 100 uniformed Palestinian Authority workers, also 26 children and 8 to10 women and girls. The Israeli soldiers would not allow them to leave, but they escaped in the first week by a back door.”\nPriests and nuns – Armenian, Greek and Catholic – from the adjoining monasteries brought the number to over 300 at the beginning. “Some of them went back to the monasteries but some stayed with us every day for the 40 days.”\nThe Vatican was outraged. The Greek Orthodox Church of Jerusalem called on Christians worldwide to make the upcoming Sunday a “solidarity day” for the people in the Church and the Church itself, and urged immediate intervention to stop what it called the “inhuman measures against the people and the stone of the Church”.\nThe Israelis set up cranes on which were mounted robotic machine-guns under video control. According to eye-witnesses eight defenders, including the bell-ringer, were murdered, some by the armchair button-pushers playing with their video joysticks and some by regular snipers.\nFrom the start, said my survivor, the Israeli troops used psychological warfare methods – for example, disorienting noise to deprive them of sleep, bright lights and concussion grenades. They paraded the families of the besieged in front of the Church to pressure them to surrender. They also used illegal dum-dum bullets which cause horrendous wounds and trauma. “Most of those who were killed… it was because of the dum-dums… so much bleeding, and it took so long to arrange to send them to a hospital.”\nHe said the soldiers fired tracer rounds into two of the monasteries and set the ancient fabric of the buildings alight.\n15 days into the siege those inside managed to recharge their cellphones using the mains that supplied the Church towers and call for help. The Israelis had overlooked the fact that this was a separate supply coming from the Bethlehem municipality. Friends responded by sending food to the medical centre. From there it went by ambulance, along with authentic casualties, and was delivered to houses near the Church. At night young girls carried the food in plastic bags from house to house until supplies reached the dwellings nextdoor to the Church. The bags were then thrown from roof to roof. This went on for 6 days until one girl dropped a bag, which the soldiers found. The Israelis, now alerted, shot and paralysed another young man. It put an end to the food operation.\n“Inside the Church we vowed not to harm the soldiers unless they actually broke in. When soldiers did gain access and killed one of the resisters, 4 of them were shot.”\nThose trapped inside the Church were surprised to discover an old lady living within the complex. She had a small horde of olives and wheat, with which they made bread. So they managed to eke out the food for 28 days.\nThe Governor of Bethlehem and the Director of the Catholic Society were among those holding out in the Church. According to my survivor’s first-hand account, those inside only opened the door if someone died or was injured. He recalled watching through a peephole and seeing people approaching across the forecourt. “They were from the Peace Movement, 28 of them. By now the world media were watching. 17 were arrested but 11 took a big risk, managing to bluff their way in and bringing food in their rucksacks, which lasted another 4 days, and basic medicines.\nThe worst time, he said, was the final week – no food and only dirty water from the well. They resorted to boiling leaves and old chicken legs into a soup. He ate only lemons and salt for 5 or 6 days. “Many were so ill by this time that they were passing blood.”\nOutside some 15 civilians had been indiscriminately shot in the street or in their homes. The Israelis refused to allow the dead in the Church to be removed for decent burial. “In the end, the Governor decided it was better to be in jail than die. So we opened the door and surrendered on the 40th day. 148 had survived. We were promptly arrested and interrogated.\n“13 were exiled to the EU, 26 were exiled to Gaza, 26 were wounded, 26 had surrendered because they were under-age. 8 were killed inside the Church, and with Samir (the bellringer) makes 9. They shot Samir in front of the Church as he came out to surrender.”\nThe rest were allowed home, including my survivor. “The Israelis said to me, ‘Do you know why you are going home? Because America wants it’.” The adverse publicity had prodded the CIA and EU into taking a hand in deciding the fate of the survivors.\nThe whole disgraceful episode would no doubt have ended in more carnage if the world’s media hadn’t tuned in and ten international activists, including members of the International Solidarity Movement, hadn’t managed to enter the Church.\nI hear that the exiles have not been allowed to work since or receive visits from their families. According to some reports they were not even allowed to say goodbye to their loved ones before being packed off.\nWhat exactly were they guilty of? They may have been Palestinian gunmen but the last time I checked it was perfectly OK to put up armed resistance against an illegal military occupation. Israel’s gunmen happen to wear uniform and are equipped with the best weaponry American tax dollars can buy. They are fond of saying, “We have a right to defend ourselves.” So do the Palestinians. Obviously.\nSo why did America and the EU lend themselves to this shameful act of exiling… a helpful little boost to Israel’s ongoing programme of ethnic cleansing of the West Bank?\nAnd having got their hands dirty isn’t it time, after 10 years, they cleaned up and insisted that these forgotten men be re-united with their families?\nA few weeks ago the Israeli press was practising their usual distortions and telling readers that “the terrorists took shelter in the famous church, and used about 40 priests and nuns as a shield, knowing Israel would not take a chance on inadvertently hurting priests and nuns”.\nBut for Israel’s gunslingers it had been open season on bellringers and other innocents.\n(Stuart Littlewood / www.eurasiareview.com / 30.06.2012)\nFiled under: Terrorism | Tagged: Palestine, Revolution, Terrorism | Leave a Comment »"}
{"text": "This following chronology looks back at the problem of xenophobia since South Africa’s first democratic elections in 1994.\nThe Zulu-based Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) threatens to take “physical action” if the government fails to respond to the perceived crisis of undocumented migrants in South Africa.\nIFP leader and Minister of Home Affairs Mangosutho Buthelezi says in his first speech to parliament: “If we as South Africans are going to compete for scarce resources with millions of aliens who are pouring into South Africa, then we can bid goodbye to our Reconstruction and Development Programme.”\nIn December gangs of South Africans try to evict perceived “illegals” from Alexandra township, blaming them for increased crime, sexual attacks and unemployment. The campaign, lasting several weeks, is known as “Buyelekhaya” (Go back home).\nA report by the Southern African Bishops’ Conference concludes: “There is no doubt that there is a very high level of xenophobia in our country … One of the main problems is that a variety of people have been lumped together under the title of ‘illegal immigrants’, and the whole situation of demonising immigrants is feeding the xenophobia phenomenon.”\nDefence Minister Joe Modise links the issue of undocumented migration to increased crime in a newspaper interview.\nIn a speech to parliament, Home Affairs Minister Buthelezi claims “illegal aliens” cost South African taxpayers “billions of rands” each year.\nA study co-authored by the Human Sciences Research Council and the Institute for Security Studies reports that 65 percent of South Africans support forced repatriation of undocumented migrants. White South Africans are found to be most hostile to migrants, with 93 percent expressing negative attitudes.\nLocal hawkers in central Johannesburg attack their foreign counterparts. The chairperson of the Inner Johannesburg Hawkers Committee is quoted as saying: “We are prepared to push them out of the city, come what may. My group is not prepared to let our government inherit a garbage city because of these leeches.”\nA Southern African Migration Project (SAMP) survey of migrants in Lesotho, Mozambique and Zimbabwe shows that very few would wish to settle in South Africa. A related study of migrant entrepreneurs in Johannesburg finds that these street traders create an average of three jobs per business.\nThree non-South Africans are killed by a mob on a train travelling between Pretoria and Johannesburg in what is described as a xenophobic attack.\nIn December The Roll Back Xenophobia Campaign is launched by a partnership of the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), the National Consortium on Refugee Affairs and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).\nThe Department of Home Affairs reports that the majority of deportations are of Mozambicans (141,506) followed by Zimbabweans (28,548)\nA report by the SAHRC notes that xenophobia underpins police action against foreigners. People are apprehended for being “too dark” or “walking like a black foreigner”. Police also regularly destroy documents of black non-South Africans.\nSudanese refugee James Diop is seriously injured after being thrown from a train in Pretoria by a group of armed men. Kenyan Roy Ndeti and his room mate are shot in their home. Both incidents are described as xenophobic attacks.\nIn Operation Crackdown, a joint police and army sweep, over 7,000 people are arrested on suspicion of being illegal immigrants. In contrast, only 14 people are arrested for serious crimes.\nA SAHRC report on the Lindela deportation centre, a holding facility for undocumented migrants, lists a series of abuses at the facility, including assault and the systematic denial of basic rights. The report notes that 20 percent of detainees claimed South African citizenship or that they were in the country legally.\nAccording to the 2001 census, out of South Africa’s population of 45 million, just under one million foreigners are legally resident in the country. However, the Department of Home Affairs estimates there are more than seven million undocumented migrants.\nProtests erupt at Lindela over claims of beatings and inmate deaths, coinciding with hearings into xenophobia by SAHRC and parliament’s portfolio committee on foreign affairs.\nCape Town’s Somali community claim that 40 traders have been the victims of targeted killings between August and September.\nSomali-owned businesses in the informal settlement of Diepsloot, outside Johannesburg, are repeatedly torched.\nIn March UNHCR notes its concern over the increase in the number of xenophobic attacks on Somalis. The Somali community claims 400 people have been killed in the past decade.\nIn May more than 20 people are arrested after shops belonging to Somalis and other foreign nationals are torched during anti-government protests in Khutsong township, a small mining town about 50km southwest of Johannesburg. According to the International Organisation of Migration, 177,514 Zimbabweans deported from South Africa pass through their reception centre across the border in Beitbridge since its opening in May 2006.\nIn March human rights organisations condemn a spate of xenophobic attacks around Pretoria that leave at least four people dead and hundreds homeless.\nSources include: IRIN, Human Rights Watch, SAMP, SAHRC, Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation"}
{"text": "BRCA1 mutations account for only 5% of breast and ovarian cancers, but loss-of-function mutations in the BRCA1 gene confer up to an 82% risk of breast cancer and up to a 54% risk of ovarian cancer. Because BRCA1 is involved in DNA repair, loss of a functioning BRCA1 gene may make a cell more vulnerable to chemotherapy agents that damage DNA, such as platinum-based compounds. In addition, BRCA1 has also been shown to be involved in the regulation of cell division, and loss of the gene has been proposed to protect a cell against spindle poisons, a group of chemotherapy agents, such as taxanes and vinca alkaloids, that disrupt cell division.\nTo determine whether the level of BRCA1 function in a patient could be used to predict response to chemotherapy for breast and ovarian cancers, D. Paul Harkin, B.Sc., Ph.D., and Richard D. Kennedy, M.D., Ph.D., of The Queen's University of Belfast in Northern Ireland, and colleagues reviewed published preclinical and clinical evidence. Preclinical studies included research in both animal models and cell lines. Clinical studies were all retrospective in nature, because no prospective trials have been designed to study the role of BRCA1 in chemotherapy response.\nThe researchers found that BRCA1 inactivation through mutation appears to confer sensitivity to DNA-damaging chemotherapeutic drugs commonly used to treat breast and ovarian cancers. However, preclinical evidence suggests that BRCA1 function is necessary for spindle poisons to work. The authors recommend that prospective studies be conducted to evaluate BRCA1 expression and chemotherapeutic res\nContact: Sarah L. Zielinski\nJournal of the National Cancer Institute"}
{"text": "Invalid Forensic Science Testimony and Wrongful Convictions\nFlawed testimony by forensic experts contributed to the conviction of innocent defendants, according to a new study co-written by University of Virginia Law School professor Brandon Garrett.\nThe findings are featured in an article, \"Invalid Forensic Science Testimony and Wrongful Convictions,\" published in the March, 2009 issue of the Virginia Law Review. Read the article in\nGarrett and Peter Neufeld, co-director of the Innocence Project, studied the transcripts of 137 trials in which prosecution forensic analysts testified, and the defendants were exonerated years later by post-conviction DNA testing.\nThe pair found that in 60 percent of those wrongful conviction cases, forensic analysts gave \"invalid testimony that overstated the evidence,\" Garrett said.\n\"What we mean by 'invalid' is simply that the testimony was unscientific or contrary to empirical data,\" he said. \"Just because a wrong statistic was offered, does not mean that the testimony necessarily caused the wrongful conviction. However, these powerful examples support efforts to adopt and enforce scientific standards governing forensic reporting and testimony.\"\nThe flawed testimony uncovered by Garrett and Neufeld included erroneous or unsupported testimony about the accuracy and results of forensic techniques, including hair comparison, bite-mark comparison, fingerprint comparison and even DNA testing.\nThe study originated with a request to Garrett — who conducted previous research on wrongful convictions — from a National Academy of Sciences committee examining the needs of the forensic science community, asking him to present at one of the committee's public hearings.\nGarrett and Neufeld then spent more than a year compiling and analyzing trial transcripts from the cases of people later exonerated by DNA evidence. Several scientists and forensic scientists also reviewed the categories used for analysis and examined transcripts in particular cases.\nThe majority of the cases were rape cases from the 1980s, and many included testimony about forensic techniques that are still used today, said Neufeld, co-founder of Innocence Project, a national litigation and public policy organization that uses DNA testing to exonerate wrongfully convicted people and seeks to reform the criminal justice system to prevent injustice.\nThe National Academy of Sciences report, \"Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States: A Path Forward,\" was released in February, and recommends the establishment of a national institute of forensic science, an independent scientific entity to adopt and enforce standards for forensic report writing and testimony.\n\"With the exception of nuclear DNA analysis ... no forensic method has been rigorously shown to have the capacity to consistently, and with a high degree of certainty, demonstrate a connection between evidence and a specific individual or source,\" the National Academy of Sciences report says.\nIn their study, Garrett and Neufeld found that forensic analysts often testified that a particular piece of evidence — such as a hair or a fingerprint — was closely connected to the innocent defendant, despite the fact that no scientific data permitted analysts to reach such conclusions.\nFor example, in one case an analyst told a jury that only 5 percent of the population had a certain type of hair pigment discovered at a crime scene, and that the defendant was among them. But there is no empirical data about the frequency of particular hair pigments, Garrett said.\n\"These trial transcripts were fascinating to read, because in retrospect we know that all of the defendants were innocent,\" he said. \"Yet few have looked at these records. Even after these wrongful convictions came to light, crime laboratories rarely conducted audits or investigations to review the forensic evidence presented at the trial.\"\nThe study doesn't speak to the state of mind of analysts; it's impossible to tell from trial materials whether they were simply inexperienced or poorly supervised or acting in bad faith, Garrett said.\n\"Nor do we know how many cases involved concealment of forensic evidence,\" he said. \"In 13 exonerees' cases it has since come to light that forensic evidence was concealed that would have helped to prove innocence. Similarly, we do not know from reading trial transcripts in how many cases errors were made in the laboratory, although in a few exonerees' cases in which the underlying evidence was re-examined, gross errors have come to light.\"\nThe study also notes that the criminal justice system is not well-suited to prevent unscientific testimony. Reasons include that the presentation of forensic evidence is almost entirely one-sided, Garrett said.\n\"Defense counsel rarely cross-examined analysts concerning invalid testimony and rarely retained experts, since courts routinely deny funding for defense experts.\" Only 19 of the eventual exonerees whose cases were examined had defense experts. \"Prosecutors, moreover, presented erroneous accounts of the forensic evidence during closing arguments,\" Garrett said.\nThe study's authors agree with the National Academy of Sciences report's assessment that a set of national scientific standards should be established to ensure the valid presentation of forensic analysis. Neufeld called the report \"a major breakthrough toward ensuring that so-called scientific evidence in criminal cases is solid, validated and reliable.\"\"\n||Truth in Justice"}
{"text": "The island nation of Rhodes was an immensely successful commercial power of the Aegean. They strategically sided with Athens but, when in jeopardy, negotiated favorable surrenders to Sparta, Alexander the Great, and Demetrios Poliorketes, allowing them to sustain at least some degree of independence based on neutrality. Rhodes was named for the rose, depicted on the reverse of this coin. A portrait of Helios, the sun god, wearing a crown of rays graces the obverse. This image was based upon the head of the great statue of Helios, better known as the Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The Colossus memorialized the war with Demetrios Poliorketes. He unsuccessfully attacked the city for over a year, around 305-304 B.C. Eventually, a settlement was negotiated and Poliorketes abandoned his siege towers constructed from valuable timbers that the Rhodeans in turn sold off for shipbuilding. The proceeds from this sale were invested in the huge (105 ft.) bronze statue of Helios standing at the entrance of the harbor. While the famous statue served as a reminder of the city's fortitude during the siege and became a tourist attraction, it only stood until 227 B.C. when it was toppled by an earthquake.\nHow many hands have touched a coin in your pocket or your purse? What eras and lands have the coin traversed on its journey into our possession? As we reach into our pockets to pull out some change, we rarely hesitate to think of who touched the coin before us, or where the coin will venture to after us. More than money, coins are a symbol of the state that struck them, of a specific time and place, whether currency in the age we live or an artifact of a long forgotten empire. This ancient coin is more than an artifact; it is a memorial to the glories of Rhodes passed from the hands of civilization to civilization, from generation to generation. - (C.7323)"}
{"text": "- Cooking Time: 0\n- Servings: 0\n- Here are some recipes I have collected over the years and I am thrilled to share them with you.\n- There are some dangerous dog treats which can be fatal to dogs.\n- Even if you're creating your own healthy dog treats, you would like to look at out for sure ingredients. Here's an inventory of toxic foods you would like to avoid.\n- Chocolate is one among a lot of renowned toxic human food a dog will eat. Here may be a list of different toxic foods.\n- *Is Garlic Healthy or Toxic for Dogs?\n- Naturaldoghealthremedies.com claims that garlic boosts immunities, fights infection, enhances liver perform, lowers blood fats, and repels ticks and fleas, nevertheless cautions that giant doses given to dogs on a daily basis will cause oxidative injury to red blood cells resulting in Heinz-body anemia and even death. They additionally caution that puppies below the age of eight weeks, dogs scheduled for surgery, and people with pre-existing anemia mustn't be given garlic.\n- Dr's Foster and Smith of peteducation.com are in agreement that garlic causes a breakdown of red blood cells in dogs though they permit that garlic in terribly tiny amounts in some industrial pet foods has not been shown to cause any issues. Their web site states that a toxic dose is unknown which cats are a lot of sensitive to garlic than dogs are.\n- Wikipedia says that green or un-ripened tomatoes should not be included in your dog's diet as a result they contain ptomaine, that is harmful to our pets; however red tomatoes are fine.\n- It says that moldy food may also create dangerous dog treats.\n- Small balls, toys, and chicken or turkey bones will be choked on by dogs. Cooked bones also are too brittle for a dog to eat safely - it's safer to stay to raw bones.\n- If your dog eats an excessive amount of food, obesity can develop which may be fatal.\n- If you're thinking that you pet has been poisoned by one among the on top of foods, then call your vet or the Emergency Vet - particularly if he's vomiting or showing signs of lethargy.\n- How sick he could get can relies on the amount ingested. My pet has had tiny amounts of onion and garlic and it hasn't caused any issues. He once additionally stole an After-Eight! Mint, once more - this was simply a tiny low quantity of chocolate therefore he was fine. However it will pay to stay an eye fixed out - and keep the incorrect style of dangerous ingredients out of reach.\n- As well as these dangerous foods, there are different ingredients that will not be terribly healthy for your pet. Dog food allergies will be caused by things like wheat or diary product. And similar to humans - an excessive amount of sugar can create an overweight pet.\n- Grapes and Raisins\n- Macadamia nuts\n- Seeds (such as apple seeds)\n- Turkey skin\n- Green or sprouting potato skins\n- Apricot – Stone\n- Apple – Seeds\n- Cherry – Seeds\n- Peach Stone\n- There are voluminous safe foods which will be used to create simple homemade dog treats. A few things, like pumpkin for dogs will truly be a super food.\n- It is simple to keep your pet safe and healthy once you recognize what to avoid. Safe and nutritious treats, served up with love, can invariably be appreciated!"}
{"text": "Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)\nWhat Is It?\nIrritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common disorder that causes a variety of symptoms, including:\n- Abdominal pain\n- Diarrhea and/or constipation\nThe severity of the disorder varies from person to person. Some people experience symptoms that come and go and are just mildly annoying. Others have such severe daily bowel problems that IBS affects their ability to work, sleep and enjoy life.\nIn addition, symptoms may change over time. A person may have severe symptoms for several weeks and then feel well for months or even years.\nMost people are never cured of IBS. However, the disorder is not related to any other disease. It does not develop into colitis. People with IBS do not have an increased risk of colon cancer.\nIBS usually starts in early adulthood. It affects twice as many women as men. Approximately 10% to 20% of the population has IBS. But half of all people with the condition never seek medical care for their symptoms.\nNo one knows what causes IBS. Some studies suggest that the nerves of the colon may be much more sensitive than usual in people with IBS. The normal movement of food and gas through the colon causes pain, intestinal spasms and an irregular pattern of bowel movements.\nStress does not cause IBS. But stress can increase the frequency and severity of symptoms.\nIBS has been called irritable colon, spastic colon, mucous colitis and functional bowel disease.\nPeople with IBS may have some or all of these symptoms:\n- Mild or severe abdominal pain, discomfort or cramping that usually goes away after a bowel movement\n- Periods of diarrhea or constipation, or alternating between these two symptoms\n- Bloating, gassiness or a feeling of having a distended abdomen\n- Mucus in bowel movements\n- Feeling as though a bowel movement is incomplete\nAlthough the symptoms of IBS often change over time, people tend to develop their own pattern. For example, some people have mostly diarrhea, some have mostly constipation and others have abdominal pain without a major change in bowel movements.\nThere is no test for IBS. Your doctor will diagnose IBS if you have the typical symptoms and have been tested for other disorders that can cause similar symptoms.\nYour doctor will ask about your medical history and symptoms. Your doctor will examine you, testing your abdomen for tenderness and feeling to determine whether internal organs are larger than normal. The doctor will check for fever or weight loss. If you have any of these signs, you likely have something other than IBS.\nDepending on your medical history, your doctor may do tests to eliminate other diseases that may cause similar symptoms. These tests might include:\n- Blood tests\n- Stool sample, to check for blood or evidence of infection\n- Sigmoidoscopy, in which a flexible, lighted tube with a tiny camera on the end is inserted into the rectum and up the left side of the colon\n- Colonoscopy, in which a longer tube examines the entire colon\nYour doctor may suggest that you stop eating or drinking certain foods for up to three weeks to determine if your diet is contributing to your symptoms. For example, your doctor may ask you to eliminate milk products if he or she suspects lactose intolerance.\nIBS symptoms may be a daily problem throughout a person's life. Symptoms may come and go, lasting a day, a week or a month before disappearing. Dietary changes with or without medication may help to reduce the frequency or severity of symptoms.\nBecause no one knows what causes IBS, it is impossible to prevent the disorder. Once diagnosed with IBS, a person may be able to reduce the frequency and severity of symptoms by reducing stress or changing the diet.\nChanging your diet may improve symptoms dramatically. It often takes a long time to discover what works well for you. And you may need to alter your original program if symptoms flare.\nKeep track of the different foods you eat throughout the day. See which foods seem to make your symptoms worse. After you discover your particular trigger foods, eliminate them from your diet. Some common IBS trigger foods include:\n- Cabbage, broccoli, kale, legumes and other gas-producing foods\n- Dairy products\n- Fatty foods, including whole milk, cream, cheese, butter, oils, meats and avocados\n- Raw fruits\n- Foods, gums and beverages that contain sorbitol, an artificial sweetener\nThe way you eat may help to create IBS symptoms. Eating large meals can cause cramping and diarrhea, so eating smaller meals more often may help some people with IBS. Eating quickly can cause you to swallow air, which can cause belching or gas.\nAdding fiber to your diet, especially if constipation is one of your main symptoms, often helps to regulate your bowel movements and reduce abdominal discomfort. At first, fiber will increase the amount of gas in your system, so add fiber gradually. Over time, the body adjusts to the effects of fiber and the gassiness will decrease. Fruits, vegetables and whole-grain breads and cereals are good food sources of fiber. Your doctor may recommend a fiber supplement. Some experts believe that the fiber methylcellulose creates the least amount of gas, and brands of this fiber are often recommended for people with IBS. Psyllium is also a good source of fiber.\nIf your symptoms are not relieved after you eliminate trigger foods and add fiber, your doctor may prescribe medications.\nFor people that have frequent loose stools (diarrhea-predominant IBS), medication options include:\n- Antidiarrheals -- loperamide (Imodium), diphenoxylate (Lomotil and other brand names)\n- Antispasmodics to reduce cramping -- dicyclomine (Bentyl)\n- Pain-reducing agents -- amitriptyline (Elavil), desipramine (Norpramin)\n- Alosetron (Lotronex) is approved only for women with severe diarrhea-predominant IBS who have very severe diarrhea and have not responded to other treatments. To receive this drug, you must sign a form stating that you are aware of life-threatening complications, such as a blocked, ruptured or damaged bowel.\nFor people with constipation-predominant IBS, fiber and plenty of fluids are the mainstays of therapy. If medication is needed, your doctor may prescribe an osmotic laxative such as lactulose. A newer drug approved for women with persistent constipation is lubiprostone (Amitiza). Lubiprostone acts on the cells that line the inside of the intestines. The drug promotes increased fluid secretion into the intestine, making stool passage easier.\nWhen To Call a Professional\nIt is useful for anyone with irritable bowel symptoms to discuss their symptoms with a doctor, so that diet, fiber and drug treatment strategies can be planned.\nAfter you have been diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome, contact your doctor if you have:\n- An episode of severe symptoms\n- Unexplained weight loss or fever\n- Blood in your stool\n- Abdominal pain that is accompanied by vomiting, dizziness or fainting\n- Abdominal pain or diarrhea that awakens you from sleep\nThere is no cure for IBS. But most people can lessen the symptoms by making dietary changes, reducing stress and, if necessary, taking medication.\nNational Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disorders\nOffice of Communications and Public Liaison\nBuilding 31, Room 9A06\n31 Center Drive, MSC 2560\nBethesda, MD 20892-2560\nAmerican College of Gastroenterology (ACG)\nP.O. Box 342260\nBethesda, MD 20827-2260\nAmerican Gastroenterological Association\n4930 Del Ray Ave.\nBethesda, MD 20814"}
{"text": "Given that this is the first U.S. presidential election since apps have made their way onto most electronic devices, you might think there would be dozens of worthwhile products available on the topic designed for students. Think again.\nSure, there are plenty of apps devoted to November’s election, there just aren’t that many that explain the process to those too young to cast a ballot. Those listed here should get the conversation rolling about how we elect a President and the men who have held that the office.\nFor older students look for apps produced by mainstream media outlets with a focus on election coverage. Start with the major newspapers. In addition to hourly news updates, The Washington Post’s W P Politics includes “campaign files,” an interactive polling map, and a fact checker that “accesses the veracity of candidates’ statements,” awarding “one to four Pinocchios” when deemed necessary. Viewers can also watch videos of candidate’s ads—these alone will generate some lively classroom conversations. It doesn’t get much better than this one, and it’s available for free.\nThe NY Times Election 2012 (The New York Times) app promises all readers access to a half dozen “top” news stories. However, only subscribers can view candidate pages and videos and photos from the campaign trail, read the latest polling news, and receive live election results. High school students who love politics are probably already following Mike Allen’s Politico Playbook (Politico) on their iPhones or iPads. Right now the daily news from this Washington insider is full of election-related coverage, and it’s all for free.\nTo drive home discussions about the Electoral College consider downloading the Electoral-Vote.com (Dubbele.com; Gr 9 Up; Free) app, which will bring users to the website. The site, which has been tracking elections for a number of years, includes detailed maps and commentary (sometimes snarky) on the presidential and senate races. It includes current poll results, graphs, and news features, and links to articles from a range of periodicals and blogs. The 2012 Map: The Presidential Election App is a better choice for younger students (Cory Renzella; Gr 5-9; $1.99), and it’s available in 12 languages. The projected electoral map is easy-to-read and there are daily updates and brief notes on where current presidential polls are in place. Users can create maps with their own Electoral College projections and share them with friends via Facebook, Twitter, and email. As they scroll through the archive of electoral maps from 1789 through 2008 they’ll see the borders of the country change, watch as third parties pop up, discover the shrunken map of 1864, and read the embedded notes on each election. For a simple Electoral College map that can be manipulated for classroom use Election Map 2012 (Teq; Gr 4 Up; $1.99) will also work. A look at the last four election maps is included.\nMost of the apps for younger students feature lists of the men who have held the office of Chief Executive and provide a few facts about each of them. U.S. Presidents (Encyclopaedia Britannica/MEDL Mobile; Gr 3-6; $1.99) opens with a rendition of “Hail to the Chief” and a photo of President Barack Obama. Beyond this screen viewers can access a page of images of the presidents in chronological order. A tap to any portrait brings up information on the subject along with additional tabs leading to facts about that president’s vice president, First Lady, and birth date, and a bit of trivia. Information on national landmarks, and the lyrics of “Hail to the Chief” are also provided. After exploring the app viewers can take a quiz to test their knowledge of presidential facts answering such questions as “Who was the first U.S. president to be elected with no prior political experience?” and “Who was the only president to serve two terms that weren’t back to back?”\nThe “clear interface” of The American Presidents and First Ladies (Multieducator, Inc.; Gr 4-8; $.99) allows users to sort the lists of leaders and their spouses either alphabetically or chronologically. Each entry includes personal facts, along with a page of information on the president’s early years, family, election, “presidential promises.” The full text of each man’s inaugural text is also included. Information on the First Ladies includes the years before and after each woman’s spouse was in office. Highlights of the app are the embedded videos, which include photos and audio clips. Unfortunately, some out-of-date information and typos mar the overall presentation.\nWhat Does the President Look Like? (Kane Miller; Gr 4-8; $2.99 ), based on the book by Jane Hampton Cook and illustrated by Adam Ziskie, takes a different approach to presidential history. It offers a visual survey of the men who have held that office, along the way providing “succinct history of visual media, from portrait making through digital imaging.” Here’s what our reviewer, Erin Sehorn, had to say about the app’s options: “The “timeline” chronicles major events in presidential history, as well as the technological evolution of photographs, movies, television, and the Internet. On each page, glowing stars allow users to learn more about the technological advances of presidential image making through pop-up pictures, early political cartoons, and newsreel footage. “Resources” links to the websites used as source material. There are a few glitches—for example, in the “Gallery” portraits appear only briefly, making it difficult to study an image. Overall, though, kids will enjoy this production.”\nOur youngest students may not know the ins and outs of how someone makes it into the White House, but they do know that a visit to that famous abode is cause for excitement. While conversation of the election swirls around them, share Marc Brown’s Arthur Meets the President (ScrollMotion, Inc.; $2.99), based on the author’s picture book. In this story, the aardvark’s essay on “How I Can Help Make America Great” wins him and his classmates a trip to the White House to meet the president. En route the characters (and viewers) see and learn about a few other famous Washington, DC landmarks, and perhaps, take a moment to ponder what their contribution to our country might be.\nEds. note: After a brief hiatus during the transition to our new website, our app reviews are back. —moving from School Library Journal’s blog roll into a column, and pushing out in our Extra Helping enewsletter. Archived reviews can be found on the SLJ website under “Blogs and Columns.” However, to ensure you receive all of our postings, be sure to add “Touch and Go” to your RSS feed.\nThis article was featured in School Library Journal's Extra Helping enewsletter. Subscribe today to have more articles like this delivered to your inbox for free."}
{"text": "EAU CLAIRE, Wis. — David Ciresi, M.D., describes himself as a “safety fanatic.” The trauma surgeon at Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire, a Level II Trauma Center, also is an avid bow hunter.\nBecause of his job, Dr. Ciresi and his colleagues will see about 10 patients a year with major injuries related to tree stands — head or spinal cord injury, broken bones or hypothermia.\n“All these things are 100 percent preventable,” Dr. Ciresi said.\nSo, Dr. Ciresi filmed a tree stand safety video, posted on YouTube, to offer tips to hunters, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bhg58pMNxLM.\nThe video follows Dr. Ciresi in the woods to show how to use a five-point harness, which holds hunters from below as well as from above, as opposed to using a strap across the chest.\n“Don’t think it won’t happen to you,” Dr. Ciresi said of potential tree stand falls. “The only way to protect yourself is to prepare ahead of time.”\nBesides using a harness, other hunter safety tips include:\n• Tell someone where you’re going: Draw a map if you’re hunting somewhere unfamiliar to them.\n• Carry global positioning system (GPS) navigation and a cell phone: Technology can be helpful to lost or injured hunters but may not always work in the woods. Injuries can limit hunters’ ability to use their arms or legs, so relying solely on a cell phone to call for help is not sufficient.\n• Keep alert: Staying up late or drinking to excess the night before a hunt can lead to injury.\n• Watch the weather: Be aware of conditions. A snow-covered tree stand, for example, can lead to a fall.\n• Know your limitations: If you’re too heavy or too weak, a tree stand may not be appropriate for you. A ground blind can be as effective for hunting as a treestand.\nWith planning and precaution, hunters can enjoy their time outdoors, Dr. Ciresi said. “Have fun, be safe and good luck hunting.”\n# # #\nMayo Clinic Health System consists of Mayo-owned clinics, hospitals and other health care facilities that serve the health care needs of people in 70 communities in Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin. The community-based providers, paired with the resources and expertise of Mayo Clinic, enable patients in the region to receive the highest-quality health care close to home."}
{"text": "|Born||15 Jun 1880|\n|Died||5 Jan 1947|\nContributor: C. Peter Chen\nOsami Nagano was born in 1880. As a naval officer, he established a strong record in administration. He studied in the United States during the 1910s and was naval attaché to the US between 1920 and 1923. In Dec 1935, he represented Japan as the chief delegate at the Second London Naval Conference. Between May 1936 and Jun 1937 he was the Navy Minister under Prime Minister Koki Hirota. In Dec 1937, he was named commander in chief of the First Fleet and the Combined Fleet. From Apr 1941 to Feb 1944, he was chief of the Navy General Staff. Although he was a proponent of a southward expansion, he was against a war against the United States; he deduced that if even Japan was to take over British and Dutch colonies in Asia, the isolationist United States still would not enter the war against Japan, leaving Japan to establish her empire without the interference from the industrial giant. However, like he had done so a number of times before, he entrusted too much of strategic planning to Isoroku Yamamoto and his staff officers, essentially giving away control of the entire navy to the Combined Fleet. Yamamoto, although not a supporter of a war against the United States either, dutifully accepted his orders and led the Japanese Navy into the great attack at Pearl Harbor that brought the US into war. Nagano essentially lost real control of the navy after Pearl Harbor; Yamamoto had, in effect, gone as far as to tell Nagano \"not to interfere too much and thus set a bad precedent in the navy.\" From Feb 1944 to the end of the war, he was Emperor Showa's personal naval advisor.\nAfter the war, Nagano was among the highest ranked officers interrogated by United States naval officers. He was described as \"thoroughly cooperative\", \"keenly alert\", \"intelligent\", and \"anxious to develop American friendship\". He was subsequently tried as a war criminal, but died in 1947 before the trial ended.\nSources: Interrogation of Japanese Officials, Nihon Kaigun, Shattered Sword.\nOsami Nagano Timeline\n|2 Feb 1937||Osami Nagano was named the commander-in-chief of the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet.|\n» Third London Naval Conference\n» Tokyo Trial and Other Trials Against Japan\n» Interrogation Nav 80, Fleet Admiral Osami Nagano\nAdvertise on ww2db.com\n- » 725 biographies\n- » 302 events\n- » 26816 timeline entries\n- » 665 ships\n- » 300 aircraft models\n- » 163 vehicle models\n- » 254 weapon models\n- » 64 historical documents\n- » 282 book reviews\n- » 209 maps\n- » 16063 photos, 1464 in color\nGeorge Patton, 31 May 1944"}
{"text": "I am a newby taking my first Java class. I have to create an Applet of a working Calculator. So far, all I know how to do is create buttons and JTextArea. I don't know how to set up any functionality among the components. I don't even know which is better to use; JTextField or TextArea. If anyone out there can help, I will be happy to wash your car and maybe even do some free yard work if you could give me some pointers. Thanks.\nJoined: Jan 29, 2003\nHi, welcome to the ranch!\nThis is a big subject area, but fortunately Sun has pretty good tutorials on almost everything Java. See if the Swing Tutorial covers the right kinds of things.\nFor adding functionality to the widgets, what you're looking for is probably in the EventListener and ActionListener family. You add these objects to your UI components and Swing calls them when interesting things like mouse clicks and keystrokes happen.\nIf this seems like the right direction, you might wander over to the Swing forum with further questions. [ July 05, 2007: Message edited by: Stan James ]\nA good question is never answered. It is not a bolt to be tightened into place but a seed to be planted and to bear more seed toward the hope of greening the landscape of the idea. John Ciardi\nJoined: Jun 04, 2007\nThanks for the help. I know how to set up the event handlers (sorry I didn't mention that). I guess I need to figure out which events to use. I have managed to get numbers to show up in the JTextArea, but I don't know how to get any results from the numbers."}
{"text": "- science (n.)\n- c.1300, \"knowledge (of something) acquired by study,\" also \"a particular branch of knowledge,\" from Old French science, from Latin scientia \"knowledge,\" from sciens (genitive scientis), present participle of scire \"to know,\" probably originally \"to separate one thing from another, to distinguish,\" related to scindere \"to cut, divide,\" from PIE root *skei- (cf. Greek skhizein \"to split, rend, cleave,\" Gothic skaidan, Old English sceadan \"to divide, separate;\" see shed (v.)).\nScience, since people must do it, is a socially embedded activity. It progresses by hunch, vision, and intuition. Much of its change through time does not record a closer approach to absolute truth, but the alteration of cultural contexts that influence it so strongly. Facts are not pure and unsullied bits of information; culture also influences what we see and how we see it. Theories, moreover, are not inexorable inductions from facts. The most creative theories are often imaginative visions imposed upon facts; the source of imagination is also strongly cultural. [Stephen Jay Gould, introduction to \"The Mismeasure of Man,\" 1981]\nModern sense of \"non-arts studies\" is attested from 1670s. The distinction is commonly understood as between theoretical truth (Greek episteme) and methods for effecting practical results (tekhne), but science sometimes is used for practical applications and art for applications of skill. Main modern (restricted) sense of \"body of regular or methodical observations or propositions ... concerning any subject or speculation\" is attested from 1725; in 17c.-18c. this concept commonly was called philosophy. To blind (someone) with science \"confuse by the use of big words or complex explanations\" is attested from 1937, originally noted as a phrase from Australia and New Zealand."}
{"text": "(You can find in this post the answers to the Questions C-06, C-o7 and C-O8)\nAs discussed in a former post Polysaccharides are carbohydrates formed by more than 9 monosaccharides linked by glycosidic bonds.\nWhen they are formed by the same kind of monosaccharides, they are called homopolysaccharides, like starch, glycogen and cellulose, formed each of them by hundreds of molecules of glucose linked by glycosidic linkages.\nIf the polysaccharides molecules are formed by different kinds of monosaccharides, they are considered heteropolysaccharides. Hyaluronic acid, formed by thousands of alternative units of N-acetyl glucosamine and glucuronic acid, is an example of heteropolysaccharide.\nCellulose is a linear polymer of D-glucose residues bonded by b(1, 4)-O-glycosidic linkages. It is the most abundant carbohydrate in nature.\nIt is formed by glucose units, linked by Beta-1, 4 O-glycosidic linkages. We can say then that, if we consider the kind of linkage, the repeating unit in cellulose is cellobiose, the disaccharide formed by two molecules of glucose linked by Beta-D-O glycosidic bonds, (that is why some text books say that the monomer in cellulose is cellobiose).\nThe long fibers of cellulose are held together by intermolecular hydrogen bonds. Hydrogen bonding continues in the same plane with other chains as well as in planes above and below this plane to form strong, fibrous bundles. It made cellulose very appropriate for its structural function in plants\nSince cellulose is formed by glucose molecules, it can be a source of energy for certain species. The lack in human beings of appropriate enzymes for digesting cellulose make this polysaccharide unsuitable for human nutrition (Have you though about how hunger in the world could disappear if we had enzymes for digesting cellulose?). Cellulose and derivatives are used as a component of laxatives for humans.\nStarch is the second most abundant carbohydrate in nature.\nThe biological functions include, in plants, the main way of storage of sugar, and consequently, of energetic sources; in humans, the first supply of glucose on diet (Answer to C-O7)\nStarch is not really a molecule, but a grain formed by two different kinds of molecules: Amylose and Amylopectin\nAmylose is a linear molecule formed by glucose units linked by alpha-1, 4 O glycosidic linkages. Taking in account the kind of linkage we can say that the repeating unit in amylose is maltose. (It explains that some books indicate that the monomeric unit in amylose is maltose).\nAmylose molecule is helicoidal\nAmylopectin is the second type of molecule that forms starch. It is a branched molecule, formed also by glucose. Amylopectin contains D-glucose residues bonded together by a(1, 4)-O-glycosidic linkages with branching through a(1 6)-O-glycosidic linkages.\nThe disaccharides that can be obtained from the digestion of amylopectin are maltose and isomaltose.\nAmylopectin shows a branch each 24-30 units of glucose,\nThe structure of glycogen is very similar to amylopectin but more branched, with one branch every 8 to 12 glucose unit\nGlycogen is the way in which glucose is stored in animals. Glycogen is stored mainly in liver (to release glucose to blood when necessary) and in muscle, where it is used as a reserve of energy for muscular contraction (Answer to C-o8)\nHeteropolysaccarides contain two or more different kind of monosaccharides. Usually they provide extracellular support for organisms of all kingdoms: the bacteria cell envelope, or the matrix that holds individual cells together in animal tissues, and provides protection, shape and support to cells, tissues and organs.\nHeteropolysaccharides provide extracellular support to very different organisms, from bacteria to humans; together with fibrous proteins, like collagen, elastin, fibronectin, laminin and others, heteropolysaccharides are the most important components of the extracellular matrix. Hyaluronic acid, condroitin sulfates and dermatan sulfates are important heteropolysaccharides in the extracellular matrix. These heteropolysaccharides usually are formed by the repetition of a disaccharide unit of an aminosugar and an acid sugar.\nA typical example\nOther common constituents are sulfate groups linked to certain monosaccharides. Usually heteropolysaccharides are associated with proteins forming proteoglycans, glycosaminoglycans or mucopolysaccharides (since they are abundant in mucous secretions). As a group, they perform diverse functions: structural, water metabolism regulation (as a reservoir of water), cellular cement, biological sieve, biological lubricant, docking sites for growth factors, among other functions.\nEstablished specific functions of some glycosaminoglycans are:\nHyaluronic Acid (Hyaluronate): It is a lubricant in the synovial fluid of joints,\ngive consistency to vitreous humor, contributes to tensile strength and elasticity of cartilages and tendons (Answer to C-O6)\nChondroitin Sulfates: contributes to tensile strength and elasticity of cartilages, tendons, ligaments and walls of aorta.\nDermatan sulfate (former chondroitin sulfate B) is found mainly in skin, but also is in vessels, heart, lungs. It may be related to coagulation and vascular diseases and other conditions.\nKeratan sulfate: Present in cornea, cartilage bone and a variety of other structures as nails and hair.\nIt is a potent natural anticoagulant produced in the Mast Cells that causes antithrombin bind to thrombin and produce inhibition of blood coagulation.\nGlycosaminoglycans are synthesized in the ER and Golgi. They are degraded by lysosomal hydrolases. A deficiency of one of the hydrolases results in a mucopolysaccharidosis. These are hereditary disorders in which glycosaminoglycans accumulate in tissues, causing symptoms such as skeletal and extracellular matrix deformities, and mental retardation.\nExamples of these genetic diseases are Hunter and Hurler syndromes.\nThese diseases, caused by different enzyme deficits, are characterized by physical deformities, mental retardation and disturbances in the degradation of heparan sulfate and dermatan sulfate."}
{"text": "Other Dairy Products\n( Originally Published 1939 )\nIt has been known for a long time that babies fed with boiled milk thrived better than those fed with regular milk. It was supposed that this improved quality lay in the destruction of pathogenic organisms. Gradually a wealth of data has been accumulating which shows that boiling or other treatment of milk increases its digestibility. After Buckley had showed that the physical nature of the curd of milk is important in determining the food value of milk,' and Ladd had published some chemical data that showed that homogenized milk produced a soft curd in the infant's stomach and was similar to breast milk in this respect,' Washburn and Jones showed that homogenization of milk produced curds which were much more flocculent and friable than those of regular milk, although this property was not reflected in any improved nutrition of his experimental animals, young pigs. The recent work of Hill is credited with giving this subject of the digestive quality of milk an emphasis which has found important application in the commercial production of soft curd milk. Interest has been further stimulated competitively by reason of the inroads that the evaporated milk industry has made into the bottled trade, largely by reason of the superior properties of the canned product in infant feeding. This has led to laboratory activity directed toward devising processes for imparting soft curd properties and for measuring curd hardness rather than toward ascertaining to what extent, if any, these treatments actually improve the digestibility of the milk. The scientific literature leaves the subject in a very con-fused state. Whatever improved digestibility there is seems to result entirely from the speeding of the passage of the milk from the stomach and not from any increased food value or degree of assimilation.' The whole subject is excellently reviewed by Doan in the Journal of Dairy Science, 21, 739-756 (1938).\nNATURAL SOFT-CURD MILK\nHill found that the milk of different cows possessed unequal digestibility, and that many infants could tolerate milk from certain cows but not that from others. In general, this improved tolerance was associated with milk of relatively low total solids content, al-though this relationship did not seem to be exclusively specific. Soft-curd milk was produced by cows of different breeds and was fairly uniform over the lactation period of a given cow. This property enabled herdsmen to select cows for the regular production of this kind of milk.\nSoft-curd milk is more rapidly digested by humans, calves, and rats, and leaves the stomach more quickly than regular milks At the same time, soft-curd milk has a lower content of total solids and a smaller calorific value.\nIt has been observed that cows suffering with mastitis produce a soft-curd milk. This has led many persons to think that all soft-curd milk is pathologic. Such a belief is erroneous. Soft-curd milk is actually under more stringent control than regular milk because its production is mostly, if not entirely, limited to Grade A and certified herds. However, on account of the widespread prevalence of sub-clinical mastitis, it is recommended that the presence of udder infections be tested for when the curd tension is determined.\nElias- showed 10 that soft-curd milk gave curds in the stomach similar to those of boiled milk. Espe and Dye reported that doubling the curd tension increased the length of the digestive period from 30 to 65 percent, and that boiling markedly lowered the curd tension. Welch and Doan showed that curd tension was greater in milk of high casein content, and that equalization of casein content by dilution with water caused both the curd tension and differences in rates of digestion largely to disappear, although the casein content might exercise only a minor role in the rate of digestion if the curd is artificially softened by heating, homogenization, and other means.\nARTIFICIAL SOFT-CURD MILK\nSoft-curd by homogenization. Softness of curd can be imparted to a milk by homogenizing it. This procedure consists in pumping milk under very great pressure through a special valve with small clearance so that the, butterfat globules are broken up and uniformly distributed. The homogenization of skimmed milk does not impart soft-curd properties; at least about 1 percent of butterfat or other oil must be present. Chocolate milk is a soft-curd milk. Therefore, it seems that the imparting of soft-curd properties by mechanical means is a function of the degree of dispersion of discrete particles whereby the curd is mechanically prevented from setting into a solid homogeneous mass. Feeding experiments on rats showed that this homogenized soft-curd milk was digested just about as quickly as boiled milk or natural soft-curd milk. Letters patent 12 have been issued to cover the production of soft-curd milk by homogenization, although the process seems to have been practiced by milk companies for many years previously to the granting of the patent.\nThe difficulty of controlling exactly the effectiveness of the homogenizing machine, together with the variability in the composition or physical nature of the milk, particularly the butterfat, precludes the determination of the most efficient temperatures and pressures. Experience has taught that the curd of a given milk cannot be softened beyond a certain point, regardless of the pressure used, and on the other hand, too light a pressure does not insure permanency to the imparted curd softness. In industrial practice, consistent results can be obtained when milk is homogenized at pressures of about 2500 to 3000 pounds per square inch at a temperature of about 145° F. This softens the curd to a tension of about 30 grams, or reduces the curd tension of average market milk about 50 percent.\nThe homogenization of milk must be carefully conducted if a satisfactory product is to be obtained. Trout and his associates found 13 that some milk upon homogenization developed rancidity within 15 minutes after treatment. This effect seemed to be caused by a lipolytic enzyme which could be inactivated at temperatures of pasteurization. Accordingly, this off-flavor can be prevented by pasteurizing the milk before or immediately after homogenization. The flavor of the finished product is generally considered to be slightly better if pasteurization precedes homogenization, but health officers are inclined to require pasteurization to come last.\nHomogenized milk, unless the milk was initially of high quality, may exhibit a smudgy yellow or gray sediment in the bottom of the bottle. It is too finely divided to be revealed on a sediment disc. Babcock 14 reported that it consists largely of leucocytes, epithelial cells, and some finely divided dirt. Charles and Sommer 15 state that sediment may occur in milk of the highest sanitary quality and may come from a healthy udder. It is not seen in unhomogenized milk because the rising of the fat globules into the cream layer sweeps this light material upward. Clarification by centrifugal clarifying ma-chines will remove it.\nSoft-curd properties, artificially imparted to milk by homogenization, were studied by Anthony on two adult males who possessed the unusual ability to regurgitate at will without distress. This enabled them to drink the milk, hold it in their stomachs for 30 minutes, and then return it without the aid of a stomach pump or an emetic. These experiments showed that the tests on curd strength made in vitro and determined with the curd knife reasonably evaluated the nature of the curd in the human stomach (except in the case of mineral modified milk). The curd particles of breast milk were minute and soft, and were so finely divided that they could not be separated from the accompanying juices with a 20-mesh screen. On cows' milk, when the curd tension (by laboratory curd-knife technic) was high, the regurgitation specimens of curd in every case were large and leathery. When the readings were low, the curd particles were small and soft. Breast milk registered 0 curd tension, natural cows' milk 50-100 grams, and homogenized milk (processed at 3500 pounds) 15 grams. The patients reported that the milk tasted better (because of the minute division of the milkfat globules) and gave less distress.\nHowever, no digestive advantage is reported by some other investigators who worked on samples in vitro and on experimental animals. The latter work is not so impressive as clinical studies but may be better controlled. Much more fundamental and clinical re-search is necessary before the value of this processing is substantiated.\nSoft curd by sonic vibration. A modification of the homogenizing process for the production of soft-curd milk has been developed by subjecting milk to intense sonic vibration. Electromagnetic oscillators, somewhat similar to those used in submarine communications, are constructed to allow the passage of milk in a thin film between the \"anvil\" and the vibrating diaphragm. Sonic vibration acts directly on the butterfat of the milk to cause a more complete dispersion. The reduction of curd tension is a function of the number of fat particles, and not of the actual fat concentration. A direct relationship seems to exist between the degree of fat dispersion-and the degree of curd-tension reduction. Inasmuch as only a small proportion of the total fat in milk need be finely subdivided to reduce the curd tension, it is possible to produce soft curd by vibration without destroying the cream volume (cream line).\nCommercial homogenization. The practice of homogenizing market milk is gradually extending. It is quite general in parts of Canada, and is increasing irregularly in the United States. Fifteen states have no regulations for the control of homogenized milk, 19 states and the District of Columbia permit its sale if properly labeled, 2 states have taken no action but look upon it with disfavor, and 4 states prohibit its sale. It is a useful practice for the treatment of milk which is to be consumed in restaurants, institutions, or wherever the sale of bulk milk introduces the likelihood that the consumer may be served a portion from which a substantial part of the butterfat has separated. Tracy states that the unpopularity of homogenized milk in the past has been due largely to the emphasis placed on the cream line as a measure of the value of a milk, and to the unfriendly attitude of some regulatory officials who felt that homogenization might encourage fraudulent practices. About one-third of the milk-route customers of the University of Illinois changed to this milk for the following reasons: it looked and tasted better; no cream adhered to the bottle cap; no mixing was required; it tasted better for breakfast foods; it removed the temptation to abstract cream; it was easier to prepare for infant feeding; it did not allow rising of cream to top of glass in refrigerator; it made better milk drinks; it tasted better to children; it was more easily digested by infants; and it did not churn out on freezing.\nSoft curd by base exchange. Hard waters are softened by the zeolite or base-exchange method, whereby the percolation of water through a bed of zeolite (a sodium-aluminum silicate) effects an ex-change of sodium and calcium. As applied to milk, sodium from the zeolite replaces soluble calcium from the milk. The milk is first acidified to about 0.3 percent as lactic acid (with a dilute nitric acid solution) and then percolated at 64° F. over a granular column of zeolite. During the process, the pH is adjusted to that of ordinary cows' milk (about 6.50), and the acidity is reduced to about 0.15 per-cent as lactic acid. This process is reported 22 to change the taste, appearance, and other qualities very little from those of regular milk. The cream line is practically the same as in pasteurized milk. Bacteria counts are said to be lowered by the filtering effect of the pass-age of the milk through the zeolite bed.\nThe Hill method cannot be used to measure the curd tension by this process because the Hill technic introduces about ten times as much soluble calcium into 100 milliliters of milk as is removed by the base-exchange treatment. Moreover, it is considered more desirable to use a method which more closely simulates gastric digestion. Such a method has been developed by Miller.\nHess, Poncher, and Woodward 24 studied the nutritional effects of such a milk on an infant on a metabolism frame. They report that, in spite of the decrease of the percentage content of total calcium and phosphorus, 100 milliliters of such milk per kilogram of body weight kept a normal growing infant in a positive calcium and phosphorus balance during the entire time of feeding.\nSoft curd by enzymic action. Milk can be given soft-curd properties within a range of 20 to 30 grams by the addition of pancreatic extract, concentrated in the proportion of 1 part of the powder to 10,000 parts of milk. The milk containing the enzyme is heated at a temperature of 42° C. (108° F.) for 15 minutes, and then is pasteurized in the regular way. The preliminary heating brings about a partial digestion of the curd, and the pasteurization inactivates most of the enzyme. The mineral content, the protein, and the formol titration values remain substantially unchanged.\nStandards of quality. The quality of curd is usually determined by the Hill test, or some modification of it. Although natural milks may give a range of reading on the scale from 15 to 200 grams of tension, the average of numerous milk supplies has been found to be about 60-70. The American Association of Medical Milk Commissions 27 specifies that a soft-curd milk must show a curd tension be-low 30 grams, determined at least twice at an interval of 1 to 5 days before it can be claimed to be a soft-curd milk, and that the test must be repeated at monthly intervals thereafter.\nDetermination of curd tension. Hill's method for determining the characteristics of milk curd is based on the measurement of the degree of toughness of the curd which is coagulated by pepsin in calcium chloride solution. The measurement is the indicated pull in grams necessary for a special knife to cut through the coagulated curd. The knife consists of several radial horizontal blades soldered at right angles to an upright slender rod. This knife is placed in a jar containing 100 milliliters of the milk to be tested. A coagulating solution of scale pepsin and calcium chloride is then added. This sets the curd around the knife. The knife is then hooked to a spring balance, and its pull as it cuts upward through the curd is read directly from the dial.\nCaulfield and Riddell have shown that it is expedient to make each determination in triplicate, and that temperature of reaction and time interval between the addition of coagulant and cutting of the curd must be kept constant. Miller 23 has modified this method by substituting an acid pepsin solution for the pepsin-calcium chloride solution. The measurement of toughness of curd by this method substantially parallels the digestibility of the milk by animals. See also the method of the U. S. Department of Agriculture, and that of the American Dairy Science Association reported supra by Doan.\nDetermination of butterfat. Authorities are not in agreement as to the effect of homogenization on the accuracy of the butterfat de-termination by the Babcock method. Babcock found that in every case the homogenized milk averaged in fat about 0.1 percent lower than the same milk before it was homogenized. On the other hand, Tracy' states that homogenized milk can be tested satisfactorily by the Babcock method if both the acid and milk are at about 70° F., if the acid is added in small portions, if slightly less acid (1.5 milli-liters) is used, and if the solution is shaken well after each addition of acid.\nMicrobiological examination. Inasmuch as natural soft curd has been associated with mastitis, it is advisable in the interest of sanitation and wholesomeness to examine samples of natural soft-curd milk for the presence of mastitis organisms.\n1. S. S. BucKLEY, Maryland Agr. Exp. Sta. Bul. 184, 1914.\n2. M. LADD, Boston Med. and Surg. J., 173, 13 (1915).\n3. R. M. WASHBURN and C. H. JONES, Vermont Agr. Exp. Bul. 195, 1916.\n4. R. L. HILL, Utah Agr. Exp. Sta. Bul. 207, 1928; Circular 101, 1933.\n5. Council on Foods, J. Am. Med. Assoc., 108, 2040, 2122 (1937).\n6. F. J. DoAN and R. C. WELCH, Pennsylvania State College Agr. Exp. Sta. But. 312, 1934. See also F. J. DoAN and C. C. FLORA, ibid., 380, 1939.\n7. H. C. HANSEN, D. R. THEOPHILUS, F. W. ATKESON, and E. M. GILDow,\nJ. Dairy Sci., 17, 257 (1934).\n8. R. C. WELCH and F. J. DoAN, Milk Plant Monthly, 22 (11) 30 (1933).\n9. W. V. HALVERSEN, V. A. CHERRINGTON, and H. C. HANSEN, J. Dairy Sci., 17, 281 (1934).\n10. H. L. ELIAS, Am. J. Diseases Children, 44, 296 (1932).\n11. D. L. EsPE and J. A. DYE, ibid., 43, 62 (1932).\n12. R. FLUCKIOER, U. S. Patent 1,973,145, Sept. 11, 1934.\n13. G. M. Tamil, C. P. HALLORAN, and I. GouLD, Mich. Agr. Exp. Sta. Tech. Bul. 145, 1935.\n14. C. J. BARCOCK, U. S. Dept. Agr. Tech. Bul. 438, 1934.\n15. D. A. CHARLES and H. H. SOMMER, Milk Plant Monthly, 24, 26, 32 (1935).\n16. G. E. ANTHONY, The Bulletin (official publication of the Genesee County Medical Society), 9, March 4 (1936).\n17. L. A. CHAMBERS, J. Dairy Sci., 19, 29 (1936).\n18. Milk Dealer, 25, 36 (1936).\n19. R. H. TRACY, Milk Plant Monthly, 24, 28 (1935).\n20. U. S. Patent 1,954,769, assigned to M. & R. Dietetic Laboratories, Inc.\n21. J. F. LYMAN, E. H. BROWNE, and H. E. OTTING, Ind. Eng. Chem., 25, 1297 (1933). Also see Milk Plant Monthly, January, 1934, p. 37.\n22. H. E. OTTING and J. J. QuILLIGAN, Milk Dealer, 23, 36 (1934).\n23. D. MILLER, J. Dairy Sci., 18, 259 (1935).\n24. J. H. HESS, H. G. PONCHER, and H. WOODWARD, Am. J. Diseases Children, 48, 1058 (1934).\n25. V. CONQUEST, A. W. TURNER, and H. J. REYNOLDS, J. Dairy Sci., 21, 361 (1938).\n26. R. L. HILL, ibid., 6, 509 (1923).\n27. Methods and Standards for the Production of Certified Milk, Am. Assoc. Med. Milk Commissions, New York, 1936.\n28. W. J. CAULFIELD and W. H. RIDDELL, J. Dairy Sci., 17, 791 (1934).\n29. Chief of Bureau of Dairy Industry, 1938, J. Milk Technol., 2, 48 (1939).\n30. Curd Tension Committee. Rept. Annual Meeting Amer. Dairy Sci. Assoc.,\n31. P. H. TRACY, Milk Dealer, 25, 30, 60 (1936)."}
{"text": "- Health Library\n- PetMD U\n|8 Common Snacks That Will Prompt a Portly Pet||Overweight Pets: Addressing the Epidemic||How to Care for Senior Pets||10 Simple Ways to Help Your Overweight Dog|\n|Six Signs it’s Time to Change Your Pet’s Food||Top 5 Common Pet Owner Mistakes||Pet Nutrition in People Terms: Weight Gain||How to Choose the Best Dog Food|\n|8 Best Hiking Trails for Dogs||5 Ways to Get Your Cat with Mobility Issues Moving||5 Ways to Get Your Dog with Mobility Issues Moving||5 Exercise Tips for Arthritic Cats|\n|Top Ten 'Small Breed' Dogs||Top Ten Dogs for Kids||If Your Pet Had Thumbs...||Top Five Pet Poisons in Your Purse|\n|Ten Common Poisonous Plants for Cats||Does My Cat Have Ticks?||Top Ten Reasons to Hug your Cat||7 Ways Cats Are Not Small Dogs|\nSelecting a dog food with the proper balance of necessary nutrients from healthy ingredients is important for your dog’s well being. As you will see while reviewing MyBowl, minerals are one essential class of nutrients that must be included in a healthy, balanced diet. Minerals are crucial for the proper development and function of your dog’s body. Specific minerals must be present in a dog food in the right amounts to provide optimal health.\nMinerals work together to coordinate body functions and maintain normal activities. While not providing enough of certain minerals is a concern, oversupplementation can also cause problems. Pet food manufacturers keep a close eye on just how much of each and every mineral is used in a dog food. Minerals used must also be able to survive processing and storage and they must also be of good quality and easily absorbed by the dog.\nMany essential minerals are provided by common fruits, vegetables, meats and whole grains. These ingredients are used in many high quality products on the shelves today. The bulk of the minerals used in pet foods typically come in pre-combined powdered mixes. It is not reasonable to source minerals only from raw ingredients because they are less likely to survive processing. This is why you will see many chemical names on a bag of dog food.\nMacrominerals include calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, chloride, potassium and sulfur. Calcium and phosphorus are very important macrominerals. A deficiency in either of these minerals can lead to bone deformities or weakness. Fractures can easily result in animals with calcium and phosphorus deficiencies. In young animals, oversupplementation of these minerals can lead to abnormal growth and development, especially in large breed dogs. Calcium and phosphorus are also essential for blood coagulation, muscle growth and nervous system function.\nMagnesium works in harmony with calcium and phosphorus. Sodium and chloride work together to control the balance of fluid in the body. Imbalances of sodium and/or chloride can result in hair loss, fatigue, dehydration and even paralysis. Potassium is similar to sodium and chloride. Without adequate potassium the heart will not be able to beat normally. Sulfur is important in maintenance of hair, skin and nails. It also assists wound healing and detoxifies the body.\nEven though they are only needed in extremely small amounts, trace minerals are essential in a healthy, balanced dog food. Common trace minerals include iron, zinc, copper, iodine, magnesium and selenium. Iron is important for oxygenation of red blood cells, energy production and immune system maintenance. Zinc supports the immune system, skin and hair coat health and aids in digestion. Other trace minerals include nickel, molybdenum, aluminum, silicon, chromium, boron, cobalt and fluorine."}
{"text": "The Working Group III Special Report on Renewable Energy Sources and Climate Change Mitigation (SRREN) presents an assessment of the literature on the scientific, technological, environmental, economic and social aspects of the contribution of six renewable energy (RE) sources to the mitigation of climate change. It is intended to provide policy relevant information to governments, intergovernmental processes and other interested parties. This Summary for Policymakers provides an overview of the SRREN, summarizing the essential findings. The SRREN consists of 11 chapters. Chapter 1 sets the context for RE and climate change; Chapters 2 through 7 provide information on six RE technologies, and Chapters 8 through 11 address integrative issues. References to chapters and sections are indicated with corresponding chapter and section numbers in square brackets. An explanation of terms, acronyms and chemical symbols used in this SPM can be found in the glossary of the SRREN (Annex I).Conventions and methodologies for determining costs, primary energy and other topics of analysis can be found in Annex II and Annex III. This report communicates uncertainty where relevant.\nYou are here\nResidential Photovoltaic Energy Systems in California: The Effect on Home Sales Prices (2011)"}
{"text": "Here: have at it with a Swedish nuclear power plant simulator. Raise and lower the control rods, turn pumps on and off, open and close valves, just make sure you don’t blowup anything.\nGo look at the Chernobyl tour to see what happens when you mess up.\nThe original page includes this context:\nThe control-room operators of the Kärnobyl nuclear power plant are telecommuting and are running the plant through the Web. However, the mean time between failure for the components of Kärnobyl is not great. Try to keep the reactor stable when component failures occur!\ntags: chernobyl, control rods, control room, control room operators, mean time between failure, nuclear power, nuclear power plant, nuclear power plant operator, nuclear power plant simulation, nuclear power plant simulator, operator, power plant, power plant operator, pumps, reactor, simulation, simulator, telecommuting"}
{"text": "[Embargoed for release until 12 p.m. ET Thursday, August 5, 2004, to coincide with publication in the journal Cell.]\nBAD NEWS FOR PATHOGENIC BACTERIA: SCIENTISTS FIND PROTEIN ESSENTIAL FOR BACTERIAL SURVIVAL\nCOLUMBUS, Ohio – Further investigation into how the common organism Escherichia coli regulates gene expression has given scientists new ideas for designing antibiotics that might drastically reduce a bacterium's ability to resist drugs.\nThe findings, reported in the current issue of the journal Cell, suggest that bacteria rely on a key protein in order to properly regulate gene expression -- a process fundamental to cell survival.\nThis protein, called DksA, coordinates the expression of numerous genes in response to environmental signals.\nFiguring out how to block DksA production in harmful bacteria may help scientists develop antibiotics that these bacteria are less likely to resist, said Irina Artsimovitch, a study co-author and an assistant professor of microbiology at Ohio State University.\nThe current study suggests that DksA is the glue that holds together two key components of bacterial gene expression – a molecule called ppGpp and an enzyme called RNA polymerase. RNA polymerase carries out transcription, the first step in gene expression.\nIn recent work, Artsimovitch and her colleagues discovered that ppGpp regulates gene expression by controlling amino acid production in bacteria. A cell makes ppGpp when amino acid levels are low, and ppGpp tells a cell to go dormant until amino acid levels return to normal.\n\"But there was something missing from the ppGpp story,\" Artsimovitch said. \"We knew that ppGpp had a dramatic effect on gene expression, but for some reason that effect was drastically decreased when we conducted experiments in the laboratory.\"\nWork by other researchers had suggested a link between DksA and the ppGpp-initiated stress response in the cell. But scientists couldn't agree on what role, if any, DksA played in the effect of ppGpp on gene expression.\nWorking with a team of researchers led by Dmitry Vassylyev, a scientist with the RIKEN research institution in Japan, Artsimovitch and Ohio State microbiologist Vladimir Svetlov solved high-resolution crystal structures of DksA.\nSolving this structure meant that the researchers could at last determine just how DksA helped ppGpp hold fast to its target, RNA polymerase.\nDksA uses something scientists call the \"backdoor of gene expression,\" a cavity on the RNA polymerase molecule called the secondary channel. DksA squeezes through this narrow tunnel toward the site where ppGpp binds to the enzyme. Once here, the protein helps ppGpp stay bound to RNA polymerase.\n\"The secondary channel seems to be the hotspot for many interactions,\" Artsimovitch said. \"It leads straight to the active site, and presents a confined area where many proteins and antibiotics that control transcription may bind to carry out their business.\"\nKnowing what roles ppGpp and DksA play in how bacteria respond to stress and other physiological stimuli may help scientists create new antibacterial drugs that target mechanisms specific and unique to harmful bacteria.\n\"Conventional antibiotics aimed at killing bacteria also put immense pressure on bacteria to survive, and to ultimately develop resistance to these drugs,\" Artsimovitch said. \"Forcing harmful bacteria into a stationary state by controlling ppGpp levels may be the way to circumvent the rise in antibiotic resistance.\n\"ppGpp and DksA are found in all bacteria, including harmful ones,\" she continued. \"Using ppGpp-based compounds to shut down gene expression in harmful bacteria could help curb the spread of infections.\"\nGrants from the National Institutes of Health and from RIKEN supported this research.\nArtsimovitch, Vassylyev and Svetlov conducted the study with Anna Perederina, Marina Vassylyeva, Tahir Tahirov and Shigeyuki Yokoyama, all with RIKEN."}
{"text": "In employment, a young person is someone who is over the compulsory school age but under the age of 18. In England and Wales, a person is no longer of compulsory school age after the last Friday of June of the school year in which their 16th birthday occurs. In Scotland, pupils whose 16th birthday falls between 1 March and 30 September may not leave before the 31 May of that year. Pupils aged 16 on or between 1 October and the last day of February may not leave until the start of the Christmas holidays in that school year. In Northern Ireland, a person is no longer of compulsory school age after the 30th June of the school year in which their 16th birthday occurs.\nThe Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 (or Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2000) requires you to undertake a risk assessment before a young person starts work or work experience.\nTry to look at your workplace from an adolescent's viewpoint. What dangers will they recognise? They may not be fully grown - will they find the workplace awkward and the tools too big?\nIn particular you should look at:\n- How the workplace is laid out (and the particular site where they will work)\n- What type of work equipment will be used and how it will be used\n- How the work is organised\n- The need to provide health and safety training\n- The nature of any physical, biological and chemical agents they may be exposed to, for how long and to what extent\n- The risks from certain work hazards.\nWork they cannot do because of their age\nYou must not allow a young person to carry out activities when you find that a significant risk remains in spite of your best efforts to take all reasonable steps to control it.\nYou must protect your young employees and work experience students from the risks of accidents or ill health which they are unlikely to recognise because:\n- They are inexperienced\n- They have not been trained\n- They may not pay enough attention to safety.\nThe overall rule is that young people under 18 years old must not be allowed to do work which:\n- Cannot be adapted to meet any physical or mental limitations they may have\n- Exposes them to substances which are toxic or cause cancer\n- Exposes them to radiation\n- Involves extreme heat, noise or vibration.\nYoung people who are over the minimum school leaving age can do this work under special circumstances which are:\n- The work is necessary for their training\n- The work is properly supervised by a competent person\n- The risks are reduced to the lowest level, so far as is reasonably practicable.\nChildren below the minimum school leaving age must never do work involving these risks whether they are employed or under the following special circumstances.\nWork activities permitted for children and young persons\nAt 13 years of age the following work activities are permitted (14 years in Scotland, but local education authority bylaws are likely to permit children aged 13 to do the following):\n- Delivering newspapers\n- Shop work\n- Office work\n- Working in hairdressing salons\n- Washing cars by hand\n- Work in a cafe/restaurant cleaning tables (not in a kitchen)\n- Light work in riding stables\n- Domestic work in hotels\n- Light agricultural/gardening work (not using machinery)\nThere are also very detailed restrictions on the number of hours a child can work which are greatly restricted in term time and on Sundays.\nWhilst of compulsory school age the following work activities are not permitted:\n- Selling/delivering alcohol\n- Delivering milk\n- Delivering fuel\n- Working in a kitchen including: use/cleaning of food slicers, mixers, food processors, potato chippers; cleaning/draining and use of fat fryers; de-boning meat\n- Use of chemicals including corrosive cleaning materials, e.g. oven and beer line cleaners\n- Collection/sorting of refuse including use of waste compactors\n- Work in telephone sales\n- Work more than 1 metre above ground (on ladders)\n- Work in a cinema/nightclub\n- Work as an attendant/assistant in a fairground/amusement arcade\n- Work as a personal care assistant of residents in a nursing home"}
{"text": "Causes of Cancer\nCancers can develop from a variety of sources and causes. A major source is a group of chemicals known as carcinogens, which have been found in industrial pollutants, cigarette smoke and some food additives and pesticides. People exposed to carcinogens are more susceptible to cancer, but not everyone exposed to these carcinogens develops cancer.\nOther causes of cancer include obesity, excessive consumption of alcohol, a sedentary lifestyle, exposure to large amounts of radiation and too much sunlight. Certain viruses can also cause cancers, such as cervical cancer or liver cancer.\nCancer is also linked to heredity. If you have a strong family history of cancer, you may be more likely to develop cancer. Your parents can pass a gene to you that makes you more susceptible to cancer, or a genetic mutation can be passed to you through your father’s sperm or your mother’s egg that makes cancer more likely.\nMany scientists believe that the combination of a hereditary susceptibility to cancer and an environmental trigger, such as exposure to a carcinogen or being obese, puts individuals at risk of developing cancer, especially at an earlier adult age."}
{"text": "Write a program that uses a loop to display the characters for each ASCII code 32 through 127. Display 16 characters on each line with one space between characters.\nWe are using the Starting out with C++ Early Objects 6th edition. I really don't know how to start this program, I'm not sure if it wants me to display ever character, or if I have to do get the user to input numbers and give me the characters that it should be or the other way around. If you can please help me that would be great."}
{"text": "Our Fifth Grade students have just held their Invention Convention, a culminating experience for a library research unit. In addition to learning about famous inventors and the invention process using books and online resources, each student had the opportunity to design an invention. Working individually or with partners, the students developed original ideas for new products, some of which help to solve everyday problems.\nThis creative group of students worked enthusiastically, brainstorming for ideas, developing models and prototypes, and creating ads to market their inventions. Some groups even wrote “commercials” to go along with their inventions. The students presented their inventions to an appreciative audience at school, and all were impressed with the level of creative enthusiasm.\nThe video below highlights the students talking about their inventions and features some of their commercials. Enjoy watching and please feel free to leave a comment on this post!"}
{"text": "When Edgar Degas painted his friend Henri Michel-Levy in 1878, he included a lay figure sprawled on the ground below him.\nHow did lay figures hold a pose? As we saw in the final illustration yesterday, lay figures could be held up with ropes attached to the extremities. But some of them also had adjustable screws in the joints.\nFor standing poses, the figure generally also had a support attached to the pelvis from behind. This wood and metal skeleton has many points of articulation, even separate radius and ulna “bones” in the arm.\nIn this one, the arms also pronate, and the knees can rotate outward. All the joints can be tightened with screws. It has sort of a pre-Steampunk (“wood-punk?”) mech vibe to it. Imagine an army of these guys with crossbows.\nThis full size lay figure had sufficient bulk and volume to support the shape of the clothes. But such mannikins never looked completely natural, and artists were often embarrassed to use them, regarding them as a poor substitute for a live model.\nFor this reason, lay figures were not often discussed, or if so, they tended to be disparaged. The Journal of the Society of the Arts in 1854 said that under pressing financial circumstances, a painter with a “mercantile spirit” might use a lay figure that “answers for both the male and female form,” which could lead to a disharmonious and incongruous figure.\nCheck out the robot blog where I'm a guest contributor: \"Nuthin' But Mech.\"\nRead the full GurneyJourney series on lay figures:Part 2"}
{"text": "(Student produced study guide from Foss, Foss, and Trapp )\ncharacterized by the use of the scientific method and based on the presumption that we (people) can know objectively and comprehend the objects around us. (146)\nforms of understanding from which reality is to be deduced. (146)\nrefers to the philosophical movement and is not based on the problem of existence, but deals with the problem of words, and the ways of rhetorically thinking and speaking that were perfected as a way of philosophizing in the 15th Century. (147)\ndeals with scientific objectivity, universality, and rational deduction over other ways of knowing the world. (148) Cogito ergo sum: \"I think; therefore I am.\" This is a self- evident axiom and is based on the human power to apprehend reality by means of reason. (146)\nwhat in essence, separates the human being from the animal. (149)\nability to make adjustments in nature simply because we are humans. (149)\nthe basic process by which humans gain control over nature; refers to a basic capacity to grasp what is common or similar in ideas or experiences. (151)\n\"It leads to light because it stems from the need to see: that which is not obvious...is to be transferred,\" (154) and provides the connection between rhetorical and rational speech. (158)\nfundamental or original principle upon which philosophical arguments are based. (155)\nilluminates historical fact, making a situation concrete, relevant and understandable using metaphor and imagery. (157)\ndeductive in nature and achieving its effect through logical demonstration. (157)\na \"system\" of signs whose elements receive meaning through and within this system. Morse code is an example. (159)\nsuperficial and mistaken definition of rhetoric, as a technical art of persuasion, that acts on emotions to form beliefs. (159)\npractice, or doing. Reality is manifested in concrete situations.\ncoming to terms with things by studying words individually.\nchoosing what perspective to take in a situation; the unveiling of an essential meaning.\napproaches in research which are concerned with human's role in constructing rhetorical knowledge rather than with the possibility of objective knowledge (165)\nA. Grassi's education was the product of two opposing philosophic traditions: German Idealism and Italian Humanism.\n1. Grassi's background of Italian Humanism was challenged at the University of Freiburg, where German philosophy dominated.\n2. The dissonance of the two views led Grassi to examine his own beliefs more carefully, from which he determined that rhetoric constitutes the foundation of human thought.\nB. Two people were especially influential in differentiating the two philosophies for Grassi.\n1. Bertando Spaventa's (Italian philosopher of the late nineteenth century), following statement left an impression on Grassi. \"The development of German thought is natural, free, and independent, in a word, it is critical. The development of Italian thought is unsteady, hindered, and dogmatic. This is the great difference.\" (p.145)\n2. Martin Heidegger, a German philosopher who worked with Grassi for ten years in Freiburg, held a strongly negative attitude towards Italian philosophy. Heidegger's attitude was influential in causing Grassi to seriously consider the value of both German philosophy and Italian philosophy.\nA. In order to understand Grassi's approach to rhetoric, more precise definitions are needed for the Scientific Tradition and Italian Humanism.\n1. Scientific Tradition is based on objective knowledge.\na. Rational deduction is at the core of the scientific method and involves starting from the premises and deriving the inferences already inherent in them.\nb. Grassi lists three limitations of this scientific paradigm, which he believes constrain what is studied as philosophy.\ni. The scientific method examines first principles, but not their sources.\nii. The scientific method focuses on quantification.\niii Scientific thought is concerned only with universals.\n2. Grassi's Italian Humanism refers to a philosophical movement.\na. Grassi's Humanism is Platonic and Aristotelian in orientation.\nb. Grassi's Humanism is concerned with \"the problem of words, metaphorical thought, and rhetorical thinking.\"\nc. Grassi's Humanists sought to understand ways in which humans respond to a set of demands from the world and, by their linguistic choices, reveal the way they view this world around them.\nB. The Scientific Approach was in direct opposition to Grassi's Humanist Approach. (p.147)\n1. The Scientific approach deals with objectivity while the Humanist approach deals with distinctions and contextual variations.\n2. The Scientific Approach came to dominate philosophy, while the Humanists were seen as searching for and moving toward this position.\n3. Grassi believed that the Scientific Method was one tool for understanding, while Humanism dealt with broader areas and combined the areas of rhetoric and philosophy.\nA. Grassi believed Vico represents the thought of Italian Humanism most fully.\n1. Vico considered the rise of human history to be the basic problem of philosophy.\n2. History is what differentiates humans from animals.\nB. Grassi's support for Humanist thought is based in Vico's conception of the humanization of nature. (p.150)\n1. Grassi has a term called \"meeting the claims or demands of life.\"\na. All living beings experience the world using their senses, and inherently organize their environment to meet their basic needs.\nb. Animals rely on instinct to function.\n2. The human process is very complex.\na. Humans can choose and aren't limited to actions of instinct.\nb. Humans can define images through language and therefore can interpret the world in different ways.\n3. Humanization or historication of nature occurs when:\na. Humans become aware of these capabilities.\nb. They begin to make adjustments in nature, or \"direct their own destinies.\"\n4. Humans must take sensory level meanings and translate them into an intellectual level.\n5. The clearing of forests and the cultivating of land is the first unfolding of human consciousness. (p.151)\n6. This feeling of control over nature wasn't a sudden change: there were three developing stages.\na. In the Cultural Age, humans felt they were a part of the cultural world.\nb. In the Age of Heros, combination of heros and gods (superhuman benefactors) were seen as helping humans by introducing social institutions and laws.\nc. In the Age of Humanity, humans realized that they could control nature.\nC. Humans gain control over nature using the Ingenium, which is the process of humanization. (p.151)\n1. Ingenium transfers meaning from the sensory world to a higher human one.\n2. Ingenium frees humans by allowing them to see relationships and making connections in experience which are needed to think new thoughts.\nD. There are three basic ways in which Ingenium is manifest to create the humans world. (p.152)\n1. Imagination functions to grasp control of reality into two ways.\na. Imagination allows humans to realize that they are not bound to nature in the same way that animals are bound. (152)\nb. Imagination allows humans to explain the world around them. It allows us to select certain interpretations of what we sense and allows us to define and order.\n2. Work allows us to make and interpret connections of the sensory phenomena. Work allows us to act upon those interpretations made by our imagination. (p.153)\n3. Language allows us to name and assign meanings to things in the world. By naming something we create a reality apart from the world.\nE. Humanists sought to understand things in the context of practical human action.\n1. Praxis is action: the application of abstract philosophical concepts into concrete situations. (p.153)\n2. Grammarians examine words and interpret the abstract human condition in combination with individual action. (p.154)\nA. Grassi refers to Aristotle and Cicero to define the metaphor.\n1. Aristotle: \"[The metaphor allows us] to see the similarity between what is actually the most widely separated.\"\n2. Cicero's definition of metaphor said it was like a \"light\" which gives insight into a \"relationship.\"\nB. Metaphor transfers insight on several levels. (p.154)\n1. At the most basic level, the metaphor allows us to grasp similarities between two unrelated things.\na. The metaphor operationalizes ingenium by allowing the human to connect himself/herself to the world of senses.\nb. We relate to nature in human terms.\n2. Language works metaphorically, transferring insight.\na. Language is symbolic because it helps us relate two dissimilar things.\nb. Language helps us interpret and connect to our world and experiences.\n3. The process of philosophizing is metaphoric.\na. A philosophical argument cannot be made without understanding the first principle.\nb. First principles are nonrational and \"experienced\" as an \"urge.\"\nc. Philosophical systems are constructed with a first principle as the base.\nd. The similarities we make between \"urges\" to understand philosophical problem and the actual logical arguments we use are metaphorical.\nA. Grassi discusses the superiority of rhetorical language over rational speech.\n1. Rhetorical language adapts various uses of imagery to illuminate historical fact and make it concrete, while rational speech is deductive and achieves effect through logical demonstration.\n2. Rhetorical language deals with concrete particulars of life, while rational speech is universal and abstract.\n3. Rhetorical language is like dialogue because it takes the world into account, while rational speech is monologic and has no need to interact.\n4. Rhetorical language concentrates in images, symbols and metaphors, while rational speech is grounded in logical events and chronology.\n5. Rhetorical language goes beyond a formal system, while rational speech is set in a \"code\" and can only move through the use of metaphor, which is indicative of rhetorical speech.\nB. A third form of speech identified by Grassi is \"external rhetorical speech.\"\n1. This is the superficial and mistaken definition of rhetoric as a technical art of persuasion.\n2. This is \"false speech\" because images do not stem directly from metaphors or nature, but a limited understanding of nature and its images.\nA. Many feel that rhetoric is only the form of a message, while philosophy supplies factual content.\nB. Humanists see rhetoric in a positive light, as a way to make logical reasoning palatable to an audience.\nC. Grassi sees no separation of passion from logic.\n1. The power of a message derives from its starting point in images that inspire wonder, admiration, engagement and passion.\n2. Rhetoric, rather than logical deduction, is the true philosophy since it undertakes questions about the process by which \"humans know, interpret, and create their world.\"\nD. The emphasis on science in the Western world has resulted in this separation of content from form, and contrasts with the World View of the humanists. (p.161)\n1. Without scientific proof, an idea will not be believed.\n2. We have forgotten that we need to study the insights upon which these calculations are based.\nE. There are many consequences for society that over-values the rational paradigm.\n1. Those who believe in the \"primacy of logic\" and the ability for technology to deal with all problems tend to have an attitude of superiority.\na. Humans see their rationality as giving them a dominance over all things.\nb. This actually limits humans' capability to fully interpret all things.\n2. This affects our relationships with other cultures who do not share this attitude.\na. We see these cultures as being underdeveloped.\nb. This view makes it impossible to fully understand them and constricts our interactions with them.\n3. Logical thought has become synonymous with the domination of humans. (p.162)\n4. The dawning of the atomic age is the ultimate example of humans' need to dominate nature.\nF. The rational approach which has dominated Western culture has been detrimental to philosophy.\nA. Renaissance Humanism defined folly as speaking irrationally without reason.\nB. Grassi studied literature for examples of folly, defining it instead as the ability, using language, to choose the perspective to take on a situation to unveil something's essence. (p.163)\n1. Folly is an engagement of ingenium\n2. Folly is the fundamental process by which humans move from the nonhuman to the human realm.\n3. Folly, as an extension of ingenium, allows humans to imagine themselves in new situation and to deal with these situations effectively.\nA. Grassi's ideas of rhetoric are not well known among communication scholars.\n1. Grassi has published in English only in Philosophy and Rhetoric and there are few essays or discussions on his work.\n2. Grassi asserts the contributions of Italian Humanism to rhetoric and philosophy rather than with fully developing the contemporary implications of the philosophic perspective.\nB. Grassi made several important contributions to rhetoric from the Humanistic perspective.\n1. Grassi asserts that rhetoric and philosophy are necessarily connected, since rhetoric is the starting point of philosophy.\n2. Grassi preference of thought, speech, and action made from connections with nature (ingenium) rather than from logical reasoning is similar to the \"new paradigm.\"\n3. Grassi's notion of folly allows humans choices in how they perceive the world they live in.\n4. Grassi's work generated renewed interest in Renaissance Humanism.\n5. Grassi gives new significance to rhetorical speech and asks us to reconceptualize our definition of rhetoric.\nGrassi, Ernesto \"Italian Humanism and Heidegger's Thesis of the End of Philosophy,\" Philosophy and Rhetoric, 13 (Spring 1980), 83. In this article, Grassi points to the parallelism between Heidegger's German Idealistic thought and the Italian Humanist tradition in order to create a historical framework in which to make evident the problems of Humanism in relation to present day. This article, separated into ten major ideas, begins with the End of Metaphysics and ends with Heidegger's Theory of the Brutality of the Being. In between these two major points, as Grassi explains Heidegger's Twofold thesis, the Traditional Model of Scientific Thought, the basic problem of Italian Humanism, The Question of the Veil of the Poetic Word, and the \"clearing\" of the Primordial Forest.\nGrassi, Ernesto Die Macht des Bildes, 221, cited in Walter Veit, \"The Potency of Imagery - the Impotence of Rational Language: Ernesto Grassi's Contribution to Modern Epistemology,\" Philosophy and Rhetoric, 17 (1984), 235. Veit gives analysis to some of Grassi's theories in this article. Grassi once again confronts the separation of logical reasoning and rhetoric. Many of Grassi's ideas have literally reconstructed the philosophical dimension of rhetoric in the eyes of contemporary Italian Humanists. Much of this article is similar to the subjects covered in FFT, and it even helps in the understanding since it gives different explanations and examples to similar material. Emphasis is placed on some of the ideals of eighteenth century philosopher Giambattista Vico, who Grassi found as a source for some of his rhetorical ideas. Once again, it is stated that Grassi believed that the philosophical revolution began with the Italian Humanists, who showed that philosophy gains insight into the principles \"through the creativity of the image.\"\nGrassi, Ernesto \"Humanistic Rhetorical Philosophizing: Giovanni Pontano's Theory of the Unity of Poetry, Rhetoric, and History,\" Philosophy and Rhetoric, 17 (1984), 146. This article is simply Grassi's analysis and reaction to Potano's theories. It gives the reader some idea of the process of critical thinking that Grassi goes through in regards to the ideas of others. It is standard to differentiate between logic and rhetoric. The premises resulting from a rational process as exemplified by traditional metaphysics are necessary and universally valued. Rhetoric is bound by time and place, and it must use metaphor and images in order to be effective. In order for metaphor to be effective, there must be a common viewpoint shared between source and receiver which permits the audience to see the relationship of the metaphor. The unity of poetry, rhetoric, and history has a philosophical significance. All three are rooted in directive language. Potano's ideas are that the traditional thoughts need to be revised. A new kind of philosophy starts with the Humanists and the turn to rhetoric, away from rational argument.\nGrassi, Ernesto \"Remarks on German Idealism, Humanism and the Philosophical Function of Rhetoric,\" Philosophy and Rhetoric, 19 (1986), 125. Grassi discusses his blending of Vico's Italian Humanism and German Idealism. The entire system of thoughts is summarized as follows: \"The faculty that is crucial to the making of metaphors is ingenium, which allows us to see the world. The power of language is beyond logic and rational thinking. To think rationally involves assuming some presuppositions and drawing inferences from them.\" This text is simply and expansion of the work in Foss, et al. and provides a historical context for Grassi's work.\nGrassi, Ernesto \"The Ordinary Quality of the Poetic and Rhetorical Word: Heidegger, Ungaretti, and Neruda,\" Philosophy and Rhetoric, 20 (1987), 248. This article is divided into three sections. The first section concentrates on making clear the philosophical function of poetical and rhetorical language, by looking at statements of philosopher Martin Heidegger and of two poets Ungaretti and Neruda. The poetic world, according to Heidegger, receives not only priority over the rational world, but also has a philosophical function comparing it to the ideas of philosopher Giambattista Vico. Second, it deals with the idea that reality cannot be revealed through a rational process. Next it deals with the philosophical function of poetry, showing that every beginning of a historical era is announced with a poetic expression, showing connection of poetry, rhetoric and history. Imagery is poetry. The third part shows what can happen when rational word becomes superior to rhetorical word, using the stories of Prometheus and Ulyssses. The fire Prometheus brought is considered metaphoric, but the fact that his liver is being destroyed keeps him historical and not eternal. Dante condemns Ulysses when he wishes to go beyond Hercules' pillars.\nGrassi, Ernesto \"Why Rhetoric is Philosophy,\" Philosophy and Rhetoric, 20 (1987), 75. Traditional philosophy arrives at an important admission: rational language cannot reach \"passions.\" What is \"true\" language? The model provided by German romantic thought recognizes an essentially literary character. In Monologne, Noralis, language is a game; language does not occur for the determination of beings. Tongue speaks for itself alone. An object has its own destiny and at the same time it doesn't in that each appears in its merry through the code which is revealed in the history. Rhetorical, historical language is shown to be the true philosophical language because it is by means of it that we \"uncover\" the various world by \"playing\" with our \"orders\" at stake.\nVerene, Donald Phillip, rev. of Die Macht der Phantasie and Rhetoric\nas Philosophy, by Ernesto Grassi, Philosophy and Rhetoric, 13 (Fall\n1980), 281. This article summarizes Grassi's ideas in Rhetoric as Philosophy:\nThe Humanist Tradition and in Die Macht der Phantasie. Zur Geschitchte\nabenlandischen Denkens. According to Verene, these books are \"treasure\nhouses of an understanding of the nature of rhetoric and its relationship\nto philosophy that is absent in contemporary thought.\" Grassi's thesis\nis that rhetoric is at the basis of philosophy. Considering this relationship,\nGrassi asks his readers to understand the power of\nlanguage by choosing Humanism over science.\nVerene, Donald Phillip, \"Response\nto Grassi,\" Philosophy\nand Rhetoric, 19 (1986), 135. Verene is delighted to be discussing Grassi's\nwork. He admits skepticism to the blending of Italian Humanism and German\nIdealism. The most important element of Grassi's thought is the metaphor\nbecause metaphors embody the starting pints for thought. It is essentially\na recovery of ancient ideas that Verene feels is long overdue.\nback to lecture note index"}
{"text": "Combating AIDS Around the Globe\nLead story from the February Centerpoint\nIn November 2004, just prior to World AIDS Day, the Woodrow Wilson Center and UNAIDS, the joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, held two high-level briefings as part of a three-part series to expand awareness of the global AIDS agenda outside of the health community, particularly within foreign policy and development circles.\nWorld AIDS Day became an annual event in 1988 when some 5 million people were living with the disease. Since then, AIDS has killed more than 20 million people around the world and, this year, 40 million people are living with HIV/AIDS. In sub-Saharan Africa alone, more than 25 million people are living with HIV/AIDS. In the Caribbean, the region second-hardest hit by the disease, at least 1 in 50 adults across five nations already are infected.\nA November 10 seminar featuring Dr. Kathleen Cravero, deputy executive director of UNAIDS, and Ambassador George Moose, former assistant secretary of state for African affairs, shed light on the disproportionate impact HIV/AIDS has had on women in developed and developing countries. The second briefing on November 30— featuring UNAIDS Executive Director Dr. Peter Piot and U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator Ambassador Randall Tobias—explored the aggressive U.S. emergency plan to combat AIDS and the dangerously fast spread of HIV/AIDS in East Europe and East Asia. A third upcoming seminar will delve into the effects of AIDS on security.\nEvery day around the world, 8,000 people die from AIDS, many of them young people in their productive years, many of them mothers and caretakers. It is a humanitarian crisis that poses serious social, economic, and security threats—one that requires a sustained, collective effort to overcome.\nThe Emerging Pandemic: East Europe, Asia\nUNAIDS reported at the end of 2004 that nearly a half-million people died from AIDS in South and Southeast Asia and more than 7 million people are living with HIV/AIDS, while in East Asia more than 1 million people are HIV-positive. In addition, nearly 1 million Russians are living with HIV/AIDS, about triple the official statistics, according to Wilson Center Senior Scholar Murray Feshbach and Research Associate Cristina Galvin in a recently released report underwritten by the U.S. Agency for International Development.\n\"The situation we face in China, India, and Russia bears alarming similarities to the situation we faced 20 years ago in Africa,\" said Dr. Piot in his November 30 address. Piot said these countries are nearing \"a tipping point,\" much like Africa had experienced. In South Africa, he explained, prevalence rates rose from .5 to 1 percent in five years but then in seven years, the rate leapt from 1 to 20 percent.\nPiot said, \"I am calling for intensified attention on these next wave countries-not at the expense of Africa, but also on behalf of Africa.\" If the epidemic spreads, he said, global resources for Africa could decrease or disappear. \"If we don't prevent this breakout, and full-blown epidemics take hold in these large, populous states, there will be dire consequences not only for these countries, but for each of our own.\"\nWell over half the world's population resides in Asian-Pacific countries, where HIV/AIDS-related income losses totaled more than $7 billion in 2001 alone. India and China, two of the world's most populous countries, have rapidly growing economies which would be devastated by the stunted growth that AIDS has caused elsewhere as would their global trading partners. AIDS threatens a nation's security and stability, and national defense can be compromised by the growing rates of AIDS in military ranks.\nIn Russia, incidents of HIV among potential military conscripts are estimated to be 25 times the level of five years earlier, according to the Feshbach/Galvin report. The report also noted that while HIV is on the rise, testing has dropped dramatically, in a society that stigmatizes those with the virus. In Asia, increasing populations help offset the AIDS mortality levels, but Russia has a declining population. Furthermore, the report noted, AIDS disproportionately impacts Russia's young people; more than 80 percent of HIV-positive Russians are under 30 years old.\n\"We can pay now for prevention,\" said Piot, \"we can wait a bit longer and pay for treatment; or we can wait even longer and pay the price of losing tens of hundreds of millions of productive citizens. Early investment is everything...the price rises every minute we wait.\"\nWomen and AIDS\nWorld AIDS Day, commemorated on December 1, focused special attention this year on the growing AIDS epidemic among women and girls. In sub-Saharan Africa, 60 percent of all HIV-positive people and 75 percent of infected young people, 15 to 24 years old, are female. Some of the steepest increases are occurring in East Asia, East Europe, and Central Asia. In Russia, the Russian Federal AIDS Center reported in 2003 that 38 percent of people living with HIV were women, compared with 24 percent in 2001. In Brazil, new AIDS cases among women increased by 75 percent in the late 1990s, compared to just 10 percent among men. And, in the United States, AIDS is the leading cause of death among African American women, ages 35-44.\n\"The disproportionate infection of millions of poor women isn't merely an injustice; it's a socioeconomic disaster,\" said Dr. Cravero, at the November 10 seminar, \"Confronting the Crisis: Women and AIDS.\" Cravero said AIDS among women is on the rise in these countries because \"women lack control over their bodies and their daily lives, and the tools, resources and support needed to change their situation.\"\nAmbassador Moose discussed the debate within the U.S. government. He said while the U.S. government has recognized the magnitude of the HIV/AIDS threat and has made advances developing affordable antiretroviral treatments for developing nations, it has yet to address the challenge of women and AIDS.\n\"It's one thing to bring policymakers and politicians to an acceptance that HIV/AIDS represents a threat to national and international security interests,\" he said, \"but it's quite another, I would argue, to convince them that the place where that battle will have to be fought and won is in the bedrooms and bordellos of every society around the world.\"\nPiot also discussed the rise of AIDS among women and said that solely insisting on abstinence is unrealistic. \"The scientists, the doctors, the activists, the churches, and all of us should come together and agree on a broad philosophy of prevention that takes cultural and religious differences into account, but embraces a common principle-that the highest moral ideal is to save lives.\"\nPiot said developing countries must encourage educational and economic opportunities for women, pass and enforce laws that deter domestic violence, and promote access to the female condom and microbicides that women can use to protect themselves.\nSaid Cravero, \"For women who can't choose when and with whom to have sex, for women whose partners will not use condoms or be faithful, and for women who are too beaten up or beaten down to ask, methods that they control...will make all the difference.\"\nThe U.S. Relief Plan\nOn November 30, Ambassador Randall Tobias presented the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, which commits $15 billion over a five-year period toward combating the disease in more than 100 countries. The plan, which promotes integrated prevention, treatment, and care, is the largest commitment ever by a single nation toward an international health initiative.\nWith special emphasis on 15 focus nations in Africa, the Caribbean, and Asia, where half the world's infections occur, this plan aims to treat 2 million HIV-infected people, prevent 7 million new infections, and care for 10 million people, including orphans and vulnerable children.\nThe emergency plan \"strives to bring donors, stakeholders on the ground, and national leadership onto the same page,\" said Tobias, adding that emphasis will be placed on monitoring and evaluating results. \"If this HIV/AIDS challenge is to be met, we in the developed world will have to meet it. If we fail to rise to the occasion, there's really no Plan B.\" He underscored the importance of such organizations as UNAIDS remaining engaged in the fight. Such groups, he said, \"offer other donors a vehicle to sharply increase their commitment, as America has done.\""}
{"text": "Occupational Safety and Health Administration\nOCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION\nThe mission of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is to assure that every U.S. worker goes home whole and healthy every day. Toward that end, the agency sets and enforces workplace safety and health standards, encourages voluntary compliance through consultation and partnerships, and promotes safety training and education for workers and employers. Since Congress passed the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act), which created OSHA as an agency within the U.S. Department of Labor, workplace fatalities have been cut in half and occupational injury and illness rates have declined 40 percent. At the same time, U.S. employment has nearly doubled.\nUnder the OSH Act, employers are responsible for providing a safe and healthful work environment in line with standards set by OSHA. Protecting workers against workplace hazards requires every employer and every worker to make safety and health a top priority. OSHA's charge is to offer leadership and encouragement to workers and employers in carrying out this responsibility. OSHA has a staff of about 2,250, including about 1,250 inspectors in 67 field offices. Sharing the responsibility for oversight of workplace safety and health are twenty-five states that run their own OSHA programs with about 2,800 employees, including about 1,250 inspectors.\nEarly OSHA standards focused primarily on safety and establishing precise safety requirements, such as the specific height for guardrails on stairs. Newer standards take a performance or program approach, identifying a safety or health objective and providing a framework for employers to use in achieving that goal. OSHA standards cover the gamut of workplace safety and health issues, including machine guarding, fall protection, chemical-hazard communication, and protection against blood-borne pathogens such as HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) and hepatitis B.\nOSHA's enforcement program has changed dramatically over the years. The agency has continually attempted to target its resources toward the most hazardous worksites, as well as respond to worker complaints and investigate fatal accidents. Initially, OSHA focused on sites in industries with high injury rates. More recently, OSHA has obtained site-specific injury and illness data and has been able to concentrate on individual sites with poor safety and health records. The agency conducts about 35,000 inspections each year; states running their own OSHA programs inspect an additional 55,000 workplaces. To foster voluntary compliance with OSHA standards and assist employers in setting up ongoing safety and health programs, OSHA offers free consultations and seeks to establish partnerships with individual workplaces and with trade groups and unions.\nThe OSHA consultation program, designed for smaller employers, provides free assistance to employers who request help with safety and health programs and specific problems. Employers agree in advance to correct serious hazards identified by the consultant. The consultation program is administered by state authorities and is completely separate from the enforcement effort. OSHA's premier partnership is the Voluntary Protection\nTo further assist employers and workers, OSHA maintains an extensive web site (http://www.osha.gov) that includes the agency's standards, publications, training materials, interactive software covering specific standards and hazards, small business information, an online complaint filing system for workers, and links to many other sources of information on job safety and health. The agency also offers safety and health training at its Chicagoarea training institute and through twelve educational centers located at community colleges and universities around the country. OSHA is developing satellite-delivered and web-based training programs to make its training available to a wider audience. Through its New Directions grants, OSHA encourages nonprofit organizations such as unions and trade associations to develop additional training materials and offer training courses.\nImproving work environments is a long-term proposition that requires daily diligence and ongoing commitment in the face of competing priorities for time, energy, and resources. OSHA's mandate is to aid employers and employees to make this commitment and continually pursue excellence in job safety and health.\nOCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION\nOccupational Safety and Health Administration. All About OSHA. (OSHA 2056). Available at http://www.osha.gov."}
{"text": "\"Nofollow\" provides a way for webmasters to tell search engines \"Don't follow links on this page\" or \"Don't follow this specific link.\"\nnofollow attribute appeared in the page-level meta tag, and instructed search engines not to follow (i.e., crawl) any outgoing links on the page. For example:\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"nofollow\" />\nnofollow was used on individual links, preventing robots from following individual links on a page required a great deal of effort (for example, redirecting the link to a URL blocked in robots.txt). That's why the\nnofollow attribute value of the\nrel attribute was created. This gives webmasters more granular control: instead of telling search engines and bots not to follow any links on the page, it lets you easily instruct robots not to crawl a specific link. For example:\n<a href=\"signin.php\" rel=\"nofollow\">sign in</a>\nHow does Google handle nofollowed links?\nIn general, we don't follow them. This means that Google does not transfer PageRank or anchor text across these links. Essentially, using\nnofollow causes us to drop the target links from our overall graph of the web. However, the target pages may still appear in our index if other sites link to them without using\nnofollow, or if the URLs are submitted to Google in a Sitemap. Also, it's important to note that other search engines may handle\nnofollow in slightly different ways.\nWhat are Google's policies and some specific examples of nofollow usage?\nHere are some cases in which you might want to consider using\n- Untrusted content: If you can't or don't want to vouch for the content of pages you link to from your site — for example, untrusted user comments or guestbook entries — you should nofollow those links. This can discourage spammers from targeting your site, and will help keep your site from inadvertently passing PageRank to bad neighborhoods on the web. In particular, comment spammers may decide not to target a specific content management system or blog service if they can see that untrusted links in that service are nofollowed. If you want to recognize and reward trustworthy contributors, you could decide to automatically or manually remove the\nnofollowattribute on links posted by members or users who have consistently made high-quality contributions over time.\n- Paid links: A site's ranking in Google search results is partly based on analysis of those sites that link to it. In order to prevent paid links from influencing search results and negatively impacting users, we urge webmasters use\nnofollowon such links. Search engine guidelines require machine-readable disclosure of paid links in the same way that consumers online and offline appreciate disclosure of paid relationships (for example, a full-page newspaper ad may be headed by the word \"Advertisement\"). More information on Google's stance on paid links.\n- Crawl prioritization: Search engine robots can't sign in or register as a member on your forum, so there's no reason to invite Googlebot to follow \"register here\" or \"sign in\" links. Using\nnofollowon these links enables Googlebot to crawl other pages you'd prefer to see in Google's index. However, a solid information architecture — intuitive navigation, user- and search-engine-friendly URLs, and so on — is likely to be a far more productive use of resources than focusing on crawl prioritization via nofollowed links.\nHow does nofollow work with the Social Graph API (rel=\"nofollow me\")?\nIf you host user profiles and allow users to link to other profiles on the web, we encourage you to mark those links with the rel=\"me\" microformat so that they can be made available through the Social Graph API. For example:\n<a href=\"http://blog.example.com\" rel=\"me\">My blog</a>\nHowever, because these links are user-generated and may sometimes point to untrusted pages, we recommend that these links be marked with nofollow. For example:\n<a href=\"http://blog.example.com\" rel=\"me nofollow\">My blog</a>\nrel=\"me nofollow\", Google will continue to treat the\nrel=\"nofollow\" as expected for search purposes, such as not transferring PageRank. However, for the Social Graph API, we will count the\nrel=\"me\" link even when included with a\nTo prevent crawling of a rel=\"me nofollow\" URL, you can use robots.txt. Standard robots.txt exclusion rules are respected by both Googlebot and the Social Graph API."}
{"text": "Luckily, Music Theory for Dummies shows you the fun and easy way to understanding the concepts needed to compose, deconstruct, and comprehend music. This helpful guide will give you a great grasp of:\n- Note value and counting notes\n- Treble and bass clefs\n- Time signatures and measures\n- Naturalizing the rhythm\n- Tempo and dynamic\n- Tone, color, and harmonics\n- Half steps and whole steps\n- Harmonic and melodic intervals\n- Key signatures and circles of fifths\n- Scales, chords, and their progressions\n- Elements of form\n- Music theory’s fascinating history\nThis friendly guide not only explores these concepts, it provides examples of music to compliment them so you can hear how they sound firsthand. With a bonus CD that demonstrates these ideas with musical excerpts on guitar and piano, this hands-on resource will prove to you that music theory is as enjoyable as it is useful. Don’t get discouraged by the seemingly complicated written structure. With Music Theory for Dummies, understanding music has never been easier!\nNote: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file."}
{"text": "Family: Corvidae, Crows, Magpies, Jays view all from this family\nDescription ADULT Has a pale gray-brown back, but otherwise mostly dark blue upperparts; note, however, the dark cheeks and eyeline and pale forecrown, extending back as faint supercilium. Throat is whitish and streaked, with discrete demarcation from otherwise grubby pinkish gray underparts. JUVENILE Similar, but dull gray on head, back, and wing coverts, with blue flight feathers and tail.\nDimensions Length: 11\" (28 cm)\nEndangered Status The Florida Scrub-Jay is on the U.S. Endangered Species List. It is classified as threatened throughout its range in Florida. Like many other Florida wildlife species, the scrub-jay has declined as its habitat has succumbed to development. Remaining habitat has been fragmented and degraded, and existing populations are small and isolated. This makes them vulnerable to any change to their environment, as an entire population can be wiped out at once. In some areas the rate of mortality appears to exceed the rate at which the populations is reproducing. A long-term problem for this species could be rising sea levels caused by global warming, as their remaining habitat could easily become inundated.\nHabitat Common and widespread resident of scrubby woodland and overgrown suburban lots. Has declined markedly due to habitat loss and degradation\nObservation Tips Easy to see and often indifferent to people.\nVoice Utters a harsh, nasal cheerp, cheerp, cheerpÖ and other chattering calls.\nSimilar Species Western Scrub-jay A. californica (L 11-12 in) is bluer on head but otherwise similar; a mainly western species, resident in Texas.\nDiscussion Florida endemic with slim body, long tail, and stout, but rather slender bill. An opportunistic feeder with an omnivorous diet that includes berries, fruits, insects, and the eggs and young of songbirds. Usually seen in family groups. Sexes are similar."}
{"text": "You can help keep your heart and blood vessels healthy by taking steps toward a healthier lifestyle. These healthy habits include not smoking, eating right, exercising regularly, staying at a healthy weight, and getting the screening tests you need.\nA heart-healthy lifestyle is important for everyone, not just for people with existing health problems. It can help you keep your heart and blood vessels healthy. If you already have heart or blood vessel problems, such as high cholesterol or high blood pressure, a healthy lifestyle can help you manage those problems.\nIf you have children, you can be their healthy role model. If your habits are healthy, your children are more likely to build those habits in their own lives.\nEveryone who uses tobacco would benefit from quitting. When you quit smoking—no matter how old you are—you will decrease your risk of heart attack, stroke, and many other health problems. For help with quitting smoking, see these topics:\nEating healthy foods is one of the best things you can do to prevent and control many health problems, including heart and blood vessel disease. For help with healthy eating, see these topics:\nImproving your fitness is good for your heart and blood vessels, as well as the rest of your body. Being active helps lower your risk of health problems. And it helps you feel good. For more information about being active, see these topics:\nStaying at a healthy weight is also part of a heart-healthy lifestyle. Read more in these topics about reaching and staying at a healthy weight:\nSeeing your doctor regularly and getting screening tests is important. The sooner your doctor diagnoses a disease, the more likely it can be cured or managed. To reduce your risk of heart and blood vessel problems, be sure to keep an eye on your cholesterol and blood pressure. The tests you might have to check your risk for heart and blood vessel problems depend on your age, health, gender, and risk factors. Talk to your doctor to find out which tests are right for you.\nOther Works Consulted\n- Expert Panel on Integrated Guidelines for Cardiovascular Health and Risk Reduction in Children and Adolescents (2011). Expert panel on integrated guidelines for cardiovascular health and risk reduction in children and adolescents: Summary report. Pediatrics, 128(Supplement 5): S213–S256.\n- Redberg RF, et al. (2009). ACCF/AHA 2009 Performance measures for primary prevention of cardiovascular disease in adults: A report of the American College of Cardiology Foundation/American Heart Association Task Force on Performance Measures. Circulation, 120(13): 1296–1336.\n|Primary Medical Reviewer||Rakesh K. Pai, MD, FACC - Cardiology, Electrophysiology|\n|Specialist Medical Reviewer||Robert A. Kloner, MD, PhD - Cardiology|\n|Last Revised||April 6, 2012|\nLast Revised: April 6, 2012\nAuthor: Healthwise Staff\nTo learn more visit Healthwise.org\n© 1995-2012 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated."}
{"text": "Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depressive illness, is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and the ability to carry out day-to-day tasks. Symptoms of bipolar disorder are severe. They are different from the normal ups and downs that everyone goes through from time to time. Bipolar disorder symptoms can result in damaged relationships, poor job or school performance, and even suicide. But bipolar disorder can be treated, and people with this illness can lead full and productive lives. Bipolar disorder often develops in a person's late teens or early adult years. At least half of all cases start before age 25. Some people have their first symptoms during childhood, while others may develop symptoms late in life. Bipolar disorder is not easy to spot when it starts. The symptoms may seem like separate problems, not recognized as parts of a larger problem. Some people suffer for years before they are properly diagnosed and treated. Like diabetes or heart disease, bipolar disorder is a long-term illness that must be carefully managed throughout a person's life."}
{"text": "UNESCO describes the Site Piedmont and Lombardy Sacred Mounts as follows: The nine northern Italy’s Sacred Mounts\nare composed of groups of chapels and other architectural elements built within the end of XV and the end of XVII century and dedicated\nto different aspects of Christian Faith. In addition to their symbolic religious meanings, these places are characterized by a\nremarkable beauty thanks to the careful integration of architectural elements into the surrounding natural landscapes: hills, woods\nand lakes. Furthermore they boast very important works of art like frescos and statues.\nUNESCO World Heritage Committee has put the Site on its List for the following reasons:\nThe realization of an architectural and sacred art’s work into a natural landscape for didactic and religious aims, finds its\nhighest expression in northern Italy Sacred Mounts and it has deeply influenced following developments of this phenomenon in the\nrest of Europe.\nSacred Mounts of northern Italy represent the successful integration into a landscape of remarkable beauty of architecture\nand fine arts realized for religious aims during a critical period of Catholic Church history.\nUNESCO Site’s Sacred Mounts are mainly located in the Alpine arc, close to lakes or at the bottom of valleys crossed by river Po’s\ntributaries and by important old routes. The complexes’ panoramic and prominent locations on hills or mountains and their subdivisions\ninto chapels, let them become territorial reference points easy to identify; we don’t have to forget that creating sort of territorial\nreference points was probably one of the aims for such locations, considering that sacred mountains strategical position marks the\nnorthern limit of the Po valley, which was, at that time, symbolically protected by them, that is by the Christianity itself.\nThere is an important thread ideally binding these nine Sacred Mounts: the first crib of Greccio, made by Saint Francis of Assisi,\nthe Holy Representations, the protection of the Holy Land, the Sacred Mounts foundations (first by gerosolimitani then by\ncounter-reformists) and the Viae Crucis, almost all the above stories in fact tell us about Franciscan fathers who had been\nfundamental for all complexes’ building. Some had been the inventors, like Bernardino Caimi in Varallo, Tommaso of Firenze in\nMontaione and Michelangelo of Montiglio in Belmonte; some the designers, like Cleto of Castelletto Ticino in Orta, or the preachers\nlike Giovan Battista Aguggiari in Varese, Fedele of San Germano in Oropa, Gioacchino of Cassano and Andrea of Rho in Domodossola.\nMore we remeber that between 1731 and 1751 it was again the Franciscan Leonardo of Porto Maurizio who built five hundred and\nseventy-two Viae Crucis throughout Italy; we owe nineteenth-century-restoration and renewal of Crea’s Sacred Mount to Franciscan\nfathers Costantino Cerri and Giuseppe Latini. Observants or Capuchins, that are disciples of the poor of Assisi, are the\nmost sensitive and active champions of the theatre-, sculpture- and painting-representations.\nDedications and histories told in each complexe remind both of\npre-existent local devotions and of religious and cultural foundation times. Therefore in Varallo prevails the representation of Jesus\nChrists’ life, in Orta of Saint Francis of Assisi, in Oropa of the Virgin Mary, while in Varese and in Ossuccio they represent the Marian\nRosary prayer with its fifteen Misteries. Wishing to follow again the steps of Christ’s Passion, like the Jesus’s Via Dolorosa in\nJerusalem (that is ‘Very Painful Viae’), they modified the Sacred Mount of Crea and built the Sacred Mounts Calvaries of Domodossola\nand Belmonte. In Ghiffa instead Holy Trinity’s devotion resulted so difficult and abstract to represent that, in the end, they went back\nin part to a much usual and immediate issue: the Via Crucis."}
{"text": "How lego does it today.\nI found little information about Autodesk Maya being the 3D modeling software being used.\nHere`s a blurb about their current design process :\nPrimary concept and development work takes place at the Billund\nheadquarters, where the company employs approximately 120 designers.\nThe company also has smaller design offices in the UK, Spain, Germany,\nand Japan, which are tasked with developing products aimed\nspecifically at these markets. The average development period for a\nnew product is around twelve months, in three stages. The first stage\nis to identify market trends and developments, including contact by\nthe designers directly with the market; some are stationed in toy\nshops close to holiday periods, while others interview children. The\nsecond stage is the design and development of the product based upon\nthe results of the first stage. As of September 2008 the design teams\nuse 3D modeling software to generate CAD drawings from initial design\nsketches. The designs are then prototyped using an in-house\nstereolithography machine. These are presented to the entire project\nteam for comment and for testing by parents and children during the\n\"validation\" process. Designs may then be altered in accordance with\nthe results from the focus groups. Virtual models of completed Lego\nproducts are built concurrently with the writing of the user\ninstructions. Completed CAD models are also used in the wider\norganization, such as for marketing and packaging.\nsource : wikipedia\nHow lego used to do it\ndo you know?\nHow people do it themselves\nLego provide software that does just that. Check for \"Lego digital designer\" which allows to create a model, save a building manuals and buy the lego parts online.\nAlso check up this related question :\"Do any programs exist that allow you to build own LEGO plans?\"\nFor more information on how to create high quality computer images of lego models, check this question : \"How can I create synthetic imagery (rendering) of lego models?\""}
{"text": "The continuing Texas drought has taken an enormous and growing toll on trees, killing as many as half a billion – 10 percent of the state’s 4.9 billion trees – this year alone, the Texas Forest Service estimates.\nThat calculation did not include trees claimed by this year’s deadly and extensive wildfires, even if they were drought-related, Burl Carraway, who heads the agency’s Sustainable Forestry Department, told Texas Climate News.\n(Previously, the Forest Service estimated that about 1.5 million trees were lost on 34,000 charred acres in the Bastrop County fire, most destructive in Texas history. In another damage assessment, the agency said more than 2,000 fires in East Texas had charred more than 200,000 acres. Texas has about 63 million acres of forestlands.)\nThe estimate that up to half a billion trees have been lost to drought in 2011 was issued Monday by the Forest Service. It was based on statistics tabulated by agency foresters after they canvassed local forestry professionals in their regions, developed estimated percentages of drought-killed trees, and applied them to regional tree inventories.\nThe resulting estimate was that 100 million to 500 million trees with a diameter of at least five inches had perished because of the drought – two to 10 percent of the nearly five billion trees of that size in the state.\nIn 2011, Texas experienced an exceptional drought, prolonged high winds and record-setting temperatures. Together, those conditions took a severe toll on trees across the state. Large numbers of trees in both urban communities and rural forests have died or are struggling to survive. The impacts are numerous and widespread.\nThe agency found that trees in three areas appeared to be hurt the most by the drought:\n- An area in West Texas including Sutton, Crockett, western Kimble and eastern Pecos counties, with extensive death of Ashe junipers.\n- An area in Southeast Texas including Harris, Montgomery, Grimes, Madison and Leon counties, where many loblolly pines succumbed.\n- An area southeast of Austin, including western Bastrop and eastern Caldwell counties as well as neighboring areas, which had widespread mortality among cedars and post oaks.\nAlso, the agency said, “localized pockets of heavy mortality were reported for many other areas.\nThe Forest Service plans to use aerial imagery in a more detailed analysis next spring, when trees that entered early dormancy because of the drought may start to recover. In addition, the agency said, “a more scientific, long-term study” of tree losses will be carried out through its Forest Inventory and Analysis program’s census of the state’s trees. Carraway said Forest Service officials “fully expect mortality percentages to increase if the drought continues.”\nTexas state climatologist John Nielsen-Gammon has said that a second year of drought in 2012 is “likely,” perhaps with more dry conditions following that.\nNielsen-Gammon has estimated that about a tenth of the excess heat this past summer was attributable to manmade climate change. He and other climate experts have said hotter, drier conditions are expected to increase in Texas in decades ahead as concentrations of human-created greenhouse gases accumulate in the atmosphere.\nWhat the warming average temperature of the planet could mean for forests and other ecosystems was the focus of research findings announced last week by NASA.\nThe study, carried out by researchers from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the California Institute of Technology, used a computer model that projected massive changes in plant communities across nearly half of the earth’s land surface, with “the conversion of nearly 40 percent of land-based ecosystems from one major ecological community type – such as forest, grassland or tundra – toward another.”\nThe NASA announcement added:\nThe model projections paint a portrait of increasing ecological change and stress in Earth’s biosphere, with many plant and animal species facing increasing competition for survival, as well as significant species turnover, as some species invade areas occupied by other species. Most of Earth’s land that is not covered by ice or desert is projected to undergo at least a 30 percent change in plant cover – changes that will require humans and animals to adapt and often relocate.\nIn addition to altering plant communities, the study predicts climate change will disrupt the ecological balance between interdependent and often endangered plant and animal species, reduce biodiversity and adversely affect Earth’s water, energy, carbon and other element cycles.\n“For more than 25 years, scientists have warned of the dangers of human-induced climate change,” said Jon Bergengren, a scientist who led the study while a postdoctoral scholar at Caltech. “Our study introduces a new view of climate change, exploring the ecological implications of a few degrees of global warming. While warnings of melting glaciers, rising sea levels and other environmental changes are illustrative and important, ultimately, it’s the ecological consequences that matter most.”\nWhen faced with climate change, plant species often must “migrate” over multiple generations, as they can only survive, compete and reproduce within the range of climates to which they are evolutionarily and physiologically adapted. While Earth’s plants and animals have evolved to migrate in response to seasonal environmental changes and to even larger transitions, such as the end of the last ice age, they often are not equipped to keep up with the rapidity of modern climate changes that are currently taking place. Human activities, such as agriculture and urbanization, are increasingly destroying Earth’s natural habitats, and frequently block plants and animals from successfully migrating.\n– Bill Dawson\nImage credits: Photos – Texas Forest Service; Map – NASA"}
{"text": "Girl Scout Preserves Florida's Wildlife\nMarch 23, 2012 – Miami, Fla. – Senior Girl Scout Caitlin Kaloostian earned the Gold Award, the highest award a Girl Scout can receive, by completing a new butterfly garden and wildlife themed mural for The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC).\nThe FWC works with community and youth organizations to demonstrate the importance of safeguarding Florida’s Natural resources and to encourage the next generation of conservationists. To further this mission, Kaloostian held fundraisers such as garage sales and solicited help from fellow high school students to raise funds necessary to complete the project. With the help of her troop, Girl Scout Troop 305, Kaloostian painted a mural at the FWC’s Division of Law Enforcement Office which featured native fish and wildlife including a Florida panther, a manatee, an alligator, fish and many other animals. The butterfly garden uses native plants to attract butterflies and birds. Both the mural and the butterfly garden will help to preserve Florida’s future."}
{"text": "CMS Web Guide (University of Michigan-Flint)\nWhat is a CMS and how can it be used?\nA CMS (content management system) is a piece of software used to effectively organize and manage large amounts of digital content. Content, in reference to the university's CMS, includes all web pages, documents, and other files made available via the university web site. The CMS makes it possible for almost anyone to easily manage web content, without needing to know how to write HTML (hyper-text mark-up language, the typical method for creating web pages). By using a CMS the university will also have an easy way to implement version control.\nOnce in place and properly utilized, the CMS will improve the overall quality of content (by reducing broken links, content redundancy, human error, and providing a more uniform appearance for ease of navigation)."}
{"text": "Commercially-pressed CD's and CD-R or CD-RW disks are fundamentally different technologies, which is why a commercial CD will continue to be readable long after a CD-R has become unusable.\nA CD drive uses a focused laser beam that is reflected from the media surface in the CD disc. The beam is reflected onto a sensor that detects changes in the amount of energy that is reflected. The original (commercial) process used perforated aluminum as the media surface. When you use the term \"pressed\" you are using an old vinyl record term, but the production process is pretty much the same. There is a \"master\" disk that is put into a press which is filled with polycarbonate. The master disk has little pins sticking up everywhere there is to be a hole in the aluminum. The disk is cooled, and liquid aluminum is spun onto it. This results in an aluminum layer with holes in it.\nWhen the disc is played, the laser reflects strongly from the shiny aluminum or less strongly (or not at all) from the holes. The reflection/non-reflection is translated into the ones and zeros of the binary data stored on the disk.\nOver time the aluminum can oxidize or there can be other changes in the plastic and other materials that make the disc unusable. These are long term effects and the ultimate statistical life of a commercial CD is often debated, without conclusion, by the experts.\nThe CD-R and CD-RW do not use an aluminum media surface. Instead, they use a dye. When the disc is written, a high-powered laser causes spots on the disk to turn dark (hence the term \"burning\"). When played back, the sensor in the player sees the difference in reflectivity of the dark and not-so-dark spots as the binary data.\nUnfortunately, because the dye is a light-sensitive chemical, over time it will fade. This can happen from the heat of the reading laser, from ambient light, and from chemical degradation in the dye and support media.\nCD-R/RW media is safe for backup, and for creating alternate media (copying music files to play in your car so that if they are damaged from heat or wear out you can make another one, and preserve your originals elsewhere), and similar purposes. However, they are not safe for archival storage because they are not stable enough for that purpose.\nSide note: when burning CD's for use in a car, for best results get \"music CD's\" which are designed for that application, or slow your burning speed down to 12x or 16x to get a darker spot from your high speed burner. The car will read the disc more reliably.\nInsofar as tape storage is concerned, tape is also not a good archival choice of media. It's generally better than CD-R, although I haven't seen any comparative studies.\nMajor data centers who use tape storage refresh the storage periodically. Their Tape Management System (TMS) remembers the date the tape was recorded, and will call it up to be copied periodically. The old tape is then erased and reused until it reaches end of life (sometimes a fixed usage or time interval, sometimes when the number of recoverable errors reaches a threshold) at which time it is scrapped.\nThe whole issue of long term archive is complex, and goes beyond media. For media, if a data center stored its files on a 9 track magnetic tape twenty years ago, how would it retrieve that data today (you cannot find working 9 track drives). What if it had used an early Magneto-Optical (MO) drive? Small businesses have trouble when their tape drive fails, and they can't buy another drive in that old format.\nFile formats are another problem. I have word processing documents that deceased family members created years ago. I no longer have word processing software that will import some of those formats. I can (sometimes) extract the raw text and then try to reformat it in a current program, but if I don't have a printed original I don't know how it was intended to be formatted.\nThe only archival format that has stood the test of time is paper.\nSubmitted by: Kevin G. of Dallas, TX\nWell, Carl, that so-called expert sure has stirred the waters and a LOT of people are wondering about the same question. However, your friendly Federal Government has studied the problem even longer.\nTo be specific, the National Archives and Records Administration, in charge of all of the record archiving of the government, has no standard on media storage, and requested NIST, that's National Institute of Standards and Technology, to write a new standard on media durability.\nIf you never heard of NIST, you're not alone, as NIST is more of a background organization, but suffice to say, they're the ones who creates the standards, references, and accuracy tests for all industries, from DNA to Time accuracy (in fact, if NIST operates one of the Internet \"clocks\" you can calibrate your PC to). NIST DNA reference material improves forensic DNA test accuracy. NIST also invented closed captioning and many other technology, but enough about NIST.\nA gentleman by the name of Fred Byers spent a whole year testing various media, and wrote a guide for NIST to librarians who need to archive information on how to care for optical media such as CD-R and DVD-R's and such. In the guide, he basically stated that with proper handling (store in low humidity, no scratching, stored vertically, etc.) a DVD-R should last 30 years with no fear of losing any information. However, that is NOT an absolute number as it is dependent on a LARGE NUMBER OF FACTORS, some of which in your control, and some not:\nFactors that affect disc life expectancy include the following:\ntype -- as recordable media is more durable than rewritable media manufacturing quality -- you get what you pay for condition of the disc before recording -- obvious quality of the disc recording -- garbage in, garbage out handling and maintenance -- scratches are bad for any discs environmental conditions -- humidity and temperature can warp disc, ruining the reflective layer in the media. light, esp. UV light can destroy the dye used in recordable media, etc.\nLet us discuss each factor in a bit more detail\nAll types of media can be damaged through warpage (disc bending), scratches, and reflective layer breakdown due to oxygen leakage.\nRecordable media, in addition, is susceptible to UV rays, which affects the dye used in the process.\nRewritable media, with phase-change recording, is even more susceptible to UV ray and temperature.\nIt is generally acknowledged that certain brands of media are better than others, and often the stuff on sale is not the stuff you may want to buy and keep around.\nWhat you may not know is that there are only like 16 media manufacturers in the world. They make the media for all the brands that you see in the market, and some brands / factories are known to make high grade media (i.e. they tested best for maintaining data integrity, even when the media was subject to aging tests). While few independent labs did comprehensives tests, a test in Europe a while back for CD-R's revealed that Taiyo Yuden (Verbatim), Kodak (Kodak), and TDK (TDK) kept the most data intact.\nCondition of the disc before recording\nA disc should be brand new when used. While shelf live of a media is up to 5 years, why take chances? Buy them as you need tem.\nHandling and maintenance\nScratches are bad for any discs, as it breaks open the substrate layer and allows air to tarnish the inside silver reflective layer inside.\nScratches also can make information on the media unreadable by interrupting the laser's path.\nEnvironmental conditions -- humidity and temperature can warp the media, and exposure to UV light can destroy the dye used in CD-R's and DVD-R's.\nHope that answers your questions.\nSubmitted by: Kasey C. of San Francisco, CA\nIn the '80's, the CD was introduced in the market and portrayed as \"THE\" solution to the vinyl records.\nThe CD could be thrown in a mud pool, step on it, scratch it, nothing would harm he CD.\nNow we all know that CD's has a lower lifetime as their vinyl counterparts and are more susceptible to errors than them. This is also true for the CD as a media to record software.\nThe early CD's, were recorded at maximum 640 MB. Mostly not even 640 MB but something like 528 MB. This made them less susceptible to scratches.\nBut as the CD technology was in a constant evolution, overburning a CD to 800 MB and more became common use. Also the DVD was introduced, offering 4/9GB on a wafer of the size of a CD.\nIt is obvious the the tracks are becoming so small that the finest scratch, the smallest fault, can ruin the CD/DVD forever.\nAnswering your question, there is no miracle solution to keep CD/DVD from deterioration trough age. But with a little bit of care, you can have many years of pleasure of your recordings.\n1. Buy only CD/DVD from a good brand.\nBuying low priced CD/DVD will mostly result in very disappointing experiences.\n2. Dont overburn a CD/DVD.\nWhile the overburn technique is now widely accepted by most software, it is still not fully reliable and mostly dont approved by the CD manufacturers.\n3. Put every CD back in the jewel case after use, clean them as prescribed by the manufacturer, and avoid as much as possible touching the reading surface of the CD.\nAs a final remark, CD/DVD are nowadays not expensive and if you can make a backup of them, make a backup and store it in a safe place.\nI use an external harddisk of 250GB (<300 CD's) to store a backup of the CD's/DVD's I have. Price of the harddisk is about 100$.\nI have been able many times to rescue recordings which were otherwise lost forever by this harddisk.\nHope this helps,\nSubmitted by: Carlos\nYou have just discovered what most people don't discover until they actually lose data: commercial CDs and home-burned CDs are not the same. While a commercial premade CD will last a very long time if it is cared for properly, a home-burned CD will begin to deteriorate. The reason is that the home-burned version uses dyes to accomplish what the premade CD does by having it built into the disk. This is, of course, an oversimplified explanation, but it will suffice.\nThere are a few ways to maximize the amount of time a CD will last. First of all, buy good quality CDs to begin with. Stick with brand names that you are familiar with and have used successfully in the past.\nDo not assume that just because a blank CD is made by a well-known company that it will be high quality.\nTest them out by actually using them. One of the best ways to do this is to use them for your regular system backups. Be sure to actually restore from those backups periodically (easier if you have another computer handy that you can wipe out data on) or else use a backup program that allows you to mount the backup as a \"virtual drive\" and retrieve data from it.\nThis lets you know if there is a problem with a brand deteriorating unusually fast.\nSecond, never use labels on CDs. I found this out the hard way. Labels cause the CD to deteriorate much more rapidly than it otherwise would. Certain inks used in pens have been reported to do the same, but I have never encountered this problem, so it shouldn't be too severe. Do be certain, however, that you are gentle when marking CDs. Use a felt tip and do not press hard.\nThird, put a note somewhere on the CD that tells you when you made it. This lets you monitor how long it has been since the CD was burned. If the data is irreplaceable, burn it to a new CD every 2 years.\nAs for the recommendation to use magnetic tapes, that has its own set of problems. Magnetic tapes also deteriorate, and they are subject to some damage that CDs are immune to, notably damage from electrical or magnetic fields.\nIn short, CDs are good for long term storage-- but don't assume that \"long term\" means forever. Check them regularly and burn them to new media when problems develop or even before if you can't replace what's on them.\nAs for storage, that is pretty much common sense. Keep the CDs in a case or an envelope if they are not actually being used. Avoid temperature extremes and handle gently. I also recommend making two copies of every important CD. This practice just saved my data when I discovered that the labels on my CDs had wiped out some irreplaceable family photos. It costs twice as much, but if the data is important to you then it isn't really very expensive, is it?\nSubmitted by: Denise R. of Lebanon, Missouri\nHi Carl N,\nYour question has been set by a lot of people over the last 10 years. I've burned CD in 100s over the years and only found 2 discs with missing information. Lifetime of CDs is not limited due to one parameters only, more issues are setting the limit of lifetime. One is related conditions of storage and how you handle the discs. In other word, how careless or careful you are as the user. Then the material used in the CDs - how cheap a blank CD did you buy. And lastly your burning equipment, that is the laser diode.\nWhen pressed CDs were introduced in beginning of the 80s lovers of vinyl records claimed, that CDs would last for 2 years only. But as you have experienced CDs from this period can still be played. I remember one report from about 1990, which claimed a lifetime of only 3-4 years. Looking into the report, it turned out that the condition of storage was -30C (some -25F) and reading/playing equipment had a worn laser diode. Most of us can only say: I don't store my CDs in the freezer and todays laser diodes doesn't wear out as they used to.\nTurning towards recordable CDs, the whole issue is a matter of having a whole bunch of clear holes placed in circles in a foil. Readability of these holes are depending on a number of issues. How clear are the holes? Is edge of the hole clear? Is the reflectivity of the materials sufficient? Is the laser still as effective as it was? or has the surface become matte? For the early CD-burners this was jeopardized by increasing burning speed and some blank CD had doubtful foil material. Adding, to this some CD-burners were even sold with writing speeds beyond its capability. Many blank CDs were rejected in this period due to bad burners rather than bad discs. It is my conclusion, that this interim period has given us some doubtful discs.\nYou have to be careful with your CDs and also a little bit extra careful with your own. They don't like heat, bright light, bending, and writing with aggressive writing pens is also nasty. Especially pens with unknown chemicals may etch the CDs, it is just like burning, but this time controlled by the chemicals.\nIn case you wanna increase the lifetime of your recordings, you may buy CDs which is claimed to 300+ years lifetime. These CDs are referred to as GOLD-CD. These CDs has a special layer which include some 24ct gold. The advantages of these CDs are the ability to create clear holes into it with reduced oxidation or corrosion over time. Amazing almost also unbelievable 300 year. Just 100 years could be great for me. In 10-20 years everything would be transferred to new media type anyway. I saw a report on the 300 years at\nPrice of these GOLD CDs is 10-20x times the usual ones.\nYou have been suggested to use magnetic tape. Nor tapes does not last forever. As matter of fact the sound quality decays over time; frequency range is decreased by each use. This loss you can not be restored as with a digital media. Only digital storage keeps its audio frequency range over time and use. Like R&R;DIGITAL media is here to stay. You may call it CD, DVD, MPx, Blu-ray or whatever, but it's digital.\nI believe that todays discs and equipment can provide a disc with sufficient lifetime for most of us and may even restore your more doubtful discs from the early burning time with success. Even discs which are registered as 'No disc' may be restored by copying it today. In case you wanna assure yourselves; let the PC verify the burned disc, this option is normally disabled by default.\nWhat shall I do with my precious discs from the early days? My best recommendation would be to make a new copy, while the old is still readable. This is easy and cheap to most of us today as having two drives in your PC is not uncommon. Lastly, the quality and lifetime of recorded discs is today likely to most depended on your own care.\nSubmitted by: Leif M. of Helsingor, Denmark\nRegarding problems developing over time with recordable CD-R media, I've run into some of this myself, but I also have quite a few discs that were made back when the very first 1x CD burners were made available to the public, and they still read just fine for me.\nI suspect that there are several factors involved here.\n1. I'm certain there's a difference in quality between brands of CD-R media. A number of my really old CD-Rs that still read flawlessly today were Kodak branded, and were considered expensive \"premium quality\" discs at the time. They're even physically a little bit thicker than most other media I've handled. By contrast, some of the generic media I purchased because of the low price on 100-pack spindles has actually developed \"bubbles\" where you can see the dye that's sandwiched between the layers of plastic is disintegrating. (Of course it won't read if small spots are completely gone!) There were/are several different types of dye used for CD-R media, as well, and I wouldn't be surprised if it's turning out that some types have better longevity than others. For example, Verbatim was known for using their trademark blue-tinted dye, while others were shades of green or gold.\n2. From what I've read and observed, handling makes a big difference too. Leaving your CD-R's exposed to sunlight (as folks tend to do with music CDs used in their cars or trucks) probably shaves years off of their lifespan. Putting them in some type of jewel-case or sleeve when not in use is a very good idea. Boxes of empty jewel-cases can be purchased fairly inexpensively at most office supply and electronics chain stores.\n3. A CD-R holding computer data is inherently more \"fragile\" and subject to data loss than a CD-R recorded as an audio disc. The standard used for recording audio CDs incorporates quite a bit of error correction information to handle small scuffs and scratches on the media, but besides that, audio data is spread out over a much larger portion of the CD-R. If you have a .ZIP file stored on a CD-R, for example, a pinhole-sized mark someplace on the disc where that .ZIP file is stored can easily be enough to prevent the whole archive from extracting properly. By contrast, the same sized mark might only cause a very brief \"stutter\" at one point of a song on a music disc (or not pose a discernable problem at all, due to the error correction).\nIf your audio discs are already deteriorating to the point where players are rejecting them as \"unreadable\" or they're skipping badly, it sounds to me like things have gotten pretty bad. The only recommendation I'd have is to re-record your music to fresh, good-quality CD-R media and throw out the old ones - and in the future, make a habit of transferring your music to fresh discs every few years or so.\nLuckily, in the case of computer software backups, they tend to become so outdated, you no longer really need to keep them by the time the media they're recorded on starts failing. But for those trying to preserve digital photos and the like, I'd recommend this same procedure. Make a fresh set of backups every so often and discard the old media - before it fails on you and you lose something priceless!\nSubmitted by: Tom W.\nCD burned media fails after time.\nI am a practicing technician and this is not a new complaint. It is my firm belief that most consumers burn their media at the fastest speed possible for both their software and the media they use. This is fine but there may well be a trade-off in doing this.\nWhat most consumers do not perhaps understand is that commercially produced CD's have actual pits pressed into them that represent the digital data of the original sound data. A burned CD on the other hand is made by fabricating a photo sensitive layer to mimic the pits found in pressed media.\nI have found three major causes for this consumers problem they are as\n1. A slower burn makes a stronger image representation in the photo\nsensitive layer of a burned CD. A faster burn while successful may not impress the photo sensitive layer as effectively as a slow burn. Over time the burn fails as the photo sensitive layer deteriorates.\n2. Sunlight and other forms of intense light can effect a burned CD\nbecause it can cause a distortion in the burned media's photo sensitive layer.\n3. Scratches by far are more evident on burned media and more easily\ncaused than on pressed media. Most consumers seem to ignore the manufactures warning and suggestions. Handling of the disc in a careful manner as advised by the manufacturer is the best policy here. I use a camera lens cloth to clean surface of all my media. A camera lens cloth will not scratch the disc surface. Paper and regular household cloths will cause scratches.\nObserve the above and I do believe you will have better results.\nOne more thing always use the media recommended by the burner manufacturer. It is endorsed and guaranteed to work, many of the cheap non name discs out there are just not up to par. Its just like the old cassette tape days.\nMost audiophiles went for tapes like Maxell, JVC, Sony etc. but as everyone knows there were a lot of bogus brands out there for the un-informed to purchase.\nSubmitted by: Peter K.\n> I recently read an article by a data storage expert who claimed that\n> burned CD-Rs and CD-RWs can be expected to last only two to five years\n> and not a whole lot more. I personally have commercially pressed CDs\n> from the 1980s that still play fine, but I have begun to notice that\n> some of my burned CD-Rs are beginning to skip\nyou mention that there are basically two types of CDs: Those that are created with all information in place and those you can buy and write on.\nThe first type is quite robust as the information has been \"engraved\" into the surface just below the reflector. The most critical part of such a CD is the reflector, most often a very thin layer of aluminum.\nThe second type of CD works a bit differently: There is a dye layer below the reflector and the information is written onto the CD-R(W) by \"burning\"\nand thereby locally changing the optical properties of the dye. The most critical part is the dye, besides the reflector as above. If the dye degrades the CD easily gets unreadable. The dye of CD-RW is even more critical as it must be \"resetable\" - another constraint.\n> The expert suggests that for secure long-term storage, high -quality\n> magnetic tape is the way to go.\nThis solution is quite expensive as you need a tape drive and enough tape cartridges, but has the advantage of a much larger storage capacity. If the manufacturers say their tape cartridges are reliable for a very long time they have one advantage above CD-R: This type of storage device has been around long enough to prove it. CD-R has been on the market for no more than 10 years.\nThe best strategy for the private user is: Have a good archive strategy, save often and store the media carefully in a dry, dark, cool place. If you store every file more than once you have a better chance to retrieve it.\nThere is no real alternatives to CD-R. Use high-quality ones. Do not use any DVD variety as their reliability is much less. DVD may be used for an image backup of your boot drive so you can restore your present configuration for the months to come.\nSubmitted by: Alexander V.\nUnlike pressed original CDs, burned CDs have a relatively short life span of between two to five years, depending on the quality of the CD. There are a few things you can do to extend the life of a burned CD, like keeping the disc in a cool, dark space, but not a whole lot more.\nThe problem is material degradation. Optical discs commonly used for burning, such as CD-R and CD-RW, have a recording surface consisting of a layer of dye that can be modified by heat to store data. The degradation process can result in the data \"shifting\" on the surface and thus becoming unreadable to the laser beam.\nMany of the cheap burnable CDs available at discount stores have a life span of around two years, In fact, there are some of the better-quality discs offer a longer life span, of a maximum of five years. Distinguishing high-quality burnable CDs from low-quality discs is difficult, I think because few vendors use life span as a selling point.\nI've had good luck with Verbatim media, and bad results with TDK. Playback with the TDK discs I used degraded steadily over time, in spite of very little use, and not much in the way of scratches or other blemishes on the disc. On the other hand, the Verbatim discs I've used have held up well over time, and under more use than the TDK ones I used.\nOpinions vary on how to preserve data on digital storage media, such as optical CDs and DVDs. I have my own view: To overcome the preservation limitations of burnable CDs, Im suggesting using magnetic tapes, which, as I read, can have a life span of 30 years to 100 years, depending on their quality. Even if magnetic tapes are also subject to degradation, they're still the superior storage media.\nBut I want to point out that no storage medium lasts forever and, consequently, consumers and business alike need to have a migration plan to new storage technologies.\nA Good Question to get in this subject is Does Burning Speed makes difference in quality of CDs? Someone told me that the burning speed makes a difference in the quality of the records. The lower it is, the deeper it burns and therefore the better the quality is. I heard that there are some audio technicians decide to burn masters at 2x and copies at 4x due to getting digital noise from higher burn rates. Might just depend on the burner quality and the burning program...\nHoping you get the Point of my explanation.\nSubmitted by: Sameer T.\nEveryone who owns a business is always trying to be enticed by the security and the longevity of magnetic tape. And although I'm apt to agree with them on its durability, I don't use it to back up important data in my business. I have two problems with magnetic tape vs. CD or DVD. The first problem is hardware. Data backed up on a CD or DVD can be loaded into any computer with a drive capable of handling the media. The same can be said about tape backup, however you are more likely to find a computer off the shelf with a compatible CD or DVD drive vs a magnetic tape drive. The other problem is the need for long term storage.\nAs a business owner, I'm backing up my important data every one to three days. I've been using CD-RW media to do this for years. If a disk gets corrupt, you can reformat it using your burning software, then use it again. If you are concerned about your CD becoming corrupt, simply burn two or three. The cost of three CD or even DVD media is much more reasonable than the cost of one of those tapes. And if my server dies, I can buy any computer at any store, and load the data onto the new computer right away and I'm back in the game. I have several people trying to convince me of the benefit of a paper backup system. I find it easier (and cheaper) to have multiple electronic backups. My business server has a RAID 1 card and two hard drives which mirror each other. I have the CD backup, and I then take this data and save it to a secure partition on another machine in a separate location.\nThe likelihood of all of these systems failing at one time is highly unlikely. And if it does, I'm taking the day off, because that's just real bad luck. As far as long term storage (like music), I've noticed that CD-RW can lose the data in the long haul, but haven't had any problems with CD-R media. I have some that skip, but not for a reason I didn't know about. I buy the large spools of CD-R which don't come with jewel cases. So these disks get abused. If you know you are going to keep something for a really long time, I would make sure the disks you buy have jewel cases. And you can apply the multiple disk system with this as well. The media is easy on the wallet, and the more backups you have, the lower the risk you will actually lose the data.\nI don't think I answered all the questions, but that's my take.\nSubmitted by: Dave K."}
{"text": "Nature Magazine reports that the European Commission has awarded up to €1 billion in research funding for the Human Brain Project led by neuroscientist Henry Markram. And while the official announcement is not expected until January 28, part of the project will be dedicated to the development of a exaflop supercomputer that will be used for the simulation of the brain model.\nBrain researchers are generating 60,000 papers per year,” said Markram as he explained the concept in Bern. “They’re all beautiful, fantastic studies — but all focused on their one little corner: this molecule, this brain region, this function, this map.” The HBP would integrate these discoveries, he said, and create models to explore how neural circuits are organized, and how they give rise to behaviour and cognition — among the deepest mysteries in neuroscience. Ultimately, said Markram, the HBP would even help researchers to grapple with disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease. “If we don’t have an integrated view, we won’t understand these diseases,” he declared.\nThe Human Brain Project is one of the two winner projects of the Future and Emerging Technologies Flagship competition launched by the European Commission, the other one being the “Graphene” project led by Swedish theoretical physicist Jari Kinaret."}
{"text": "Gramsci and education\nAntonio Gramsci is one of the major social and political theorists of the 20th century whose work has had an enormous influence on several fields, including educational theory and practice. Gramsci and Education demonstrates the relevance of Antonio Gramsci’s thought for contemporary educational debates. The essays are written by scholars located in different parts of the world, a number of whom are well known internationally for their contributions to Gramscian scholarship and/or educational research. The collection deals with a broad range of topics, including schooling, adult education in general, popular education, workers’ education, cultural studies, critical pedagogy, multicultural education, and the role of intellectuals in contemporary society."}
{"text": "Charlotte Planners: John Nolen\nExcerpted from Neighborhoods: Charlotte's Neighborhood Planning Tradition\nby Dr. Thomas W. Hanchett\nPhoto from Mary Norton Kratt and Thomas W. Hanchett, Legacy: The Myers Park Story (Myers Park Foundation, 1986).\nThree of the most important city planning firms in the United States helped shape Charlotte. They were the Olmsted Brothers, John Nolen, and Earle Draper. All worked in the city during the boom years of the 1910s and 1920s. They gave the city new ideals in urban design which are still followed today. In addition, Nolen and Draper took lessons learned in Charlotte's neighborhoods and applied them in hundreds of cities throughout the nation, giving Charlotte's early planning efforts special importance.\nWhen Charlotte's original hundred acre tract was laid off in house lots in the 1770s the city fathers chose a gridiron street pattern. A surveyor, either hired by the village or supplied by the colonial government, laid out the streets at right angles to each other. Many cities of the era were not planned at all, with streets growing up from trails and cowpaths running in every direction. The grid was the most popular alternative because it was orderly and easy to understand, and its straight lines meant that it could be created quickly and broken up into lots easily. Charlotte's reliance on the grid continued throughout the nineteenth century.\nIn the 1910s Charlotte's New South leaders, as part of their drive to make Charlotte a modern city, hired John Nolen, the Olmsted Brothers, and Earle Sumner Draper who turned the city forever from the grid pattern. The very idea of having a landscape architect/city planner design streets was unusual. In progressive Dilworth, Latta had hired Joseph Forsyth Johnston, a landscape architect from New York City, to create Latta Park and evidently also asked him for suggestions on the surrounding street pattern. Most areas, though, were laid out methodically by surveyors or civil engineers.\nNolen, the Olmsteds, and Draper were part of a generation with a strong appreciation for nature. America's first National Parks were established in the era and the conservation movement blossomed, extending even to President Theodore Roosevelt (1901-09). Landscape architects sought to bring this consciousness to city planning.\nJohn Nolen's first job in Charlotte was the design of Independence Park in June of 1905. 7 Independence was the city's first public park, and it was also Nolen's first public commission after his graduation from Harvard University's School of Landscape Architecture. Nolen went on to become one of the nation's top city planners, designing more than 400 projects across the nation and helping to found the first city planning professional organization. 1\nNolen was part of a movement in the decades around the turn of the century that sought social reform in America's cities, a movement that included such well-known figures as social worker Jane Addams and muckraker Lincoln Steffens. Born in lower-middle-class circumstances in Philadelphia in 1869, Nolen graduated from the University of Pennsylvania's prestigious Wharton School majoring in economics and public administration. 2 He spent ten years as executive secretary of the American Society for the Extension of University Teaching, a \"people's university\" which brought college-level night classes to the urban working class.\nBy 1903, after visits to Europe's \"Garden City\" experiments, he became convinced that the new profession of city planning was more effective way for him to improve urban conditions. 3 The Garden City idea, begun in England in the 1890s, proposed medium-sized new towns surrounded by greenbelts. The new communities were to be carefully planned by professional designers to include the best features of both city and country, and to be self-sustaining with commercial and industrial areas as well as residences. No university in the United States yet offered a city planning degree, so Nolen enrolled in Harvard's School of Landscape Architecture and graduated in 1905 at age thirty-six. 4\nIt is not known how Nolen came to be engaged by the Charlotte Park and Tree Commission to design Independence Park. The job proved quite fortuitous to Nolen's career. While he was in town a young real estate developer named George Stephens commissioned him to design the grounds of Stephens' own residence. 5 Evidently the result greatly impressed Stephens, and he became Nolen's patron for a substantial number of projects all over North Carolina. 6\nIn 1909 Nolen drew plans for Stephens' Kanuga Lake resort colony Hendersonville, North Carolina, now a religious retreat for the Episcopal Church. 7 In the early teens, possibly as a result of Stephens' influence, he planned Greensboro's country-club suburb of Irving Park in Guilford County near where Stephens had been born. 8 Nolen did the 1918 plan for the expansion of the campus of Stephens' alma mater, UNC Chapel Hill. 9 In the 1920s he prepared a city plan for Stephens' adoptive home town of Asheville, North Carolina, a document that received national attention as one of the first thorough small city plans in the Southeast. 10 Later projects included a new town development called Penderlea in Pender County, North Carolina, for the U. S. Farm Service Administration, and a western North Carolina regional plan undertaken in connection with Stephens' advocacy of the proposed Blue Ridge Parkway. 11\nAt the same time, John Nolen continued his activities in Charlotte. Between 1905 and 1907 he designed grounds for private residences of Stephens' partner F. C. Abbott, Chamber of Commerce leader Wade Harris, E. R. Russell, P. M. Brown, A. J. Crowell, W.B. Rodman. L.A. Dodsworth, R.A.Dunn, F.O. Hawley, and O. A. Robbins. 12 In April 1907 Nolen visited the city and gave a slide lecture on \"Parks and Playgrounds\" illustrated with stereoptican slides. 13 That June, the Park and Tree Commission hired him once again, to provide designs for the area around the city Post Office, known as Vance Square, and for the old cemetery behind First Presbyterian Church, then known as Cemetery Square and now called Settlers Cemetery. 14\nIn 1911 John Nolen returned to Charlotte at George Stephens' behest, to work on his greatest project in the city, the suburb of Myers Park. 15 Stephens spared little expense, and gave Nolen free rein to plan a state-of-the-art \"unified suburban design.\" Myers Park gave the city curving tree-lined avenues, grand boulevards with landscaped medians, and the beginnings of a system of greenway parks along creek banks. The results will be discussed in a later section of this report, but suffice it to say here that Myers Park has proved to be Charlotte's most lastingly successful suburb, and a model for similar developments across the South.\nNolen's final job in Charlotte was preparation of preliminary studies for what would have been the city's first master plan. The Charlotte Chamber of Commerce hired him in 1917 to gather and map data on existing land use, population densities, racial patterns, industrial location, transportation corridors, land values, water and sewer lines, and parks. 16 The resulting Civic Survey is an extremely comprehensive and meticulous picture of this Southern city at the beginning of the twentieth century.\nThe Civic Survey was intended to lead to preparation of a full scale plan. Such a plan was vital to Charlotte's orderly growth; Charlotteans had given up the old grid city with its easy understandability and it was necessary now that some other form or organization be developed to tie together all the new suburbs. At the end of the Civic Survey field supervisor Earle Draper sketched an indication of what the plan might look like. He extended Nolen's Independence Park and Edgehill Road Park into a city-wide network of greenways along stream beds. Boulevards radiated from the center of the city to carry commuters, and a belt road ringed the old urban core to provide easy cross-town travel.\nThe Chamber never appropriated the money to allow Nolen to turn his data into a master plan. Nolen watched sadly as potential greenways were cut up into residential backyards, and as expanding development made the possibility of new radial and belt roads more and more expensive. He wrote Chamber official Clarence Quester in 1924, \"I think Charlotte is slipping so far as city planning goes. There are examples in the city of errors that are costly and more or less irremediable. Other errors will follow without a city plan.\" 16\nCharlotte remained without a coherent development scheme throughout its early twentieth century boom years. No comprehensive plan was adopted until 1960. 18 Ironically, its proposals were very similar to Nolen and Draper's in concept. During the 1970s the city finally completed a belt road, dubbed \"Charlotte 4\", and in the 1980s is struggling to buy up floodplain greenways.\nJohn Nolen's work in Charlotte and North Carolina in the 1900s through 1920s was only part of his growing national practice. From his start in Independence Park, Nolen went on to be one of the nation's busiest planners, with projects ranging from private estates to some of America's first regional plans. By the time he began Myers Park he had already had private commissions all over the East Coast from Bar Harbor, Maine, to Havana, Cuba. 19 In the teens and twenties he became sought after by municipalities. He delighted in drawing city plans to guide small Charlotte-sized places with great growth potential. His designs for such places as Wisconsin's capital city of Madison, and California's capital of Sacramento and port of San Diego, among many others, are important factors in the shape those cities retain to this day.\nIn addition to his planning work, Nolen was a major leader in the creation of a network of professional planning organizations. In 1917, just as he was completing Charlotte's Civic Survey, he helped found the American Institute of City Planners (later the American Institute of Planners). 20 He also participated in creation of the American Society of Planning Officials and the National Housing Association, and was the first American president of the International Federation of Housing and Town Planning. 21 The honors underscored the fact that Nolen was considered a leader of his profession. When he died in 1937 the New York Times praised him as an \"internationally known architect and pioneer in modern city and regional planning.\" 22\nAlong with the Olmsted Brothers and a handful of other early twentieth century practitioners, John Nolen helped transform American city planning. 23 Frederick Law Olmsted, Sr., had developed the principles of sensitive urban design in the nineteenth century, but it was Nolen's generation that created \"city planning\" as a full-fledged profession to carry out those principles, with its own educational background and professional organizations. John Nolen helped set up planning schools at major universities including Harvard and M.I.T. and his six books, dozens of articles, and thousands of speeches aided in \"spreading the gospel\" of city planning. By the end of his life, cities no longer saw planning as a rich man's luxury, but as an integral part of municipal growth, and many large places had their own planning departments. John Nolen's far-ranging impact as a city planning pioneer makes his early Charlotte work of special interest to students of urban development.\n1 John L. Hancock, John Nolen: a Bibliographical Record of Achievement (Ithaca, New York: Cornell University, Program in Urban and Regional Studies, 1976), pp. 13-17. See also Scott, p. 738.\n2 Hancock, John Nolen: a Bibliographical Record. . ., pp. 15-16. John L. Hancock, \"John Nolen and the American City Planning Movement: A History of Cultural Change and Community Response, 1900-1940\" (Ph.D. dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1964), pp. 1-20.\n3. Hancock, John Nolen: a Bibliographical Record. . ., p. 16. Hancock, \"John Nolen and the American City Planning Movement. . .\", pp. 21-37.\n4 Hancock, John Nolen: a Bibliographical Record..., p. 16.\n5 \"Draft of Preliminary Finding Guide: Papers of John Nolen, Sr., 1869-1937,\" collection 2903, Cornell University Department of Manuscripts and Archives, Ithaca, New York. The \"Finding Guide\" includes a copy of Nolen's \"job book\" listing all his projects chronologically.\n6 Hancock, \"John Nolen and the American City Planning Movement. . .,\" p. 42.\n7Charlotte Observer, December 15, 1943.\n8 Stephens' connection with the Greensboro project needs to be explored. Plans for the street layout and gates are in the Nolen collection at Cornell. It has not been possible to determine exactly when Nolen created the streetplan. A draft essay by Ray Manieri of Greensboro, \"From City Beautiful to City Useful: the Development of Civic Improvement Activities in Greensboro, North Carolina, 1900-1923,\" April, 1982, places the design in 1911, based on an undated promotional booklet. One large scale street plan in the Nolen papers is undated, but the rest of the documents were produced in 1915 and 1916.\n9 Hancock, John Nolen: a Bibliographical Record. . ., p. 20.\n10 Ibid., pp. 26, 30, 64.\n11 Ibid., pp. 14, 66.\n12 \"Draft of Preliminary Finding Guide. . .,\" job list.\n13 Charlotte Daily Observer, April 20, 1907.\n14 \"Draft of Preliminary Finding Guide. . .,\" job list. According to Kathleen Jacklin at the Cornell archives, Nolen's office discarded all material from these earliest designs.\n16 John Nolen, \"Civic Survey, Charlotte, North Carolina: Report to the Chamber of Commerce\" (Cambridge, Massachusetts: typescript, 1917). The only known surviving copy of this document is in John Nolen's papers at Cornell.\n17 John Nolen, letter to Clarence Kuester, March, 1924, in Nolen collection at Cornell.\n18 Charlotte Mecklenburg Planning Commission, \"The Charlotte Mecklenburg Comprehensive Plan (draft)\" (Charlotte: Charlotte Mecklenburg Planning Commission, 1973), p. 4.\n19 \"Draft of Preliminary Finding Guide. . ,\" job list.\n20 Scott, p. 164.\n21 Hancock, John Nolen: a Bibliographical Record. . ., p. 16.\n22 New York Times, February 19, 1937.\nFor more information...\nNeighborhoods: Charlotte's Neighborhood Planning Tradition"}
{"text": "Wednesday, March 11, 2009\nrothbard on the utility of quantitative easing\nEconomist Murray Rothbard (\"America‟s Great Depression\", Ludwig von Mises Institute 2000) made extensive analysis of why the inflationary policies of the US Federal Reserve failed during the Great Depression. Those policies proved to be counterproductive:“American citizens lost confidence in the banks and demanded cash.. for their deposits.. while foreigners lost confidence in the dollar and demanded gold.. The more that.. the Fed tried to inflate, the more worried the.. public became about the dollar, the more gold flowed out of the banks, and the more deposits were redeemed for cash.. The Fed purchase of government securities was a purely artificial attempt to dope the inflation horse..”\nthis has to be a core concern of every briton at the moment, with the bank of england having entered the gilt market to monetize government debt. the grand experiment intends to goose economic activity at the expense of the real value of the already-slashed pound, with some sincerely icelandic tail risk.\nin normal conditions, a devalued currency could be expected to assist exporters as well. as mentioned by the financial times, there is considerable doubt as to the efficacy of that pathway amid a global demand collapse. so the primary intention is to increase the currency in circulation in the hopes that more on hand will mean more spending and (critically) more borrowing.\nthis clearly did not work well in the 1930s to the extent it was undertaken as banks chose to hoard cash (much as today). of course, the united states also experienced a series of devastating bank runs which reinforced that tendency. today, with the FDIC, bank runs are a much smaller problem. aren't they?\nthe hard answer is that \"it depends\". much of the catastrophe of 2008 can be seen as a run on the shadow banking system -- that is, the uninsured and off-balance-sheet extensions of the financial system. the contraction of that massive credit generator is analogous in its effect to a systemic bank run that has resulted in failed \"banks\", boggling capital losses and widespread (and justifiable) paranoia.\nthat run has at times extended to more visible elements of the banking system, forcing insurance to be put into place on an ad hoc basis -- such as the commercial paper and money market fund backstops put in place following the collapse of lehman brothers, which were hoped to be able to forstall a systemic run on those markets which was actually underway.\nbeyond that there is the question of the fate of crossborder deposits -- international depositors in american banks have heretofore been well treated by the FDIC, but their accounts are not legally protected. these accounts are a massive part of the deposits in money-center banks such as C or JPM. crossborder runs have already become a reality in some parts of the world during this crisis.\nand there is finally the question of the FDIC itself. michael panzner forecast in his sometimes-eerily-prescient \"financial armageddon\" (and has repeated elsewhere) that eventually deposit insurance (along with many overpromised government-backed obligations) will likely have to be diluted or perhaps even eliminated in the crisis now underway as the fiscal position of government may not allow it to backstop all failed banks as the debt unwind progresses and the losses being assumed by the government through the FDIC and other pathways become overwhelming. the mere anticipation of that development could reintroduce the bank run to american society after a long absence, which is probably why sheila bair recently approached congress for a $500bn line to the treasury, a move many see as preparatory of the resolution of a money-center bank. this comes on top of a draconian assessment levied across all banks, leaving many smaller community bankers incensed at what some term \"confiscating the capital of the industry\" on the part of the government in service of the majors.\nand this is not to mention hoarding in anticipation of runs on other elements of the financial system -- most notably of late the insurance sector, which rolfe winkler delves into today.\nbeyond simply engendering some healthy skepticism of the value of government insurance in a real crisis, the two-pronged point here is\n- that quantitative easing may not work to promote economic activity through increased lending in part because the value of assurances against losses are, even and perpahs particularly where comprehensive, questionable;\n- that quantitative easing, or rather monetization, may be the only resort to which government could really appeal in the case of multiple large-scale bank resolutions.\nit is impossible to know how this would work out in detail -- but should we witness a real spate of dollar weakness in forex markets as things go along, government may be faced with some very stark choices about what it can really afford to backstop."}
{"text": "Autoimmune hemolytic anemia, or immune-mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA), is a complex disease in which hemolysis occurs because\nof antierythrocyte antibody production. This article explores the pathophysiology of primary and secondary IMHA and diagnostic\nand treatment options, as well as prognosis in dogs and cats. Our review of the recent literature regarding IMHA in veterinary\npatients reveals a focus on individual cases and a lack of controlled clinical studies, which makes a detailed review of\nIMHA triggers and treatment options difficult.\nHEMOLYTIC ANEMIA VS. IMHA\nMany causes of anemia exist in dogs and cats, so a clear distinction should be drawn between hemolytic anemia and IMHA.\nHemolytic anemias are conditions in which red blood cells (RBCs) are destroyed at an accelerated rate and a normal regenerative\nresponse is seen in the bone marrow. In these non-immune-mediated conditions, RBCs can be destroyed as a result of inherited\nmembrane and enzyme defects, increased fragility from oxidative damage, or metabolic causes such as hypophosphatemia or water\nintoxication.1 Traditional immune-mediated mechanisms (immunoglobulins, complement) do not mediate lysis in hemolytic anemia. Instead,\ndestruction occurs because of factors such as increased osmotic fragility, decreased RBC function in an alkalemic environment,\nor increased clearance from oxidative damage.1 Unlike the treatment of immune-mediated anemia, immunosuppression is generally not used to treat hemolytic anemias. Thus,\nit is imperative to investigate whether an anemia has an underlying cause before assuming it is immune-mediated.\nBelow we discuss some of the common causes of hemolytic anemia. A more exhaustive list can be found in Table 1.\nTable 1: Selected Causes of Canine and Feline Non-immune-mediated Hemolytic Anemia\nZinc and copper toxicosis. One of the most common causes of hemolytic anemia in dogs is zinc toxicosis from the ingestion of zinc-containing objects.\nHigh zinc concentrations can be found in pennies minted since 1983, board game pieces, zippers, zinc oxide ointment, and various\nother sources. Zinc toxicosis can cause a severe intravascular hemolysis that is associated with small amounts of Heinz body\nand spherocyte formation. Hemolysis from zinc toxicosis can be easily mistaken for IMHA if a survey abdominal radiographic\nexamination is not performed. Treatment consists of removing the foreign object and providing supportive care. Copper toxicosis\ncan also result in a marked intravascular hemolysis and methemoglobinemia.1\nHeinz body anemia. Heinz bodies are dark-staining refractile material that indicate irreversibly denatured and precipitated hemoglobin in RBCs\nand can occur from oxidative damage in animals that have ingested onions or received drugs such as methylene blue, dl-methionine,\nor vitamin K3.1 In some cases of hemolytic anemia, eccentrocytes—cells in which the damaged hemoglobin is clustered together and shifted\nto one side of the RBC membrane, leaving a clear crescent-shaped region—are also present. Eccentrocytes and cells containing\nHeinz bodies have less deformability and more rigidity, making them more likely to be lysed or removed from the circulation\nby the spleen.\nFeline RBCs are especially sensitive to oxidative damage because of a high number of sulfhydryl groups in their hemogloblin.\nIn addition, feline spleens, because of their nonsinusal conformation, are less effective at removing Heinz bodies than are\ncanine sinusal spleens. Thus, Heinz body anemia is more commonly seen in cats and can be present during toxicosis as well\nas in a variety of other diseases such as hyperthyroidism, diabetes mellitus, and lymphoma.1\nHypophosphatemia. Hypophosphatemia can also cause hemolytic anemia in patients being treated for diabetes mellitus, hepatic lipidosis, starvation,\nand other conditions.1 In these cases, it is thought that an abrupt drop in plasma phosphate concentrations can cause a concurrent depletion of\nRBC adenosine triphosphate, diphosphoglycerate, and reduced glutathione. These depletions lead to less deformability, more\nosmotic fragility, and more susceptibility to oxidative injury in erythrocytes. A rapid drop in packed cell volume and a mild\nHeinz body anemia can be seen in animals with hypophosphatemia. Treatment consists of phosphate supplementation (intravenous\nin cases of severe depletion, oral in mild cases).1"}
{"text": "'Old Earth Scientists'... I've never heard that before ... You aren't suggesting that there are 'new earth scientists' are you ?\nWell sort of, there are commonly two types of scientists - old earth (who believe that the earth is billions of years old) and then young earth who believe that the earth is around 6,000 years old.As far as Science is concerned the big bang occured between approx 14 - 18 billion years ago\nAs stated above, there are both old earth scientists and young earth scientists. Old earth scientists believe in the big bang theory and that the age of the earth is in the order of billions of years. Having said that perhaps the above statement should read \"As far as old earth scientists believe, the big bang occurred between approx 14 - 18 billion years ago.\" Furthermore, when you say \"concerned\" it makes the assumption that the big bang actually did happen. The big bang is a theory and unless scientists can replicate it, it will forever remain a theory.thats not a theory formed by 'old earth scientists' that is calculated using every method we have at our disposal\nUnfortunately your statement falls short from the beginning - remember, the big bang theory is just that, a theory.measuring the expansion rate of the universe, measuring light from distant stars etc..there are too many to mention.\nThe Bible also confirms that the universe is expanding. Isaiah 40:22 teaches that God “stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.” This verse was written thousands of years before secular scientists accepted an expanding universe. It was until more recently that scientists changed their mind from the universe being constant to actually expanding.\nThere are a few theories floating around with respect to the apparent red shift of stellar objects. old earth scientists believe it to be a result of bodies moving away from earth. As such, they have suggested that there should be no fully formed stellar bodies further away than about 8 billion light years. Astronomers have pointed telescopes into supposed redshift deserts (I.E. locations in space where there should be no fully formed bodies) and they found a sky full of fully formed galaxies.\nMeasuring light from distant stars relies on the assumption that light has always moved at a constant rate, which unfortunately has not been proven.1. The moon moves away from the earth at around 4cm per year. If the earth was billions of years old, the moon could not be as close to the earth as it is.\nThat suggests that the moon has always been in orbit around the earth for the 4.5 billion years...it hasn't\nUnfortunately this is not what old earth scientists believe. They believe that the earth and moon have been around for over 4 billion years.2. Oil deposits in the earth are under extreme pressure. If the earth was billions of years old this pressure would have caused the oil to have seeped through the rock layers and eventually the pressure would all be gone - I.E. there would be no oil under pressure today\nThe oil deposits aren't 4.5 billion years old either... they are from rotting animal/vegetable sources from much later .. millions of years not billions\nI should have written this statement differently I.E. millions of years. The problem still stands however that if oil has was around millions of years ago, then it could not be under pressure today.3. The sun is shrinking at a rate of five feet per hour. this means that the sun would have been touching the earth a mere 11million years ago (let alone billions of years ago)\nNo, that asssumes a constant state universe...the universe is very far from constant...its expanding and has been since the beginning. Nobody has ever suggested that the earth - moon - sun position has been in existance let alone constant since the big bang.\nDon't old earth scientists make assumptions also? If you look above, old earth scientists make the assumption that the speed of light is constant. Furthermore they still hold to the assumption that the earth, moon and sun have been around for over 4 billion years.4. Helium is added to the atmosphere everyday. Basically there is not enough helium in the atmosphere to support billions of years.\nHelium hasn't been added for 4.5 billion years ... again the earth wouldn't have had an atmosphere until recently ( recent related to its 4.5 billion age )\nAccording to old earth scientists. The oxygen enriched atmosphere (basically as we know it today) was formed around 2.7 billion years ago. The amount of helium contained within our atmosphere today is only enough to support thousands of years, certainly not billions.5. Comets lose mass over time, there would be no comets left if the universe was billions of years old. (because comets were apparently a by product of the big bang)\nThats misleading. The origin and time of origin of comets is not claimed to be the big bang. Thats a straw man.\n(I am guessing that a straw is another way of saying clutching at straws?)\nAgain with this one I should not have just skimmed over it but should have elaborated. Comets have long been a good evidence due to their fragile nature and life expectancy. Comets are commonly huge chunks of ice traveling at tremendous speeds through space, when they come close to a star, they begin to melt and so form a trail of moisture. This can't last forever and it will eventually disintegrate. Here in-lies a problem for old earth scientists because there should be no comets left - they should all have been disintegrated by now (giving the billions of years). And if we are talking about clutching at straws - here's a good one for you.\nOld earth scientists have come up with another theory to try and explain why we still have comets today. So in comes the Oort Cloud. The Oort Cloud is a hypothetical spherical cloud of comets which may lie roughly 1 light year away from our sun. Apparently, these comets become dislodged from the Oort Cloud by the gravitational pull of passing stars and the milky way itself (due to it apparently being at the outer edges of our milky way) These comets are then free to move about and disintegrate (which is how we see comets today) Now this Oort Cloud has not been detected or seen it is another theory - it is just a hypothetical cloud to try and fit in with the mold of an old universe.6. The earths magnetic field decays by approximately 5% every century, this means that a mere 10,000 years ago, the earths magnetic field would have been so strong that the heat it would have produced would have made life on earth impossible.\nNo doubt taken from Barnes's magnetic field argument 1973. The decay rate he stated has been debunked and stated as flawed.\nHow has it been debunked?7. fossilized dinosaur bones - these bones have been found and it is impossible for them to have lasted for millions of years.\nWhy not ? They have\nThe evidence available suggests an asteroid hit the earth approx 65 million years ago leading to a catastrpohic global event. There is a layer of iridium in the earths stratography that supports this theory.\nSpeaking of clutching at straws - \"Why not? they have\" This goes against what old earth scientists have been telling us for years! Blood cells decay at a much faster rate than the rate at which bones can fossilize. How then can you have a fossilized dinosaur bone which contain blood cells?\nIf we are talking about debunking theories or practices - radio carbon dating techniques have terrible flaws and rely on many assumptions. Therefor how can you be sure that your 65 million years is accurate?8. Salt is added everyday to the dead sea by inflows. Since it has no outlet - the salt content continues to grow. The amount of salt contained within it is not enough to support billions of years.\nThe dead Sea didn't spring into existance billions of years ago. Its a result of millions of years of constant change on the earth by volcanic, tectonic, atmospheric activity. The dead sea is a baby compared the age of the earth\nI would have thought that you would line up the forming of the seas as we know them now with the catastrophic global event that wiped out the dinosaurs. If not that, then what are you basing your idea that the dead sea is a baby compared to the age of the earth? are we talking thousands of years, hundreds of thousands, millions or perhaps billions?9. The earths population doubles every 50 years (approx) it would take around about 4,000 years to reach the number of people that are on earth today (Lines up nicely with the world wide flood of Noah's day) if we use this figure for millions of years - the earth could not contain the amount of people.\nAlso that matches for the evolution model. The expansion in the earths population is also linked to the expansion of civilisation .. .not just the existance of humans and their descendants.\nCould you expand on which evolution model you're referring to?10. Spiral galaxies appear this way due to their 'rotation' this rotation would eventually cause them to straighten out I.E. lose their spiral. There should be no spiral galaxies if the universe was actually billions of years old.\nThat again is a straw man. The big bang theory doesn't suggest spiral galaxies popping into existance at the moment of the big bang. They are formed over many millions of years\nWhy not? The big bang suggests that everything else popped into existence at the moment of the big bang. If this is not the case - then how did they form?The earth, the universe and everything in it was brought about in creation week. It was a divine event brought about by a supernatural creator.\nNo it wasn't ( that which can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence )\nWe have just been discussing a page full of evidences!And faith .....\nWould you build an electronic project based on faith ? would you cross the road by faith ?\nBut you yourself are obviously a man of great faith. You believe that the universe and all it contains was brought about by a supposed big bang. To put it lightly - 'Nothing became something and the something exploded'\nWhere did this matter come from in the first place? doesn't the big bang go against the law of conservation of mass and energy?\nIf you are dismissing faith, then you must have proof of the big bang. You obviously weren't there when the supposed big bang took place so therefor it would stand to reason that you can replicate the big bang - after all, we are dismissing faith here.If I am sick I see a Doctor, If I have trouble seeing I go to an optician etc etc. Faith would not heal me or make me see. Rather countless selfless individuals who over thousands of years have devoted their lives to bettering mankind.\nYes indeed! Isn't it interesting how even though we apparently all stemmed from a common singularity we are all unique and have our own special gifts and talents? If we look to God's word though, we find that we all have been given these unique gifts and talents - some to be doctors, some to be opticians, some to make super pong tables and some to be astronauts!\nBut back on topic, isn't there an underlying reason that you go to a doctor? You go specifically to a doctor because you have faith in him. If you didn't have faith in him and all his years of training then you would just go to anyone wouldn't you?Its just not the case at all. For a start evolution doesn't need a set of ready to be assembled parts lying around. Its a process beginning with the smallest building blocks at chemical level and taking millions and millions of years to progress.\nFair enough, Let's walk though this one step at a time starting from the beginning - how did the very first building block get here?\nAlso a 747 ( or an LED pong table ) isn't carrying about obselete parts of earlier less successful aircraft in its frame like we are.\nCould you list these supposed obsolete parts and explain why they are not required (I think you'll find that every part of our body plays it's own important role)\nYou say that you have faith in fellow humans. Why is that? If we are just a result of random chemical reactions then why do you trust in them?\nOn that note, why does anyone have morals? why do we have laws and rules? if we are the by product of natural selection in that it is survival of the fittest, who is to say that I can't go out and kill someone - after all this is how we supposedly came to be!\nDo you feel sorrow when a family member or close friend dies? I am guessing that you would, but hold on a second - why on earth would you get sad if this is simply what you are arguing for in motion? To expand, If we are brought about by the strongest cells living on and the weaker ones dying off, isn't it good that your family member or friend has died because it means that the strong have survived and the weak are now dead? you should be sitting there giving hi five's to everyone shouting \"Way to go natural selection!\"\nAnd finally, Why on earth would scientists use evidence from the past to predict the future? If the universe came about by disorder and random chemical reactions then how on earth could we use this information to reliably predict the future. Uniformity does not make any sense in a universe created by random chance and disorder.\nOf course this is not the case, we find that the universes history is very much ordered because God designed it that way."}
{"text": "Problem: Tall buildings risky in high seismic zones; Status: Hill-stations are getting concretised and growing vertically; Challenge: Use local construction material; regulate traffic\nEvam Piljain, an 80-year-old Toda who's spent all her life in Ooty, feels distraught at the sight of her hometown. \"I cannot sit in the verandah anymore,\" she says. She moves to her drawing room and gazes wistfully at a photograph of Ooty taken in the early part of the twentieth century -- green, picturesque. But outside, hill after hill is chock-a-bloc with concrete buildings.\nOther Indian hill-stations are no different. Roller-compacted concrete (RCC) has taken over from wood and mud and is now synonymous with construction. Reminisces B P Rai, secretary, Federation of Societies for Environmental Protection, a Darjeeling-based NGO, \"Earlier, there were only small wooden houses. But with increased population, the need was felt to construct RCC multi-storey buildings, which can take a load of 7-8 storeys. This has spelt disaster.\"\nCentre for Science and Environment’s Sustainable Buildings Programme is organizing 5 day training on Green buildings. The programme aims to enable participants to adopt a common sense approach to green buildings, one that blends traditional wisdom with modern science."}
{"text": "The marriage of artificial and bio-materials to create cyborg insects and rats is still a bleeding-edge field with fascinating possibilities for human applications. That sometimes controversial vision of the future just took a dramatic turn towards blurring the man-versus-machine lines with the debut of a 3D-printed robot that uses heart cells to walk.\nScientists at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign created the tiny biological robots, or biobots, using a 3D printer to fabricate a flexible gel scaffold, and then injected the structures with heart cells from rats. Once powered by a form of liquid food, the heart cells beat and worked to give the biobot movement, traveling at roughly 236 micrometers per second.\nAccording to the scientists, future versions of the biobot will use more controllable skeletal muscle cells for movement, neurons that will give the devices the ability to sense toxins, and a two-legged structure that will offer more freedom of movement. Extrapolate this development forward about 50-80 years and you have the makings of what could turn out to be real-life Replicants.\nYou can see the slow, creepy, but nonetheless groundbreaking crawl of the biobot in the video below."}
{"text": "This archived Web page remains online for reference, research or recordkeeping purposes. This page will not be altered or updated. Web pages that are archived on the Internet are not subject to the Government of Canada Web Standards. As per the Communications Policy of the Government of Canada, you can request alternate formats of this page on the Contact Us page.\nTo help you get a clearer picture of British North America's territorial evolution, this section provides a series of maps that recount important moments in Canada's history. These maps cover the period from the French colonial era of the seventeenth century to the creation of Nunavut in 1999.\nThe map descriptions provided below have been reproduced from the original maps.\nFirst successful French settlements in North America: Port Royal (1606), and Québec (1609). English settlements in Virginia begins (1606-07). French and English territorial claims overlap Acadia. Acadia is recognized as French possession by the Treaty of Breda (1667). A Royal Charter (1670) grants sole trading rights in Hudson Bay drainage basin to the Hudson's Bay Co.\nBy the Treaty of Paris (1763), eastern North America becomes British territory except St-Pierre and Miquelon Islands (France). British colonial governments for Quebec, Newfoundland (with Île d'Anticosti and Îles de la Madeleine), Nova Scotia (including present-day N.B. and P.E.I.). Hudson's Bay Co. still administers Rupert's Land. Louisiana is ceded to Spain by France.\nFollowing the Constitutional Act, Quebec is divided into Upper and Lower Canada (1791). Spain cedes Louisiana back to France (1800). U.S.A. purchases Louisiana (1803).\nThe Province of Canada is formed by uniting Upper and Lower Canada (1840). The international boundary from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific is described by the Oregon Treaty (1846). The northern portion of the Oregon Territory is called New Caledonia, a name used by Simon Fraser in 1806. The Hudson's Bay Co. is granted Vancouver's Island to develop a colony (1849).\nNew Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Canada are united in a federal state, the Dominion of Canada, by the British North America Act (July 1, 1867). The province of Canada is divided into Ontario and Quebec. The United States of America proclaims the purchase of Alaska from Russia (June 20).\nThe North-West Territories (Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territory) are acquired by Canada by the Hudson's Bay Company. From part of them Manitoba is created as the fifth province.\nBritish Columbia joins the Dominion of Canada as the sixth province.\nPrince Edward Island enters Confederation as the seventh province.\nBoundaries are changed in the Districts of Mackenzie, Keewatin, Ungava, Franklin and Yukon (1897). The District of Yukon becomes a Territory separate from the North-West Territories (1898). Quebec boundaries are extended north.\nAlberta and Saskatchewan are created as provinces to make a total of nine provinces in the Dominion of Canada (1905). The district of Keewatin is transferred back to the Northwest Territories. Due to changes in adjoining areas the boundaries of the Northwest Territories are redefined (1906).\nAt its own request, after a plebiscite, Newfoundland enters the Confederation as the tenth and most recent province of the Dominion of Canada.\nNunavut became Canada's third territory April 1, 1999. For the first time since the entry of Newfoundland into Confederation fifty years ago, the internal boundaries of Canada have changed."}
{"text": "Weevils are actually defined as any beetle from the Curculionoidea super-family. With that said, there are over 60,000 species of weevils, however, keep in mind that although there are some types of beetles that include “weevil” in their common name, they may not actually be a part of the weevil super-family. Weevils, also commonly known as snout beetles, are usually best characterized by the shape of their heads because they elongate out into a snout. This characteristic is usually common amongst all weevil species. Weevils are actually so broad in the variety of species that they can infest a variety of areas. Some species are considered pantry pests while others are wood-attacking insects. Furthermore, some may just be an occasional invader and a nuisance inside the home with they enter to overwinter. Weevils are found all throughout the United States and even in Canada.>> Read More\nDepending on the species, the size of weevils varies from about 3 to 11 mm long. Their bodies have an elongated shape or can be almost oval in shape. Their heads protrude out into a snout shape with mandibles for feeding at the end. The color will also vary widely depending on the species of weevil. They can range from almost all colors. Some species will have a uniform color whereas others will have a significant design or pattern on their shells.\nThere are several common weevil species that will invade your home. In the United States, there are several different representative species. By identifying the species, a homeowner can better adjust the control method according to where they are infesting and how they are invading your home.\nSince weevil larvae burrow underground and remain they reach maturity, they are rarely seen. Also, adult weevils are nocturnal and since most of their activity is done during the night, they are also not often spotted. They will remain hidden on the plant that they are infesting or in leaf litter and soil during the daytime. If the plant is disturbed, they can be noticed dropping to the soil and scurrying off into the litter or debris around the plant. Most gardeners will notice the presence of adult weevils by the plant aesthetics. The tips of the leaves will seem chewed off and the surface looks spotted.\nAll species of weevils will enter structures when outdoor conditions have been too adverse or unfavorable. Usually, it will be towards the end of the season when plants die off.\nThe key to proper removal is identification. Because different species will attack or infest different plants or locations around your home, it is the most important to identify the weevil before control methods are applied. Also, exclusion is an important method to get rid of weevils in your house. Exclusion will involve sealing cracks and crevices around the structure. Screens to windows and doors should be tight fitted and in good condition. Exclusion methods should be applied either before or after they enter the home.\nTreatment to outdoor ornamental gardens with an appropriately labeled pesticide will also discourage infestation. Use appropriately labeled insecticides when notching of plant leaves first begin to appear. This is usually going to be in late June to early July. For indoor control, apply an appropriately labeled insecticide in areas like the attic, wall void, near the baseboard area, window sills, door frames, and etc. Keep in mind that all product labels must be thoroughly reviewed before any applications and treated areas must be left alone to dry before you can come in contact with those areas again.\nDo You Have a Question about this Product? Ask Our Experts!\nFor us to ship it to you, it will cost $32.77 for the pint size:Talstar pro 1 pintWe do have larger sizes available and all orders include shipping"}
{"text": "Insomnia Might Boost Heart Failure Risk\nWEDNESDAY, March 6 (HealthDay News) -- Insomnia may triple the risk of developing heart failure, a large new study from Norway suggests.\nHeart problems definitely lead to sleep problems, said lead researcher Dr. Lars Laugsand, but his team tried to determine whether the reverse might also be true.\n\"Insomnia is a frequent and easily recognized, potentially manageable and treatable condition,\" said Laugsand, a postdoctoral fellow in the department of public health at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, in Trondheim.\nLaugsand added that the researchers found an association between insomnia and heart failure, not that insomnia actually causes heart failure.\n\"We still do not know whether heart failure is really caused by insomnia, and it is still unclear why insomnia is linked to higher heart failure risk,\" he said.\nHeart failure is a chronic condition in which the heart does not pump blood efficiently enough to meet the body's needs.\nThere are some indications that a biological cause might explain an insomnia-heart failure connection, Laugsand said. \"One possible mechanism could be that insomnia activates stress responses in the body that might negatively affect heart function,\" he explained.\n\"If our results are confirmed by others and there is a real causal association, evaluation of insomnia symptoms might have consequences for cardiovascular prevention,\" Laugsand added.\nThe report was published March 6 in the online edition of the European Heart Journal.\nTo measure the effect of insomnia on the risk of heart failure, Laugsand's team collected data on more than 54,000 men and women who took part in a Norwegian study on public health factors between 1995 and 1997. None of the participants had heart failure at the start of the study.\nAs part of the study, researchers asked about the quality of the participants' sleep and if they had difficulty going to sleep and staying asleep.\nAfter 11 years of follow-up, more than 1,400 participants had developed heart failure, Laugsand's group found. People who had multiple insomnia symptoms had a threefold increased risk of developing heart failure, compared to people who slept well. When depression and anxiety were accounted for, the risk was slightly more than fourfold.\nSpecifically, having difficulties going to sleep and staying asleep almost every night, and feeling tired in the morning more than once a week, were associated with an increased risk of heart failure, compared to people who never or rarely suffered from these symptoms.\nThese findings remained even after the researchers took age, sex, marital status, education, shift work, blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes, weight, physical activity, smoking, alcohol use and previous heart attacks into account.\nDr. Gregg Fonarow, professor of cardiology at the University of California, Los Angeles, said,\"Heart failure results in substantial [illness], mortality and health care expenditures.\"\nInsomnia has been associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular events and death, and two earlier studies have suggested that insomnia may also be associated with the risk of heart failure, he noted.\nInsomnia can increase the body's inflammatory and stress responses, said Fonarow, who's also a spokesman for the American Heart Association.\n\"Activation of these systems, as well as other mechanisms, may link insomnia to an increased risk of developing heart failure and other cardiovascular disease,\" he said. \"However, whether preventing or treating insomnia would lower the risk of developing heart failure requires further study.\"\nTo learn more about insomnia, visit the National Sleep Foundation.\nSOURCES: Lars Laugsand, M.D., postdoctoral fellow, department of public health, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim; Gregg Fonarow, M.D., spokesman, American Heart Association, and professor, cardiology, University of California, Los Angeles; March 6, 2013, European Heart Journal, onlineRelated Articles\n- Underactive Thyroid and Heart Failure a Bad Combination: Study\nMay 22, 2013\n- Having Both Migraines, Depression May Mean Smaller Brain\nMay 22, 2013\nLearn More About Sharp\nSharp HealthCare is San Diego's health care leader with seven hospitals, two medical groups and a health plan. Learn more about our San Diego hospitals, choose a Sharp-affiliated San Diego doctor or browse our comprehensive medical services.\nCopyright ©2012 HealthDay. All rights reserved."}
{"text": "Object-oriented editing means the ability to edit and/or process individual objects, such as a MIDI or audio clip — whether they last the entire length of a song or only a few milliseconds. This is a different way of thinking than linear-style track editing, where you (for example) insert a plug-in into a virtual mixer that processes a track, or apply an automation curve to control a parameter for the duration of a track.\nThe word 'object' is essentially interchangeable with 'clip', but for clarity when working with Sonar, we'll define an object as a 'sub-set' of a clip with its own characteristics. Amongst other advantages, object-oriented editing can simplify the automation process compared to drawing track envelopes, and make it easier to do 'microsurgery'-type editing.\nAt first glance it might seem that this adds another level of tedium to the editing process, as working with little pieces of audio seems more involved than working with tracks. But that's not always the case; for some applications, object-oriented editing can be far more efficient. As one example, consider plug-ins. If you load a plug-in into a track insert, it's active for the entire length of the song — and drawing CPU power. But if the effect is needed in only a few places, you can create individual objects that are processed with that effect. The effect only draws power from the CPU when these particular objects are being processed.\nOf all current DAW programs, I feel that Samplitude has taken object-oriented editing the furthest, as the program allows you to open up a clip and access a huge number of clip-related parameters. Sonar, on the other hand, was not designed with object-oriented editing in mind, and takes a bit more of an ad hoc approach, so you'll find different object-editing options in different places. This is a bit less convenient, but you can still get the benefits of object-oriented editing.\nThis is perhaps the most important use of object-oriented editing. Sonar can apply MIDI effects (MFX) to MIDI objects, and audio processing plug-ins to audio objects. For example, suppose you want to add delay to the last word of a vocal, so that the word trails off into silence. Here's how you'd do it:\n1. Do a track split at the beginning and end of the word, to isolate it as a separate object. The easiest way to do this is to click at the beginning of the word and type 'S', then click at the end of the word and type 'S'.\n2. Right-click on this object and select Open Clip Effects Bin (keyboard shortcut: Ctrl+B).\n3. An effects bin opens up that's a miniature version of the track effects bin you'll see in the Track view of the Console window.\n4. Right-click on a blank part of the effects bin and select the desired audio effect from the pop-up menu.\n5. The effect will now appear in the bin. As in the standard effects bin, there's a small tick-box to the left of the effect name; when this is green, the effect is enabled. When it's grey, the effect is disabled.\n6. You can insert more effects, if desired. As soon as you click anywhere other than the effects bin, the object's effects bin shrinks to a small box marked 'FX'. This lets you know that there's an effects bin in the object. To open an effects bin again, just click on that box.\nOne very significant aspect of inserting an effect into an object is that any effect comes to a complete halt at the end of the object. In other words, if there's a reverb tail or delay decay caused by feedback, it will not extend past the object. Fortunately, there's a workaround.\n1. Place the Now time just past the end of the object.\n2. Put the track containing the object into record mode, but turn down the level of any signal feeding into the track, so you can record silence.\n3. Click on the transport Record button.\n4. To make sure this clip is truly silent, click on it and go Process / Audio / Gain. Set all Gain levels to minimum, then click on OK.\n5. Click on the object you're processing, then Control-click on the clip containing silence, so that they're both selected.\n6. Go Edit / Bounce to Clip(s).\n7. The object will now be extended by the amount of silence you added, and any delay or reverb can spill over into it.\nNote that the process of bouncing clips removes any effects bins inserted in those clips. So in this example you would need to re-insert delay, reverb or whatever into the new, longer clip.\nNow that we know how to add effects to objects, here are some ideas on how to use this editing option.\nEmphasise a guitar solo. In a guitar track, split the guitar solo into a separate object, and add slight EQ boost around 2-3.5kHz. This will make the guitar more prominent.\nAvoid 'stepping on' vocals with a background instrument part. Suppose you have piano as a prominent track behind a singer. Split the piano track wherever the vocal occurs and scoop out some of the mid-range (whatever falls in the same range as the vocalist). If used subtly, this can give a better effect than simply lowering the volume. What's more, you could automate just that section, as we'll describe shortly.\nCompress particular sections of a track. Bearing in mind the growing backlash against excessive use of compression, one good application of object-oriented editing is to compress the lead vocalist when singing solo, but if background vocalists are present, remove compression from the lead to allow more dynamics and interplay with the background singers.\nDistort individual drum hits. Do you ever find you want the snare drum to really crack when it hits on the fourth beat of a measure just before the transition to a new chorus or verse? Raising level might not be enough, so separate that hit into a separate object and add a hint of distortion!\nIf you've been using Sonar for a while, you probably know that you can right-click on a clip, select Envelopes, choose Create Clip Envelope and add either a Gain or Pan envelope to the clip. However, if there's an effect inserted in the object effects bin, you can also create envelopes within the object itself for the effects. To do this, proceed as you normally would to select a Gain or Pan envelope and you'll see automatable effect(s) listed below the Pan Envelope option.\nThis allows an exceptional amount of control within very short audio events, if desired. Furthermore, you can insert track effects that kind of act as 'master' effects. One example would be to add a fairly standard delay (such as a quarter-note or half-note) to a track, then add delay with a dotted value (for example, a dotted half-note) within individual objects.\nYou can't drag the effects bin itself from one object to another. However, you can drag an effect, whether from another object's effects bin or from the track effects bin, into an object's effects bin. Here are the rules for dragging effects:\nControl-drag an effect from a standard track effects bin or an open object effects bin into an object: this creates an object effects bin and inserts a copy of the effect you dragged. The effect that was copied remains in its original location as well.\nDrag an effect from a standard track effects bin or an open object effects bin into an object: this creates an effects bin, inserts the effect you dragged, and removes the effect from the track effects bin.\nControl-Drag an effect from a standard track effects bin or an open object effects bin into a closed object effects bin: this inserts a copy of the effect you dragged. If there's already an effect in the bin, the effect you dragged in will be added at the end of the list of effects. The effect you copied remains in its original location.\nDrag an effect from a standard track effects bin or an open object effects bin into a closed object effects bin. The effect you dragged is removed from its original location and placed in the object effects bin.\nNote that the same rules apply when going in the other direction — ie. dragging from an object effects bin into a track effects bin or another object effects bin.\nHere's a shortcut you can use if you need the same effect (or a variation on a particular effect) in several small, sequential objects. For example, suppose you want to apply a rhythmic 'sample and hold' filter effect to a sustained guitar power chord, where the filter's cutoff frequency changes every eighth note:\n1. Split the power chord off as a separate object.\n2. Open an object effects bin in this object, then insert a filter.\n3. Adjust the filter as desired for the first step. Typically, you'd set a relatively high resonance.\n4. Split the power chord at every eighth note. The filter will appear in each split of the object.\n5. Set the filter in each split to the desired cutoff frequency.\nYou can open an object's effects bin when it's just a small square marked 'FX' by right-clicking on it and choosing Open Clip Effects Bin (for which the keyboard shortcut is Control + B).\nOnce it's open, you can bypass the bin and all its effects by clicking anywhere within the bin and selecting Bypass Bin; rearrange the order of effects within the bin by clicking and dragging, just as you would with the standard tracks effects bin; and delete an effect by either clicking on it and hitting the Delete key, or right-clicking on the effect or its enable box and selecting Delete from the pop-up menu.\nMIDI Effects & Groove Clips\nThe instructions regarding applying effects to audio objects also apply to MIDI effects and MIDI tracks: they're inserted in the same way, and they follow the same rules when copying and moving. Groove clips follow the same rules as well. If you roll out a groove clip (MIDI or audio), the effects bin will remain in the original part of the object. If you then split the object, the effects bin will be copied to the split(s).\nOne other object-oriented editing window continues to evolve (if Cakewalk ever decide to consolidate everything in Sonar that's related to clips/objects in one window, this would be the one): the window that appears when you right-click on an object and select Clip Properties.\nThe General tab shows the name of the clip, its start time and its length (in Measures:Beats:Ticks; Samples; Hours:Minutes:Seconds:Frames; and Seconds). You can edit all of these parameters. Time base lets you select musical or absolute time for the clip, which affects where the clip starts if you change tempo. With a musical time base, the Measures:Beats:Ticks position remains the same, but the absolute (SMPTE) time changes. With SMPTE as a time base, the reverse occurs.\nHowever, you can also mute the clip, and 'lock' it from this window (both options are also available if you right-click on the object). Lock is crucial for audio-for-video work, as it lets you tie samples to a specific SMPTE time. For example, suppose you build a sound effect that coincides with a particular visual cue into a soundtrack, but the producer decides you need to speed up the music just a bit. Locking the clip to SMPTE ensures it will always hit on the visual cue that happens at a specific SMPTE time, regardless of how the tempo changes.\nNote that locking can involve the position only, the data only, or both; when locked, a small padlock appears on the clip (yellow for position only, blue for data only, and white for both).\nWhile it may seem that the option to set a 'snap offset' (in samples) for audio clips is useful, the function can only shift the clip late compared to a snap point. So if you have something like a pad sound with a long attack time that needs to start early in order to build over the right amount of time, using snap offset can't help you. However, if you find just the right amount of delay for a snare-drum hit, for example, you can copy or change the object's position while being sure that the amount of offset will be preserved.\nFinally, there's also a Clip Effects display. Although you can't drag effects into or out of this display, you can delete effects, change their order, instantiate new effects and bypass the clip's effects bin. We'll ignore the Audio Stretching tab for now, as that opens up a whole other world of options.\nObject-based editing may not be a particularly sexy topic, but anything that saves time or makes your life easier is worth investigating. Although I still use track processors a lot, being able to create effects in different bits of audio can simplify the process of making complex edits, as well as opening up a lot of creative possibilities."}
{"text": "Biology 107 Lab Exam Review\nScience B01 with Magor at University of Alberta\nAbout this deck\nSize: 132 flashcards\nSign up (free) to study this.\nWhen is a plant cell plasmolyzed?\nWhat is a hypertonic solution?\nA hypertonic solution is a solution that has a higher concentration of solutes than found inside the cell\nWhat are some of the functions of cell membranes?\nSeparation of cell contents from external environment\nOrganization of chemicals and reactions into specific organelles within the cell\nRegulation of the transport of certain molecules into and out of the cell and its organelles\nBeet cells red pigment, located in the cell's large central vacuole and surrounded by the tonoplast membrane\nMolecule or part of a molecule that absorbs radiant energy (light)\nGraph that shows the amount of light absorbed at a number of wavelengths\nFour parts of a spectrophotometer\nDevice that isolates a photoelectric tube\nStandard curve limitations\nStandard curve is specific to the pigment and its buffer\nStandard curve cannot be used for absorbances beyond the range of the standard curve\nCu = Cd/D\nDeposits single bacterial cells from a liquid culture over the surface of an agar medium\nPrevents bacteria in the environment from contaminating work, and prevents bacteria in work from contaminating the environment\nAspetic techniques that can be used\nSterilize surfaces and working surfaces\nWashing hand before and after\nFlaming inoculating loop and lip of culture tubes\nReduce time sterile medium, cultures, or bacteria are exposed to air\nWork in area with low resident population of bacteria\nWhat does the blank used with a spectrophotometer consist of?\nHow is a spectrophotometer zeroed?\nDefine each term in the \"fluid mosaic model\"\nFluid: membranes are able to move, things may pass through them (selective permeability)\nMosaic: membranes are composed of a variety of different things - phospholipid bilayer, enzymes, proteins that act as channels\nExplain phospholipid bilayers\nFatty acid bilayers, where the hydrophobic ends of the fatty acids attract each other to the inside of the layer and the hydrophilic ends are on the outside of the membrane in the water, creating a double layer of fatty acids\nHow are bacterial species identified?\nCell and colony morphology, chemical composition of cell walls, biochemical activities, and nutritional requirements\nWhat is the best way to isolate individual cells?\nStreaking them onto an agar plate, so that each individual cell will produce a colony\nCell wall is composed of a thick layer of peptidoglycan surrounding the cell membrane\nDifferential stain to divide bacteria into Gram-positive and Gram-negatie\nSteps of a gram stain\nA basic dye (crystal violet) is used to stain the peptidoglycan in both cells, then iodine is used to increase affinity of the dye to peptidoglycan. Ethanol is then used to dissolve lipids in outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria, allowing iodine dye complex to leave cells (peptidoglycan layer too thin to retain dye), while Gram-positive cells retain the dyed due to the thick layer of peptidoglycan - a counterstain is then applied that dies the Gram-negative cells pink\nCommonly reocognized cell morphologies\nCocci: spherical shape\nBacilli: shaped like rods or cylinders (long and slender, or so short they resemble cocci)\nSpirilla: resemble a corkscrew\nWhat are three other ways to identify bacteria besides morphology?\nPresence of flagella (motility)\nFormation of endospores\nHow is motility in bacteria tested?\nBacteria are injected into a tube containing a dye that turns red when oxidized by growing bacteria- distribution of red dye indicates swimming ability\nHow is formation of endospores determined in bacteria?\nSample can withstand extreme conditions (high temperatures) and will grow at optimal conditions\nWhat are the different enzymatic activities in bacteria that can be tested?\nHow can resolution be decreased (improved)?\nUsing an illumination source with a smaller wavelength\nIncreasing the numerical aperture of the objective lens, as well as using immersion oil with the 100x objective lens\nHow is the resolution value calculated?\nWhy do Gram-positive bacteria stain purple?\nThey contain a thick layer of peptidoglycan which retains the iodine-crystal violet complex CV-I, causing cells to hold the dye and thus retain the purple colour even after the ethanol wash\nWhy do Gram-negative bacteria stain pink?\nGram negative cells have only a thin layer of peptidoglycan, so the CV-I complex easily washes out, and thus the cells are able to be counterstained pink because they no longer contain any crystal violet dye\nWhat is the effect of high temperatures on bacteria that do not form endospores?\nHigh temperatures will kill cells that do not produce endospores as it can damage cell membranes and denature proteins, resulting in cells that are unable to function\nMicrotubules, microfilaments, and intermediate filaments which function in cell structure, cell motility (flagella and cilia - microtubules as part of their ultrastructure), and various biological processes\nMitochondria, chloroplasts, Golgi apparatus, endoplasmic reticulum, nucleus, and vacuoles/vesicles\nFunction in cell motility (flagella and cilia) and one organism also uses cilia to propel food towards its oral groove\nUsed in amoeboid movement and organelle movement (intermediate filaments give nucleus its shape - nuclear lamina)\nHow do microfilaments act in amoeboid movement?\nPhase contrast microscope\nPhase contrast microscope\nCells and medium have different refractive index, and therefore light traveling through a material with different refractive indexes show a change in phase of light waves, which the microscope then translates to a change in light intensity (areas of higher refractive index appear darker)\nSome cell structures contain autofluoresce, some require staining - by exposing cells to several stains at once, different structures will fluoresce different colours\nHow can contrast be improved?\nStaining compounds (vital stain - living cells/tissue, or dead cells and tissues), using special types of microscopes to manipulate light, and by reducing the amount of light\nWhat effect would cytochalasin (inhibits microtubules) and cholchicine (inhibits microfilaments) have on Pelomyxa?\nCytochalasin would cause amoeba to become sessile, as the microfilaments are responsible for the movement of amoebas - cholchicine would have no effect\nWhat effect would cytochalasin (inhibits microtubules) and cholchicine (inhibits microfilaments) have on Euglena?\nWhat effect would cytochalasin (inhibits microtubules) and cholchicine (inhibits microfilaments) have on motile prokaryotes?\nWhat is phagocytosis, and how does it differ from receptor-mediated endocytosis?\nPhagocytosis is the process that Paramecium use to take in food. It differs from receptor-mediated endocytosis in that receptor-mediated endocytosis is very specific and allows the cell to acquire bulk quantities of specific substances, whereas phagocytosis is more general and can take in different substances\nOrganelles (enzymes) that digest or break down waste materials and cellular debris, such as worn out organelles, food particles, and engulfed bacteria and viruses\nContains cell's genetic information, and is surrounded by the nuclear lamina (made up of intermediate filaments) to protect the DNA\nEngulfs food via phagocytosis and uses lysosomes to break the food down\nOrganelles found in plant cells that are used in photosynthesis - they capture light and convert it to usable energy\nProteins that catalyze metabolic reactions without being consumed or destroyed by the molecule - lower a reaction's activation energy (substrate specific)\nMolecule to be reacted, that fits into a uniquely shaped pocket of the enzyme called the active site and binds with the enzyme as it is converted into the end product\nAllows plants to use starch it has stored after photosynthesis - takes amylose and breaks it down into smaller molecules by hydrolysis (glucose molecules, maltose, and shorter chains of amylose)\nPolymeric macromolecule composed of glucose monomers that is too large to pass through a cell membrane\nWhat are enzymes made up of?\nEnzymes are proteins, which are made up of amino acids\nWhat is an active site?\nAn active site is a site that uniquely fits the substrate specific to the enzyme, and will activate the enzyme once the substrate binds to the site\nEnergy transfer from light to chemical bonds through series of light reactions\nWhat series of reactions occurs in photosynthesis?\nLight energy from sun strikes pigments in thylakoid membrane of chloroplast, which is transformed into excited electrons (electrical energy), then into chemical energy in the form of bonds in ATP and NADPH molecules, and the ATP and NADH molecules are then used to power the fixation of carbon dioxide into sugar molecules (Calvin cycle, occurring in stroma)\nDetermines which wavelengths of light the chloroplasts maximally absorb (these wavelengths also produce the highest rates of photosynthetic activity)\nChloroplast suspension is mixed with indicator dye DCPIP - as DCPIP accepts electrons from the electron transport chain of Photosystem II it becomes reduced and therefore colourless, allowing absorptions to be measured to determine concentrations\nWhat were the controls in the photosynthesis in spinach chloroplasts experiment?\nControls must show that DCPIP is stable and there is no other source of electrons to reduce DCPIP (colour does not change spontaneously) and that the colour of chloroplast suspension is stable and does not change colour spontaneously\nWhat are the independent and dependent variables for the absorbance spectrum of photosynthesis in spinach chloroplasts?\nThe independent variable is the wavelength of light, and the dependent variable is the absorbance of the chloroplast suspension at varying wavelengths of light\nWhat are the independent and dependent variables for the action spectrum of photosynthesis in spinach chloroplasts?\nThe independent variable is the colour of light, and the dependent variable is the absorbance of the solution\nWhy are spinach leaves green?\nSpinach leaves are green because they maximally absorb blue and red wavelengths, and green wavelengths are absorbed the least and are therefore reflected back the most, resulting in the green colour\nAt what wavelength is the action spectrum measured at?\nThe wavelength that photosynthesis occurs at maximally\nWhere do light reactions take place in the chloroplast? Reactions of the Calvin cycle?\nLight reactions take place in the stroma of the chloroplast, and reactions of the Calvin cycle take place in the stroma\nMeasuring oxygen levels, sugar produced, or carbon dioxide levels\nHow is ATP produced?\nThrough the catabolism of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats\nGlycolysis in eukaryotes\nCytosolic reactions to convert glucose to pyruvate (one molecule of glucose results in the net production of 2 molecules of ATP via substrate level phosphorylation\nAfter glycolysis, what occurs in the presence of oxygen?\nEukaryotes convert pyruvate into acetyl CoA, which is transported to Kreb's cycle in mitochondria (produces 2 more molecules of ATP) and then oxidative phosphorylation (the transfer of electrons from food to oxygen) produces the rest of the ATP molecules (carbon dioxide is also formed as a by-product)\nAfter glycolysis, what occurs in the absence of oxygen?\nPyruvate is degraded via a series of cytostolic pathways - lactic acid fermentation and alcohol fermentation (produces ethanol and carbon dioxide, regenerates NAD+ - required for glycolytic pathway)\nWhat sort of feedback system occurs in alcohol fermentation?\nFermentation of glucose produces ethanol, but high concentrations of ethanol are toxic to yeast\nPhysiological response curve\nWhy is fermentation necessary?\nWhy was the yeast flask swirled prior to adding yeast to each tube?\nTo re-suspend the yeast and therefore the ensure that similar concentrations of yeast were present in each tube (constant)\nWhat would happen if the metabolism in yeast experiment were done without the 10 minute pre-incubation period?\nThe lag phase of the physiological response curve would be significantly longer as the pre-incubation period brings the tube to a temperature at which yeast metabolizes glucose most effectively, and therefore without the incubation period the yeast would not metabolize glucose as well\nWhat process are the yeast in the Durham tube undergoing?\nThe yeast are undergoing fermentation - other eukaryotes undergo aerobic respiration, and only prokaryotes undergo anaerobic respiration\nWhat metabolic processes occur in the cytoplasm?\nAlcohol fermentation, ATP production, glycolysis, and NADH production\nWhat metabolic processes occur in the mitochondria?\nATP production, Krebs cycle, electron transport chain, and NADH production\nBacterial genomic DNA\nConsists of a double stranded DNA helix arranged in a circle that is anchored to the bacterial plasma membrane - 4000 genes that encode all the functions of the bacterial cell\nBacterial plasmid DNA\nFloats freely in cytoplasm of bacterial cell\nCircular and can assume supercoiled conformation in which circular double helix molecule twists on itself\nMuch smaller than genomic DNA (2- 25 genes)\nCan sometimes conform extra properties to the cell that allow the cell to survive in conditions that it could not survive without the plasmid DNA (only when there is selective pressure)\nArranged in linear strands (chromosomes - 23 pairs) in nucleus of cell (30 000 - 35 000 genes - high molecular weight DNA)\nCan be used to analyze small amount of plasmid DNA - DNA is not very pure and maxi prep must be used for further analysis as it is a larger quantity of very pure DNA - separates plasmid DNA from bacterial genomic DNA based on size and conformation\nHow can high molecular weight (HMW) DNA be extracted?\nHigh affinity for glass - buffer solution must contain Tris and EDTA as it binds magnesium ions which are required for DNAse, preventing DNAse from functioning and degrading the DNA into nucleotides\nWhat does centrifuging do?\nCreates a centrifugal force that causes bacterial cells to collect in a pellet at the bottom of the tube - liquid above is referred to as the supernatant\nWhat does vortexing do?\nVortexing disrupts the pellet of cells so that they may be re-suspended\nWhy is STE added to the DNA treatment?\nWashes the medium away from the cells\nWhat is Solution I in the DNA treatment?\nA buffered, isotonic solution that is used to re-suspend bacterial cells\nWhat is Solution II in the DNA treatment?\nContains sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS) and sodium hydroxide (an alkali) - SDS denatures proteins and disrupts the plasma membrane, causing the cell to lyse and releasing cell components into the solution, and NaOH raises the pH of the lysate to denature the hydrogen bonds between the base pairs of DNA, separating the helix\nWhat is Solution III in the DNA treatment?\nAcidic potassium acetate solution that neutralizes the pH in the lysate so that some hydrogen bonds in the DNA will re-form in random base pairs, resulting in a tangled, insoluble mass of DNA - hydrogen bonds in the plasmid DNA reform between the original complementary base pairs (when solution is placed on ice potassium forms white, insoluble mass with SDS that precipitates out along with many of the proteins, cell wall, debris, and genomic DNA)\nWhat does centrifuging do to the genomic DNA-potassium-SDS-protein-cell wall complex?\nCauses the complex to pellet in the bottom of the tube and the plasmid to remain in the supernatant solution\nWhat does the 95% ethanol wash do in the DNA treatment?\nRemoves water molecules from macromolecules by decreasing hydrogen bonding between water molecules and macromolecules (plasmid DNA and RNA come out of solution and precipitate, so that they may be centrifuged into a pellet)\nWhat does the 70% ethanol wash do in the DNA treatment?\nRemoves the salts which were not removed with the 95% ethanol, and hydrates the pellets slightly so that it may dissolve in the aqueous solution\nWhy is the 30 minute incubation period necessary in the DNA extraction?\nWhy is sodium acetate used to precipitate HMW DNA?\nThe salt ions compete with macromolecules (DNA) for the water molecules\nWhat are the 2 properties of DNA that allow you to separate genomic DNA from plasmid DNA\nSize - big genomic DNA precipitates faster with centrifugation\nConformation (shape of molecule) - supercoiled plasmid DNA maintains its shape even when hydrogen bonds in backbone are broken\nHow can HMW DNA be extracted from solution?\nIts affinity for glass and the fact that it forms very long \"threads\" of DNA\nWhat would happen if the tube were vortexed after the addition of Solution II?\nGenomic DNA would break and would not all be centrifuged out, therefore contaminating plasmid DNA\nWhat is the difference between genomic DNA, plasmid DNA, and eukaryotic DNA?\nGenomic DNA contains the majority of genes needed for the bacterial cell to function\nPlasmid DNA is a small, circular structure of DNA in the cell cytoplasm that contains genes that can allow the bacteria to survive in conditions where it could otherwise not survive\nEukaryotic DNA is much larger and is contained within the nucleus, in 23 pairs of chromosomes, encoding all the genes necessary for the survival of the eukaryote\nWhat is the purpose of the 95% ethanol and 70% ethanol wash?\n95% ethanol dehydrates the cell\n70% ethanol treatment removes the salts and rehydrates the plasmid DNA, allowing it to dissolve faster\nWhy must plasmid DNA be kept on ice following incubation?\nDNAse will break down DNA at room temperature - T solution has EDTA to inactivate DNAse\nWhat was the experiment performed by Avery, MacLeod, and McCarty?\nTested various cellular macromolecules for their ability to transform non-virulent Streptococcus pneumoniae into virulent bacteria - discovered DNA was the only macromolecule capable of transforming non-virulent bacteria into virulent bacteria\nHow did the experiment performed in Biol 107 differ from Avery et al?\nEscherichia coli was used\nE. coli was examined for transformation by a gene on the plasmid DNA instead of the genomic DNA\nE. coli cells needed to be made competent to uptake DNA using a calcium chloride solution\nMice were not used (medium containing kanamycin was used instead)\nOnly DNA was focused on (as opposed to various parts of the cell)\nHow were kanamycin sensitive E. coli cells made proficient to take up DNA?\nA calcium chloride solution was made, which created holes in the cellular membranes (competent cells)\nHow is a competent cell transformed?\nIf plasmid DNA entering competent cells is capable of replicating, the competent cells will be genetically altered or transformed (kanamycin resistant) - all descendants of transformed cells should be genetically altered\nWhat is kanamycin?\nAntibiotic belonging to the family of antibiotics characterized by their ability to inhibit protein synthesis in prokaryotic cells - they are transported into the cell by oxygen dependent active transport system and irreversibly inhibit protein synthesis by binding to a small subunit of ribosomes in bacterial cell, so cells are unable to synthesize proteins - cell death\nWhat occurs in kanamycin resistant cells?\nPhosphotransferase enzyme is encoded and expressed in the presence of kanamycin, which phosphorylates (adds a phosphorous group) to kanamycin and renders the antibiotic inactve\nUse of a DNA template to synthesize RNA\nReading of mRNA to produce protein\nPlate Count Method\nViable cell count (living cells only) in which original cell suspension is diluted into suspensions of decreasing cell concentration, which are spread onto the surface of an agar medium and allowed to incubate so that single cells may grow into a colony - following incubation colonies may be counted, and each is representative of a single cell originally deposited on the plate\nPetroff-Hausser Counting Chamber\nTotal cell count (living and dead) using a specially designed microscope slide with a depressed surface and etched grid, where a thin layer of cell suspension of known volume is spread and the number of cells in the volume is directly counted with the aid of a microscope\nOptical Density (OD)\nIndirect method of total cell count, measuring turbidity (cloudiness of a solution due to the presence of particles such as cells), measured using a spectrophotometer, and developing a standard curve\nWhy is Solution T (Tris) buffer used in the Transformation of Bacterial Cells lab?\nMaintains the pH at 8.0 and is the solvent for plasmid DNA\nSolution B is the solution used to dissolve DNAse but does not contain DNAse\nWhat occurs during the first incubation period of the Transfomation of Bacterial Cells lab?\nWhat occurs during the heat shock incubation period in the Transformation of Bacterial Cells lab?\nHelps the plasmid DNA enter the competent cells and induces the expression of survival genes necessary to repair damage to the plasma membrane\nWhat does the third incubation period in the Transformation of Bacterial Cells lab do?\nAllows time for kanamycin resistance gene to be expressed - must be transcribed into mRNA, then mRNA must translate it into a polypeptide chain (phosphotransferase)\nThe plate which does not contain plasmid DNA, and instead contains solution B, Tris buffer, and competent cells\nThe plate that contains plasmid DNA that has been broken down into nucleotides by DNAse, as well as solution B and competent cells\nThere would be colony growth on plate 5+K, as the DNAse cannot enter the competent cells and the plasmid DNA would not have been broken down - the kanamycin resistant gene would have been expressed in the competent cells\nWhat would occur if the environment in which the E. coli was grown was anaerobic?\nThe kanamycin would not affect the growth of the cells, as kanamycin enters the cell in an oxygen dependent manner\nAbout this deck\nSize: 132 flashcards"}
{"text": "Racism uber alles 0\nAuschwitz looms as a testament to the rabid quest for 'racial purity' undertaken by Hitler and the Nazis. But rather than a product of the Left or the Right, writes Queen's professor Timothy Smith, Nazism was 'tyranny with an unabashedly brutal face.'\nWas Hitler a socialist? Certainly he had nothing in common with the strain of Social Democracy that emerged during the 1930s in Scandinavia and survives there and in Germany. This variant of socialism respects the rule of law and private property; it is not under examination in this article.\nBut was Nazism related to Soviet-style socialism? Hitler’s party was, after all, named the National Socialist German Worker’s Party (NSDAP). Early on, the party’s message was peppered with anti-big-business and anti-labor-union rhetoric alike. Some of the early leaders of the party (Hitler did not take full control for several years after joining it) were anti-capitalist, and Hitler’s early speeches can indeed be mined for denunciations of high finance and monopoly capitalism, which Hitler equated with the Jews.\nThese criticisms are largely rooted in Hitler’s anti-Semitism and his contempt for the profiteering of large firms during the war—they don’t stem from a sympathetic reading of Marx. In power, the Nazi party expanded the welfare state, just as Mussolini had done in Italy, and just as conservative governments did in France. Hitler subsidized leisure programs and he increased the value of family allowances (for those deemed racially “fit”). But this does not make him a socialist.\nThe Nazis were obsessed with the class conflict in general, and they strove to “solve” it—on their authoritarian terms. But the pursuit of racial “purity” was Hitler’s revolutionary principle. His social policy was always subordinated to his racial policy. Hitler’s world-view revolved around biological determinism; the Soviets’ world-view centred on the inevitability of the class conflict.\nUnder Hitler, rampant individualism would be replaced by a martial devotion to the racially pure Nation. The Nazis were suspicious of many traditional institutions. Hitler was no conservative, even if he needed, and got in 1933, the reluctant support of conservative leaders naive in the belief that they could control him.\nHitler displayed no ideological commitment to curtailing the rights of private property. He mobilized a war economy, and like the democracies during both World Wars, he requisitioned factories, but he accepted the basic contours of capitalism. There was no plan to collectivize German farms, nor were businesses and bank accounts taken over for the sake of taking them over.\nJews and political enemies were robbed of their property and eventually their lives. The Nazis’ willingness to violate property rights stemmed entirely from their racism and militarism; the state did not direct the production of basic consumer goods, as it did in the USSR.\nOne cannot understand Hitler’s 1941 invasion of the USSR without reference to his ideology of “Jewish Bolshevism.” Describing his own political awakening in Vienna, Hitler wrote in Mein Kampf, “in this period my eyes were opened to two menaces of which I had previously scarcely known the names ... Marxism and Jewry.”\nAddressing the judge at the trial of the Beer Hall Putsch conspirators, a failed coup d’état Hitler launched in 1923, he said: “I wanted to become the destroyer of Marxism.” Shortly after becoming Chancellor, Hitler imprisoned Socialist and Communist leaders on trumped-up charges. Next he murdered several of them and demolished their unions and political parties.\nLike Lenin and Stalin, Hitler had contempt for individual political rights, that quaint bourgeois notion. Like the Soviets, Hitler crushed civil society, politicizing everyday life, from the composition of city councils to the boards of directors of charities and athletic clubs.\nSoviet-style Socialism was tyranny with a supposedly humane goal—the abolition of poverty, the dawning of equality, and the liberation of the individual from the alienation of modern industrial life and the backwardness of quasi-serfdom in the countryside. Hitler had no such concerns. Nazism was tyranny with an unabashedly brutal face. The end goal was certainly European domination (some historians believe world domination), the elimination of the Jews and the Marxists, and the enslavement of Eastern Europeans.\nCommunism and fascism treated individuals as mere abstractions, to be murdered or imprisoned if need be. But the end goals were profoundly different. Hitler did not seek to overthrow capitalism. If he threw “socialistic” crumbs of comfort to the workers who toiled in his war machine it was not out of ideological commitment. His concern was to prop up his regime and to ensure “racial fitness.” Like the men who ruled the USSR, Hitler was, in politics, a collectivist - but he was no socialist. The difference is more than semantic. Hitler was first and foremost a racist whose associated military goals required a form of intervention in the economy that should not be confused with socialism.\nTimothy Smith is a history professor at Queen's University and an expert in modern European history."}
{"text": "Health care employment has been the bright spot in the otherwise lackluster recent jobs reports. As overall employment decreased by 2 percent from 2000 to 2010, employment in the health care sector actually increased by 25 percent.\nBut that’s not necessarily a good thing, according to an opinion piece published in the most recent edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.\n“Treating the health care system like a (wildly inefficient) jobs program conflicts directly with the goal of ensuring that all Americans have access to care at an affordable price,” write Katherine Baicker and Amitabh Chandra, two researchers from Harvard.\nBy 2020, almost one out of nine American jobs will be in health care, an April study from the Center for Health Workforce Studies projects.\nAs the country wrestles to reduce health care spending, which already consumes about 18 percent of GDP, those extra jobs could be a step in the wrong direction.\n“Salaries for health care jobs are not manufactured out of thin air—they are produced by someone paying higher taxes, a patient paying more money for health care, or an employee taking home lower wages because higher health insurance premiums are deducted from his or her paycheck,” write the authors of the NEJM column.\nYet hospitals and politicians alike often tout the jobs that the health care industry creates in local communities. “The health care sector is an economic mainstay, providing stability and even growth during times of recession,” the American Hospital Association wrote in a fact sheet entitled “Economic Contribution of Hospitals Often Overlooked.”\nThe authors argue that the focus should instead be on improving health outcomes and efficiency, rather than simply more people working in the field, pointing to “mounting evidence that out health care system could deliver better care without spending more and that there are tremendous opportunities for improvements in productivity.”\nSeveral provisions of the 2010 health care law aim to reduce inefficiencies by rewarding higher-value care and reducing some of the incentives for doctors to deliver more testing and care with unproven benefits. Such policies may serve to reduce health care employment, the authors argue, by “allowing us to get the same health outcomes with fewer health care workers.”\nSome jobs in health care could be lost; however, taxpayers and workers in other fields would likely pay less in premiums.\n“The bottom line is that employment in the health care sector should be neither a policy goal nor a metric of success,” they conclude."}
{"text": "“Writing is a way of talking without being interrupted.” — Jules Renard\n“ideas to get your student’s pencils moving”\nWriting is and isn’t an easy thing to do in the classroom. Especially nowadays when students don’t have long attention spans and are more and more “digital” and visual learners.\nHowever, it is a vital skill that opens up a world of possibilities for any student. Written communication in whatever language, even with the advent of the internet, is still a necessity. Writing allows communication, controlled and deliberate – POWERFUL, communication. So we have to get our students writing more and better. How?\nBelow, find a rundown of what I consider the “standard” writing activities for any age group. Just change the topic/theme. Most are for any classroom, EFL / ESL or the regular classroom. My belief is that writing in English is writing in English. Whether it be a second language or first makes no difference because the “eating” is all the same.\nI’ve divided the activities into different categories. These are just for the sake of having some kind of organization. I’ve also labeled them\nWUP – for a warm up writing activity and something to do quickly.\nCP – Controlled practice. Writing activities that help the beginning writer and offer support, repetition and guidance.\nF – Free writing activities which activate student learning and allow them to practice what they already know and “test the waters” so to speak.\nWhere appropriate, I’ve linked to some resources that compliment the writing activity as described.\nListen — Write\nThere are many ways to “spice” up the standard dictation. The simplest is to have the students fold a blank piece of paper “hamburger” style (Up/down) 4 times. Unfold and they have a nice 8 line piece of paper. Speak 8 sentences , repeating each several times as the students write. Get the students to record their answers on the board and correct. Collect and keep in a portfolio!\nThere are many online sites where students can do the same but in a computer lab or at home. Or the teacher can even try in the classroom.\nhttp://www.listen-and-write.com/audio – for older students\nhttp://www.learner.org/interactives/spelling/ – for young learners\n2. Story Rewriting\nThe teacher reads a story or the class listens to an audio story. After, students make a story board (just fold a blank page so you have 8 squares) and draw pictures. Then, they write the story based on those pictures. Very simple and powerful! – F\nThe students close their eyes and the teacher describes a scene. Play some nice background music. The students then write and describe the scene they imagined, sharing their scene afterwards with the class or a classmate.\n4. Pop Song Rewrite\nPlay a familiar pop song. One with a “catchy” chorus. Afterwards, write out the chorus on the board with some of the words missing. Students can then rewrite the chorus and sing their own version. Higher level students can simply write their own version without help. Here’s a very simple example –\nHe’s got the whole world in his hands\nHe’s got ___________ and ___________\nIn his hands. (3x)\nHe’s got the whole world in his hands\nWatch —– Write\nStudents watch a TV Commercial. Then, they write their own script based on that commercial but focused on a different product. Afterwards, they can perform. F\n2. Short videos.\nJust like a story but this time students watch. Then, they can rewrite / respond / reflect. Students can choose to reflect on one standard Reading Response question or as part of a daily journal. Ex. The best part was ….. / If I had made the video, I would have ……\nShort videos are powerful and if well chosen can really get students writing in a reflective manner. CP / F\nHow to Videos\nStudents can watch a short “How to” video that describes a process. There are some excellent sites with User Generated Content. Expert Village and eHow are recommended. After the students watch the video several times, they can write out the steps using transitions which the teacher lists on the board. [First, first off, To begin, then, after that, next, most importantly, finally, last but not least, to finish ] CP / F\n3. Newscasts / Weather reports\nWatch the daily news or weather report. Students write in groups or individually, their own version of the news for that week/day. Then perform for the class like a real news report! F\n4. Travel Videos\nWatch a few travel videos (there are many nice, short travel “postcard” videos online). Groups of students select a place and write up a report or a poster outlining why others should visit their city/country. Alternately, give students a postcard and have them write to another student in the classroom as if they were in that city/country. For lower leveled students, provide them with a template and they just fill in the details. Ex.\nI’m sitting in a ………… drinking a …………… I’ve been in ……. for ………. days now. The weather has been\n……………. Yesterday I visited the ………….. and I saw …………….. Today, I’m going to ………………. I highly recommend ……………….. See you when I get home …………………\nCP / F\nLook —– Write\n1. Pictures / Slideshows\nVisuals are a powerful way to provide context and background for any writing. Make sure to use attractive, stimulating and if possible “real” photos to prompt student writing. Students can describe a scene or they can describe a series of pictures from a slideshow.\nAn excellent activity is to show a nice photo and get students to “guess” and write their guess in the form of the 5Ws. They answer all the 5w questions and then share their thoughts with the class.\nShow a picture and get students to write a story or use it as background for a writing prompt. For example, Show a picture of a happy lottery winner. Ask students to write in their journal – If I won a million dollars I would ……\nThis is a much better way to “prompt” writing than simple script! – CP\nShow students a selection of fairly similar pictures. The students describe in writing one of the pictures (faces work really well). They read and the other students listen and “guess” which picture is being described. Similar to this listening activity. CP\nProvide students with a series of pictures which describe a story. I often use Action Pictures. Students write about each picture, numbering each piece of writing for each picture. The teacher can guide lower level students like this Mr. X’s Amazing Day example. After editing, the students cut up the pictures and make a storybook. Gluing in the pictures, coloring, decorating and adding their own story text. Afterwards read to the whole class or share among the class. CP / F\nProvide students with a sequence of pictures which are scrambled. The students must order the pictures and then write out the process. Ex. Making scrambled eggs. F\nRead —- Write\n1. Reading Journal / Reading Response\nThe students read a story and then respond by making a reflective journal entry. Alternatively, the students can respond to a reading response question like, “Which character did you like best? Why?” F\nRead a short story and then give students a copy of the story with some text missing. The students can fill it in with the correct version OR fill it in and make the story their own.\nThese are stories where words are replaced with icons/pictures. Students can read the story and then write out the whole story, replacing the pictures with the correct text. Here are some nice examples. – CP\n3. Opinion / Essay\nSelect an article or OP Ed piece that students would find interesting or controversial. After reading and discussing, students can respond with a formal essay or piece of writing reflecting their opinion. Read them anonymously afterwards and get the class to guess who wrote it! F\n4. Giving Advice\nStudents read a problem provided by the teacher (even better, get students to provide the problem by having them write down what they need advice on). This can often be an Ann Landers style request for advice from a newspaper. Students write their own response, giving advice. F\n5. Running dictation\nThis is a lot of fun but quite noisy. Put students into groups of 3 or 4. For each group, post on the wall around the classroom, a piece of writing (maybe a selection of text you will be reading in your lesson). One student is appointed as the secretary. The other students must “run” to where their piece of writing is on the wall and read it. Then run back and dictate it to the secretary who records it. Continue until one group is finished (but check that they got it right!). CP\nThink —- Write\n1. Graphic Organizers\nThese you can make on your own by having students draw and fold blank sheets of paper or by giving them a pre-designed one. Students write out their thoughts on a topic using the organizer. An alphabet organizer is also an excellent activity in writing for lower level students. Graphic organizers and mind maps are an excellent way “first step” to a longer writing piece and are an important pre-writing activity. WUP\n2. Prompts / Sentence Starters\nStudents are prompted to finish sentences that are half started. They can write X number of sentences using the sentence starter. Many starters can be found online. Prompts are also an excellent way to get students thinking and writing. Every day, students can “free write” a passage using the daily prompt (ex. What I did this morning etc… ) Creative writing of this sort really motivates students to write. There are many lists online you can use.\n3. Thinking Games\nUsing a worksheet, students play the game while writing down their responses in grammatical sentences. What the Wordle / Not Like the Other and Top 5 are some games I’ve made and which help students begin to write. Each has a worksheet which students fill out. CP\n4. Decoding / Translating\nTranslating a passage into English can be a good writing activity for higher level students.\nStudents love their cell phones and Transl8it.com is a handy way to get students interested in writing. Simply put in English text and Transl8it.com will output “text messaging”. Give this to students to decode into standard English and then check against the original. Lots of fun! See the games I’ve designed (Pop Song / Dialogues ) using this principle of decoding text messaging. CP\n5. Forms / Applications\nStudents need to practice writing that will be of use to them directly in the wider world. Forms and filling in applications are a valuable way to do this. Fill in one together as a class and then get students to do this same for themselves individually. – CP\n6. Journals / Reflection / Diaries\nThis type of free writing activity should be done on a regular basis if used in class. Use a timer and for X minutes, students can write upon a topic that is important to them, that day. Alternatively, students can write at the end of the day and record their thoughts about the lesson or their own learning. These are all excellent ways for the teacher to get to know their students. One caution – don’t correct student writing here! Comment positively on the student’s writing – the goal is to get them feeling good about writing and “into” it. – F\n7. Tag Stories / Writing\nStudents love this creative exercise. Fold a blank piece of paper vertically (Hamburger style) 4 times. You’ll have 8 lines. On the first line, students all write the same sentence starter. Ex. A man walked into a bank and ……..\nNext, students finish the sentence and then pass their paper to the student on their left/right. That student reads the sentence and continues the story on the next line. Continue until all 8 lines are completed. Read the stories as a class – many will be hilarious! I often do this with a “gossip” variation. I write some gossip “chunks” on the board like; “I heard that..” , “I was told…” “The word on the street is…” “Don’t pass it around but…”. Students choose one and write some juicy gossip about the student to their right. They then pass their paper to the left with everyone adding onto the gossip. Students really get into this! CP / F\n8. Describe and guess\nStudents think of a person / a place or a thing. They write a description of them / it and they are read out and others students guess.\nJokes and riddles are also effective for this. Students write out a joke or riddle they know and then they are read and other students try to guess the punchline. – F\nTEXT —– Write\n1. Sentence Chains\nThe teacher writes a word on the board and then students shout out words that follow using the last letter(s). The more last letters they use, the more points they get. The teacher keeps writing as quick as possible as the students offer up more correct words. Ex. Smilengthosentencementality…..\nGive students a blank piece of paper and in pairs with one student being the secretary, they play! This is a great game for simple spelling practice and also to get students noticing language and how words end/begin. They can also play for points. Compound words and phrases are acceptable! – WUP\n2. Guided Writing\nThis is a mainstay of the writing teacher’s toolkit. Students are either given a “bank” of words or can write/guess on their own. They fill in the missing words of a text to complete the text. Take up together and let students read their variations. A nice adaptation to guided writing for lower level students is for them to personalize the writing by getting them to draw a picture for the writing passage to illustrate and fortify the meaning. Here’s a nice example. CP\nUse a time line to describe any event. Brainstorm as a class. Then students use the key words written on the board, to write out the time line as a narrative. Really effective and you can teach history like this too! Biographies of individuals or even the students themselves are a powerful writing activity and timelines are a great way to get them started. – F\nStudents are given notes (the classic example is a shopping list but it might be a list of zoo animals / household items etc…) and then asked to write something using all the noted words. This usually focuses on sequence (transitions) or location (prepositions). F\n5. Grammar Poems\nGrammar poems are short poems about a topic that students complete using various grammar prompts. This form of guided writing is very effective and helps students notice various syntactical elements of the language.\nPut the grammar poem on the board with blanks. Here are some examples but it could be on any topic (country, famous person, my home, this school, etc..). Fill out as a class with one student filling it in. Then, students copy the poem and complete with their own ideas. Change as needed to stress different grammatical elements. And of course, afterwards SHARE. Present some to the class and display on a bulletin board. Your students will be proud of them!\nSPEAK — Write\n1. Surveys / Reports\nStudents have a survey question or a questionnaire. They walk around the class recording information. After, instead of reporting to the class orally, they can write up the report about their findings.\nThis can also be used with FSW (Find Someone Who) games. Students use a picture bingo card to walk around the classroom and ask students yes/no questions. They write the answers with a check or X and the student’s name in the box with the picture. After, they write up a report about which student ……. / didn’t …… certain things. CP\n2. Reported Speech\nDo any speaking activity or set of conversation questions. Afterwards, students report back by writing using reported speech, “ Susan told me that she ………..” and “ Brad said that ………..” etc….. CP\n3. Introducing each other\nStudents can interview another classmate using a series of questions / key words given by the teacher. After the interview of each other is over, students can write out a biography of their partner and others can read them in a class booklet. – F\n4. In class letter writing\nWriting for a purpose is so important and nothing makes this happen better than in class letter writing. Appoint a postman and have each student make a post office box (it could just be a small bag hanging from their desk). The students can write each other (best to assign certain students first) and then respond to their letter. Once it gets started, it just keeps going and going… – F\n4. Email / messaging / chat / social networking\nThis is an excellent way to get students speaking by writing. Set up a social networking system or a messaging / emailing system for the students. They can communicate and chat there using an “English only” policy. Use videos / pictures like in class – to promote student discussion and communication. Projects online foster this kind of written communication and using an CMS (Content Management System) like moodle or atutor or ning can really help students write more. – F\n5. Class / School English newspaper or magazine\nStudents can gain valuable skills by meeting and designing a school English newsletter. Give each student a role (photographer, gossip / news / sports / editor in chief / copy editor etc…) and see what they can do. You’ll be surprised! – F\nWRITE —— Do\nStudents can write dialogues for many every day situations and then act them out for the class. The teacher can model the language on the board and then erase words so students can complete by themselves and in their own words. Here’s a neat example using a commercial as a dialogue. – CP\nStudents draw a picture and then write a description of the picture. They hand their description to another student who must read it and then draw the picture as they see it. Finally, both students compare pictures! – F\n3. Tableaus / Drama\nStudents write texts of any sort. Then the texts are read and other students must make a tableau of the description or act out the text in some manner. For example – students can write about their weekend. After writing, the student reads their text and other students act it out or perform a tableau. F\n4. Don’t speak / Write!\nI once experimented with a class that wouldn’t speak much by putting a gag on myself and only writing out my instructions. It worked and this technique could be used in a writing class. Students can’t speak and are “gagged”. Give them post it notes by which to communicate with others. Instruct using the board. There are many creative ways to use this technique! – F\nRECOMMENDED BOOKS 4 TEACHERS\nI highly recommend the following two books for ideas and some general theory on how to teach writing. Purchase them for reference.\n1. HOW TO TEACH WRITING – Jeremy Harmer\nVery insightful and cleanly, simply written. The author explores through example and description, all the facets and theory behind that “looking glass” which we call teaching. I use this as a course text for my methodology class for in-service teachers.\n2. Oxford Basics: Simple Writing Activites\n- Jill and Charles Hadfield\nThis book (and series) is a gem! Jill Hadfield knows what working EFL / ESL teachers need and in this book there are 30 simple writing activities which teachers can use with a wide variety of levels and with only a chalkboard and a piece of chalk / paper.\nSee my Blog post and download the list of my TOP 10 WRITING WEBSITES FOR TEACHERS AND STUDENTS"}
{"text": "A long time ago I wrote the article The Dull Case of Emissivity and Average Temperatures and expected that would be the end of the interest in emissivity. But it is a gift that keeps on giving, with various people concerned that no one has really been interested in measuring surface emissivity properly.\nAll solid and liquid surfaces emit thermal radiation according to the Stefan-Boltzmann formula:\nE = εσT4\nwhere ε=emissivity, a material property; σ = 5.67×10-8 ; T = temperature in Kelvin (absolute temperature)\nand E is the flux in W/m²\nMore about this formula and background on the material properties in Planck, Stefan-Boltzmann, Kirchhoff and LTE.\nThe parameter called emissivity is the focus of this article. It is of special interest because to calculate the radiation from the earth’s surface we need to know only temperature and emissivity.\nEmissivity is a value between 0 and 1. And is also depends on the wavelength of radiation (and in some surfaces like metals, also the direction). Because the wavelengths of radiation depend on temperature, emissivity also depends on temperature.\nWhen emissivity = 1, the body is called a “blackbody”. It’s just the theoretical maximum that can be radiated. Some surfaces are very close to a blackbody and others are a long way off.\nNote: I have seen many articles by keen budding science writers who have some strange ideas about “blackbodies”. The only difference between a blackbody and a non-blackbody is that the emissivity of a blackbody = 1, and the emissivity of a non-blackbody is less than 1. That’s it. Nothing else.\nThe wavelength dependence of emissivity is very important. If we take snow for example, it is highly reflective to solar (shortwave) radiation with as much as 80% of solar radiation being reflected. Solar radiation is centered around a wavelength of 0.5μm.\nYet snow is highly absorbing to terrestrial (longwave) radiation, which is centered around a wavelength of 10μm. The absorptivity and emissivity around freezing point is 0.99 – meaning that only 1% of incident longwave radiation would be reflected.\nLet’s take a look at the Planck curve – the blackbody radiation curve – for surfaces at a few slightly different temperatures:\nThe emissivity (as a function of wavelength) simply modifies these curves.\nSuppose, for example, that the emissivity of a surface was 0.99 across this entire wavelength range. In that case, a surface at 30°C would radiate like the light blue curve but at 99% of the values shown. If the emissivity varies across the wavelength range then you simply multiply the emissivity by the intensity at each wavelength to get the expected radiation.\nSometimes emissivity is quoted as an average for a given temperature – this takes into account the shape of the Planck curve shown in the graphs above.\nOften, when emissivity is quoted as an overall value, the total flux has been measured for a given temperature and the emissivity is simply:\nε = actual radiation measured / blackbody theoretical radiation at that temperature\n[Fixed, thanks to DeWitt Payne for pointing out the mistake]\nIn practice the calculation is slightly more involved, see note 1.\nIt turns out that the emissivity of water and of the ocean surface is an involved subject.\nAnd because of the importance of calculating the sea surface temperature from satellite measurements, the emissivity of the ocean in the “atmospheric window” (8-14 μm) has been the subject of many 100′s of papers (perhaps 1000′s). These somewhat overwhelm the papers on the less important subject of “general ocean emissivity”.\nAside from climate, water itself is an obvious subject of study for spectroscopy.\nFor example, 29 years ago Miriam Sidran writing Broadband reflectance and emissivity of specular and rough water surfaces, begins:\nThe optical constants of water have been extensively studied because of their importance in science and technology. Applications include a) remote sensing of natural water surfaces, b) radiant energy transfer by atmospheric water droplets, and c) optical properties of diverse materials containing water, such as soils, leaves and aqueous solutions.\nIn this study, values of the complex index of refraction from six recent articles were averaged by visual inspection of the graphs, and the most representative values in the wavelength range of 0.200 μm to 5 cm were determined. These were used to find the directional polarized reflectance and emissivity of a specular surface and the Brewster or pseudo-Brewster angle as functions of wavelength.\nThe directional polarized reflectance and emissivity of wind-generated water waves were studied using the facet slope distribution function for a rough sea due to Cox and Munk .\nApplications to remote sensing of sea surface temperature and wave state are discussed, including effects of salinity.\nEmphasis added. She also comments in her paper:\nFor any wavelength, the total emissivity, ε, is constant for all θ [angles] < 45° [from vertical]; this follows from Fig. 8 and Eq. (6a). It is important in remote sensing of thermal radiation from space, as discussed later..\nThe polarized emissivities are independent of surface roughness for θ < 25°, while for θ > 25°, the thermal radiation is partly depolarized by the roughness.\nThis means that when you look at the emission radiation from directly above (and close to directly above) the sea surface roughness doesn’t have an effect.\nI thought some other comments might also be interesting:\nThe 8-14-μm spectral band is chosen for discussion here because (a) it is used in remote sensing and (b) the atmospheric transmittance, τ, in this band is a fairly well-known function of atmospheric moisture content. Water vapor is the chief radiation absorber in this band.\nIn Eqs. (2)-(4), n and k (and therefore A and B) are functions of salinity. However, the emissivity value, ε, computed for pure water differs from that of seawater by <0.5%.\nWhen used in Eqs. (10), it causes an error of <0.20°C in retrieved Ts [surface temperature]. Since ε in this band lies between 0.96 and 0.995, approximation ε= 1 is routinely used in sea surface temperature retrieval. However, this has been shown to cause an error of -0.5 to -1.0°C for very dry atmospheres. For very moist atmospheres, the error is only ≈0.2°C.\nOne of the important graphs from her paper:\nClick to view a larger image\nEmissivity = 1 – Reflectance. The graph shows Reflectance vs Wavelength vs Angle of measurement.\nI took the graph (coarse as it is) and extracted the emissivity vs wavelength function (using numerical techniques). I then calculated the blackbody radiation for a 15°C surface and the radiation from a water surface using the emissivity from the graph above for the same 15°C surface. Both were calculated from 1 μm to 100 μm:\nThe “unofficial” result, calculating the average emissivity from the ratio: ε = 0.96.\nThis result is valid for 0-30°C. But I suspect the actual value will be modified slightly by the solid angle calculations. That is, the total flux from the surface (the Stefan-Boltzmann equation) is the spectral intensity integrated over all wavelengths, and integrated over all solid angles. So the reduced emissivity closer to the horizon will affect this measurement.\nNiclòs et al – 2005\nOne of the most interesting recent papers is In situ angular measurements of thermal infrared sea surface emissivity—validation of models, Niclòs et al (2005). Here is the abstract:\nIn this paper, sea surface emissivity (SSE) measurements obtained from thermal infrared radiance data are presented. These measurements were carried out from a fixed oilrig under open sea conditions in the Mediterranean Sea during the WInd and Salinity Experiment 2000 (WISE 2000).\nThe SSE retrieval methodology uses quasi-simultaneous measurements of the radiance coming from the sea surface and the downwelling sky radiance, in addition to the sea surface temperature (SST). The radiometric data were acquired by a CIMEL ELECTRONIQUE CE 312 radiometer, with four channels placed in the 8–14 μm region. The sea temperature was measured with high-precision thermal probes located on oceanographic buoys, which is not exactly equal to the required SST. A study of the skin effect during the radiometric measurements used in this work showed that a constant bulk–skin temperature difference of 0.05±0.06 K was present for wind speeds larger than 5 m/s. Our study is limited to these conditions.\nThus, SST used as a reference for SSE retrieval was obtained as the temperature measured by the contact thermometers placed on the buoys at 20-cm depth minus this bulk–skin temperature difference.\nSSE was obtained under several observation angles and surface wind speed conditions, allowing us to study both the angular and the sea surface roughness dependence. Our results were compared with SSE models..\nThe introduction explains why specifically they are studying the dependence of emissivity on the angle of measurement – for reasons of accurate calculation of sea surface temperature:\nThe requirement of a maximum uncertainty of ±0.3 K in sea surface temperature (SST) as input to climate models and the use of high observation angles in the current space missions, such as the 55° for the forward view of the Advanced Along Track Scanning Radiometer (AATSR) (Llewellyn-Jones et al., 2001) on board ENVISAT, need a precise and reliable determination of sea surface emissivity (SSE) in the thermal infrared region (TIR), as well as analyses of its angular and spectral dependences.\nThe emission of a rough sea surface has been studied over the last years due to the importance of the SSE for accurate SST retrieval. A reference work for many subsequent studies has been the paper written by Cox and Munk (1954)..\nThe experimental setup:\nFrom Niclos (2004)\nThe results (compared with one important model from Masuda et al 1988):\nFrom Niclos (2004)\nClick on the image for a larger graphic\nThis paper also goes on to compare the results with the model of Wu & Smith (1997) and indicates the Wu & Smith’s model is a little better.\nThe tabulated results, note that you can avoid the “eye chart effect” by clicking on the table:\nClick on the image for a larger view\nNote that the emissivities are in the 8-14μm range.\nYou can see that the emissivity when measured from close to vertical is 0.98 – 0.99 at two different wind speeds.\nKonda et al – 1994\nA slightly older paper which is not concerned with angular dependence of sea surface emissivity is by Konda, Imasato, Nishi and Toda (1994).\nThey comment on a few older papers:\nBuettner and Kern (1965) estimated the sea surface emissivity to be 0.993 from an experiment using an emissivity box, but they disregarded the temperature difference across the cool skin.\nSaunders (1967b, 1968) observed the plane sea surface irradiance from an airplane and determined the reflectance. By determining the reflectance as the ratio of the differences in energy between the clear and the cloudy sky at different places, he calculated the emissivity to be 0.986. The process of separating the reflection from the surface irradiance, however, is not precise.\nMikhaylov and Zolotarev (1970) calculated the emissivity from the optical constant of the water and found the average in the infrared region was 0.9875.\nThe observation of Davies et al. (1971) was performed on Lake Ontario with a wave height less than 25 cm. They measured the surface emission isolated from sky radiation by an aluminum cone, and estimated the emissivity to be 0.972. The aluminum was assumed to act as a mirror in infrared region. In fact,aluminum does not work as a perfect mirror.\nMasuda et al. (1988) computed the surface emissivity as a function of the zenith angle of observed radiation and wind speed. They computed the emissivity from the reflectance of a model sea surface consisting of many facets, and changed their slopes according to Gaussian distribution with respect to surface wind. The computed emissivity in 11 μm was 0.992 under no wind.\nEach of these studies in trying to determine the value of emissivity, failed to distinguish surface emission from reflection and to evaluate the temperature difference across the cool skin. The summary of these studies are tabulated in Table 1.\nThe table summarizing some earlier work:\nKonda and his co-workers took measurements over a one year period from a tower in Tanabe Bay, Japan.\nThey calculated from their results that the ocean emissivity was 0.984±0.004.\nOne of the challenges for Konda’s research and for Niclòs is the issue of sea surface temperature measurement itself. Here is a temperature profile which was shown in the comments of Does Back Radiation “Heat” the Ocean? – Part Three:\nKawai & Wada (2007)\nThe point is the actual surface from which the radiation is emitted will usually be at a slightly different temperature from the bulk temperature (note the logarithmic scale of depth). This is the “cool skin” effect. This surface temperature effect is also moderated by winds and is very difficult to measure accurately in field conditions.\nSmith et al – 1996\nAnother excellent paper which measured the emissivity of the ocean is by Smith et al (1996):\nAn important objective in satellite remote sensing is the global determination of sea surface temperature (SST). For such measurements to be useful to global climate research, an accuracy of ±0.3K or better over a length of 100km and a timescale of days to weeks must be attained. This criterion is determined by the size of the SST anomalies (≈1K) that can cause significant disturbance to the global atmospheric circulation patterns and the anticipated size of SST perturbations resulting from global climate change. This level of uncertainty is close to the theoretical limits of the atmospheric corrections..\nIt is also a challenge to demonstrate that such accuracies are being achieved, and conventional approaches, which compare the SST derived from drifting or moored buoys, generally produce results with a scatter of ±0.5 to 0.7K. This scatter cannot be explained solely by uncertainties in the buoy thermometers or the noise equivalent temperature difference of the AVHRR, as these are both on the order of 0.2K or less but are likely to be surface emissivity/reflectivity uncertainties, residual atmospheric effects, or result from the methods of comparison\nNote that the primary focus of this research was to have accurate SST measurements from satellites.\nFrom Smith et al (1996)\nThe experimental work on the research vessel Pelican included a high spectral resolution Atmospheric Emitted Radiance Interferometer (AERI) which was configured to make spectral observations of the sea surface radiance at several view angles. Any measurement from the surface of course, is the sum of the emitted radiance from the surface as well as the reflected sky radiance.\n- ocean salinity\n- intake water temperature\n- surface air temperature\n- wind velocity\n- SST within the top 15cm of depth\nThere was also independent measurement of the radiative temperature of the sea surface at 10μm with a Heimann broadband radiation thermometer “window” radiometer. And radiosondes were launched from the ship roughly every 3 hours.\nAdditionally, various other instruments took measurements from a flight altitude of 20km. Satellite readings were also compared.\nThe AERI measured the spectral distribution of radiance from 3.3μm to 20μm at 4 angles. Upwards at 11.5° from zenith, and downwards at 36.5°, 56.5° and 73.5°.\nThere’s a lot of interesting discussion of the calculations in their paper. Remember that the primary aim is to enable satellite measurements to have the most accurate measurements of SST and satellites can only really “see” the surface through the “atmospheric window” from 8-12μm.\nHere are the wavelength dependent emissivity results shown for the 3 viewing angles. You can see that at the lowest viewing angle of 36.5° the emissivity is 0.98 – 0.99 in the 8-12μm range.\nFrom Smith et al (1996)\nNote that the wind speed doesn’t have any effect on emissivity at the more direct angle, but as the viewing angle moves to 73.5° the emissivity has dropped and high wind speeds change the emissivity considerably.\nHenderson et al – 2003\nHenderson et al (2003) is one of the many papers which consider the theoretical basis of how viewing angles change the emissivity and derive a model.\nJust as an introduction, here is the theoretical variation in emissivity with measurement angle, versus “refractive index” as computed by the Fresnel equations:\nThe legend is refractive index from 1.20 to 1.35. Water, at visible wavelengths, has a refractive index of 1.33. This shows how the emissivity reduces once the viewing angle increases above 50° from the vertical.\nThe essence of the problem of sea surface roughness for large viewing angles is shown in the diagram below, where multiple reflections take place:\nHenderson and his co-workers compare their results with the measured results of Smith et al (1996) and also comment that at zenith viewing angles the emissivity does not depend on the wind speed, but at larger angles from vertical it does.\nA quick summary of their model:\nWe have developed a Monte Carlo ray-tracing model to compute the emissivity of computer-rendered, wind-roughened sea surfaces. The use of a ray-tracing method allows us to include both the reflected emission and shadowing and, furthermore, permits us to examine more closely how these processes control the radiative properties of the surface. The intensity of the radiation along a given ray path is quantified using Stokes vectors, and thus, polarization is explicitly included in the calculations as well.\nTheir model results compare well with the experimental results. Note that the approach of generating a mathematical model to calculate how emissivity changes with wind speed and, therefore, wave shape is not at all new.\nWater retains its inherent properties of emissivity regardless of how it is moving or what shape it is. The theoretical challenge is handling the multiple reflections, absorptions, re-emissions that take place when the radiance from the water is measured at some angle from the vertical.\nThe best up to date measurements of ocean emissivity in the 8-14 μm range are 0.98 – 0.99. The 8-14 μm range is well-known because of the intense focus on sea surface temperature measurements from satellite.\nFrom quite ancient data, the average emissivity of water across a very wide broadband range (1-100 μm) is 0.96 for water temperatures from 0-30°C.\nThe values from the ocean when measured close to the vertical are independent of wind speed and sea surface roughness. As the angle of measurement moves from the vertical around to the horizon the measured emissivity drops and the wind speed affects the measurement significantly.\nThese values have been extensively researched because the calculation of sea surface temperature from satellite measurements in the 8-14μm “atmospheric window” relies on the accurate knowledge of emissivity and any factors which affect it.\nFor climate models – I haven’t checked what values they use. I assume they use the best experimental values from the field. That’s an assumption. I’ve already read enough on ocean emissivity.\nFor energy balance models, like the Trenberth and Kiehl update, an emissivity of 1 doesn’t really affect their calculations. The reason, stated simply, is that the upwards surface radiation and the downward atmospheric radiation are quite close in magnitude. For example, the globally annually averaged values of both are 396 W/m² (upward surface) vs 340 W/m² (downward atmospheric).\nSuppose the emissivity drops from 0.98 to 0.97 – what is the effect on upwards radiation through the atmosphere?\nThe upwards radiation has dropped by 4W/m², but the reflected atmospheric radiation has increased by 3.4W/m². The net upwards radiation through the atmosphere has reduced by only 0.6 W/m².\nOne of our commenters asked what value the IPCC uses. The answer is they don’t use a value at all because they summarize research from papers in the field.\nWhether they do it well or badly is a subject of much controversy, but what is most important to understand is that the IPCC does not write papers, or perform GCM model runs, or do experiments – and that is why you see almost no equations in their many 1000′s of pages of discussion on climate science.\nFor those who don’t believe the “greenhouse” effect exists, take a look at Understanding Atmospheric Radiation and the “Greenhouse” Effect – Part One in the light of all the measured results for ocean emissivity.\nOn Another Note\nIt’s common to find claims on various blogs and in comments on blogs that climate science doesn’t do much actual research.\nI haven’t found that to be true. I have found the opposite.\nWhenever I have gone digging for a particular subject, whether it is the diurnal temperature variation in the sea surface, diapycnal & isopycnal eddy diffusivity, ocean emissivity, or the possible direction and magnitude of water vapor feedback, I have found a huge swathe of original research, of research building on other research, of research challenging other research, and detailed accounts of experimental methods, results and comparison with theory and models.\nJust as an example, in the case of emissivity of sea surface, at the end of the article you can see the first 30 or so results pulled up from one journal – Remote Sensing of the Environment for the search phrase “emissivity sea surface”. The journal search engine found 348 articles (of course, not every one of them is actually about ocean emissivity measurements).\nPerhaps it might turn out to be the best journal for this subject, but it’s still just one journal.\nBroadband reflectance and emissivity of specular and rough water surfaces, Sidran, Applied Optics (1981)\nIn situ angular measurements of thermal infrared sea surface emissivity—validation of models, Niclòs, Valor, Caselles, Coll & Sànchez, Remote Sensing of Environment (2005)\nMeasurement of the Sea Surface Emissivity, Konda, Imasato, Nishi and Toda, Journal of Oceanography (1994)\nObservations of the Infrared Radiative Properties of the Ocean—Implications for the Measurement of Sea Surface Temperature via Satellite Remote Sensing, Smith, Knuteson, Revercomb, Feltz, Nalli, Howell, Menzel, Brown, Brown, Minnett & McKeown, Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society (1996)\nThe polarized emissivity of a wind-roughened sea surface: A Monte Carlo model, Henderson, Theiler & Villeneuve, Remote Sensing of Environment (2003)\nNote 1: The upward radiation from the surface is the sum of three contributions: (i) direct emission of the sea surface, which is attenuated by the absorption of the atmospheric layer between the sea surface and the instrument; (ii) reflection of the downwelling sky radiance on the sea, attenuated by the atmosphere; and (iii) the upwelling atmospheric radiance emitted in the observing direction.\nSo the measured radiance can be expressed as:\nwhere the three terms on the right are each of the three contributions noted in the same order.\nNote 2: 1/10th of the search results returned from one journal for the search term “emissivity sea surface”:\nRemote Sensing of Environment - search results\nRead Full Post »"}
{"text": "The Bruce-Benedicks Saga and the Birth of the AGH\nWhile living in Paris in the 1880's, the budding young Canadian artist, William Blair Bruce\n, met the aristocratic Swedish sculptress, Caroline Benedicks\n. They fell in love, married, and eventually established themselves in a permanent year-round residence, Brucebo\n, on the western seashore of Gotland Island in Sweden. From their artistic union two significant institutions in the world of fine art were to evolve – the birth of the Art Gallery of Hamilton in Canada and the creation of the Brucebo Fine Art Scholarship Foundation in Sweden.\nThe saga of William and Caroline’s life-story spans one of the most exciting phases in European contemporary history, including its fine art development. It comprises the last quarter of the 19th century and the decades leading up to World War II. The era is characterized by dramatic transformations in not just technological and industrial developments, but also in social and cultural institutions, including the world of art in its various forms.\nwas born in 1856 into a wealthy industrialist family in Stockholm. Caroline had finished her studies in Sweden in the early 1880's, before moving South, to Paris, and settling in the village of Grez-sur-Long in 1884, where she stood out from the majority of artists living there. First, she was a single young female in a society that basically frowned upon such status. Second, she was financially independent, and third, she had received a typical \"proper\" education as behooved a young woman of wealthy family circumstances. Finally, she was a family girl whose keen interest in the fine arts had landed her in a sea of male artists. Another factor that made her quite atypical was her chosen field of art specialization in sculpture rather than the standard popular domain of painting.\nWilliam Blair Bruce’s\nformative years could not have been more different from Caroline’s. William was born in 1859 into a comfortable middle-class here a continent away in Canada, on Hamilton’s “mountain”. He received his early training from his father who was also an amateur painter. In 1877, William studied at the local Mechanics Institute (Hamilton Art School), and from 1878 until 1880 was employed as a draftsman for a local architectural firm.\nIn the autumn of 1881, at age 22, William sailed to France, settling in Paris and enrolling in classes at the Académie Julien. William wanted to soak up the Parisian atmosphere, discover new inspirational approaches in painting by rubbing shoulders with contemporaries, and to meet the new generation of avant-guard painters. Above all, he wanted to pit his artistic skills and talent in the open competition at the annual Grand Salon, and at various exhibition galleries, against other talented painters who tried to achieve fame in the art world “mecca”, Paris.\nWilliam’s behavior in this world was typical. He first rented a studio apartment on Rive Gauche with all the other aspiring artists. However, in 1882, he leased a cottage in the village of Barbizon, on the outskirts of the Forest of Fontainebleau. This became his permanent pied-a-terre during his years in Paris.Meanwhile, Caroline was mixing with the Swedish crowd that tended to center upon the village of Grez-sur-Long, where the young, up-and-coming generation of Swedish painters were developing their talents.\nThe 1880's were an exciting time for any young artist to reside in France. Toward the latter part of the 19th century, the art world in general had broken with the previous romantic/realism styles that had typified the (landscape) painting schools, both on the Continent and in England during earlier decades. New fine art waves were washing away the traditional studio-based approach to painting, and the innovations in France at the time fostered the first generation of impressionistic painters. This powerful wave of avant-garde art as represented by the impressionists had a major impact throughout European and international art communities. The standard bearers, such as Corot, Monet, Pissaro, and Sisley, were all well-established, and frequently organized private exhibitions outside the annual Paris Salon. They, and others in a widening flock, served as beacons for the younger generation of artists that came to France. William and Caroline included.\nThe first couple of meetings of Caroline and William must have occurred in this context - accidental and informal encounters in popular places of residence typical of the artistic community at large.\nBy this time, Caroline was an active and respected member of the Swedish art circles, first at Grez and later Paris. Indeed, before she came to Paris, she had been admitted into the Royal Swedish Academy of Art, a measure of her professional calibre. How a \" colonial nobody \" such as William, straight out of the British North America Dominion of Canada, could fit into her busy social and professional calendar is hard to imagine. Perhaps it can be best explained through the \"Parisian way of life \" - the great ease by which people in the art community socialized. Also, both William and Caroline belonged to the younger \"talent pool\" of the foreign art colony, which also raised their public profile. Hence, given the artist's small world, it was only matter of time before they bumped into each other sometime in the spring of 1885.\nWilliam’s letters home suggested that he possessed both a strong personal determination and a great belief in his own artistic talent. William’s talents were not generally being recognized in France at the time, but what surely must have added a certain personal fame was his ill-fated trip home to Canada in the Fall of 1885, during which the steamship, Brooklyn\n, sank in the Gulf of St. Lawrence with his whole portfolio of five years hard work in Paris – some 200 paintings. Such an event must have been much talked about, and seen as a catastrophic, almost monumental personal tragedy - a drama literally handmade for the bistro and cafe gossip-mills.\nShortly thereafter, a surprise transatlantic voyage brought Caroline and her chaperone uncle to New York and to Canada. After considerable discussion the young couple decided to return to Paris, where William would start resurrecting his shattered career and Caroline continue hers. Caroline and her understanding uncle must have been quite persuasive in the discussions, but more important was the fact that the pair wanted more than anything else to be together, preferably in Paris, where their love affair had begun.\nSo, they crossed the Atlantic again in 1887, she getting closer to her twin \"home-bases\" of Paris and Stockholm, he subconsciously casting loose his moorings from his Canadian home-base.\nAlthough Caroline and William were engaged in the fall of 1886, their subsequent marriage did not materialize until 1888. One can only conclude that there existed a certain amount of concern, even resistance, to the young couple's marriage on the part of the Benedicks family. The fact that the newly-weds almost immediately after the wedding returned to Paris is perhaps indicative of their preference of having the Benedicks clan at some distance rather than just round the corner in Stockholm. After the wedding, which saw an impressive gathering of Stockholm high society and cultural elite, Caroline and William literally fled southward to Paris, where they remained for another couple of years practicing a typical bohemian, but fashionable, vagabond lifestyle. They freely traveled to places that caught their fancy and inspired their creativity. They also took up the habit of spending summers in the North, where at an early stage they became enamored with the Island of Gotland.\nThe Gotland connection is something of an enigma in the Bruce - Benedicks saga. There were no family links with Gotland among the Benedicks, nor any business. The couple seemed to have fallen in love with the island, its serene landscape and leisurely summer ambiance. Gotland Island possessed an open, expansive, almost prairie-flat, pastoral landscape dotted with Viking rune stones, burial sites, rich archeological digs, and 14th century churches in classical \"Gotland Gothic style\". Gotland was romantic, historical, aesthetically pleasing, and highly inspirational - well worth the young artists’ gaze.\nWilliam quickly succumbed. As an aspiring impressionist, he was fascinated by the “Gotland light” and shoreline/seascape interface, both of which figured prominently in his painting from that time on. And, in winter, the island atmosphere was hauntingly dark, with the afternoon's magical l'heure bleue\nreflected across the frozen beaches and snow-covered meadowlands.\nIn 1899, the Bruces' settled at Brucebo\n. The site of their home was located a few kilometers up the coast from Visby, at Skalso - a fishing village on a limestone terrace offering a beautiful westward view toward the low-lying shore, with the light blue sea and sky serving as an immense backdrop. The air was clear, salubrious, and healthy, combining its tonic quality with a scent of fresh pine and the sound of the wind through the forest. At Brucebo\nthey experienced spectacular and ever-changing scenery and the rhythmic sounds of wave and wind mixed with the cries of terns and seagulls. The summer climate was dry, sunny and warm – the very best Sweden could offer, especially for William who was sensitive to damp and raw weather.\nThe Bruces loved their Brucebo\nhomestead. Caroline did sculpture, etchings, and watercolors, while William captured seascapes on canvas.\nThey had only seven years on Gotland before William’s untimely death on November 17, 1906 at the age of 47. Caroline was then 50 years old, and would survive her husband by 29 more years. She settled for good at Brucebo\nand continued to work as a painter and sculptress. She also took an active interest in a number of contemporary political causes - especially the women's emancipation movement in the years prior to World War I. Strangely perhaps, she also became active in Gotland's voluntary military organization, and over the years established herself as a great nationalist-patriot with strong sympathies for the British- French Grande Entente. Indeed, Caroline's life remained full to the very end.\nWhen Caroline passed away, World War II was only four years away, the famous impressionists were all long-gone, 20th century modernistic fine art styles were in full bloom, and social democracy was about to become the political standard in Sweden.\nAfter the death of Caroline in 1935 at the age of 70, a grant endowment was established. However, it was only in 1972 that the formula and institutional arrangement for her wish that a stipend be made available to a promising Canadian painter to spend some summer weeks at Brucebo\non the island of Gotland, became reality. Thus, through the Gotland Fine Art Museum, and the Brucebo Fine Art Scholarship Foundation, the Brucebo Fine Arts Summer Scholarship and in recent years, the William Blair Bruce Fine Arts European Travel Scholarship have been offered in a tangible and lasting manner to talented Canadian artists, in commemoration of William Blair Bruce of Hamilton Ontario, and Caroline Benedicks of Stockholm Sweden, and of their transatlantic saga of love and art.\nBut there was also another more immediate legacy of this saga. Upon the death of William, his father in Hamilton and his widow in Gotland offered the City of Hamilton twenty-nine of William’s works, on the understanding that a permanent municipal gallery would be established to house them. However, Hamilton lacked a municipal art gallery at the time, and six years were to pass before the City acquired a space to house the Blair Bruce Collection\nIn 1913 the first Hamilton Public Library vacated their building, built on Main Street West near James in 1890, and moved across the street into the new Carnegie Library. Finally, on November 27, 1913 the City finally designated the second floor and attic of the old Public Library Building as space for the first municipal art gallery, named the Hamilton Municipal Gallery\nWithout the Blair Bruce bequest, it would likely have been many years before Hamilton could ever boast a municipal art gallery – perhaps never. Today, that modest gallery with its Blair Bruce Collection has grown and matured to become the Art Gallery of Hamilton\nFor AGH's chronology from 1886 to 2005, click here."}
{"text": "Tamoxifen use 'should double' to stop breast cancer returning\nA decade's treatment with tamoxifen could stop the return of breast cancer for many more women than the current recommendation for five years, say researchers.\nUniversity of Oxford scientists say the doubling cuts both the risk of the cancer returning and deaths from the disease.\nWriting in The Lancet, they say this outweighs the risk of side effects.\nCancer Research UK said the study added important clarity.\nTamoxifen tablets have long been part of the daily routine for women in the years after remission from 'ER-positive' breast cancer.\nER-positive tumour growth is accelerated by the female sex hormone oestrogen, and tamoxifen blocks the hormone.\nAn international group of scientists, led by Dr Christina Davies from the University of Oxford, looked at the effect of sustained tamoxifen on the likelihood that cancer would return.\nThey looked at 6,847 women with the ER-positive version of the disease, half of whom were given tamoxifen for the standard five year period, and half who continued with the drug until the 10 year mark.\nThe results found that cancer returned in a quarter of the women given five years of tamoxifen. That fell to 21.4% in those given ten years of the drug.\nDeaths from breast cancer was also significantly reduced, from 15% of those on the five-year programme, to just over 12% of those given 10 years.\nEnd Quote Dr Caitlin Palframan Breakthrough Breast Cancer\nThis trial is great news for women with this type of breast cancer as it suggests that taking the commonly used drug, tamoxifen, for longer could save more lives with minimal additional side effects”\nWhile the changes are only a few percent, with more than 40,000 women diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK alone every year, a large proportion of whom have 'ER-positive' cancer, it could mean a significant decrease in the number whose cancer returns.\nThe report authors said: \"Good evidence now exists that 10 years of tamoxifen in ER-positive breast cancer produces substantial reductions in rates of recurrence and in breast cancer mortality not only during the first decade, while treatment continues, but also during the second decade, long after it has ended.\"\nThe drug does cause side-effects in some patients, including, rarely, cancer of the lining of the womb, but the scientists said that the increased chance of preventing breast cancer returning far outweighed the risk.\nDr Caitlin Palframan, head of policy at Breakthrough Breast Cancer, said: \"ER-positive breast cancer is the most common type of breast cancer and so improving treatment and getting the most out of the effective treatments we already have is key.\n\"This trial is great news for women with this type of breast cancer as it suggests that taking the commonly used drug, tamoxifen, for longer could save more lives with minimal additional side effects.\"\nOther scientists say that 10 years could now become the standard for treatment.\nProf Trevor Powles, from Cancer Centre London, said that this, and other studies due to report next year, \"should herald a change in practice\".\nThe National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence said: \"We do not generally make recommendations relating to how long a patient should receive tamoxifen; that decision should be made by a doctor according to their professional judgement and in discussion with their patient, not least because there are continuing trials in this area.\n\"We review our guidance regularly to ensure it remains based on the best, most up-to-date evidence available and, when we come to update our guidelines on the diagnosis and management of breast cancer, we will take all new evidence into consideration.\"\nMartin Ledwick, from Cancer Research UK which funded the study, said: \"This important study adds further clarity to the question about the length of time women should take tamoxifen.\n\"Although treatment for hormone receptor positive breast cancer has become more complex in recent years with some women receiving aromatese inhibitors, these results will help in deciding the length of treatment for women who are prescribed tamoxifen alone.\""}
{"text": "Nov. 30, 2006 -- Do the sounds of our native languages affect how we hear music and other non-language sounds\" A team of American and Japanese researchers has found evidence that native languages influence the way people group non-language sounds into rhythms.\nPeople in different cultures perceive different rhythms in identical sequences of sound, according to Drs. John R. Iversen and Aniruddh D. Patel of The Neuroscience Institute in San Diego and Dr. Kengo Ohgushi of the Kyoto City University of Arts in Kyoto, Japan. This provides evidence that exposure to certain patterns of speech can influence one's perceptions of musical rhythms. In future work, they believe they may even be able to predict how people will hear rhythms based on the structures of their own languages. The researchers will present their findings Nov. 30 at the Fourth Joint Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America (ASA) and the Acoustical Society of Japan (ASJ), which will be held at the Sheraton Waikiki and Royal Hawaiian Hotels in Honolulu, Hawaii. The meeting will run from Nov. 28 through Dec. 2, and more than 1600 papers will be presented.\nResearchers have traditionally tested how individuals group rhythms by playing simple sequences of tones. For example, listeners are presented with tones that alternate in loudness (...loud-soft-loud-soft...) or duration (...long-short-long-short...) and are asked to indicate their perceived grouping. Two principles established a century ago, and confirmed in numerous studies since, are widely accepted: a louder sound tends to mark the beginning of a group, and a lengthened sound tends to mark the end of a group. These principles have come to be viewed as universal laws of perception, underlying the rhythms of both speech and music. However, the cross-cultural data have come from a limited range of cultures, such as American, Dutch and French.\nThis new study suggests one of those so-called \"universal\" principles, perceiving a longer sound at the end of a group, may be merely a byproduct of English and other Western languages. In the experiments Iversen, Patel and Ohgushi performed, native speakers of Japanese and native speakers of American English agreed with the principle that they heard repeating \"loud-soft\" groups. However, the listeners showed a sharp difference when it came to the duration principle. English-speaking listeners most often grouped perceived alternating short and long tones as \"short-long.\" Japanese-speaking listeners, albeit with more variability, were more likely to perceive the tones as \"long-short.\" Since this finding was surprising and contradicted a common belief of perception, the researchers replicated and confirmed it with listeners from different parts of Japan.\nTo uncover why these differences exist, one clue may come from understanding how musical rhythms begin in the two cultures. For example, if most phrases in American music start with a short-long pattern, and most phrases in Japanese music start with a long-short pattern, then listeners might learn to use these patterns as cues for how to group them. To test this idea, the researchers examined phrases in American and Japanese children's songs. They examined 50 songs per culture, and for each beginning phrase they computed the duration ratio of the first note to the second note and counted how often phrases started with a short-long pattern versus other possible patterns such as long-short, or equal duration. They found American songs show no bias to start phrases with a short-long pattern. But Japanese songs show a bias to start phrases with a long-short pattern, consistent with their perceptual findings.\nOne basic difference between English and Japanese is word order. In English, short grammatical, or \"function,\" words such as \"the,\" \"a,\" and \"to,\" come at the beginning of phrases and combine with longer meaningful, or \"content,\" words such as a nouns or verbs. Function words are typically reduced in speech, having short duration and low stress. This creates frequent linguistic chunks that start with a short element and end with a long one, such as \"to eat,\" and \"a big desk.\" This fact about English has long been exploited by poets in creating the English language's most common verse form, iambic pentameter.\nJapanese, in contrast, places function words at the ends of phrases. Common function words in Japanese include \"case markers,\" or short sounds which can indicate whether a noun is a subject, direct object, indirect object, etc. For example, in the sentence \"John-san-ga Mari-san-ni hon-wo agemashita,\" (\"John gave a book to Mari\") the suffixes \"ga,\" \"ni\" and \"wo\" are case markers indicating that John is the subject, Mari is the indirect object and \"hon\" (book) is the direct object. Placing function words at the ends of phrases creates frequent chunks that start with a long element and end with a short one, which is just the opposite of the rhythm of short phrases in English.\nIn addition to potentially uncovering a new link between language and music, the researchers' work demonstrates there is a need for cross-cultural research when it comes to testing general principles of auditory perception.\nAAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system."}
{"text": "How do you get your heart rate on target?\nWhen you work out, are you doing too much or not enough?\nThere’s a simple way to know: Your target heart rate helps you hit the bull’s eye. “We don’t want people to over-exercise, and the other extreme is not getting enough exercise,” says Gerald Fletcher, M.D., a cardiologist and professor in the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Jacksonville, Fla.\nFirst Thing’s First\nBefore you learn how to calculate and monitor your target training heart rate, you have to know your resting heart rate. Your resting heart rate is the number of times your heart beats per minute while it’s at rest.\nIt’s best to check it in the morning after you’ve had a good night’s sleep and before you get out of bed. The average resting heart rate is 60-80 beats per minute, but it’s usually lower for physically fit people. It also rises with age.\nHitttin’ the Target\nNow you’re ready to determine your target training heart rate. As you exercise, periodically:\n• Take your pulse on the inside of your wrist, on the thumb side.\n• Use the tips of your first two fingers (not your thumb) to press lightly over the blood vessels on your wrist.\n• Count your pulse for 10 seconds and multiply by 6 to find your beats per minute. You want to stay between 50 percent to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate. This range is your target heart rate.\nKnow Your Numbers\nThe table below shows estimated target heart rates for different ages. In the age category closest to yours, read across to find your target heart rate. Your maximum heart rate is about 220 minus your age. The figures are averages, so use them as general guidelines.\n|Age||Target HR Zone 50-85%||Average Maximum Heart Rate, 100%|\n|20 years||100-170 beats per minute||200 beats per minute|\n|30 years||95-162 beats per minute||190 beats per minute|\n|35 years||93-157 beats per minute||185 beats per minute|\n|40 years||90-153 beats per minute||180 beats per minute|\n|45 years||88-149 beats per minute||175 beats per minute|\n|50 years||85-145 beats per minute||170 beats per minute|\n|55 years||83-140 beats per minute||165 beats per minute|\n|60 years||80-136 beats per minute||160 beats per minute|\n|65 years||78-132 beats per minute||155 beats per minute|\n|70 years||75-128 beats per minute||150 beats per minute|\nImportant Note: A few high blood pressure medications lower the maximum heart rate and thus the target zone rate. If you're taking such medicine, call your physician to find out if you need to use a lower target heart rate.\nSo what’s in a number?\nIf your target heart rate is too high, you’re straining. So slow down. If it’s too low, and the intensity feels “light” or “moderate/brisk,” push yourself to exercise a little harder. During the first few weeks of working out, aim for the lowest part of your target zone (50 percent). Then, gradually build up to the higher part (85 percent). After six months or more, you may be able to exercise comfortably at up to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate. But you don't have to exercise that hard to stay in shape.\n“It’s not an absolute, but it’s a good tool to have,” says Fletcher, who is also an American Heart Association volunteer. “And if you don’t know it, remember, if you’re not able to carry on a conversation (while exercising), that may be a bit too much.”\nIf you have a heart condition or you’re in cardiac rehab, talk to a healthcare professional about what exercises you can engage in, what your target heart rate should be and whether you need to be monitored during physical activity. This will also help you to choose the types of physical activity that are appropriate for your current fitness level and health goals, because some activities are safer than others."}
{"text": "Today is Sunday, Feb. 3, the 34th day of 2013. There are 331 days left in the year.\nToday's Highlight in History:\nOn Feb. 3, 1913, the 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, providing for a federal income tax, was ratified.\nOn this date:\nIn 1783, Spain formally recognized American independence.\nIn 1865, President Abraham Lincoln and Confederate Vice President Alexander H. Stephens held a shipboard peace conference off the Virginia coast; the talks deadlocked over the issue of Southern autonomy.\nIn 1924, the 28th president of the United States, Woodrow Wilson, died in Washington, D.C., at age 67.\nIn 1930, the chief justice of the United States, William Howard Taft, resigned for health reasons. (He died just over a month later.)\nIn 1943, during World War II, the U.S. transport ship Dorchester, which was carrying troops to Greenland, sank after being hit by a German torpedo; of the more than 900 men aboard, only some 230 survived.\nIn 1953, the Batepa Massacre took place in Sao Tome as Portuguese troops killed some 1,000 striking plantation workers.\nIn 1959, rock-and-roll stars Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. \"The Big Bopper\" Richardson died in a small plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa. An American Airlines Lockheed Electra crashed into New York's East River, killing 65 of the 73 people on board.\nIn 1966, the Soviet probe Luna 9 became the first manmade object to make a soft landing on the moon.\nIn 1971, New York City police officer Frank Serpico, who had charged there was widespread corruption in the NYPD, was shot and seriously wounded during a drug bust in Brooklyn.\nIn 1972, the XI Olympic Winter Games opened in Sapporo, Japan.\nIn 1991, the rate for a first-class postage stamp rose to 29 cents.\nIn 1998, Texas executed Karla Faye Tucker, 38, for the pickax killings of two people in 1983; she was the first woman executed in the United States since 1984. A U.S. Marine plane sliced through the cable of a ski gondola in Italy, sending the car plunging hundreds of feet, killing all 20 people inside.\nTen years ago: President George W. Bush sent lawmakers a $2.23 trillion budget for 2004. Abandoning a two-month-long general strike that failed to oust President Hugo Chavez, Venezuela's workers returned to work in all sectors but the vital oil industry. Legendary record producer Phil Spector was arrested in the shooting death of actress Lana Clarkson at his mansion in Alhambra, Calif. (Spector's first trial ended in a jury deadlock; he was convicted of second-degree murder in a retrial and sentenced to 19 years to life in prison.)\nFive years ago: The New York Giants scored a late touchdown to win Super Bowl XLII, 17-14, ending the New England Patriots' run at a perfect season.\nOne year ago: Susan G. Komen for the Cure abandoned plans to eliminate funding for Planned Parenthood, following a three-day furor that resounded across the Internet, in Congress and among Komen affiliates. Federal prosecutors dropped their investigation of Lance Armstrong, ending a nearly two-year effort aimed at determining whether the seven-time Tour de France winner and his teammates had participated in a doping program. (In January 2013, Armstrong publicly admitted taking performance-enhancing drugs.) Actor Ben Gazzara, 81, died in New York. Actor-filmmaker Zalman King, 70, died in Santa, Monica, Calif.\nToday's Birthdays: Comedian Shelley Berman is 88. Former Sen. Paul Sarbanes, D-Md., is 80. Football Hall-of-Famer Fran Tarkenton is 73. Actress Bridget Hanley is 72. Actress Blythe Danner is 70. Singer Dennis Edwards is 70. Football Hall-of-Famer Bob Griese is 68. Singer-guitarist Dave Davies (The Kinks) is 66. Singer Melanie is 66. Actress Morgan Fairchild is 63. Actress Pamela Franklin is 63. Actor Nathan Lane is 57. Rock musician Lee Ranaldo (Sonic Youth) is 57. Actor Thomas Calabro is 54. Actor-director Keith Gordon is 52. Actress Michele Greene is 51. Country singer Matraca Berg is 49. Actress Maura Tierney is 48. Actor Warwick Davis is 43. Actress Elisa Donovan is 42. Reggaeton singer Daddy Yankee is 37. Musician Grant Barry is 36. Singer-songwriter Jessica Harp is 31. Actor Matthew Moy is 29. Rapper Sean Kingston is 23.\nThought for Today: \"When there is an income tax, the just man will pay more and the unjust less on the same amount of income.\" — Plato, Greek philosopher."}
{"text": "Growing Political Turmoil\nAfter the conservatives came to power in Spain in November 1933, the CNT planned a national uprising for December 8. Despite a spectacular Barcelona jail break by CNT prisoners, the insurrection was a failure; indeed, it was used to legitimate government censorship, union repression, and the arrest of labor leaders. When, in October 1934, the Catholic conservative party won three cabinet positions, Socialists and anarcho-syndicalists were galvanized to take action against what they feared would be a right-wing coup, whether in fact or\nin name. Within a few days, the CNT and the Socialist General Confederation of Workers (UGT), which since December 1933 had been discussing some kind of working-class alliance, planned a national general strike. It began on October 4, with coal miners in Asturias in northern Spain leading the struggle. If there had been any doubts about the ruthlessness of the new republican government, they were laid to rest by its treatment of the workers. Utterly unsympathetic to the gruesome conditions under which the coal miners worked and without concern for their fears, it called in Colonel Francisco Franco. As commander of the crack Moroccan troops and Foreign Legion mercenaries, Franco showed no mercy as his soldiers quashed the miners and their supporters. From October 10 to October 18, Moroccan troops and Legionnaires were permitted to rape and pillage in the mining towns of Asturias. The maneuver resulted in about one thousand dead and thirty to forty thousand jailed throughout Spain.\nThe day after the nationwide general strike was called on October 4, 1934, Lluís Companys, now president of the Generalitat, proclaimed the \"Republic of Catalunya within the Federal Republic of Spain\"—an act that was regarded as treason, since there was no federalist state at the time. Companys was arrested and held for sixteen months, and the Statute of Autonomy was abrogated.\nAfter the strike, forces from among Spain's landowners, its army, and its fascist Falange political party had begun to negotiate with Mussolini and Hitler, from whom they obtained financial commitments and promises of military support for a rebellion to overthrow the legally elected Second Republic. The republicans and the left, increasingly aware of the growing fascist menace throughout Europe and mindful that in 1933 divisions among republicans, Socialists, and leftists had permitted conservatives to come to power in Spain, decided to run a unified slate for the parliamentary elections of February 16, 1936. Their coalition, like other such slates elsewhere in Europe, was known as the Popular Front.\nMeanwhile, during the summer of 1935, Jaume Sabartés, a poet turned journalist who had been a close friend of Picasso's some three decades earlier in Barcelona, received a summons from the painter. Now that Picasso had left his wife Olga Koklova, with whom he had been fighting for years, he needed a secretary. He hoped that Sabartés, who had recently returned to the city after twenty years as a journalist in Latin America, would accept this position. Although Sabartés had been\nthe butt of Picasso's jokes in their youth, he was happy to serve. Persuading his own wife to join him, Sabartés headed for Paris, where, from November 1935 to the winter of 1937, he practically lived with Picasso as his secretary and companion. Presumably, he filled Picasso in on recent events in Barcelona.\nIn the midst of the Popular Front election campaign, Picasso was contacted by the Catalan Friends of the New Arts (Amics de l'Art Nou, or ADLAN), who wanted to open an exhibit of his work on February 18, 1936, two days after the election was scheduled to take place. Even though Picasso was a celebrity, few in Barcelona were familiar with his art, which had not been seen since he and Ramón Casas exhibited jointly in Barcelona in 1932. Picasso agreed to the retrospective but refused to attend. His mother, María Picasso, Joan Miró, and Salvador Dalí talked on the radio in his place to publicize the show. Picasso's friend, the surrealist poet Paul Éluard, traveled down to Barcelona from Paris for the exhibit and delivered a lecture at the opening. Éluard, standing in for Picasso, received the hearty support of students who chanted, \"Picasso, the Marxist,\" confirming that they saw Picasso as a radical. (In fact, although Picasso did later, in 1944, join the Communist party of France, Éluard, like most of the other surrealists, had become a member in 1926.)\nWhen the Popular Front won the elections in February, the left was jubilant, and the right intensified their plotting. With the support of Catholic landowners and fascists, five generals, including Francisco Franco, organized a barracks uprising for July 18, 1936, that was designed to overthrow the freely elected government and impose one more congenial to themselves. The plotters, however, had not counted on the loyalty of certain officers who supported the Popular Front. Nor did they count on the quick action of the people in cities like Barcelona, Madrid, and Seville, where civilians—many of them acting through their unions—rose up to defend the Republic. Only about half of Spain went over to the rebels. And thus the Spanish Civil War of 1936 to 1939 began.\nOn the day of the attempted coup in Barcelona, the CNT marched on the army barracks, disarmed the soldiers, and seized their weapons to arm themselves. Having chafed at the bit under nearly five years of republican rule, the CNT now attempted to carry out a social revolution by collectivizing all local economic and social resources. George Orwell, who was in Barcelona shortly afterward, talked about how it felt to be in a city in which the people ruled:\nIt was the first time I had ever been in a town where the working class was in the saddle. Practically every building of any size had been seized by the workers and was draped with red flags or with the red and black flag of the Anarchists; . . . almost every church had been gutted and its images burnt. Every shop and café had an inscription saying that it had been collectivized; even the bootblacks had been collectivized and their boxes painted red and black. Waiters and shop-workers looked you in the face and treated you as an equal. Servile and even ceremonial forms of speech had temporarily disappeared. Nobody said \"Señor\" or \"Don\" or even \"Usted\"; everyone called everyone else \"Comrade\" and \"Thou. \" . . . The revolutionary posters were everywhere, flaming the walls in clean reds and blues that made the few remaining advertisements look like daubs of mud. . . . Practically everyone wore rough working-class clothes, or blue overalls, or some variant of the militia uniform. All this was queer and moving. There was much in it that I did not understand, in some ways I did not even like it, but I recognized it immediately as a state of affairs worth fighting for.\nThe Spanish Republican government continued to carry on its work while it attempted to defend itself against its enemies. The right-wing rebels, among whom General Francisco Franco had become preeminent by November 1936, were willing to empower Hitler and Mussolini to test new military strategies on Spain in their behalf. On October 23, 1936, three months after the Civil War had begun, the Luftwaffe began to bomb Madrid. Over five thousand people were killed in a single night, in the first time systematic bombing was used specifically to terrorize and crush the will of a civilian population. Like later similar attempts, however, this first instance only enhanced the resolve of the people, both in Madrid and in the Spanish nation as a whole. It was at this time that Dolores Ibarruri, a Communist leader known as \"La Pasionaria,\" coined the slogan \"No pasarán\" (They shall not pass), which became a watchword for democratic forces throughout the world."}
{"text": "MONTPELIER — Vermont students’ vocabulary comprehension in the fourth and eighth grades are above national averages, according to data released by the National Assessment of Educational Progress.\nChallis Breithaupt, NAEP state coordinator at Vermont Department of Education, said it was the first-ever national vocabulary report.\n“There was a new framework for reading in 2009 and the feeling was there needed to be a criteria developed for vocabulary,” Breithaupt said.\nThe measure would assess more of students’ ability to understand vocabulary and their ability to acquire meaning from passages they were reading.\n“Helping students to increase their vocabulary and to feel comfortable using words in various contexts is paramount,” state Education Commissioner Armando Vilaseca said in a statement. “There is significant research in the field supporting a link between vocabulary and comprehension.”\nOn a scale of 0-500, fourth-graders scored 224 and eighth-graders scored 274. The national average for fourth- and eighth-graders was 217 and 263, respectively.\nOnly Connecticut, Massachusetts, Montana and North Dakota scored higher than Vermont’s eighth-grade vocabulary.\n“Students use their knowledge of words in order to understand what they are reading, to identify ideas and themes,” said Vilaseca. “Summer reading programs continue to support the good work that is done throughout the school year; keeping our children’s minds active supports strong reading and comprehension skills.”\nThe NAEP addressed the method of the vocabulary test in its results: “Unlike traditional tests of vocabulary that ask students to write definitions of words in isolation, NAEP always assesses word meaning within the context of particular passages. Students are asked to demonstrate their understanding of words by recognizing what meaning the word contributes to the passage in which it appears.”\nFor more information, The report card can be found online: www.nationsreportcard.gov.MORE IN Vermont News\n- Most Popular\n- Most Emailed\n- MEDIA GALLERY"}
{"text": "This is an old revision of ArchaeologicalFindsandtheClassroom from 2008-03-13 15:48:05.\nWest Yorkshire Archaeology Advisory Service\nArchaeological Finds and the Classroom\nAs its name suggests this web-based presentation is intended primarily for use with schools. However, the ideas it contains will also be useful for those of you working with young people in a less formal setting, perhaps through a youth group or a Young Archaeologists Club. Archaeological Finds and the Classroom outlines activities which you can use to get children thinking and talking about archaeological artefacts. It also offers guidance on carrying out fieldwork (fieldwalking, garden pottery surveys and molehill surveys) and offers advice on how to make the best use of the results.\nTo find out more, visit the website (www.arch.wyjs.org.uk/AdvSrv/Classroom/introduction.htm∞).\n| CBA, St Mary's House, 66 Bootham, York YO30 7BZ.\ntel: +(44) (0)1904 671417 | fax: +(44) (0)1904 671384 | email:"}
{"text": "Don't miss our great houseplant growing section with self watering planters, high quality potting soil, organic houseplant fertilizers, sprouting bags and more.\nIn the late 1980s, a study by NASA and the Associated Landscape Contractors of America (ALCA) resulted in excellent news for homeowners and office workers everywhere. The study concluded that common houseplants such as bamboo palms and spider plants not only make indoor spaces more attractive, they also help to purify the air!\nThe study was conducted by Dr. B.C. Wolverton, Anne Johnson, and Keith Bounds in 1989. While it was originally intended to find ways to purify the air for extended stays in orbiting space stations, the study proved to have implications on Earth as well.\nNewer homes and buildings, designed for energy efficiency, are often tightly sealed to avoid energy loss from heating and air conditioning systems. Moreover, synthetic building materials used in modern construction have been found to produce potential pollutants that remain trapped in these unventilated buildings.\nThe trapped pollutants result in what is often called the Sick Building Syndrome. With our ultra modern homes and offices that are virtually sealed off from the outside environment, this study is just as important now as when it was first published.\nWhile itís a well known fact that plants convert carbon dioxide into oxygen through photosynthesis, the NASA/ALCA study showed that many houseplants also remove harmful elements such as trichloroethylene, benzene, and formaldehyde from the air.\nNASA and ALCA spent two years testing 19 different common houseplants for their ability to remove these common pollutants from the air. Of the 19 plants they studied, 17 are considered true houseplants, and two, gerbera daisies and chrysanthemums, are more commonly used indoors as seasonal decorations.\nThe advantage that houseplants have over other plants is that they are adapted to tropical areas where they grow beneath dense tropical canopies and must survive in areas of low light. These plants are thus ultra-efficient at capturing light, which also means that they must be very efficient in processing the gasses necessary for photosynthesis. Because of this fact, they have greater potential to absorb other gases, including potentially harmful ones.\nIn the study NASA and ALCA tested primarily for three chemicals: Formaldehyde, Benzene, and Trichloroethylene. Formaldehyde is used in many building materials including particle board and foam insulations. Additionally, many cleaning products contain this chemical. Benzene is a common solvent found in oils and paints. Trichloroethylene is used in paints, adhesives, inks, and varnishes.\nWhile NASA found that some of the plants were better than others for absorbing these common pollutants, all of the plants had properties that were useful in improving overall indoor air quality.\nNASA also noted that some plants are better than others in treating certain chemicals.\nFor example, English ivy, gerbera daisies, pot mums, peace lily, bamboo palm, and Mother-in-law's Tongue were found to be the best plants for treating air contaminated with Benzene. The peace lily, gerbera daisy, and bamboo palm were very effective in treating Trichloroethylene.\nAdditionally, NASA found that the bamboo palm, Mother-in-law's tongue, dracaena warneckei, peace lily, dracaena marginata, golden pathos, and green spider plant worked well for filtering Formaldehyde.\nAfter conducting the study, NASA and ALCA came up with a list of the most effective plants for treating indoor air pollution.\nThe recommended plants can be found below. Note that all the plants in the list are easily available from your local nursery.\nFor an average home of under 2,000 square feet, the study recommends using at least fifteen samples of a good variety of these common houseplants to help improve air quality. They also recommend that the plants be grown in six inch containers or larger.\nHere is a list of resources for more information on this important study:\nPDF files of the NASA studies related to plants and air quality:"}
{"text": "U.S. Presidents: Everything You Need\nWho was the first president to live in the White House? Learn about this and other presidential \"firsts.\"\nRead more >\nHistory of the White House and Washington, D.C. from 1792 to today.\nWho was the first U.S. president to be photographed?\nGrades: 3–5, 6–8\nA few fun facts about America's first President of the United States, from this height and weight to his favorite foods.\nGrades: PreK–K, 1–2\nIn this lesson, students read about George Washington and discuss the monument built in his honor. Then they create their own monument to honor a...\nBirthplace: Shadwell, Albemarle County, VirginiaReligion: Christian (no specific denomination)College Attended: College of William and Mary,...\nSpend a day in the life of the multi-talented man, President Thomas Jefferson, with these informative biographical websites.\nThe President of the United States has seven roles in his job, from being the Commander-In-Chief to the Guardian of the Economy.\nBrief biography of Gerald R. Ford, the 38th president of the United States of America.\nTimeline of the life of former U.S. President Gerald R. Ford.\nTranscript from the February 10, 1995 online interview with former President Gerald R. Ford.\nGrades: PreK–K, 1–2, 3–5, 6–8, 9–12\nImportant events during the presidency of Jimmy Carter.\nPresident Jimmy Carter agreed to answer seven questions selected from several hundred posted by Scholastic students.\nA time line showing the events in Ronald Reagan's life\nRead about the vital statistics and important events that happened during the time Ronald Reagan was President of the United States.\nPresident George H.W. Bush answers questions from students.\nGet the vital statistics and learn about important events that occurred during Bill Clinton's presidency.\nLesson Plans, Book Resources\nEven United States Presidents started out as regular kids! So You Want to Be President? is chock-full of interesting tidbits about our Presidents;...\nActivities and Games, Extension Activities, Book Resources\nExtension activity for Arthur Meets the President by Marc Brown.\nBiography of former United States President George Herbert Walker Bush.\nSign up today for free teaching ideas, lesson plans, online activities, tips for your classroom, and much more.\nChoose your grade range:\nSee a sample >"}
{"text": "King of clocks\nKing bong visited\nAs the UK Parliament prepares to celebrate the 150th anniversary of its world-famous clock, E&T examines the history of Big Ben.\nWith a few seconds to go to midday, I am told to put my fingers firmly in my ears. Even then, when the four quarters are struck, the noise is phenomenal, but nothing compared to the striking of the hour bell, Big Ben. The belfry reverberates with the sound which they say could be heard all over London when the 300kg clapper was first triggered on 11 July 1859.\nNowadays, of course, amid the roar of London's traffic, it is not so noticeable away from the immediate vicinity of the Palace of Westminster, but for many people all around the world its instantly recognisable sound is familiar from the radio and television, especially on New Year's Eve.\nThough over time the clock tower has become known as Big Ben, it is in fact only the hour bell that has that nickname. The mechanism for powering the hands on the four dials and operating the quarter bells and the hour bell is correctly known as the Great Clock of Westminster.\nShowing me around the tower are Paul Roberson and Ian Westworth, who are responsible (together with Huw Smith) for the maintenance of the Great Clock and the other 2,000 clocks in the Palace of Westminster, of which 450 are mechanical or antique. Roberson has been an horologist all his life, taking an apprenticeship in watch and clockmaking straight from school. An obvious clock enthusiast, he says: \"It gets under your skin. I am interested in anything mechanical.\" Westworth worked as a turret clock restorer before becoming a Place of Westminster clockmaker four years ago. Both are proud of the Great Clock as, Westworth says, \"it still does exactly what it was designed to do 150 years ago\".\nAfter the destruction of both houses of parliament by fire in 1834, it was decided that the new buildings should have a grand tower housing \"a noble clock, indeed a king of clocks, the biggest the world has ever seen within sight and sound of the throbbing heart of London\".\nIn his specification, the Astronomer Royal, George Airy, wrote: \"The striking machinery is to be so arranged that the first blow for each hour shall be accurate to the second of time.\" No clockmaker thought it remotely possible to construct a mechanism of the required size that, in addition to sounding five bells and powering hands of four dials, would keep such accurate time. But an appeal by the Worshipful Company of Clock-makers for a less onerous specification was turned down and three horologists were invited to tender.\nEdmund Becket Denison\nIf Edmund Becket Denison had not been invited to join George Airy as a second referee, it is unlikely that such an accurate clock would have been built. Though a barrister by profession, Denison was a gifted amateur horologist, the author of articles and the designer of some fine clocks. He favoured the submission of EJ Dent & Company, to whom he suggested many improvements that amounted to a redesign, and it was to that firm that the contract was awarded in 1852.\nWithin three years the clock was complete, but neither the bells nor the tower in which it would be installed had been finished. However, the delay was fortuitous as it gave Denison the time to design a mechanism that would ensure the clock's accuracy.\nThe problem with turret clocks had always been how to prevent the external forces on the hands being reflected back to the pendulum thus affecting the clock's accuracy. This is achieved with an escapement, a device that transfers the power of the descending weight to the hands by hitting (impulsing) the pendulum. It was Denison who came up with the double three-legged gravity escapement, an ingenious yet simple device, which, as Roberson says, was \"a massive advancement, without which the clock would not be here now\". It was successfully tried out in the harshest of conditions in a clock built by Dent for Fredericton Cathedral in New Brunswick, Canada and thereafter became widely used in turret clocks.\nWhile Denison carried out further trials, the great bell had been completed at a foundry in Stockton-on-Tees in northern England and was transported by water arriving in London on 21 October 1856.\nTrial and error\nWith the clocktower still incomplete, it was set up on a specially built gallows near the foot of the tower, where for almost a year it was struck regularly until, on 17 October 1857, a 1.2m crack appeared. The only solution was to break it up and, in April 1858, a new, lighter, bell, which would become Big Ben, was cast at the Whitechapel Foundry in London's East End.\nIn the meantime, the tower designed by Charles Barry, with the decoration and beautiful dials by Augustus Pugin, was completed. In the summer of 1858, the bells were hand-winched up the shaft, the hoisting of Big Ben taking teams of men working in relays some days to complete.\nWith the installation of the operating mechanism below the Belfry, all was ready by spring 1859. However, each time the minute hands approached the hour, they stopped. The construction of lighter minute hands of hollow copper and hour hands of copper-backed hollow gunmetal allowed it to operate successfully.\nAs far as is known, the clock started officially on 31 May 1859, with Big Ben first sounding the hour on 11 July and the quarter bells chiming from 7 September. The public appreciated the sound but, perhaps predictably, the Members of Parliament complained that it was too loud.\nThe trouble with the clock hands had brought Denison to near despair, so it is not difficult to imagine how he felt when told, less than a month later, that a 30cm-long crack had appeared in Big Ben. There were recriminations all round: Denison accused the Whitechapel Foundry of poor workmanship while the foundry put the damage down to Denison's continued use of a 300kg hammer. Two ensuing libel actions both found in favour of the foundry over Denison.\nTo dismantle the clock, lower the bell and recast it was not considered possible. So, as the crack was neither as deep nor as long as that in the first bell, a slot was cut out to prevent it spreading, a 200kg hammer installed, and the bell turned through about 90°, where it has remained ever since without further problems.\nOf course, there have inevitably been a few problems with the clock mechanism, but normally these are discovered and put right before they become severe. Though it has been given a thorough overhaul for its 150th anniversary, Roberson says: \"There isn't a servicing schedule like a car. We are up here three times a week and can see any fault developing.\"\nWith the last chime of Big Ben, we remove our fingers from our ears, but the resonance seems to go on and on - \"for 30 seconds\", I am told by Roberson. From the belfry we make our way down to see the dials. Now each illuminated by 28 long-life bulbs of 85W, they were originally lit by gas jets and looked after by a gas man who was required to stay in the tower all night.\nAs we make our way down the remainder of the 334 steps, it is clear that this is more than just a job for those who work with Big Ben. As Westworth says: \"Working on the Great Clock of Westminster is one of the things most horologists want to do because it is probably the most prestigious clock in the world.\" Roberson adds: \"I have been involved in clocks all my life but this is the most famous clock in the world and we are the ones responsible for looking after it.\"\nBehind the scenes\nThe clock is divided into three sections or trains. In the centre is the going train, which has three functions. First, it is connected to a single shaft that transfers the motion of the pendulum through a nest of bevel gears to the hands on the four clock faces. Its second function is to trigger the chiming train to the right that, via a series of shafts rising up to a linkage room and from there to the belfry, operates the five hammers on the four quarter bells every 15 minutes. Finally, the going train also triggers the strike of the hour train situated on the left which, via a steel wire, raises the hammer on the hour bell (Big Ben).\nThe whole mechanism is powered by gravity, with the descending weight unwinding the wire wrapped round a large barrel on each train thus rotating it, so that it can operate the train via a series of gears. The escapement controls the rate of descent of the weight in the going train, while on the other two it is controlled by a fly fan or air break.\nWhile the weight on the going train is wound up regularly by hand, those on the other two, which are much heavier, are wound up by an electric motor, though this is not automatic and has to be switched on.\nTo ensure that the pendulum is protected from vibration and other external forces, a large part of it swings in a 3m-deep pit, made of cast iron. The pendulum is made of a zinc rod in an iron tube to compensate for temperature changes.\nThe clock's accuracy is maintained by altering its mass. This is done extremely simply by adding or removing an old imperial penny or halfpenny from a shelf, specially constructed near the top of the pendulum. Adding one penny speeds up the clock by two-fifths of a second over 24 hours.\nBells still ringing in Whitechapel\nIt's a short walk from the City of London's glittering palaces of financial innovation to the Whitechapel Bell Foundry, where tradition, rather than innovation, holds sway. It's here, in listed premises just along from the site of St Mary's, the original 'white chapel', that skilled craftspeople still make bells in much the same way as they have for more than half a millennium.\nOfficially Britain's oldest manufacturing company, the foundry has been in business since 1570 producing some of the world's best-known bells. If you visit the foundry shop, you'll pass under a profile of Big Ben. The foundry also made the Liberty Bell for the Philadelphia State House in 1752, produced a Bicentennial Bell to go with it in 1976, and a replica of the Liberty Bell in 2001.\nIt has also made bells for Westminster Abbey, for Washington DC's National Cathedral in 1964 and for a host of more modest churches scattered across the furthest reaches of what was the Empire. In a nod to old-fashioned customer service, passers-by can sometimes see crates arriving from far-flung churches, bringing back bells that have been in use for decades to be repaired, retuned or even recast.\nIt's not all about the past though. Last year the foundry cast a new peal of 12 bells for the church of St Magnus the Martyr at London Bridge. It does a steady trade in sets of hand bells, tuned for change ringing. And, in a nod to the modern age, it has a website listing its products with prices and delivery. If you want a standard bell tuned to C, with a diameter at its lip of 60in and a weight of 2,032kg, it will cost £39,481 plus delivery. Since they're not in stock at the moment, you might even be able to watch it being cast...\n|To start a discussion topic about this article, please log in or register.|\n\"Is augmented reality the next big thing or a marketing gimmick? Is it fundamental to the future or a fashion faux pas?\"\n- The Energy Bill and What is an Investment Contract [05:54 pm 21/05/13]\n- The Energy Bill and What is a Contract for Difference? [05:15 pm 21/05/13]\n- Advanced data communications and networking [03:47 pm 21/05/13]\n- Define Energy. [11:36 am 21/05/13]\n- Tap Off Unit for riser cabling system [11:27 am 21/05/13]\nTune into our latest podcast"}
{"text": "Forget the batteries for a second, thats just one of a thousand analogies you could use to describe voltage/current and the reason that no current flows has nothing to do with the electro-chemical properties of batteries, its far simpler.\nThe easiest way to think of it is this: Current will only ever flow in a loop, even in very complex circuits you can always break it down into loops of current, if there is no path for current to return to its source, there will be no current flow.\nIn your battery example, there is no return current path so no current will flow. There is obviously a more deep physics reason for why this works but as the question asked for a simple answer I'll skip the math, google Maxwell's Equations and how they are used in the derivation of Kirchhoff's voltage law.\nBatteries do make a good example for this simply because they are current sources with completely isolated grounds. This example would be equally true of any other power source with a completely isolated \"ground\".\nHowever, this is not an easy thing to find, for instance doing this with 2 bench supplies would likely make one of the bench supplies very unhappy, but thats not because the effect is different, the difference is that the bench supplies are likely both grounded to the electrical wiring in the building and as such there is a return path for current to flow through.\nThe water analogy for this also effective. Think of your battery example this way:\nYou have a water pump (battery A) connected to a pipe (the wire), and you have another water pump (battery B) connected to the same pipe (the wire) . Now in your example the there is no return path in the system so imagine that the pipe is full of water but capped off on both ends.\nYou hit the power switch on the pumps, what happens?\nThe answer is nothing, there is no where to move the water to, the pumps don't even spin. (ignore water turbulence like effects for this analogy).\nNow if you were to connect the pipe in a loop and hit the switch the pumps would spin up (voltage) and water would flow (current).\nIf you used 2 difference speed pumps (different voltage batteries) and faced them toward each other one will over power and cause the other to spin in the wrong direction (burn out just like connecting a 9V and 6V battery in parallel).\nIf you connected both pumps pointing in the same direction you would get more water pressure (voltage) because the pumps are helping each other out (2 batteries in series)."}
{"text": "|• Total||10.56 km2 (4.08 sq mi)|\n|Elevation||396.4 m (1,300.5 ft)|\nLipica (Italian: Lipizza) is a village in the Municipality of Sežana in the Littoral region of Slovenia, close to the border with Italy. Lipica is one of the main tourist centers of Slovenia's Karst region and it is known for the Lipica Stud Farm.\nThe name of the settlement is derived from the Slovenian word lipa 'linden tree'. The species is common in the area and is a national symbol of Slovenia. The staff at the Lipica Stud Farm plant a new linden tree for every foal born.\nFrom the 14th century until 1947, Lipica was part of the municipality of Trieste. When Charles II, Archduke of Inner Austria (son of Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor) decided to establish a new stud farm in the 16th century, the Spanish horse was considered the ideal horse breed. Because the soil and climate in the Karst region is similar to that of Spain, Lipica was chosen as the perfect spot for the new farm. The Lipica stud farm was established in 1580 and the first horses were bought from Spain in 1581 (24 broodmares and 6 stallions). The farmers living in the area at the time were evicted and resettled in Laže.\nA coal mine operated east of the settlement from 1778 to 1817. Coal mining was attempted at the site again in 1857 and at sporadic later dates, but was deemed uneconomical because it is deposited only in lenses. Coal from the mine was once used at the sugar refinery in Rijeka. In 1947, Lipica was annexed to Yugoslavia and incorporated into Slovenia as a constituent republic.\nMass grave \nLipica is the site of a mass grave associated with the Second World War. The Lipica Shaft Mass Grave (Slovene: Grobišče Lipiško brezno) is located about 500 m southwest of the tree-lined boulevard by the stud farm. It contains an undetermined number of human remains.\nLipica Stud Farm \nLipica is the origin of the Lipizzan horse. The Lipizzan breed as known today was fully developed in the time of Maria Theresa of Austria, whose husband was greatly interested in horse-breeding. During the Napoleonic wars, the stud farm was relocated to Székesfehérvár. In 1802, an earthquake struck Lipica, killing large numbers of horses. The stud farm was relocated to Đakovo in 1805, to Pecica (near Mezőhegyes) in 1809, to Laxenburg during the First World War, and then to Kladruby nad Labem. After the First World War, when Lipica was awarded to Italy, most of the horses were returned to Lipica. On 16 October 1943, the stud farm and 178 horses were relocated to Hostouň. After the Second World War, the farm had only 11 horses; all of the others had been confiscated by the Germans during the war. In the 1960s, Lipica was opened to tourists and new development began. In 1996, Lipica became a public institution that is owned by the Republic of Slovenia and has made significant progress since then. Queen Elizabeth II visited Lipica and its stud farm on 22 October 2008 and was presented with a Lipizzan horse as a gift from the Slovenian people. Today the Lipica Stud Farm is fully functional and breeds the finest horses for haute-école riding. The stud farm now also includes a hotel and leisure complex, a modern adjunct to a historical setting.\nThe Lipica Open \nThe Lipica Open is an international orienteering competition that is held every year at the beginning of March. It is the biggest orienteering competition in Slovenia and was held for the first time in 1992.\nOther places of interest \nOther places of interest in and near Lipica include:\n- The Avgust Černigoj gallery\n- The Škocjan Caves system (Škocjanske jame/Grotte di San Canziano), a UNESCO World Heritage Site.\n- Vilenica Cave, the oldest show cave in Europe (with guided tours since 1633)\n- The Valley of Our Lady of Lourdes (Slovene: Dolina Lurške Matere Božje): an outdoor church and a local pilgrimage destination\nNotable people \nNotable people that were born or lived in Lipica include:\n- Ivan Slavec (1859–1940), co-founder of the newspaper Primorski list and the last Slovene-speaking priest at the Trieste cathedral\n- Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia\n- Sežana Municipality site\n- Snoj, Marko. 2009. Etimološki slovar slovenskih zemljepisnih imen. Ljubljana: Modrijan and Založba ZRC, pp. 234–235.\n- Savnik, Roman, ed. 1968. Krajevni leksikon Slovenije, vol. 1. Ljubljana: Državna založba Slovenije, pp. 319–320.\n- Lipica Shaft Mass Grave on Geopedia (Slovene)\n- BBC News 22 October 2008\n- Lipica Stud Farm site"}
{"text": "|ARM Technical Support Knowledge Articles|\nApplies to: ARM7TDMI\nMAS[1:0] is used to indicate whether a word/half-word or byte access is to be performed, and is described in the ARM7TDMI Technical Reference Manual (1.8MB PDF).\nThe signal has the following states:\n|Bit 1||Bit 0||Data Size|\nThe memory system must be able to handle word, half word and byte writes.\nMemory systems supporting only word writes will have severe difficulties supporting C code because the compilers assume that the underlying access types of the ARM architecture are always available. Furthermore, it will not be possible to set software breakpoints in Thumb code using the EmbeddedICE Interface.\nWhen in Thumb state, A is not driven, and will be held at whatever level it was last driven to, by a 'sticky latch'. Usually, this will be set following a BX instruction (with bit 0 of the register set), or a data transfer to/from an odd address. It would normally be cleared again following a data transfer to/from an even address.\nThe memory controller should ignore A for Thumb instruction fetches (nOPC=0 and MAS[1:0]=01), and A[1:0] for ARM instruction fetches (nOPC=0 and MAS[1:0]=10).\nArticle last edited on: 2008-09-09 15:47:35\nDid you find this article helpful? Yes No\nHow can we improve this article?"}
{"text": "Cancer of the cervix (sir-vix) is one of the most common cancers in women. There seems to be a connection between cervical cancer and sexual activity at an early age, especially when multiple partners are involved. Cervical cancer grows without symptoms, that's why a yearly pap smear is so important. A pap smear can detect the presence of cancer cells at an early stage. When precancerous cells are found, usually called dysplasia (dis-PLAY-zha), they can be removed in the doctor's office using various procedures that burn or freeze the cells off the cervix. If the cancer has advanced, the recommended treatment usually includes a combination of chemotherapy, radiation and surgery, which will prevent a woman from bearing children. For more information about cervical cancer, contact your healthcare provider."}
{"text": "ARCHIVED: Expanding Role for Genetics Counselors\nThe completion of the human genome sequencing launches a new era in genetic medicine. With the decoding of the letters that make up the recipe of human life an opportunity now exists for scientists to discover new cures for cancer, heart disease, drug addiction, neurological disorders and mental illness. In this brave new world of medicine, the human genetics counselor will play an increasingly important role as patients and doctors struggle with the impact of these exciting new breakthroughs. The Human Genetics Program at Sarah Lawrence College the oldest and largest training program for genetic counselors in the United States, is well positioned to take on this challenge.\nMany ethical dilemmas have surfaced. For example, should people be tested to determine whether they might later develop a disease if there is no cure for that disease? Should fetal genetic testing extend beyond the health of a baby to screen for desirable physical and mental traits?\nA recent study conducted by the Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington published in Genetics in Medicine, found that 70 percent of health care practitioners surveyed had discussed genetics with their clients. Yet fewer than 10 percent of those people surveyed - including physical therapists, speech and hearing therapists and social workers - were confident in their training in these issues. According to Dr. E. Virginia Lapham, the lead author of the study, a need exists to expand genetic education programs for health professionals.\n\"As the field broadens, the need for more counselors and more thorough training will also increase,\" says Lauren Scheuer, a genetic counselor at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York and a graduate of the Sarah Lawrence Program. \"At the present time there are a finite number of genetic counselors in the field. As more and more complex medical information becomes available to patients and their families, there will be an increasing need for trained professionals to help sort out the all the issues and ramifications.\"\nThe two-year master's program at Sarah Lawrence began in 1969 and trains 25 counselors per class. Half of the nation's genetic counselors, including the directors of many other human genetics programs in the U.S. and Canada and in other parts of the world, are graduates of the SLC Program.\nGenetic counselors work as members of a health-care team, providing information and support to families that have members who have birth defects or genetic disorders, or who may be at risk for a variety of inherited conditions, says Caroline Lieber, program director. \"We identify families at risk, interpret information about the disorder, analyze inheritance patterns and risks of recurrence, discuss the risks, benefits, and limitations of genetic testing, review available options with families and provide supportive counseling,\" she added.\nHuman genetics counselors also serve as patient advocates, educators, administrators, researchers and resources for health-care professionals and the public. The importance of training in the field of human genetics counseling is demonstrated by the success of the Sarah Lawrence graduates. Genetics programs at major teaching hospitals, other colleges and universities, government agencies and corporations are staffed by Sarah Lawrence College graduates. These include the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York Presbyterian Hospital, Center for Disease Control, Glaxo Wellcome and Applied Genetics.\n\"This is a field with definite career opportunities and is well suited to individuals interested in being on the leading edge of medical research, and with an interest and commitment to helping others and making a difference.\" says Lieber."}
{"text": "Moore's Law Is Alive And Well, And Intel Will Prove It Today\nIntel, the world’s biggest manufacturer of computer chips, and by far the one with the most advanced manufacturing capabilities, is holding a big event in San Francisco which it described in an invitation to reporters as its “most significant technology announcement of the year.” It provided no further details.\nThis appears to be the announcement that CEO Paul Otellini alluded to during Intel’s quarterly earnings conference call last month. Intel has kept a pretty tight lid on the details, but I’ve talked to enough people who say this is one of those times when Intel will “open the kimono” on what will be going on inside its chip factories–or fabs–later this year. The big news will revolve around Intel’s disclosure of its 22-nanometer manufacturing process. It’s the sort of thing that gets people who know chips kind of excited and leaves others kind of cold. But in fact, everyone should be kind of excited about this.\nPerhaps you’ve heard of Moore’s Law. This was the observation in 1965 by the Intel co-founder Gordon Moore (pictured at the Intel Museum in 2005) that the number of transistors that could be crammed onto a chip doubles–and the size of those chips tended to shrink–as manufacturing technology improved on a fairly regular basis: About every 18 to 24 months. That shrinking meant two things. Chipmakers could make a chip with the same computing power as the previous generation more cheaply, or they could make a more powerful one with more transistors for about the same cost.\nIt all comes down to how many transistors you can cram onto a chip, and how many useful chips you can get from a single silicon wafer. In both cases, more is better. Moore’s observation–which was first published 46 years ago this month–has held up remarkably well and has proven one of the most important engines of growth in the technology industry. All the computing oomph you take for granted in your notebook, your smart phone, in the cloud, and all around you happens in part because the chips inside the hardware have gotten smaller and yet ever more powerful every two years or so.\nSo back to today’s announcement. As I mentioned, it’s going to revolve around its 22-nanometer manufacturing process. A nanometer is a billionth of a meter, and its current factory processors turn out chips with transistors that are somewhat bigger–32 nanometers. Intel executives often refer to a process they call “tick-tock.” Today constitutes a tick, when in odd-numbered years, a new manufacturing process comes online and the previous generation chips are shifted to being built with the smaller transistors. A “tock” occurs in even-numbered years when Intel engineers come up with new chip designs that really show what the new factory processes are capable of. The implication is that it’s so regular you can almost set your watch by it. Intel’s long-term strategy can be summed up like so: Tick, tock, repeat.\nOn top of that there are likely to be disclosures about some of the advances in physics that Intel has had to make in order to get chips with transistors so small to work properly. When you’re dealing with things that small, the individual electrons flowing on the chip sometimes don’t behave as they should. For example, in 2007 Intel had to add the element Hafnium to its chip-making process in order to stop individual transistors from wasting electricity. (It was more complicated than that, but that in a nutshell was the problem.) Billions upon billions of transistors in billions of computers around the world wasting electricity is a bad thing, both financially–power is expensive–and environmentally.\nWhat’s funny is that for years people have been saying that Intel–and indeed the entire chip industry–can’t continue on the Moore’s Law trajectory. At some point things get so small that you’re dealing with individual atoms and you can’t get any smaller than that. However, every time people have predicted its end, something happens to keep it going. A lot of companies have come up with some important advances that have kept it going. In the 1990s and early 2000s, IBM came up with some important advances that kept Moore’s Law on track. But more often that not it has been Intel that has kicked down the door when the experts said it was locked. Today it will probably kick down another.\nThis older video was created around the time that Intel unveiled its 45-nanometer process with Hafnium–kicking down one of those earlier doors. Perhaps there will be another today. Check in later as I cover the announcement."}
{"text": "NEW YORK — Children of older fathers are known to be more at risk for diseases including schizophrenia and autism. Now, a new scientific look at the genes passed down within families may have pinpointed a reason why.\nThe study, reported Wednesday in the journal Nature, found that older fathers transmit more new DNA variations to their children than younger dads, with each added year of age resulting in an average of 2 extra new mutations. The genetic changes occur in men as they age because of environmental factors, such as radiation, or through mistakes that occur in cell division.\nThe research led by scientists at Reykjavik, Iceland-based deCode Genetics Inc., is the first to quantify the number of new, or de novo, mutations that fathers hand along by age to their children. The findings may suggest that dads-to-be should consider collecting their sperm at a young age and storing it for later use, according to Alexey Kondrashov, a professor of evolutionary biology at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.\n“If the paternal-age effect on the de novo mutation rate does lead to substantially impaired health in the children of older fathers, then collecting the sperm of young adult men and cold-storing it for later use could be a wise individual decision,” Kondrashov wrote in an accompanying editorial that called for further study on the issue.\nMental processes may be most affected, leading to illnesses such as schizophrenia, because more genes express themselves in the human brain than elsewhere.\nThe de novo findings suggest it may be “reasonable to assume that the ongoing increase in the incidence and prevalence of autism in many human populations could be due, at least in part, to the accumulation of mutations resulting from relaxed selection and a higher average paternal age — and not only to better recognition of cases,” Kondrashov said.\nThe U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in March reported that one in 88 children in the U.S. had autism or a related disorder in 2008, the latest period for which data was available. That was a 23 percent rise from 2006, the agency’s researchers reported, saying it was unclear how much of the increase was due to increased awareness of the disease.\nGenes are the blueprints for making all the proteins needed by the human body to grow, develop and work properly. DeCode Genetics’ group looked at the DNA shared by 78 groups of Icelandic mothers, fathers, and children.\nA 20-year-old father transmits on average 25 new mutations to his child while a 40-year-old transmits 65, the study found. Mothers always transmit about 15 new mutations, regardless of their age, according to the accompanying editorial.\nMen probably contribute more mutations because sperm have to divide many more times than eggs, which don’t actively split when women are of reproductive age, according to Kondashov.\n“The only important thing when it came to explaining the mutations was the age of the father,” said study author Kari Stefansson, who is also the chief executive officer of deCode Genetics. “There’s very little else to be accounted for. That’s a stunning observation.”\nMost de novo mutations are neutral, and all mutations in the genome were once de novo, Stefansson said by telephone. Once scientists determine the importance of de novo mutations relative to heredity mutations in autism, it will be easy to see how much contribution a father’s age has to the child’s health. That work hasn’t yet been done, he said."}
{"text": "Make your own D-net. The net is named for the \"D\" shape of its frame. It\nis used to collect stream insects from the bottom of a stream. You can\nmake one at home (but make sure an adult is around to help!).\nMaterials you will need\nx 14\" piece of screen •\n42\" x 2\" piece of canvas or heavy cloth\nThread and needle •\nWire coat hanger •\nDrill with 1/8\" and 1/4\" bits\nWooden broom handle\nBuilding a D-net\n1. Fold the screen in half (21\" x 14\") and cut screen (as shown).\n2. Sew the two pieces of screen together along the cut edge.\n3. Fold the canvas in half along the open edge of the net.\n4. Untwist the wire hanger and cut off the top (as shown).\n5. Bend the smaller cut piece into a U-shape.\n6. Drill a 1/4\" hole in the flat end of the broom stick.\n7. Drill two shallow 1/8\" holes on the sides of the broomstick, positioned\nso you can fit U-shaped wire over the flat end and into the holes.\n8. Slip large wire into the folded canvas slot of the net and twist the\n9. Cut the twisted wire to no longer than 2\" in length and insert into\nhole at flat end of the broomstick.\n10. Secure the net to the pole using the U-shaped wire and duct tape (as\nVolunteer Water Quality Monitoring\nNon-profit Stream Monitoring\nCounty Stream Monitoring Groups\nMaryland DNR's Teaching Environmental Awareness in Maryland (TEAM) program\noffers students a two-part stream investigation in a local freshwater\nstream of their choice. At this streamside setting, trained volunteers\nguide them as they learn about water quality, stream habitats and the\ncommunity of organisms that inhabit the stream. Using the information they\ncollect, the students will then formulate conclusions about the health of\nthe stream they have investigated. If you are interested in becoming a\nTEAM volunteer and helping educate Marylanders about our natural\nresources, visit our website at\nwww.dnr.maryland.gov/education/teamdnr and fill out an application.\nIt's a known fact kids are drawn to streams and waterways. Some visit them to\nfish, hike, canoe and kayak or just enjoy nature; others want to learn more\nabout them and how people affect their overall health. Streams offer students a\nunique outdoor field experience and a window to understanding their local\nenvironment and the Chesapeake Bay.\nMaryland's 8,800 miles of\nstreams form the life support system for the Chesapeake Bay watershed by\nproviding important habitats for many aquatic and terrestrial organisms. Each\nstream plays a vital role in linking the Chesapeake Bay to its surrounding\nMany kids think of a stream in terms of the trout they caught while\nfishing or the crayfish they found while exploring its banks. These are some of\nthe more visible examples but they are only a fraction of the diversity\ncontained within Maryland's streams. Upon closer examination you can find fish,\namphibians and insects that are invisible to the casual observer. More\nimportant, many of these organisms are biological indicators of stream health,\nespecially the insects or macroinvertebrates.\nAn Outdoor Classroom Realized\nyear thousands of students experience Maryland's streams through programs\noffered by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) outdoor education centers,\nand summer camps. However, students, parents or teachers can organize their own\nstream investigations. Using a stream as an outdoor classroom offers kids an\nincomparable hands-on learning experience that leads them to a greater\nunderstanding and appreciation of their natural environment.\nGetting to Know Macroinvertebrates\nPrior to going out and doing an actual field investigation,\nstudents should learn how to identify some of the basic types of stream insects\nand stream habitats\nthey might encounter, either through classroom exercises or\nhome study. Stream insects are one of the most important indicators of the\nlong-term health of a stream. Many are long-lived and spend most of their lives\nwithin the stream. Some, like stoneflies, are highly sensitive to pollution\nwhile others such as blackfly larvae are very tolerant. During a field\ninvestigation, many of these insects may be seen; however without some initial\npreparation, students will not have the proper knowledge and skills to conduct a\nmeaningful investigation of a stream.\nIn the Field\nAfter completing the\nclassroom or home study of stream insects and their habitats, it's time to\nconsider a field investigation. The best time to conduct one is typically in\nspring or late fall when weather conditions are most favorable for being\noutside. First and foremost, the stream must be accessible to the students.\nThose on the school grounds are ideal but streams on other public lands are also\nPrior to going out to the stream, students will also need to have\nsome sampling equipment. A net, preferably a D-net, is used to sample for macroinvertebrates. However you can also just use your hands and look under\nrocks to get a sample. It's also helpful to have a bucket to put your sample in,\na magnifier, tweezers and a tray with a white background. The white background\nprovides good contrast for seeing the darker macroinvertebrates.\nOnce at the\nstream, look for riffles or woody debris to sample. A stream riffle is a shallow\narea where rocks break up the flow of water. This area is highly enriched in\noxygen and has lots of small spaces for macroinvertebrates to hide in. Woody\ndebris found in the water -- leaves, sticks and tree roots -- is another\nimportant habitat as these materials provide an important food source for stream\nIn addition to looking at the macroinvertebrate community within the\nstream, you may also decide to sample for dissolved oxygen levels, pH, depth,\nwater flow and turbidity. All provide important information on the physical and\nbiological conditions of the stream. You should end the investigation by making\nsome basic conclusions about the health of the stream.\nBy using streams as\noutdoor classrooms, students are making an important and meaningful connection\nto the Chesapeake Bay watershed; they learn monitoring techniques and problem-\nsolving skills that will benefit them for a lifetime.\nMaryland DNR currently offers opportunities for middle school\nstudents to conduct a stream investigation. Those interested in learning more\nabout DNR's student streams investigations should visit\nor contact Matthew Chasse at 410-260-8828, or\nour website for more information at\nis an Education Specialist for DNR's Conservation Education Division, the TEAM\nProgram Coordinator, and serves on the Education Matrix Team."}
{"text": "- THE MAGAZINE\n- INFO FOR...\n- ASI Store\n- ASI Top 25\n- Product & Literature Showcases\n- Services Marketplace\n- List Rental\n- Market Research\n- Custom Content & Marketing Services\nYou may already know something about the benefits of plasma treatment, such as higher treatment (dyne) levels, extended life of treatment over time, the lack of surface morphology degradation, and the elimination of pinholing and backside treatment.\nUntil recently, low-pressure vacuum plasmas have been used to treat two- and three-dimensional plastic objects and polymer films. The recent introduction of high-density atmospheric plasma for film, foil, paper, foam, nonwoven and woven substrate applications has had a significant impact on the surfaces of these materials at considerably lower capitalization costs.\nHigh-density atmospheric plasma represents a new generation of surface-treatment technology. It allows plasmas to be sustained at atmospheric pressure in a way that permits the surface treatment of polymers and other substrates. It can be configured to work with a variety of feeding systems, including continuous web.\nHow does Plasma Compare to Corona?Corona treatment is an electrical process that uses ionized air to increase the surface tension of non-porous substrates. Normally, corona-treating systems operate at an electrical voltage of approximately 10 kV.\nLike corona, plasma is the electrical ionization of a gas. The plasma (glow) discharge creates a smooth, undifferentiated cloud of ionized gas with no visible electrical filaments. However, unlike corona, plasma is created at much lower voltage levels and temperatures.\nPlasma Effects on Substrate SurfacesCorona converts the substrate surface from a non-polar state to a polar state. Oxygen molecules from the corona discharge area are then free to bond to the ends of the molecules in the substrate being treated, resulting in an increase in surface tension.\nThe same description holds true for atmospheric plasma, with a few exceptions. The rate at which electron bombardment occurs within a high-density atmospheric plasma is up to 100 times greater. This increased electron activity forces greater ion bombardment to the substrate surface. This results in increased etching, chain scission and crosslinking on the substrate's surface, which influences stronger bonding attributes across the surface of the web. Specifically, mechanical interlocking is enhanced, bonding materials together by allowing the adhesive or sealant to take advantage of the microscopic roughness etched to the surface by atmospheric plasma, locking them together. In addition, covalent chemical bonding is promoted, using mutually reactive chemical groups newly resident at the substrate surface (delivered by atmospheric plasma treatment) and the adhesive to form the strongest, most durable bond.\nSummarizing the treatment process, high-density atmospheric plasma employs chemical gases that produce controlled chemical reactions on the surface. Chemistry molecules that are introduced are propelled to the material surface. Low-molecular-weight material is cleaned from the surface and specific gas molecules covalently bond to the surface. This is how adhesion can be boosted between the adhesive and the material surface.\nAtmospheric plasma technology also eliminates the possibility of backside treatment. The high-speed photos capture the optical differences between corona and atmospheric plasma treatment. The corona image shows the expected \"filaments,\" while the plasma treatment generates a smooth treat pattern.\nBenefits of Atmospheric Plasma for Adhesive AdhesionPlasma treatment offers three key benefits that adhesive manufacturers can use to their advantage.\n1. Longer life treatments. Substrates that have been atmospheric plasma-treated hold their treatment levels longer than corona-treated surfaces. Longer treatment life allows product converters to take advantage of economies of scale during production, increase inventory life and provide enhanced manufacturing flexibility.\n2. Higher treat levels allow for treatment of difficult-to-treat surfaces. Atmospheric plasma treatment is a viable alternative for substrates for which corona treating is ineffective. For example, difficult-to-treat fluoropolymer-based materials like Teflon® do not respond to the corona process but do respond to atmospheric plasma treatment.\n3. Treatment of thicker substrates. While substrates that are thicker than 0.125\" usually do not respond well to the corona process, they can be treated by atmospheric plasma. Films, metallized films, foils, foams, wovens and nonwovens are all candidates for atmospheric plasma surface treatment.\nAn atmospheric plasma treatment system called Plasma3™ that can operate at low temperature to provide the advantages plasma technology has over existing surface-treatment technologies has been developed by Enercon Industries. The surface energies of materials treated by this system have been shown to increase substantially, thereby significantly enhancing the wettability, printability and adhesive/ink/coating adhesion properties of these materials.\nWeb-Based Atmospheric Plasma Market ApplicationsWater- and solventborne, alcohol-based, and cold-seal adhesives are used for a variety of laminating applications. They are used by contract laminators and consumer products companies to bond multiple combinations of film, fiberglass, foam, fabric, paper, nonwovens, and rubber. The laminates are used to produce a range of products, including the following.\n- Packaging applications - sealing tapes, weather-strip, labels\n- Automotive applications - seals, gaskets, headliners, trim\n- Textile applications - protective apparel, outerwear\n- Medical applications - medical drapes and garments, bandages, electrodes, labeling, lidding, covers\n- Electronic applications\n- Bonding/assembly and thermal management tapes\nThe system also has the flexibility to be operated with variable chemistries and without the generation of ozone, pin-holing, and backside treatment.\nFor more information, contact Rory Wolf at email@example.com ."}
{"text": "A Box of Universe\nWatch the cosmos evolve in a cube one billion light-years wide\nIsaac Newton’s universe was a cozy, tidy place. Gathered around the sun were six planets, a handful of moons and the occasional comet, all moving against a backdrop of stationary stars. Newton provided us with the mathematical tools needed to compute the motions of these bodies. Given initial positions and velocities, we can calculate the forces acting on each object, using Newton’s law of universal gravitation. From the forces we can determine accelerations, and then update the positions and velocities for the next round of calculations. This scheme of computation is known as the n-body method. Perhaps Newton himself could have put it to work if he had had suitable computing machinery.\nToday we have the computers. On the other hand, our universe is far larger and more intricate than Newton’s. Now the solar system is merely a speck in a spiral galaxy of several hundred billion stars. Our galaxy drifts among billions of others, which form clusters and superclusters and a whole hierarchy of structures extending as far as the eye (and the telescope) can see. Those objects are getting farther away all the time because the universe is expanding, and moreover the expansion is accelerating. Strangest of all, the luminous matter of the galaxies—everything we see shining in the night sky—makes up less than one-half of 1 percent of what’s out there. Most of the universe is unseen and unidentified stuff known only as “dark matter” and “dark energy.”\nGiven this profound change in the nature and the scale of the known universe, I find it remarkable that computer simulations of cosmic evolution can still rely on n-body algorithms rooted in the principles of Newtonian mechanics. The same techniques that predict planetary motions here at home in the solar system also describe the gravitational process that assembles thousands of galaxies into filaments a hundred million light-years long.\nA major new series of cosmological simulations is now beginning to release its findings. The project, known as Bolshoi, is led by Anatoly Klypin of New Mexico State University and Joel Primack of the University of California, Santa Cruz. “Bolshoi” is Russian for “big” or “grand,” and the name is apt: This is a large-scale computational project, consuming six million CPU hours and producing a hundred terabytes of data. And yet, when you ponder the vast sweep of space and time being modeled, it seems a marvel that so much universe can be squeezed into such a small box.\n» Post Comment"}
{"text": "Register New Player\nWelcome to our world of fun trivia quizzes and quiz games:\nThe Battle of Badr\n\"The Battle of Badr was a key battle in Islam's struggle for independence. Outnumbered greatly, the victory at Badr gave the army great hope and is mentioned in detail in the Quran.\"\n15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit\nLet's start out with the setting of Badr: The Muslims were fighting, but against who were they fighting?\nThere were only 300 Muslims fighting in the Battle of Badr. How many men did the Meccans have fighting?\nDuring the heat of the Battle of Badr, the Prophet Muhammad was said to have done what?\nThrown sand into the air in the direction of the enemy\nKilled those who fled\nThe Battle of Badr is a battle in Islamic history in which it is said that angels participated. One angel who revealed the Quran to the Prophet also commanded the thousands of angels at Badr. Who was this angel?\nAt the beginning of the Battle of Badr, three of the Meccans challenged three of the Muslims for a small skirmish between them. One of the future Caliphs (He was also one of the key issues of contreversy which resulted in the first major schism in Islam) was in the skirmish, along with two other soldiers. Who was this Caliph?\nWhat else is God said to have done to the Meccan's the night before the Battle of Badr?\nHeavy winds blew away their arrows\nComets raced through the night sky scaring the camels, making them useless for battle\nLightning killed the commanders\nHeavy rain fell on the hill where they were camped\nWhat key resource at Badr were the Muslims able to cut off from the enemy?\nHow many Muslims died in the Battle of Badr?\nTwo hundred and fifty\nHow many Meccans did the Muslims capture in the Battle of Badr?\nWhat happened to the majority of the captured Meccans at the Battle of Badr?\nThey were let go\nThey were tortured\nThey were executed\nThey were sold into slavery\nCopyright, FunTrivia.com. All Rights Reserved.\nLegal / Conditions of Use\nCompiled Jun 28 12"}
{"text": "There's No Such Thing as Ethical Oil (or Nuclear Power)\nCanada is digging itself a dirty energy destiny in the Athabasca oil sands.\nBy Evan O'Neil | March 22, 2011\nAfter the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and now the nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima reactors in Japan, it should be clear that oil and nuclear power are not benign forces in our world. Both are toxic, dirty, and insecure forms of energy. It is thus astonishing that the Canadian energy industry proposes combining the two.\nThe boreal forest of northern Alberta sits atop one of the largest fossil fuel deposits in the world: the Athabasca bituminous sands. Energy insiders call it oil sands, while environmentalists prefer tar sands—each side seeing what it wants. At room temperature, raw bitumen has the consistency of asphalt and won't flow through a pipeline without being diluted or upgraded into synthetic crude oil.\nUnderground, the bitumen exists in a mixture with sand and clay, and there are two techniques for extracting it. Surface mines have been the predominant method since commercial production began in the 1960s. At the Suncor Energy mine, for example, the native forests, topsoil, and muskeg bog were cleared, and 50 meters of \"overburden\" earth was removed to expose a tar sand deposit itself about 50 meters thick. The bitumen is mined 24 hours per day with massive electric shovels that fill dump trucks three stories tall.\nThe dump trucks haul the tar sands out of the mine to a separation unit where it is mixed with hot water. The bitumen floats to the top and is skimmed off, while the wastewater slurry—containing sand, clay, salts, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, arsenic, naphthenic acid, and other substances—is pumped into large, open-air tailings ponds where it is left to evaporate. The problem with tailings ponds has been that the finest clay particles take decades to settle into sediment. To accelerate reclamation of the land, some companies are now experimenting with adding polyacrylamide flocculant, in a process similar to municipal waste treatment, to help separate the solids from the water.\nMining for deeper deposits is uneconomical, so the industry also employs in situ drilling. In a typical setup, two horizontal wells are drilled, one above the other. The top well injects steam into the sands, melting out the bitumen, which is then pumped out through the lower well in a process called Steam-Assisted Gravity Drainage, or SAGD. The well pads of these SAGD installations dot the remote boreal landscape in a network of roads, pipelines, and seismic cutlines.\nMining and in situ operations both consume a lot of energy. The advantage of in situ is that the land is much less disturbed, making it easier to return it to a natural state. SAGD also separates the sand and bitumen below the surface, requiring significantly less infrastructure. Of the total Athabasca deposit, 80 percent is thought to be recoverable through in situ and 20 percent through mining.\nSAGD requires a lot of natural gas to make steam. The ratio of steam injected to oil extracted is what determines a project's carbon emissions as well as its profitability. Mining and SAGD together consume hundreds of billions of cubic feet of natural gas per year, a substantial fraction of Canada's entire demand.\nThat's where nuclear power enters the picture. As bitumen production in Alberta is slated to expand over the next several decades, gas production will be in decline. This means that eventually producers will have to either burn part of their bitumen, thus eating into their profits, or find new power sources to generate heat and electricity.\nNuclear power has been mooted to fill this gap. Japan, of course, turned to nuclear power during the 1970s oil shocks to offset its dependence on foreign oil. Now, in an ironic twist, Canada is considering nuclear power so that it can expand its oil exports. Most of the tar sands oil is sold south of the border through a pipeline network to meet American demand, while Canada still imports foreign oil to its eastern provinces.\nOne has to wonder why Canada would burn so much of its natural gas, a relatively clean fossil fuel, to extract an even dirtier energy. The answer is, of course, to make money. Most of the world's oil is controlled by national oil companies, making Canada one of the only remaining patches where the energy industry can really play in the sandbox.\nAnd the Athabasca deposit is a big sandbox. The area is roughly the size of New York State. It contains an estimated 1.7 trillion barrels of bitumen, of which about 170 billion barrels are extractable with current technologies. Multiply by $100 per barrel and pretty soon we're talking real money.\nBut it is capital intensive to slurp these heavy, unconventional dregs of the global oil barrel. Hundreds of billions of dollars have already been invested in the Alberta tar sands, where it takes an oil price of $65 to 85 per barrel to recuperate costs. As recently as 2009, oil was back down in the $40 range, slowing or canceling many projects.\nSo is tar sands oil dirty oil? Of course it is. All oil is dirty. But is it dirtier than other sources? On average, yes. According to Cambridge Energy Research Associates, oil from Alberta tends to be about 5 to 15 percent more polluting than the average oil consumed in the United States when compared on a well-to-wheels basis. Twenty-five percent of oil's emissions occur during the production phase, while 75 percent comes from combustion in a vehicle.\nIndustry insiders often repeat the following argument: It's the consumer's fault, whether they mean car owners or America in general. \"If you would stop driving so much, we would stop digging up all this oil and pumping it in your direction,\" goes the typical line. Then whenever the United States wavers in its affection for Canadian energy, the argument becomes a threat: \"We'll just sell it to the Chinese instead.\"\nThis argument is nonsense on the individual level. American consumers aren't presented with a significant choice at the pump. They get to decide between three octane ratings with maybe a dash of dubiously efficient ethanol in the blend. The only real power a person has to reduce oil consumption is in deciding where to live. Ditching the car and moving to a dense, pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly community with access to mass transit is the most effective solution. For those who cannot or do not wish to move, the alternative is to work through the local political process to redesign your community.\nMost families haven't made the carless choice yet. Instead the typical response is to buy a bigger car when gasoline is cheap and a more efficient one when the price goes back up. Without a price floor of some sort, America will never break its addiction to oil, foreign or domestic. A strong gasoline tax could serve as a de facto price floor if it were set high enough. Unfortunately the United States has chosen to set the bar very low: Gas tax is a pittance relative to the price of gasoline, and it isn't indexed to inflation, meaning the value has actually declined over the last several decades.\nIt is an abdication of political responsibility to argue that an unorganized and reactionary collective such as consumers is at fault for oil consumption. The essence of ethics is whether our political institutions can make choices that are in the interest of all affected stakeholders, local and global, regardless of the political cost.\nSeen in this light, can the Canadian and Albertan governments be trusted not to morph into petrostates?\nIt is an abdication of political responsibility to argue that an unorganized and reactionary collective such as consumers is at fault for oil consumption.Sadly the outlook is bleak. The federal environment minister recently declared that Canadian oil is \"ethical oil.\" This concept is drawn straight from the title of a book by conservative political activist Ezra Levant, in which he argues that Canada's oil is morally superior to oil from countries with poor human rights records. Even if Canada and the United States were to boycott imports from all countries they consider problematic, an option neither is willing to consider, oil would still remain a globally priced and traded commodity and the benefits of its consumption would continue to flow to unsavory dictators.\nOn the provincial level, the Alberta government is of the opinion that the tar sands \"should\" be developed further, despite the fact that a panel recently found that water and environmental monitoring program has been inadequate. Alberta's Energy Resources Conservation Board, its regulatory agency for energy development, has one of the more Orwellian names one can imagine.\nBullish development of the oil sands has also contributed to Canada's violation of its Kyoto Protocol commitments. The goal was to decrease emissions 6 percent below 1990 levels. Instead, Canadian emissions have increased by a whopping 24 percent, in great measure due to tar sands expansion. Tar sands emissions now account for about 5 percent of Canada's total.\nAlberta did manage to enact one innovative policy that few other jurisdictions will even consider: a carbon tax of $15 per ton. This move should be applauded, but it is unfortunately accompanied by billion-dollar investments in the unproven technologies of carbon capture and sequestration—an expensive crutch to help the fossil fuel industry limp into the future—with minimal focus on renewable energy research, development, and deployment.\nAnother concern for Canada's energy future is that the royalty regime [PDF] for tar sands leases is too weak. The rate is set at 1 percent until a project becomes profitable, and then it jumps to 25 percent, which is still low compared to some countries. Alberta risks squandering an opportunity to build its Heritage sovereign wealth fund while the people's resources disappear into private pockets, leaving the province without financial means to transition to a cleaner economy.\nIs America being a good neighbor in this transaction, or merely abetting a fellow oil junkie? The proposed Keystone XL extension of the pipeline network that carries Albertan oil to the United States is currently under consideration, and final approval falls to the U.S. Department of State because of the international border crossing. It was announced on March 15 that a supplemental environmental impact statement will be issued, followed by a new public comment period, to determine whether the project is \"in the U.S. national interest.\"\nBuying more energy from a friendly neighbor appears like a good idea on the surface. But while energy security has the ring of a robust and consistent concept, it is actually a relative one. It wears a false halo of military necessity even during peacetime. Supplier countries want security of demand, and consumer countries want security of supply. What the oil industry really worries about is running out of business. \"Producers who seek to maximize long-term revenue will want to maintain oil prices stable at the highest price that does not induce substantial investment in substitutes,\" writes technology and innovation expert Philip Auerswald.\nShould we be worried about today's high prices? Auerswald doesn't think so. High prices merely hasten the inevitable transition to a post-oil economy. Estimations vary on the timing of peak oil, but the finitude of the resource is undisputed and so is its eventual depletion to a level where the cost of extraction will equal the value of the product.\nSaying that America should be open to more tar sands oil is basically just another version of the \"drill here, drill now\" argument for tapping the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve in Alaska. The Obama administration, it should be noted, has been a booster of domestic production, and production has gone up in the last five years. Canadian production has also increased significantly in the last decade, mostly from growth in the tar sands. But after two major oil price spikes during the same period, in 2008 and again now, it should be crystal clear that domestic and Canadian production growth doesn't control the global price, and that a much better strategy lies in finding replacement technologies and actively reducing demand.\nBut this is a tough sell when you think of things like how many Caterpillar 797B dump trucks are needed to mine the tar sands, and how the parts are manufactured all over the United States, by quite a few workers in quite a few Congressional districts. Add to that the public's resistance to raising gasoline taxes, and it becomes quite easy to see why it's politically difficult to enact bold and necessary energy policy. The hundreds of millions of lobbying dollars the oil industry spends certainly don't help our Senators see things clearly.\nAmerican politicians have been saying we need to get off foreign oil for half a century. Canadian energy executives and politicians bristle when they hear things like that. They feel that somehow Canadian oil shouldn't be considered foreign because it comes from North America. But the ethical thing is for both countries to pursue energy independence based on clean, renewable sources that don't pollute the environment, harm human health, and risk massive destabilization of the global climate.\nAs it stands, Canada has become a climate change ostrich with its head in the oil sands.\nA version of this article first appeared in the Carnegie Ethics Online column.\nRead More: Business, Conservation, Democracy, Development, Diplomacy, Economy, Energy, Environment, Ethics, Jobs, Security, Sustainability, Technology, Trade, Transportation, Canada, United States, Americas, Global, Middle Eastblog comments powered by Disqus"}
{"text": "Oct. 6, 2010 Doppler weather radar will significantly improve forecasting models used to track monsoon systems influencing the monsoon in and around India, according to a research collaboration including Purdue University, the National Center for Atmospheric Research and the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi.\nDev Niyogi, a Purdue associate professor of agronomy and earth and atmospheric sciences, said modeling of a monsoon depression track can have a margin of error of about 200 kilometers for landfall, which can be significant for storms that produce as much as 20-25 inches of rain as well as inland floods and fatalities.\n\"When you run a forecast model, how you represent the initial state of the atmosphere is critical. Even if Doppler radar information may seem highly localized, we find that it enhances the regional atmospheric conditions, which, in turn, can significantly improve the dynamic prediction of how the monsoon depression will move as the storm makes landfall,\" Niyogi said. \"It certainly looks like a wise investment made in Doppler radars can help in monsoon forecasting, particularly the heavy rain from monsoon processes.\"\nNiyogi, U.C. Mohanty, a professor in the Centre for Atmospheric Sciences at the Indian Institute of Technology, and Mohanty's doctoral student, Ashish Routray, collaborated with scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research and gathered information such as radial velocity and reflectivity from six Doppler weather radars that were in place during storms. Using the Weather Research and Forecasting Model, they found that incorporating the Doppler radar-based information decreased the error of the monsoon depression's landfall path from 200 kilometers to 75 kilometers.\nMonsoons account for 80 percent of the rain India receives each year. Mohanty said more accurate predictions could better prepare people for heavy rains that account for a number of deaths in a monsoon season.\n\"Once a monsoon depression passes through, it can cause catastrophic floods in the coastal areas of India,\" Mohanty said. \"Doppler radar is a very useful tool to help assess these things.\"\nThe researchers modeled monsoon depressions and published their findings in the Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society. Future studies will incorporate more simulations and more advanced models to test the ability of Doppler radar to track monsoon processes. Niyogi said the techniques and tools being developed also could help predict landfall of tropical storm systems that affect the Caribbean and the United States.\nThe National Science Foundation CAREER program, U.S. Agency for International Development and the Ministry of Earth Sciences in India funded the study.\nOther social bookmarking and sharing tools:\n- A. Routray, U. C. Mohanty, S. R. H. Rizvi, Dev Niyogi, Krishna K. Osuri, D. Pradhan. Impact of Doppler weather radar data on numerical forecast of Indian monsoon depressions. Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society, 2010; DOI: 10.1002/qj.678\nNote: If no author is given, the source is cited instead."}
{"text": "Tag writer: Michele Wick, Psychology\nImagine the texture of skirt fabric rubbing against tiny feet, the sweet smell of grass, or the delight of looking at a resplendent blue shirt. Sensory experiences are a vital part of who we are; they are building blocks of a growing brain. Countless occurrences, like the intimate play we see in Cassatt’s print, help shape the contours of pliant neural networks. The child may not remember this exact moment, the feel of the woman’s secure grasp, the pleasure of gazing in her eyes, or the sound of her breath. Nevertheless, they have left their imprint on a blossoming mind.\nImage Information: Mary Cassatt, American (1844–1926). Under the Horse Chestnut Tree , 1895. Drypoint and aquatint printed in blue, green, yellow, brown and flesh on paper. Sheet: 18 13/16 x 14 3/8 in.; 47.7838 x 36.5125 cm; plate: 16 1/8 x 11 3/8 in.; 40.9575 x 28.8925 cm. Bequest of Helen Haase"}
{"text": "Photo used with kind permission of Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation\nBaby clings to dead mother\nFor millions of years, orangutans thrived in the once-vast forestlands of South\nEast Asia, possibly even existing as far North as Southern China. Today,\nless than 1% of the species remains, and can now only be found in small,\nsecluded pockets of orangutan habitat on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra.\nThere are two sub-species of orangutan remaining, the endangered\nBornean, with approximately 30,000 individuals, and the critically endangered\nSumatran, with less than 6,000.\nOrangutans are the most intelligent species on earth after humans. They\nhave the ability to undo bolts, knocks, pick locks and even communicate with\nhumans via sign language. They share many of the same emotions as us,\nhave their own culture and share 97% of our DNA!\nOrangutans reproduce more slowly than any other primate, with the female\nproducing a baby on average once every 7-8 years. Infants are dependent on\ntheir mothers for 5-8 years, learning about survival in the forest. Orangutans\nlive for around 45 years in the wild, and a female will usually have no more\nthan 3 offspring in her lifetime. This means that orangutan populations grow\nvery slowly, and take a long time to recover from habitat disturbance and\nPoaching and the illegal animal trade are contributing factors to the genocide\nof this species; however, the number one threat to the survival of the\norangutan in the wild is deforestation for the development of palm oil.\nEvery hour, rainforest land equivalent to 300 football fields in size is\ndestroyed, burnt and replaced with palm oil plantations. To put it into\nperspective - in Sumatra alone there is now more than 4 times as much land\ncultivated with oil palms as there is orangutan habitat remaining.\nThis results in the death of an orangutan every 2 hours. These gentle apes\nare often killed in the most inhumane ways; run over, set on fire, hacked with\nmachetes, shot and decapitated. The “lucky” ones, often babies, have their\nmothers shot and they are then taken to be kept as pets, sold, used in the\nentertainment industry or even used as prostitutes in Indonesian brothels.\nIn some cases, palm oil farming provides employment to locals in South East\nAsia, however it often involves gross human rights violations and involves\ndangerous labour under risky conditions. But in many cases, palm oil does the\nopposite to providing money. It often robs indigenous communities who still\ndepend on the natural landscape of their livelihood, when they are displaced\nfrom their land to make way for palm oil development.\nThis one vegetable oil is found in over 50% of all supermarket products\nin Australia. Palm oil can be found in everything from baked goods,\nconfectionery and ice-cream, to body products, cosmetics and cleaning\nagents. It can even be used in toothpaste, paint, printer ink and car fuel!\nWhy is palm oil so popular and widely used?\n- High yielding vegetable oil crop\n- Large economic benefit to Indonesia & Malaysia\n- Cheap cost\n- Diverse in its uses\n- Acts as a preservative in some foods\nPalm oil is not only having devastating impacts on wildlife, the environment\nand indigenous communities, but also your health. Palm oil is comprised of\n50% saturated fat, meaning it has the ability to increase cholesterol levels and\npromote heart disease.\nTo conclude, there is currently a massive amount of degraded land available\nfor planting oil palms in Sumatra and Borneo, but palm oil companies can\nmake a quick profit when they cut down rainforests and sell the timber, so the\nrelentless deforestation continues.\nWe do not advocate a boycott of products containing palm oil, or companies\nusing palm oil in their products. However, the international community must\ndemand that oil palm concessions are not granted in forested areas, and that\nour local retailers and consumer goods manufacturers either source their\npalm oil from non-destructive plantations, or switch to an alternative ingredient\nthat isn’t abusing wildlife, the environment and indigenous communities.\nWANT TO KNOW MORE?\nYou can visit our Anti-Palm Oil Ambassador’s educational website on palm\noil, to learn about it’s impacts, what products do/don’t contain palm oil, how to\ndetect palm oil on labels and much more!"}
{"text": "The unmanned Jules Verne ATV cargo ship breaks up in a spectacular display\nduring re-entry, as seen on Monday over the Pacific from an observation plane.\nThe European Space Agency's first cargo mission to the international space station ended in a spectacular fireworks show today, with the fiery re-entry of the unmanned Jules Verne ATV spaceship over the South Pacific.\n\"Jules Verne has now successfully completed its mission,\" ESA Director-General Jean-Jacques Dordain declared at the International Astronautical Congress in Glasgow, Scotland.\nThe end came at around 9:30 a.m. ET, when controllers back at Europe's mission control in Toulouse, France, directed the 17-ton craft into its final plunge. Jules Verne, the first of Europe's Automated Transfer Vehicles, was launched from the ESA spaceport in French Guiana early March 9. It linked up with the space station almost a month later, delivering tons of food, water and equipment.\nDuring its stay, Jules Verne periodically boosted the space station's orbit, and in fact helped the station dodge a passing piece of Russian space junk last month.\nBut all good things must come to an end: Unlike the Italian-built space cargo modules that are carried back and forth inside NASA's space shuttle, the Euroean-built ATVs are not designed for return or reuse. Instead, each spent craft has to be disposed of safely, by directing it remotely on a plunge through the atmosphere. The wide-open South Pacific is the favorite dumping ground for such space junk, as we saw back in 2001 when Russia's Mir space station fell to its doom.\nJules Verne's re-entry was witnessed by an international team of scientists flying aboard a NASA DC-8 observation plane. Studying the spacecraft's controlled fall could lead to fresh insights about the chemical and radiation effects of falling meteors - as well as better computer models for predicting how objects fragment as the blast through the atmosphere.\nThe Jules Verne ATV cargo craft glows during its atmospheric re-entry, in a view\ncaptured Monday from a DC-8 observation plane flying over the Pacific. A lens\ndiffraction flare can be seen in rainbow colors at lower right.\nToday's first pictures from the DC-8, posted to ESA's ATV blog, revealed a spray of fireworks similar to those seen during Mir's fall. More tragically, they also recalled what witnesses saw during the shuttle Columbia's breakup five years ago.\nAlthough experts still have to track all the bits of debris, it looks as if Jules Verne's plunge through the atmosphere provided a great light show, but no big impact. There were far more damaging plunges elsewhere on the planet today."}
{"text": "Story posted January 16, 2008\nBrads, nails, and spikes take on the characteristics of line, mass and color in sculptures by artist and Lecturer in Art John Bisbee. Covering his more than 20-year career, Bright Common Spikes: The Sculpture of John Bisbee, features 20 large-scale abstract sculptures of nails that are welded and forged into various organic configurations. The exhibition will be on view at the Portland Museum of Art January 24, 2008, through March 23, 2008.\nThe January 20, 2008, edition of The Boston Globe features an in-depth profile of Bisbee and his art. Click here to read the article and watch a video slideshow.\nBisbee welds, cuts, hammers, forges, and bends his nails and spikes into a variety of forms for his sculptures. Since 1988, when he overturned a five gallon bucket of nails that had rusted and fused together, he has been creating small- to large-scale sculptures comprising mainly brads, nails and spikes.\nOver the years, as Bisbee has gradually increased the size of his nails from brads to 10- and 12-inch spikes, the overall scale of his work has become more expansive. Bisbee began to explore the implications of monumentality in more serious ways with a series he calls \"Tons.\" Each piece is made up of one ton of nails, and to date he has completed 11 \"Tons.\" They vary in type of fabrication and assembly — groups of nails are welded together and piled in various configurations into corners, spread across the floor, or affixed to the wall.\nSome \"Tons\" pieces vary with each new installation, and Bisbee does not determine the exact configuration until the moment a piece is installed. He arrives at the gallery with barrels filled with the component pieces and lets the spirit of the day and the idiosyncrasies of the site suggest the rest. Bisbee's intuitive working method comes closest to the surrealist process of automatic drawing, allowing the subconscious mind to direct the hand.\nIn addition to the \"Tons\" series, Bisbee has recently produced more intricately patterned pieces. These works share the decorative flair that characterizes a great deal of contemporary painting and sculpture. For his most recent sculptures, Bisbee uses a forge, press, and hand tools to flatten and bend his nails into even more elaborate shapes that resemble calligraphic lines. Some of these flattened nails are then welded together to form larger mandala-like shapes; others are piled freely on the floor.\nBisbee's solo museum exhibitions include the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, N.Y., and the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art in Kansas City, Mo.\nA recent recipient of a 2006 Joan Mitchell Foundation Grant, Bisbee has also received a Maine State Individual Artist Grant (2000) and The Rappaport Prize (2003), administered by the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park. He has also been awarded the Purchase Prize and the William E. Thon Jurors' Prize from the Portland Museum of Art's Biennial exhibition (1998, 2001). His work has been reviewed in Art in America, ARTnews, Sculpture Magazine, The New Yorker, The New York Times and The Boston Globe.\nJohn Bisbee and his art were the focus of a Spring 2005 Bowdoin magazine feature. Read it here."}
{"text": "Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH)\nJoint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam on the left, and HNL on the right share the Reef Runway.\nHonolulu International Airport and Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH) have been neighbors and partners for many years. In 1956 the Air Force and the Hawaii Aeronautics Commission (predecessor to the State of Hawaii Department of Transportation) agreed to a single airport complex that would be operated under a Joint Use Agreement.\nToday, JBPHH and HNL share runways, safety networks, and a partnership that is more than 50 years old.\nHickam Field, as it was then known, was completed and officially activated on September 15, 1938. It was the principal army airfield in Hawaii and the only one large enough to accommodate the B-17 bomber.\nDuring World War II the base played a major role in pilot training and aircraft assembly work, in addition to service as a supply center for both air and ground troops. Hickam served as the hub of the Pacific aerial network, supporting transient aircraft ferrying troops and supplies to, and evacuating wounded from, the forward areas, not only during World War II but also during the Korean conflict and the Vietnam War.\nDuring the Korean Conflict, 19 percent of HNL operations were military. During the Vietnam War that increased to 20-50%.\nToday, military operations are five to six percent of total operations."}
{"text": "Kanthapura is the story of a village in South India named `Kanthapura` written by Raja Rao. He was an excellent writer and the simple story of a village life is depicted in an extra-ordinary way in this creation of his. The title of the story is kept by the name of the village only. So the title truly signifies the story.\nBorn on November 8 in the year of 1908 Raja Rao was a famous writer. The place was Hassan, in the state of Mysore in south India, into a well-known Brahman family. He post-graduated in France, and all his publications were in English. Rao was very much concerned with his language and consciousness. He studied in a Muslim school. After taking a degree from Madras University, he left India for Europe, where he remained for a decade. He studied at the universities of Montpellier and the Sorbonne, doing research in Christian theology and history. In 1931 he married Camille Mouly. She was a French academic. His first stories were published in French and English. His Kannada articles were also published in an influential journal `Jaya Karnataka`. He marriage with Camille Mouly didn`t work out and he got divorced in 1939. Rao returned to India and began his first period of residence in an ashram. In search of his spiritual heritage, he traveled widely in India. This happened during WW II. In 1942 he was active in an underground movement against colonial rule. He also edited the literary magazine `Tomorrow` for some days.\n`Kanthapura` is the first major Indian novel in English by Raja Rao. The novel deals with the Civil disobedience movement of 1030`s. Mahatma Gandhi on the participation of a small village of South India in the National struggle calls for the story`s central concern. The villagers sacrifice all their material possessions in a triumph of the spirit. It shows how the people of country united at the time of movement and joined at the non-violence movement to bring independence from the British. `Kanthapura` was first published in English and then in France. Achakka narrates the whole story. She is an old village woman and the story revolves around in a village Kanthapura in South India. In this village there are clear discrimination between Brahman, Sudra and Pariah quarters still the mutual bonding between the villagers are very strong and they live happily with equal social and economical bonding. To maintain social harmony they live like one single family. Kanthapura may be isolated and deprived of modern civilization but it is compensated by an ever-enriching cycle of ceremonies, rituals and festivals. Rao depicts beautifully the partication of the villagers in different festivals like Dussera,\nSankara-jayanti, Kartik Purnima, Ganesh Jayanti, Styanarayana Puja, etc. the common picture of village has always come up in many of Rao`s story and that can be called as Raja Rao`s speciality.\n`Kanthapura` by Raja Rao is a marvelous creation. He depicts very simple happenings of a village in a lively manner. In his writing a clear picture of villagers become prominent. In his village religion imparted through discourses and pujas keeps alive in the natives a sense of presence of God. In the whole story a serenity flows in a simple harmonic motion which makes the story worth reading."}
{"text": "Ancient galaxies newly discovered in southern sky\nA concentrated effort by Australian telescopes and the Hubble Space Telescope on a tiny, dark patch of the southern sky has led to the discovery of thousands of previously unknown galaxies.\nPreliminary resuts will be released today from the ten-day period of observation in October, when the Hubble and ground-based telescopes were focused simultaneously on a patch of sky called the Hubble Deep Field South.\nThe tiny piece of sky was carefully chosen for astronomers to learn more about distant galaxies. Like the Hubble Deep Field, another small patch in the northern sky which was observed in late 1995, it contains no bright stars to drown out the light from objects much further away. Unlike its northern counterpart, however, the Hubble Deep Field South was picked because it had a quasar -- the bright centre thought to be the central 'engine' of a distant galaxy.\nAstronomers at the Anglo-Australian Observatory sifted through their photographic records of the whole southern sky until they found a likely quasar, 10 billion light-years away. \"The quasar acts like a lighthouse in the distance,\" said the Observatory's Dr Chris Tinney. \"It helps you see anything in its path.\"\nWhile the high-resolution Hubble detected and photographed the galaxies in the path of the quasar's beam, the Anglo-Australian Observatory could analyse their spectra for more information about their shape and size.\nFrom the results, astronomers hope to learn about the life cycles galaxies go through, from creation to old age.\n\"What you're seeing are the embryonic stages of very old galaxies,\" said Dr Tinney. \"When you're looking at distant galaxies you're looking back in time -- right back to the first ten percent of the age of the Universe.\""}
{"text": "Discover the words hidden in the grid, written through one another in eight horizontal, vertical and diagonal directions. Select words by clicking on the first and last letters, in any order. If the selected letters match an item in the list, the letters are highlighted and the item is crossed out. Spaces, capitalization and diàçritîcš are ignored. Once the list is cleared you win. The letters remaining at the end, if any, may or may not spell a little Aesopean or other proverbial gem of wisdom. Recognizing those words in the gaps left between the stroked terms can help spot that last few stubborn hidden letters.\nThe grid can be resized, flipped and rotated in all directions. This may help to make some furtive words more readable. Also the spacing, boldness and capital case can be switched to make the letters stand out from their context. Optionally a handy hover-cross is shown, highlighting those letters that are in line with the letter that is currently under the mouse pointer. Especially the longer and diagonal words may benefit from this.\nClick a word in the list for some hints about its whereabouts in the grid. Doubleclicking an item in the list will reveal its location in the soup of letters. This is known as cheating.\nThe available word search grids cover subjects ranging from animals and timbers via countries and capitals to Shakespeare and mythology.\nAll that is needed for your own word search game is a list of words, or short word groups as spaces and other non-alphabetic features are ignored. A mixture of a few longer items and some terms of 3 to 6 characters usually gives good results. Avoid words that overlap each other, with one being contained in the other, like ‘raw’ in ‘straw’ or ‘if’ in ‘life’, as they are bound to appear double in the playing field. The same applies to reverse contained words, like ‘art’ in ‘straw’ or ‘raw’ and ‘war’. Use the update function to automatically scan for overlaps, the numbers should update every time you click outside the word list."}
{"text": "||On this site, kids can enter\ntheir spelling words and the site will create word search puzzles. They\ncan select varying levels of difficulty. The students can complete\nthese puzzles online or on paper.\n||Once the customized spelling\nlist is entered, students can play numerous spelling games to reinforce\ntheir vocabulary. Games are available for different ages and\n||This website is a great way for\nkids to practice their spelling words. They can be taught the\nwords, be tested on the words or play games to reinforce the word\n|| Kids can play math games\nto practice their skills. They also can review lessons on\nspecific mathematical concepts to supplement their learning.\n||This site was created by the Oswego City School\nDistrict. It gives the students timed tests on their chosen math\nfacts. If desired, the kids can choose to be tested on a mix of\n||This site provides lessons to help children better\ntheir math concepts. It also offers math games and puzzles.\n||An overview of different animals is provided.\ncan select specific animals to review general facts. Printable\nworksheets also are available for additional learning.\n||Run by the BBC, this site allows children to study\ntopics related to living things. They can play games, read and\nthen be quizzed on the material.\n|Yahoo! Kids||This site contains facts on animals. Kids can\nspecific animals to see photos and statistics. They can play\ngames and get homework help in the study zone."}
{"text": "Study Questions Antibiotics' Safety in Preterm Labor\nThere's important new information out today for pregnant women and their doctors: Giving antibiotics to some pregnant women who have gone into labor too early could be dangerous for the long-term development of their children, according to a major new study.\nNow, it's important to make it clear right away that if a pregnant woman definitely has an infection she should take an antibiotic--an infection can be very dangerous to the mom and baby. But the new study says doctors should be very careful about giving a pregnant woman antibiotics if there is no clear evidence that she has an infection and her water hasn't broken.\nThis comes from a big international study involving more than 11,000 women known as the ORACLE study. British researchers started it to find out if antibiotics might help women who go into labor too soon. Infections can trigger premature labor without causing any other symptoms. So the idea was that antibiotics could help.\nIn 2001, the researchers reported that giving erythromycin to pregnant women whose water had broken prematurely reduced the risk their babies would develop infections, breathing problems and other short-term complications. But erythromycin didn't seem to help women in premature labor whose water had not broken.\nThe researchers then followed more than 6,000 of the children in the study who were born in England to see how they fared. In a pair of papers released yesterday by the journal The Lancet, the researchers reported that those whose mothers took erythromycin before their water broke were 18 percent more likely to have mild developmental problems. And, perhaps most disturbing, they were about three times as likely to have cerebral palsy.\nThe researchers do not know why antibiotics would cause those problems, but they speculate that perhaps keeping a fetus in the womb of a mother who has an infection may not be good for the child.\nNow, it's important to note that current guidelines only recommend antibiotics for pregnant women whose water has broken or have clear signs of an infection, and the study shows that is the right thing to do.\nBut experts say it's important to get the word out in case some doctors are giving pregnant women who go into premature labor antibiotics even though their water has not broken and they have no obvious signs of infection.\nThe research also is a good reminder that just because something seems like a good idea you never know for sure until you do the research to find out. You could end up doing more harm than good.\nSeptember 18, 2008; 7:00 AM ET\nCategories: Cancer , Motherhood\nSave & Share: Previous: LIfe's Big Questions: How Can I Face This Financial Stress?\nNext: Colon Screening: Ready to Go Virtual?\nThe comments to this entry are closed."}
{"text": "Multiple sclerosis is a progressive disease for which no cure has yet been found. Researchers are working to identify new and better strategies to stop that progression.\nPeople with primary-progressive MS (read more about courses of MS) experience a slow but nearly continuous worsening of their disease from the onset, with no distinct relapses or remissions. A more common type of progressive MS is secondary-progressive MS, which starts as relapsing-remitting MS and then transitions into a progressive course, with or without occasional relapses.\nSome of the burning questions that are being addressed through research include:\n- What factors influence the transition from a largely relapsing-remitting course with distinct immune attacks to a largely progressive (steadily worsening) course (secondary-progressive MS)?\n- Can the disease-modifying therapies prevent, delay, or slow long-term MS progression?\n- What causes primary-progressive MS, and is it the same (currently unknown) thing that causes more common forms of MS?\n- What new therapies will help people with progressive MS?\n- What causes degeneration of nerve fibers—thought to be the cause of long-term disability experienced by many with MS—and how can that be stopped or reversed?\nAlthough many of the National MS Society’s research studies explore virtually every aspect of MS and more basic aspects of how the nervous system and immune system works, some studies focus specifically on progressive forms of MS. As part of its Strategic Response for 2011-2015, the National MS Society is increasing its focus on understanding mechanisms that drive MS progression and finding new therapies to treat it. Current projects involving people with progressive MS include:\n- Four different teams at Harvard and State University of New York, Buffalo using different methods and approaches to identify possible risk factors that drive progression, some of which may be preventable. Ideally, they will find ways to more quickly identify progressive disease based on biological markers, rather than waiting for symptoms to worsen.\n- A genetics study at Vanderbilt University looking at how variants in a person’s DNA may lead to progressive MS.\n- An imaging study of people with primary-progressive MS at Massachusetts General Hospital aimed at revealing spinal cord damage that is difficult to detect.\n- New York University researchers developing and applying a new way to assess cumulative disability over many functions to provide a tool to improve care and research.\n- MS Tissue Banks that provide shared resources to empower investigations into disease mechanisms.\n- Clinical trials at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, of novel rehabilitation strategies aimed at restoring mobility in people with progressive and advanced MS. A Cleveland Clinic study evaluating a new \"hip flexion assist device\" designed to improve walking ability.\n- A Fast Forward alliance to accelerate the clinical application of adult stem cells for MS including progressive MS.\n- Drexel University researchers examining driving ability at various stages of MS progression to improve safety and independence.\n- A clinical trial at the University of California, Los Angeles testing the ability of aerobic exercise to improve cognitive function.\n- A study at Buffalo General Hospital investigating changes in the brain (atrophy) that may lead to personality and behavior disorders in MS and the impact of those disorders on disease course and quality of life.\n- Oregon Health & Science University pilot study evaluating the sensitivity of an electronic instrument to detect and measure gait and mobility changes in people with MS.\n- In collaboration with the MS Society of Canada, the Society has funded seven research projects focusing on whether CCSVI (vein blockages) plays a role in the MS disease process.\n- Shared DNA bank at the University of California, San Francisco, propelling studies aimed at identifying genes that make people susceptible to developing MS, and genes that may influence course and severity."}
{"text": "Oct 08 2008\nThe Nobel Prize in Medicine was awarded this week to two French virologists, Françoise Barré-Sinoussi and Luc A. Montagnier, for discovering the AIDS causing virus, the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). They will share half the prize of 1.4 million dollars, the other half going to three Dr. Harald zur Hausen for discovering the human papilloma virus and its relation to cervical cancer.\nThe prize comes 25 years after Barré-Sinoussi and Montagnier, working at the Pasteur Institute in Paris, published their paper identifying what was later called HIV. The last quarter of a century has proven their discovery to be a triumph of science-based medicine. The Nobel committee is correct, in my opinion, in waiting such long periods of time before granting such recognition. It reflects that fact that, even in a fast-paced arena of science such as medicine, it takes time for the meticulous process of science to work itself out. It takes decades to garner the perspective necessary to tell the difference between a crucial breakthrough and a false lead."}
{"text": "Science Fair Project Encyclopedia\nThe World Factbook\nThe World Factbook is an annual publication by the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States with basic almanac-style information about the various countries of the world. The factbook gives a two- to three-page summary of the demographics, location, telecommunications capacity, government, industry, military capability, etc, of all US-recognized countries and territories in the world.\nAs The World Factbook is prepared by the CIA for the use of U.S. Government officials, the style, format, coverage, and content are designed to meet their specific requirements.\nInformation is provided by:\n- Antarctic Information Program (National Science Foundation),\n- Bureau of the Census (Department of Commerce),\n- Bureau of Labor Statistics (Department of Labor),\n- Central Intelligence Agency,\n- Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs ,\n- Defense Intelligence Agency (Department of Defense),\n- US Department of State,\n- US Fish and Wildlife Service (Department of the Interior),\n- US Maritime Administration (Department of Transportation),\n- National Imagery and Mapping Agency (Department of Defense),\n- Naval Facilities Engineering Command (Department of Defense),\n- Office of Insular Affairs (Department of the Interior),\n- Office of Naval Intelligence (Department of Defense),\n- United States Board on Geographic Names (Department of the Interior), and\n- other public and private sources.\nThe official seal of the CIA, however, may NOT be copied without permission as required by the CIA Act of 1949 (50 U.S.C. section 403m). Misuse of the official seal of the CIA could result in civil and criminal penalties. Also, \"Federal law prohibits use of the words \"Central Intelligence Agency,\" the initials \"CIA,\" the seal of the Central Intelligence Agency, or any colorable imitation of such words, initials, or seal in connection with any merchandise, impersonation, solicitation, or commercial activity in a manner reasonably calculated to convey the impression that such use is approved, endorsed, or authorized by the Central Intelligence Agency. \"\nMany sites have used information and images from the CIA World Factbook, because of its public domain status, including this encyclopedia.\nBesides the World Factbook, the CIA puts out a directory of Chiefs of State and Cabinet Members of Foreign Governments each week.\nOddities and controversies\nThe maps of countries in the Factbook also appear to have strange anomalies. For example, the map of the United Kingdom lists the town of Grangemouth in Scotland, although it is only a small town and in no way a major city (this is perhaps due to its status as a major centre of the oil industry in Scotland).\nThe U.S. does not recognize the renaming of Burma by its ruling military junta to Myanmar and thus keeps its entry for the country under \"Burma.\"\nSpecific regions within a country or areas in dispute among countries, such as Kashmir and Kosovo, are not covered, but other areas of the world whose status is disputed, such as the Spratly Islands, have entries.\nMaps depicting Kashmir have the India-Pakistan border drawn at the Line of Control, but the region of Kashmir occupied by China drawn in hashmarks.\nNorthern Cyprus is not given a separate entry or listed as part of Turkey because \"territorial occupations/annexations not recognized by the United States Government are not shown on U.S. Government maps.\"\nTaiwan has a separate entry not listed under \"T\", but at the bottom of the list. The name \"Republic of China\" is not listed as Taiwan's \"official name\" under the \"Government\" section, perhaps due to U.S. recognition of Beijing's One-China Policy according to which the Republic of China is a defunct entity having been replaced by the People's Republic of China. The name \"Republic of China\" was briefly added on January 27, 2005 but changed back to \"none\" on February 10, 2005.\nOn December 16, 2004, the CIA added an entry for the European Union. According to the CIA, the European Union was added because the EU \"continues to accrue more nation-like characteristics for itself\".\n- World Factbook Website\n- 2004 CIA World Factbook for Pocket PC and Palm OS devices\n- Nationmaster.com: statistics with bars, based on the Factbook\n- Authorama CIA World Factbook: The complete Factbook as XHTML1.0 (easily readable, no images, device-independent)\nThe contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details"}
{"text": "Although often used interchangeably, the words \"fate\" and \"destiny\" have distinct connotations.\n- Traditional usage defines fate as a power or agency that predetermines and orders the course of events. Fate defines events as ordered or \"inevitable\" and unavoidable. Classical and European mythology features three goddesses dispensing fate, known as Moirai in Greek mythology, as Parcae in Roman mythology, and as Norns in Norse mythology. They determine the events of the world through the mystic spinning of threads that represent individual human fates.\n- Destiny is used with regard to the finality of events as they have worked themselves out; and to that same sense of \"destination\", projected into the future to become the flow of events as they will work themselves out.\nIn other words, \"fate\" relates to events of the future and present of an individual and in cases in literature unalterable, whereas \"destiny\" relates to the probable future. Fate implies no choice, but with destiny the entity participates in achieving an outcome that is directly related to itself. Participation happens willfully.\nIn Hellenistic civilization, the chaotic and unforeseeable turns of chance gave increasing prominence to a previously less notable goddess, Tyche, who embodied the good fortune of a city and all whose lives depended on its security and prosperity, two good qualities of life that appeared to be out of human reach. The Roman image of Fortuna, with the wheel she blindly turned, was retained by Christian writers, revived strongly in the Renaissance and survives in some forms today.\nIn daily language, \"destiny\" and \"fate\" are synonymous, but with regard to 19th century philosophy, the words gained inherently different meanings.\nFor Arthur Schopenhauer, destiny was just a manifestation of the Will to Live, which can be at the same time living fate and choice of overrunning the fate same, by means of the Art, of the Morality and of the Ascesis.\nFor Nietzsche, destiny keeps the form of Amor fati (Love of Fate) through the important element of Nietzsche's philosophy, the \"will to power\" (der Wille zur Macht), the basis of human behavior, influenced by the Will to Live of Schopenhauer. But this concept may have even other senses, although he, in various places, saw the will to power as a strong element for adaptation or survival in a better way. Nietzsche eventually transformed the idea of matter as centers of force into matter as centers of will to power as mankind’s destiny to face with amor fati. The expression Amor fati is used repeatedly by Nietzsche as acceptation-choice of the fate, but in such way it becomes even another thing, precisely a \"choice\" destiny.\nMany Greek legends and tales teach the futility of trying to outmaneuver an inexorable fate that has been correctly predicted. This form of irony is important in Greek tragedy, as it is in Oedipus Rex and in the Duque de Rivas' play that Verdi transformed into La Forza del Destino (\"The Force of Destiny\") or Thornton Wilder's The Bridge of San Luis Rey, or in Macbeth's uncannily-derived knowledge of his own destiny, which in spite of all his actions does not preclude a horrible fate.\nOther notable examples include Thomas Hardy's Tess of the d'Urbervilles, in which Tess is destined to the miserable death that she is confronted with at the end of the novel; Samuel Beckett's Endgame; the popular short story \"The Monkey's Paw\" by W.W. Jacobs.\nDestiny is a recurring theme in the literature of Hermann Hesse (1877–1962), including Siddharta (1922) and his magnum opus, Das Glasperlenspiel, also published as The Glass Bead Game (1943). The common theme of these works involves a protagonist who cannot escape a destiny if their fate has been sealed, however hard they try. Destiny is also an important plot point in the hit TV shows Lost, Heroes and Supernatural, as well a common theme in the Roswell TV series. Destiny is a recurring theme in the video-game franchise Kingdom Hearts, with Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep having its story based around the concept of Destiny, and the tagline for the game stating \"Destiny is never left to chance.\" Destiny is also a prominent theme in the anime Mawaru Penguindrum, which focuses on the concept that humans cannot escape from their own fate.\nSee also \n|Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Destiny|\n- Divine Providence\n- Lazy argument\n- Qadr, destiny in Islam\n- Russian avos'\n- Psychology of human destiny\n- \"The Wheel of Fortune\" remains an emblem of the chance element in fate(destiny).\n- Beyond Good & Evil 13, Gay Science 349 & Genealogy of Morality II:12\n- Cornelius, Geoffrey, C. (1994). \"The Moment of Astrology: Origins in Divination\", Penguin Group, part of Arkana Contemporary Astrology series."}
{"text": "Outer doublet heterogeneity reveals structural polarity related to beat direction in Chlamydomonas flagella\nDepartment of Cell Biology\nChlamydomonas; Dynein ATPase; Flagella; Microscopy, Electron; Microtubules\nAnalysis of serial cross-sections of the Chlamydomonas flagellum reveals several structural asymmetries in the axoneme. One doublet lacks the outer dynein arm, has a beak-like projection in its B-tubule, and bears a two-part bridge that extends from the A-tubule of this doublet to the B-tubule of the adjacent doublet. The two doublets directly opposite the doublet lacking the arm have beak-like projections in their B-tubules. These asymmetries always occur in the same doublets from section to section, indicating that certain doublets have consistent morphological specializations. These unique doublets give the axoneme an inherent structural polarity. All three specializations are present in the proximal portion of the axoneme; based on their frequency in random cross-sections of isolated axonemes, the two-part bridge and the beak-like projections are present in the proximal one quarter and one half of the axoneme, respectively, and the outer arm is absent from the one doublet greater than 90% of the axoneme's length. The outer arm-less doublet of each flagellum faces the other flagellum, indicating that each axoneme has the same rotational orientation relative to the direction of its effective stroke. This strongly suggests that the direction of the effective stroke is controlled by a structural component within the axoneme. The striated fibers are associated with specific triplets in a manner suggesting that they play a role in setting up or maintaining the 180 degrees rotational symmetry of the two flagella.\nRights and Permissions\nCitation: J Cell Biol. 1983 Sep;97(3):902-8.\nThe Journal of cell biology"}
{"text": "To create a true net-zero building, one that literally generates as much or more energy than it consumes, is no easy task. Still, it’s a task that makes good business sense. After all, buildings consume a huge amount of energy, which cuts into profit margins. This simple equation finally hit home with Hines, the international real estate firm, and equity partner J.P. Morgan Asset Management. The two are partnering to build a new 13-story, 415,000-square-foot building at La Jolla Commons in San Diego that will become the nation’s largest carbon-neutral office building to date.\nIn order to achieve this rare feat, the building will utilize combination of high-performance building design, directed biogas and on-site fuel cells that annually will generate more electricity than tenants will use. The fuel cells, made by Bloom Energy, will generate approximately 5.0 million KWh of electricity annually, which is roughly equivalent to the electricity required to power 1,000 San Diego homes. Methane needed to power the fuel cells will be acquired from carbon-neutral sources, such as landfills and wastewater plants, and placed into the national natural gas pipeline system. The building’s exterior is predominately a glass curtainwall system incorporating highly efficient, insulated, double-paned glass with a clear, low-emissive coating.\nHines views its newest building, which will also contain a highly efficient under-floor air system, as a sort of ongoing R&D project. “Our net-zero project at La Jolla Commons gives us a great foundation for furthering the use of carbon-neutral technologies and fuels,” said Gary Holtzer, Hines’ global sustainability officer. ”Our next step is to adapt what we have learned and apply it to an existing urban property in a less temperate environment.”\nConstruction on the carbon neutral building began in April 2012 and completion is scheduled for mid-2014."}
{"text": "Philosophy East and West 46 (2):143-164 (1996)\n|Abstract||The origin, content, argumentative basis, practical implication, and influence of Mencius' views of mind-heart and human nature are discussed. While the differences between Confucius and Mencius are acknowledged, it is argued that Mencius' view that human nature is good is consistent with and is a further development of basic ideas in Confucius' thinking. The basis of Mencius' view is not empirical generalization but inner reflection and personal experience, which reveal a shared natural endowment in human beings with a transcendental source. In addition to a discussion of Mencius' views, the development of his ideas in the Sung and Ming and by contemporary Neo-Confucians is also considered|\n|Keywords||No keywords specified (fix it)|\n|Through your library||Configure|\nSimilar books and articles\nJames Behuniak Jr (2011). Naturalizing Mencius. Philosophy East and West 61 (3):492-515.\nDavid E. Soles (1999). The Nature and Grounds of Xunzi's Disagreement with Mencius. Asian Philosophy 9 (2):123 – 133.\nQingping Liu (2001). Is Mencius' Doctrine of 'Commiseration' Tenable? Asian Philosophy 11 (2):73 – 84.\nJames Behuniak (2002). Mencius on Becoming Human. Dissertation, University of Hawaii at Manoa\nLiang Tao & Andrew Lambert (2009). Mencius and the Tradition of Articulating Human Nature in Terms of Growth. Frontiers of Philosophy in China 4 (2):180 - 197.\nKwong-loi Shun (1997). Mencius and Early Chinese Thought. Stanford University Press.\nZhang Pengwei, Guo Qiyong & Wang Bei (2008). New Insight Into Mencius' Theory of the Original Goodness in Human Nature. Frontiers of Philosophy in China 3 (1):27 - 38.\nKatrin Froese (2008). Organic Virtue: Reading Mencius with Rousseau. Asian Philosophy 18 (1):83 – 104.\nTao Liang (2009). Mencius and the Tradition of Articulating Human Nature in Terms of Growth. Frontiers of Philosophy in China 4 (2):180-197.\nAdded to index2009-01-28\nTotal downloads13 ( #88,007 of 549,196 )\nRecent downloads (6 months)1 ( #63,397 of 549,196 )\nHow can I increase my downloads?"}
{"text": "1. Yodhājīva Sutta. On five kinds of warriors: those who are frightened by a cloud of dust, by the sight of a flag, by tumult, by conflict, and those who fight victoriously; and on five similar kinds of monks. A.iii.87f.\n2. Yodhājīva Sutta. On five kinds of warriors: those who go down into the thick of the fight where they are overpowered, those who are wounded and die on the way to their home, those who survive for some time but die of their wounds, those who are cured of their wounds, those that are victorious in battle and continue to fight. There are five corresponding kinds of monks. A.iii.94ff.\n3. Yodhājīva Sutta. Records the visit of the headman Yodhājīva to the Buddha. S.iv.308."}
{"text": "Galactorrhea is a discharge of milk-like substance from the breast that is not associated with breastfeeding after pregnancy. This condition mainly occurs in women. It does occur in men, but much less commonly. The milky white discharge can come from one or both breasts, and the breast may leak fluid with or without stimulation.\nGalactorrhea has many causes, though sometimes the cause is unknown. Tumors of the pituitary gland, called pituitary adenomas or prolactinomas, can cause galactorrhea. The pituitary is a small gland attached to the brain. Pituitary tumors are usually not cancerous. They can cause galactorrhea when they produce excess prolactin, a hormone that stimulates milk production.\nOther causes of galactorrhea include:\n- Hormonal imbalance\nSome medications, such as:\n- Stopping or starting to take birth control pills or other hormones\n- Certain blood pressure drugs\n- Certain psychiatric medications\n- Anti-nausea drugs\n- Some antigastroesophageal reflux medications\n- Some pain killers\n- Certain herbs, such as :\n- Illicit drugs, such as marijuana and opioids\n- Sexual stimulation of the breast\n- Certain diseases, such as underactive or overactive thyroid, and chronic kidney failure, or liver disease\n- Chronic emotional stress\n- Hypothalamic tumors or disease\nChest wall conditions, such as:\n- Surgical scars\n- Tumors of chest wall\n- In newborns, high levels of circulating estrogen may result in enlarged breast tissue and secretion of milk\nGalactorrhea is more common in women. Other factors that may increase your chance of galactorrhea include:\n- Wearing clothing that irritates the nipple\n- Frequent breast self-exam or frequent breast stimulation\nThe primary symptom is a milky discharge from the nipple that is not associated with breast-feeding. The discharge can come from one or both breasts. Other symptoms that can occur along with the discharge include:\n- Abnormal or absent menstruation\n- Heat or cold intolerance\n- Disordered appetite, increase or decrease in weight\n- Increased thirst or urination\n- Loss of sex drive\n- Bloody or foul-smelling discharge\n- Acne or abnormal hair growth\n- Visual difficulties\n- Impotence in men\nThe doctor will ask about your symptoms and medical history. A physical exam will be done. Tests may include:\n- A sample of the breast discharge to look at under a microscope\n- Blood tests to check hormone levels\n- Pregnancy test\n- Imaging tests to check for a pituitary gland tumor in the brain:\nIf the discharge is not milky or contains blood, then this is not galactorrhea. Other tests must be done to check for breast cancer or other disorders.\nTreatment depends on the cause. In some mild cases, no medical treatment is necessary, and the condition will go away on its own. In these cases, breast binders that prevent stimulation of the nipples may be effective. If medications are identified as the potential cause, safe alternatives should be sought.\nIf an underlying cause for galactorrhea, such as a pituitary tumor, is found, this condition may be treated.\nTumors of the pituitary gland that cause galactorrhea are usually benign. Small tumors may be treated with a medication, such as a dopamine agonist. Larger tumors that do not respond to medication may be treated with the following:\n- Surgery to remove the tumor and nearby tissues\n- Radiation therapy to shrink tumors\nDespite treatment, pituitary gland tumors often recur.\nTo reduce your risk of galactorrhea, take these steps:\n- Avoid wearing clothing that irritates the breast.\n- Avoid frequent breast self-exam; usually once a month is enough.\n- Avoid excessive sexual stimulation of the breasts.\n- Do not use illicit drugs.\n- Reviewer: Andrea Chisholm; Brian Randall, MD\n- Review Date: 06/2013 -\n- Update Date: 06/11/2013 -"}
{"text": "Date: April 2003\nWhy does DNA decompose when heated to too high a temperature?\nThe most of the hydrogen bonds that join the two DNE stands break from the\nheat. With more heat the actual bonds between the nucleotides can break\n-fragmenting a strand.\nVery few organic molecules can with stand high temperatures for very\nlong. Heat provides the activation energy to break covalent bonds and\ndenature/destroy molecular structure. Proteins are particularly sensitive.\nThere are exceptions, as in the case of thermophillic bacteria. There are\ncases or heat shock-proteins or \"chaperone\" proteins that can protect\nregular proteins from breakdown - to a point.\nDNA doesn't actually decompose when heated. It just melts. DNA comes in two mirror image strands that you could visualize as a zipper. The chemical bonds that make up each strand of the zipper are permanent joins, but the teeth that connect the two strands are much weaker and sensitive to heat. So when you expose DNA to heat (for instance, by boiling it), the two strands of the zipper separate. By very slowly cooling that denatured DNA, you could actually get the strands to reanneal or zip up again.\nChristine Ticknor, Ph.D.\nIreland Cancer Center\nCase Western Reserve University\nDNA in its native form is composed of two molecules that have the\ncharacteristic of being complementary such that one strand associates\nwith the other in a particular fashion, forming a \"double helix.\" The\ntwo molecules are stabilized in this structure due to noncovalent bonds,\nmostly hydrogen bonds and vanderWaals forces. These bonds are not\nstrong; accordingly, when the temperature rises sufficiently, the double\nhelix is said to \"melt\" into its two component molecules, and will\nreassociate upon slow cooling under appropriate salt conditions. So,\nthe issue is not decomposition so much as disassociation upon exposure\nto too high a temperature; and the reason for the disassociation is that\nthe energy input of the heat overcomes the ability of the noncovalent\nbonds to keep the molecules together.\nHeat \"cooks\" organic material, DNA or others, especially in the presence of oxyge. So\nDNA can \"burn\" in the usual sense of the word forming CO2, N2 and other compounds. Even in the\nabsence of O2, heat can cause DNA, or other molecules, to change its structure either by losing\nsome degradation product, or just changing structure so that it cannot replicate. The\n\"technical\" term for proteins is \"denaturing\", which is a catch-all phrase for \"losing its\nChemical bonds have a certain stability based on the type of bonding. Some\nbonds are quite strong The following are covalent bond strengths.\nBond Bond Strength(kJ/mole); Bond Bond Strength (kJ/mole)\nCl-Cl 239 H-Cl 427\nH-H 432 C-H 413\nN N 941 N-H 391\nBond strength can be overcome by adding heat...The GC and AT bonds in DNA\nare hydrogen bonds (non-covalent) and can also be overcome with heat.\nthese hydrogen bonds are about 71 kilojoules per mole...relatively weak (but\nstrong in large numbers) and can be broken and reformed by heating and\ncooling. This is the secret behind the polymerase chain reaction.\nClick here to return to the Molecular Biology Archives\nUpdate: June 2012"}
{"text": "BURKE TEACHERS STUDY, PREPARE FOR NEW CURRICULUM\nBurke County schools are preparing for a curriculum change coming in August as North Carolina joins more than 40 other states in adopting the Common Core State Standards. A pamphlet Burke schools will send to parents next month explains the new way of teaching, testing and holding principals accountable.“These standards describe what students are supposed to know from kindergarten through 12th grade,” the pamphlet reads. “They define the reading, writing and math knowledge and skills needed at each grade level. Each year builds on the next so that by high school graduation, young people are prepared to go to college or to enter the workplace.”Burke school officials attended a crash course in Common Core last month as North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction June Atkinson toured the state to talk about the upcoming changes."}
{"text": "Race for survival\nOn the brink of extinction, Honu'ea struggle to the sea\nOctober 23, 2008A full moon floods the wide swath of sand that conceals Orion's nest. Big Beach is lit up so bright we can see where the first ones emerged, the football-sized divot on a small mound of sand cordoned of with yellow caution tape.\nThis is the third and final full moon to hit the still-gravid mound.\nSheryl King, a biologist with the Hawaii Wildlife Fund, sits at the head of a circle consisting of a dozen or so of us. She explains what we are to do should more baby honu'ea—hawksbill turtles—dig their way out on one of our shifts: make sure they head in the right direction—toward the sea. Keep cats, mongooses, and crabs away. If one flips over in a footprint, push up sand beneath it so it can right itself, but don't ever touch a hatchling.\nWe determine who stakes out when, then hit the hay, or rather the sand.\nHawksbill nests typically gestate for around 60 days, King said, but she adjusts a nest's \"due date\" according to various factors, among them temperature and shade.\nKing spotted Orion, the mother, depositing this particular clutch around 64 days prior to the first hatchlings' emergence. She was watching for nesting hawksbills as part of the dawn patrol, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service effort to spot nesting females as part of the Honu'ea Recovery Project. She estimated the nest would begin to hatch on October 11. She was only 2 days off.\nThe project takes place with help from several entities, including FWS, the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The aim is to get the honu'ea population up to more stable number.\nOrion herself likely hatched very close to the spot where she dropped off her most recent batch.\n\"They tend to return to their natal beach,\" said HWF co-founder Hannah Bernard. \"We don't really understand how they find their way.\"\nYet Orion doesn't stick around for very long after nesting. According to King, she spends most of her days off the coast of Oahu and comes to the vicinity of Big Beach every three to four years just to nest.\n\"I first tracked her, and named her, in 2001,\" King said. \"We've tracked her with satellite transmitters so we have a good handle on her movements.\"\nThis is Orion's third or fourth nest this season. Two other nests were laid on island this year by an as yet unidentified female, which Bernard says is a good thing—one more nesting female adding to the species' extremely small gene pool.\nThis is one of only ten or so nesting areas archipelago-wide. There are three on Maui. Other sites include Kameahame Beach on the Big Island and a black sand beach at the mouth of Moloka'i's Halawa River. Ninety percent of honu'ea nesting occurs on the Ka'u Coast of the Big Island.\nNests contain an average of 140 eggs. But while a single hawksbill may lay nearly a thousand eggs in a given year, Hawaii's honu'ea aren't exactly thriving. King said that they have a one in 10,000 chance of making it to adulthood. Volunteers stake out the nest for 24 hours a day as the due date approaches to help ensure the hatchlings' instinctual seaward striving goes without predatory incident.\nHWF volunteer coordinator Angie Hofmann compares the hatching of a sea turtle nest to childbirth. Everyone was antsy in the days leading up to the hatching. A handful of volunteers parked nest-side in beach chairs day and night, eyes locked on the mound for even the tiniest movement. One volunteer called it a \"watched pot.\"\nOnly this one boils.\nThe first batch emerged at around 5am on Monday, October 13. Forty-eight hatchlings made their way to the water that morning, but Orion's nest was still far from empty.\nGlimpsing these tiny hatchlings, bellies full of yolk, as they march toward the sea is an extraordinary sight on its own, but there is a particular sense of urgency for the little ones whose prolific mama chose to deposit them in the shade of a keawe tree at Big Beach.\nHonu'ea are not the enormous green guys that bob up beside you when you're snorkeling at Black Rock or Molokini. Honu'ea are smaller—they grow to be up to 270 pounds, whereas the greens round out at 400. Honu'ea have a beak rather than a rounded snout—hence the Anglo name, hawksbill.\nMost importantly, honu'ea are endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and most people you ask will say they're critically endangered; greens are not.\nThough their plight is severe and stemming from the same source, green sea turtles are listed as threatened, which means that their numbers are much higher than those of the honu'ea.\nStatewide, according to King and Bernard, there are fewer than 100 nesting female honu'ea. Fewer than ten of these will nest throughout the isles in any given year. Only five or six total dig their nests on Maui's coastline.\n\"That's critically low,\" Bernard said, adding that the entire Hawaii hawksbill population is extremely vulnerable. \"The greater your numbers, the greater your resilience.\"\nThey cite anthropogenic—human—causes for the species' alarmingly low numbers: runoff, traffic, lights that disorient nesting turtles, introduced predators, habitat loss and more.\nHawksbills across the globe were once plundered for their shells, which were made into combs, jewelry and even guitar picks. In Japan, according to the 1999 Jay April documentary Red Turtle Rising, they were seen as a sign of longevity, and thus stuffed and hung on the walls in many homes. In Hawaii their shells were used to make dinnerware, jewelry and medicine, though a kapu (taboo) barred honu'ea meat from being consumed (they dine primarily on poisonous sponges, which makes their meat toxic). The tortoiseshell pattern that may or may not constitute your sunglass frames was inspired by the hawksbill. In 1973 real tortoiseshell was banned worldwide under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).\n|Researchers have tracked Orion's (the mama turtle) route and found she likes to hang out on Oahu, but comes to Maui to nest.|\nIt may be illegal to mess with them these days, but they're not exactly bouncing back.\nThat's why the 140 or so hatchlings here at Big Beach, barely larger than your big toe, need to make it the ocean.\nSo far the turnout has been outstanding. The first night saw 48 turtles scamper into the tide. The next night more than 100 came out. Tonight we'll see the stragglers to the shore, if there are any.\nThe next day King will excavate the nest carefully with her hands for any that didn't make it out, dead or alive. Live hatchlings will be placed in the water after dusk. Eggshells will be counted and unhatched eggs will be sent to a NOAA lab in Honolulu for DNA testing.\nMy one to 2am shift comes and goes without a peep. I've been instructed to shine a red flashlight on the nest every few minutes, but the mound is frozen.\nI fall asleep after my shift with few expectations.\nAt some bleary hour a voice startles me awake.\n\"There's a turtle!\" King says as she passes my tent. \"A turtle just hatched!\"\nIt's barely a quarter past five in the morning. Volunteers climb out of sleeping bags and tents and flood the area around the nest. One hatchling moves slowly toward the sea in the moonlight, almost a silhouette at this dark hour. Its tracks look like tire tread from a mountain bike. We inch along behind it, awestruck.\nAfter 20 minutes the turtle is at the edge of the sea. Although its flippers have just had a killer workout, the hatchling takes to the waves effortlessly after the lapping water swallows it whole.\nAny number of things could have thrown off the hatchling and its siblings. Had this been a beach up the road they may have gone toward bright lights. They may have gone toward South Kihei Road and gotten smashed, which has happened before with nesting mothers; once in 1993 and once in 1996, thanks to speeding motorists. A feral cat (of which there are many) could have gotten to them. King says that even ghost crabs prey on sea-bound hatchlings, gouging out their eyes in a horrific display King herself has witnessed in the northwest Hawaiian Isles.\nHofmann said her major concern is the long-term impact of development on nesting. While Big Beach is a state park and thus can't be built upon, two proposed developments—Wailea 670 and the expansion of Makena Resort—could increase the volume of beachgoers that may, inadvertently or otherwise, disturb the nests.\n\"If they both get their way there'd be another city down here,\" she said.\nThe proposed development sites may be pretty far mauka of where the turtles nest, but storm runoff has an obvious impact on their ability to successfully hatch and make it to the sea, as does lighting.\nHofmann said that, given how close honu'ea are to extinction, developers should reconsider how they determine appropriateness when choosing a building site.\n\"The turtles have chosen this as their nesting place,\" she said.\nWhile there are several well-documented hawksbill nesting sites statewide, there is no bureaucratic mechanism that can designate them as a critical habitat.\nBernard said that the only defense for sites with impending developments so far has been a lighting ordinance that the county adopted in 2007, which she said was watered-down.\n\"It's not the bill that we hoped for,\" she said, \"but it's a start.\"\nJust after six in the morning the camp gets jostled awake once again. Three more babies have come out, a volunteer says. I hop to my feet. The last ones to emerge on their own are making it to sea in the new daylight, each on a separate trajectory, seemingly unaware of one another but probably very aware of us.\nWe scare away the looming ghost crabs. We clear the path of debris, as the turtles' tiny flippers hoist them along the final stretch of sand.\nIt takes one honu'ea a few tries to take to the water; the oncoming surf pushes it off course. The other two swim off almost instantly.\nNobody knows where they're headed. They return to near shore areas after about five to 10 years, but the time in between is known as the lost years. One theory is that they attach themselves to little clumps of seaweed, floating wherever the current takes them. Those ready to nest, of course, eventually make it back to the beach of their birth using some mysterious sense that we don't yet understand. The hope is they'll stick around long enough for us to find out. MTW\nFor more information on how you can help hawksbills visit wildhawaii.org. To find out more about the role of honu'ea in Hawaiian history and culture check out the award-winning 1999 documentary Red Turtle Rising, directed by Jay April. The film is available for free on the Web at filmmaui.com and through the World Turtle Trust.\n|Entertainment and lifestyle news for Maui, Hawaii and the surrounding Islands. Maui Time Weekly is Mauis only independent and locally owned newspaper.\nMail this link to a friend|"}
{"text": "| Quote #1\nRichard's first mention of his relation to his family prepares us for the way family will function in the play. Richard speaks of deceiving one brother to imprison the other. He even explicitly compares himself to his brother Edward, saying that he is all the evil that Edward is not. Thus we get the hint that family will not be about the ties and the love that bind people. Instead, it's just one more instrument Richard will use to manipulate and spread his hate.\n| Quote #2\nRichard implicitly draws a comparison between himself and Anne's dead husband, the murdered Prince Edward, by pointing out their old family connection. By invoking the Plantagenet name, Richard goes far back to the original family from which the two warring houses, Lancaster and York, sprang. Amidst all the animosity in the play, it's easy to forget that the warring Lancasters and Yorks are actually related by blood (hence the dispute). Remembering the family connection between the Lancasters and Yorks also makes all the quarreling within the York family a bit more understandable. Being family doesn't guarantee allegiance. Fighting within the family is common, hence the Wars of the Roses.\n| Quote #3\nMargaret represents the old guard that the Yorks defeated to come to power. As they turn from their in-fighting to attack her, we get a rare glimpse of family loyalty and unity amongst those related to King Edward."}
{"text": "MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS LEARN ABOUT THE JUSTICE SYSTEM\nMiddle school students from several New Castle County schools are having an opportunity to spend a morning in the New Castle County Courthouse to learn more about how the court system works and to speak informally with prosecutors and public defenders. Starting with a tour of the courthouse, the students learn about the “nuts and bolts” of the justice system, including new technologies used in the courtroom, as well as court facilities and security, and watch a demonstration by Pocket, the dog whose well-trained nose aids Capitol Police in protecting the courthouse.\nThereafter, they get an opportunity to learn about the legal aspects of the court system from a judge who explains how trials work. And, then, when they least expect it, they get to experience a trial themselves – albeit a mock one. As they are listening to the judge explain the various aspects of a trial, a “theft” occurs and the alleged perpetrator is put on trial. Students act as prosecutors, public defenders, judges, bailiffs, and jurors, with their real-life counterparts coaching them on their roles. After the trial is completed and the jury reaches a verdict, the group discusses what occurred at the trial and why the jury reached its verdict. The visit concludes with lunch and an opportunity to speak informally with the real life prosecutors, public defenders, and others involved in the trial.\nAll of those attending expressed a great deal of enthusiasm about the experience. “I loved everything!” exclaimed one student on his evaluation. “My favorite part of the day was the mock trial. It was fun to act like it was a real case,” said another. A third student appreciated the one-on-one contact with those who work in the field, saying “My favorite part of the day was talking to Mr. Andy [Public Defender Andrew Rosen]. He told me some important things.” And the professionals involved enjoyed working with the students, as well, according to “Mr. Andy” of the Public Defender’s Office.\nIn November and December, the project hosted approximately 25 students from Bayard Middle School in Wilmington, as well as about 180 students over three days from Newark Charter School. In the upcoming months, the project is slated to host students from East Side Charter, Springer Middle School, and H.B. duPont Middle School.\nThe project, which is spearheaded by the Administrative Office of the Courts, is a cooperative effort with the Attorney General’s Office and the Office of the Public Defender. It originated last year as part of the Delaware Supreme Court’s racial and ethnic fairness initiative, which is co-chaired by Justice Henry duPont Ridgely of the Supreme Court and Chief Judge Alex J. Smalls of the Court of Common Pleas.\nFor further information contact Kirsten Morris by e-mail at Kirsten.firstname.lastname@example.org or by phone at 302-255-0094."}
{"text": "Member Comment Sought on Draft National Science and Mathematics Curriculum\nIn 2008 all Australian governments agreed that a quality education for all young Australians is critical to maintaining Australia’s productivity and quality of life. They agreed that a national curriculum would play a key role in delivering quality education and committed to the development of a K–12 national curriculum, initially in the areas of English, mathematics, science and history.\nThe Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) was formed to develop a national curriculum from Kindergarten to Year 12 in specified learning areas.\nACARA released discussion papers on the development of the new curriculum. Following member consultation Engineers Australia compiled a submission making comments on the proposed structure of the science and mathematics curriculum.\nACARA then released the Shape of the Australian Curriculum documents in the second half of 2009. Engineers Australia in partnership with APESMA and ACEA provided further comments to ACARA outlining concerns that a clear understanding of engineering was not being successfully built into the science school curriculum.\nNow, Engineers Australia has been given the opportunity to provide further comments on the draft Mathematics and Science curriculum.\nTo view the submission and curriculum documents or to make a comment, please click here (note: you must be logged in to view this page)"}
{"text": "At Tebtunis public bathhouses\nhave been excavated, the oldest dating to the third century BCE. They had showers,\nstone basins and a stove to heat the bathwater.\nWhile a few bathrooms and tubs have been discovered most Egyptians seem to have\nbeen content with cleaning themselves by aspersion or by a dip in a canal or the\nriver. They had wash basins and probably filled them with a natron solution from\njugs with spouts and used sand as a scouring agent. They washed after rising and\nboth before and after the main meals. As mouth wash they used another salt solution"}
{"text": "Cortex Off, Consciousness Off\nThis dramatic reduction in brain activity after loss of consciousness is scarcely surprising. The link between consciousness and this organ is tight, as expressed in the adage “No brain: never mind!” Yet neuroscientists are trying to track the footprints of consciousness to its actual lair. Which region in the cortex, the thalamus or elsewhere is essential to be conscious at all? Consider the following two experiments.\nTwenty-five patients with Parkinson's disease were anesthetized with propofol or sevoflurane while the electrical activity of both the cortex and thalamus was monitored by a group under François Gouin of the Timone University Hospital Center at the University of the Mediterranean in Marseille, France. Their neocortex was monitored by a conventional electroencephalographic (EEG) electrode placed on the scalp on top of the head, whereas thalamic activity was recorded by an electrode implanted deep inside the brain in the subthalamic nucleus. This electrode stimulates the brain to alleviate the shaking that is the hallmark of Parkinson's. Experimenters assessed consciousness by tapping patients on the shoulder and asking them every 20 seconds to open their eyes.\nWhen consciousness was lost after anesthesia was initiated—that is, when the patients no longer opened their eyes following the command—the cortical EEG changed dramatically, switching from low amplitude and irregular activity into readings dominated by large and slow brain waves that occur about once every second. Such so-called delta band activity is characteristic of deep sleep. Furthermore, the complexity of the cortical EEG signal decreased significantly when patients stopped responding. None of these changes occurs in the thalamic electrode at the time that consciousness is lost.\nIndeed, it is only several minutes later that the thalamic voltage signal matches that of the cortex. The data—consistent for two quite different anesthetic agents, one injected and the other one inhaled—argue that the drivers for the loss of consciousness are parts (or all) of the neocortex and that the thalamus follows."}
{"text": "The government's human rights record remained poor. Although there were no reports that the government or its agents committed politically motivated killings, security forces committed extrajudicial killings and acted with impunity. There was little political will to address the failure by government authorities to adhere to the rule of law. Detainees were abused, often to extract confessions, and prison conditions were harsh. Human rights monitors reported arbitrary arrests and prolonged pretrial detention, underscoring a weak judiciary and denial of the right to a fair trial. Land disputes and forced evictions, often accompanied by violence, were a continuing problem. The government restricted freedom of speech and the press through the use of defamation and disinformation suits, controlled or influenced the content of television and radio broadcasts, and at times interfered with freedom of assembly. Corruption was endemic and extended throughout all segments of society, including the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government. Domestic violence and child abuse occurred, education of children was inadequate, and trafficking in women and children persisted. The government offered little assistance to persons with disabilities. Antiunion activity by employers and weak enforcement of labor laws continued, and child labor remained a problem.\nIn a positive turn, on June 12, the Extraordinary Chambers of the Courts in Cambodia for the Prosecution of Crimes Committed during the Period of Democratic Kampuchea adopted its internal rules to begin prosecuting senior leaders of the Khmer Rouge regime and those most responsible for committing serious crimes. On July 31, the ECCC charged Kaing Guek Eav, alias Duch, with crimes against humanity and subsequently charged four other senior officials; at year's end all were in detention awaiting trial. In addition, on December 10, the government permitted a Human Rights Day march of 500 human rights activists, monks, and other persons and rally of an estimated 2,500 persons in Phnom Penh.\nRESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS\nSection 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom From:\na. Arbitrary or Unlawful Deprivation of Life\nThere were no reports that the government or its agents committed politically motivated killings. However, human rights nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) reported that extrajudicial killings continued to occur.\nThe Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC) recorded 53 cases of extrajudicial killings, 14 of which were committed by police, nine by soldiers, six by fishery officials, and the remaining 24 by unidentified government forces. Police arrested perpetrators in four cases.\nPolitical activists continued to be the victims of killings. On February 27, Eang Sok Thoeurn, a Khmer Kampuchea Krom monk, was found dead with his throat cut in the Tronum Chhroeung Monastery in Kandal Province. The deceased monk was discovered the morning after he participated in a demonstration in front of the Vietnamese embassy in Phnom Penh for the rights of Khmer Kampuchea Krom persons living in Vietnam. Police quickly declared the death a suicide and disposed of the body without further investigation. NGOs and Khmer Kampuchea Krom groups suspected the killing was politically motivated.\nActive members of political parties were killed during the year, but NGOs and police could not confirm their deaths were politically motivated. On February 14, three unidentified persons killed Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) activist Chea Sovin, spouse of an SRP candidate for the April commune council elections in Battambang Province. On July 27, three unidentified persons shot and killed Kleb Un, SRP commune‑level vice party chairperson in Banteay Meanchey Province. A local police chief reported that the perpetrators fled without robbing the victim or taking anything from the scene. Police arrested one suspect in the case but released him after questioning. In both killings, police stated that investigations continued.\nOn April 4, police officer Siv Soeun allegedly shot and killed a person he claimed was illegally fishing on private property in the Kompong Siem District of Kampong Cham Province. The victim's family filed a complaint against the police officer but later withdrew the complaint after Siv Soeun allegedly paid the family $3,000 (12 million riel) in compensation. At year's end Siv Soeun had not been charged or arrested.\nOn November 15, during the eviction of squatters from state land in Choam Ksan commune, Preah Vihear Province, unidentified government forces killed two villagers who protested the eviction. Approximately 150 police, military police, and soldiers evicted 317 families. There was no official investigation into the killings. Police arrested 18 of the squatters, including a deputy governor, on charges of encroachment on state land. The 18 villagers were imprisoned and awaited trial at year's end.\nIn June the Prey Veng Provincial Court sentenced one suspect in the November 2006 killing of SRP activist Man Meth to 10 years in prison and two others to six months in prison for conspiring in the killing.\nOn July 18, the Phnom Penh Municipal Court sentenced Heng Pov, former Phnom Penh police commissioner and under secretary of state of the Ministry of Interior (MOI), to an additional 22.5 years in prison for the 2005 illegal detention of a person, use of illegal weapons, and possession of counterfeit currency. Heng Pov was already serving an 18‑year sentence for the 2003 murder of Judge Sok Sethamony, multiple counts of premeditated killings, and involvement in illegal arrests and detentions. During his July trial, Heng Pov stated that Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun, the two suspects he ordered arrested in 2005 and who later were convicted for the killing of union activist Chea Vichea, were innocent of the crime. On April 12, the appeals court had upheld 20‑year sentences each for Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun. Their lawyers submitted grievances to the Supreme Court, and at year's end they awaited Supreme Court action.\nThere were no developments in the 2006 cases of SRP activists Koent Chhuon and Thoeung Thear, killed in Preah Vihear and Kampong Cham provinces, respectively. Likewise, there were no developments in the cases of Pao Rum and Khat Thoeun, who died in police custody in Kandal Province in 2006, or the 2006 cases of attempted prison breaks in Kampong Thom and Battambang that left 10 inmates dead. In the case of Nong Sam, who reportedly died June 2006 in a Siem Reap hospital from head injuries received during a beating by police officers, a provincial court prosecutor closed the case, declaring Nong Sam's death a suicide.\nThere were no developments in the 2005 killings of five SRP activists or in the 2005 case of an attempted escape from Trapoeung Phlong Prison in which 19 prisoners and the prison director were killed. The appeals court took no action in the 2005 deaths of five villagers and injuries to others by government security forces during a mass eviction from disputed land in the village of Kbal Spean in Banteay Meanchey Province.\nOn February 8, in Prey Veng Province, district‑ and commune‑level deputy police chiefs Bun Samphea, Suos Bunthat, and Hay Chivon, charged in a 2000 killing, failed to appear for their provincial court trial, reportedly stating they were too busy. The court rescheduled the trial to June but postponed it again after the officers said they were too busy to come to the June trial. A new trial date was not set.\nMines dating from the Indochina conflict and Khmer Rouge period continued to cause casualties. According to the Cambodia Mine/UXO Victim Information System, during the year mines and unexploded ordnance caused 63 deaths, 56 amputations, and 222 other injuries.\nVigilante justice and mob killings persisted. ADHOC reported that mobs killed five persons during the year. Few suspects were arrested. In some instances authorities could not protect suspects from angry mobs. NGOs noted that a majority of mob killings were related to thefts, robberies, or suspected witchcraft. On June 9, Yos Chor villagers in Kampong Speu Province killed a person for stealing a neighbor's chickens. On June 21, a mob killed a traditional healer in the Boribo District of Kampong Chhnang Province because they suspected him of witchcraft. Police made no arrests in either case.\nOn June 27, the Kratie Provincial Court sentenced six persons to sentences ranging from seven to 10 months in prison for the 2006 vigilante justice killing of Sam Roeun. The court convicted them on charges of causing injury, reduced from investigation findings of murder. There were no developments in the February 2006 case of a person beaten and killed for allegedly practicing witchcraft.\nOn June 30, Khmer Kampuchea Krom monk Tim Sakhorn, head of a pagoda in the Kirivong District of Takeo Province for more than 10 years, disappeared. Previously, on orders of the country's top Buddhist leader, Great Supreme Patriarch Tep Vong, monks from Phnom Penh had defrocked Tim Sakhorn, after which unidentified persons believed to be attached to the MOI pushed him into a vehicle and drove away. The defrocking order stated Tim Sakhorn \"broke the solidarity\" between Cambodia and Vietnam by using pagodas to spread propaganda that affects the dignity of Buddhism. The monk was known locally for providing food and shelter to Khmer Kampuchea Krom coming from Vietnam. The MOI stated that Tim Sakhorn volunteered to go to Vietnam after he was defrocked, and ministry officials produced a document stating this intent. While signed by Tim Sakhorn, the handwritten document appeared not to be in his writing. On August 2, Tim Sakhorn reappeared in court custody in Vietnam, held on charges of destroying political solidarity. In September the Information Ministry stated that the Cambodian consulate in Ho Chi Minh City was investigating Tim Sakhorn's condition in detention. On November 8, a Vietnamese newspaper reported that a court in Vietnam convicted Tim Sakhorn of undermining solidarity between Cambodia and Vietnam and sentenced him to one year in prison.\nOn August 10, Land Border Protection Unit 504 soldier Im Bun Ny disappeared in Pailin. According to witnesses, that night four soldiers from his unit invited him to a rubber plantation owned by their unit commander, Brigadier General Pol Sinuon. After Im Bun Ny arrived, the four soldiers beat him and accused him of stealing a gun. Unconfirmed witness reports said Im Bun Ny died from the beating and the soldiers buried his body. At year's end Im Bun Ny was still missing. According to a human rights NGO, local police completed an investigation and submitted findings to the court. The court took no action, and the four soldiers remained at large.\nc. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment\nThe constitution such practices; however, beatings and other forms of physical mistreatment of police detainees and prison inmates continued to be a serious problem.\nThere were credible reports that military and civilian police officials used physical and psychological torture and severely beat criminal detainees, particularly during interrogation. Based on interviews with 1,293 detainees from 18 of the country's 26 prisons, the Cambodian League for the Prevention and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO) reported that during the year authorities tortured 155 prisoners, of whom 125 were tortured in police custody and 30 in prisons. Kicking, punching, and pistol whipping were the most common methods of physical abuse, but techniques also included electric shocks, suffocation, caning, and whipping with wire. NGOs reported that it was not uncommon for police to torture detained suspects until they confessed to a crime. Courts used forced confessions as legal evidence during trial despite admissibility prohibitions under the law.\nNGOs noted that during the year there were 180 cases of physical assaults by local authorities, government agents, or private bodyguards, compared with 164 cases in 2006 and 154 cases in 2005.\nOn May 27, military police officer Prak Vutha of Phnom Sruoch District, Kampong Speu Province, reportedly arrested Sok Soeun after a small scuffle at a restaurant, kept him in military detention overnight without a warrant, and beat him unconscious. According to ADHOC, Sok Soeun's family gave Prak Vutha two cases of beer in return for Sok Soeun's release. Sok Soeun later filed a complaint with local police that the police did not accept. There was no investigation into the case or legal action against Prak Vutha.\nNo legal action was taken against two policemen from Border Protection Unit 701 implicated in a February 2006 beating of a 13‑year‑old boy. Likewise, there was no action against officials and no progress in the police investigation of an April 2006 case involving Police Commissioner Team Sangkriem in Preah Vihear Province and three other police agents who detained Kong Salath without a warrant and beat him. No disciplinary or legal action was taken against abusive officers in the April 2006 beating of a motorist by Battambang military police. Regarding the December 2006 case of Tous Sdoeung, whom two military police officers allegedly tortured to death while in detention, early in the year a provincial court prosecutor completed an investigation and forwarded it to an investigating judge. The court investigation continued. The two alleged perpetrators continued to work in their positions as military police officers.\nPrison and Detention Center Conditions\nPrison conditions did not meet international standards. Conditions remained harsh and at times were life threatening. Government efforts to improve them continued to be hampered by a lack of funds and weak enforcement. Human rights organizations cited a number of serious problems, including overcrowding, medical and sanitation problems, food and water shortages, malnutrition, and poor security. According to LICADHO, the 18 prisons they monitored had a designed capacity of approximately 6,440 inmates but held a total 9,582 inmates.\nThere were reports at some prisons that cells of 40 by 20 feet held up to 110 prisoners. At CC1 prison, cells of 26 by 26 feet held an average of 50 prisoners. In some prisons authorities used shackles and held prisoners in small, dark cells as a form of harsher punishment.\nLICADHO reported that 56 prisoners in 18 of the country's prisons died during the year.\nGovernment ration allowances for purchasing prisoners' food routinely were misappropriated and remained inadequate, exacerbating malnutrition and disease. One NGO claimed that in some cases prison authorities sold the NGO's donations of supplemental food intended for prisoners. According to rights organizations, families had to bribe prison officials in order to visit prisoners or provide them food and other necessities. NGOs reported that prisoners whose families bribed prison authorities received preferential treatment including access to visitors, transfer to better cells, and the opportunity to leave cells during the day.\nThere were reports that officials demanded bribes before allowing prisoners to attend trials or appeal hearings and before releasing inmates who had served full jail terms.\nIn most prisons there was no separation of adult and juvenile prisoners, of male and female prisoners, or of persons convicted of serious crimes and persons detained for minor offenses. Pretrial detainees were routinely held together with convicted prisoners. LICADHO reported that there were 622 incarcerated minors ages 13 to 17, many of whom were held in prisons that did not have facilities to separate minors from adult prisoners.\nThe government generally continued to allow international and domestic human rights groups, including the International Committee of the Red Cross, to visit prisons and provide human rights training to prison guards. However, NGOs reported that at times cooperation from local authorities was limited. Authorities curtailed access to pretrial detainees, in particular. The MOI continued to require that lawyers, human rights monitors, and other visitors obtain permission prior to visiting prisoners. The MOI withheld such permission in some politically sensitive cases. NGOs were not allowed to interview prisoners in private.\nd. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention\nThe law prohibits arbitrary arrest and detention; however, at times the government did not respect these prohibitions. On June 7, the National Assembly passed a criminal procedures code, and in August the king signed the law into effect. The new code went allows for pretrial detention of up to six months for misdemeanors and 18 months for felonies. Prior to enactment of this code, the maximum length of pretrial detention for an adult person was six months under the UN Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) code, although the government sometimes held pretrial detainees for longer periods. ADHOC reported that at least 100 persons were illegally arrested and detained during the year. ADHOC stated that 32 of those illegally detained were subsequently freed following detainee complaints, interventions by human rights NGOs, or payment of bribes. ADHOC believed that the actual number of arbitrary arrests and detentions was somewhat higher, because some victims in rural areas did not file complaints due to difficulty in traveling to the NGO's offices or out of fear for their family's security. According to ADHOC, no legal or disciplinary actions were taken against the persons responsible for the illegal actions.\nRole of the Police and Security Apparatus\nThe General Commissariat of the National Police, which is under the supervision of the MOI, manages all civilian police units. The police forces are divided into those who have the authority to make arrests, those without such authority, and the judicial police. Military police are permitted to arrest civilians on military property or when authorized by local governments.\nPolice officers acted with impunity, and in most cases the government took little or no action. There were reports that police, prosecutors, investigating judges, and presiding judges received bribes from owners of illegal businesses.\nThe law requires police, prosecutors, and judges to investigate all complaints, including those of police abuses; however, in practice judges and prosecutors rarely conducted an independent investigation prior to a public trial. Presiding judges passed down verdicts based only on written reports from police and witness testimonies. In general police received little professional training. Police who failed to prevent or respond to societal violence were rarely disciplined.\nThere were no developments in the April 2006 case of an antidrug department and military police officer who shot and injured a well‑known singer, Sovansocheata. No legal action was taken in the April 2006 case of two Brigade 70 military unit officers who shot and injured a person in Phnom Penh. There were no developments in the June 2006 case in which a military officer shot and injured a garment factory worker. In February an investigating judge in Siem Reap Province issued a warrant for the arrest of three police officers who allegedly raped a 12‑year‑old girl in November 2006; however, the suspects remained at large. There were no developments in the pending appeal of the April 2006 acquittal of three judges, two deputy prosecutors, and two court clerks originally convicted, then retried after appeal on finding of a mistrial, on charges of corruption and corruption‑related conspiracy.\nArrest and Detention\nThe law requires police to obtain a warrant from an investigating judge prior to making an arrest, but police may arrest without a warrant anyone caught in the act of committing a crime. The law allows police to take a person into custody and conduct an investigation for 48 hours, excluding weekends and government holidays, before charges must be filed. In felony cases of exceptional circumstances prescribed by law, police may detain a suspect for an additional 24 hours with the approval of a prosecutor. However, authorities routinely held persons for extended periods before charging them. Many prisoners, particularly those without legal representation, had no opportunity to seek release on bail. Under the new criminal procedures code, accused persons may be arrested and detained for up to 24 hours before meeting with a lawyer, but prisoners routinely were held for several days before gaining access to a lawyer or family members. According to government officials, such prolonged detention largely was a result of the limited capacity of the court system.\nLICADHO reported that as of midyear at least 101 pretrial detainees had been detained longer than the six‑month limit. Under the allowable pretrial detainee periods stipulated by the new code, at year's end there were at least 34 such prisoners.\nOn May 19, two military police officers in Banteay Meanchey Province detained Kim Heang for three days after Kim Heang had a dispute with his neighbor, a regional military official. The two officers made the arrest without a warrant. After an NGO intervened, the officers' commander ordered Kim Heang released. No administrative or legal action was taken against the officers.\nOn May 25, the Ratanakiri Provincial Court sentenced a 13‑year‑old Jarai ethnic minority youth to eight months and 10 days in prison for stealing brass gongs. The youth was 12 years old when arrested, under the minimum age for imprisonment, but spent more than eight months in pretrial detention. According to ADHOC, on May 25, a prosecutor filed a suit with the appeals court, but at year's end the youth remained in jail.\nOn August 9, the Phnom Penh Municipal Court convicted six persons and acquitted two charged with planning bombings at the November 2006 Water Festival. Two of the convicted were sentenced in absentia to 12 years in prison. The remaining four received six‑year sentences. Lawyers and NGOs maintained the police did not serve arrest warrants or tell the suspects the charges against them.\ne. Denial of Fair Public Trial\nThe constitution provides for an independent judiciary, but the government did not respect judicial independence. The courts were subject to influence and interference by the executive branch, and there was widespread corruption among judges, prosecutors, and court officials.\nThe court system consists of lower courts, an appeals court, and the Supreme Court. The constitution also mandates a constitutional council, which is empowered to review the constitutionality of laws, and a supreme council of the magistracy, which appoints, oversees, and disciplines judges. The composition of both councils heavily favored the CPP.\nThere is a separate military court system, which suffered from deficiencies similar to those of the civilian court system. While civilians may fall under military court jurisdiction in some cases, the legal distinction between the military and civil courts sometimes was ignored in practice. Civilians have been called for interrogation by military courts with no apparent jurisdiction in their cases.\nOn June 12, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) adopted its internal rules to begin prosecuting egregious crimes of the 1975‑79 Khmer Rouge regime. On July 31, the ECCC coinvestigating judges charged Kaing Guek Eav (alias Duch), former Khmer Rouge director of the S‑21 torture prison, or Tuol Sleng, for crimes against humanity and placed him in an ECCC provisional detention center. The ECCC later arrested and detained four more Khmer Rouge leaders and charged them with crimes against humanity and war crimes: Nuon Chea (also known as \"Brother Number 2\"), Khieu Samphan, Ieng Sary, and Ieng Thirith, who was charged only with crimes against humanity. In August Duch's lawyers filed an appeal against his provisional detention. On December 3, the ECCC pretrial chamber decided unanimously to affirm the detention order and dismiss the appeal.\nTrials are public. Juries are not used; the presiding judge possesses the authority to pass a verdict. Defendants have the right to be present and consult with an attorney, confront and question witnesses against them, and present witnesses and evidence on their own behalf. If a defendant cannot afford an attorney, the court is required to provide the defendant with free legal representation; however, the judiciary lacked the resources to provide legal counsel, and most defendants sought assistance from NGOs or went without legal representation. Trials typically were perfunctory, and extensive cross‑examination usually did not take place. Defendants and their attorneys have the right to examine government‑held evidence relevant to their cases; however, at times it was difficult for them to obtain such access, especially if the case was political or involved a high‑ranking government official or well‑connected member of the elite.\nDefendants are entitled by law to the presumption of innocence and the right of appeal, but due to pervasive corruption, defendants often were expected to bribe judges to secure a verdict. A citizen's right to appeal sometimes was limited by difficulty in transferring prisoners from provincial prisons to the appeals court in Phnom Penh. Many appeals thus were heard in the absence of the defendant.\nA lack of resources, low salaries, and poor training contributed to a high level of corruption and inefficiency in the judicial branch, and the government did not ensure due process. From January through September, the Center for Social Development monitored 1,420 felony and misdemeanor hearings with 2,437 defendants and found trial procedure abuses in the Supreme Court, appeals court, and four lower courts. In a report of trials observed from January to March, the center stated that courts tried 34 percent of 740 defendants in absentia. At the appeals level, defendants were not present during trial in 69 percent of cases. Of defendants charged with felonies, 37 percent had legal representation, compared with 7 percent of those charged with misdemeanors.\nOfficials reported many suits were pending due to a shortage of judges and courtrooms. NGOs blamed the slow process on court officials who focused on cases from which they could gain financial benefits.\nThere remained a critical shortage of trained lawyers, particularly outside Phnom Penh. Persons without means to secure counsel often were effectively denied the right to a fair trial. According to the Bar Association, approximately 30 percent of the country's 573 lawyers provided legal counsel to poor persons, although this was inadequate to cover the basic legal rights of all of the country's poor.\nSworn written statements from witnesses and the accused usually constituted the only evidence presented at trials. The accused person's statements sometimes were coerced through beatings or threats, and illiterate defendants often were not informed of the content of written confessions that they were forced to sign. In cases involving military personnel, military officers often exerted pressure on judges of civilian criminal courts to have the defendants released without trial.\nCourt delays or corrupt practices often allowed accused persons to escape prosecution. Government officials or members of their families who committed crimes often enjoyed impunity.\nAlthough the courts prosecuted some members of the security forces for human rights abuses, impunity for most of those who committed abuses remained a problem. In many criminal cases, rich or powerful accused individuals usually paid money to victims and authorities to drop the criminal charges against them. Authorities were known to urge victims or their families to accept financial restitution in exchange for dropping criminal charges.\nBorn Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun remained in prison for the murder of Chea Vichea. On April 12, an appeals court hearing upheld the Phnom Penh Municipal Court decision sentencing them to 20 years each in prison, despite new exculpatory evidence. On June 7, lawyers filed grievances with the Supreme Court and at year's end were awaiting action.\nOn June 7, the National Assembly passed a criminal procedures code, and in August the king signed the law into effect. As a cornerstone of national law also to be employed at the Khmer Rouge Tribunal, the new code was based on wide international consultation and was viewed as meeting an international standard suitable for the tribunal's trial judges.\nPolitical Prisoners and Detainees\nThere were no reports of political prisoners or detainees.\nCivil Judicial Procedures and Remedies\nThe country has a judiciary in civil matters, and citizens are entitled to bring lawsuits seeking damages for human rights violations. Generally, there are both administrative and judicial remedies. However, the judiciary was generally viewed as corrupt, politically biased, and weak, and persons seldom filed complaints because they did not trust the judicial system. The public appeared especially distrusting of the judiciary to act in a transparent manner when a case was in conflict with the government. Enforcing a court order for a civil or criminal case was often problematic. Persons occasionally turned to vigilante justice.\nf. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence\nThe law provides for the privacy of residence and correspondence and prohibits illegal searches; however, police routinely conducted searches and seizures without warrants.\nThere continued to be reports of authorities entering private properties without proper judicial authorization. Due to the forced collectivization during Khmer Rouge rule and the return of thousands of refugees, land ownership often was unclear, and most landowners lacked adequate formal documentation of ownership. The 2001 land law states that any person who peacefully possessed private property without contention for five years prior to the 2001 promulgation of the law has the right to a definitive title to that property. Widespread land speculation fueled disputes and increased tensions between poor rural communities and speculators. The Cadastral Commission, which settles disputes over land that was not registered or where an owner was not given a land certificate, continued to perform its functions slowly. The courts remained responsible for resolving disputes in cases where land was registered or disputants were given land titles. The National Authority for Resolving Land Disputes, established in 2006 to adjudicate land cases, was ineffective.\nProblems of inhabitants being forced to relocate continued to occur when officials or businesspersons colluded with local authorities. Some persons also used the court system to intimidate the poor and vulnerable into exchanging their land for compensation below market value. ADHOC reported receiving 382 land‑related cases affecting 19,329 families during the year. During the same period, LICADHO received 98 land‑related cases in Phnom Penh and 13 other provinces affecting a total of 6,048 persons. The poor often had no legal documents to support their land claims and lacked faith in the judicial system. Some of those expelled successfully contested these actions in court, but the majority lost their cases.\nOn January 23, 200 ethnic Jarai villagers in Ratanakiri Province filed a complaint with the provincial court and a criminal complaint with the provincial prosecutor against Keat Kolney, a well‑connected individual, for confiscation of 1,112 acres of their land in 2004. Many villagers rejected Keat Kolney's settlement offers. On June 19, Keat Kolney sent a letter to the Cambodian Bar Association alleging the legal aid NGO lawyers who represented the villagers trained the villagers to say false things to the media and asked the association to investigate the lawyers. On June 21, Keat Kolney filed criminal complaints accusing the villagers of fraud and the lawyers of inciting villagers to commit fraud. In late July 42 of the 200 villagers retracted earlier statements and said they willingly sold the land to Keat Kolney. At year's end a provincial court investigation continued.\nOn April 20, approximately 150 military police and police officers armed with guns, electric batons, and tear gas forcibly evicted 117 families from the Mittapheap District in Sihanoukville. Several villagers were injured, and their houses were demolished.\nOn May 4, 30 L'vea Em District villagers of Kandal Province approached the National Assembly to intervene in an economic land concession. Community families had been farming and inhabiting the disputed 1,730 acres when, on April 25, a Chinese company began digging up the land, acting on a 2006 government concession for development. The company reportedly suspended operations due to villagers' protests.\nOn May 29, 40 soldiers from ACO Tank Command Headquarters in Kampong Speu Province used an armored vehicle to destroy crops and fences on 60 acres of land occupied by 25 Phnom Srouch District families. Military officials stated the land was part of a shooting range and the villagers had illegally occupied the land. In 2002 the villagers had sought title to their land with the Cadastral Commission, and in 2006 they complained to the National Authority to Resolve Land Disputes, stating they had lived on the land since 1979. At year's end these requests had not resulted in any action.\nEviction notices were served without proper judicial authorization. On July 31, Sihanoukville City Hall issued an eviction notice ordering more than 100 families out of the city's Mittapheap District. Responding to villagers' plea for intervention, the prime minister ordered the Sihanoukville governor to reexamine the case. On May 8, representatives of 146 families of the Phnom Penh Tonle Bassac Group 78 (G78) area made public their own neighborhood development plan. The plan was in response to a June 2006 municipality eviction notice stating the land would be developed for beautification purposes. Many of the families had lived on the land since the 1980s and claimed ownership under the 2001 land law. G78 community members stated that the municipality offered compensation that was approximately equal to 2 percent of the independently assessed market value, plus one plot in a Phnom Penh eviction resettlement site per family. At year's end there were no decisions on these evictions.\nOn March 3, the CPP Central Committee granted the prime minister sole power to resolve land disputes involving CPP officials. The prime minister then announced a war against illegal land grabbers, warning CPP officials to surrender illegally obtained land or face removal from their positions. As a result, the government claimed that the director general of the military's technical and materials department, Chao Phirun, handed over 495 acres of land and an anonymous CPP official withdrew from a Kandal Province land dispute. Neither official faced reprimand. On March 10, authorities arrested CPP member and military Colonel Te Haing over a 2,500‑acre land dispute in Banteay Meanchey Province. At year's end Te Haing was awaiting trial. In November Tan Seng Hak, a former advisor to CPP Chairperson Chea Sim, was convicted for falsifying documents and giving false testimony in connection with his alleged efforts to take over 740 acres in Phnom Penh. He was sentenced to a total of five years and eight months in prison. There were no developments on the prime minister's May 2006 plan to redistribute 494,210 acres of land to 50,000 farmers in Sihanoukville.\nLiving conditions worsened at two of the resettlement sites for former residents of the two Phnom Penh communities of Tonle Bassac Sambok Chab and Preah Monivong Hospital areas, whose 1,200 and 168 families, respectively, were evicted in 2006, reportedly through a nontransparent process that may not have included proper judicial authorization. Authorities offered evicted residents relocation site plots, but plots at two of the sites were widely considered to be inadequate compensation. The sites lacked sufficient sanitation facilities, electricity, clean water, health facilities, schools, and central markets and were far from Phnom Penh's commercial center, where residents could earn an adequate income.\nThe appeals court took no action on a February 2006 complaint by SRP parliamentarian Son Chhay, who was directed by the Siem Reap Provincial Court to sell 7.8 acres of his land to a government agency for an amount below the market price. The appeals court took no action in the 2006 case of 12 persons convicted in connection with a Kampot Province confrontation between 2,000 squatters and local police over the squatters' rights to live on government land. In a 2006 eviction case in Peam Chor District, Prey Veng Province, that left one person dead and four others injured, police who were implicated in the killing accused some of the villagers of robbery, in what NGOs said was an attempt to intimidate the villagers. On November 1, the provincial court questioned seven of the villagers on the robbery charges, and the court investigation continued at year's end. However, there were no new developments in the investigation of the eviction killings and injuries. There were no new developments in the August 2006 Koh Kong Province land dispute in which the Ministry of Agriculture provided two adjacent land concessions to businessperson and CPP senator Ly Yong Phat in contravention of known legal standards.\nThere were no developments in a 2005 land dispute involving indigenous Phnong hill tribe members and a Chinese company in Mondulkiri Province.\nSection 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:\na. Freedom of Speech and Press\nThe constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the press; however, these rights were not always respected in practice.\nThe constitution implicitly limits free speech by requiring that it not adversely affect public security. The constitution also declares that the king is \"inviolable.\" In December the Ministry of Information issued a directive that reiterates these limits and prohibits publishers and editors from running stories that insult or defame government leaders and institutions.\nThe 1995 press law prohibits prepublication censorship or imprisonment for expressing opinions. However, the government continued to use the older UNTAC law to prosecute journalists and others on defamation and disinformation charges. In 2006 the National Assembly amended the UNTAC law, eliminating imprisonment for defamation but not for spreading disinformation, which carries prison sentences of up to three years. In both types of cases, judges can order fines, which may lead to jail time if not paid.\nThe government and influential individuals used the weak and often politically biased judiciary to file defamation and disinformation suits, both civil and criminal, in an effort to silence critics. In February the Phnom Penh Municipal Court charged Sralanh Khmer of disinformation and insulting the court's director, Chiv Keng. Also in February Sihanoukville Municipal Governor Say Hak filed a defamation suit against pro‑Norodom Ranariddh Party (NRP) newspaper Samleng Yuveachun Khmer (Voice of Khmer Youth) over an article linking him to land grabbing. In July NRP Vice Secretary General Sao Rany filed a defamation suit against Sralahn Khmer for printing a report claiming his daughter had an affair with Prince Ranariddh. In November General Un Den lodged a defamation and disinformation lawsuit against Thach Keth, the publisher of Sralanh Khmer, for printing an article that accused the general of smuggling vehicles across the border from Thailand. At year's end there were no formal decisions in these cases.\nIn July Phnom Penh Municipality Governor Kep Chuktema filed a disinformation suit against the editor of Samleng Yuveachun Khmer for an article alleging the governor sold City Hall to a private developer. In November the editor paid bail of $500 (two million riel), and at year's end the case was pending with the court.\nThe constitution states that the country shall not invade any country nor interfere in any other country's internal affairs, directly or indirectly. Making a statement in contravention of this constitutional provision is considered a crime. In the case of at least one Khmer Kampuchea Krom activist, an arrest warrant was outstanding due to his statements about what the government considers to be sovereign Vietnamese territory.\nMany interpreted a law passed in 2006 as limiting the right of members of Parliament (MPs) to speak freely. The law declares that MPs may not use their parliamentary immunity to abuse national security, social customs, or an individual's honor. In addition, the law allows an MP to be arrested, charged, and detained prior to the lifting of parliamentary immunity. At year's end no MP had been charged under this law.\nAll major political parties had reasonable and regular access to the print media. Although the press law does not specifically permit newspapers to receive financial support from political parties, all major Khmer‑language newspapers received such support and were politically aligned. There were an estimated 20 Khmer‑language newspapers published regularly; more than half were considered pro‑CPP, and at least two newspapers were considered to support each of the other main political parties--FUNCINPEC, the SRP, and the NRP. Although the three largest circulation newspapers were considered pro‑CPP, most newspapers criticized the government, particularly on corruption and land grabbing. The prime minister, NRP president Prince Norodom Ranariddh, FUNCINPEC party leaders, and opposition party leader Sam Rainsy frequently came under attack.\nThe government, military forces, and ruling political party continued to dominate the broadcast media and influence the content of broadcasts. There were approximately 50 radio stations and seven television stations. Most were controlled or strongly influenced by the CPP, although a few were independent or aligned with other parties. In August the Ministry of Information issued a broadcast license to a CPP government official to open a Phnom Penh radio station after denying similar requests since 2003 from the SRP and independent human rights advocacy organizations. In September the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) Voice of Democracy (VOD) again requested a license, but the ministry denied the application, restating previous claims that the media market was saturated. In February the Information Ministry ordered all television and radio stations not to transfer or sell licenses if unable to continue operating and to return the license to the ministry.\nDespite being unable to obtain a broadcast license, the VOD radio program, which included independent and often antigovernment views, remained popular and continued broadcasting its program on several radio stations, including the SRP‑aligned radio station FM 93.5. In July CCHR announced that it had transferred management of VOD to the newly established Cambodian Center of Independent Media. Taped programming from Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia (RFA) Khmer‑language service was also regularly broadcast on Beehive/FM 105, the Women's Media Center FM 102, and Rota Angkor FM 95.5 (Siem Reap) radio stations. Four political parties were each broadcasting daily one‑hour shows on FM 105.\nJournalists, publishers, and distributors were also subject to other forms of harassment and intimidation, including death threats. In June the Ministry of Information ordered the confiscation of printed copies of a report by the international NGO Global Witness accusing the prime minister and close relatives and associates of involvement in illegal logging. The report was freely available via the Internet, and local media made references to the report. A June 8 letter signed by Information Minister Khieu Kanharith to Sralanh Khmer demanded the newspaper immediately stop publishing a serialized version of the report or face legal action; the newspaper complied.\nIn the same period, French‑language newspaper Cambodge Soir closed down, reportedly due to bankruptcy. A few days prior, according to media reports, employees declared a strike because a reporter was dismissed for publishing a story about the Global Witness report. After a closure of several months, the newspaper resumed as a weekly publication.\nIn October Radio Beehive Director Mam Sonando suspended the NRP's radio show \"Royalist Voices\" for several days after the program criticized the prime minister. An RFA journalist fled the country reportedly after receiving death threats for his coverage of illegal logging in Kampong Thom Province. The reporter returned several weeks later and resumed work unharmed.\nIn February the Ministry of Information threatened to close pro‑NRP newspaper Khmer Amatak (Permanent Khmer) for printing an article alleged to have incited tension between the country's two main Buddhist sects, and in October the ministry suspended the newspaper for one month for failing to publish a \"correction\" the ministry requested regarding a September article involving two senior FUNCINPEC officials.\nIn early November authorities seized copies of the premier issue of foreign‑funded Free Press Magazine for criticizing retired king Norodom Sihanouk, the prime minister, and other government officials.\nIn May the prime minister publicly criticized an RFA reporter as \"insolent\" and \"rude\" for asking questions about the coalition between the CPP and FUNCINPEC. Purportedly fearing for his personal safety, the reporter went into hiding outside the country. He returned to work a few weeks later without incident.\nIn June three reporters from the newspapers Sarpotamean Ekkereach Kampuchea (Cambodian Independence News) and Sarpotamean Tasanak Khmer (Khmer Vision News) in Pursat Province alleged that provincial court official bodyguards beat them at gunpoint for trying to take photographs of a truck carrying illegal timber.\nOn August 4, Oeun Vannak, deputy commander of the Pursat Province military police, allegedly physically attacked journalist Heng Veasna over the journalist's investigation into claims of illegal use of firearms by two military police officers. Heng Veasna filed a complaint with the provincial prosecutor, but at year's end the court had not taken action in the case, and Oeun Vannak continued his military police duty.\nIn August the home of a Chhbas Ka (Accurate News) newspaper reporter was set on fire twice. The journalist claimed the first fire was set the day after he received a threatening telephone call over his report on illegal logging in Pursat Province. A few days later, provincial authorities charged two suspects with arson. The cases were pending before the court at year's end.\nIn November a man accused three journalists from the newspaper Samleng Santepheap (Voice of Peace) in Kampong Thom of stealing $1,050 (4.2 million riel) when the reporters visited his home to investigate allegations that he was illegally raising snakehead fish. Police arrested and questioned the reporters but eventually released them after the intervention of a senior official from the Ministry of Information.\nIn December a VOD reporter investigating the removal of a statue from a pagoda claimed to have been detained by military and police officers, who deleted photographs from his camera before releasing him.\nMost reporters and editors privately admitted to some self‑censorship due to fear of government reprisals. In February two major daily Khmer newspapers refused to print advertisements demanding justice for the two men imprisoned for the killing of union leader Chea Vichea. Reporters for VOA, RFA, and some opposition newspapers worked from unmarked offices and reported stories using pseudonyms.\nThe government‑controlled national television and radio stations broadcast live or taped sessions of National Assembly debates; however, in several instances these broadcasts were censored. National radio and television stations broadcast some human rights, social action, public health, education, and civil society programming produced by domestic NGOs.\nThe government occasionally restricted media access to some government facilities. The constitution mandates media access to National Assembly sessions, and the National Assembly allowed reporters to enter its grounds upon clearance by its security office. In 2005 the Phnom Penh Municipal Court chief ordered that reporters must have written permission to bring recording devices into the courtroom and to interview court officials. Such permission rarely was sought, and there were no reports of the court denying permission. A July 2006 Council of Ministers directive prohibiting government officials and employees from speaking to the media or the public about government corruption remained in effect.\nIn August government authorities confiscated digital video discs with images of bodies in an airplane crash in Kampot Province, stating that the images would create fear among tourists. The video discs remained readily available in Phnom Penh and other areas of the country.\nThere were no government restrictions on access to the Internet or reports that the government monitored e‑mail or Internet chat rooms. Individuals and groups could engage in the peaceful expression of views via the Internet, including by e‑mail. Although the International Telecommunication Union estimated the country's Internet penetration was 0.3 percent in 2006, in urban areas Internet access was widely available through Internet cafes and home subscriptions.\nAcademic Freedom and Cultural Events\nIn general there were no legal impediments to academic freedom. However, scholars tended to be careful when teaching politically related subjects for fear of offending politicians. In February the Phnom Penh Municipal Court sentenced Tieng Narith, a former professor at the Buddhist University of the Royal Academy of Preah Sihanouk Reach, to two and a half years in prison for teaching from a self‑published text containing antigovernment material. The verdict also ordered a fine of $1,250 (5.25 million riels) or two additional years in prison. Tieng Narith's family claimed that he was mentally ill, and during the trial the court ordered a psychiatric examination, the results of which were kept confidential. It was unclear how the medical exam results affected the case, if at all. At year's end the case was under appeal.\nThere were no government restrictions on cultural events.\nb. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association\nFreedom of Assembly\nThe constitution provides for freedom of peaceful assembly, but at times the government did not respect this right in practice. The government required that a permit be obtained in advance of a march or demonstration. The government routinely did not issue permits to groups critical of the ruling party or of nations with which the government had friendly relations. Authorities cited the need for stability and public security as reasons for denying permits. Police forcibly dispersed groups that assembled without a permit, often resulting in minor injuries to some demonstrators.\nADHOC reported that out of 98 protests--55 of which were related to land and 26 to labor disputes--police and military police dispersed 17 protests, three of which were by labor protesters, 10 by land rights protesters, and four by Khmer Kampuchea Krom monks. However, the government permitted some human rights‑related marches and demonstrations. On December 10, the government permitted a Human Rights Day march of 500 human rights activists, monks, and other persons and a rally of an estimated 2,500 persons in Phnom Penh. In the previous two years, such rallies without marches occurred in an enclosed space.\nOn February 27, police and military police dispersed 60 Khmer Kampuchea Krom Buddhist monks demonstrating at the Vietnamese embassy in Phnom Penh during a state visit by the Vietnamese president. Demonstrators assembled to support Khmer Kampuchea Krom monks in Vietnam who had been defrocked and arrested, urging their release and reinstatement as monks. The next morning one monk protester was found dead with his throat cut. On March 16, police and local authorities in Kandal Province prevented the deceased monk's Khmer Kampuchea Krom community members and monks from holding his funeral.\nOn April 20, police and municipal authorities dispersed 80 Khmer Kampuchea Krom monks assembled at the Vietnamese embassy trying to deliver a petition in protest of alleged Vietnamese government rights abuses of Khmer Kampuchea Krom living in Vietnam. The protesters decided to go to another embassy to present the petition. On the way a group of unidentified, non‑Khmer Kampuchea Krom monks and laypersons aggressively intercepted the demonstrators and attempted to disperse them. In the ensuing scuffle, one of the Khmer Kampuchea Krom monks was injured. Authorities did not intervene in the confrontation and did not conduct an investigation. On December 17, 40 monks sought again to deliver a petition to Vietnamese embassy officials for the release of Tim Sakhorn and other Khmer Kampuchea Krom monks imprisoned in Vietnam, and also for the return of land that they claimed the Vietnamese government seized from Khmer Kampuchea Krom persons in southern Vietnam. Police attempted to disperse the crowd, but the monks refused to disband, and violence broke out on part of both the police and the monks. A local NGO reported that six monks were injured; police stated that some of the police sustained minor injuries.\nOn November 26, Ratanakiri provincial police blocked the CCHR from holding a public forum in Kong Yu Village, where community members were embroiled in a land dispute with Keat Kolney. Police gave conflicting reasons for preventing the forum from taking place (see section 1.f.).\nOn June 8, Supreme Patriarch Non Ngeth and Minister of Cults and Religious Affairs Khun Haing signed a directive prohibiting monks from participating in protests, strikes, riots, or marches. According to media reports, a constitutional council member stated the ban violated the constitution.\nFreedom of Association\nThe constitution provides for freedom of association, and the government generally respected this right in practice; however, the government did not effectively enforce the freedom of association provisions of the labor law.\nMembership in the Khmer Rouge, which ruled the country from 1975 to 1979 and after its overthrow conducted an armed insurgency against the government, is illegal, as is membership in an armed group.\nc. Freedom of Religion\nThe constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the government generally respected this right in practice. The constitution also prohibits discrimination based on religion, and minority religions experienced little or no official discrimination. Buddhism is the state religion, and more than 93 percent of the population is Buddhist. Ethnic Cham Muslims constitute most of the remaining population.\nThe law requires all religious groups, including Buddhists, to submit applications to the Ministry of Cults and Religious Affairs to construct places of worship and conduct religious activities. However, there is no penalty for failing to register. In July the Ministry of Cults and Religious Affairs issued a directive restating a 2003 order prohibiting public proselytizing, which continued to be loosely enforced. On August 10, authorities in Phnom Penh dispersed a gathering of approximately 3,000 Christians, stating that organizers did not have proper permits. Prior to the gathering, organizers obtained a permit from the MOI but had not received a response on a request pending with the Ministry of Cults and Religious Affairs.\nSocietal Abuses and Discrimination\nMinority religions experienced little or no societal discrimination. There was no known Jewish community in the country, and there were no reports of anti‑Semitic acts.\nFor a more detailed discussion, see the 2007 International Religious Freedom Report.\nd. Freedom of Movement, Internally Displaced Persons, Protection of Refugees, and Stateless Persons\nThe law provides for freedom of movement within the country, foreign travel, emigration, and repatriation, and the government generally respected these rights in practice.\nThe constitution prohibits forced exile, and the government did not employ it.\nProtection of Refugees\nThe laws provide for the granting of asylum or refugee status in accordance with the 1951 UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 protocol, and the government has established a system for providing protection to refugees. The convention and its protocol have had the full force of the law in the country since accession in 1992. According to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the government abides by the convention and international customary law on refugees. The government allows the UNHCR to process asylum seekers and assist refugees while they are in the country.\nA memorandum of understanding that the government signed in 2005 with the UNHCR and the government of Vietnam to resolve the situation of Montagnards under UNHCR protection remained in effect. Asylum seekers who reached the UNHCR Phnom Penh office were processed with government cooperation. During the year there were 449 new arrivals seeking asylum with the UNHCR. According to the UNHCR, 97 Montagnard and 20 non‑Montagnard refugees departed for a third country, while authorities deported 30 rejected Montagnard asylum seekers to Vietnam, and 33 Montagnards voluntarily returned to their country of origin. At year's end there were 467 Montagnards in UNHCR protection sites in Phnom Penh, which included 101 Montagnards who arrived in previous years. According to the UNHCR, during the year no refugees requested local integration.\nIn practice the government provided some protection against refoulement, the return of persons to a country where there is reason to believe they feared persecution. Through the assistance of the UNHCR, during the year the government provided temporary protection to individuals who may not qualify as refugees under the 1951 convention and the 1967 protocol, affording such protection to approximately 150 persons. However, an NGO based in Ratanakiri Province reported that local police unofficially returned 59 asylum-seeking Montagnards to Vietnam without UNHCR review.\nOn April 20, Ratanakiri provincial police arrested two persons on charges of human trafficking for their roles assisting Montagnards. NGOs claimed the suspects provided asylum seekers food, shelter, and transportation to the UNHCR office in Phnom Penh once they had crossed the border from Vietnam. At year's end the suspects had been released with charges against them dropped.\nAn NGO claimed that local authorities at the border with Vietnam continued searches for Montagnards when they received information about new arrivals of Montagnards. There were unconfirmed reports that Vietnamese authorities offered incentive awards to Cambodian border police who returned Vietnamese refugees to Vietnam and that Vietnamese secret police covertly conducted searches for Vietnamese refugees on the Cambodian side of the border.\nThe country had habitual residents who were de facto stateless, and the government had not effectively implemented laws or policies to provide such persons the opportunity to gain nationality. Under the nationality law, citizenship is derived by birth from a foreign mother and father who were born and living legally in the country, or from a mother or father who has Cambodian citizenship. A study commissioned by the UNHCR estimated that several thousand potentially stateless persons lived in the country. However, the study's estimated number of such persons came from anecdotal evidence of NGOs that provided services to disenfranchised communities, including persons with no proof of nationality, and not from a survey of stateless persons; therefore, local UNHCR representatives did not consider the figure conclusive.\nThe UNHCR stated that the country's potentially stateless population included mostly ethnic Vietnamese. According to an NGO that worked with ethnic Vietnamese, individuals without proof of nationality often did not have access to formal employment, education, marriage registration, the courts, and land ownership. The most common reason for statelessness was lack of proper documents from the country of origin.\nSection 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their Government\nThe constitution provides citizens the right to change their government peacefully, and citizens generally exercised this right in practice through periodic elections on the basis of universal suffrage. Suffrage is voluntary for all citizens age 18 years and older.\nElections and Political Participation\nOn April 1, the country held elections for 11,353 chiefs, first deputies, second deputies, and councilors for 1,621 commune councils. The CPP won 70.4 percent of the positions, the SRP 23.4 percent, NRP 3.7 percent, and FUNCINPEC 2.4 percent.\nMost observers agreed the commune council elections were the least violent and best organized elections ever held in the country. While there were problems at some polling stations, NGOs, opposition parties, monitors, and others disagreed as to how and whether the problems affected the overall outcome of the elections. Three NGOs reported that election officials did not allow some registered voters to vote because of voter registration list discrepancies such as mistyped and misspelled names or absence of names from the voter list, often due to names transferred to different polling stations without informing the voter. Additionally, NGOs and opposition parties complained that the CPP started advertising weeks or months in advance through the mostly CPP‑dominated media without reprisal. NGOs reported that on election day, some ruling party incumbents illegally issued voter registration documents, stood watch in some polling station areas where local authorities were prohibited, and provided assistance to voters in these prohibited areas.\nParties and individuals were free to be candidates without restrictions. On March 13, the Phnom Penh Municipal Court sentenced NRP president Prince Norodom Ranariddh in absentia to 18 months in prison and a $150,000 (600 million riel) fine on charges of breach of trust. The prince chose self‑exile during the election campaign and on election day rather than face the charges. On October 3, the appeals court rejected his appeal of the Phnom Penh court's decision. Plans to appeal this decision had not been realized by year's end.\nSome NGOs and political parties alleged that membership in the dominant CPP party provided advantages, such as gifts or access to government emergency aid.\nTraditional culture limited the role of women in government; however, women took an active part in the 2003 national elections. The number of women increased in the National Assembly, Senate, and senior government positions. There were 22 women in the 123‑seat National Assembly, nine women in the 61‑seat Senate, and 24 women working as ministers, secretaries of state, undersecretaries of state, and National Election Commission officials. Women also served as advisors, and there were 13 female judges in the municipal and provincial courts, appeals court, and Supreme Court. In the April commune council elections, 14.6 percent of the elected councillors were women, of whom 67 were elected as chiefs. This was an increase from the 2002 commune council elections, when women won 9 percent of the total positions.\nThere were four members of minorities--two Cham and two other ethnic minorities--in the National Assembly. There also were six members of minorities in the Senate. At least eight officials in senior positions in the government were from minority groups.\nGovernment Corruption and Transparency\nThere is no anticorruption law, and only a few provisions of other laws provide criminal penalties for official corruption. Officials frequently engaged in corrupt practices with impunity. The World Bank's Worldwide Governance Indicators reflected that corruption was a severe problem.\nIn 2005 the prime minister instructed the Ministry of National Assembly‑Senate Relations and Inspection to prepare a draft anticorruption law. As of year's end, observers had not seen a revised draft since September 2006, and the issue was pending with the Council of Ministers.\nCorruption was considered endemic and extended throughout all segments of society, including the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government. Public perception of corruption was widespread. A 2006 Economic Institute of Cambodia assessment found that the private sector perceived the judiciary to be the most corrupt institution in the country, followed by the tax and customs services, public health care, and police. Meager salaries contributed to \"survival corruption\" among low‑level public servants, while a culture of impunity enabled corruption to flourish among senior officials.\nThe Economic Institute's 2006 assessment of corruption in the private sector estimated that in 2005 private sector unofficial payments to public officials totaled $330 million riels. The assessment also found that the larger the private firm, the larger the payments required by government officials. The same study found that approximately 25 percent of potential taxes were collected from the private sector in 2005, representing a loss to the government of approximately $400 million riels. In June Global Witness published a report charging high‑level government officials with corruption related to illegal logging. Some observers and many government officials criticized the report as noncredible based on its heavy reliance on anonymous sources.\nThe National Archives Law allows unlimited access to informational documents in the public archive. However, the law grants access to other unspecified government documents only after 20 years, and documents affecting national security and preservation of personal lives would be released after 40 and 120 years, respectively. In practice the government occasionally denied access to information, citing reasons of confidentiality or national security.\nSection 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights\nA variety of domestic and international human rights groups generally operated without government restriction, investigating and publishing their findings on human rights cases. Government officials often cooperated with human rights workers in performing their investigations; however, there were numerous reports of lack of cooperation or even intimidation by local authorities throughout the country.\nThere were approximately 40 human rights NGOs in the country, but only a small portion of them were actively involved in organizing training programs or investigating abuses.\nDomestic and international human rights organizations faced threats and harassment from local officials. These took the form of restrictions on and disruptions during gatherings sponsored by NGOs, verbal intimidation, threats of legal action, and bureaucratic obstruction.\nOn May 15, a CCHR coordinator went into hiding claiming that Sihanoukville authorities threatened to arrest him on charges of forming an illegal armed force for his role organizing a resistance effort to a forced eviction in Sihanoukville's Mittapheap District. He returned to work a few weeks later without incident.\nThere were no developments in the May 2006 case of an ADHOC activist temporarily detained in Koh Kong Province for photographing a confrontation between villagers and officials.\nIn January the UN Special Representative of the Secretary‑General for human rights in Cambodia, Yash Ghai, submitted to the UN Human Rights Council a report on his March 2006 visit expressing concerns about land grabbing and government land concessions. Afterward the prime minister publicly called the special representative derogatory names, refusing to meet with him ever again. In December Yash Ghai made a 10‑day assessment visit to the country during which the prime minister reiterated his opinions and no government official granted him a meeting.\nThe Cambodian National Human Rights Commission remained largely inactive. The committee did not have regular meetings or a transparent operating process.\nSection 5 Discrimination, Societal Abuses, and Trafficking in Persons\nThe constitution prohibits discrimination based on race, sex, color, or language; however, the government did not generally protect these rights.\nThe law prohibits rape and assault; nevertheless, local and international NGOs reported that violence against women, including domestic violence and rape, was common. Rape is a criminal offense and punishable by a prison sentence of between five and 10 years, according to the UNTAC law. Spousal rape and domestic abuse are not recognized as separate crimes. A case of spousal rape could be prosecuted as \"rape,\" \"causing injury,\" or \"indecent assault,\" but such charges were rare. The domestic violence law criminalizes domestic violence but does not specifically set out penalties. However, the UNTAC law on battery and injury can be used to penalize domestic violence offenses, with penalties ranging from two months to five years' imprisonment.\nAccording to one NGO, there were 1,025 cases of domestic violence and 221 cases of rape reported in three provinces. Of these cases, courts tried 104 and 28, respectively, resulting in successful conviction in five cases of domestic violence and 20 cases of rape. LICADHO documented 209 cases of domestic violence affecting 213 victims in 12 provinces during the same time period. The MOI's antitrafficking department investigated 529 cases of violence against women and children, resulting in the arrest of 582 perpetrators and rescue of 771 victims. Of the 582 arrests, 458 were for rape and attempted rape. Twelve cases of rape resulted in the death of the victims. A legal advocacy NGO reported receiving 84 cases of domestic violence, 34 of which went to trial during the year. The number of cases likely underreported the scope of the problem, due to ineffective enforcement and the fact that women were afraid to make complaints against perpetrators. NGOs reported that enforcement of the domestic violence law was weak, authorities continued to avoid involvement in domestic disputes, and victims frequently were reluctant to pursue formal complaints.\nThe government supported NGOs that provided training for poor women vulnerable to spousal abuse, prostitution, and trafficking. A local media center, an NGO, and the Ministry of Women's Affairs produced programming on women's issues. NGOs provided shelters for women in crisis.\nThe constitution prohibits prostitution; however, there is no specific legislation against working as a prostitute. Trafficking in women for the purpose of prostitution was a serious problem, despite laws against procuring and kidnapping for purposes of sexual exploitation. There were reports that police abused prostitutes. Despite sporadic crackdowns on brothel operators in Phnom Penh, prostitution and related trafficking persisted. Estimates of the number of working prostitutes ranged from 14,725 to 18,250. Sex tourism was a problem, fueled by pervasive poverty and the perception of impunity.\nThe labor law has provisions against sexual harassment in the workplace but does not specify penalties. The International Labor Organization (ILO) reported that sexual harassment in the industrial sector was rare.\nThe constitution contains explicit language providing for equal rights for women, equal pay for equal work, and equal status in marriage. In practice women had equal property rights, the same legal status to bring divorce proceedings, and equal access to education and some jobs; however, cultural traditions continued to limit the ability of women to reach senior positions in business and other areas. Women often were concentrated in low‑paying jobs and largely were excluded from management positions. Men made up the vast majority of the military, police, and civil service.\nThe Ministry of Women's Affairs, mandated to protect the rights of women and promote gender equality in society, continued its Neary Ratanak (Women as Precious Gems) program. The program aimed to improve the image of women through gender mainstreaming, enhanced participation of women in economic and political life, and protection of women's rights.\nThe constitution provides for children's rights, and the government made the welfare of children a specific goal. The government relied on international aid to fund most child social welfare programs, resulting in only modest funds for problems that affect children.\nIn 2002 the government instituted a modernized birth registration system administered by the MOI, which reported the program successfully registered 91 percent of births in 2006. The system did not include special outreach to minority communities. The government failed to register all births, resulting in discrimination, including the denial of public services. A study commissioned by the UNHCR on statelessness in the country stated that the birth registration process often excludes children of ethnic minorities and stateless persons. NGOs that provided services to disenfranchised communities reported that children without birth registration were often denied access to education and healthcare. They stated that later in life the same individuals may be unable to access employment, own property, vote, and use the legal system.\nChildren were affected adversely by an inadequate educational system. Education was free, but not compulsory, through grade nine. Many children left school to help their families in subsistence agriculture, began school at a late age, or did not attend school at all. In 2005 the Ministry of Education reported that 91 percent of eligible children were enrolled in primary school, but this number did not reflect attendance. After primary school, 26 percent of eligible students attended junior high and 9 percent attended high school. Despite a school construction program, schools were overcrowded and lacked sufficient equipment. In rural areas schools often provided only a few years of education. According to ministry data, 46 percent of schools lacked drinking water and 37 percent had no toilets. Teacher salaries were irregularly paid and inadequate to support a decent standard of living, leading to demands for unofficial payments from parents, which poor families could not afford. The government did not deny girls equal access to education; however, families with limited resources often gave priority to boys. In many areas schools were remote and transportation was a problem. This especially affected girls due to safety concerns in traveling between their homes and schools.\nBoys and girls had equal access to state‑provided medical care.\nChild abuse was believed to be common, although statistics were not available. Child rape remained a serious problem; a local NGO reported 199 cases of rape and attempted rape committed on persons under age 18, two of which resulted in death. Twenty‑nine of the cases involved children below age five. Sexual intercourse with a person under age 15 is illegal; however, child prostitution and trafficking in children occurred. During the year raids on brothels rescued underage girls trafficked for prostitution. The MOI reported arrests of seven foreign pedophiles. Some children were engaged in prostitution for survival, without third‑party involvement.\nA domestic NGO estimated that more than 1,200 street children in Phnom Penh had no relationship with their families and more than 10,000 children worked on the streets but returned to families in the evenings. An estimated 500 to 1,500 children lived with their families on the streets in provincial towns. The Ministry of Social Affairs and Youth Rehabilitations provided lower statistics, reporting 3,084 street children nationwide in 2005.\nA study conducted by a local NGO stated that in September 2006 there were 37 children under the age of six living with their mothers in prison, and those children were subjected to mistreatment by prison guards and faced physical dangers from adult criminal cellmates. The children generally lacked proper nutrition and education.\nChild labor was a problem in the informal sector of the economy.\nTrafficking in Persons\nThe law prohibits trafficking in persons; however, the country was a source, destination, and transit country for men, women, and children trafficked for sexual exploitation and labor. A 2003 study estimated the number of trafficking victims in the sex industry to be 2,000, approximately 80 percent of whom were ethnic Vietnamese women and girls. Children were trafficked domestically for sexual exploitation and labor. Some Vietnamese women and girls were trafficked through the country for exploitation in the commercial sex trade in other Asian countries.\nChildren were trafficked to Thailand and Vietnam for begging, soliciting, street vending, and flower selling. The children frequently were placed into debt bondage to beg or sell, or they formed part of organized begging rings even when there was no debt or economic hardship involved. Women as well as children were trafficked to Malaysia and Thailand for sexual exploitation and forced labor in factories or as domestic servants, while men were trafficked for forced labor in the agriculture, fishing, and construction sectors.\nTrafficking victims, especially those trafficked for sexual exploitation, faced the risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS. In some cases victims were detained and physically and mentally abused by traffickers, brothel owners, and clients.\nLocal traffickers covered specific small geographic areas and acted as middlemen for larger trafficking networks. Organized crime groups, employment agencies, and marriage brokers were believed to have some degree of involvement. Traffickers used a variety of methods to acquire victims. In many cases victims were lured by promises of legitimate employment or travel documents. In other cases acquaintances, friends, and family members sold the victims or received payment for helping deceive them. Young children, the majority of them girls, were often \"pledged\" as collateral for loans by desperately poor parents; the children were responsible for repaying the loan and the accumulating interest. A September report by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) stated that child domestic workers, particularly those used as collateral or placed into debt bondage, were more likely to be trafficked and to enter commercial sexually exploitive activities.\nThe law establishes a prison sentence of 15 to 20 years for a person convicted of trafficking in persons under 15 years of age; the penalty is 10 to 15 years for trafficking persons age 15 or older. According to the MOI, police investigated 529 cases of violence against women and children, including child sexual exploitation, rape, debauchery, and human trafficking. The investigations resulted in the arrest of 582 offenders, of whom 46 were arrested for cross border and domestic trafficking. However, NGOs continued to report the general failure of law enforcement and other government officials to act on tip‑offs.\nThe Ministries of Interior, Women's Affairs, and Justice had primary responsibility to combat trafficking in persons. In April the government established a National Task Force to serve as an interministerial antitrafficking coordination body. The task force included an oversight body involving the top government officials. There was a Department of Anti‑Human Trafficking and Juvenile Protection, and the MOI operated specialized antitrafficking divisions in all provinces and municipalities. While the government arrested and prosecuted traffickers and continued its support for prevention and protection programs through collaboration with foreign and domestic NGOs and international organizations, its antitrafficking efforts continued to be hampered by corruption and a weak judicial system. It was widely believed that some law enforcement and other government officials received bribes that facilitated the sex trade and trafficking in persons.\nOn March 16, the Sihanoukville Municipal Court acquitted the owner of O Pi Guesthouse and an employee of all charges and convicted another employee of a lesser charge of pimping, sentencing her to a two‑year imprisonment plus a three‑year suspended sentence. Erratic official behavior during the trial and the light penalty raised concerns that there was an exchange of bribes in return for light treatment of the case.\nOn March 21, the Phnom Penh Municipal Court acquitted Meng Say, former chief of the Phnom Penh antitrafficking unit, who was suspended in 2006 for extorting money from South Korean nationals. One police officer remained in jail in connection with the 2006 Phnom Penh Municipal Court case of three police officers sentenced to five to seven years in prison for trafficking‑related corruption. Two of the officers appealed their cases; there was no court action on the appeal, and the two officers had not started serving their sentences.\nOn August 1, the Sihanoukville Municipal Court tried a pimping case but acquitted the suspect, citing lack of evidence. Observers reported irregularities in the case hearing, and the case was under appeal at year's end.\nOn August 9, a royal decree directed the Supreme Council of the Magistracy to dismiss Appeals Court President Ly Vouch Leng. The directive was issued for her alleged acceptance of bribes in exchange for the release of human traffickers who were running the Chhay Hour II brothel in Phnom Penh. Three Supreme Council of Magistracy officials were also removed in connection with the case, and three appeals court judges and one deputy prosecutor received official letters of reprimand. Ly Vouch Leng was transferred to an unknown position in the Ministry of Justice; no charges were brought against her. The Ministries of Interior and Justice reported their investigations continued.\nA legal advocacy NGO reported that five trafficking cases went to trial during the year, resulting in two convictions. For the same period, the MOI reported five convictions on human trafficking charges with sentences ranging from four to 15 years in prison. The Phnom Penh Municipal Court reported 49 convictions of human trafficking offenders from January to October. Police, court officials, and judges often did not separate victims from perpetrators during raids, arrests, and trials. In some cases officials spoke and acted as though victims were perpetrators. During a March 9 Sihanoukville trafficking trial, the presiding judge spoke harshly to underage trafficking victims in the courtroom and acquitted two of the alleged perpetrators.\nThe Ministry of Social Affairs and Youth Rehabilitations (MOSAVY) referred trafficking victims to NGOs, which provided most assistance to victims. The government participated as a partner in a number of these efforts; however, its contributions were severely hampered by limited resources. NGOs provided intake screening services to identify trafficking victims. Some victims were encouraged by NGOs and the MOI to file complaints against perpetrators; however, in the general climate of impunity, victim protection was problematic, and victims were known to be intimidated into abandoning their cases. Social stigma against women who were prostitutes, victims of sexual assault, or victims of sex trafficking made it difficult for victims to reintegrate into families, communities, and society.\nThe trafficking law contains no provisions to protect foreign victims from being charged under immigration laws, but during the year there were no reported cases of trafficking victims being treated as illegal immigrants. The MOSAVY worked with the IOM to repatriate trafficked victims from Thailand and Vietnam to Cambodia, and from Cambodia to Vietnam. However, repatriation to Vietnam continued to be a long and arduous process.\nThe MOSAVY repatriated from Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia 845 child and adult victims, as well as others vulnerable to becoming victims, and reintegrated them with their families. With financial and technical support from the IOM, the MOSAVY repatriated eight trafficked Vietnamese girls to Vietnam.\nBoth the government and international donors had programs to prevent child labor or remove children from labor. The country is a signatory to the Coordinated Mekong Ministerial Initiative against Trafficking, whose activities include ensuring the legal, social, and community protection of victims of trafficking; strengthening law enforcement capacity to combat trafficking; and building a comprehensive response involving all relevant ministries. Several ministries--including the Ministry of Women's Affairs and the Ministry of Tourism--had antitrafficking initiatives to reduce child labor. Donors supported programs to combat child labor implemented by the ILO and World Education, among others.\nThe MOSAVY worked with the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and local NGOs to manage community‑based networks aimed at preventing trafficking.\nPersons with Disabilities\nThere is no law explicitly prohibiting discrimination against persons with disabilities. The government does not require that buildings or government services be accessible to persons with disabilities. The government prohibits persons with disabilities from being teachers in public schools. On October 1, the government signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.\nPrograms administered by various NGOs brought about substantial improvements in the treatment and rehabilitation of persons who had lost limbs, but they faced considerable societal discrimination, especially in obtaining skilled employment.\nThere are no legal limitations on the rights of persons with disabilities to vote or participate in civic affairs, but the government did not make any concerted effort to assist them in becoming more civically engaged. The MOSAVY is responsible for making policy to protect the rights of persons with disabilities and for rehabilitation and vocational skill training for persons with disabilities.\nThe rights of minorities under the 1996 nationality law are not explicit; constitutional protections are extended only to \"Khmer people.\" Citizens of Chinese and Vietnamese ethnicity constituted the largest ethnic minorities. Ethnic Chinese citizens were accepted in society, but animosity continued toward ethnic Vietnamese, who were seen as a threat to the nation and culture. Some groups continued to make strong anti‑Vietnamese statements. They complained of political control of the CPP by the Vietnamese government, border encroachment, and other problems for which they held ethnic Vietnamese at least partially responsible.\nThe government often ignored efforts by indigenous communities to protect their ancestral lands and natural resources. In spite of the 2001 land law, which calls for the registration of communal lands of indigenous people, little was done to implement communal land titling. NGOs called for a moratorium on land sales and land concessions affecting indigenous communities. International and local NGOs were active in educating the indigenous communities about their land rights and providing legal representation in disputes.\nOn March 9, more than 200 indigenous villagers in Stung Treng Province protested the clearing of community forest land by four companies to which the government allegedly illegitimately granted timber concessions. The land had long been used by indigenous villagers for subsistence farming, hunting, and resin production. In May provincial authorities created a special committee to resolve the problem, but the committee did not take any action.\nOn March 15, more than 500 Jarai indigenous families in Ratanakiri Province demanded the removal of local officials who they alleged were involved in the fraudulent sale of more than 3,000 acres of their communal land. In September 2006 the villagers learned their land had been sold when they saw workers demarcating it as private property. The villagers submitted a complaint to provincial authorities, but authorities did not respond to the complaint.\nIn early August a Ratanakiri provincial official prevented Tampoun indigenous villagers from burying their dead on land that had served as their traditional burial ground since 1979. The provincial court stated it would arrest anyone who tried to bury bodies there, claiming the land belonged to the provincial finance department director. Authorities sanctioned a new burial ground approximately 500 yards from the traditional plot. The villagers enlisted the help of an NGO and planned to file a suit with the provincial court.\nDuring the August 9 commemoration of the International Day for Indigenous Peoples, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights noted the government's failure to protect and implement the rights of indigenous people to their lands, territories, and natural resources. The UN commissioner called for swift action to halt land grabbing in tribal areas, particularly the growing number of economic land concessions and mining licenses granted without community consultation.\nOther Societal Abuses and Discrimination\nSocietal discrimination against those infected with HIV/AIDS remained a problem in rural areas; however, discrimination was moderated by HIV/AIDS awareness programs. There was no official discrimination against those infected with HIV/AIDS. There were no reported cases of sexual orientation discrimination in employment, housing, statelessness, or access to education or health care. However, homosexuality was typically treated with fear and suspicion, and there were few support groups based on sexual orientation where such cases could have been reported.\nSection 6 Worker Rights\na. The Right of Association\nThe labor law provides private-sector workers in the formal economy the right to join the trade union of their choice without prior authorization. However, the government's enforcement of this right was selective. Membership in trade unions or employee associations is not compulsory, and workers are free to withdraw from such organizations, although a few unions attempted to intimidate workers who wanted to withdraw. Unions may affiliate freely, but the law does not address explicitly their right to affiliate internationally. While the law applies to foreign workers, it does not apply to civil servants, including teachers, judges, and military personnel, or to workers in the informal sector. Personnel in the air and maritime transportation industries are not entitled to the full protections of the law but are free to form unions.\nThe vast majority of the country worked in the informal sector, primarily as subsistence rice farmers, vendors, or skilled or unskilled laborers. Only a small fraction, estimated at less than 1 percent, of the labor force was unionized. Unions were concentrated in the garment and footwear industries, where approximately 40 to 50 percent of the 350,000 workers were union members. The Cambodian Tourism and Service Workers Federation represented 4,000 hotel, casino, and airport workers. Of the 31 national labor federations and confederations, 26 were allied with the government, four were independent, and one had pro‑opposition leanings.\nThe Cambodia Independent Teachers Association (CITA), registered as an \"association\" due to prohibitions on public sector unions, represented 8,150 of the country's 89,000 teachers. CITA marches and other protests were often forbidden, although the union reported no direct government interference in day‑to‑day activities. Some members feared that CITA affiliation could hamper their chance of career advancement, according to union officials. Another public sector association, the Cambodian Independent Civil Servants' Association (CICA), represented approximately 500 officials from ministries, provincial departments, and commune councils, out of approximately 100,000 civil servants nationwide. CICA leaders alleged that fears of harassment or demotion prevented other civil servants from joining.\nSome independent and pro‑opposition unions and federations complained of unnecessary delays and costs in registering with the government.\nUnions were generally seen as slowly gaining strength, but many were not able to adequately represent member interests due to insufficient resources, training, and experience. In addition, corruption plagued unions, employers, and government officials, hampering legitimate industrial relations. Violence, harassment, and intimidation between rival unions were common.\nOn February 24, two unidentified men shot and killed local union leader Hy Vuthy as he left the Suntex garment factory after completing his night shift. Since 2005 Suntex and Bright Sky factories, which share a compound, have been the scene of fierce interunion rivalry and violence. Hy Vuthy was a member of the country's largest union, the Free Trade Union of Workers in the Kingdom of Cambodia (FTUWKC), which alleged that he might have been killed because of his labor work. No suspects were arrested. Two other FTUWKC leaders--national FTUWKC president Chea Vichea and local union leader Ros Sovannareth--were killed in 2004.\nIn some factories persons employed in management appeared to have established their own unions, supported promanagement unions, or compromised union leaders. Union leaders from across the political spectrum complained that the Khmer Youth Federation of Trade Unions habitually threatened strikes to extort money from management and threatened and harassed workers from other unions. Independent union leaders complained that the progovernment Cambodian Coalition of Trade Unions frequently intervened in the affairs of other unions, extorted money from management in exchange for discouraging workers from conducting legal strikes and demonstrations, and threatened rival union leaders.\nEnforcement of the right of association and freedom from antiunion discrimination was poor. Government enforcement was hampered by a lack of political will and by confused financial and political relationships with employers and union leaders. The government also suffered from a lack of resources, including trained, experienced labor inspectors, in part because it did not pay staff adequate salaries. The Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training (MOLVT) often decided in favor of employees but rarely used its legal authority to penalize employers who defied its orders, instead referring many cases to an arbitration council.\nThere were credible reports of antiunion harassment by employers, including the dismissal of union leaders, in garment factories and other enterprises. Employers sometimes used the courts to dismiss or punish union leaders. In two cases union leaders were charged with inciting workers to strike, destroying private property, and attempting to incite workers to commit assault. At year's end the cases were pending. On several occasions dismissed union leaders accepted cash settlements after unsuccessfully appealing to the government to enforce laws requiring their reinstatement. At other times the government upheld labor rights. For example, the MOLVT formally warned 1,032 companies of legal violations, fined 10 companies, and charged five companies with violation of the labor law and regulations. The MOLVT sent 83 cases of unresolved labor disputes to the Arbitration Council.\nb. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively\nThe law provides for the right to organize and bargain collectively, but the government's enforcement of these rights was inconsistent. Wages were generally set by market forces, except in the case of civil servants, whose wages were set by the government. Garment-sector workers were guaranteed a minimum wage of $50 per month (210,000 riels).\nDuring the year there were 19 collective bargaining agreements registered with the MOLVT. Most were conciliation agreements that did not meet international collective bargaining standards. Only six genuine collective bargaining agreements existed within the garment industry, 10 at hotels, and one covering contract workers at the two international airports.\nA 2001 regulation establishes procedures to allow unions to demonstrate that they represent workers for purposes of collective bargaining. The regulation also establishes requirements for employers and unions regarding collective bargaining and provides union leaders with additional protection from dismissal. The Bureau of Labor Relations is responsible for facilitating the process of union registration and certification of \"most representative status\" for unions, which entitles a union representing an absolute majority of workers in a given enterprise to represent all of the workers in that establishment. However, the \"most representative\" registration process was considered cumbersome, and international observers reported that government lists of \"most representative unions\" included management‑controlled unions and unions whose \"most representative\" status should have expired years before. The government began reexamining its \"most representative\" certification process with support from international organizations and a diplomatic mission.\nThe law provides for the right to strike and protects strikers from reprisal. The law stipulates that strikes can be held only after several requirements have been met, including the failure of other methods of dispute resolution (such as negotiation, conciliation, and arbitration), a secret-ballot vote of union membership, and a seven‑day advance notice to the employer and the MOLVT.\nThe MOLVT reported that 82 strikes occurred during the year. International observers, employers, and many union leaders agreed that almost no strikes fulfilled all prestrike legal requirements. Other unions complained that a severe lack of MOLVT involvement led to industrial strikes.\nThe government allowed most strikes held at factories but denied worker requests to hold protest marches outside of the factory district. Police intervention in strikes generally was minimal and restrained, even in those cases where property damage occurred. Police presence at the few marches that occurred tended to be excessive and often included a specialized police intervention unit.\nOn May 4, four workers and five security guards were injured when security guards inside the L.A. garment factory tried to prevent workers from leaving the factory to strike. The strike, which involved 4,000 workers, began two days earlier when workers demanded that a manager be dismissed for insulting and mistreating them.\nOn May 21, more than 100 provincial police officers violently dispersed approximately 200 striking workers at the River Rich garment factory in Kandal Province. Workers said police beat several protesters, but police denied causing any injuries. The strike began when management reneged on a promise to rehire 10 union activists whose contracts had not been renewed. Following the strike, management threatened to sue three union representatives for inciting workers to hold an illegal strike and for discrimination but later dropped the case.\nOn November 29, approximately 200 police officers violently dispersed a strike by more than 2,000 Fortune garment factory workers who protested reductions in bonuses and short‑term contracts. Police accused the strikers of blocking a road, creating disorder, throwing stones, and injuring police officers. Workers said their strike was peaceful and that violent police repression--including firing guns into the air and using tear gas--resulted in three injured workers. Police detained four workers, releasing them later the same day.\nThere were no developments in the August 2006 case of three factory‑level union leaders affiliated with the FTUWKC convicted of charges of illegal human confinement. After spending one month and four days in jail in 2006, the workers were released.\nIn spite of legal provisions protecting strikers from reprisals, there were credible reports that workers were dismissed on spurious grounds after organizing or participating in strikes. While most strikes were illegal, participating in an illegal strike was not by itself a legally acceptable reason for dismissal. In some cases strikers were pressured by employers to accept compensation and leave their employment. There are potential remedies for such dismissals, although none was particularly effective. The MOLVT can issue reinstatement orders, but these often provoked management efforts to pressure workers into resigning in exchange for a settlement. Collective disputes, such as when multiple employees are dismissed, can be brought before the Arbitration Council for a nonbinding decision. Individual disputes can be bought before the courts, although the judicial system was neither impartial nor transparent. Some unions urged the government to expand the role of the Arbitration Council to include individual and collective interest disputes and to make its decisions binding.\nThere continued to be confusion about the overlapping roles of labor unions and elected shop stewards. According to regulation, trade union leaders have roles comparable to those of shop stewards, and certain union officers have protection from dismissal within an enterprise. However, employers did not always respect these protections.\nThere were no special laws or exemptions from regular labor laws in export processing zones (known as special economic zones).\nc. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor\nThe law prohibits forced or compulsory labor, including by children, but there were reports that such practices occurred, almost exclusively in the informal sector. There were reports of isolated cases of forced labor by domestic servants. Forced child labor was a serious problem in the commercial sex industry.\nInvoluntary overtime remained widespread. Under the law, legal overtime work cannot exceed two hours daily and must be voluntary; however, in practice overtime was often extended beyond the legal limit, and employers used coercion to force employees to work. Workers often faced fines, dismissal, or loss of premium pay if they refused to work overtime.\nd. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment\nThe government has adopted laws to protect children from exploitation in the workplace; however, enforcement was often weak. The law establishes 15 years as the minimum age for employment and 18 years as the minimum age for hazardous work. The law permits children between 12 and 15 to engage in \"light work\" that is not hazardous to their health and does not affect school attendance. A 2006 study by the World Bank, the ILO, and UNICEF estimated that there were 1.5 million children engaged in illegal labor, including 750,000 children younger than 12 years, 500,000 children ages 12 to 14 engaged in \"nonlight\" economic activity, and more than 250,000 children ages 15 to 17 working in prohibited hazardous sectors or working more than 43 hours per week.\nNo aspect of the law prohibiting child labor was adequately enforced in the formal employment sector. No employer was prosecuted for violating laws against child labor. The MOLVT has responsibility for child labor issues in both the formal and informal sectors of the economy, but its labor inspectors played no role in the informal sector or in enforcing the law in illegal industries. Within the formal sector, labor inspectors conducted routine inspections of some industries, such as garment manufacturing (where the incidence of child labor is negligible), but in some industries with the highest child labor risk, labor inspections were entirely complaint driven.\nThe constitution prohibits forced or bonded child labor; however, forced child labor was a serious problem in the commercial sex industry. Law enforcement agencies failed to combat child prostitution in a sustained, consistent manner. Widespread corruption, lack of transparency, inadequate resources, and staffing shortages remained the most challenging obstacles.\ne. Acceptable Conditions of Work\nThe law requires the MOLVT to establish a garment‑sector minimum wage based on recommendations from the Labor Advisory Committee. There was no minimum wage for any other industry. The minimum wage for the sector was $45 to $50 (189,000 to 210,000 riels) per month. Garment-sector employers almost universally paid regular workers at least the minimum wage, although casual workers were often paid less. Garment workers earned an average wage of $70 to $80 (294,000 to 336,000 riels) per month, including overtime and bonuses. Prevailing monthly wages in the garment sector and many other professions were insufficient to provide a worker and family with a decent standard of living, although garment-sector wages were generally higher than wages in the informal economy. Civil service salaries also were insufficient to provide a decent standard of living, requiring government officials to secure outside sources of income, in many cases by obtaining second jobs or accepting bribes.\nOn June 8, despite strong protests from some unions, the National Assembly amended the labor law to establish a nightshift rate of 130 percent of daytime wages. Before this amendment, customary practice was to pay nightshift workers 200 percent of daytime wages, and few factories operated night shifts due to the high salary cost.\nThe law provides for a standard legal workweek of 48 hours, not to exceed eight hours per day. The law stipulates time‑and‑a‑half for overtime and double time if overtime occurs at night, on Sunday, or on a holiday. Employees are allowed to work up to two hours of overtime each day. However, the government did not enforce these standards effectively. Workers reported that overtime was frequently excessive and sometimes mandatory. Similarly, outside the garment industry, regulations on working hours were rarely enforced.\nThe law states that the workplace should have health and safety standards adequate to ensure workers' well‑being. The government enforced existing standards selectively, in part because it lacked trained staff and equipment. Work‑related injuries and health problems were common. Most large garment factories producing for markets in developed countries met relatively high health and safety standards as conditions of their contracts with buyers. Working conditions in some small‑scale factories and cottage industries were poor and often did not meet international standards. Penalties are specified in the law, but there are no specific provisions to protect workers who complain about unsafe or unhealthy conditions. Workers who removed themselves from unsafe working conditions risked loss of employment."}
{"text": "|Liftoff to Learning: Lets Talk Robotics - NASA; Johnson Space Center|\nThis episode of Liftoff to Learning examines some of NASA’s robotic research and how robots are used in space exploration. Classroom scenes show robot study at the intermediate and high school level. Astronauts from STS-85 and STS-87 host the show. The program is intended for grades 5-12. To license this film and get a higher quality version for broadcast/film purposes, contact A/V Geeks LLC.\nKeywords: NASA; robotics; STS-85; STS-87"}
{"text": "General best practices for performance\nYou must plan for every feature in your app, and the same is true for performance. Planning for performance consists of determining what your performance-critical scenarios will be, defining what good performance means, and measuring early enough in the development process to ensure that you can be confident in your ability to hit your goals.\nYou don't need to completely understand the platform to reason about where you might need to improve performance. By knowing what parts of your code execute most frequently, you can determine the best places to optimize your app.\nThe users' experience is a basic way to define good performance. For example, an app's startup time can influence a user's perception of its performance. A user might consider the performance of an app's launch time of less than one second to be excellent, less than 5 seconds to be good, and greater than 5 seconds to be poor.\nSometimes you also have to consider other metrics that don't have a direct impact on the user experience. An example of this is memory consumption. When an app uses large amounts of memory, it takes it from the rest of the system, causing the system as a whole to appear sluggish to the user. It is difficult to have a goal on overall sluggishness of the system, so having a goal on memory consumption is reasonable.\nWhen defining your performance goals, take into consideration the perceived size of your app. Users’ expectations for the performance of your app may be influenced by their qualitative perception of how big your app is, and you should take into account whether your users will consider your app to be small, medium, or large. As an example, you might want a small app that doesn't use a lot of media to consume less than 100MB of memory.\nAs part of your plan, you define all of the points during development where you will measure performance. Measuring performance serve different purposes depending on whether measure during the prototyping, development, or deployment phase of your project. In all cases, measure on a representative device so that you get accurate info. For more info about how to measure your app’s performance in Visual Studio, see Analyzing the performance of Windows Windows Store apps.\nMeasuring your app’s performance during the early stages of prototyping can add tremendous value to your project. We recommend that you measure performance as soon as you have code that does meaningful work. Early measurements give you a good idea of where the important costs are in your app, and inform design decisions. This results in high performing apps that scale well. It can be very costly to change design decisions later on in the project. Measuring performance too late in the product cycle can result in last minute hacks and poor performance.\nMeasuring your app’s performance during development time helps you:\n- Determine if you are on track to meet your goals.\n- If you are not on track, find out early if you need to make structural changes, such as data representation, in order to get back on track.\nYou don't need to optimize every part of your app, and performance improvements to the majority of your code usually don't result in a material difference to the user. Measure your app's performance to identify the high traffic areas in your code, and focus on getting good performance in only those areas. Often, there is a trade-off between creating software that follows good design practices and writing code that performs at the highest optimization. It is generally better to prioritize developer productivity and good software design in areas where performance is not a concern.\nWindows 8 can run on many devices under a variety of circumstances and it is impossible for you to simulate all the conditions in which your app will run. Collecting telemetry about your app's performance on user machines can help you understand what your end-users are experiencing. This can be accomplished by adding instrumentation to various parts of your application and occasionally uploading the data to a web service. From this info, you can determine what the average user sees and what the worst and best case performance of your app is. This will help you decide which aspects of performance to focus on for the next version of your app.\nLet's look at a few key performance best practices that are specific to Windows Store apps.\nWhen you create an app, be aware that the type of computer that your users have might have significantly less power than your development environment. Windows 8 was designed with low power devices, such as tablets, in mind. Also, Windows RT uses these same design principles to take advantage of the low power consumption characteristics of ARM-based platforms. Windows Store apps need to do their part to ensure that they perform well on these devices. Operations that seem to run fast on your development machine can have a big impact to the user-experience on a low power device. As a heuristic, expect that a low power device is about 4 times slower than a desktop computer and set your goals accordingly.\nTesting your app early and often on the type of computer that you expect the user to have allows you to form a realistic understanding of how your users will experience your app.\nMost of the performance work you do naturally reduces the amount of power your app consumes. The CPU is a major consumer of battery power on devices, even at low utilization. Windows 8 tries to keep the CPU in a low power state when it is idle, but activates it every time you schedule work. You can further reduce your app's consumption of battery power by ensuring that your app doesn't have timers unnecessarily schedule work on the CPU when it is idle. For example, an app might poll for data from web services and sensors (such as the GPS). Consider battery consumption when deciding how often you poll for data.\nThis is also an important consideration for animations that require constant updates to the screen and keep the CPU and graphics pipeline active. Animations can be an effective in delivering a great user experience, but make a conscious choice about when you use them. This is particularly important for data-driven apps where the user may be looking at your app but not interacting with it. For example, a user may spend a while looking at content in a news reader or photo viewer without interacting with the app. It can also be wasteful to use animations in snap mode because the user is not giving the app their full attention.\nMany apps connect to web services to get new info for the user. Reducing the frequency at which you poll for new info can improve your battery consumption.\nReducing memory helps avoid sluggishness and is even more important for Windows Store apps because of the Process Lifetime Management (PLM) system. The PLM system determines which apps to terminate, in part, by the app's memory footprint. By keeping your app's memory footprint low, you reduce the chance of it getting terminated when it is not being used. For example, you can reduce your app’s memory footprint by releasing unnecessary resources such as images on suspend.\nThe PLM system may also choose to swap out your app to disk, and swap it back into memory the next time it is switched to. If you lower the memory footprint of your app it will resume faster.\nThe related topics contain more in-depth performance best-practices for developing Windows Store apps. These best practices cover topics that are likely to be the source of performance issues in your app. But these best practices will only make a difference if they are on performance critical paths of your app. We recommend that you follow the principles on this page and determine if applying these best practices will help you achieve your performance goals.\nBuild date: 11/29/2012"}
{"text": "A new smartphone app aims to provide a cheaper alternative to ultrasound in Africa by bringing an old technique into the 21st century.\n\"We couldn't hear anything,” says Aaron Tushabe, recounting a trip with two friends to the maternity ward of the main hospital in the Ugandan capital, Kampala. The student had been handed an ear-trumpet-like device called a Pinard horn, used to listen for the vital signs of a baby in a mother’s abdomen. Despite straining to hear against the murmur of the ward, Tushabe couldn’t hear any signs.\nLuckily, the problem was not with the baby, but the combination of what he calls a “rather primitive device”, and his lack of training. In fact, the Pinard horn, named after the French doctor who invented it back in the 19th Century, can be very effective in the right hands. It can determine the age, position and heart rate of the foetus, along with an indication of its overall health. But to do this consistently can take many years of practice.\nMeanwhile, in developing countries, “a woman dies from complications in childbirth every minute”, according to the UN, while every year “eight million babies die before or during delivery or in the first week of life”. The key to saving those lives, the UN says, is “access to skilled care during pregnancy, childbirth and the first month after delivery”.\nThese kinds of statistics, along with their experience of using the Pinard horn, got the three computer science students thinking about whether they could improve the design. “We saw that technology gap and started thinking about how we might bridge it.”\nIn developed countries, ultrasound is the answer. But these machines – responsible for those fuzzy black and white pictures that are liberally posted on Facebook, brought out at parties, and waived at co-workers when someone becomes pregnant – are expensive. Even if a hospital could afford one, few expectant mothers can afford the $10 scan in countries where many live below the poverty line.\nAnd so, a new project called WinSenga was born to build what Joshua Okello, one of the other students who visited the hospital, calls \"an enhancement\" to the Pinard horn. The new device still consists of a plastic trumpet, but with a highly sensitive microphone inside. The souped-up device, which is placed on a women's abdomen just like a regular horn, connects to a Windows-based phone running an app that, as Okello says, \"plays the part of the midwife's ear.\" The system picks up the foetal heart rate, transmits it to the phone, and then the phone runs an analysis. The app, developed in conjunction with medics for the UN agency Unicef then recommends a course of action, if any, for the mother and her unborn child.\n\"When I first heard the idea, I thought it was brilliant,\" says Davis Musinguzi, a medic and Unicef advisor. \"But being software developers, they needed guidance on the medical component of the application.\" The doctor says he advised on the medical parameters, procedures and standards that needed to be part of the software. He also says he tried to ensure that the new device wouldn't disrupt the normal workflow of an antenatal visit, but rather help eliminate the bottlenecks.\nThe value of going mobile is pretty clear, allowing carers to visit mothers wherever they are. \"We envision a midwife being able to travel to rural areas on specific days, and then mothers could gather in, for example, a local church,” Tushabe says. “Then, the midwife could administer the antenatal diagnosis to all the mothers.\"\nOkello, Tushabe and their partner Josiah Kuvuma presented their idea earlier this year at an event sponsored by Microsoft called the Imagine Cup, which aims to solve pressing problems, particularly in the developing world. The event partly inspired the name. The “Win” part comes from the software giant’s own products, Okello tells me, while \"Senga\" refers to the local name for the aunt who used to help village mothers-to-be with their antenatal care and their births.\nThe team went on to win the regional competition before losing out in the finals held at Sydney. However, the loss has not held them back. The team says they have since been approached for potential partnerships and are currently looking for funding to launch a six-month field trial of their system. If that's successful, then WinSenga could launch as a product. The team says its too early to talk about pricing, but they are heartened by the fact that the cost of smartphone handsets is rapidly dropping across Africa, making their system much more attractive to potential clients.\nWhile they wait for funding, the WinSenga team is far from idle. Despite the fact that all three team members still have busy university schedules, they have already launched an expanded version of the software designed to assist healthcare workers and mothers during labour. The group's website also promises a version called \"WinSenga Plus\", which would assist with postnatal care as well. And as if that isn't enough, WinSenga say they are almost ready to launch an Android version of their application, and will then start work on a version for iOS.\nThe apps are all part of a new movement, says Dr Musinguzi, which is gathering momentum.\n\"The use of mobile technology is a relatively new intervention to improving health services,\" he says. WinSenga and other devices and apps that are coming on to the market, he says, will have to prove themselves to healthcare professionals by \"reducing the burden of doing what they have always done.\"\nIt will take training and investment, he says, but it \"will pay off in the long run”.\nIt is a sentiment that Okello agrees with. \"Communities that have healthy mothers are generally much more productive. It's all tied in.\""}
{"text": "Written By Dan Suthers based on explanations by Scott Ferguson, June Firing, Kyle Hogrefe, and Danny Merritt.\nPhysical Oceanography studies the movement of ocean water (ranging from small scale oscillations to basin-wide flows) and the physical and chemical characteristics of that water (e.g., temperature and salinity). Most research on currents and water characteristics has focused on large scale patterns, such as gyres that flow around ocean basins . Water of different densities does not mix easily. Density depends on temperature and salinity. Therefore, if you measure the temperature and salinity of water at different depths you can track the same body of water as it moves around an ocean basin (e.g., the North Pacific) and even around the globe.\nIn this research, measurements are often taken on a large scale. For example, during a transect a ship might make measurements of water temperature and salinity at different depths, but do so only at every degree of longitude or latitude: about every 60 miles. One square kilometer is a standard resolution for satellites that calculate sea surface temperature. This research helps us understand major influences on reef life, such as transport of warm or cold water, nutrients, and possibly organisms from one region to another. However, the data gathered for oceanography at this scale is not detailed enough to understand how water characteristics influence life at a local level.\nReef-specific oceanography studies the currents and water characteristics on a local scale. The topography of a reef--where it's shallow and deep; how it's situated relative to ocean currents and prevailing winds--can influence water temperature and the distribution of nutrients beyond what can be predicted by looking only at large scale currents in the region of the reef. Marine biologists such as those on this expedition study the distribution of marine life on a local scale, comparing for example life at different depths and within and outside an atoll, as well comparing reefs at different locations in the island chain. In order to understand the distribution of life they are seeing, they need reef-specific oceanographic data.\nData for reef-specific oceanography is being gathered by taking direct measurements while we are up here, by leaving sensors in place that send their data back by satellite or are retrieved later, and by satellite imagery. The first two forms of data, measured directly on site, help scientists to \"ground truth\" satellite data: observations in the field are compared to what the satellite sees so that we know how to interpret the images.\nReef Oceanography data is being gathered on this expedition by two teams: Night Operations (Scott Ferguson, assisted by Drew Rapp), who operate off the Hi`ialakai; and the Mooring Team (Elizabeth Keenan, Danny Merritt, Stephani Holzwarth, and team leader Kyle Hogrefe), who operate off of the jet boat HI-2. The instruments they use and what they measure are described below. As we consider this diverse collection of instruments we should keep in mind that they are all contributing to the same objective: to have an empirically based model of how ocean water characteristics are distributed across space and time. The most important water characteristic studied from the point of view of reef health is temperature. See our article on coral bleaching for a discussion of how temperature can affect the symbiotic relationship between coral and algae. Reef life is also strongly affected by the availability of nutrients. Both temperature and nutrients, in turn, are affected by the movement of water, so some of the measurements made are intended to give a profile of the bodies of water surrounding reefs.\nYearly Water Column Measurements\nSome measurements are only taken about once a year, when researchers can come up to the locations where the measurements are made.\nShip-based CTDs. The Night Operations team conduct Conductivity, Temperature and Depth or \"CTD\" measurements at several locations around the reef. (They also make observations with a Towed Optical Assessment Device, but this is for unrelated purposes: see the September 18th journal for a brief description.) The CTD deployed by Night Operations is a large device that can reach 500 meters in depth, taking up to five water samples at different depths, and making other measurements on a continuous basis on the the way down and up. Temperature and pressure are measured directly. Salinity is measured indirectly by measuring the conductivity of water to electricity. Chlorophyll is measured indirectly by a fluorometer that emits purple light (\"black light\") and measures fluorescence in response to that light. These measurements are made continuously, providing a profile of temperature, salinity, and chlorophyll as a function of depth. The photograph shows the dta from a test run of the CTD, including temperature (blue), salinity (red) and density (green).\nAnalysis of the water samples will tell scientists how much chlorophyll is actually in the water. This information can then be compared to the measurements of the flurometer to see how well it predicts levels of chlorophyll. The presence of chlorophyll is a good sign of producivity: the food chain is built on phytoplankton (microscopic plants) that produce food energy from light energy. They are eaten by microscopic zooplankton (floating animals), which in turn are eaten by larger animals, and so on.\nShipboard CTD measurements are typically taken at three locations around a given island or atoll: the windward and leeward sides, and at a standard oceanographic \"station\" assigned to each island or atoll that is being surveyed over a long period of time. There is one such station per each major island or atoll in the NWHI: Nihoa, Necker, French Frigate Shoals, Gardner, Maro Reef, Laysan, Lisanski, Pearl and Hermes, Midway, and Kure.\nShallow water CTDs. In order to understand the local reef ecosystem, we need measurements at more locations than just three, and we need to sample in shallower water than the ship can operate in. For these reasons, the oceanographers aboard make other measurements from the HI-2 jetboat. These measurements are taken every mile or two around the island/atoll between the 80 and 120 foot isobath and inside the atolls in a few places as well, providing greater resolution.\nA handheld CTD device is pictured. Like its big brother, it includes a temperature sensor, a depth sensor, and a conductivity sensor (for salinity). The handheld device also has transmissometer that measures the level of particulate matter in the water (a proxy for turbidity). It does so by shining a light at a sensor and seeing how much of that light gets through the water. These measurements are also made continuously as the device descends and ascends. Unlike the larger version, the small boat CTD does not take water samples and does not have a fluormeter. Separate devices are used for these purposes.\nWater samples are taken by a handheld device consisting of a tube with spring loaded caps at both ends. The caps are set in the open position so water can flow through the tube as it descends. A weight is then slid down the supporting rope to hit a trigger and close the caps. The sampler is then taken to the surface, where the water is used to first rinse out a sample bottle (to avoid contamination from other water), and then the sample bottle is filled. The bottle is opaque to prevent further modification of the chlorophyll content by light. (Water from the large CTD is also stored in these same bottles.) Water samples are typically taken at three depths, 5, 30 and 60 feet, measured out by marks on the rope holding the sampling device.\nA radiometer on the small boat plays the role of the fluorometer, and also gives important information about available solar radiation. Two radiometers are coupled together to take readings above and below water. A instrument on the boat reads the amount of light arriving at the ocean surface. Another instrument is put in the water to read the light reflected back from the water. This is compared to the former surface measurement for reference. These measurements are made at light frequencies relevant to photosynthesis. By reading reflected light at certain wavelenghths, scientists can tell how much chlorophyll is in the water.\nTime Series Measurements\nThe measurements just described provide a lot of detail about the water at a given location and different depths, but only at one or a few points in time: when the scientists can come up here. To fully understand an ecosystem, we need to monitor it over many years. The instruments described in this section record a series of measurements of water characteristics over time. They include CREWS buoys, SST buoys, and SST \"pipe bombs.\"\nCREWS Buoys. These are large buoys (pictured) that are anchored at a specific location and can send data back daily to scientists via satellite. CREWS stands for Coral Reef Early Warning System, reflecting a major function of these buoys: to warn scientists as soon as possible of an unusual change taking place in the environment of a coral reef ecosystem. These buoys have sensors both in and above the water that measure water and air temperature, water salinity (via conductivity), wind speed, and barometric pressure. A few of them also have radiometers, but these can only be located where staff can get to them every few weeks to clean the sensors. There is one at French Frigate Shoals, serviced by USGS staff on Tern Island.\nSST Buoys and Pipes. CREWS buoys are large and expensive, so other instruments are also used that measure fewer parameters but can be deployed in more locations. Sea Surface Temperature (SST) buoys are round floating buoys that are anchored in a specific location. They measure water temperature and send this data back at regular intervals via satellite. The \"pipe bombs of science\" are strapped to the reef at different depths and locations around an atoll. These are set to measure temperature every half an hour, and record it on a data chip. Scientists must come up to the NWHI and retrieve these devices in order to obtain the data.\nTracking Water Movement\nCurrents, tides and waves also affect reef life. The mooring team installs two further kinds of instruments to track these parameters. Now we can appreciate why they are always so busy!\nWave and Tide Recorders (WTDs), record water pressure with high sensitivity, providing information about waves and tides. (When a wave passes over, or when the tide comes in, there is more water over the instrument and hence more pressure on it.) This instrument measures the tide 48 times a day, and records wave height 8 times a day in the process. Each measurement involves recording the pressure for 18 minutes, and then estimating wave and tide values based on changes in the pressure. They are deployed at 50 to 100 feet.\nThe Ocean Data Platform (ODP) contains temperature and salinity sensors, as well as an Acoustic Doppler Profiler (ADP). The ADP can measure current speed and direction in multiple directions and at different depths. These are placed at 60-100 feet, \"hopefully deeper than the wave energy you are trying to study,\" as Kyle put it after a day of trying to extract an ODP that had somehow flipped and gotten wedged in the rocks!\nOther instruments used by reef oceanographers are not described here because we don't have them on this expedition. Drifting buoys that follow water at 15 meters depth, measuring GPS position and water temperature over time, were not delivered to Honolulu in time for the expedition due to the hurricanes in Florida. Two other sensors will be installed on the Hi`ialakai later this year: an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler that measures current velocity using the Doppler effect, and a sonar that measures biomass in the water column.\nPutting It All Together into a Model of the NWHI\nVisualize, if you will, a three dimensional model of the Northwestern Hawaiian Island chain. Imagine that we have represented this model in a computer such that we can attach the data gathered by the various devices just discussed to the corresponding location in the model. Now imagine that we can move a slider or use a play/fast forward/rewind control like on a video recorder to move this model through time, so we can store data taken at different times as well as different places. In other words, we have organized all the data collected in a four dimensional \"space,\" where the first three dimensions are for the location of the various sensors discussed above (latitude, longitude, and depth) and the fourth dimension is for time.\nIn some places in this model, we will have detailed information such as temperature, salinity, chlorophyll and light levels, etc., measured continuously over a number of years. In other places we will have only temperature, and in some places we have measurements only once a year. Finally, in most places we have no measurements at all! But we have taken our measurements at enough locations that we can \"interpolate\" or predict mathematically the values the measures would be at the points in between those we actually took.\nIn some places and times we have different measures of the same thing. For example, we have the actual chlorophyll content of water and the estimate of that content taken by a radiometer or fluorometer; or we have the actual temperature and the estimated temperature taken by satellite. We can see how close these measurements are to each other, to better understand how we can use less expensive measures (such as a satellite) to estimate parameters that otherwise would require more expensive measures (sending people to the actual locations).\nAll of this data organized in space and time provides a physical model of the ocean environment of reef ecosystems. Marine biologists can use this model to understand what is affecting the prevalence and health of the various organisms of the reef. We will see how marine biologists find out what organisms are present in another article.\n Garrison (2002)"}
{"text": "Preprocessing of Educational Institution Web Log Data for Finding Frequent Patterns Using Weighted Association Rule Mining Technique\nIn the Internet world, web search is mandatory to all. Millions of searches performed for each second in a web and that search information are stored in Web Server Log. Web Log data are massive and erroneous stream data. Handling huge data and incorrect data processing are two significant problems in Web Data Mining. Processing of huge data is a complex task, which increases processing time and memory occupation that will reduce the performance of the system. Incorrect data sometimes produce an erroneous result that reduces the quality of data. To handle this problem web Miner's has introduced several preprocessing methods to reduce the log data size and to eliminate incorrect records, which lead to improved quality, quantity and performance."}
{"text": "Games, Interactivity, and Playable Media\nGames, Interactivity, and Playable Media spans offerings in visual arts, film and media, and computer science to foster technical and digital literacy in the arts. Designed for experimentation, this initiative helps students establish digital proficiency while supporting the exploration of a wide range of new media forms and technologies. Courses of study might include visual programming, artificial intelligence, gaming, robotics, experimental animation, computer arts, experimental media design, data visualization, real-time interactivity, digital signal processing, cross-platform media environments, and mobile media development. Students are encouraged to coordinate these project-based investigations of the digital throughout their studies in the humanities, including literature, philosophy, politics, sociology, theatre, and writing."}
{"text": "What is Bereavement?\nBereavement coincides with the imminent dying and death of the individual and consists of two stages: separation and mourning.\nSeparation occurs when the loved one’s consciousness diminishes and awareness of the environment vanishes. At this time, the family fully experiences their loss and the loneliness of separation. Self-absorption is the hurdle for the family to overcome now. Hospice intervention is directed toward promoting intimacy, if family members are to be supported in their ability to grieve within their family network.\nMourning begins when the reality of impending death hits. The obstacle for the family to overcome here is guilt. Human grief is as strong and as unique as the relationship that has been severed. Grief is a personal experience, different for each member of a family who is grieving over the loss of the same person.\nHospice intervention is geared toward fostering relief expressed through mourning. The family members may have reached the limits of their own endurance and may initially confess relief that their loved one has died and that they remained with the person through that time. Echoes from previous losses may then surface, and these mournings, if uncompleted, may hinder relief. The mourning process is relieved only when the deceased person enriches the continued family life.\nHospice provides bereavement services for the patient’s family/caregiver. This includes telephone calls, visits, letters, support groups, and an annual memorial service. The family needs continuing support to help move through their mourning process.\nA special bereavement program offered to the general community is Wings! Camp for Grieving Children. Because of their limited life experiences, and lack of coping skills, children may find the grief process very difficult. At Wings!, children between the ages of 8 and 17 learn, in a safe and caring environment, that their feelings are normal and an important part of the healing process. Grief-related activities are conducted in small groups led by trained counselors. Children are encouraged to express themselves through arts and crafts."}
{"text": "Jump to:Page Content\nSusan Greenhalgh, , Professor of Anthropology, Harvard\nSince the introduction of the 1-child policy in 1980, the gender gap among Chinese infants has soared, leaving China with a huge surplus of boys and deficit of girls. Today, as the first generation of singletons begins to marry in large numbers, 10 percent of men – mostly rural, ill-educated peasants – will not be able to find brides. How has the PRC regime sought to address these problems? What framings and measures has it used, and with what effect? In this talk, anthropologist Greenhalgh argues that state policy on the gender gap has been heavily biased in favor of rural women, with the result that older rural men, dubbed \"bare sticks,\" now face social marginalization, political exclusion from the category of deserving citizens, and the prospect of reproductive extinction. In Chinese population politics, the woman question has become a serious man question, to the benefit of none.\nLunch will be provided. An RSVP is not required as this is an open event."}
{"text": "Biochemical Conversion Processes\nThe diagram below depicts a high-level view of the primary units of operation in the biochemical conversion process. Specific process operation conditions, and inputs and outputs within and between each unit, vary in practice. These process variations can impact the key performance outcomes (titer, rate, and yield), which determine economic viability when the process is scaled up. The following descriptions highlight issues in each key process step.\nDuring pretreatment, biomass feedstock undergoes a process to mechanically or chemically fractionate the lignocellulosic complex into soluble and insoluble components. Soluble components include mixtures of five- and six-carbon sugars (mainly xylose, arabinose, mannose, galactose, and glucose) and some sugars oligomers. Insoluble components include cellulosic polymers and oligomers and lignin (and any other components that may be linked to the constituents). Depending on the exact chemistry chosen for this step, variable amounts of the biomass may be solubilized. The main purpose of this step is to open up the physical structure of the plant cell walls to permit further deconstruction during the hydrolysis stepyea. The more open structure of the resulting material makes the remaining carbohydrate polymers more accessible for hydrolytic conversion to soluble sugars by enzymes or chemicals. The specific mix of sugars and oligomers released depends on the feedstock used and the pretreatment technology employed.\nIn some process configurations, the pretreated material goes through a hydrolysate conditioning and/or neutralization process to adjust the pH of the biomass slurry and remove undesirable by-product from pretreatment that are toxic to the downstream fermenting microorganism. In some cases, this step and hydrolysis, the next step, are combined into a single process.\nIn hydrolysis, the pretreated material, with the remaining solid carbohydrate fraction, primarily cellulose, is guided through a chemical reaction that releases the readily fermentable sugar, glucose. This can be accomplished with enzymes, such as cellulases, or with strong acids. Addition of other enzymes in this step, such as xylanases, may allow for less severe pretreatment conditions, potentially resulting in a reduced overall pretreatment and hydrolysis cost. Depending on the process design, enzymatic hydrolysis requires several hours to several days, after which the mixture of sugars and any unreacted cellulose is transferred to the fermenter. Current processes use purchased enzymes or enzymes manufactured on site, based on the economics of the specific process. For technologies using strong acids, acid recovery is important for the economics to be viable.\nCurrently, the most common approach to biological processing is to employ a fermentation step, wherein an inoculum of a fermenting microorganism is added to the biomass hydrolysates. Fermentation of all sugars is then carried out, and after a few days of continued saccharification and fermentation, nearly all of the sugars are converted to biofuels or other chemicals of interest. The resulting aqueous mixture or two-phase broth is sent to product recovery. Some processes combine the hydrolysis and fermentation steps (i.e., simultaneous saccharification and fermentation [SSF]).\nChemical or catalytic conversion can be used in place of, or in addition to, fermentation to convert the hydrolysis products, such as sugars, alcohols, or a variety of other stable oxygenates, to desired end products. The addition of a catalyst makes the reaction less energy intensive, thus making the entire process more efficient. Different reactions achieve different yields and intermediates while targeting different end fuels and chemicals, so current research is aimed at identifying optimal process combinations with respect to efficiency, feedstock utilization, cost, sustainability, finished product characteristics, and anticipated market demands.\nProduct Upgrading and Recovery\nProduct upgrading and recovery varies based on the type of conversion used and the type of product generated, but in general, involves any biological and chemical transformations, distillation or any other separation and recovery method, and some cleanup processes to separate the fuel from the water and residual solids. Residual solids are composed primarily of lignin, which can be burned for combined heat and power generation or chemically converted to intermediate chemicals or intermediates for other uses."}
{"text": "By ANAHAD O'CONNOR\nPublished: November 21, 2006\nTHE CLAIM -- Pricking a stroke victim's fingers can help delay symptoms.\nTHE FACTS -- A recent, widely circulated e-mail message proposes an unusual way to help the victim of a stroke. ''Help the victim sit up to prevent him from falling over,'' the message states. ''Then sterilize a needle and use it to prick the tip of the person's finger. After a few minutes, the victim should regain consciousness.''\nThe message says that doing this somehow relieves blood pressure and eases symptoms.\nLike most medical advice dispensed in the form of a chain e-mail message, it has no scientific basis. In fact, following its advice can do harm.\nForcing a stroke victim to sit up is never a good idea, because it can cause a drop in blood pressure, says Dr. Larry B. Goldstein, director of the Duke Stroke Center.\nIt would be better to help the person lie down.\nPricking the victim's finger is also a bad idea, not only because it is futile, but because doing so can delay medical treatment, which is the only thing that can help.\nTHE BOTTOM LINE -- Only emergency medical treatment can help a stroke victim. ANAHAD O'CONNOR\nDrawing (Drawing by Leif Parsons)"}
{"text": "Science Fair Project Encyclopedia\nHe joined the Parcham faction of the communist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) in 1965. Despite being regarded as an intelligent man, he was referred to as Najib-e Gaw (the Bull) by his opponents due to his physique. The PDPA staged a successful coup in 1978, but the Khalq faction of the PDPA gained supremacy, and after a brief stint as ambassador in Tehran, Najibullah was dismissed from government and went into exile in Europe.\nHe returned to Kabul after the Soviet invasion in 1979. In 1980, he was appointed the head of KHAD, the secret police. Under Najibullah's control, it is claimed that KHAD arrested, tortured and executed tens of thousands of Afghans. Najibullah replaced Babrak Karmal as Afghanistan's President in 1986.\nAfter the Soviet withdrawal in 1989, he withstood a coup headed by his defence minister in 1990 and relaxed his autocratic control to gain support. But by 1992 Najibullah agreed to step down in favor of a transitional government. Najibullah tried to flee Kabul, but his departure was blocked by Abdul Rashid Dostum. Najibullah sought sanctuary in the UN compound in Kabul. He remained there until September 1996 when the Taliban captured Kabul. The Taliban dragged Najibullah from the UN compound and hanged him from a traffic light post in the streets of the capital.\nThe contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details"}
{"text": "December 19, 2012\nShare Email Print\nKate Wong is an editor and writer at Scientific American covering paleontology, archaeology and life sciences. Follow on Twitter\nPALEO DIET: Analyses of tartar on the teeth of Australopithecus sediba show that this early human species ate bark and other unexpected foods. Image: Kate Wong\nRecent years have brought considerable riches for those of us interested in human evolution and 2012 proved no exception. New fossils, archaeological finds and genetic analyses yielded thrilling insights into the shape of the family tree, the diets of our ancient predecessors, the origins of art and advanced weaponry, the interactions between early Homo sapiens and other human species, and other facets of our ancestors’ lives. The list below highlights the discoveries that most captivated me in a year of revelations about the way we were. Did I miss your favorite? Let me know in the comments.\n- A 3.4 million-year-old fossil foot suggests a second lineage of hominins (creatures more closely related to us than to our closest living relatives, chimpanzees) may have lived alongside Lucy’s kind and spent more time in the trees than on the ground.\n- Fossils from Kenya dating to between 1.87 million and 1.95 million years ago rekindle debate over whether our own genus, Homo, split into multiple lineages early on.\n- Analysis of tartar, molar wear and tooth chemistry in the nearly two-million-year-old hominin known as Australopithecus sediba shows that it had an unexpected diet, including tree bark.\n- A shift in the technology and diet of early Homo around two million years ago may have doomed large carnivores\n- Tiny bits of burned plants and bone from a South African cave show that humans had tamed fire by 1 million years ago–some 600,000 year earlier than had previously been documented.\n- Our ancestors began making multicomponent tools in the form of deadly stone-tipped spears 500,000 years ago—200,000 years earlier than previously thought.\n- Cave paintings in Spain are the oldest in the world and are sufficiently ancient to be the creations of Neandertals.\n- Neandertals hunted birds for their fashionable feathers for thousands of years and may have exploited certain plants for their medicinal properties–compelling evidence that our hominin cousins were cognitively sophisticated.\n- Reconstructed genome of the Denisovans–an enigmatic group of archaic hominins—confirms that early Homo sapiens interbred with them and reveals new details of their genetic legacy.\n- Whole-genome sequencing of modern hunter-gatherers from Africa turns up loads of previously unknown genetic variants and indicates that early Homo sapiens interbred with another hominin species long ago in Africa.\n- Paleoanthropology’s hobbit, a tiny hominin species called Homo floresiensis, gets a new face thanks to forensic reconstruction–and the result is startlingly familiar.\n- Stone tools and preserved poop from Oregon add to mounting evidence that the early human colonization of the Americas was more complex than scholars once envisioned.\n- Study finds that mom’s metabolism—not the size of the pelvis—limits gestation length to nine months, providing a new explanation for why humans give birth to helpless babies.\nAbout the Author:\nKate Wong is an editor and writer at Scientific American covering paleontology, archaeology and life sciences. Follow on Twitter @katewong\nRights & Permissions"}
{"text": "Balmoral Castle is in Aberdeenshire – and is usually known as The Queen’s private residence in Scotland – while the rest of the family enjoy the estate with their grandparents.\n|Balmoral Castle in 1854 painted|\nby Queen Victoria during its\nQueen Victoria had, in 1848, found the house “small but pretty”, and recorded in her diary that: “All seemed to breathe freedom and peace, and to make one forget the world and its sad turmoils”.\nPrince Albert, Queen Victoria’s Prince Consort, bought it in 1852 and in the following years had it rebuilt in white granite as a castellated mansion in Scottish baronial style.\nThe grounds were laid out by Prince Albert in the 1850s and planted out as parterre gardens with rare conifers, while plantations were established around the house.\n|South front of Balmoral Castle|\nThe couple took a great interest in their staff setting up a lending library; while they also encouraged new ideas ... developed a model dairy, which was completed by the Queen after her husband’s death in 1861.\nNear the Castle the Queen created her cottage garden around a private house, known as the Garden Cottage, while later in the 1920s Queen Mary, George V’s wife, altered it to include a sunken garden.\n|Edward VII relaxing at Balmoral|\nphotographed by his wife, Alexandra\nIn our present Queen’s reign (1952 - ....) the Duke of Edinburgh, her husband, has improved the gardens – redesigning the herbaceous borders, planting up a shrubbery around the river and adding a water garden near Victoria’s Garden Cottage.\n|North-West corner of Balmoral Castle|\nToday it is a working estate – deer stalking, grouse shoots, forestry and farming are the main land uses, while there are tours to be booked, and cottages to rent.\nThe Castle, gardens and exhibitions (especially in this Diamond Jubilee Year) are open to the public from April to July.\nQueen Victoria (1837 - 1901) in her journals described Balmoral as “my dear paradise in the Highlands” ...\nThat is B for Balmoral Castle ... a Scottish baronial castellated mansion built for Queen Victoria in the 1850s; now managed by the Balmoral Estates ... part of the ABC series Aspects of British Castles\nBy the way I meant to add yesterday - that Bob Scotney is also doing Castles - his A was for Amberley - should you wish to visit ...\nPositive Letters Inspirational Stories"}
{"text": "Mount Hope Cemetery: Restoring history\nIf you visit the Chinese Immigrant Memorial at Mount Hope Cemetery in Mattapan, Mass, you will notice that a lot of the headstones are in poor condition. This is due to aging, but it is also because of vandalism and lack of care for many years. Many of these headstones belong to the Chinese immigrants that created the Chinatown that we are able to enjoy today.\nThe first Chinese settlers of Boston Chinatown came from San Francisco, Ca, to North Adams, MA around the 1870s. These settlers consisted of about 75 workers who started working at the Sampson Shoe Factory in North Adams and later traveled to Boston. Chinese laundries and Chinese restaurants were soon established along Harrison Avenue. Overtime, Chinatown slowly began to evolve to include many other infamous streets such as Kneeland Street and Hudson Street.\nLike many immigrants, the Chinese Settlers came to the United States for a better life for themselves and their family. Unfortunately, many of the early settlers were bachelors who did not have families in the United States nor were they able to have a family before they deceased. Many of these settlers that passed away were buried in Mount Hope.\nWithout family members, these headstones remained in Mount Hope Cemetery for decades without proper care. As any item with age, the heads stone deteriorated and some were even vandalized. Perhaps, it was fate for us to keep our history when the cemetery experienced financial burden which led the city to contact the Chinatown community. This attention was brought to two active members of the Chinatown community, Davis Woo and David S.Y. Wong, in 1989. And in 1992, when The Chinese Historical Society of New England (CHSNE) was established, they began the project to restore history. CHSNE and along with many efforts of volunteers had started a project in hopes to restore these burial grounds, build a memorial alter, and find a way to restore the damaged tombstones. With ambition and hard work, CHSNE and volunteers alike were able to raise an amazing amount of money.\nOn March 2007, the Chinese Immigrant Memorial was complete.\nAlthough the Chinese Immigrant Memorial is complete, many efforts are still involved in this project. Every year, a group of students from UMASS Boston (UMB), led by Peter Kiang, Director of the Asian American Studies Program at UMB and co-president of CHSNE, try to maintain and clean the Chinese Immigrant Memorial. In addition, since the tombstones are privately owned by the descendants of the Chinese setters, it is considered private property. Currently, efforts are being made to contact these descendants. However, if efforts has been made but failed, these tombstones could be replaced.\nFor more information or if you would like to volunteer, please contact CHSNE: (617)338-4339 or email@example.com.\nThis post is also available in: Chinese"}
{"text": "Lier Psychiatric Hospital (Lier Psykiatriske Sykehus or Lier Asyl in Norweigan) in Norway, has a long history as an institution. The sickest people in the society was stowed away here and went from being people to be test subjects in the pharmaceutical industry’s search for new and better drugs. The massive buildings house the memory of a grim chapter in Norwegian psychiatric history the authorities would rather forget.\nUPDATE: When you have read this post you might be interested in reading my report one year later!\nThe buildings welcome you\nMany of the patients never came out again alive and many died as a result of the reprehensible treatment. It was said that the treatment was carried out voluntarily, but in reality the patients had no self-determination and the opportunity to make their own decisions.\nMust be creepy at night\nThere is little available information about the former activities at Lier Hospital. On this page (In Norwegian) you can read more about the experiments that were carried out on this Norwegian mental hospital in the postwar period from 1945 to 1975. It’s about the use of LSD, electroshock, brain research funded by the U.S. Department of Defense and drug research sponsored by major pharmaceutical companies. It is perhaps not surprising that they try to forget this place and the events taking place here.\nChair in room\nOne of many rooms\nThings that is left behind including bath tub\nIt was also performed lobotomy here. That’s a procedure that involves knocking a needle-like object into the eye socket and into the patients head to cut the connection between the anterior brain lobes and the rest of the brain. Lobotomy was primarily used to treat schizophrenia but also as a soothing treatment for other disorders. The patients who survived were often quiet, but generally this surgery made the patients worse. Today lobotomy is considered barbaric and it is not practiced in Norway.\nFrom a window\nLier Psyciatric Hospital, or Lier Asylum as it was called originally, was built in 1926 and had room for nearly 700 patients at the most. In 1986, many of the buildings were closed and abandoned and they still stand empty to this day. Some of the buildings are still in operation today for psychiatric patients.\nExterior of the A building\nDesinfection bath tub\nThese photos are from my visit there as a curios photographer. The place was clearly ravaged by the youths, the homeless and drug addicts who have infiltrated the buildings during its 23 years of abandonment. On net forums people has written up and down about ghost stories and the creepy atmosphere. I was curious how I would experience the place myself. But I found it was pretty quiet and peaceful. I went there during the day so I understand that during nighttime, one should look far for a more sinister place. The floor consisted of a lot of broken glass and other debris.\nView through window\nA pile with electrical boxes or something\nThese days, there has been provided money to demolish the. 15 million NOKs is the price. Neighbors cheer but the historic, photographers and ghost hunting kids think it’s sad. This is the most visited, and just about the only and largest urban exploration site in Norway.\nI have read and recommend Ingvar Ambjørnsen first novel, “23-Salen”, which is about when he worked as a nurse at Lier Psychiatric Hospital for one year. The book provides insight into how life for patients and nurses turned out in one of the worst wards.\nThe famous motorized wheelchair\nDoorways and peeling paint\nTop floor, view to the roof and empty windows\nDisused stairs outside"}
{"text": "Seven miles to the south west of Sheffield there's a piece of wild moorland surrounded by roads. It's called Big Moor. I estimate that if you circumnavigated it on foot by the boundary roads it would take you over seven hours. In spite of its wild appearance, Big Moor was once home to generations of neolithic people. They built at least three significant stone circles, several cairns, dwelling houses and field systems. This was in days when there were still wolves in the British Isles, long before the Romans introduced rabbits and horse chestnut trees and in a time when there were no horses or wheat or potatoes. Life must have been very hard.\nBy the middle ages, the stone circle builders had gone but the country had very few roads and most travel was still on foot. Trading tracks began to criss-cross the land and on Big Moor several stone posts or stoops were erected to guide travellers and traders across the difficult terrain with its bogs and dips, rivulets and hardy moorland vegetation. Mick Jagger's surname harks back to the jaggers of yesteryear - hardy men who carried heavy packs - they were pedlars and hawkers. The verb \"to jag\" meant to pack or to carry. When good roads were built and roadworthy coaches developed, the jaggers disappeared but their paths and their guideposts were left behind.\nIn the nineteenth century, as the importance of clean, reliable water supplies became more obvious, many reservoirs were constructed across England and on Big Moor you can see the location of Barbrook Reservoir which is now disused.\n|Barbrook II stone circle|\n|Highland cattle avoiding the hot British sunshine|\n|One of the remote guideposts on Big Moor|\n|Another one - taller, more weathered|\n|Perhaps an old cross in the middle of the moor - not marked on maps|"}
{"text": "The unity between a man and a woman in marriage is an expression of the spiritual relationship that God desires His creation to realize with Him. The first marriage occurred nearly 6,000 years ago in the Garden of Eden, in the area of the world that we now know as the Middle East. The first couple was Adam and Eve, and the Lord Jesus specified that it was male and female that God joined together in marriage for life. (Matthew 19:4-6)\nMarriage has been practised as such in most cultures across geography and time. Marriage is a life-long commitment, and typically this involves a public ceremony (a wedding) in which vows are exchanged by the parties and before God. Approximately half of all traditional marriages in America end in divorce, many due to Facebook and other liberal activities.\nDinesh D'Souza wrote:\n- Marriage requires a) two people who are b) of legal age and c) not closely related to each other who are d) one male and one female. Note that this definition excludes people who want to marry children, or guys who want to marry their sisters, or Muslims who want to take four wives, or that strange guy who wants to marry his dog.\nBill Bennett wrote:\n- Based as it is on the principle of complementarity, marriage is also about a great deal more than love. That \"great deal\" encompasses, above all, procreation. The timeless function of marriage is childbearing and child-rearing, and the best arrangement ever developed to that end is the marital union between one man and one woman ... \nWhat Bennett's words ultimately imply is that, in terms of the value of marriage to anything which stands outside of it, marriage is most principally for the production of additional marriages, and, thus, is a progressive type of scale-invariance such as the Mandelbrot fractal.\nSo, marriage is the most glorious kind of relation between human individuals because it alone is what most essentially defines humanity. The good of humanity is defined as an integration of all naturally enduring mutual benefits between all free individuals. But, all those benefits are created-and-sustained by the existence of marriage as that one relation for the preservation of which is invoked the most special legal recognition, because...\n...Marriage not only historically is the very first form of human society, it is logically the most beautiful, perfect, simple, and potentially productive human institution possible.\nBiblical marriage advice\n1 Corinthians 7:1-16:\n|“||Now concerning the things about which you wrote, it is good for a man not to touch a woman. But because of immoralities, each man is to have his own wife, and each woman is to have her own husband. The husband must fulfill his duty to his wife, and likewise also the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does; and likewise also the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Stop depriving one another, except by agreement for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer, and come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. But this I say by way of concession, not of command. Yet I wish that all men were even as I myself am However, each man has his own gift from God, one in this manner, and another in that. But I say to the unmarried and to widows that it is good for them if they remain even as I. But if they do not have self-control, let them marry; for it is better to marry than to burn with passion. But to the married I give instructions, not I, but the Lord, that the wife should not leave her husband (but if she does leave, she must remain unmarried, or else be reconciled to her husband), and that the husband should not divorce his wife. But to the rest I say, not the Lord, that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he must not divorce her. And a woman who has an unbelieving husband, and he consents to live with her, she must not send her husband away. For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband; for otherwise your children are unclean, but now they are holy. Yet if the unbelieving one leaves, let him leave; the brother or the sister is not under bondage in such cases, but God has called us to peace. For how do you know, O wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, O husband, whether you will save your wife?||”|\nModern marriage licenses\nIn the present-day United States, \"getting married\" typically involves a marriage license issued by the state government or a subdivision thereof (e.g., a county). However, marriage licenses are nowhere mentioned in Scripture; in fact, they are a relatively recent innovation and originally applied only to marriages that were otherwise forbidden.\nDefinition of marriage\nFor Christians, marriage has traditionally been seen as \"a union that takes its distinctive character from being founded, unlike other friendships, on bodily unity of the kind that sometimes generates new life.\" As such, marriage is the one and only form of companionship from which all other forms spring: it is the single irreducible core of society.\nModern history of marriage law\n- 1724 - blacks, with permission of their slave owner, given the right to marry (formerly, under British law, only whites could legally marry)\n- 1769 - women no longer considered property of their husbands\n- 1899 - polygamy outlawed in the US\n- 1967 - interracial marriage legalized in all states\n- 1981 - rise of community property laws as men no longer seen as the sole owner of all marital assets\nAttacks on the institution of marriage\nAny society which has lessened the sanctity of marriage has perished, whereas those that have upheld the sanctity of marriage have endured. It has been argued that Ancient Rome's decline and its eventual fall in A.D. 476 were due in no small part to a growing tolerance of extramarital sex, particularly of homosexual acts, beginning in the Late Republic period ending in 27 B.C.\nSince the middle of the 20th century, Liberalism has sought to dismantle the societal pressures that dissuade people from engaging in extramarital and premarital sex. Removing the stigma from these behaviors, creating no-fault divorce laws, exalting adultery as liberating, rejuvenating, and \"stimulating\", and especially the de-stigmatizing of homosexuality all weaken the institution of marriage.\nA recent Newsweek article complained that Biblical figures have not provided good historical examples of marriage, noting that Abraham begat Ishmael by a maidservant and Jacob had two wives and had sons with both of their servants. The article also criticizes Jesus and St. Paul for remaining single. \n- ↑ Marriage between the sexes is a covenant, not a contract. Since time immemorial, some men disposed of a wife (woman) after her childbearing years to pursue a younger female consort. God, being a defender of women, ordained marriage by his perfect will to protect women's rights and not allow a man (male) to abandon them to homelessness and poverty with no marketable job skills other than homemaking or child rearing. This however, is not the only reason the covenant of marriage evolved between the sexes.\n- ↑ See also Perfect will of God vs Permissive will of God.\n- ↑ Article 7, \"The sacrament of matrimony\"\n- ↑ \"Basic Beliefs,\" Southern Baptist Convention\n- ↑ \"Marriage\"\n- ↑ Albert Barnes, Matthew 19\n- ↑ Matthew Henry, Matthew 19\n- ↑ \"Because there is a natural complementarity between men and women - sexual, emotional, temperamental, spiritual - marriage allows for a wholeness and a completeness that cannot be won in any other way. (Bill Bennett, The Broken Hearth, Page 197)\n- ↑ Divorce is within the permissive will of God, Deut. 22:13; divorce however, is due to sin entering the world, which God is willing to redeem. God himself in fact is divorced from Israel (Jer. 3:8-14; see also Is. 54:5), or for that matter, all unredeemed sinners.\n- ↑ Gay Rights vs. Democracy\n- ↑ The Broken Hearth, Page 197)\n- ↑ Scale-invariance as a unifying psychological principle; 1999\n- ↑ Information on marriage licenses from Mercy Seat Christian Church \n- ↑ Gay Marriage, Democracy, and the Courts\n- ↑ Is there anyone left to defend traditional marriage?\n- ↑ http://www.newsweek.com/id/172653/page/1\n- Form of Solemnization of Matrimony, an example of a traditional marriage service\n- Civil marriage\n- Marriage in the Unification Church\n- Essay: The Irreducible Core of Politics"}
{"text": "Juvenile striped bass spawned in the Chesapeake Bay were at a record low at the end of the summer. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources recently completed its annual young of the year survey and found far fewer juvenile fish than a year ago.\nScientists believe the factors are more tied to unusually warm weather conditions in the Chesapeake than to the number of adult fish spawning in the bay.\nThe annual survey of fish spawned in the summer is called the young of the year index, and is used to gauge the health of stocks born in that year. The annual index, collected over more than 50 years, has had many highs and lows. This year’s index, the lowest recorded, was .89. Last year’s index of 11.9 was the fourth highest.\nNearly all striped bass found in Vineyard waters come from the Chesapeake. It can take from four to six years for a female striped bass to reach sexual maturity.\nDan McKiernan, deputy director of the state Division of Marine Fisheries, called the low index troubling and said it may be tied to environmental factors, since the water temperature in Chesapeake Bay was especially high this summer. Mr. McKiernan said the number of adults spawning in the bay didn’t change that much from last year. He said the index shows how well those juvenile fish survived by the end of the summer, not how many fish were spawned.\n“What it tells you is that there is high variability. You see a swinging pendulum. I am not a climatologist, but it would seem that the wild swings are tied to the environment,” Mr. McKiernan said. “Whether you look at the temperature of the water or the amount of rainfall, you’ve got dramatic swings . . . the Chesapeake Bay had one of the hottest years,” he added.\nMike Armstrong, a fisheries biologist and assistant director of the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, underscored the significance of the striped bass fishery. “It is the recreational fishery in Massachusetts,” he said. “We live and die by the health of striped bass, so we are watching the stocks like hawks.”\nThe Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, a regional government agency, has been monitoring the striped bass fishery closely since stocks collapsed 30 years ago. Recently, the commission decided to take steps to tighten controls on management of the fishery.\nThe abundance of striped bass is not determined by a single year class, Mr. Armstrong said, but by watching larger trends. “We are not pushing the panic button. But if we have three years in a row like this, then we push the panic button,” the fisheries biologist said.\nAlso, new trends were observed this summer. Mr. Armstrong said fishermen saw many more schoolie-sized striped bass in Massachusetts waters than would normally be expected.\nHe said scientists are wondering whether the large 2011 year class still swimming in the Chesapeake Bay had something to do with the change by pushing the larger juvenile fish out into the Atlantic.\nJanet Messineo of Vineyard Haven, an avid fisherman and past president of the Martha’s Vineyard Surfcasters Association, confirmed the trend from her experience fishing the derby this fall. “There were more small fish out there,” she said. “We should be concerned [about the low index] but I think we really need to make sure that the fish are in a healthy ecosystem,” she added. “Right from the get-go, we should be thinking of the bait, from microorgansims to bunker [menhaden, a valuable bait fish that has been characterized as overfished and in need of restoration]. We cannot go crazy over just one species. We have to look at the whole picture if we want a healthy fishery.”\nShe continued: “The good thing I saw [this year] was that there were bunker. I haven’t seen bunker in a lot of years. One of the problems with striped bass we’ve seen in the past is that they were skinny and emaciated. This year we saw healthier fish. My concern isn’t that there be a large number of fish out there. I think we should be concerned that they have food to eat.”"}
{"text": "Hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) is an uncommon condition characterized by frequent, persistent, and severe vomiting and nausea during pregnancy. As a result, you may be unable to take in a sufficient amount of food and fluids. It can cause a weight loss of more than 5% of your pre-pregnancy body weight. This can also cause dehydration and vitamin and mineral deficiencies. Treatment may require hospitalization.\nHG is a more severe form of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy (NVP), also called morning sickness. Morning sickness affects anywhere between 50% to 90% of pregnant women. HG is estimated to occur in 0.5%-2% of pregnancies.\nThere are many theories about the causes of HG, but none have been confirmed. HG is a complex disease that is likely caused by many factors. Some of these include:\nThe Brain May Be Cause of Nausea\nCopyright © Nucleus Medical Media, Inc.\nSome researchers have found that the following factors increase your chance of developing HG. If you have any of these risk factors, tell your doctor:\nThe following list of symptoms are general and may be caused by other, less serious health conditions. However, if you experience any one of them, call your physician to discuss your condition. Symptoms may include:\nYour doctor will ask about your symptoms and medical history. A physical exam will be done. Tests may include the following:\nTreating HG symptoms early in pregnancy can make you less sick in the long run and can decrease recovery time. Because HG is caused by many factors that vary among women, it is difficult to find a treatment that works for everyone. Talk with your doctor about the best treatment plan for you. Treatment options include the following:\nTry to eat frequent, small meals, bland or dry foods, high-protein choices.\nReducing nausea, and thus allowing eating and drinking, will hasten recovery. Due to the risk of stating that a drug is safe for use during pregnancy, very few pharmaceutical manufacturers will say that their drugs are intended for a pregnancy condition like HG (examples: promethazine or prochlorperazine). However, doctors often recommend that women with HG take certain anti-nausea medicines, balancing the potential benefits and risks. Talk to your doctor about the right medicines for you.\nA common and safe remedy is to take supplemental vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), to a maximum of 100 mg/day. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends that first-line treatment of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy should start with pyridoxine with or without doxylamine. Pyridoxine has been found to be effective in significantly reducing severe vomiting.\nIn urgent visit situations, HG can be managed by IV fluids and vitamins. This can sometimes be done without hospitalization. Very rarely, some people require IV fluids throughout the entire pregnancy.\nIf you are unable to tolerate food by mouth, you may need to receive nutrition by vein. This is called parenteral nutrition. A special kind of catheter is placed in a large vein and liquid nutrition is given. This can sometimes be done without hospitalization.\nIn extreme cases, induced abortion may be considered.\nIf you are diagnosed with HG, follow your doctor's instructions.\nMany of the conditions that lead to HG are not preventable. It is unknown why some women without those conditions develop HG. You can try to reduce your nausea during pregnancy by:\nThe American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists\nHyperemesis Education and Research Foundation\nNational Organization for Rare Diseases\nThe Canadian Women's Health Network\nThe Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC)\nACOG issues guidance on the treatment of morning sickness during pregnancy. American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology website. Available at: http://www.acog.org/About_ACOG/News_Room/News_Releases/2004/ACOG_Issues_Guidance_on_Treatment_of_Morning_Sickness_During_Pregnancy. Accessed August 20, 2011.\nAcupuncture. EBSCO Natural and Alternative Treatments website. Available at: http://www.ebscohost.com/healthLibrary. Updated January 2009. Accessed January 19, 2009.\nBeers MH, Berkow R, eds. The Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy. 17th ed. Whitehouse Station, NJ: Merck Research Laboratories; 1999.\nBurrow GN, Duffy TP, eds. Medical Complications During Pregnancy. 5th ed. Philadelphia, PA: WB Saunders Company; 1999.\nCunningham FG, Gilstrap LC, Gant NF, Hauth JC, Leveno KJ, Wenstrom KD, eds. Williams Obstetrics. 21st ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill; 2001.\nFerri, Fred, ed. Ferri’s Clinical Advisor 2010. 1st ed. Philadelphia: Mosby Elsevier, 2009.\nGabbe SG, Niebyl JR, Simpson JL. Obstetrics: Normal and Problem Pregnancies. 5th ed. United Kingdom: Churchill Livingstone; 2007.\nGastroenterology Clinics of North America. Philadelphia, PA: WB Saunders.\nHyperemesis Education and Research Foundation website. Available at: http://www.helpher.org.\nKasper DL, Braunwald E, Fauci AS, Hauser SL, Longo DL, Jameson JL, eds. Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine. 16th ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc; 2005.\nMahan LK, Escott-Stump S, eds. Krause’s Food, Nutrition, and Diet Therapy. 10th ed. Philadelphia, PA: WB Saunders Company; 2000.\nMarx J, et al. Rosen's Emergency Medicine. 7th ed. St. Louis, MO: Mosby, Inc., 2009.\nNational Organization for Rare Diseases website. Available at: http://www.rarediseases.org\nNausea and vomiting in pregnancy. EBSCO DynaMed website. Available at: https://dynamed.ebscohost.com. Updated October 2010. Accessed October 25, 2010.\nQuinlan JD, Hill DA. Nausea and vomiting of pregnancy. Am Fam Physician. 2003;68:121-128. American Family Physician website. Available at: http://www.aafp.org/afp/20030701/121.html. Accessed August 12, 2005.\nSadock BJ, Sadock VA, eds. Kaplan and Sadock’s Synopsis of Psychiatry: Behavioral Sciences/Clinical Psychiatry. 9th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins; 2003.\nWise MG, Rundell JR, eds. The American Psychiatric Publishing Textbook of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry: Psychiatry in the Medically Ill. 2nd ed. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc.; 2002.\nLast reviewed September 2012 by Andrea Chisholm\nPlease be aware that this information is provided to supplement the care provided by your physician. It is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. CALL YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDER IMMEDIATELY IF YOU THINK YOU MAY HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider prior to starting any new treatment or with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.\nCopyright © 2012 EBSCO Publishing All rights reserved.\nWhat can we help you find?close ×"}
{"text": "Three-dimensional printing is being used to make metal parts for aircraft and space vehicles, as well as industrial uses. Now NASA is building engine parts with this technique for its next-generation heavy-lift rocket.\nThe agency says that its Space Launch System (SLS) will deliver new abilities for science and human exploration outside Earth's orbit by carrying the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew vehicle, plus cargo, equipment, and instruments for science experiments. It will also supply backup transportation to the International Space Station, and it will even go to Mars.\nNASA is using 3D printing to build engine parts for its next-generation Space Launch System. Shown here is the first test piece produced on the M2 Cusing Machine at the Marshall Space Flight Center.\n(Source: NASA Marshall Space Flight Center/Andy Hardin)\nNASA's Marshall Space Flight Center is using a selective laser melting (SLM) process to produce intricate metal parts for the SLS rocket engines with powdered metals and the M2 Cusing machine, built by Concept Laser of Germany. NASA expects to save millions in manufacturing costs and reduce manufacturing time. SLM, a version of selective laser sintering, is known for its ability to create metal parts with complex geometries and precise mechanical properties.\nThe SLS will weigh 5.5 million pounds, stand 321 feet tall, and provide 8.4 million pounds of thrust at liftoff. Its propulsion system will include liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. Its mission will launch Orion without a crew in 2017; the second will launch Orion with up to four astronauts in 2021. NASA's goal is to use SLM to manufacture parts that will be used on the first mission.\nThe rocket's development and operations costs will be reduced using tooling and manufacturing technology from programs such as the space shuttle. For example, the J-2X engine, an advanced version of J-2 Saturn engines, will be used as the SLS upper stage engine. Some SLM-produced engine parts will be structurally tested this year and used in J-2X hot-fire tests.\nIn a NASA video, Andy Hardin, engine integration hardware lead for the Marshall Space Flight Center SLS engines office, discusses the initial testing and building stages:\nWe do a lot of engineering builds first to make sure we have the process [worked] out. There's always weld problems that you have to deal with, and there's going to be problems with this that we will have to work out, too. But this has the potential to eliminate a lot of those problems, and it will have the potential to reduce the cost by as much as half in some cases on a lot of parts.\nSince final parts won't be welded, they are structurally stronger and more reliable, which also makes for a safer vehicle.\nKen Cooper, advanced manufacturing team lead at the Marshall Space Flight Center, says in the video that the technique is especially useful for making very complex shapes that can't be built in other ways, or for simplifying the building of complex shapes. But geometry is not the deciding factor; whether the machine can do it or not is decided by the size of the part."}
{"text": "Tim the Plumber wrote:\nThe idea that you can predict the climate based on it's temperature behaviour between 1970 and 1998 is silly. Just as the statement that the absence of warming since 1998 and 2011 cannot utterly disproove AGW the rise between 1970 and 1998 cannot 100% proove the theory that CO2 is a significant greenhouse gas at the levels we have today.\nNobody is trying to predict temperatures based on historically temperatures over the last 40 or so. The predictions are based on our understanding of earth's climate over hundreds of millions of years and particularly the last 4 million years of recurring ice ages. The climate while complicated has to obey some very simple basic physical rules that is the energy coming in has over time to equal the energy going out. Change that simple relationship in some way and the temperature will change change until such time as the equation is back in balance. It is certain that greenhouse gases reduce the amount of energy that leaves the earth.\nNorthern Europe is having a wet and cool summer, it's just America which is having a long, hot and dry one.\nNo my original statement is correct\nAccording to NOAA:-http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/2012/6\nThe Northern Hemisphere land and ocean average surface temperature for June 2012 was the all-time warmest June on record, at 1.30°C (2.34°F) above average.\nThe Northern Hemisphere average land temperature, where the majority of Earth's land is located, was record warmest for June. This makes three months in a row — April, May, and June — in which record-high monthly land temperature records were set. Most areas experienced much higher-than-average monthly temperatures, including most of North America and Eurasia, and northern Africa. Only northern and western Europe, and the northwestern United States were notably cooler than average.\nTim the Plumber wrote:\nWhen thinking about such climatic events it is vital to have a sense of proportion and not see a tiny change over 3 decades as a reason to think that there will be a drastic \"exponential\" continuation of this.\nThe temperatures changes over the last 3 decades simply confirms our basic understanding of the climate.\nIt is akin to having a graph of the speed of your car traveling along a highway. When the speed is 55mph your pasenger is happy, when the graph plots up to 57 mph the pasenger panics because the car is about to accelerate untill the machine disintergrates at the sound barrier. When the graph shows a slowing to 53mph the panic is of the sudden stopping of the car and the trafic behind slamming into the back of the car.\nNo it is more being in a car where the cruise control is stuck and the speed just keeps increasing.\nClimate varies about quiote a lot.\nBecause we live fairly short lives we do not rember the droughts of the dust bowl. We do not rember the medevil warm period. We do not rember the frost fairs on the frozen Thames.\nThis is why we maintain weather data which shows that the current conditions are both worst and different.\nWe should take these dire warnings with a big pinch of salt.\nDire warnings should be assessed on the merits and action taken if necessary but never ignored\nThe sea level rose by 18cm last centuary, how many cities flooded because of this? This centuary looks like it could be twice as bad, maybe.\nSo as long as we split the sea level rises into 18 cm chunks it will be no problem ?\nI am reminded of camels transporting straw."}
{"text": "by Frederick B. Reitz, Ph.C.\nUniversity of Washington\nSeattle, Washington Illustrations by Marian Parry\nI report here the first evidence that domestic cats exhibit quantum tunneling.\nSubatomic particles can make seemingly impossible, instantaneous \"jumps\" from one place to another. This has been known in theory for well over half a century. Numerous examples of it have been observed and meticulously documented. Known as \"quantum tunneling,\" this strange phenomenon had previously been thought to occur only on very small scales.\nIn this paper I report instances of the spontaneous relocation of entire cats. Though cats are arguably quantal to the extent that they tend to exist as discrete entities, the appreciable magnitude of some of the cats in question constitutes a novel aspect of the tunneling phenomenon.\nThe physical literature contains many reports of electrons and similar particles spontaneously jumping or \"tunneling\" from one place to another via so-called \"forbidden\" routes. This phenomenon has enjoyed much attention since the advent of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). In all reports to date, the particles in question have ranged in size from extremely small to very, very small, with rare cases involving particles that are merely quite small.\nHouse pets have also frequently been observed to exhibit unusual behavior. Dogs circle many times before sitting down. Cats forget to retract their tongues after bathing, and hamsters sleep in their food dishes.\nNon-Newtonian House Pets\nPets are rarely attributed with exotic, non-Newtonian physical behavior. However, cats and dogs that are especially long-haired can exhibit a wavelike appearance. Furthermore, animals clearly interfere with each other, sometimes destructively (as with cats and dogs, or with cats and humans that are attempting to read a newspaper), sometimes constructively (as with rabbits and rabbits).\nErwin Schr?dinger alluded, in a famous thought experiment, to the general question of the quantum behavior of cats. However, I believe that my report presents the first documented instances of the spontaneous tunneling of cats, and also the first documented reports of related quasi-electromagnetic cat phenomena.\nCat Tunneling: Case 1\nIn my own residence, I and several other party guests personally observed the case of Chloe, a large black Himalayan. Though the extent of the cat's fur decreased the certainty with which one could specify the cat's position and momentum (c.f., the Himalyan Uncertainty Principle), and our garage door is only a few inches thick, the tunneling event was no less remarkable in light of her prodigious girth (she weighed 15 pounds, frequently intimidating our German Shepherd into sharing his dinner). The cat was initially observed sleeping in the driveway. When next observed several minutes later, the cat was nowhere to be seen. We opened the garage door, at which point Chloe left the garage, obviously having tunneled through the closed door. We marveled at this phenomenon, and, as we closed the side door to the garage, discussed plans for further study.\nCat Tunneling: Case 2\nThe next such instance brought to my attention was one Snuggles Jr. of Lansing, Michigan, who was found on June 10, 1995, at 10:31 AM resting comfortably amidst a fresh batch of clothing, inside an automatic clothes dryer. As the dryer door was closed, and the owners did not remember having let the cat in, the transition was judged to be spontaneous. Discussion with the owners, regarding house policies pertaining to where the cat was and was not allowed to go, established the forbidden nature of this transition. Given that the cat was not even allowed in the laundry room, the span of the forbidden transition of the 6 pound cat was at least than 7 linear feet-clearly this constitutes tunneling on an unprecedented scale.\nCat Tunneling: Case 3\nFinally, there is the case of \"Giggles,\" a largish calico of uncertain dimensions who was remarkable for his repeated and unsuccessful attempts to violate the Pauli Exclusion Principle with the neighbor's tabby (who in turn might have been more cooperative had she not been spayed). Though arguably the tunneling that Giggles did to get under the fence between his yard and the neighbor's was of a conventional sort, his consistent failure to include any other similar cat in his proximity and same state of excitation is compellingly consistent with previous results found on smaller scales.\nGiven these data, I am led to the following conclusions:\n- Cats do exhibit the sort of tunneling behavior previously attributed only to subatomic particles, car keys, and socks;\n- Despite the finite probability of a cat tunneling spontaneously through a door, the probability of this event is low enough that leaving the cat closed in one's bedroom for a prolonged period of time is inadvisable; and\n- One's cat should indeed be blamed for the majority of stools found in inappropriate locations.\nCopyright © 1998 The Annals of Improbable Research (AIR). All rights reserved.\n_____________________This article is republished with permission from the March-April 1998 issue of the Annals of Improbable Research. You can download or purchase back issues of the magazine, or subscribe to receive future issues. Or get a subscription for someone as a gift!\nVisit their website for more research that makes people LAUGH and then THINK."}
{"text": "American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition\n- n. The chance happening of fortunate or adverse events; fortune: They met one day out of pure luck.\n- n. Good fortune or prosperity; success: We wish you luck.\n- n. One's personal fate or lot: It was just my luck to win a trip I couldn't take.\n- v. Informal To gain success or something desirable by chance: lucked into a good apartment; lucked out in finding that rare book.\n- idiom. as luck would have it As it turned out; as it happened: As luck would have it, it rained the day of the picnic.\n- idiom. in luck Enjoying success; fortunate.\n- idiom. out of luck Lacking good fortune.\n- idiom. press To risk one's good fortune, often by acting overconfidently.\n- idiom. try (one's) luck To attempt something without knowing if one will be successful.\nCentury Dictionary and Cyclopedia\n- n. Fortune; hap; that which happens to a person by chance, conceived as having a real tendency to be favorable or unfavorable, or as if there were an inward connection between a succes sion of fortuitous occurrences having the same character as favorable or unfavorable. Thus, gamesters say that one ought to continue to play while the luck is in one's favor and leave off when the luck turns against one.\n- n. Good fortune; favorable hap; a supposed something, pertaining to a person, at least for a time, giving to fortuitous events a favorable character; also, in a weakened sense, a fortuitous combination of favorable occurrences.\n- n. An object with which good fortune is thought to be connected; especially, a vessel for holding liquid, as a drinking-cup. There are several such vessels surviving in England, as the Luck of Edenhall, preserved in a manor-house in the county of Cumberland.\n- n. Synonyms See happy.\n- To be lucky.\n- To make lucky.\n- n. A lock of wool twisted on the finger of a spinner.\n- n. Something that happens to someone by chance, a chance occurrence.\n- n. A superstitious feeling that brings fortune or success.\n- n. success\n- v. intransitive To succeed by chance.\n- v. intransitive To rely on luck.\n- v. transitive To carry out relying on luck.\nGNU Webster's 1913\n- n. That which happens to a person; an event, good or ill, affecting one's interests or happiness, and which is deemed casual; a course or series of such events regarded as occurring by chance; chance; hap; fate; fortune; often, one's habitual or characteristic fortune.\nLuckis often used by itself to mean good luck.\n- n. your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)\n- n. an unknown and unpredictable phenomenon that causes an event to result one way rather than another\n- n. an unknown and unpredictable phenomenon that leads to a favorable outcome\n- From Middle English luk, lukke, related to Old Frisian luk (\"luck\"), West Frisian gelok (\"luck\"), Dutch geluk (\"luck\"), Low German luk (\"luck\"), German Glück (\"luck, good fortune, happiness\"), Danish lykke (\"luck\"), Swedish lycka (\"luck\"), Icelandic lukka (\"luck\"). (Wiktionary)\n- Middle English lucke, from Middle Dutch luc, short for gheluc. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)\n“While the romantic side of me would like to believe in \"luck\" - the karmic, cosmic smiling-upon-me type of luck, the scientific side of me completely agrees with Lena West.”\n“And then, turning to leave him, 'An' will ye say a mass if the luck is against me? ”\n“Well, your luck is about to change with a little assistance from Lavish Lifestyles, LLC.”\n“MAATHAI: They say that what we call luck is opportunity that meets preparedness.”\n“I sometimes wonder if what we call luck is merely the will of God, \" Otero observed sadly, -and that therefore Cochrane has been sent to scourge Spain for a reason.”\n“Whenever you hear any one expatiating upon what he calls the luck of some one else, you may be sure that he is a person entirely deficient in those qualities which could attract what he calls luck, but what is really, in the majority of cases, merely the result of hard work based upon a reasoned poise.”\n“Well, this is what I call luck!\" exclaimed Ferd Stowing.”\n“Well, this is what I call luck -- pure, unadulterated luck, with sugar on it,\" drawled Ham as he surveyed the house.”\n“Ephraim, my son!\" said the old gambler, with a cunning smile, \"I'll tell you something -- There are persons whose whole powers are devoted to one object -- how to win a fortune; in the same way as there are some who study to become doctors, and the like, so these study what we call luck ... and from them I've learned it.”\n“This is certainly what I call luck,\" cried Allen excitedly, as he gazed at the scrap of paper Levine had passed over.”\nThese user-created lists contain the word ‘luck’.\nall sorts of ...\nVery basic words for ESL students.\nshort, sweet, epic, catchy, sassy, sexy & sizzling.\n( personal list, randomness )\nMuch of my life has had healthy doses of this, so I pay homage.\nLooking for tweets for luck."}
{"text": "One of the most frequently asked questions here at Jacob Lake Inn is, “Where is the lake?” Many people who visit this area from wetter climates may not consider our lake to be a lake, but this small accumulation of water, supplied by rain and snow melt, is one of the only permanent water sources on top of the Kaibab Plateau. Known as the “waterless mountain”, meaning there are no streams or running water, the Kaibab Plateau contains several small lakes comparable to Jacob Lake. Many of these lakes are formed in the beds of sink holes, plugged up by organic material, and filled with rain and melted snow.\nThese lakes, and in particular, Jacob Lake, as small as it may be, were often the difference between life and death for Native, immigrant and traveler. The Piute Indians who inhabited the Kaibab Plateau told Jacob Hamblin, Mormon pioneer and explorer, about this little known water supply, and he in turn told other pioneers traveling through the area. The Honeymoon Trail, a route traveled by settlers and couples from settlements in southern Arizona on their way to the Mormon temple in St. George, snaked around the base of the plateau. The new route over the plateau, with the stop at Jacob Lake, cut off a significant portion of their journey, thus establishing the trail and Jacob Lake as a valuable resource. The Piutes held Jacob Hamblin in high regard, due to his honest trading practices and peacemaking abilities with the local tribes and white pioneers, and named the lake after him. The concept of land ownership was absent from the Piute culture. They did not give Hamblin the lake, but rather they honored him by giving this priceless body of water his name.\nThe size of Jacob Lake has changed over the years. In the past, especially in a wet year it could nearly reach the fence that surrounds it, but due to recent droughts and mild winters the lake has decreased in size. Jacob Lake stands as an example of the value placed on water in this dry region and though this water source no longer supplies water to thirsty travelers; it does provide wildlife with a dependable water supply throughout the year.\nWhen Harold and Nina N. Bowman established Jacob Lake Inn in 1923, their families had been involved in the exploration and settling of much of southern Utah and the Arizona Strip. Nina's grandfather, Franklin B. Woolley, wrote the 1866 cavalry exploration report of the territory from St. George to the Kaibab Plateau to the mouth of the Green River. The report included the first official descriptions and map of the area. Harold's father, Henry E. Bowman, engineered and supplied the cable tram that crossed the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. Henry also built (with a lot of help from the people of Kanab, Glendale, and Orderville) the first road from Kanab, Utah to Mt. Carmel. This made the area more accessible to travelers and tourists.\nFranklin B.'s brother, Edwin D. Woolley Jr was one of the first white men to see the Grand Canyon from the North Rim. Upon seeing it he almost fell off his horse and exclaimed \"This is one of the wonders of the world! People will come from all corners of the globe and pay large sums of money to gaze at what we now behold.\" As a local community leader and a man of wonderful vision, Woolley saw the importance of tourism in the growth of Southern Utah and the Grand Canyon area. Due to the lack of water for large scale agriculture, this region had limited economic potential.\nEdwin D. continually sought to plan and develop ways to open Southern Utah and the North Rim area to people from around the world. He organized many expeditions to the North Rim, bring- ing groups of dignitaries, important businessmen and important politicians to the area. Some of his more illustrious guests included Buffalo Bill Cody and Zane Grey. In 1890 Edwin D. convinced a group of English noblemen accompanied by Buffalo Bill to invest in developing this prime hunting ground. However, the lack of adequate roads spoiled the deal.\nAfter riding in an automobile for the first time in 1908, Edwin D. planned and guided the first automobile trip in 1913 to the North Rim. This incredible feat was accomplished by building the road as they went. This also required gas to be shipped 320 miles from the closest gas station which was in Salt Lake City. President Teddy Roosevelt also frequented the Kaibab. In 1903, Roosevelt, with his two older sons and nephew, made an expedition from the South Rim to the North Rim. Roosevelt's impressions of the Grand Canyon, together with his hunting experiences on the Kaibab, led him to push for a change in the status of the Grand Canyon. In 1908 this national forest and game reserve became a national monument, which led to its eventual designation as a National Park in 1919.\nIn 1923, Harold and Nina Bowman, realizing the improved mobility the automobile afforded travelers, started a business selling gas from a fifty-gallon barrel in the back of a truck. This venture, originally located on the \"shores\" of Jacob Lake, began a short two years after their marriage. They each had a heritage of pioneering men and women and neither was daunted by this enterprise.\nThe first lodge was built a year later on the ridge above the lake (across from what is now the Kaibab Kamper Village) at the head of Jacob Canyon. As Harold stated in his personal history \"Jacob Lake Inn was quite an experiment at first. We built a two room cabin, and Nina moved out there and just used quilts for doors. She took care of the place and her brother Ezra Nixon ran the service station. If we could sell a barrel of gas in one day, we thought we had had good business.\" As described before, the first lodge had two rooms, a main room in which root beer and Native American crafts were sold and a kitchen where meals were prepared for visitors, family and staff. This lodge remained by Jacob Lake unti11929 when the highway, which had come up through the narrow Jacob Canyon, was moved. This old road was an enlargement of the original trail used by Jacob Hamblin and the Piutes as they trekked the shortest distance to water at Jacob Lake. With the increase in travel, thanks to the automobile, a highway was engineered and constructed to allow safe travel up the spine of the mountain. With this new highway changing the route of travel, the Bowmans built the new Jacob Lake Inn at its present location, what is now the junction of Highway 89a and Highway 67. When Harold learned that the location of the new highway junction was positioned at the base of a large hill, and that it would be an inconvenient location for travelers headed to the Grand Canyon, Harold borrowed a BPR grader and built a better road. This shifted the junction of the road from the base of the hill to the flatter land right in front of the Jacob Lake Inn. Harold's road became the more traveled route, and when the highway was paved In the mid thirties, it became the official highway.\nEffie Dean Bowman (Rich) was born in 1923, the same year as Jacob Lake Inn, so to speak. Harold Jr. was born in 1927. In 1929, Effie Dean and Harold began the lifestyle of spending summers at Jacob Lake and winters in Salt Lake City when Effie Dean entered the first grade. On the Kaibab they had dogs, squirrels and porcupines for pets and each other for friends as they watched their parents work hard. Nina would start the day doing laundry, then move to baking and cooking, then working in the gift shop. Harold Sr. was always building onto the lodge, greeting customers (if a car stopped out in the road, he would go out and give directions and invite the guests in), and helped to keep things running smoothly. Effie Dean and Harold Jr. started working at a young age. Effie Dean, at age seven, started the very important job of emptying slop jars in the rooms. Harold Jr. started at age four taking firewood to all the cabins. They washed dishes, cleaned rooms, emptied slop jars, gathered firewood, and moved on to other jobs. Effie Dean began waitressing at thirteen, and Harold started in the service station at eight.\nAs more people traveled to see the Grand Canyon North Rim, Jacob Lake Inn's reputation for hospitality and good food began to grow. The Prince of Siam and his entourage stopped on their way to the Canyon and even though he was a reluctant subject, Nina captured his likeness for posterity. The lodge also expanded with the growing number of tourists, adding a dining room, new motel units, and even relocating the gas station twice. The staff kept growing too, and soon it grew beyond the scope of family and friends. Annual pilgrimages to regional colleges and universities or any place they could find good employees began bringing bright, friendly young people to the Inn to help care for their children and serve their guests.\nEffie Dean and Harold Jr. continued working with the family after pursuing an education, military service, and their respective marriages (Effie Dean married John P. Rich and Harold married Afton Kunz). Soon the third generation began. John Jr. and Bonnie, Nina, Steve, Harold III, Chris, Kent, Kim, Genene, Mary Lynne, and Matt all helped keep the business going.\nThey started out by showing guests to their cabins, washing headlights (they couldn't reach the windshields), bussing tables, crushing and bagging ice, slicing bread, washing dishes, hauling trash, chopping wood, herding cattle, fixing fences, and any number of jobs that needed doing. During these summers they worked alongside the young people, explored the Kaibab Forest roads on their days off, and traveled back home to Salt Lake for the fall and winter to attend school. Harold Jr. once stated he was neither a country hick nor a city slicker, he had the best of both, and now the fourth generation of the Bowman family has experienced this fortunate life as well.\nAs time went on, Harold Jr.'s wife and children pursued other interests and professions, while Effie Dean, her children, their spouses, and grandchildren, continue the seasonal trek to the Kaibab.They manage the lodge, hire personnel, and perform the tasks regular employees won't do. As Jacob Lake's founding generations pass on, (Nina N. in 1959, Harold Jr. in 1961, Harold Sr. in 1974, and John Rich Sr. in 1995), those that remain acknowledge the heritage that their pioneering ancestors set forth. This legacy of hard work, friendly knowledgeable service, excellent products, and a love for the Kaibab, the Grand Canyon, and the red rock deserts they call home."}
{"text": "50 years ago, President John F. Kennedy told the United States that man would go to the moon. Soon, another American president may announce that the same celestial body will serve as a waypoint for manned space exploration. The Verge has learned that NASA intends to deploy a robotic lunar rover on the Moon in 2017 to search for water and other resources necessary for space travel, and that NASA may have secured support from the White House for an actual manned outpost — a space station — floating above the far side of the moon.\nWe spoke to Logsdon as well, and he said that the administration is planning a shift in policy that could make the Moon and its surrounding space a more important part of the equation.\nAnd our source tells us that part of that plan is deploying RESOLVE on the lunar surface in 2017. It’s a payload designed to be mounted on a robotic rover and driven across the moon to find water and other useful materials for space travel, “Cheaper than lifting water off the Earth” such that spaceships won’t have the tremendous expense of lifting them from Earth in order to bring them along. They could theoretically travel from Earth to the lunar waypoint and find resources waiting for them before undertaking a journey further abroad. 2017 also happens to be the target date for the first unmanned mission for NASA’s new Space Launch System and Orion capsule, which will make a loop around the moon, but our source wasn’t sure whether that craft would be the one to drop the lunar rover. In fact, they suggested that instead, the rover would be deployed as part of a commercial partnership, and that the mission would “lay the groundwork for commercial lunar transport.”\nPrivate firms have been working on commercial space travel for a while, with the SpaceX Dragon capsule successfully completing its first resupply mission to the International Space Station just last month, but recently there’s been some interest in space mining as well: Planetary Resources, a company backed by James Cameron, Larry Page and Eric Schmidt, plans to launch a spaceship within two years and begin mining asteroids by 2022.\nWhen we asked NASA about the possibilities of a moon base, a representative wouldn’t confirm or deny the plans. “We are pursuing a range of possible destinations on route to an eventual trip to Mars,” they explained, but admitted that a lunar waypoint would be “in the range of possibilities that have been discussed” and could be “a potential stepping stone to Mars.”\nAt present, NASA could only confirm that the Space Launch System’s first unmanned mission (Exploration Mission 1) is still slated for 2017 and a second manned mission (Exploration Mission 2) with a crew of four would likely occur in 2021, that astronauts would attempt to land on an asteroid by 2025, and arrive at Mars sometime in the 2030s. NASA did caution, however, that there’s no current plan to land people on the Moon itself.\n“Neither EM1 nor EM2 would put boots on the surface of the Moon,” NASA told us.\nRumors of such a deep-space outpost surfaced as early as February of this year, when a leaked memo from a NASA administrator detailed an idea to build a “human-tended waypoint” at Earth-Moon Lagrange Point 2 (EML-2): a point in space where balanced gravitational forces allow an object to remain in stationary orbit relative to both the Earth and the Moon. From there, NASA could launch missions deeper into space — say, to Mars, or a near-Earth asteroid — using the base as a stepping stone.\nIn September, the Orlando Sentinel revealed that the “gateway spacecraft” wasn’t just a crazy idea. The publication reported that the White House had been pitched on a plan to begin construction as early as 2019, possibly defraying the to-be-determined expense by using parts left over from the International Space Station and components from international partners, including Russia — which has committed to a moon base of its own — and Italy. At the time, the Sentinel reported that it was unclear whether the Obama Administration would support the move.\nNow, space policy expert John Logsdon told Space.com that the White House is indeed interested in the idea, and had merely been “holding off announcing that until after the election.” In 2010, President Obama told the nation that we would send men to an asteroid for the first time, and then on to Mars by the mid-2030s, but suggested that the Moon itself wasn’t part of the plan:"}
{"text": "Translates words or phrases from French, German or Spanish to\nEnglish and English to Spanish, French, German, Italian, or Portuguese\nusing machine translation technology. Allows the user to get the\n\"gist\" of the message.\nThe Internet Acronym Server\nThis site can be used to look up the meaning of an acronym (abbreviations\nconstructed from the first letters of several words, such as ADA for\nAmerican Dental Association). You can also type in a word to get a list\nof acronyms that are associated with it. Sponsored by University College,\nCork in Ireland.\nExplorers Picture Dictionary with Links\nEnchanted Learning, a producer of children’s educational websites,\nprovides this picture dictionary of more than 1,800 illustrated dictionary\nentries. Most entries have links to additional information, activities,\nand child-friendly, related websites. There are links to English-French,\nEnglish-German, English-Portuguese, or the English-Spanish versions.\nMerriam-Webster has put their Collegiate Dictionary and Thesaurus online,\nalong with word games, contests, and other features.\nMerriam-Webster Medical Dictionary\nSponsored by the National Library of Medicine, this site includes\nlinks to encyclopedias, glossaries, and dictionaries of medical terms\nin English as well as eight European languages.\nFor those times when you can remember the meaning of a word but not\nthe word itself, the OneLook Reverse Dictionary can help. The site indexes\nhundreds of online dictionaries, encyclopedias, and other reference\nsites for words that have definitions similar to the words you search\nfor. Developed in 1996 by Robert K. Ware, president of Study Technologies.\nOxford English Dictionary |\nDefinitions, pronunciations, and word histories. Usage of modern and historical words traced through 2.5 million quotations.\nEnter any word and this site, using published reference books, provides\nrhymes, synonyms, antonyms, definitions, related words and more for\nvirtually every word. Even includes examples of how the word was used\nin Shakespeare’s works.\nWordsmyth: The Educational Dictionary-Thesaurus\nWordsmyth is an American English Dictionary with an integrated\nthesaurus. It includes 50,000 headwords along with interactive, hyperlinked\nsynonyms. Many additional features are included such as crossword solvers,\nanagram solvers, and vocabulary quiz makers.\nReturn to top\nSnap Shots enhances links with visual previews. Learn More\nFebruary 13, 2012"}
{"text": "What is Encryption?\nEncryption is a process by which we use software to scramble sensitive information while it is in transit to Dell.\nPlease take a moment to read about the steps that we have taken to help protect your information and make your online transmissions safer. We also invite you to review the steps you can take to help protect yourself further.\nHow Does Encryption Work?\nEncryption is based on a key that has two different parts. The public part and the private part. The public part of the key is distributed to those you want to communicate with. The private part is for the recipient's use only.\nWhen you send personal information to dell.com, you use Dell's public key to encrypt your personal information. That means, if at any point during the transmission your information is intercepted, it is scrambled and very difficult to decrypt. Once Dell receives your encrypted personal information, we use the private part of our key to decode it.\nWhat Kind of Encryption Software Does Dell Use?\nDell currently uses the industry-standard SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) encryption. But we continue to keep up with the current technologies in an effort to protect the security of your information.\nWhat Information Does Dell Encrypt?\nDell encrypts all personal information you give us when you place an order online. Remember, if you feel uncomfortable providing any of this information online, please feel free to call one of our representatives at 1-800-WWW-DELL.\nHow Safe is Encryption Really?\nProviding encrypted information online is as safe as doing it over the phone."}
{"text": "At left, undated handout image provided by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) shows a clump of Staphylococcus epidermidis bacteria (green) in the extracellular matrix, which connects cells and tissue, taken with a scanning electron microscope, showing. At right, undated handout image provided by the Agriculture Department showing the bacterium, Enterococcus faecalis, which lives in the human gut, is just one type of microbe that will be studied as part of NIH's Human Microbiome Project. They live on your skin, up your nose, in your gut _ enough bacteria, fungi and other microbes that collected together could weigh, amazingly, a few pounds. Now scientists have mapped just which critters normally live in or on us and where, calculating that healthy people can share their bodies with more than 10,000 species of microbes. (AP Photo/NIAID, Agriculture Department)\nSeven scientists have won prestigious medical awards for their contributions to biomedicine, including the development of liver transplants.\nThe awards were announced Monday by the Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation. Each prize is worth $250,000.\nThe award for clinical medical research goes to Dr. Thomas Starzl of the University of Pittsburgh and Dr. Roy Calne, an emeritus professor at Cambridge University, for developing liver transplantation.\nAn award for basic medical research is split among three scientists for discoveries about biological machines that make muscles contract and carry out other jobs within cells. A third award is shared by two scientists for their genetic discoveries and efforts to promote research in biomedicine."}
{"text": "Skip to Main Content\nPhysics Boot Camp & Interactive Lecture Demonstrations - A Professional Development Recipe for Success Feature Summary\nPhysics Boot Camp & Interactive Lecture Demonstrations\n- This workshop was presented at the 2011 PhysTEC conference. Interactive Lecture Demonstrations (ILDs) provide a pedagogical tool that has been shown to improve college and pre-college student's conceptual understanding of ideas in classical physics. Teachers in this PD showed fractional gains in concept understanding ranging from .44 to .75 with participants in every comparison group showing strong gains. Just as encouraging, these gains showed no decay over time. In this highly interactive presentation findings were presented along with a model of how the Interactive Lecture Demonstration 8-step methodology is used as a tool to both engage and prepare teachers.\n- June 9, 2011 - July 9, 2014"}
{"text": "It’s a big enough feat to ship much-needed vaccines to rural areas of the developing world. Finding a way to keep those vaccines refrigerated in places that have spotty access to electricity? An even bigger accomplishment. Rogers Feng, a mechanical engineering student at Northwestern University, has come up with a way to make the latter issue a bit easier to deal with.\nHis invention, the Human-Powered Refrigeration System for Developing Nation Vaccine Field Distribution, was announced this month as the U.S. winner of the James Dyson Award.\nFeng attributes his idea to a friend who heard about the problem of keeping vaccines refrigerated in developing nations. The friend didn’t have time to pursue a project, so Feng ran with it. His creation: a refrigerator that can be charged with a hand crank. The crank powers a DC generator that in turn juices up a nine-volt rechargeable lithium ion battery. The battery then powers a Peltier unit to generate thermoelectric cooling.\nAccording to Feng, there are three big advantages to the refrigerator over its developing-world competitors: It has circuitry to prevent sudden drops in temperature (these can destroy vaccines), it lacks toxic refrigerant fluids, and it’s relatively cheap--Feng tells us that he spent $150 on the unit, but that it would cost approximately $50 with scaled-up production.\nFeng doesn’t have any immediate plans to commercialize the device, but he does plan to talk to companies that work at the intersection of health care and design. \"Right now my main focus is graduating a quarter early and finding a job,\" says the rising college senior.\nArmed with a $1,400 prize for winning the U.S. competition, Feng is now a competitor in the international James Dyson competition. The winner will be announced in November."}
{"text": "Nanocrystals May Provide Boost for Solar Cells, Solar Hydrogen Production\n5 January 2006\nLos Alamos National Laboratory scientists have discovered that a phenomenon called carrier multiplication, in which the absorption of a single photon by a nanocrystal quantum dot can generate multiple electrons, is applicable to a broader array of materials that previously thought.\nThe discovery increases the potential for the use of nanoscrystals as solar cell materials to produce higher electrical outputs than current solar cells, as well as possible application for the photocatalytic production of hydrogen.\nIn papers published recently in the journals Nature Physics and Applied Physics Letters, the scientists demonstrate that carrier multiplication is not unique to lead selenide nanocrystals, but also occurs with very high efficiency in nanocrystals of other compositions, such as cadmium selenide.\nThese new results also shed light on the mechanism for carrier multiplication, which likely occurs via the instantaneous photoexcitation of multiple electrons. Such a process has never been observed in macroscopic materials and it explicitly relies on the unique physics of the nanoscale size regime.\nCarrier multiplication actually relies upon very strong interactions between electrons squeezed within the tiny volume of a nanoscale semiconductor particle. That is why it is the particle size, not its composition that mostly determines the efficiency of the effect. In nanosize crystals, strong electron-electron interactions make a high-energy electron unstable. This electron only exists in its so-called 'virtual state' for an instant before rapidly transforming into a more stable state comprising two or more electrons.—Lead project scientist Victor Klimov\nThe Los Alamos findings point toward practical photovoltaic technologies that may utilize such traditional solar cell materials as cadmium telluride, which is very similar to cadmium selenide.\nOther interesting opportunities may also be associated with the use of carrier multiplication in solar-fuel technologies and specifically, the production of hydrogen by photo-catalytic water splitting. The latter process requires four electrons per water molecule and its efficiency can be dramatically enhanced if these multiple electrons can be produced via a single-photon absorption event.\nResearch on carrier multiplication at Los Alamos is funded by the DOE’s Office of Basic Energy Sciences and by Los Alamos’ Laboratory-Directed Research and Development (LDRD) program.\n\"High-efficiency carrier multiplication through direct photogeneration of multi-excitons via virtual single-exciton states; Richard D. Schaller, Vladimir M. Agranovich and Victor I. Klimov; Nature Physics 1, 189-194 (2005) doi:10.1038/nphys151\n\"Effect of electronic structure on carrier multiplication efficiency: Comparative study of PbSe and CdSe nanocrystals\"; Richard D. Schaller, Melissa A. Petruska, and Victor I. Klimov; Appl. Phys. Lett. 87, 253102 (2005)\nLANL Quantum Dot Research website\nTrackBack URL for this entry:\nListed below are links to weblogs that reference Nanocrystals May Provide Boost for Solar Cells, Solar Hydrogen Production:"}
{"text": "OAKLAND OUTDOORS: Oakland County residents can visit the ‘Arctic Circle’ right in Royal Oak\nThe date of the winter solstice on Dec. 21 draws near.\nWhat better time than now to plan an adventuresome trek into the Arctic — a journey to the cryosphere, a land of ice, snow and frozen sea water. The Arctic is a landscape of mountains, fjords, tundra and beautiful glaciers that spawn crystal-colored icebergs. It is the land of Inuit hunters, polar bears and seals and is rich with mysteries that science is still working to unravel. Those wishing to reach the Arctic must travel north of the Arctic Circle.\nAnd just where is the Arctic Circle?\nThe climatologists at the National Snow and Ice Data Center define the Arctic Circle as the imaginary line that marks the latitude at which the sun does not set on the day of the summer solstice and fails to rise on the day of the winter solstice, a day that is just around the corner. Arctic researchers describe the circle as the northern limit of tree growth. The circle is also defined as the 10 Degree Celsius Isotherm, the zone at which the average daily summer temperature fails to rise above 50 degrees Fahrenheit.\nPolar bears are hungry in this foreboding landscape where the mercury can plunge quickly to 60 degrees below zero and winds are ferocious.\nPerhaps it is time to stop reading my words, bundle up the kids and hike into the Arctic. Why not today! Children will almost certainly see seals just yards away and, if the timing is right, go nose to nose with a mighty polar bear that may swim their way and give a glance that could be interpreted as a one-word question: “Tasty?”\nAnd here is the rest of the story, a special trail tale that takes visitors to a one-of-a-kind place.\nI am amazed at how many residents of Oakland County have yet to hike through an acrylic tunnel known as the Polar Passage — a public portal to the watery world beneath the land above the Arctic Circle.\nThe 70-foot long tunnel is the highlight of a 4.2-acre living exhibit at the Detroit Zoo, the Arctic Ring of Life. And a hike through that exhibit and underwater viewing tunnel brings encounters with three polar bears, a gray seal, two harbor seals, one harp seal and three arctic fox.\nA visit to the Arctic Ring of Life is more than a fun hike. It opens our eyes to the life of the Inuit people and introduces visitors to a fragile world in danger from events that can no longer be denied — climate change, global warming and rising sea waters. Continued...\nUpon entering the park, check a map for the location. It’s easy to find and is rich with historical, cultural and natural information of the Inuit, the Arctic people. Before Europeans arrived, they had never even heard the word, “Eskimo.” The arrival of Europeans in the early 1800s was not good news for the pale-skinned strangers. They carried foreign diseases, and missionaries followed that sadly enticed the trusting Intuits to give up their own religion and become Christians. The native people were encouraged, and sometimes forced, to abandon their traditional lifestyles and live in the village. The jury may still be out, but some historians claimed that the Inuit were eager to embrace the new ways to forgo the harsh reality of nomadic life. Today, the Arctic Ring of Life’s Nunavut Gallery gives visitors a glimpse of a disappearing culture torn between the old and the new, but still rich with tradition, folk art, spirituality and creativity.\nThe Inuit once existed almost exclusively on meat and fat with only limited availability of seasonal plants. The Inuits hunted for survival and considered it disrespectful to hunt for sport. And as I dug deeper into their history to prepare for my tunnel trek, I discovered that metal for their early tools were chipped flake by flake from large meteorites and then pounded into tools like harpoon points.\nThe fascinating relationship between the Inuit, their environment and creatures that dwell above the Arctic Circle is more deeply understood when visitors trek through the highlight of the exhibit, the polar passage tunnel. A polar bear on a tundra hill, built high to afford the bears a wide range of smells, may be sniffing the air for zoo visitors.\nThe tunnel has acrylic walls four inches thick, is 12 feet wide, eight feet high and offers great views when a seal or polar bear swims. About 294,000 gallons of saltwater surround visitors.\nSome wonder why the polar bears do not eat the seals. They can’t. A Lexan wall separates the species.\nBe sure to take the time to explore the Exploration Station of the Arctic Ring of Life. It contains many of the accoutrements of a working research station complete with telemetry equipment, computers and displays of snowshoes and parkas from the arctic. Portholes provide views of the seals and bears.\nVisitors may want to do what I did — enter through the tunnel a second time and then read all the well placed interpretive signs above ground. Stories of the hunters and the hunted await and include myth-busting facts on mass suicides of lemmings that have been alleged to jump off cliffs into the sea. And be sure to let a child put his or her foot in the imprint of the polar bear track on the pathway. And, of course, save time to hike the rest of the zoo. Cold weather is a perfect time to explore minus the summer crowds.\nJonathan Schechter’s column appears on Sundays. Look for his Earth’s Almanac blog at www.earthsalmanac.blogspot.com Twitter: OaklandNature E-mail:email@example.com.\nFor more information about the Detroit Zoo’s hours, exhibits and special events, visit detroitzoo.org. The zoo is located at 8450 West 10 Mile Road in Royal Oak. No additional fee to visit Arctic Ring of Life.\nSee wrong or incorrect information in a story. Tell us here\nLocation, ST | website.com\nNational Life Videos\n- Fire destroys home, damages business in Waterford (1825)\n- Long lines to see Stan Lee, Norman Reedus plague Motor City Comic Con on Saturday WITH VIDEO (1063)\n- PAT CAPUTO: Detroit Red Wings show why they are Stanley Cup contenders (805)\n- Nearby neighbors concerned after man convicted of murder paroled, moves to Pontiac group home (788)\n- PAT CAPUTO: Detroit Red Wings show why Stanley Cup dream not far fetched (785)\n- Pontiac council votes against Schimmel’s plan to eliminate health care for retirees (686)\n- Fall Out Boy wants to \"Save Rock and Roll\" with new CD (4)\n- New backcourt leads Lathrup over Dragons (4)\n- Oakland County Sheriff’s Office veteran — Michigan's first black police captain — honored in retirement WITH VIDEO (3)\n- Fire destroys home, damages business in Waterford (3)\n- Despite Angelina Jolie, breast cancer treatment has a long way to go - COLUMN (2)\n- PITTS: Woman ran to Key West, where else? (2)\n- Bloomfield Hills mother graduates college with daughter, stepson (2)\nRecent Activity on Facebook\nCaren Gittleman likes talking cats. She'll discuss everything about them, from acquiring a cat, differences in breeds, behaviors, health concerns, inside versus outside lifestyles, toys, food, accessories, and sharing cat stories. Share your stories and ask her questions about your favorite feline.\nRoger Beukema shares news from Lansing that impacts sportsmen (this means ladies as well) and talks about things he finds when he goes overseas to visit my children, and adding your comments into the mix.\nJoin Jonathan Schechter as he shares thoughts on our natural world in Oakland County and beyond."}
{"text": "The etymology of the term 'gurdwara' is from the words 'Gur (ਗੁਰ)' (a reference to the Sikh Gurus) and 'Dwara (ਦੁਆਰਾ)' (gateway in Gurmukhi), together meaning 'the gateway through which the Guru could be reached'. Thereafter, all Sikh places of worship came to be known as gurdwaras.\nAll About Sikhs\nAllAboutSikhs.com is a comprehensive web site on sikhism, sikh history and philosophy, customs and rituals,sikh way of life, social and religious movements, art and architecture, sikh scriptures,sikh gurudwaras.\nBased on the belief in One God, the Sikh religion recognizes the equality of all human beings, and is marked by rejection of idolatry, ritualism, caste and asceticism. This website serves to heighten the awareness of Sikhism and hopefully can be of some use to seekers of knowledge."}
{"text": "Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a group of diseases marked by abnormal production of blood cells by the bone marrow. Healthy bone marrow produces immature blood cells—called blasts—that then develop into red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. MDS disrupts this normal process so that the bone marrow is overactive, producing many immature cells. These blasts, however, do not fully develop into mature blood cells. As a result, patients with MDS have fewer mature blood cells, and those they do have may be abnormal and not function properly.\nAny or all blood cell types may be affected by MDS, which is different from leukemia in which only white blood cells are overproduced. The direct effects of MDS may include:\n- Anemia and fatigue if red blood cells counts are low\n- Increased risk of infection if white blood cell counts are low\n- Compromised ability to control bleeding if platelets counts are low\nFailure of the bone marrow to produce normal cells is a gradual process. As such, MDS is primarily a disease of the aging and most patients are over 65 years of age. Some patients may survive with MDS while approximately one-third will have their disease progress to acute myeloid leukemia (AML). AML that develops from MDS is a difficult disease to treat.\nThe possible treatments for MDS, which may be used alone or in combination, include the following:\n- Supportive care through administration of growth factors to stimulate immature cells to development into mature blood cells\n- Destruction of abnormal cells through administration of chemotherapy, at either low, conventional, or high doses, depending on the condition of the patient and the aggressiveness of their disease\n- Replacement of damaged bone marrow with healthy cells that develop into blood cells, a procedure called stem cell transplantation\nTargeted therapy that may include the new drug Revlimid® (lenalidomide), which is thought to work by regulating the immune system\nAbout this MDS Treatment Information\nThe information contained on this site is a general overview of treatment for MDS. Treatment may consist of growth factors, chemotherapy with or without stem cell transplantation, targeted therapy, or a combination of these treatment techniques. Multi-modality treatment, which utilizes two or more treatment techniques, is increasingly recognized as an important approach for improving a patient’s chance of cure or prolonging survival.\nIn some cases, participation in a clinical trial utilizing new, innovative therapies may provide the most promising treatment. Information about treatments for MDS that are being evaluated in clinical trials is discussed under Strategies to Improve Treatment.\nCircumstances unique to each patient’s situation may influence how these general treatment principles are applied. The potential benefits of multi-modality care, participation in a clinical trial, or standard treatment must be carefully balanced with the potential risks. The information on this website is intended to help educate patients about their treatment options and to facilitate a mutual or shared decision-making process with their treating cancer physician.\nMDS Treatment Sections:\nBackground: Normal Blood Cell Production\nIn order to better understand MDS and its treatment, a basic understanding of normal blood cell production is useful. Normal blood is made up of fluid called plasma and three main types of blood cells–white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets. Each type of blood cell has a specific function:\n- White blood cells, also called leukocytes, help the body fight infections and other diseases.\n- Red blood cells, also called erythrocytes, make up half of the blood’s total volume and are filled with hemoglobin, which picks up oxygen from the lungs and carries it to the body’s organs.\n- Platelets, or thrombocytes, help form blood clots to control bleeding.\nBlood cells are produced inside the bones in a spongy space called the bone marrow. The process of blood cell formation is called hematopoiesis. All blood cells develop from one common cell type, called a stem cell. Stem cells become mature blood cells by a process called differentiation. Immature blood cells are called blasts. Blasts grow or differentiate into mature red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Once they are fully developed, these cells are released into the blood where they circulate throughout the body and perform their respective functions. In healthy individuals, there are adequate stem cells to continuously produce new blood cells and mature blood cells are produced in a continuous and orderly fashion.\nMDS disrupts this normal process resulting in many blasts and few mature, healthy blood cells.\nIn order to diagnose MDS and plan treatment, a physician must evaluate the patient’s bone marrow cells to determine the specific type of MDS. The cells are removed through a technique called a bone marrow biopsy, which uses a large needle to withdraw cells directly from the bone marrow.\nA special laboratory test is conducted on the sample cells, called a cytogenetic analysis. The purpose of this test is to determine whether there are abnormalities in the DNA of the blood cells. DNA contains the genetic code for the cell, which can be thought of as the instructions for what the cell looks like, what it does, and how it grows. Most forms of MDS and leukemias are characterized by specific abnormalities. Identifying these provides useful information about the patient’s prognosis, or duration of survival.\nTypes of MDS\nThere are several different types of MDS, which are classified by how the abnormal cells that were removed from the bone marrow appear under the microscope and how many blasts can be identified. At the time of bone marrow evaluation, cells are also removed for cytogenetic analysis. MDS is classified into five different diseases characterized by ineffective blood cell production in the bone marrow and varying rates of progression to acute leukemia. Following is a description of the five classifications:\nRefractory Anemia (RA): Patients have low blood counts, bone marrow blasts are less than 5%, and sideroblasts (iron containing cells) are less than 15%. The average survival is approximately 43 months, but can be influenced by specific chromosomal abnormalities.\nRefractory Anemia with Ringed Sideroblasts (RARS): Patients have low blood counts, bone marrow blasts are less than 5%, and sideroblasts are greater than 15%. The average survival is 55 months, but can be influenced by specific chromosomal abnormalities.\nRefractory Anemia with Excess Blasts (RAEB): Patients have low blood counts, 1-5% blasts in the blood, and bone marrow blasts between 5 and 20%. The average survival is 12 months, but can be influenced by specific chromosomal abnormalities.\nRefractory Anemia with Excess Blasts in Transition (RAEBt): Patients have low blood counts, over 5% blasts in the blood or cells in the blood containing an abnormality referred to as Auer rods, and bone marrow blasts between 20 and 30%. The average survival is 5 months, but can be influenced by specific chromosomal abnormalities.\nChronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia (CMML): Blood cells called monocytes make up more than 1,000 ml in the blood and patients have less than 5% blasts. Bone marrow blasts are less than 20% and the average survival is 30 months, but can be influenced by specific chromosomal abnormalities.\nPlanning Treatment for MDS\nSince a stem cell transplant utilizing cells from a donor—called an allogeneic stem cell transplant—holds the most hope for cure, a major decision faced by patients with MDS is not whether to undergo transplantation, but when. Patients with MDS that is likely to progress to leukemia early—which results in shorter survival—may be willing to accept higher risks of treatment and proceed quickly to a stem cell transplant. Patients with MDS that progresses more slowly are likely to live longer and may wish to pursue a more conservative treatment approach, opting to use supportive care and wait a longer period before undergoing a stem cell transplant.\nHowever, patients who choose conservative treatment approaches should always be prepared to receive more aggressive treatment in case their disease progresses more rapidly than anticipated. To prepare for a possible stem cell transplant, patients should consider arranging for a stem cell donor and/or having their own stem cells collected and stored shortly after diagnosis. This is important because as MDS progresses and treatment is initiated, it becomes increasingly difficult to collect stem cells.\nIn order to better plan treatment, doctors try to identify how quickly patients are likely to progress to acute myeloid leukemia (AML). A score is assigned that reflects this tendency to progress, and is based on a system called the International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS). A higher score is associated with a type of MDS that is likely to progress to leukemia more quickly. The IPSS score takes into account three important factors in MDS:\n- The percent of bone marrow blasts—more blasts contributes to a higher score\n- Genetic abnormalities—more abnormalities contribute to a higher score\n- Severity of low white blood cell counts—lower counts of white blood cells, platelets, and red blood cells contribute to a higher score\nRelationship between a patient’s risk of progressing to leukemia and timing of stem cell transplant: Research shows that knowing a patient’s risk of progressing to leukemia is important for determining optimal timing of stem cell transplantation. Based on information about 1,000 patients who had been diagnosed with MDS, researchers from several U.S. cancer centers have determined that patients with a low or low-intermediate risk of progression to leukemia have better outcomes if their transplant was not performed at the time of diagnosis, but was delayed. Patients with a high or high-intermediate risk experienced optimal survival if they underwent an allogeneic transplant at the time of diagnosis, without delay. Furthermore, the patients with lower risk achieved optimal outcomes if their transplant was administered prior to progression of their disease to acute myeloid leukemia compared to after progression. \nOverview of Treatment of MDS\nThe objective of treatment is to control the growth of the abnormal cells so that more normal cells can grow and improve blood cell production. Some treatments are designed to manage the complications associated with ineffective blood cell production, while others extend survival or even cure the disease.\nTreatment of MDS is individualized and depends on two main factors:\n- The severity of low blood counts\n- The risk of progression to acute myeloid leukemia\nOther factors that influence treatment decisions include patient’s age, other medical conditions, and the severity of the myelodysplastic syndrome.\nThe potential treatment options for MDS include the following:\nCurrently, only stem cell transplant utilizing cells from a donor—called an allogeneic transplant—can consistently cure patients with MDS. Other therapies are directed at prolonging survival and decreasing the symptoms from these diseases.\n Cutler C, Lee S, Greenberg P, et al. A decision analysis of allogeneic bone marrow transplantation for the myelodysplastic syndromes: delayed transplantation for low-risk myelodysplasia is associated with improved outcome. Blood. 2004;104:579-585.\nCopyright © 2013 Omni Health Media Myelodysplastic Syndrome Information Center. All Rights Reserved."}
{"text": "Fundamentals of Business Finance\nDurée de l'évènement:\nPage d'accueil du programme:\nEvent focal point email:\nAutres infos sur l'évènement:\nThis course is designed for both officials and businessmen who are interested in learning the basics of investments and finance as needed in a modern environment. It represents a departure from available academic courses as it is directly centred on the typical challenges that are faced every day by officials involved with trade promotion and business development as well as young entrepreneurs.\nIt covers, in intuitive plain language, basic concepts needed to understand modern finance for enterprises in a normal and efficient business environment. From modern and practical perspectives, it covers notions of finance and accounting sufficient to understand balance sheets, short and long-term credit, equity and investments, cash as well as sustainable profits, return to shareholders, areas of financial risks and available insurances. It also provides an idea where to look for sources of funds, what to ask and finally understand offers and contracts.\nThis practical course on the fundamentals of business finance will allow participants to face all those business situations in which finance plays a role, let it be for starting a business, acquiring a production tool or contributing to the promotion of a country business environment. It also helps participants to understand and act at present times when the global finance is going through critical times.\nAt the end of the course, the participants should be able to:\n- Explain with accuracy the main issues relating to modern business finance such as but not limited to, starting a business, acquiring a production tool, or contributing to the promotion of a country business environment;\n- Identify the essential accounting needs including the preparation of cash flow, profit and loss, balance sheets, and the basics of forecasting, target and ratios;\n- Interpret financial, economic, and social results;\n- Analyze existing financial needs - short vs. long-term credit, equity, investments, cash as well as sustainable profits, return to shareholders, areas of financial risks and available insurances, financing tools, and banking products; and\n- Analyze a presentation and business plan with strategies on how to deal with banks, or develop a plan on how to renegotiate existing contracts.\nContenu et structure\nThe course consists of the following modules:\nModule 1: Understanding and planning a business and its financial implications\nModule 2: Examining financial options and identifying sources of finance\nModule 3: Dealing with financial institutions\nModule 4: Financial results, economic, social Results: protective measures to weather the crisis\nIn order to ensure the best possible outreach, the course will be delivered through e-learning. Through a multiple-instructional setting, the goal is to achieve the learning objectives by means of learning technologies that match personal learning styles and by the inclusion of non-linear learning that aims at the development of just-in-time skills of adult learners. At the same time, in order to allow participants maximum flexibility of scheduling , the learning will be conducted in an asynchronous manner. Using a state-of-the-art training architecture, UNITAR will combine self-learning with assessments and online discussions. The pedagogy - adapted specifically to professionals in full-time work - will help train participants through various experiences: absorb (read); do (activity); interact (socialize); reflect (relate to one’s own reality).\nThis course is designed for private sector managers and entrepreneurs in industrial as well developing countries, government officials, typically at ministry of trade, finance, economy and/or planning levels, diplomats and trade representatives, and national and international experts involved in trade and finance negotiations.\nA certificate of completion will be issued by UNITAR to all participants who complete the course-related assignments and assessments successfully. Course schedule is subject to change. Course fee is non-refundable but transferrable to another course or participant and subject to change as per UNITAR's policy on pricing.\n- Public - Sur Inscription\n- Public - Candidature\n- Privé - sur Invitation\n- Open to register/apply\n- Face à face"}
{"text": "Antonio de Herrera y Tordesillas\nA Spanish historian; born at Cuellar, in the province of Segovia, in 1559; died at Madrid, 27 March, 1625. He was a great-grandson of the Tordesillas who was put to death by the Comuneros at Seville. He studied in Spain and Italy, and became secretary to Vespasiano Gonzaga, a brother of the Duke of Mantua, who was afterwards Viceroy of Navarre and Valencia, and who recommended him to Philip II in the last year of that monarch's reign. Philip appointed him grand historiographer ( cronista mayor ) of America and Castile, and he filled that office during part of his royal patron's reign, the whole reign of Philip III, and the beginning of that of Philip IV. At his death his body was conveyed to Cuellar, and interred in the church of Santa Marina, where his tomb is still to be seen.\nHis most famous work is the \"Historia General de los Hechos de los Castellanos en las Islas y Tierra Firme del Mar Océano\" (General History of the deeds of the Castilians on the Islands and Mainland of the Ocean Sea), divided into eight periods of ten years each, and comprising all the years from 1472 to 1554. This work was printed at Madrid in 1601; reprinted by Juan de la Cuesta in 1615; revised and augmented by Andrés González and published at Madrid by Nicolas Rodríguez in 1726, and at Antwerp, by Juan Bautista Verdussen, in 1728. Worthy of note is the \"Description of the West Indies\", in the first volume of his work, which was translated into Latin and published at Amsterdam, by Gaspar Barleo, in 1622, a French version being published at Paris in the same year. In 1660 there appeared a French translation of the first three decades of his \"Historia\" by Nicolás de la Corte. In writing his great work Tordesillas made use of all the public archives, having access to documents of every kind. It is evident in his writings that he had to deal with a large number of historical manuscripts, and contented himself with relating events as he found them recorded. A great part of his work is more or less a transcript of the History of the Indies left by the famous Bishop Bartolomé de las Casas , though expurgated of wellnigh everything unfavourable to the settlers. A painstaking and conscientious investigator for the most part, his style does not correspond to his other admirable qualifications. He was a learned and judicious man, though, particularly in the later decades, somewhat prone to overpraise the conquerors and their exploits.\nIn addition to that already mentioned, his most important works are: \"A General History of the World during the time of Philip II from the year 1559 to the King's death\"; \"Events in Scotland and England during the forty-four years of the lifetime of Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland\" (Historia de lo sucedido en Escocia é Inglaterra en los cuarenta y cuatro años que vivió Maria Estuardo Reina de Escocia); Five books of the history of Portugal and the conquests of the Azores in the years 1582, 1583; \"History of events in France from 1585 to 1594\" (a work published in Madrid in 1598, but suppressed by command of the king); \"A Treatise, Relation, and Historical Discourse on the Disturbances in Aragon in the years 1591 and 1592\" (Tratado, relación y discurso histórico de los movimientos en Aragon en los años de 1591 y 1592); \"Commentary on the deeds of the Spaniards, French, and Venetians in Italy, and of other Republics, Potentates, famous Italian Princes and Captains, from 1281 to 1559\"; \"Chronicle of the Turks, following chiefly that written by Juan Maria Vicentino, chronicler to Mahomet, Bajazet, and Suleiman, their lords\" (unpublished); various works translated from the French and Italian, preserved in the National Library at Madrid.\nMore Catholic Encyclopedia\nBrowse Encyclopedia by Alphabet\nThe Catholic Encyclopedia is the most comprehensive resource on Catholic teaching, history, and information ever gathered in all of human history. This easy-to-search online version was originally printed in fifteen hardcopy volumes.\nDesigned to present its readers with the full body of Catholic teaching, the Encyclopedia contains not only precise statements of what the Church has defined, but also an impartial record of different views of acknowledged authority on all disputed questions, national, political or factional. In the determination of the truth the most recent and acknowledged scientific methods are employed, and the results of the latest research in theology, philosophy, history, apologetics, archaeology, and other sciences are given careful consideration.\nNo one who is interested in human history, past and present, can ignore the Catholic Church, either as an institution which has been the central figure in the civilized world for nearly two thousand years, decisively affecting its destinies, religious, literary, scientific, social and political, or as an existing power whose influence and activity extend to every part of the globe. In the past century the Church has grown both extensively and intensively among English-speaking peoples. Their living interests demand that they should have the means of informing themselves about this vast institution, which, whether they are Catholics or not, affects their fortunes and their destiny.\nBrowse the Catholic Encyclopedia by Topic\nCopyright © Catholic Encyclopedia. Robert Appleton Company New York, NY. Volume 1: 1907; Volume 2: 1907; Volume 3: 1908; Volume 4: 1908; Volume 5: 1909; Volume 6: 1909; Volume 7: 1910; Volume 8: 1910; Volume 9: 1910; Volume 10: 1911; Volume 11: - 1911; Volume 12: - 1911; Volume 13: - 1912; Volume 14: 1912; Volume 15: 1912\nCatholic Online Catholic Encyclopedia Digital version Compiled and Copyright © Catholic Online"}
{"text": "Are Black & White Colors?\nIs Black a Color? Is White a Color?\nThe answer to the question - \"Are black and white colors?\" - is one of the most debated issues about color. Ask a scientist and you'll get a reply based on physics: “Black is not a color, white is a color.” Ask an artist or a child with crayons and you'll get another: “Black is a color, white is not a color.” (Maybe!)\nThere are four sections on this page that present the best answers.\n# 1 - The First Answer: Color Theory #1 - Color as Light\nBlack is not a color. White is a color.\n# 2 - The Second Answer: Color Theory #2 - Color as Pigment or Molecular Coloring Agents\nBlack is a color. White is not a color\nComments from color pros: More about black & white\nHow Colors Exist\nA basic understanding of how colors are created is the first step in providing correct answers. Here are two examples:\nThe color of a tangible object is the result of pigments or molecular coloring agents. For example, the color of a red apple (in the illustration at the left) is the result of molecular coloring agents on the surface of the apple. Also, a painting of a red apple is the result of red pigments used to create the image.\nThe colors of objects viewed on a television set or on a computer monitor are the result of colored light (in the illustration at the right). If you're not familiar with how colors are created by light, look at your monitor or television screen close up. Put your eye right up against the screen. A small magnifying glass might help. This is what you will see:\nA simplified way to explain it is that the color of a red apple on a computer or television is created by photons of red light that are transmitted within the electronic system.\nIt's also important to understand the concept of \"primary\" colors. The fundamental rule is that there are three colors that cannot be made by mixing other colors together. These three, red, blue, and yellow, are known as the primary colors.\nNow that we've described two different categories of colors (pigment and light-generated) and have a definition of primary colors, the answer to whether black and white are colors can be answered.\n(Additive Color Theory)\nRed, Green, and Blue\n(The primary colors of light)\nAre black and white colors when generated as light?\nBlack and white cats generated on a television.\nThese colors are created by light.\n1. Black is the absence of color (and is therefore not a color)\nWhen there is no light, everything is black. Test this out by going into a photographic dark room. There are no photons of light. In other words, there are no photons of colors.\n2. White is the blending of all colors and is a color.\nLight appears colorless or white. Sunlight is white light that is composed of all the colors of the spectrum. A rainbow is proof. You can't see the colors of sunlight except when atmospheric conditions bend the light rays and create a rainbow. You can also use a prism to demonstrate this.\nFact: The sum of all the colors of light add up to white. This is additive color theory.\nWhen you're finished with black & white, explore some real colors at Color Matters: The Meanings of Color\nColor Theory 2 - Color as Pigment or Molecular Coloring Agents\n(Subtractive Color Theory)\n|Red, Yellow, and Blue|\n(The primary colors of pigments in the art world)\n|Cyan, Magenta, and Yellow|\n(The primary colors of inks in the printing industry) *\nAre black and white colors when they exist as pigments or as molecular coloring agents?\nBlack and white cats created by colored crayons.\nThis is color generated by pigments.\nBlack and white cats. The colors of the fur is the result of molecules.\n1. Black is a color. (Chemists will confirm this!)\nHere's a simple way to show how black is made: Combine all three primary colors (red yellow and blue) using a liquid paint or you even food coloring. You won't get a jet black, but the point will be clear. The history of black pigments includes charcoal, iron metals, and other chemicals as the source of black paints.\nResource: History of Pigments\nTherefore, if someone argues that black is the absence of color, you can reply, “What is in a tube of black paint?” However, you must add the fact that black is a color when you are referring to the color of pigments and the coloring agents of tangible objects.\n2. White is not a color.\n... but .... in some cases you could say that white is a color.\nThe grey area:\nHowever, when you examine the pigment chemistry of white, ground-up substances (such as chalk and bone) or chemicals (such as titanium and zinc) are used to create the many nuances of white in paint, chalk, crayons - and even products such as Noxema. It's worth noting that white paper is made by bleaching tree bark (paper pulp). Therefore, you could say that white is a color in the context of pigment chemistry.\nMore Information about CMYK primary colors:\nIn theory, mixing equal amounts of three primary colors should produce shades of grey or black when all three are fully saturated. In the print industry, cyan, magenta and yellow tend to produce muddy brown colors. For this reason, a fourth \"primary\" pigment, black, is often used in addition to the cyan, magenta, and yellow colors.\nThere's more to color than black and white! When you're finished with this article, discover the 3 most important things about color at Color Matters. See Basic Color Theory\nVision and Reflection\nThe final answer to whether black and white are colors takes other factors into consideration.\nColors exist in the larger context of human vision. Consider the fact that there are three parts to the process of the perception of color.\n1. The medium - The color as it exists as a pigment/colorant (such as the color of a tangible object) or as light (such as the color of an image on a television screen).\n2. The sender - How the color is transmitted.\n3. The receiver - How humans see color. In other words, how we receive information about color.\n(If a tree falls in the forest and there is nobody around does it make a sound? Does a color exist if there is no one to see it?)\nAre black and white colors?\nThe best answer combines both of the theories described in Part 1 and Part 2. Pigments and coloring agents (as described in Part 1) are only half of the answer.\nHere's how we see color:\nThe color of a tangible object originates as a molecular coloring agent on the surface of the apple. We see the color of an object because that object reflects “a color” to the eye. Every color is the effect of a specific wavelength. Link to ElecroMagnetic Color at Color Matters.\nIn the case of the apple, we see the color red because the red apple reflects the specific wavelength of red (640nm is red).\nThe same theory applies to black and white.\nAre black and white colors?\n1. Black is not a color; a black object absorbs all the colors of the visible spectrum and reflects none of them to the eyes.\nThe grey area about black:\n- A black object may look black, but, technically, it may still be reflecting some light. For example, a black pigment results from a combination of several pigments that collectively absorb most colors. If appropriate proportions of three primary pigments are mixed, the result reflects so little light as to be called \"black.\" In reality, what appears to be black may be reflecting some light.\n- In physics, a black body is a perfect absorber of light.\n2. White is a color. White reflects all the colors of the visible light spectrum to the eyes.\nExplore some real colors at Color Matters: The Meanings of Color\nThe colors we see are simply a degree of how much of this color present in light is reflected. To be completely accurate, a color reflects the wavelengths in the NM range that our retinal cones respond to.\nThe medium is the process of reflection of the wavelength of the color.\nThe receiver is our eyes which receive the wavelength of the color.\nComments from colors pros: More about black & white\nMore about color vision: How the Eye Sees Color"}
{"text": "FISHING FORECAST TAKES GUESS WORK OUT OF WHERE TO FISH\nFeb. 14, 2013\nAnglers use fishing forecast to find hidden opportunities\nPRATT – The Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KDWPT) 2013 Fishing Forecast features the ins and outs of fish populations in public waters around the state, helping anglers to better decide where to cast their lines. Comprised of sampling efforts conducted during annual lake monitoring, the fishing forecast gives anglers detailed information on the best bodies of water to fish for their specific fishing needs.\nThe data collected is divided into three categories based on the size of the body of water sampled. Reservoirs are defined as bodies of water larger than 1,200 acres, lakes are defined as bodies of water from 10 to 1,200 acres, and bodies of water smaller than 10 acres are defined as ponds. Since not every lake is sampled each year, the forecast provides a three-year average of each location to provide anglers with the best available information.\nIn addition to what species of fish can be caught at any given body of water, the fishing forecast also includes tables with a Density Rating, Preferred Rating, Lunker Rating, Biggest Fish (the largest fish sampled), Biologist’s Rating and the previously-mentioned Three-Year Average of popular species.\nThe Density Rating is the number of fish that were high-quality size or larger sampled per unit of sampling effort. High-quality size, listed in parentheses at the top of the Density Rating column, is the length of fish considered acceptable to most anglers and is different for each species. The higher the Density Rating, the more high-quality-sized or larger fish per surface acre in the lake. Theoretically, a lake with a Density Rating of 30 has twice as many high-quality-sized fish per acre as a lake with a Density Rating of 15.\nThe Preferred Rating identifies how many above-average-sized fish a water contains. For example, a lake may have a good density of crappie, but few fish over 10 inches. The Preferred Rating tells an angler where to go to for a chance to catch bigger fish.\nThe Lunker Rating is similar to the Density Rating, but it tells you the relative density of lunker-sized fish in the lake. A lunker is a certain length of fish considered a trophy by most anglers. It also differs with each species and is listed in parentheses at the top of the Lunker Rating column. For example, most anglers consider a channel catfish longer than 28 inches a lunker. Many lakes may have a lunker rating of 0, but this does not mean there are no big fish in that lake. It just means that no lunker fish were caught during sampling, and they may be less abundant than in lakes with positive Lunker Ratings.\nYou can use the Density Rating and Lunker Rating together. If you want numbers, go with the highest Density Rating. If you want only big fish, go with the Lunker Rating. Somewhere in the middle might be a better choice. A lake with a respectable rating in all three categories will provide the best overall fishing opportunities.\nThe Biggest Fish column lists the weight of the largest fish caught during sampling. A heavy fish listed here can give the lunker fishermen confidence that truly big fish are present.\nThe Biologist’s Rating adds a human touch to the forecast. Each district fisheries biologist reviews the data from annual sampling of their assigned lakes. This review considers environmental conditions that may have affected the sampling. They also consider previous years’ data. A rating of P (poor), F (fair), G (good), or E (excellent) will be in the last column. Sometimes the Density Rating may not agree with the Biologist’s Rating. This will happen occasionally and means the Density Rating may not accurately reflect the biologist’s opinion of the fishery.\nThe Three-Year Average rating refers to the averaging of the Density Rating over the previous three years of sampling to help show a trend for a particular lake.\nWhether anglers are simply looking for a new spot to cast, or are searching for that elusive trophy fish, the 2013 Fishing Forecast is an invaluable tool for any fisherman.\nA copy of this year’s forecast can be found in the March/April issue of Kansas Wildlife and Parks magazine, any KDWPT office or license vendor."}
{"text": "Multilateral Trade Negotiations: Tips and Techniques (2013)\nDuration of event:\nEvent focal point email:\nOther events details:\nPrior to the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations, which were concluded in December 1993, multilateral trade negotiations were seen as a preserve of the developed countries and the developing countries have only a marginal role to play in the negotiation process; they were primarily the recipients of preferential market access and other special differential treatment. Since the Uruguay Round, although the developing countries have been actively involved in the negotiation process, they face serious challenges in keeping pace with the growing area of international trade law. Their role in the negotiation process is limited due to certain imbalances in their negotiation preparedness, structures and outcomes. Negotiators from developing countries face serious challenges to catch up and keep pace with, and even to influence the scope and outcome of negotiations that serve the best interests of their countries.\nThis course aims to assist the negotiators and government officials of developing and least-developed countries in their preparations for future multilateral trade negotiations. The course will enhance their knowledge and disseminate information about various trade negotiation skills and techniques, which will enable them to better prepare for future multilateral trade negotiations, become ‘well-informed’ and fully benefit from their participation by becoming equal partners in the negotiating process. The course will provide a comprehensive overview of the concept of negotiations, background and special characteristics of multilateral trade negotiations in the WTO and how to strategically prepare and plan in conducting successful negotiations. It will also help participants gain greater insight into various negotiation issues currently involved in different WTO Agreements.\nAt the end of the course, the participants should be able to:\n• Differentiate between bilateral and multilateral trade negotiations;\n• Illustrate how multilateral trade negotiations in the WTO are done;\n• Examine the problems faced by both the developing and the least developed countries as regards multilateral negotiations;\n• Formulate a sound negotiation strategy;\n• Analyze the significance of data required for a multilateral trade negotiation; and\n• Assess various issues that may arise during negotiation processes related to WTO Agreements such as agriculture, sanitary and phytosanitary measures (SPS), technical barriers to trade (TBT), trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights (TRIPS), and trade in services.\nContent and Structure\nThe course consists of the following modules:\n• Module I – The Concept of Trade Negotiations: An Overview\n• Module II – General Introduction to WTO Negotiations\n• Module III – Multilateral Trade Negotiations: Strategic Planning and Preparation\n• Module IV – Information Requirements in a Negotiation Process\n• Module V – Negotiating Issues in Different WTO Agreements\nIn order to ensure the best possible outreach, the course will be delivered through e-learning. Through a multiple-instructional setting, the goal is to achieve the learning objectives by means of learning technologies that match personal learning styles and by the inclusion of non-linear learning that aims at the development of just-in-time skills of adult learners. At the same time, in order to allow participants maximum flexibility of scheduling , the learning will be conducted in an asynchronous manner. Using a state-of-the-art training architecture, UNITAR will combine self-learning with assessments and online discussions. The pedagogy - adapted specifically to professionals in full-time work - will help train participants through various experiences: absorb (read); do (activity); interact (socialize); reflect (relate to one’s own reality).\nThis foundation course is designed for government officials, trade experts, government lawyers and negotiators who serve their government in regional or international trade negotiations. The course is beneficial for all other participants including policy advocates, academics, researchers, and the members from the wider public, who are interested in learning about the structuring and negotiating of multilateral trade agreements.\nA certificate of completion will be issued by UNITAR to all participants who complete the course-related assignments and assessments successfully. Course schedule is subject to change. Course fee is non-refundable but transferrable to another course or participant and subject to change as per UNITAR's policy on pricing.\n- Public - by registration\n- Public - by application\n- Private - by invitation\n- Open to register/apply\nMode of Delivery"}
{"text": "Nicaraguan Pottery Designs by David Sequeira\n- Dates: December 1, 1939 through February 4, 1940\n- Collections: Arts of the Americas\nDecember 1, 1939: Eighty large color drawings by David Sequeira from Chorotegan pottery excavated by him in Nicaragua will be shown at the Brooklyn Museum from December 1 through February 4 in an exhibition arranged by Fr. Herbert J. Spinden, Curator of American Indian Art and Primitive Cultures. Sequira is of Nicaraguan birth and primarily a musican whose interest in musical themes of the Indians induced him to study and reproduce the brilliant designs on the pre-Colombian pottery of Nicaragua identified by Dr. Spinden as superb examples of Chorotegan art.\nThe drawings are circular and rectangular and will be shown in panels. The designs are in strong, warm colors, brick red, reddish brown, black and white, The artist has, in effect, transferred the patterns from concave and convex pottery surfaces to flat surfaces The patterns incorporate motives of conventionalized jaguars, crab, serpents, crocodiles, monkeys and birds, the last including the famous Quetzal which Dr. Spinden states is unusual to find represented in a culture as far south as Nicaragua. Human figures and geometrical or abstract designs both showing a strong Maya influence are also used in the patterns.\nThe drawings are shown more for their interest as sound designs than for their scientific interest, which is nevertheless important, as part of the Museum’s policy of making available basic creative designs of old cultures that can he adapted to today’s needs or inspire new efforts.\nThe circumstances of the preparation of these drawings are important. In the first place, they were made only a short time after the pottery was excavated while the colors were still at their full strength. The tones tend to fade when they come in contact with the air after their long burial. Secondly, the artist, to carry out the preservation of the designs as faithfully as possible, mixed his own watercolors from the kinds of materials that were probably used in coloring the pottery, usually earth colors.\nAccording to Dr. Spinden, in his paper presented at the 21st International Congress of Arnericanists in Goteborg in 1924, the Chorotegan Culture Area from which these designs come \"is a strip of territory beginning on the humid north coast of Honduras near Ceiba, widening with the wet lands and extending southward across Nicaragua and Costa Rica to about the limits of Panama. The word Chorotegan…is of Mexican origin with some such meaning as the Driven-out People.\n“The culture in this area was built historically on Mayan ideas of the First Empire ending A.D. 630, yet the Chorotegas reached the height of their productivity on the Toltec horizon (1150-1350) and were intermediaries in trade between Mexico and Colombia.” He further states that the present tribes in this area are not of the same stock as the Chorotegans who produced the high culture.\nIn the region of Northern Costa Rica and southern Nicaragua “……the culture was intensively developed, especially in pottery….. The designs are painted and modelled, with the crocodile, the monkey, the jaguar, the fish, etc. serving as motives. One peculiar type of pottery shows the use of a purplish black luster paint made from manganese ore.” It is probable that the pieces of pottery from which the exhibited designs were taken fall in this category."}
{"text": "A lumbar puncture is a procedure in which a needle is inserted into the spinal canal to measure the pressure and obtain a sample of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), the colorless fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. The procedure may also be used to inject anesthetics, medicine, or a contrast dye (for spinal X-rays) into the spinal fluid or to drain fluids that accumulate as a result of certain medical conditions.\nFluid samples obtained from a lumbar puncture can be analyzed for signs of infection (such as meningitis), inflammation, cancer, or bleeding in the area around the brain or spinal cord.\nA lumbar puncture is also sometimes called a spinal tap.\neMedicineHealth Medical Reference from Healthwise\nTo learn more visit Healthwise.org\n© 1995-2012 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.\nFind out what women really need.\nMost Popular Topics\nPill Identifier on RxList\n- quick, easy,\nFind a Local Pharmacy\n- including 24 hour, pharmacies"}
{"text": "Carbon Monoxide Detector Placement - Carbon Monoxide - Carbon Monoxide Poisoning\nProper placement of a carbon monoxide (CO) detector is important. If you are installing only one carbon monoxide detector, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recommends it be located near the sleeping area, where it can wake you if you are asleep. Additional detectors on every level and in every bedroom of a home provides extra protection against carbon monoxide poisoning.\nHomeowners should remember not to install carbon monoxide detectors directly above or beside fuel-burning appliances, as appliances may emit a small amount of carbon monoxide upon start-up. A detector should not be placed within fifteen feet of heating or cooking appliances or in or near very humid areas such as bathrooms.\nWhen considering where to place a carbon monoxide detector, keep in mind that although carbon monoxide is roughly the same weight as air (carbon monoxide's specific gravity is 0.9657, as stated by the EPA; the National Resource Council lists the specific gravity of air as one), it may be contained in warm air coming from combustion appliances such as home heating equipment. If this is the case, carbon monoxide will rise with the warmer air.\nInstallation locations vary by manufacturer. Manufacturers' recommendations differ to a certain degree based on research conducted with each one's specific detector. Therefore, make sure to read the provided installation manual for each detector before installing.\nCO detectors do not serve as smoke detectors and vice versa. However, dual smoke/CO detectors are also sold. Smoke detectors detect the smoke generated by flaming or smoldering fires, whereas CO detectors can alarm people about faulty fuel burning devices to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning. Carbon monoxide is produced from incomplete combustion of fossil fuels. In the home CO can be formed, for example, by open flames, space heaters, water heaters, blocked chimneys or running a car inside a garage.\nSince CO is colorless, tasteless and odorless (unlike smoke from a fire), detection and prevention of carbon monoxide poisoning in a home environment is impossible without such a warning device. In North America, some state, provincial and municipal governments require installation of CO detectors in new units - among them, the U.S. states of Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Vermont, the Canadian province of Ontario, and New York City.\nAccording to the 2005 edition of the carbon monoxide guidelines, NFPA 720, published by the National Fire Protection Association, sections 184.108.40.206 and 220.127.116.11, all CO detectors 'shall be centrally located outside of each separate sleeping area in the immediate vicinity of the bedrooms,' and each detector 'shall be located on the wall, ceiling or other location as specified in the installation instructions that accompany the unit.'\nWhen carbon monoxide detectors were introduced into the market, they had a limited lifespan of 2 years. However technology developments have increased this and many now advertise 5 or even 6 years. Newer models are designed to signal a need to be replaced after that timespan although there are many instances of detectors operating far beyond this point.\nAlthough all home detectors use an audible alarm signal as the primary indicator, some versions also offer a digital readout of the CO concentration [see side-bar], in parts per million. Typically, they can display both the current reading and a peak reading from memory of the highest level measured over a period of time.\nThe digital models offer the advantage of being able to observe levels that are below the alarm threshold, learn about levels that may have occurred during an absence, and assess the degree of hazard if the alarm sounds. They may also aid emergency responders in evaluating the level of past or ongoing exposure or danger of carbon monoxide poisoning.\nBattery-only carbon monoxide detectors tend to go thru batteries more frequently than expected. Plug-in detectors with a battery backup (for use if the power is interrupted) provide less battery-changing maintenance.\nSome CO detectors are available as system-connected, monitored devices. System-connected detectors, which can be wired to either a security or fire panel, are monitored by a central station. In case the residence is empty, the residents are sleeping or occupants are already suffering from the effects of CO, the central station can be alerted to the high concentrations of CO gas and can send the proper authorities to investigate possible carbon monoxide poisoning.\nPage 1 of 3: Next Page »\nCarbon Monoxide Detectors w/ PPM Displays and Battery Backup\nAlthough all home carbon monoxide detectors use an audible alarm signal as the primary indicator, some versions also offer a digital readout of the CO concentration, in parts per million.\nTypically, they can display both the current reading and a peak reading from memory of the highest level measured over a period of time.\nThe digital models offer the advantage of being able to observe levels that are below the alarm threshold, learn about levels that may have occurred during an absence, and assess the degree of hazard if the alarm sounds.\nThey may also aid emergency responders in evaluating the level of past or ongoing exposure or danger."}
{"text": "Swine flu, these days, may not be as rampant as last year when over 787 cases were detected in the State and nearly 55 persons died because of complications arising out of it. However, sporadic cases continue to get reported from districts and there is always a possibility of the virus making a comeback next winter, physicians maintain.\nTo be prepared for this eventuality, authorities on Thursday launched swine flu vaccination drive among healthcare workers, who are, when it comes to fighting H1N1 virus, the first line of defence.\nAll government hospitals including those in the districts have been given sufficient doses of the vaccine for inoculation of healthcare workers.\nThis is the first phase of swine flu vaccination drive and, according to authorities, the second phase covering high risk groups among general public will be taken up after an indigenous vaccine is developed.\nThe present vaccine being administered to health workers, has been imported by noted pharma giant Sanofi Pasteur.\nHealth care workers from private hospitals, who are willing to get inoculated, can also get themselves administered with the vaccine at any of the Government hospitals, authorities said.\nThe Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has supplied close to 80,000 doses of swine flu vaccine for inoculation of health workers in the State. In all, the Centre has procured nearly 15 lakh doses of swine flu vaccine for distribution all over the country.\nThe swine flu vaccine will provide immunity for only one year because of the possibility of the virus changing its ‘nature' and turning into a more virulent form in the next few years. “In the second phase of vaccination, which could start in three to four months, pregnant women and children will be our prime targets.\nBecause of their compromised immunity, they are susceptible to this virus and hence they will be given the indigenous vaccine,” said state swine flu coordinator Dr. K. Subhakar.\nKeywords: Medical facilities"}
{"text": "THE NEW FOUNDE LAND\nVolume 18 Number 1\nFarley Mowat draws from his own authoritative works on Newfoundland to create a fascinating eulogy for traditional life on the Rock. He captures the character of the seafolk, whose chosen life-style remained the same from one generation to the next until they were pushed unwillingly into the twentieth century by the political machinations of Joey Smallwood. From the unification with Canada in 1949 to the present, the government has continued purposefully to dislodge the people from their outport homes and seagoing livelihoods into larger mining and industrial communities, systematically destroying both the natural and human environment in the name of progress.Mowat brings both Newfoundland's past and present to life, taking the reader through the Norse sagas, the first European visits, and the establishment of permanent settlements based on cod fishing and seal hunting. Interspersed with this historical account are Mowat's own experiences while living on the south coast of Newfoundland for several years. With seeming ease he distils the essence of these kind, hardworking, insular people and simultaneously arouses the reader's anger at the destructive excesses wrought by the present technological age.\nMichael Freeman, Bathurst Heights Secondary School, North York, ON.\n1971-1979 | 1980-1985 | 1986-1990 | 1991-1995\nThe materials in this archive are copyright © The Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission Copyright information for reviewers\nYoung Canada Works"}
{"text": "Joined: 16 Mar 2004\n|Posted: Mon Aug 31, 2009 12:50 pm Post subject: New Holographic Method for Lab-on-a-Chip Technologies\nThese images were taken from a video illustrating a new technique that uses a laser and holograms to precisely position clusters of numerous tiny particles within seconds, representing a potential new tool to analyze biological samples or create devices using \"nanoassembly.\" The red dots are individual particles. (Birck Nanotechnology Center, Purdue University)\nResearchers at Purdue University have developed a technique that uses a laser and holograms to precisely position numerous tiny particles within seconds, representing a potential new tool to analyze biological samples or create devices using nanoassembly.\nThe technique, called rapid electrokinetic patterning, is a potential alternative to existing technologies because the patterns can be more quickly and easily changed, said mechanical engineering doctoral student Stuart J. Williams.\n\"It's potentially a very versatile tool,\" said Williams, who is working with doctoral student Aloke Kumar and Steven T. Wereley, an associate professor of mechanical engineering.\nThe research is based at the Birck Nanotechnology Center in Purdue's Discovery Park .\nThe students won a research award for their work in October during the 12th International Conference on Miniaturized Systems for Chemistry and Life Sciences in San Diego . Four young researcher poster awards were selected out of more than 220 posters judged in the contest. Findings also have been recently published in two peer-reviewed journals, Lab on a Chip and Microfluidics and Nanofluidics.\nThe experimental device consists of two parallel electrodes made of indium tin oxide, a transparent and electrically conductive material. The parallel plates were spaced 50 micrometers, or millionths of a meter, apart, equivalent to two-thousandths of an inch or about the diameter of a human hair. A liquid sample containing fluorescent beads was injected between the two electrodes, a laser in the near infrared range of the spectrum was shined through one of the transparent electrodes and a small electrical voltage was applied between the two electrodes.\n\"We send holograms of various patterns through this and, because they are holograms, we can create different shapes, such as straight lines or L patterns,\" Kumar said.\nThe particles in the liquid sample automatically move to the location of the light and assume the shape of the hologram, meaning the method could be used to not only move particles and molecules to specific locations but also to create tiny electronic or mechanical features.\n\"It's a very dynamic system, so we can change this pattern quickly,\" Kumar said.\nThe light heats up the liquid sample slightly, changing its density and electrical properties. The electric field applied to the plates acts on these altered properties, causing the heated sample to circulate, much like heated air causes convection currents in the atmosphere, producing a donut-shaped \"microfluidic vortex\" of circulating liquid between the two plates.\nThis vortex enables the researchers to position the particles in the circulating liquid by moving the laser light.\n\"You could take one particle, a hundred particles or a thousand particles and move them anywhere you want in any shape that you want,\" Williams said. \"If you have particles of two different types, you can sort one group out and keep the other behind. It's a versatile tool.\"\nSeparating particles is important for analyzing medical and environmental samples. The system could allow researchers to design sensor technologies that move particles to specific regions on an electronic chip for detection or analysis.\nThe technique overcomes limitations inherent in two existing methods for manipulating particles measured on the scale of nanometers, or billionths of a meter. One of those techniques, called optical trapping, uses a highly focused beam of light to capture and precisely position particles. That technique, however, is able to move only a small number of particles at a time.\nThe other technique, known as dielectrophoresis, uses electric fields generated from metallic circuits to move many particles at a time. Those circuit patterns, however, cannot be changed once they are created.\nThe new method is able to simultaneously position numerous particles and be changed at a moment's notice simply by changing the shape of the hologram or the position of the light.\n\"If you want to pattern individual particles on a massive scale using electrokinetic methods as precisely as we are doing it, it could take hours to days, where we are doing it in seconds,\" Williams said.\nThe method offers promise for future \"lab-on-a-chip\" technology, or using electronic chips to analyze biological samples for medical and environmental applications. Researchers are trying to develop such chips that have a \"high throughput,\" or the ability to quickly detect numerous particles or molecules, such as proteins, using the smallest sample possible.\n\"For example, a single drop of blood contains millions of red blood cells and countless molecules,\" Williams said. \"You always want to have the smallest sample possible so you don't generate waste and you don't have to use as many chemicals for processing the sample. You want to have a very efficient high throughput type of device.\"\nSo-called \"optical tweezers\" use light to position objects such as cells or molecules.\n\"You can't use mechanical tweezers to move things like molecules because they are too delicate and will be damaged by conventional tweezers,\" Kumar said. \"That is why techniques like optical tweezing and dielectrophoresis are very popular.\"\nThe students also have designed an experiment containing one indium tin oxide plate and one gold plate, an important development because gold is often used in biomedical applications.\n\"It's a technique that you would likely use in sensors, but we also see definite potential ways in which you could use it to manufacture devices with nanoassembly,\" Wereley said. \"But it's really too soon to talk about scaling this up in a manufacturing setting. We're just beginning to develop this technique.\"\nThe researchers recorded videos of the circulating particles to document the effect. A video showing the effect was selected as an outstanding entry during a meeting of the American Physical Society in November. The video can be accessed at http://ecommons.cornell.edu/handle/1813/11399 .\n\"This technique has not been done before,\" Williams said. \"We can pattern light, we can pattern particles, we can pattern the vortex. No other tool can do all of these.\"\nThe researchers demonstrated how the method could be used to cause particles to stick permanently to a surface in a single crystalline layer, a structure that could be used in manufacturing. They used their technique to move fluorescent-dyed beads of polystyrene, latex and glass in sizes ranging from 50 nanometers to 3 micrometers.\nFuture work may involve using a less expensive light source, such as a common laser pointer, which could not be used to create intricate patterns but might be practical for manufacturing.\nSource: Emil Venere http://www.purdue.edu/dp/Nanotechnology/news.php"}
{"text": "Student Health Checklist\nBeing a college student warrants a quick health check in order for you to remain healthy all school year. By following a few simple strategies, you can “rock on” in school, work and your social life.\nGet involved in regular cardio exercise\nfor 30 minutes five times a week such as walking, swimming, running or any other activity that increases your heart rate.\nDe-stress by deep breathing and stretching exercises\ntwo to three times a week. Spring for a DVD of yoga or get involved in a yoga class.\nGet plenty of sleep!\nThis is very important in every aspect of your life!! As a college student, it is recommended that you log six to eight hours per night.\nTake time out every half hour to stretch, walk around, or deep breathe if you are working at a computer.\nDrink plenty of water.\nDehydration can make you more vulnerable to illness and infections, therefore, it is important that you down plenty of non-alcoholic fluids. And if water isn’t your thing, juice, tea, and other beverages will work as well.\nUtilizing your BFFs.\nHaving the right friends and someone to talk to and count on is extremely important for your mental health. Seek out groups and activities that will attract new friends who will be supportive of you and vice versa\nEat your fruits and veggies.\nA good rule of thumb is to make sure that half of your plate is filled with fruits and vegetables as these foods are bursting with nutrients that help keep infection and diseases at bay.\nFight the flu.\nGet a flu shot to avoid being laid up this year for a week with fever and sickness. This vaccine is made available to each residential student and all Gallia County students in mid- October here at URG. Being a college student, you often are in close quarters with roomies and classmates, so make sure you get that flu shot!!\nBack off the alcohol.\nAlcohol has empty calories and is a risk factor for accidents, injuries and regrettable risky behaviors. Once you turn 21, try sticking to the recommended daily limit of no more than two beers or glasses of wine for men and one for women.\nKick the bad habits!\nRub snuff, smoke cigarettes or do other drugs? STOP!! All these can impose serious health threats so start kicking those bad habits today. Talk with your healthcare provider for assistance or check out your local health department"}
{"text": "Molecular Imaging: Seeing Cancer in Action Inside the Body\nOct. 8, 2009 – Molecular imaging can reveal how cancer cells communicate, how they move, what they need to survive and where they are vulnerable to attack. In this edition of Breakthroughs in Cancer Research, David Piwnica-Worms, MD, PhD, professor of developmental biology and radiology at Washington University School of Medicine, explains how molecular imaging is different from more traditional radiology techniques and discusses new discoveries coming out of the medical school’s Molecular Imaging Center.\nOther Siteman web resources.\nTRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO FILE\nOn this edition of Breakthroughs in Cancer Research, we’ll talk about how scientists are making it possible to see cancer in action inside the body. That’s providing new information on how to destroy cancer cells.\nHost: Thanks for downloading this podcast from the Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis. I’m Gwen Ericson. With techniques collectively called molecular imaging, scientists are finding new ways to detect cancer early, monitor cancer treatment and develop better cancer drugs. Molecular imaging can reveal cancer’s secrets, showing how cancer cells communicate, how they move, what they need to survive and where they are vulnerable to attack. To tell us more is David Piwnica-Worms. He is director of the Molecular Imaging Center at the Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology and the Siteman Cancer Center. Dr. Piwnica-Worms, thank you for joining us.\nPiwnica-Worms: Well thank you, Gwen. I’m happy to talk with you today.\nHost: Most of us have had experience with traditional kinds of medical imaging – things like X-rays, PET scans and ultrasound scans. But we’ve probably never encountered molecular imaging. Tell us about the distinction between traditional medical imaging and molecular imaging.\nPiwnica-Worms: In most of the traditional medical imaging that we may have experienced as patients or with family members, the focus of the imaging is on the anatomy and, in the context of cancer, on the mass or the size of the mass. But in molecular imaging, we’re actually interested in the details of the molecules that are inside the cancer. That is the biology or the biochemistry or metabolism of the cancer. We’re actually trying to image changes in those molecules and biochemistry that may even precede changes in the anatomy.\nHost: Give me an example of a molecular imaging technique.\nPiwnica-Worms: One strategy is in the general area that we call genetically encoded reporters. And that means we may take some genetic material from one organism and transfer it into another that may have favorable imaging properties. One such example that we make common use of is firefly luciferase. That is the same firefly that we see flying around in our backyards on a July day in St Louis. And the gene that actually makes the fireflies glow is called luciferase. We can actually use standard molecular biology and cloning techniques to transfer that luciferase gene from fireflies into a cancer cell, and we can watch the cancer glow and move around the body. Or it may tell us how it glows in response to different genes being expressed, or maybe how a protein, one of the building blocks, is processed. And those signals can tell us something about the metabolism and the gene expression inside those cancer cells using noninvasive imaging cameras.\nHost: Tell me more about what techniques like that reveal about cancer.\nPiwnica-Worms: One way to think of this is that cancer is like a baseball game where we don’t understand the rules. And you can imagine if you were taking a snapshot of Pujols at bat in the first inning, and then sometime later in the third inning you had a snapshot of Holliday running around a base path. And then at some other time, you had a snapshot of Ankiel making a long throw to third base from the outfield. What are the underlying rules that allow that to happen? If you knew nothing about the game of baseball and you had to try to put these together, dynamic views, continuous videos and movie loops would allow you to begin understanding those rules of why sequential events occur in a more dynamic and easy way than a series of random snapshots. And we hope that analogy sort of lets you know how we can look dynamically, continuously, over time with these noninvasive molecular imaging strategies at the baseball game of cancer that’s going on inside the cells.\nHost: In medical terms, what can molecular imaging do for us?\nPiwnica-Worms: A lot of the activities do relate to preclinical and basic type of cancer biology work. These help us better understand the cancer pathways, the rules that guide the metabolism of the cancer cell. These represent the new targets of tomorrow, where new drugs and combinations of drugs can actually help patients. And in some special cases, maybe even in a human, we can tag the drug and understand, is it actually hitting the cancer? Is it binding to its molecular target? And we can image that noninvasively and repetitively over time. And in another area that relates more directly to patients, there are some techniques like fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET. And this is a special subset of molecular imaging that is available today that does look at sugar metabolism in cancer. It can help us detect cancer at early stages or help guide therapeutic choices. That’s one area of molecular imaging that’s actually in the clinics today.\nHost: What are some of the latest discoveries to come out of the Molecular Imaging Center?\nPiwnica-Worms: We have a lot of activities going on both within our core groups and collaborators. Two areas of interest that have recently been published and explored involve one of these special pathways. It’s known scientifically as the beta-catenin pathway. It’s very, very important in colon cancer, and it also affects how cells grow and metastasize. And by using one of these luciferase strategies, we can now follow the time course of the regulation of the beta-catenin protein inside colon cancer cells.\nAnother area that’s been very interesting for us is we developed a new optical technique to look directly at inflammation in living animals. In inflammation that occurs around cancer, there is an enzyme known as myeloperoxidase. And it ends up that a small molecule that many people are familiar with known as luminal – which is the same small molecule that you see on CSI Miami that’s sprayed on blood – has a very highly sensitive response to the enzyme myeloperoxidase, which is one of the key enzymes in inflammation. We’ve developed some techniques now using that luminal where we can now look at this myeloperoxidase-mediated inflammation in mouse models, and maybe someday we might be able to look at that in humans and help us follow inflammatory processes related to cancer.\nHost: Tell me about what the Molecular Imaging Center itself is like.\nPiwnica-Worms: Well, the Molecular Imaging Center itself is really two main components – a physical center, if you will, and a virtual center. The physical center is the founding faculty investigators who are physically in our laboratory space, all interacting on a daily basis with our laboratories, ourselves and the imaging cores that are in my lab and the investigators’ labs around. And then in addition, we’re tied together by a National Institutes of Health Molecular Imaging Center grant that helps support the cores and the broad array of investigators. We have projects that are ongoing with collaborators in cancer biology and immunology and pharmacology and biochemistry – all interested in studying biology noninvasively through these molecular imaging strategies so that we can try to pry basic biology done with traditional reductionist approaches together with these new dynamic strategies in living cells and live animals and ultimately patients.\nHost: Dr. Piwnica-Worms, thank you for joining us.\nPiwnica-Worms: You’re welcome.\nHost: If you are interested in learning more about the Molecular Imaging Center, please visit its Web site at mic.wustl.edu."}
{"text": "BSA Supply No. 35940\nIf you have ever wanted to go back in time or wished you could visit the future, if you are curious about the world, or if you are interested in how things work or like to learn new things, these are all reasons why you should want to read. Reading is fascinating. It's full of surprises. And it will take you places you can't get to in any other way.\n- Do EACH of the following:\n- Learn how to search your library's card catalog or computerized catalog by author,\ntitle, and subject.\n- With the assistance of your merit badge counselor or a librarian, select six books\nof four different types (such as poetry, drama/plays, fiction, nonfiction, biographies,\netc.). Ask your librarian or counselor about award-winning books that are recommended\nfor readers your age and include at least one of those titles.\n- Find the books in the library catalog. With your counselor's or a librarian's assistance,\nlocate the books on the shelves.\n- Read each book. Keep a log of your reading that includes the title of the book,\nthe pages or chapters read, the date you completed them, and your thoughts about\nwhat you have read so far. Discuss your reading with your counselor. Using your\nlog as a reference, explain why you chose each book and tell whether you enjoyed\nit and what it meant to you.\n- Read about the world around you from any two sources--books, magazines, newspapers,\nthe Internet (with your parent's permission), field manuals, etc. Topics may include\nsports, environmental problems, politics, social issues, current events, nature,\nreligion, etc. Discuss what you have learned with your counselor.\n- Do ONE of the following:\n- From a catalog of your choice, fill out an order form for merchandise as if you\nintended to place an order. Share the completed form with your counselor and discuss\n- With your parent's permission, locate at least five Web sites that are helpful for\nyour Scouting or other activities. Write the Internet addresses of these sites in\nyour log. Talk with your counselor or a librarian about safety rules for using the\n- With your counselor's and your parent's permission, choose ONE of the following\nactivities and devote at least four hours of service to that activity. Discuss your\nparticipation with your counselor.\n- Read to a sick, blind, or homebound person in a hospital or in an extended-care\n- Perform volunteer work at your school library or a public library.\n- Read stories to younger children, in a group or individually.\n- Best Books for Young Adults - http://www.ala.org/ yalsa/booklists/bbya\n- BookSpot: Young Adult Books - http://www.bookspot.com/ youngadult.htm\n- Choices Booklists - http://www.reading.org/ choices\n- National Book Awards for Young People's Literature - http://www.literature-awards. com/national_book_awards.html\n- Newbery Medal Winners and Honor Books - http://www.ala.org/alsc/ newbpast.html\n- 100 Best Books for Children - http://www.teachersfirst.com/ 100books.htm\n- Summer Reading Lists - http://www.educationworld. com/summer_reading\n- Teenreads.com - http://www.teenreads.com\n- U.S. Children's Book Awards - http://www.ucalgary.ca/~dkbrown/ usawards.html\n- The Online Books Page - http://digital.library.upenn.edu/books\n- Project Gutenberg - http://gutenberg.net\nP.O. Box 152350\nIrving, TX 75015-2350\nWeb site: http://www.boyslife.org\n30 Grove St., Suite C\nPeterborough, NH 03458\nToll-free telephone: 800-821-0115\nWeb site: http://www.cobblestonepub. com/pages/callmain.htm\nCicada and Cricket\nP.O. Box 7434\nRed Oak, IA 51591-0433\nToll-free telephone: 800-821-0115\nWeb site: http://www.cricketmag.com\n149 Fifth Ave.\nNew York, NY 10010\nWeb site: http://www.kidsdiscover.com\nSAS Campus Drive\nCary, NC 27513\nWeb site: http://www.ncsu.edu/midlink\nNational Geographic Kids\nP.O. Box 63002\nTampa, FL 33663-3002\nToll-free telephone: 800-647-5463\nWeb site: http://www.nationalgeographic. com/ngkids\nP.O. Box 3939\nEugene, OR 97403\nWeb site: http://www.skippingstones.org\nSports Illustrated for Kids\nP.O. Box 60001\nTampa, FL 33660-0001\nToll-free telephone: 800-992-0196\nWeb site: http://www.sikids.com\nP.O. Box 83\nSanta Cruz, CA 95063\nToll-free telephone: 800-447-4569\nWeb site: http://www.stonesoup.com\n- Internet Public Library - http://www.ipl.org/div/news\n- Refdesk.com - http://www.refdesk.com/paper.html\n- Barron's Profiles of American Colleges. Barron's Educational Series, annual.\n- Books in Print. Bowker, annual.\n- Contemporary Authors. Gale, annual.\n- Current Biography. H. W. Wilson, annual.\n- Guinness World Records. Bantam Books, annual.\n- Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature. H. W. Wilson, annual.\n- Subject Guide to Books in Print. Bowker, annual.\n- Subject Guide to Children's Books in Print. Bowker, annual.\nWeb Directories, Search Engines, and Web Guides\n- The Alphabet Superhighway - http://www.ash.udel.edu/ash\n- Cool Sites for Kids - http://www.ala.org/alsc/children_links.html\n- Internet Search Engines for Kids - http://www.ivyjoy.com/rayne/kidssearch.html\n- Kids and Teens: Directories - http://dmoz.org/Kids_and_ Teens/Directories\n- Kids Pick - http://www.ala.org/kidspick\n- KidSpace - http://www.ipl.org/div/ kidspace\n- Great Web Sites for Kids - http://www.ala.org/parentspage/greatsites/amazing.html\n- Teen Hoopla- http://www.ala.org/ teenhoopla/sitemap.html\n- TeenSpace - http://www.ipl.org/div/teen\nAmerica's Literacy Directory\nWeb site: http://www.literacydirectory.org\nAmerican Federation for the Blind\n11 Penn Plaza, Suite 300\nNew York, NY 10001\nToll-free telephone: 800-232-5463\nWeb site: http://www.afb.org\nThe Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy\n1201 15th St. NW, Suite 420\nWashington, DC 20005\nWeb site: http://www.barbarabushfoundation.com\nNational Literacy Hotline\nToll-free telephone: 800-228-8813\nRead Across America\nNational Education Association\n1201 16th St., NW\nWashington, DC 20036\nWeb site: http://www.nea.org/readacross\nReading Is Fundamental Inc.\n1825 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 400\nWashington, DC 20009\nToll-free telephone: 877-RIF-READ\nWeb site: http://www.rif.org"}
{"text": "Green buildings are designed, constructed and operated for the purpose of providing the occupants with a space that is both healthy and productive, while also being energy efficient and sustainable. Unfortunately, current approaches to green building design and construction don’t always meet occupants’ indoor environmental quality (IEQ) needs for “acoustic comfort.”\nAcoustic comfort refers to an indoor environment that is conducive to providing speech intelligibility, speech privacy, low distractions and annoyance, and sound quality.\nAnd, according to ongoing research at the Center for the Built Environment (CBE), it is the lowest performing IEQ factor in green buildings. Moreover, in all buildings surveyed, the level of acoustic satisfaction was rated as the lowest performance IEQ factor, and the only negative (dissatisfaction) factor overall.\nThere is no need, however, to sacrifice good acoustics when selecting products for green buildings. Architects and interior designers do not have to choose between sustainability, design and acoustic needs—they can have all three.\nOutlined below are a number of acoustic considerations for green buildings in three market segments: healthcare facilities, commercial offices and educational facilities.\nAcoustics are a key element in the IEQ of healthcare facilities because they play an important role in supporting the safety, health and well-being of patients and staff alike.\nIn general, ambient noise levels in hospitals are high, and have been shown to be a source of annoyance and stress to both patients and staff. They can also interfere with the staff’s ability to work effectively. Because of this, both the FGI 2010 Guidelines and LEED for Healthcare address the issue.\nOne reason healthcare facilities are so noisy is the predominance of hard, sound-reflecting surfaces that cause speech and activity sounds to persist much too long. When acoustic conditions are characterized by long reverberation, spoken words are perceived to overlap, resulting in reduced speech intelligibility.\nTo reduce reverberation and noise levels, acoustical ceiling panels should have a noise reduction coefficient (NRC) of 0.70 or greater. (The NRC indicates the average percentage of sound a material absorbs; an NRC of 0.70 means the material absorbs about 70 percent of the sound that strikes it.) They should also meet healthcare standards for washability, mold and microbial resistance, and fire safety. Ceiling panels with these characteristics are ideal for patient rooms, treatment rooms and other spaces that require a balance of cleanliness and quiet.\nCeiling panels with a NRC of 0.95 are recommended for areas that require even higher levels of sound absorption to ensure patient privacy and meet HIPAA regulations. These include open plan spaces such as waiting areas, pharmacies, nurses’ stations and closed plan spaces where walls extend up to the deck above.\nWhether for a space with cubicles and teaming areas or private offices and conference rooms, there are acoustic options that also address sustainable needs. For example, a wide range of continuous and wall-to-wall acoustical ceilings are available that not only enhance the acoustic environment, but also contain high recycled content and can be recycled at the end of their service life.\nThere are also a variety of “free-floating” ceiling treatments including acoustical clouds, canopies and baffles that are ideal for open plenum or exposed structure spaces—a design trend in green buildings that continues to grow.\nUnfortunately, this “warehouse look” can often cause acoustical problems due to sound reflecting off the deck, resulting in excessive reverberation. Any large space of this type will usually need some sound-absorbing elements to help control noise and reverberation within it. In addition, if the exposed deck is less than 15 feet high, reflections between open plan cubicles can cause distractions for nearby occupants.\nDesigned for use in either new construction or retrofit applications, acoustical clouds, canopies and baffles can add sound absorption in open spaces, provide visual interest and make a design statement, all without sacrificing that exposed look.\nAvailable in a myriad of shapes, acoustical ceiling clouds suspended above work areas provide a type of interrupted ceiling plane. As such, they help control both distant reverberations and reflections, reducing occupant annoyance and distractions. Acoustical clouds actually provide greater sound absorption than a continuous ceiling of the same surface area because they absorb sound on both their front and back surfaces. In fact, reverberation time can be reduced nearly 50 percent with only 20 percent coverage.\nAcoustical canopies also help reduce reverberation in the space below them, but are much different in size and look compared to acoustical clouds. For example, cloud systems are available in standard sizes up to 14 by 14 feet, while canopies are usually 3 by 3 or 4 by 6 feet in size. Visually, acoustical clouds are flat, while canopies are curved and can be installed as hills or valleys.\nCurrently, there is no standard credit in the IEQ section of LEED for acoustic performance. However, an innovation credit can be applied for by demonstrating that the acoustics of a building are superior to what would normally be considered typical, thereby improving the quality of the indoor environment. The LEED v4 proposal (in a fifth public comment at the time of this writing) does, however, include a requirement for acoustic performance as part of the IEQ section.\nConsidering that the primary mode of teaching involves speech and listening, the quality of the acoustic environment in a classroom is crucial. LEED for Schools recognized the unique nature of the design and use of K-12 schools, and was the first of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) rating systems to include acoustics as an integral and important element of IEQ.\nTo provide classrooms that enhance learning, LEED for Schools includes a minimum acoustical performance prerequisite. To meet it, two requirements must be achieved:\n- Classrooms and other core learning spaces must include sufficient sound-absorptive finishes to comply with a maximum reverberation time of 0.60 seconds (classrooms less than 20,000 cubic feet).\n- Classrooms and other core learning spaces must meet a maximum background noise level from HVAC systems of 45 decibels A-weighted (dBA).\nCompliance with the first requirement is accomplished in one of two ways:\n- By confirming that 100 percent of all ceiling areas (excluding lights, diffusers and grilles) are finished with a material that has a NRC of 0.70 or higher.\n- By confirming that the total area of acoustical wall panels, ceiling finishes and other sound-absorbent finishes equals or exceeds the total ceiling area of the room (excluding lights, diffusers and grilles). All materials in the calculation must have an NRC of 0.70 or higher.\nThe proper use of sound-absorbing materials will significantly reduce reverberation, however, the location of acoustic treatments is a vital consideration. In classrooms where there is no fixed position for the teacher and ceiling heights are about 10 feet, the best and most cost-effective option is to place most, if not all, of the sound-absorbing material on the ceiling, in the form of a suspended acoustical ceiling.\nIf ceiling heights are greater than 12 feet, an increasing amount of sound-absorbing material should be placed on the walls. If there is no possibility for wall treatment, consider placing three-dimensional furnishings such as bookshelves along the walls to ensure sound waves are scattered, thereby reducing the possibility of distant echoes.\nKenneth P. Roy, Ph.D., FASA, is a senior principal research scientist for acoustic technologies for Armstrong Building Products in Lancaster, Pa. He can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.org."}
{"text": "Young children have very short attention spans, which is not surprising given that the optimum study time for an adult is 40 to 45 minutes. So it's quite normal for your students' attention to stray. Also teaching young children is very different to working with adults, you just need to make a few adjustments to how you go about the classes.\nYou need to think about lots of short activities when you are planning your lessons. At the beginning, this will be very time-consuming as you will need to think through each activity when planning. As time goes by, you will build up a bank of short activities (eg a song, a chant, a nursery rhyme, games such as I spy) that the children are familiar with and that you can introduce when you feel a change is needed. As children get used to your style of teaching, the classroom rules and the types of activity, it will be easier to introduce these short activities into the lesson.\nYou should also think about pace and variety when you are planning. Some activities should involve whole class focus on the teacher, some should include individual work requiring reflection, some should involve group work and some should include physical movement. The changing focus will also stimulate children, re-focus their attention or calm them down.\nYou should also insist on having full attention when you are working with or addressing the whole class, for example when telling a story. Children need to understand that when you are talking they should stop what they are doing and listen to you. You could use a signal to indicate when this is necessay, for example clapping your hands.\nI'm sure that with time you will get used to teaching children and it will seem less tiring the more you do it."}
{"text": "Behaviour-driven development is an “outside-in” methodology. It starts at the outside by identifying business outcomes, and then drills down into the feature set that will achieve those outcomes. Each feature is captured as a “story”, which defines the scope of the feature along with its acceptance criteria. This article introduces the BDD approach to defining and identifying stories and their acceptance criteria.\nSoftware delivery is about writing software to achieve business outcomes. It sounds obvious, but often political or environmental factors distract us from remembering this. Sometimes software delivery can appear to be about producing optimistic reports to keep senior management happy, or just creating “busy work” to keep people in paid employment, but that’s a topic for another day.\nUsually, the business outcomes are too coarse-grained to be used to directly write software (where do you start coding when the outcome is “save 5% of my operating costs”?) so we need to define requirements at some intermediate level in order to get work done.\nBehaviour-driven development (BDD) takes the position that you can turn an idea for a requirement into implemented, tested, production-ready code simply and effectively, as long as the requirement is specific enough that everyone knows what’s going on. To do this, we need a way to describe the requirement such that everyone – the business folks, the analyst, the developer and the tester – have a common understanding of the scope of the work. From this they can agree a common definiton of “done”, and we escape the dual gumption traps of “that’s not what I asked for” or “I forgot to tell you about this other thing”.\nThis, then, is the role of a Story. It has to be a description of a requirement and its business benefit, and a set of criteria by which we all agree that it is “done”. This is a more rigorous definition than in other agile methodologies, where it is variously described as a “promise of a conversation” or a “description of a feature”. (A BDD story can just as easily describe a non-functional requirement, as long as the work can be scoped, estimated and agreed on.)\nThe structure of a story\nBDD provides a structure for a story. This is not mandatory – you can use a different story format and still be doing BDD – but I am presenting it here because it has been proven to work on many projects of all shapes and sizes. At the very least, your story should contain all of the elements described in the template. The story template looks like this:\nTitle (one line describing the story) Narrative: As a [role] I want [feature] So that [benefit] Acceptance Criteria: (presented as Scenarios) Scenario 1: Title Given [context] And [some more context]... When [event] Then [outcome] And [another outcome]... Scenario 2: ...\nTelling the story\nA story should be the product of a conversation involving several people. A business analyst talks to a business stakeholder1 about the feature or requirement, and helps them to frame it as a story narrative. Then a tester helps define the scope of the story – in the form of acceptance criteria – by determining which scenarios matter and which are less useful. A technical representitive will provide a ballpark estimate of the amount of work involved in the story, and to propose alternative approaches. Many great ideas for systems come from the people developing them as well as the people who asked for them in the first place.\nThis will likely be an iterative process. The stakeholder will have an idea of what they want but will usually not know how much work will be involved, or how that work will be allocated. With the help of the technical and testing experts, they will understand the cost/benefit trade-off of each scenario and can make a judgement about whether they want it. Of course this is also balanced up against the other requirements: is it better to cover more edge cases in this story, or to move on to another story?\nSometimes the development team will simply not know enough to be able to make even a ballpark estimate. In this case they may choose to carry out some investigative work, known as a “spike”, in order to understand more about the requirement. (I will cover planning in more detail in a future article.)\nThe characteristics of a good story\nUsing the example from the article Introducing BDD, let’s look at the requirements for withdrawing cash from an ATM:\nStory: Account Holder withdraws cash As an Account Holder I want to withdraw cash from an ATM So that I can get money when the bank is closed Scenario 1: Account has sufficient funds Given the account balance is \\$100 And the card is valid And the machine contains enough money When the Account Holder requests \\$20 Then the ATM should dispense \\$20 And the account balance should be \\$80 And the card should be returned Scenario 2: Account has insufficient funds Given the account balance is \\$10 And the card is valid And the machine contains enough money When the Account Holder requests \\$20 Then the ATM should not dispense any money And the ATM should say there are insufficient funds And the account balance should be \\$20 And the card should be returned Scenario 3: Card has been disabled Given the card is disabled When the Account Holder requests \\$20 Then the ATM should retain the card And the ATM should say the card has been retained Scenario 4: The ATM has insufficient funds ...\nAs you can see, there are a number of scenarios to consider, some related to the account balance, others about the card and yet others about the ATM itself. Let’s dissect the story to determine whether it is any good.\nThe title should describe an activity\nThe title of the story, “Account Holder withdraws cash”, describes an activity that the account holder wants to carry out. Until we implement this feature, the account holder won’t be able to withdraw money from the ATM. Once we have delivered it, they will. That gives us an obvious starting point for determining what “done” looks like.\nIf we had a title like “Account management” or “ATM behaviour”, we would have to look harder to understand when we were finished, and the edges would be a lot more fuzzy. For instance, “account management” might incorporate applying for a loan, and “ATM behaviour” might encompass changing the PIN number on my cash card. The story title should always describe actual behaviour by a user of the system.\nThe narrative should include a role, a feature and a benefit\nThe template “As a [role] I want [feature] so that [benefit]“ has a number of advantages. By specifying the role within the narrative, you know who to talk to about the feature. By specifying the benefit, you cause the story writer to consider why they want a feature.\nIt gets interesting if you find the feature won’t actually deliver the benefit attributed to it. This usually means you have a missing story. There is one story with the current feature, which delivers a different benefit (and is therefore still useful), and a hidden story whereby you will need a different feature to deliver the benefit described.\nThe example story tells us there is an Account Holder who cares about the feature being delivered, so we know where to start exploring what it should do.\nThe scenario title should say what’s different\nYou should be able to line up the scenarios side by side, and describe how they differ using only the title. In our example, we can see that the scenario descriptions say only what’s different between each scenario. You don’t need to say “an account holder withdraws money from an account with insufficient funds and is told they are unable to fulfull the transaction”. It’s obvious from the title whether this is the scenario you care about, compared to the others.\nThe scenario should be described in terms of Givens, Events and Outcomes\nThis is the single most powerful behavioural shift I have seen in teams adopting BDD. Simply by getting the business users, the analysts, the testers and the developers to adopt this vocabulary of “given/when/then”, they discover that a world of ambiguity falls away.\nNot all scenarios are this simple. Some are best represented as a sequence of events, described as: given [some context] when [I do something] then [this happens] when [I do another thing] then [this new thing happens] and so on. An example is a wizard-style website, where you step through a sequence of screens to build up a complex data model. It is perfectly appropriate to intermingle sequences of events and outcomes, as long as you get into the habit of thinking in these terms.\nOne interesting emergent behaviour is that the quality of the conversation changes. You will quickly discover that you have missed out an assumed given (“well of course the account is overdrawn”), or forgotten to verify an outcome (“well naturally the account holder gets their card back”). I observed this on one particular project where the lead developer told me he could sense the analysts and developers were talking at cross purposes, but couldn’t see a way to demonstrate this to them. Within a few days of introducing the given/when/then vocabulary, he could see a dramatic improvement in the quality of their interactions.\nThe givens should define all of, and no more than, the required context\nAny additional givens are distracting, which makes it hard for someone looking at the story for the first time – whether from the technical or business side – to understand what they need to know. Similarly any missing givens are really assumptions. If you can get a different outcome from the givens provided, then there must be something missing.\nIn the example, the first scenario says something about the account balance, the card and the ATM itself. All of these are required to fully define the scenario. In the third scenario, we don’t say anything about the account balance or whether the ATM has any money. This implies that the machine will retain the card whatever the account balance, and whatever the state of the ATM.\nThe event should describe the feature\nThe event itself should be very simple, typically only a single call into the production code. As discussed above, some scenarios are more complicated than this, but mostly the scenarios for a story will revolve around a single event. They will differ only in the context (the givens) and the corresponding expected outcomes.\nThe story should be small enough to fit in an iteration\nThere are no hard and fast rules about how you do this, as long as you break it down into demonstrable chunks. In general if there are more than about five or six scenarios, a story can probably be broken down by grouping similar scenarios together.\nWe can’t tell from the ATM example how many more scenarios there are for this story, but I am suspicious that there may be several more. Essentially we have three “moving parts” in this story, namely the account balance, the status of the cash card and the state of the ATM. We could get into more detail with the cash card: what if it is out of date, so I can’t use it to withdraw cash but the ATM still returns it to me? What if the ATM breaks partway through the transaction? What if my account has an overdraft facility?\nIt might be better to break the story out into several smaller stories:\n- Account Holder withdraws cash (assumptions: ATM is working and card is valid)\n- Account Holder withdraws cash with invalid card (assumptions: ATM is working)\n- Account Holder withdraws cash from flaky ATM (assumptions: card is valid)\nAlthough this may seem artificial, it allows you to demonstrate progress in business terms and gives you more data points to track with. The important thing is always to break the story out along business lines by scenarios (and making the assumptions explicit) rather than along technical lines (e.g. doing the database stuff in this iteration and the GUI stuff in the next iteration). This is so the business can see demonstrable progress on their own terms rather than just taking your word for it.\nSo how is this different from Use Cases?\nThere are use cases and there are use cases. I’m a huge fan of the way Alistair Cockburn describes use cases (as opposed to the over-engineered versions I have encountered on RUP-as-waterfall projects). Given that I don’t have much experience on use case-driven projects, I’ll leave it to others to draw the comparisons.\nCertainly I agree with his process of starting at the lower precision (of an outcome, or goal) and working towards higher precisions, taking in more exception scenarios as you go. In BDD, this means starting with the business outcome, and working through high level functional areas to drill into specific stories with acceptance criteria.\nIn reality, it doesn’t matter what your process is to identify and elaborate requirements. It’s fine for you to write requirements documents if that helps you organise your thoughts. It’s not fine, however, to pass those documents along as if they actually encapsulated all your thoughts, because they don’t. Instead, you should put the requirements document, or stack of use cases, to one side and start over defining stories from business outcomes, safe in the knowledge that your hard work has meant that you have all the answers in your head – or at least a good enough understanding to outline the work as you currently see it.\nBehaviour-driven development uses a story as the basic unit of functionality, and therefore of delivery. The acceptance criteria are an intrinsic part of the story – in effect they define the scope of its behaviour, and give us a shared definition of “done”. They are also used as the basis for estimation when we come to do our planning.\nMost importantly, the stories are the result of conversations between the project stakeholders, business analysts, testers and developers. BDD is as much about the interactions between the various people in the project as it is about the outputs of the development process.\n1. Actually it should be the person who actually cares about the feature, so it may equally be an operational, legal or security person depending on the story."}
{"text": "Battle of Caporetto\nThe Battle of Caporetto (also known as the Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo or the Battle of Karfreit as it was known by the Central Powers), took place from 24 October to 19 November 1917, near the town of Kobarid (now in Slovenia), on the Austro-Italian front of World War I. The battle was named after the Italian name of the town of Kobarid (known as Karfreit in German).\nAustro-Hungarian forces, reinforced by German units, were able to break into the Italian front line and rout the Italian army, which had practically no mobile reserves. The battle was a demonstration of the effectiveness of the use of stormtroopers and the infiltration tactics developed in part by Oskar von Hutier. The use of poison gas by the Germans played a key role in the collapse of the Italian Second Army.\n||This section needs additional citations for verification. (October 2012)|\nThe Austrian offensive began at approximately 02:00 on 24 October 1917. Due to the inclement weather that morning, particularly the mist, the Italians were caught by complete surprise. The battle opened with a German artillery barrage, poison gas, and smoke, and was followed by an all-out assault against the Italian lines. The Italians had outdated gas masks, gave no counter fire and had given the Germans all the weather information they needed over their radio. The defensive line of the Italian Second Army was breached between the IV and XXVII Corps almost immediately. The German forces made extensive use of flamethrowers and hand grenades as a part of their infiltration tactics, and were able to tear gaping holes in the Italian line, especially in the Italian strongholds on Mount Matajur and the Kolovrat Range. By the end of the first night, von Below's men had advanced a remarkable 25 km (16 mi). German and Austro-Hungarian attacks from either side of von Below's central column were less effective, however. The Italian Army had been able to repel the majority of these attacks, but the success of von Below's central thrust threw the entire Italian Army into disarray. Forces had to be moved along the Italian front in an attempt to stem von Below's breakout, but this only weakened other points along the line and invited further attacks. At this point, the entire Italian position on the Tagliamento River was under threat.\n2nd army commander Luigi Capello was Italy's best general but was bedridden with fever while still retaining command. Realizing his forces were ill-prepared for this attack and were being routed, Capello requested permission to withdraw back to the Tagliamento. He was overruled by Cadorna, however, who believed that the Italian force could regroup and hold out against the attackers. Finally, on 30 October, Cadorna ordered the majority of the Italian force to retreat to the other side of the river. It took the Italians four full days to cross the river, and by this time the German and Austro-Hungarian armies were on their heels. By 2 November, a German division had established a bridgehead on the Tagliamento. About this time, however, the rapid success of the attack caught up with them. The German and Austro-Hungarian supply lines were stretched to breaking point, and as a result, they were not able to launch another concerted attack. Cadorna took advantage of this to retreat further, and by 10 November had established a position on the Piave River.\nFailures of German Logistics \nEven before the battle, Germany was struggling to feed and supply its armies in the field. Erwin Rommel, who, as a junior officer, won the Pour le Mérite for his exploits in the battle, often bemoaned the demands placed upon his \"poorly fed troops\". The Allied blockade of the German Empire, which the Kaiserliche Marine had been unable to break, was responsible for food shortages and widespread malnutrition in Germany and the Central Powers in general. When inadequate provisioning was combined with the gruelling night marches preceding the battle of Caporetto (Kobarid), a heavy toll was extracted from the German and Austro-Hungarian forces. Despite these logistical problems, the initial assault was extremely successful. However, as the area controlled by the combined Central Powers forces expanded, an already limited logistical capacity was overstrained. By the time the attack reached the Piave, the soldiers of the Central Powers were running low on supplies and were feeling the physical effects of exhaustion. As the Italians began to counter the pressure put on them by the Central Powers, the German forces lost all momentum and were once again caught up in another round of attrition warfare.\nItalian losses were enormous: 10,000 were killed, 30,000 wounded and 265,000 were taken prisoner – morale was so low among the Italian troops, mainly due to Cadorna's harsh disciplinary regime, that most of these surrendered willingly. Furthermore, roughly 3,000 guns, 3,000 machine guns and 2,000 mortars were captured, along with an untold amount of stores and equipment. Rommel, then an Oberleutnant, captured 1,500 men and 43 officers with just 3 riflemen and 2 officers to help. Austro-Hungarian and German forces advanced more than 100 km (62 mi) in the direction of Venice, but they were not able to cross the Piave River. Although to this point the Italians had been left to fight on their own, after Kobarid (Caporetto) they were reinforced by six French infantry divisions and five British infantry divisions as well as sizeable air contingents. However, these troops played no role in stemming the advancing Germans and Austro-Hungarians, because they were deployed on the Mincio River, some 60 miles behind the Piave, as the British and French strategists did not believe the Piave line could be held. The Piave served as a natural barrier where the Italians could establish a new defensive line, which was held during the subsequent Battle of the Piave River and later served as springboard for the Battle of Vittorio Veneto, where the Austro-Hungarian army was finally defeated after four days of stiff resistance.\nLuigi Cadorna was forced to resign after the defeat. The defeat alone was not the sole cause, but rather the breaking point for an accumulation of failures, as perceived by the Italian Prime Minister, Vittorio Emanuele Orlando. Throughout much of his command, including at Kobarid (Caporetto), Cadorna was known to have maintained poor relations with the other generals on his staff. By the start of the battle he had sacked 217 generals, 255 colonels and 355 battalion commanders. In addition, he was detested by his troops as being too harsh. He was replaced by Armando Diaz and Pietro Badoglio. He had already been directing the battle 20 miles behind before fleeing another 100 miles to Padua.\nThis led governments to the realization that fear alone could not adequately motivate a modern army. After the defeat at Caporetto, Italian propaganda offices were established, promising land and social justice to soldiers. Italy also accepted a more cautious military strategy from this point on. General Diaz concentrated his efforts on rebuilding his shattered forces while taking advantage of the national rejuvenation that had been spurred by invasion and defeat.\nAfter this battle, the term \"Caporetto\" gained a particular resonance in Italy. It is used to denote a terrible defeat – the failed General Strike of 1922 by the socialists was referred to by Mussolini as the \"Caporetto of Italian Socialism\". Many years after the war, Caporetto was still being used to destroy the credibility of the liberal state.\nPopular culture \nThe Battle of Caporetto has been the subject of a number of books. The Swedish author F.J. Nordstedt (i.e. Christian Braw) wrote about the battle in his novel Caporetto. The bloody aftermath of Caporetto was vividly described by Ernest Hemingway in his novel A Farewell to Arms. Curzio Malaparte wrote an excoriation of the battle in his first book, Viva Caporetto, published in 1921. It was censored by the state and suppressed; it was finally published in 1980.\n- Tucker, Spencer C. (11 November 2010). Battles That Changed History: An Encyclopedia of World Conflict. United States: ABC-CLIO. p. 430. ISBN 978-1-59884-429-0. Retrieved 16 September 2012.\n- Tucker, Spencer C.; Roberts, Priscilla Mary (25 October 2005). World War I: A Student Encyclopedia. United States: ABC-CLIO. p. 431. ISBN 1-85109-879-8. Retrieved 5 August 2012. \"By 10 November Italian losses were 10,000 dead, 30,000 wounded, and 265,000 prisoners (about 350,000 stragglers from the Second Army did manage to reach the Piave line). The army had also lost 3,152 artillery pieces of a preoffensive total of 6,918. An additional 1,712 heavy trench mortars and 3,000 machine guns had been captured or abandoned in the retreat, along with vast amounts of other military equipment, especially as the rapid withdrawal had prevented the removal of heavy weapons and equipment across the Isonzo River. In contrast, the attackers had sustained about 70,000 casualties.\"\n- Seth, Ronald (1965). Caporetto: The Scapegoat Battle. Macdonald. p. 147\n- Stearns, Peter; Langer, William (2001). The Encyclopedia of World History (6th ed.). Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 669. ISBN 0-395-65237-5.\n- Dupuy & Dupuy (1970), p. 971\n- Geoffrey Regan, More Military Blunders, page 161\n- Macksey, Kenneth (1997). Rommel: Battles and Campaigns. Da Capo Press. p. 224. ISBN 0-306-80786-6.\n- Simkins, Peter; Jukes, Geoffrey; Hickey, Michael (2003). The First World War. Osprey Publishing. p. 352. ISBN 1-84176-738-7.\n- Townley, Edward (2002). Collier, Martin, ed. Mussolini and Italy. Heinemann. p. 16. ISBN 0-435-32725-9.\n- Geoffrey Regan, More Military Blunders, page 160\n- Morselli, Mario (2001). Caporetto, 1917: Victory Or Defeat?. Routledge. p. 133. ISBN 0-7146-5073-0.\nFurther reading \n- Connelly, O. On War and Leadership: The Words of Combat Commanders from Frederick the Great to Norman Schwarzkopf, 2002 ISBN 0-691-03186-X\n- Dupuy R. E., &, Dupuy, T. N., The Encyclopedia of Military History, (revised edition), Jane's Publishing Company, 1970, SBN 356 02998 0\n- Morselli, M. Caporetto 1917: Victory or Defeat?, 2001 ISBN 0-7146-5073-0\n- Reuth, R. G. Rommel: The End of a Legend, 2005 ISBN 1-904950-20-5\n- Seth, Ronald: Caporetto: The Scapegoat Battle. Macdonald, 1965\n- Cavallaro, G. V. Futility Ending in Disaster. Xlibris, 2009\n|Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Battle of Caporetto|\n- Walks of Peace in the Soea Region Foundation: The Battles of the Isonzo, 1915–17\n- Pro Hereditate: The Isonzo Front\n- (Italian) La Grande Guerra: Novant'anni fa la Battaglia di Caporetto\n- The Battle of Caporetto, 1917"}
{"text": "The Racial Geography of the Federal Death Penalty\nScholars have devoted substantial attention to both the overrepresentation of black defendants on federal death row and the disproportionate number of federal defendants charged capitally for the murder of white victims. This attention has not explained (much less resolved) these disquieting racial disparities. Little research has addressed the unusual geography of the federal death penalty, in which a small number of jurisdictions are responsible for the vast majority of federal death sentences. By addressing the unique geography, we identify a possible explanation for the racial distortions in the federal death penalty: that federal death sentences are sought disproportionately where the expansion of the venire from the county to the district level has a dramatic demographic impact on the racial make-up of the jury. This inquiry demonstrates that the conversation concerning who should make up the jury of twelve neighbors and peers - a discussion begun well before the founding of our Constitution - continues to have relevance today. This Article documents the historical and racial relationships between place and the ability to seat an impartial jury. We then discuss the unique impact demographic shifts in the jury pool have on death penalty decision making. Finally, we propose three possible solutions: (1) a simple, democracyenhancing fix through a return to the historical conception of the county as the place of vicinage in federal capital trials; (2) a Batson-type three-step process for rooting out the influence of race on the decision to prosecute federally; and/or (3) voluntary measures by the Attorney General to mask demographic and location identifiers when deciding whether to provide federal death-authorization. We explain why a return to county-level jury pools in federal capital cases (whether through statutory construction, legislative change, or through the authority of a fair-minded Attorney General) prospectively limits the impact of race on the operation of the federal death penalty, without establishing the intractability of the federal death penalty as a whole. Finally, we observe that any effort to study the federal death penalty cannot merely address those federal cases in which the Attorney General has considered whether to approve an effort to seek the death penalty, but must also include an assessment of the cases prosecuted in state court that could be prosecuted federally and the prosecutorial decision concerning when and whether to prosecute in federal court.\nRobert J. Smith and G. Ben Cohen. \"The Racial Geography of the Federal Death Penalty\" Washington Law Review (2010)."}
{"text": "Two well-preserved sections of the Antonine Wall are located at Hillfoot Cemetery, about a mile from the Roman bath at Bearsden, located in in southwestern Scotland near Glasgow. The exposed sections, within easy walking distance of each other, are stone footings which lay at the base of the Wall. They provide vivid examples of the massive size and careful construction methods used in the Wall.\n(Figs.1,2: Exposed footings of Antonine Wall in Hillfoot (Photos: Athena Review).]\nThese portions of the ancient wall were exposed in 1903 and 1922, during expansion of the cemetery. The Antonine Wall at this location was originally 4.3 meters wide, but portions found at Hillfoot were later widened to 5 meters. Each of the exposed basal sections has outside rows of large dressed curbstones and a drainage system.\nThis drainage culvert crosses a basal section of the Antonine Wall at Hillfoot Cemetery in Bearsden, near Glasgow, Scotland. The Wall was built and maintained between 142 and 165 AD.\n[Fig.3: Drainage culvert in Antonine Wall at Hillfoot (Photo: Athena Review).]\n[References: Keppie, Lawrence. Scotland's Roman Remains. Glasgow, 1986, 1990.]\nreturn to index for Antonine Wall.\nReview Image Archive |\nand Publishing Index |\nMain index of Athena Review | Subject Index | Travel Pages | Galleries and Museums | Free Issue\nCopyright © 1996-9 Athena Publications, Inc. (All Rights Reserved)."}
{"text": "Name ID 1199\nThe first professional hunters came in 1913. They found the wildlife plentiful, especially the lions, but saw no elephants. Seven years later, an American arrived in a strange new contraption known as a Ford motor-car and news of the wonders of the Serengeti had reached the outside world. Because the Hunting of lions made them so scarse (they were considered 'vermin'), it was decided to make a partial Game Reserve in the area in 1921 and a full one in 1929. With the growing awareness of the need for conservation, it was expanded and upgraded to a National Park in 1951. Eight years later the Ngorongoro Conservation Area was established in the south-east as a separate unit.\nArusha: A Brochure of the Northern Province and its Capital Town\nPage Number: 13-15-17\nExtract Date: 1929\nIt is safe to say that Tanganyika holds a front place among our East African Colonies for the number and variety of its game animals. The belt from Tanga through to Lake Victoria is where game is most numerous. There is an abundance of the commoner antelope, and in certain parts the rarer species such as the Greater and Lesser Kudu, Gerenuk, etc., are still fairly plentiful. Big game like the Elephant, Rhinocerous, Lion and Buffalo, all of which hold for the hunter a new thrill and experience, are to be found in this area in such a variety of country and cover that the Hunting of no two animals is ever alike.\nHere the hunter passes through most interesting country; Kilimanjaro with its snow-capped dome, running streams and dense forests, across the plains to the Natron Lakes and the Great Rift Wall with its volcanic formation and on to the great Crater, Ngorongoro. In his travels he will come into contact with some of the most interesting and picturesque tribes that inhabit Africa such as the Masai, Wambulu, etc., each with their own quaint customs and histories.\nThe Ngorongoro Crater, the greatest crater in the world, measuring approximately 12 miles in diameter, seen from the Mbulu side, is a delight to the eye with its teeming herds of game ; Wildebeest alone running into tens of thousands. This scene conveys to one the idea of a great National Park. Nature has provided the crater with a precipitous rock fence for tns most part and with lakes and streams to slake the thirst of the great game herds which inhabit it. The unalienated part of the crater is now a complete game reserve in which a great variety of game is to be found such as Rhinoceros, Hippopotamus, Lion, and all the smaller fry. The Elephant although not in the crater is to be found in the forests nearby.\nThe Serengetti Plains lying away to the northwest of the crater holds its full share of animal life and here the sportsman has the widest possible choice of trophies. The Lion in this area holds full sway and is still to be seen in troops of from ten to twenty. Recently, Serengetti and Lion pictures have become synonymous. The commoner species of game are here in abundance and the plains are second only to the crater for game concentration. The country lying between the Grumeti River - Orangi River and the Mbalangeti from Lake Victoria to the Mou-Kilimafetha Road has recently been declared a game reserve.\nGame animals that inhabit the northern area are well protected an'd their existence is assured to posterity by the great game sanctuaries and regulations which govern the Hunting or photographing of game.\nIn the Northern area there are six complete reserves and two closed areas. These are as follows:\n(2) Mount Meru.\n(3) Lake Natron\n(4) Northern Railway.\nThe closed areas are :\nPienaar's Heights, near Babati and Sangessa Steppe in the Kondoa district. The boundaries for these are laid down in the Game Preservation Ordinance No. 41 of 1921. There are, however, vast areas open to the hunter and the abovementioned sanctuaries do not in any way detract from the available sport which the Northern Tanganyika has to offer.\nThe following game licences are now in force (Shillings)\n:Visitor's Full Licence - 1500\nVisitor's Temporary Licence (14 days) - 200\nResident's Full Licence - 300\nResident's Temporary Licence (14 days) - 60\nResident's Minor Licence - 80\nGiraffe Licence - 150\nElephant Licence 1st. - 400\n2nd. - 600\nTo hunt the Black Rhinoceros in the Northern Province it is now necessary to hold a Governor's Licence, the fee for which is 150/-. This entitles the holder to hunt one male Rhinoceros. Elephant, Giraffe, and Rhinoceros Licences may only be issued to holders of full game licences.\nNow that the Railway is through to Arusha it is not too much to hope that with the assistance of a healthy public opinion the Sanya Plains may become restocked with game which would be a great source of interest and an attraction to the traveller visiting these parts.\nExtract Date: 1931\nHerne, Brian White Hunters: The golden age of African Safaris\nPage Number: 375\nExtract Date: 1965\nSafari Hunting in East Africa was forever changed by the masterly blueprint of Brian Nicholson, a former white hunter turned game warden. The disciple and successor of C.I. P. Ionides, the \"Father of the Selous game reserve,\" Nicholson conceived a plan for administering Tanzania's expansive wildlife regions. In 1965 he changed most of the vast former controlled Hunting areas, or CHAs, into Hunting concessions that could be leased by outfitters from the government for two or more years at a time. Nicholson also demarcated the Selous game reserve's 20,000 square miles of uninhabited country into 47 separate concessions. Concessions were given a limited quota of each game species, and outfitters were expected to utilize quotas as fully as possible, but not exceed them.\nNicholson's plan gave outfitters exclusive rights over Hunting lands, providing powerful incentives for concession holders to police their areas, develop tracks, airfields, and camps, and, most importantly, preserve the wild game. When the system was put into effect, it was the larger outfitting organizations - safari outfitters who could muster the resources to bid and who had a clientele sufficient to fulfill the trophy quotas Nicholson had set (done in order to provide government revenue by way of fees for anti-poaching operations, development, and research) - that moved quickly to buy up the leases on the most desirable blocks of land. Smaller safari companies who could not compete on their own banded together and formed alliances so that they, too, could obtain Hunting territories.\nHerne, Brian White Hunters: The golden age of African Safaris\nPage Number: 389\nExtract Date: 1973 Sep 7\nBy the end of 1973 Kenya was the sole remaining tourist destination in East Africa. While the neighboring country of Uganda was still in the throes of military anarchy, Tanzania surprised the world on September 7 by issuing an overnight ban on all Hunting and photographic safaris within its territory. Government authorities moved quickly to seize and impound foreign-registered Land Cruisers, supply trucks, minibuses, aircraft, and equipment.\nThe stunned collection of safari clients as well as sundry mountain climbers, bird-watchers, and beachcombers who had been visiting the country at the time of the inexplicable edict were summarily escorted to Kilimanjaro airport outside of Arusha to await deportation. The residue of tourists stranded without flights were trucked to the northern town of Namanga where they were left on the dusty roadside to cross into Kenya on foot. All tourist businesses, including the government-owned Tanzania Wildlife Safaris, were closed down. No government refunds were ever made to tourists or to foreign or local safari outfitters\nAfrica News Online\nExtract Date: 2000 June 5\nPanafrican News Agency\nFrequent acrimony, currently depicting the relationship between game Hunting companies and rural communities in Tanzania, will be a thing of the past after the government adopts a new wildlife policy.\nDesignated as wildlife management areas, the communities will benefit from the spoils of game Hunting, presently paid to local authorities by companies operating in those areas.\nThe proposed policy seeks to amend Tanzania's obsolete Wildlife Act of 1975, and, according to the natural resources and tourism minister, Zakia Meghji, 'it is of utmost priority and should be tabled before parliament for debate soon'.\nShe said the government would repossess all Hunting blocks allocated to professional hunters and hand them over to respective local authorities.\nIn turn local governments, together with the communities, would be empowered to allocate the Hunting blocks to whichever company they prefer to do business with.\n'Guidelines of the policy are ready and are just being fine-tuned,' she said.\nCommunities set to benefit from this policy are chiefly those bordering rich game controlled areas and parks. They include the Maasai, Ndorobo, Hadzabe, Bahi, Sianzu and Kimbu in northeastern Tanzania.\nMembers of these communities are often arrested by game wardens and fined for trespassing on game conservation areas. As a result, they have been extremely bitter about being denied access to wildlife resources, which they believe, naturally, belong to them.\nUnder the new policy, Meghji said, the government will ensure that people undertake increased wildlife management responsibilities and get benefits to motivate them in the conservation of wildlife resources.\nThe East African\nExtract Author: John Mbaria\nExtract Date: February 4, 2002\nKENYA COULD end up losing 80 per cent of its wildlife species in protected areas bordering Tanzania to hunters licensed by the Tanzanian government.\nThe hunters have been operating for about a decade in a section of the migratory route south from Kenya to Tanzania's Serengeti National Park.\nThey shoot large numbers of animals as they move into the park during the big zebra and wildebeest migration between July and December.\nThere are fears that the Maasai Mara National Park and most of Kenya's wildlife areas bordering Tanzania could lose much of their wildlife population, threatening the country's Ksh20 billion ($256 million) a year tourism industry.\nKenya banned Hunting in 1977 but the sport is legal in Tanzania, where it is sold as \"Safari Hunting.\"\n\"The product sold is really the experience of tracking and killing animals, the services that go with this and the prestige of taking home the trophies,\" says a policy document from the Tanzania Wildlife Corporation (Tawico).\nTanzania wildlife officials said wild animals that cross over from Kenya are hunted along their migratory routes in the Loliondo Game Controlled Area in Ngorongoro district of Arusha region, 400 km northwest of Arusha. The area was designated by the British colonial power as a sports Hunting region for European royalty.\nThe officials said the area is now utilised by a top defence official from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), trading as Ortelo Business Company (OBC), through a licence issued in 1992 by former Tanzania President Ali Hassan Mwinyi. The permit allows the company to hunt wild game and trap and take some live animals back to the UAE.\nSafari Hunting earns big money for the Tanzanian government, which charges each hunter $1,600 a day to enter the controlled area.\nA hunter is also required to pay fees for each kill, with an elephant costing $4,000, a lion and a leopard $2,000 each and a buffalo $600. The document has no quotation for rhinos.\nThe sport is organised in expeditions lasting between one and three weeks in the five Hunting blocks of Lake Natron Game Controlled Area, Rungwa Game Reserve, Selous Mai, Selous U3 and Selous LU4.\nFor the period the hunters stay in each of the Hunting blocks, they pay between $7,270 and $13,170 each. Part of this money is shared out among the many Ujamaa villages, the local district councils and the central government.\nAlthough Tawico restricts the number of animals to be culled by species, poor monitoring of the activities has meant indiscriminate killing of game.\n\"Some of the animals are snared and either exported alive or as meat and skins to the United Arab Emirates and other destinations,\" local community members told The EastAfrican during a recent trip to the area.\nThey claimed the hunters were provided with \"blank Hunting permits,\" giving them discretion over the number of animals to be hunted down. Kenya wildlife conservation bodies are concerned that big game Hunting in the Ngorongoro area is depleting the wildlife that crosses the border from Kenya.\n\"Kenya is losing much of its wildlife to hunters licensed by the Tanzanian government,\" the chairman of the Maasai Environmental and Resource Coalition (MERC), Mr Andrew ole Nainguran, said. MERC was set up in 1999 to sensitise members of the Maasai community in Kenya and Tanzania to the benefits of wildlife conservation.\nKenya and Tanzania wildlife authorities have regularly discussed the problem of security and poaching in Arusha. However, the KWS acting director, Mr Joe Kioko, said legalised Hunting has never been discussed in any of the meetings.\nThe hunters are said to fly directly from the UAE to the area using huge cargo and passenger planes which land on an all-weather airstrip inside the OBC camp. The planes are loaded with sophisticated Hunting equipment, including four-wheel drive vehicles, weapons and communication gadgets.\nOn their way back, the planes carry a variety of live animals, game trophies and meat. Employees at the camp said the hunters are sometimes accompanied by young Pakistani and Filipino women.\nThe International Fund for Animal Welfare regional director, Mr Michael Wamithi, said Kenya and Tanzania should discuss the negative impact of the sport Hunting on Kenya's conservation efforts.\n\"The two neighbours have a Cross-Border Law Enforcement Memorandum of Understanding where such issues could be dealt with.\"\nKenya seems to be alone in adhering to strict protection of wildlife, a policy famously demonstrated by President Daniel arap Moi's torching of ivory worth $760,000 in 1989.\nAlthough the country has made significant progress in securing parks from poachers, it is yet to embrace a policy on \"consumptive utilisation\" of animals advocated by Kenyan game ranchers and Zimbabwe, which wants the international trade ban on ivory lifted.\nThe animals in the Hunting block have been reduced to such an extent that the OBC camp management has been spreading salt and pumping water at strategic places to attract animals from Serengeti and the outlying areas.\n\"We will not have any animals left in the vicinity unless the Hunting is checked,\" a local community leader, Mr Oloomo Samantai ole Nairoti, said, arguing that the area's tourism economy was being jeopardised.\nMysterious fires in the area to the south of Serengeti have also forced animals to seek refuge in the Hunting blocks.\nLocals said the camp is exclusively patronised by Arab visitors. The camp is usually under tight security by Tanzanian police.\nThe permit granted by Mr Mwinyi has raised controversy in Tanzania and was at one stage the subject of a parliamentary probe committee because members of UAE's royal family were not entitled to the Hunting rights in the country.\n\"Only presidents or monarchs are entitled to hunt in the area,\" an official said, adding that the UAE royal family had abused their permit by killing animals outside their given quotas or specified species.\nThe government revoked the licence in 1999 after realising that OBC was airlifting many wild animals to the Middle East, only to renew the permit in 2000. The current permit runs until 2005.\nThe withdrawal of the permit followed the recommendations of a 1994 parliamentary probe commission set up to \"investigate the Hunting behaviour\" of the UAE company.\nSources said permanent Hunting is prohibited in the Loliondo Game Controlled Area for fear of depleting animals from the four parks, which host the bulk of the region's tourist resorts.\nThe area is in a natural corridor where wild animals cross while roaming between the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and Serengeti National Park in Tanzania and Maasai Mara Game Reserve and Amboseli National Park in Kenya.\nThe late founding president of Tanzania, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, took to himself the powers to issue Hunting permits for Loliondo when Tanzania became independent in 1961, but he never granted any.\nAfter obtaining the permit, the UAE hunters created Hunting blocks in the area covering over 4,000 sq km.\nNo other Hunting companies have been granted permits, the source said.\nThe UAE royal family has donated passenger aircraft to the Tanzania army and a number of vehicles to the Wildlife Division.\nThe 1974 Wildlife Act set up five categories of wildlife conservation areas.\nThese are national parks, game reserves, partial game reserve, open areas and Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Hunting is prohibited in the national parks and Ngorongoro Conservation Area, but allowed in other areas during the seasonal Hunting period from July to December.\nAdditional reporting by Apolinari Tairo in Dar es Salaam\nTomlinson, Chris Big game hunting threatening Africa\nExtract Author: Chris Tomlinson\nExtract Date: 2002 03 20\nLoliondo GAME CONTROL AREA, Tanzania - At a dirt airstrip in rural Tanzania, a desert camouflaged cargo plane from the United Arab Emirates air force taxis up to pallets stacked with large coolers full of game meat, the harvest of a successful Hunting season.\nAs Tanzanian immigration and customs officials fill out documents under a thatched shelter, brand-new, four-wheel-drive trucks and dune buggies drive to and from a nearby luxury campsite, the base for one of Tanzania's most expensive - and secretive - game Hunting operations, Otterlo Business Corp.\nHundreds of members of Arab royalty and high-flying businessmen spend weeks in the Loliondo Game Control Area each year Hunting antelope, lion, leopard and other wild animals. The area is leased under the Otterlo name by a member of an emirate royal family who is a senior officer in the UAE defense ministry.\nWhile neighboring Kenya outlawed big game Hunting in 1978, the Tanzanian government says Hunting is the best use of the land and wildlife. But villagers and herders say big money has led government officials to break all the Hunting rules, resulting in the destruction of most of the area's non-migratory animals and putting East Africa's most famous national parks under threat.\nLoliondo is on the main migratory route for wildlife north of Ngorongoro Crater, east of Serengeti National Park and south of Kenya's Masai Mara National Reserve. The summer Hunting season coincides with the migration of wildebeest and zebra through the area, where they eventually cross into the Serengeti and the Masai Mara. Predatory animals follow the migration.\nDuring the colonial era, Loliondo was set aside for European royalty as a Hunting area. Since independence, Loliondo has remained a Hunting reserve, but it is supposed to be managed by area residents for their benefit.\nLocal leaders, who refuse to speak publicly because they fear retribution, say they have not been consulted about the lease that was granted in 1995 by national officials in Tanzania's political capital, Dodoma. They say government officials have tried to silence criticism.\n\"The lease was given by the government and the Maasai landowners were not involved,\" said one Maasai leader. \"All the resident animals have been killed ... (now) they carry out Hunting raids in the Serengeti National Park, but the government closes its eyes.\"\nMaasai warriors told The Associated Press that hunters give cash to anyone who can lead them to big game, especially leopards. They also said that Otterlo officials have begun pumping water into some areas to attract more animals and that what the warriors call suspicious fires in the Serengeti have caused animals to move into Loliondo.\nAn Otterlo manager, who gave his name only as Khamis, initially agreed to an interview with AP but later did not return repeated phone calls.\nIn an interview with the newspaper, The East African, Otterlo managing director Juma Akida Zodikheri said his company adheres to Tanzanian law, and he denied hunters killed animals indiscriminately. He said the owner of the company is Maj. Gen. Mohammed Abdulrahim al Ali, deputy defense minister of the UAE.\nWhile Tanzania has strict rules on game Hunting, Maasai who have worked at the lodge say guests are never told of the limits and hunt as much as they want. Tanzanian officials deny that.\nCol. A.G.N. Msangi, district commissioner for Ngorongoro District, said all applicable rules are enforced. He accused the Maasai of rumor-mongering in an effort to discredit Otterlo.\nThe company \"is following the system the government wants,\" Msangi said. \"OBC has invested more money here than any other company in the district.\"\nMsangi said Hunting companies request permission to kill a certain number of animals. Once the request is approved by wildlife experts at the Ministry of the Environment, the company pays a fee based on that number whether they actually kill the animals or not, he said.\n\"We have police and ministry people making sure they don't exceed what they have paid for,\" Msangi said. The tourists are also required to employ professional hunters to ensure no female or young animals are killed, he added.\nCompared to the numbers in Serengeti National Park, very few large animals were seen during a three-hour drive through Loliondo. But without any independent survey of the animal population, it is impossible to know whether Msangi's conservation efforts are working.\nMsangi described his main duty as balancing the needs of people, animals and conservation. He said not only does Hunting revenue finance wildlife conservation, but Otterlo, like most tourism companies, also makes charitable donations to help pay for schools and development projects and it provides badly need jobs.\nAlso appeared in http://www.washtimes.com/world/20020801-22110374.htm\n1 Aug 2002\nInternet Web Pages\nExtract Author: Lifer\nExtract Date: April 16 2002\nPosted - April 16 2002 : 20:53:22\nThe East African Newspaper of 4-10 February 2002 carried an article titled \"Game Carnage in Tanzania Alarms Kenya\", written by John Mbaria with supplement information from Apolinari Tairo of Dar es Salaam. The article was on The Ortello Business Hunting Company, which started to hunt in the Loliondo Game Controlled Area in 1992.\nThe following are issues raised in the article:\na) Hunting activities carried out in Liliondo Game Controlled Area near the Tanzania / Kenyan border causes loses of 80% of the Kenyan wildlife.\nb) Hunting is conducted in the migratory route in the south between Kenya and Serengeti National Park. The animals are hunted during the migratory period as they move to Kenya and on their way back to Tanzania in July to December.\nc) Hunting is threatening the Kenyan tourism industry, which earns the country USD 256.0 annually.\nd) The Hunting kills animals haphazardly, without proper guidance and monitoring of actual number of animals killed and exported outside the country.\ne) Airplanes belonging to Ortello Business Corporation (OBC) carry unspecified type of live animals and birds from Loliondo on their way back to UAE. Further more, the air planes fly directly in and out of Loliondo without stopping at Kilimanjaro International Airport (KIA).\nThe following are responses to the issues raised:\n2.0 Conservation of wildlife in Tanzania\nTanzania is among the top ten countries in the world rich in biodiversity. Tanzania is also leading in wildlife conservation in Africa. It has 12 National Parks, including the famous Serengeti National Park, 34 Game Reserves and 38 Game Controlled Areas. The wildlife –protected areas cover 28% of the land surface area of Tanzania. In recognition of the good conservation works, Tanzania was awarded a conservation medal in 1995 by the Safari Club International whose headquarters is in the United States of America.\nTanzania has a number of important endangered animal species in the world. Such animal species are: Black Rhino, Wild Dog, Chimpanzee, Elephant and Crocodile (Slender Snorted Crocodile).\nIn 1998, the Government of Tanzania adopted a Wildlife Policy, which gives direction on conservation and advocate sustainable use of wildlife resources for the benefit of the present and future generations.\n3.0 Tourist Hunting\nRegulated tourist Hunting or any other type of Hunting that observes conservation ethics does not negatively affect wild animal populations. This is because Hunting ethics is based on selective Hunting and not random shooting of animals. Hunting was banned in Tanzania from 1972 to 1978. The resultant effect was increased poaching and reduced government revenue from wildlife conservation. Low revenue caused low budgetary allocations to wildlife conservation activities and the lack of working gear and equipment. When the tourist Hunting resumed Elephant population increased from 44,000 (in 1989) to 45,000 (in 1994). Elephant is a keystone species in the Hunting industry and is a good indicator in showing population status of other animal species in their habitat.\nIn 1989 to 1993 the government revenue from the Hunting industry increased from USD 2,422,500.00 to USD 7,377,430.00. The government earned a total of USD 9.3 Million from tourist Hunting in the year 2002. Increased revenue and keystone species such as Elephant are the results of efficient implementation of good plans and policies in conservation and sustainable use of wildlife resources.\n4.0 Response to the issues raised in the article\n4.1 Hunting against the law by OBC\nOBC is one of the 40 Hunting companies operating in Tanzania. The Company belongs to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Different from other Hunting companies, OBC does not conduct tourist Hunting business. The Kingdom of UAE has been the client Hunting in the Loliondo Game Controlled Area since 1992.\nIn conducting Hunting in Loliondo Game Controlled Area, the Company adhere to the law and regulations governing the tourist Hunting industry, namely:\n4.1.1 Payment of concession fee amounting to USD 7,500.00 per Hunting block per year.\n4.1.2 Requesting for a Hunting quota from the Director of Wildlife, before issuance of Hunting permit.\n4.1.3 Payment of game fees as stipulated by the Government.\n4.1.4 Hunting only those animals shown in the Hunting permit.\n4.1.5 Contributing to the development of the Hunting block, local communities’ development projects and anti-poaching activities.\nThe following is what OBC has done so far:\n· Contribution towards the development of the Ngorongoro District of USD 46,000.00\n· Construction of Waso Primary and Secondary Schools, six bore holes and cattle dips and has purchased two buses to enhance/local transportation. Furthermore, OBC contributed TSh. 30.0M to six villages in the Hunting area, for providing secondary school education to 21 children.\n· Purchased a generator and water pump worth TSh. 11.0M for provision of water to six villages. It has also constructed all weather roads and an airstrip within Loliondo area.\n4.1.6. Different from the rest of the Hunting companies OBC Hunting period is very short. Normally the Hunting season lasts for six months, but OBC hunts for a maximum of four months. Few animals are shot from the Hunting permit.\n4.2 Animals hunted in migratory routes.\nThe Government of Tanzania has permitted Hunting in the Loliondo Game Controlled Area and not in the migratory route between Masai Mara and Serengeti National Park. The Loliondo Game Controlled Area is a plain bordering the Serengeti National Park to the east.\n4.3 The right for Tanzania to use wildlife in the Loliondo Game Controlled Area\nThe wildlife found in Tanzania is the property of the Government of Tanzania. The notion that these animals belong to Kenya is not correct. The wild animals in Loliondo Game Controlled Area do not have dual citizenship . Since some animal species move back and forth between Tanzania and Kenya it is better understood that these animals would be recognised to belong to either party during the time they are in that particular country. Animals in Masai Mara, Serengeti, Loliondo and Ngorongoro belong to one ecosystem namely, Serengeti ecosystem. However, Tanzania being a sovereign State with her own policies has the right by law to implement them. The same applies to Kenya, which has the right to implement its no-Hunting policy basing on the administration of her laws. Tanzania has therefore, not done anything wrong to undertake Hunting on her territory.\n4.4 Hunting is threatening Kenyan tourism\nMigratory animals move into Kenya during the rainy season. After the rainy season they move back to Tanzania. Animals that are hunted in Liliondo Game Controlled Area during this time of the year are very few. In the year 2000, only 150 animals were hunted, and in the year 2001 only 139 animals were hunted. It is therefore, not true that 80% of the animals in the border area were hunted. Based on this argument, it is also not true that Hunting conducted by OBC is threatening the Kenyan tourism industry. Tanzania does not allow Hunting of elephants 10 kilometres from the Tanzania/Kenya international boundary. (CITES meeting held at the Secretariat Offices in Geneva in 1993). This is an example of the measures taken to control what was erroneously referred to by the East African Paper as “haphazard Hunting of animals of Kenya”.\nFurthermore, it is not true that the Wildlife Division does not know the number of animals that are killed. Control of Hunting is done by the Wildlife Division, District Council and other Law Enforcement agencies. The OBC does not capture and export live animals since it does not possess valid licence to do so.\n4.5 OBC airplances export assorted number of live animals from Loliondo to UAE\nCapture and export of live animals and birds is conducted in accordance with the Wildlife Conservation Act No. 12 of 1974 and resolutions of the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). The live animal trade is also conducted in accordance with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) regulations, with regard to the size of the boxes/containers allowed to transport specific animal species in order to avoid injuries or death of the same. The principle behind the live animal trade is sustainability. CITES may prohibit exportation of animals whose trade is not sustainable. On these grounds it is obvious that CITES and therefore, its 150 members recognise that the Tanzanian live animal trade is sustainable.\nLive animal traders who exports animals, birds and other live specimens are obliged to adhere to the following procedure:\ni) Must hold valid licence to trade on live animals.\nii) Must hold a capture permit and thereafter an ownership permit./certificate. The number of animals possessed and the number of animals listed on the ownership permit must be consistent with the number of animals that were listed in the capture permit and actually captured and certified.\niii) Must obtain an export permit for animals listed on the ownership permit/certificate.\niv) The Officer at the point of exit must certify that the animals exported are those listed on the certificate of export. The number of animals to be exported must tally with the number listed on the certificate of export.\nVerification of exported animals is conducted in collaboration with the police and customs officials.\nv) The plane that will carry live animals is inspected by the Dar es Salaam and Kilimanjaro Handling Companies’ Officials.\nvi) For animals listed under CITES, appropriate export and import certificates are used to export the said specimens. If there is any anomaly in exporting CITES species, the importing country notifies CITES Secretariat, which in turn notifies the exporting country, and the animals in question are immediately returned to the country of export.\n4.6 Other specific isues\n4.6.1 Hunters are given blank permits\nCompanies are issued Hunting quotas before they commence Hunting activities. Each hunter is given a permit, which shows the animals that he/she is allowed to hunt depending on the quota issued and the type of safari. There are four types of safari Hunting as follows: 7, 14, 16 and 21 days safari. Each Hunting safari indicates species and numbers of animals to be hunted. When an animal is killed or wounded the officer in-charge overseeing Hunting activities signs to certify that the respective animal has been killed. If the animal has been wounded, the animal is tracked down and killed to ensure that no other animal is killed to replace the wounded animal at large. This procedure is a measure of monitoring of animals killed by hunters.\n4.6.2 Good Neighbourhood Meetings between Tanzania and Kenya\nThere are three platforms on which Tanzania and Kenya meet to discuss conservation issues as follows:\na) The Environment and Tourism Committee of the EAC.\nb) The Lusaka Agreement. In the Lusaka Agreement Meeting conservation and anti-poaching matters amongst member countries are discussed. The HQ of the Lusaka Agreement is in Nairobi.\nc) Neighbourhood meeting. Experts in the contiguous conservation areas meet to discuss areas of cooperation between them, for example, in joint anti-poaching operations. Based on the regulations that govern the Hunting industry animals are not threatened by extinction since the animals that are hunted are old males for the purpose of obtaining good trophies. Trophies are attractions in this Hunting business. It is on this basis that tourist Hunting is not discussed in the said meetings, because is not an issue for both countries.\n4.6.3 OBC airplanes flies directly to and from Loliondo without passing through KIA\nThe Tanzania Air Traffic Law requires that all airplanes land at KIA before they depart to protected areas. When the airplanes are at KIA and DIA the respective authorities conduct their duties according. The same applies when airplanes fly to UAE. They are required to land at KIA in order to go through immigration and customs checks. The allegation that OBC airplane does not land in KIA is therefore false. Furthermore, Tanzania Air Traffic Control regulates all airplanes includingly, OBC airplane at entry points.\n4.6.4 OBC sprays salt in some parts of the Loliondo Game Controlled Area in order to attract animals from Serengeti National Park.\nThese allegations are baseless since the Tourist Hunting Regulations (2000) prohibit distribution of water and salt at the Hunting site in order to attract animals for Hunting. Besides the Game Scouts who supervise Hunting had never reported this episode. Furthermore, there are no reports that OBC is responsible for wild fires that gutters the south of the Serengeti National Park.\n4.6.5 Cancellation of OBC block permit in 1999 since it was involved in the exportation of live animals.\nThis allegation is not true. The truth is that Hunting blocks are allocated to Hunting companies after every five years. The allocation that was done in 1995 expired in 1999. The next allocation was done in year 2000 and the companies will use the allocated blocks until 2004.\n4.6.6 The UAE Royal Family contributions to the Wildlife Division\nThis is true. The Wildlife Division had received support from the UAE including: vehicles, transceivers and field gear in 1996. This was part of the fulfilment of the obligation by all Hunting companies to contribute towards conservation and anti-poaching activities.\nRecords in the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism show that there is no other District in Tanzania with Hunting area, other than Ngorongoro District, that receives enormous funds from Hunting business for community development. OBC contributes up to TSh. 354,967,000.00 annually for community development in Loliondo.\nThe Government of Tanzania has no reasons to stop the Hunting activities in Loliondo Game Controlled Area. The government sees that local communities and the Ngorongoro District Council benefit from the Hunting industry.\nEdited by - lifer on 04/16/2002 20:57:41\nExtract Author: Yannick Ndoinyo\nExtract Date: 17 august 2002\nISSN 0856-9135; No. 00233\nA rejoinder to the Ministry’s press release on Loliondo and OBC\nWe are replying in a critical analysis to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism Press Release in the East African paper of April 1-7 2002 regarding the \"Game Carnage in Tanzania Alarms Kenya\" in the same paper (East Africa February 4-10 2002). Special reference was given to Hunting activities by OBC and our analysis base to same Company.\nAs it appears in the Press Release, OBC is the property of the UAE, but in reality some top influential people in Tanzania have some shares in the company. The OBC has been in Loliondo since 1992, even though ever since the whole local community in Loliondo refused to accept its presence and goes to the present day. OBC, to us, is not a normal Hunting company. It seems as if the Company has the right of ownership over land and other natural resources like water and wildlife. OBC has constructed expensive and luxurious houses, airstrip and big godowns on water source without the local people’s authority while they depend on such water for dry season grazing. Our surprise is that the government has always denied this fact and defended the Company. Why? The Company may be adhering to regulations and laws governing the tourist Hunting business in the books only and not practically. There are no monitoring schemes to make sure that the Company adheres to the said regulations.\nIt is true that OBC contributes 30 million to six villages, which is 5 million per village, and it was initially 2.5 million per village. The amount was raised two years ago. The issue here is that the amount was determined by OBC alone and therefore paid when they feel like doing, no binding mechanisms to endure payment on regular basis. The former OBC director was once quoted as saying, \"I am paying this money as this money as a goodwill only because the government does not wish me to do so\". The amount however does not compensate or match the resources extracted from the land of six villages. The implication is that OBC has entered into agreement with the government only and not with the villages. The provision of education to 21 children as indicated the Press release, is basically not true or correct.\nThe 30 million is the annual goodwill contribution from OBC to the six villages and not purposely meant for education only. The plan to utilize this money is upon the villages themselves.\nIt is also true that OBC has constructed Wasso secondary school but not Wasso primary school. The secondary school, which was built for the six villages in which OBC operated and the whole of Ngorongoro district has been taken by the government thus limiting the number of children hailing from these villages and Ngorongoro district an opportunity to obtain education from the same school.\nIn regard to bore holes, there are only four known boreholes and all these are built in Wasso and Loliondo townships. There are no any boreholes existing in any of the six villages, except only that a water pump machine, which currently does not work, was purchased for Mondorosi hamlet (Kitongoji) of Soit-Sambu village. Again, there is no virtually any cattle dip that OBC did dig or rehabilitated in six villages as mentioned in the Press Release from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism. The information that OBC purchased a generator and water pump worth 11million is to six villages for water provision is false and misleading. Most villages in Loliondo have water problems and it is impossible for a generator to sustain a single village leave alone six villages. No single village has received such service from OBC.\nIn regard to transport, the two buses were either bought or just brought as second hand vehicles. These buses are expensive to run and spares are not easily obtained. At present they are just grounded at Ngorongoro district workshop/garage. There was a time the councilors debated whether or not to sell because of difficult management. At present the people of Loliondo use an extremely old SM bus for transport.\nAgain in the aspect of transport, there are no all weather roads in Loliondo that OBC constructed as it was said the Press release. Roads in most parts of Loliondo are murramed roads and mostly were constructed by Ngongoro district council using money from TANROADS and not OBC.\nIt is indeed true that OBC Hunting period is very short. There is a lot that can happen in short period especially if the team of hunters is composed of professional hunters. Our concern here is the interference and interruptions that OBC causes to the life systems of the people in Loliondo. The Maasai cannot resume their grazing patterns and often are forced to move by OBC. Where should we graze our cattle while our grazing land is occupied and by the Hunting company and protected by the gun? In six villages of Loliondo, five operate non-consumptive tourism that gives them more earnings except one which is dominated by OBC. The villages can now send children to school, construct basic infrastructure like health centers, classrooms, teacher houses water supply and food security ultimately eradicating poverty. This is all done using the money from the non-consumptive tourism. The OBC constantly interrupts this system and agreement between in the villages saying that the villages have no right to operate such tourism on ‘his land’. Is it his or our land? The other major problem besides the Arabs is the constant reprimand from the government, as it discourages this kind of tourism business that benefits the local people in the villages more. We favour this kind of tourism because it does not disturb our normal pattern of life system. At the same time it does not kill wild animals, they just camp and go to the Serengeti Park. The allegations that OBC airplanes fly directly from Loliondo to UAE without passing KIA and whether it exports live animals have existed and many people have spoken and written about it. However, we cannot confirm anything about without much scrutiny. We do not know much now.\nAlso in the Press Release the spray of salt to attract animals was referred to. The distribution of water in a certain site to attract animals was applied sometime ago. We are sure of this as it happened some years ago. What we are not exact is whether the practice continues to the present day.\nIn the Press Release, the records in the Ministry show that OBC pays annually 354,967,000/= for community development in Loliondo? We have some reservations in regard to such records. First of all they are just records and anything can be written. Secondly, how is it that the Ministry has such records while we in Loliondo, the base of OBC operation, do not have?\nThirdly, where is the provision in the agreement that forces OBC to annually pay to the district such amount of money? It may be that the amount is used to be paid annually but to individuals only and not to the district as it said.\nIn its conclusion the Ministry sees no reason to stop Hunting activities in Loliondo simply because the local community and Ngorongoro district council benefit from the Hunting business. We strongly feel that there is every reason to stop the Hunting activities in Loliondo for several reasons. First, the local community did not consent to the granting of their land to the Hunting company to the present day.\nSecondly, the local community and Ngorongoro district council do not benefit in a way it should be from this Hunting business in Loliondo.\nThirdly, the presence of OBC has interrupted and interfered with our life systems including grazing, culture and other alternative means of business to the local community.\nIn our conclusion we feel that even though the government operates under the law set in Dar es Salaam and Dodoma without the involvement of the local people, it is very important to respect the localpeople.\nSomeone in the ministry who has never been to Loliondo, we firmly conclude, either wrote the Press Release, or the story was made. We suggest that the villagers or OBC people be contacted for more definite facts. Please feel free to contact us for any queries you might have regarding this article.\nTel: 0744 390 626\nExtract Author: Arusha times Reporters\nExtract Date: Aug 17 2002\nISSN 0856-9135; No. 00233\nThe Hunting plot controversy reigning within the Longido Game Controlled Area in Monduli district two weeks ago threatened the life of the American ambassador to Tanzania, Robert Royall who was Hunting in the block .\nRiding in a Toyota Land Cruiser Station Wagon with registration numbers TZP 9016, owned by Bush Buck Safaris Limited, Ambassador Royall found himself being confronted by 16 armed men.\nThe incident took place on Saturday the 27th of July this year, at about 13.00 hours, in the Hunting block which is under the authority of Northern Hunting Enterprises Limited.\nIt is reported that, while Royall and his family were driving in the area, another vehicle, Land Cruiser with registration numbers TZP 3867, drove toward them and blocked them off.\nSixteen men, armed with traditional weapons including spears, machetes, doubled edged swords (simis) and clubs jumped out, ready for an attack.\nHowever, both the ambassador, his team and driver Carlous Chalamila happened to be fully equipped and likewise drew their weapons.\nSeeing modern weapons, the mob got frightened and decided to flee. But the ambassador’s driver, Chalamila followed them to find out what they wanted. Contacts were subsequently made with the wildlife department of the Ministry of Tourism and Natural Resources. Some wildlife officers were dispatched to the scene from Arusha and when they arrived, they found the attackers already gone.\nRegional Police Commander for Arusha, James Kombe admitted that the incident did take place but declined comments on the issue. However, already five people have been arrested in connection with the incident, these are: Omar Mussa, David Bernard, Salimba Lekasaine, Kiruriti Ndaga and the only lady in the team, Nuria Panito Kennedy.\nThis week, Arusha Times learned that, the five suspects are out on bail.\nSpeaking by phone from Monduli, the Monduli District Commissioner (DC), Anthony Malle said there was indeed some controversy regarding the Hunting bloc of Longido Game Controlled Area (LGCA) in which two Hunting companies of Kibo Safaris and Northern Hunting Enterprises (T) Limited, were at logger heads.\nCaptain Malle added that, even the residents of the Singa village in the area, have been divided into two groups each supporting either companies.\nThe District Commissioner however, pointed out that only the Ministry will decide which of the two parties have the right to the 1,500 square kilometre Hunting bloc.\nDC Malle also said that he and other district officials have already held various meetings to address the issue and together have signed an official letter which was sent to the Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism and Natural Resources in order for the office to settle the matter once and for all.\nEfforts to contact both Kibo Safaris and Northern Hunting Enterprises ended in vain.\nThe East African\nExtract Author: John Mbaria\nExtract Date: December 2, 2002\nThe East African (Nairobi) Posted to the web December 4, 2002\n.. .. ..\nUnlike in Kenya, the law in Tanzania promotes commercial wildlife utilisation activities such as safari Hunting and actually prohibits photographic tourism in areas declared as Hunting zones.\nUnder the WCA of 1974, the wildlife division can only regulate the capture, Hunting and commercial photography of wildlife.\nThe report adds that the director of wildlife can issue Hunting licences on village land, but he \"does not have the power to give a hunter or Hunting company authority to hunt on village land without the permission of the village government.\"\nOn their part, the licensed persons are expected to seek the permission of the village government before engaging in any Hunting. However, reports indicate that the practice of safari Hunting has so far ignored this law. The report says that most Hunting companies put up facilities on village lands without the permission of the village government and the respective village assemblies.\nThe report gives the example of the Loliondo GCA, in Loliondo division of Ngorongoro district, where a Hunting company associated with a United Arab Emirates minister, \"has built an airstrip and several large houses without the permission of the relevant village governments.\"\n\"Such actions are contrary to the VLA which, under section 17, requires any non-village organisation that intends to use any portion of the village land to apply for that land to the village council, which will then forward that application and its recommendation for approval or rejection to the Commissioner for Land.\"\nIn January, The EastAfrican published an exclusive story on the manner with which the Hunting company conducts Hunting activities in Loliondo.\n.. .. ..\nExtract Author: Indigenous Rights for Survival International\nPage Number: b\nExtract Date: 2/1/03\n[click on the link to see the original MS Word document]\nIndigenous Rights for Survival International\nP.O. Box 13357\nDar Es Salaam.\nAlternative E-mail: email@example.com\nThe United Republic of Tanzania\nP.O. Box 9120\nDar Es Salaam.\nIf it pleases the Honourable President Benjamin Mkapa\nRe: Stop the killing fields of Loliondo\nI am a Tanzanian citizen, a strong believer in social justice. Under the same spirit I am the Co-coordinator of an informal group called Indigenous Rights for Survival International (IRSI). IRSI is a loose network of young people with an interest in public policy issues in Africa. We mainly discuss policy issues through emails communications and ultimately write articles in the press. IRSI as an entity takes no position on any of the discussed issues instead it simply stimulates, steers, and co-ordinates discussions and debates on public policy issues of members’ interest.\nMr. President, I have all along believed that you can stop the crime against humanity being inflicted upon the people of Loliondo, Ngorongoro District of Arusha Region by a no less authority than the Government of Tanzania.\nMr. President, Loliondo Division is located in Maasai ancestral lands in the northern part of Tanzania along the common border with Kenya. It borders the Ngorongoro highlands to the south, Serengeti National Park to the west, and the Maasai Mara Game Reserve in Kenya to the north. The Loliondo Game Controlled Area (LCGA) encompasses an estimated 4,000 sq km. There is no physical barrier separating the LGCA from other protected areas. It is a continuous ecosystem. LGCA was initially established in 1959 as a Game Reserve by the British colonialists under the then Fauna Conservation Ordinance, Section 302, a legal instrument the colonial authorities used to set aside portions of land for wildlife conservation. The legal status of the reserve was later changed to that of a Game Controlled Area to allow for commercial Hunting, a status that defines LGCA today and haunts its wildlife.\nMr. President, Loliondo forms an important part of the semi-annual migratory route of millions of wildebeests and other ungulates northward into the Maasai Mara Game Reserve and Amboseli National Park in Kenya between April and June, and returning southward later in the year. The survival of the Ngorongoro-Serengeti-Maasai Mara ecosystem and the wildlife it supports is linked to the existence of Loliondo and other surrounding communal Maasai lands in Tanzania and Kenya. Similarly, the survival of the Maasai people is dependent entirely upon the protection of their ancestral land for economic viability and cultural reproduction. Land to the Maasai is the foundation for their spirituality and the base for identity.\nMr. President, the people of Ngorongoro District in general and Loliondo Division in particular have suffered for a long time various established pains such as irrational grabbing of their ancestral land for “development”, tourism (consumptive and non-consumptive) and cultivation. While the people of Loliondo have lost much of their ancestral land to cultivation, the Government is evidently supporting private investors to further put Maasai pastoralists of Loliondo at a very awkward corner.\nIn 1992, the administration of the former president Ali Hassan Mwinyi granted the entire Loliondo Game Controlled Area (LGCA) as a Hunting concession to the Otterlo Business Corporation Ltd (OBC), a game-Hunting firm based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The Government issued a 10-year Hunting permit, under the controversial agreement, to the Brigadier Mohammed Abdulrahim Al-Ali, believed to be a member of the royal family of the UAE, of Abu Dhabi in the UAE who owns (OBC). The grabbed land is a birthright land of thousands of villagers of Arash, Soitsambu, Oloipiri, Ololosokwan, Loosoito and Oloirien villages of Loliondo.\nMr. President, a Parliamentary Committee was formed to probe the Loliondo Gate saga. It revoked the dirty agreement. Strangely, a similar agreement was established.\nIn January 2000, OBC was granted another 5-year Hunting permit in the said area. As usual, without the villagers’ consent. OBC constructed an airstrip. The villagers have been witnessing live animals being exported through the airstrip. OBC constructed structures near water sources. Hearing of the new permit, the Maasai sent a 13-men protest delegation to Dar Es Salaam in April 2000. The intention was to sort out the matter with you Mr. President. Unfortunately, they did not see you.\nHowever, the delegation managed to hold a press conference at MAELEZO, National Information Corporation Centre. The Maasai contemplated a number of actions to be taken against both your Government and the Arab in connection with the plunder of the resources. The Maasai said that before a mass exodus of the Maasai to Kenya the first thing was to eliminate wild animals. Thereafter, the delegation retreated to Loliondo, as gravely frustrated as before.\nThe general election was scheduled for 2000, so the saga had to be explained away. The official statement was that power hungry opposition politicians were pushing the elders and that all the claims by the Maasai were “unfounded” and “baseless.” To its credit, The Guardian went to Loliondo. It reported the following:\nMaasai elders in Loliondo, Arusha Region, who recently declared a land dispute against OBC Ltd, a foreign game-Hunting firm, have accused some top Government officials of corrupt practices, saying the conflict is not political. The Arusha Regional Commissioner, Daniel ole Njoolay, recently described the simmering land dispute between the Maasai pastoralists and OBC, as a political issue.\nFrancis Shomet [the former Chairman for Ngorongoro District Council] claimed that Njoolay had misled Tanzanians to believe that the allegations recently raised by Maasai elders were unfounded and baseless. Fidelis Kashe, Ngorongoro District Council Chairman maintained, “We cannot stand idle to see our land being taken away by Arabs. We will kill all the animals in the area as these are the ones attracting the Arabs into our land” (The Guardian May 30, 2000).\nThe next morning Government officials were reported to have said the following:\nThe Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Zakia Meghji, yesterday assured Ngorongoro residents that no land has been sold or grabbed by Arabs in Loliondo. Flanked by the Arusha Regional Commissioner, Daniel ole Njoolay and the Director of Wildlife, Emanuel Severre, Meghji commented, “There is no clause on the sale of land in the contract signed between OBC and the six villages of Ololosokwan, Arash, Maaloni, Oloirien, Oloipiri and Soitsambu.”\nHowever an inquiry conducted by The Guardian in Loliondo last week established that the Maasai elders were not involved in the re-lease of the Hunting block to the company. According to Megji, her probe established that the building has been constructed about 400 metres from the water source, 200 metres more than the distance recommended by law. But The Guardian investigation shows that the structures are less than 50 metres from a spring. And another spring has dried up (The Guardian May 31, 2000).\nMr. President, underline two points. First, the Minister said the building has been constructed 400 metres from the water source. Second, “The Guardian investigation shows that the structures are less than 50 metres from a spring.” Now unless one’s mathematics teacher at school was daft, there is a huge different between 50 and 400! When did 50 metric metres turn to mean 400 metric metres? Can it be claimed that the Maasai were party to this so-called agreement? I am at a loss why this-well known-Minister has not been made to face the full force of the law.\nIn the proposal, Brigadier Al Ali outlined the benefits of his operations in Loliondo to the Government, local communities, and wildlife conservation in the Serengeti-Maasai Mara-Ngorongoro ecosystem. Among its important objectives were:\n• To conserve an area contiguous to the Serengeti National Park, which is essential to the long-term survival of the ecosystem and its migration.\n• To develop a new role and image for the Arab world as regards wildlife conservation, management, and human development.\n• To improve locals’ revenue, development facilities, and create employment.\n• To generate revenues for the Central and District Governments.\nThe OBC now stands accused of self-contradiction and violation of legal and moral obligations in virtually all the above areas, resulting instead in environmental destruction; unfulfilled promises and exploitation of the local communities; and direct undermining of the stability of the region’s wildlife and natural habitats.\nIt has become evident that OBC had a long-term agenda for exploiting the high concentration of wildlife in Loliondo. Its Hunting operations are guaranteed by the continuous flow of wildlife from the Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Maasai Mara, and other areas. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, OBC \"was taking advantage of migratory patterns of wildlife coming out of Serengeti.\"\nMr. President, be informed that the villages in and adjacent to protected areas in Tanzania have no Government-supported infrastructures. Take Ngorongoro District for instance. There is no Government hospital in Ngorongoro. It may take a week to travel from Arusha to Loliondo, just less than 400 km, depending on weather, for there is no road. There is no even a single Government advanced level secondary education school in six (repeat six) Districts in the Greater Serengeti Region. This situation brings to question the legitimacy of wildlife conservation vis-à-vis the right of rural people to lead a decent life given nature endowment in their localities.\nMr. President, the Maasai of Loliondo have for a long time accused OBC of grave human rights abuses. They have described acts of intimidation, harassment, arbitrary arrest and detention, and even torture by OBC staff, Tanzanian police and military in the name of OBC; brazen violations of grazing and land rights; and wanton environmental destruction and imminent extermination of wildlife. They have seen leaders who once opposed OBC’s practices corrupted and bought-off.\nThe OBC operates like a separate arm of the Government. Many people in Loliondo believe that OBC is even more powerful than the Government. The Maa word for \"the Arab\", Olarrabui, is often used to refer Brigadier Al Ali, and by extension OBC. The word Olarrabui has become synonymous with power, authority, brutality, fear, and entities larger than life.\nMr. President, you do not need to be a rocket scientist to comprehend that this is the clearest case of abuse of office. It is suggested, for those willing to avert disaster, the Tanzania Government included, that immediate steps be taken to put to an end the violation of fundamental human rights in Ngorongoro. As to lands lost in Loliondo, the Government is advised to return this to its owners. Land should not be grabbed senselessly. The Government, should at once, re-look into the whole matter.\nNavaya ole Ndaskoi.\n- The International Court of Justice\n- The United Nations High Commission for Human Rights\n- The United Nations Working Group on Indigenous Populations\n- Human Rights Groups around the World\n- Faculty of Law of the University of Dar Es Salaam\n- Local and International Conservation Agencies\n- Ministry of Tourism and Natural Resources\n- The Attorney General\n- The Chief Justice\n- The Speaker of the United Republic of Tanzania Parliament\n- The Press, print and electronic\n- Political parties in Tanzania\n- Tanganyika Law Society\n- Other interested parties.\nNavaya ole Ndaskoi\nsee also Extract 3734\nThe Maasai protest delegation holding a press conference in Dar Es Salaam in 2000"}
{"text": "Journal Issue: Juvenile Justice Volume 18 Number 2 Fall 2008\nThe Prevalence of Mental Disorders among Adolescent Offenders\nTwo kinds of studies address questions about the social consequences of the links between mental disorders and delinquency. One type examines the degree of \"overlap\" between a community's population of youth with mental disorders and its population of youthful offenders. Knowing this overlap gives some notion of the risk of official delinquency for youth with mental disorders and the degree to which mental disorders of youth contribute to a community's overall delinquency. The second type of study examines the proportion of youth with mental disorders within juvenile justice facilities or programs. These studies provide information with which to formulate policy about treating and managing youth with mental disorders in juvenile justice custody.\nIt is important to recognize that these two types of research begin with very different populations, even though they both address the relation between mental disorder and delinquency. The first typically focuses on all delinquent youth in the community, while the second examines only delinquent youth placed in juvenile pretrial detention centers when they are arrested or in juvenile correctional facilities when they are adjudicated. This distinction is further complicated, as discussed later, by the fact that not all youth in juvenile justice facilities are necessarily delinquent.\nEpidemiologic Studies of Mental Disorder and Delinquency\nSome studies have identified a significant overlap between the populations of youth served by community mental health agencies and youth in contact with the community's juvenile court.23 These studies are few in number, but they have found that the risk of juvenile court involvement among a community's young mental health clients is substantial. For example, a study in one city found that adolescents in contact with the community's mental health system during a nine-month period were two to three times more likely to have a referral to the juvenile justice system during that period than were youth in the city's general population.24 Youth in contact with a mental health system's services, however, are not the sum of a community's youth with mental health needs because many receive no services. The results of the study above probably represent the proportion of more seriously disturbed youth who have juvenile justice contact. Even so, merely knowing that youth \"have contact\" with the juvenile justice system tells us little about their offenses or even whether they offended at all.\nVery few studies have used samples that make it possible to identify both the proportion of delinquent youth in a community who have mental disorders and the proportion of youth with mental disorders who have been delinquent. The few that have, however, are large studies with careful designs.\nOne examined a community population (drawn from several cities) that identified youth with persistent serious delinquency (repeat offending) and youth with persistent mental health problems (manifested multiple times).25 About 30 percent of youth with persistent mental health problems were persistently delinquent. But among all persistently delinquent youth, only about 15 percent had persistent mental health problems.\nAnother recent study examined the relation between mental disorders during adolescence and criminal behavior when those youth became adults.26 Delinquencies and adult criminal arrests were recorded for a sample of youth in a large geographic region aged nine through twenty-one. The youth were also assessed for mental disorders three times between the ages of nine and sixteen. A diagnosis at any one of these three points identified the youth as having a mental disorder \"sometime during childhood or adolescence.\"\nIn this study, youth who were arrested between the ages of sixteen and twenty-one included a considerably greater share of youth who had had mental disorders in adolescence than those who were not arrested—for males, 51 percent as against 33 percent. This finding does not mean that 51 percent of the arrested group had mental disorders at the time of their arrest, but that they had had a mental disorder sometime in adolescence. It also does not mean that the majority of youth who had mental disorders in adolescence were arrested in adulthood. A different statistical procedure in this study, called \"population attributable risk,\" addressed that question. It showed that the risk of adult arrest among individuals who had mental disorders at some time during adolescence was about 21 percent for women and 15 percent for men.\nThese few studies suggest the following conclusions, all of which need further confirmation. First, consistent with the clinical research reviewed earlier, youth who have mental disorders are at greater risk of engaging in offenses than youth without mental disorders. It is possible that treating their disorders would reduce that risk. But most youth with mental disorders do not engage in offenses that involve them in juvenile or criminal justice systems. Second, youth with mental disorders represent only a minority of all youth who engage in delinquent behavior, although the share is somewhat disproportionately greater than their prevalence in the general community. If those youth received treatment that reduced their delinquency, it is possible that overall rates of delinquency in the community would fall somewhat, but the majority of delinquencies are not related to mental disorders.\nThird, rates of delinquency are higher among youth with certain types of emotional disorders— for example, depression or anxiety co-morbid with substance use disorders— and among youth with chronic and multiple disorders (seriously emotionally disturbed youth). Finally, a few studies have suggested that youth with mental disorders make up a somewhat greater proportion (although still a minority) of youth who were arrested for more serious and violent delinquencies or crimes.27\nMental Disorder in Juvenile Justice Settings\nResearch on the subset of delinquent youth who enter juvenile pretrial detention centers and correctional programs cannot tell us the relation between mental disorder and delinquency, because most youth who engage in delinquencies are not placed in secure juvenile justice programs. Such studies, however, are extremely important for public policy, because they identify the scope and nature of mental disorder among youth for whom the juvenile justice system has custodial responsibility.\nUntil recently the precise prevalence of mental disorders among youth in juvenile justice custody was unknown. Estimates varied widely from study to study, largely because of inadequate research methods or differences from one study site to another.28 In the past decade, however, well-designed studies executed in a variety of sites have provided a reliable and consistent picture. Those studies have found that among youth in various types of juvenile justice settings—for example, pretrial detention centers where youth are taken soon after arrest—about one-half to two-thirds meet criteria for one or more mental disorders.29 The prevalence of mental disorders is much higher in juvenile justice settings than it is among youth in the U.S. general population, which is about 15 to 25 percent.30\nAcross these studies, the rate is higher for girls than for boys.31 The overall prevalence rate does not vary greatly between younger and older adolescents or for youth with various ethnic and racial characteristics, although age and race differences are sometimes found for specific types of disorders and symptoms.32 As described in the earlier clinical review, about two-thirds of youth in juvenile justice custody who meet criteria for a mental disorder (that is, about one-third to one-half of youth in custody) meet criteria for more than one disorder.33\nI will focus later on the implications of these statistics for the juvenile justice system's best response to mental disorders among youth in its custody. The high prevalence of mental disorder in juvenile justice facilities does not necessarily define the need for treatment. Some youth who meet criteria for mental disorders are experiencing their disorders temporarily and need only emergency services, while a smaller share—about one in ten—represents a core group of youth with chronic mental illness who can be expected to continue to need clinical services into adulthood.34 Some are functioning fairly well despite their symptoms, while others are barely able to function at all. And some have mental health needs, such as learning disabilities, that were not even included in the recent studies of prevalence among youth in juvenile justice settings.\nReasons for the High Prevalence of Mental Disorders in Juvenile Justice Programs\nWhy are mental disorders so prevalent among adolescent offenders in juvenile justice settings? Three perspectives—clinical, socio-legal, and inter-systemic—help to explain. They are not competing explanations. All probably play a role, and no evidence suggests that one is more important than the others.\nFrom a clinical perspective, it is likely that the same symptoms of mental disorder that increase the risk of aggression also increase the likelihood that youth will be placed in secure juvenile justice facilities for any significant period of time. When police officers arrest youth, usually those youth are not placed in pretrial detention. Nor is detention reserved for the most serious offenders—in fact, youth arrested for very violent offenses typically do not make up the majority of youth in detention. Those youth who are detained more than a few hours are those who have been more unruly or unmanageable at the time of their arrest, which satisfies detention criteria regarding a risk that they will be endangered, or might endanger others, if not detained.\nYouth with mental disorders frequently have symptoms involving impulsiveness, anger, and cognitive confusion that can make them less manageable and a greater risk to themselves or others, especially under the stress associated with their offense and arrest. Thus, among youth who are detained, a significant share is likely to have mental disorders that create unmanageable behavior—more so than for youth without mental disorders and more so than their peers with less severe mental disorders. This likelihood makes it no surprise that youth with mental disorders contribute disproportionately to detention populations.\nFrom a socio-legal perspective, recent changes in laws applied to youths' delinquencies may have increased the likelihood that youth with mental disorders will enter the juvenile justice system. Before the 1990s, law enforcement officers, juvenile probation departments, prosecutors, and judges typically had some discretion regarding whether they would arrest or prosecute youth with mental disorders when they engaged in illegal behaviors, especially if those behaviors involved minor offenses committed by younger adolescents without offense histories. But a wave of serious juvenile violence during the late 1980s caused virtually all states to revise their juvenile justice statutes during the 1990s to rein in this discretion.35 Under the new laws, certain charges or offenses required legal responses based on the nature of the offense alone, not the characteristics or needs of the individual youth. Penalties more often involved custody in secure juvenile facilities, thus reducing the likelihood that youth could receive mental health services in the community after their adjudication. An unintended consequence of these changes in law, therefore, was an increase in the share of youth with mental disorders coming into the system rather than being diverted on the basis of the juvenile court's discretion.\nA final, inter-systemic, explanation involves the dynamic relation between systems that serve youth. During the 1990s, most states saw a reduction in the availability of public mental health services for children, especially inpatient services.36 It is possible that less adequate treatment contributed to increased delinquencies among youth with mental disorders. But it is certain that many communities began using the juvenile justice system to try to fill the gap caused by decreased availability of mental health services.\nThis phenomenon was documented in media articles, the observations of juvenile justice personnel, and government reports beginning in the mid-1990s and continuing into the early 2000s.37 Some parents of children with serious mental disorders began urging police to arrest their children, knowing that courts could \"order\" mental health services that were becoming nearly impossible for parents to get on their own. Soon the local juvenile pretrial detention center was becoming the community's de facto mental health center that provided emergency mental health services or simply acted as a holding place for seriously disturbed youth who had nowhere to go.\nIn summary, these three factors—clinical, socio-legal, and inter-systemic—may together produce a prevalence of mental disorder in juvenile justice settings that does not represent the actual relation between adolescent mental disorder and delinquency. That high prevalence does, however, represent a demand on the juvenile justice system to respond to youth in custody who have mental disorders, and the demand is almost overwhelming. Some of those youth are in secure custody because they have committed serious crimes, others because the legal system has widened the door to juvenile justice processing, and many because their symptoms make them difficult to handle and they have no place else to go.\nThe problem requires a solution, and the multiple causes of the problem as well as the various types of youth involved suggest that the solution will be complex. What have clinicians and researchers learned that can help us determine the appropriate response?38"}
{"text": "Note: This lesson was originally published on an older version of The Learning Network; the link to the related Times article will take you to a page on the old site.\nTeaching ideas based on New York Times content.\nOverview of Lesson Plan: In this lesson, students evaluate current search procedures implemented to fight terrorism and examine constitutional rights to privacy. They then share and defend their opinions about domestic security and civil liberties in an age of terrorism.\nKristen Tepfenhardt, The New York Times Learning Network\nYasmin Chin Eisenhauer, The Bank Street College of Education in New York City\nSuggested Time Allowance: 1 hour\n1. Participate in a “random search” simulation; evaluate current search procedures implemented to fight terrorism.\n2. Consider the New York area mass transit’s response to the terror attacks in London by reading and discussing the article “In New York, It’s Open Bag or Find Exits.”\n3. Discuss constitutional amendments that relate to rights to privacy.\n4. Share individual opinions on domestic security and civil liberties in an age of terrorism.\n5. Justify their stances on this topic in letters to state legislators.\nResources / Materials:\n-five index cards with instructions, as described in Warm-Up activity\n-copies of the article “In New York, It’s Open Bag or Find Exits,” found online at http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/featured_articles/20050725monday.html (one per student)\n-four large pieces of paper or poster board, each with one of the following statements written in large letters: “Strongly Agree,” “Agree Somewhat,” “Disagree Somewhat,” “Strongly Disagree”\nActivities / Procedures:\n1. WARM-UP/DO-NOW: Prior to class, write the words Security Check on the classroom board, place a desk underneath it, and write the following five instructions each on its own index card:\n-Please proceed to the Security Check area and list all of the items in your possession on the back of this card.\n-Please proceed to the Security Check area, list all of the items in your possession on the back of this card, and take out proper photo identification.\n-Please proceed to the Security Check area, remove your shoes and empty all of your pockets on the desk.\n-Please proceed to the Security Check area and write your social security number, full name, home address and phone number on the back of this card, and await a search of your personal belongings.\n-Please proceed to the Security Check area and await the K-9 Dog Unit, which will search your belongings.\nAs students enter the classroom, randomly hand an index card to students until all five index cards are distributed. (Based on your class size, you might want to give a card to every fourth or fifth student.) Each student who receives a card reports to the front of the room to the Safety Check area and follows the instructions as indicated on his or her index card.\nAfter a few minutes, ask each student to read his or her card aloud, and have each student share his or her thoughts about being selected for this process. Did all students fully comply with the security check? Why or why not? Did they feel that their privacy was being invaded in any way? Now, facilitate a class discussion: How do other students in the class feel about these types of security checks? Would they feel comfortable with this search procedure if it were applied to them in school? On public transportation? In an airport? While entering a mall? Do students think this type of search procedure is effective in stopping potential terrorists? Do students feel that these types of procedures are a violation of their privacy?\n2. As a class, read and discuss “In New York, It’s Open Bag or Find Exits” (found online at http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/featured_articles/20050725monday.html), focusing on the following questions:\na. What “new era” has entered New York City’s subways?\nb. What new element was added to subway riders’ commuting routines, and why?\nc. Where did the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey state it would conduct its searches?\nd. Where did the Metropolitan Transportation state its searches were conducted?\ne. Who is Michael Chertoff, and according to him, how long will the nation’s mass transit agencies remain on high alert?\nf. What did the New York Police Department refuse to disclose after its first day of searches?\ng. According to officials, how will the searches be conducted on the weekends?\nh. How many subway stations were involved in the initial searches?\ni. What was the consequence for commuters who did not agree to inspection?\nj. During what hours are the searches focused, and why?\nk. How were officers ordered by commanders to stop riders for searches?\nl. What did Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg acknowledge on the morning that the searches were announced?\nm. What does Mayor Bloomberg hope he has established, as he indicated on his weekly program on WABC-AM?\nn. What did Mayor Bloomberg pledge?\no. What has Mayor Bloomberg learned?\np. What has the New York Civil Liberties Union called the searches?\nq. What did Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly indicate for officers in the guideline issued on July 21, 2005, to top police commanders?\nr. What different types of packages were searched?\ns. According to Shauna Murray, how long did the search process take at Woodlawn-Jerome Avenue in the Bronx?\nt. When did the “every fifth person” search break down?\nu. In addition to searching bags, what steps were taken at Sutphin Boulevard-Archer Avenue by officers?\nv. What was the search procedure at 42nd Street and Eighth Avenue in Manhattan?\nw. By what were selected riders met at Lafayette Avenue in Fort Greene, Brooklyn?\nx. What was Amy Lisogorsky’s reaction the second time she was searched?\ny. How did the search situation in the suburbs compare to that in the city?\nz. What is James Murphy’s view regarding the searches’ ability to prevent a bombing?\naa. According to the Port Authority’s chairman, Anthony R. Coscia, what did the announcement of these searches prompt him to do?\n3. Refer back to the statement in the article made by Acting New Jersey Gov. Richard J. Codey: “The two bomb attacks this month on subways and buses in London made it ‘necessary to bring a new level of vigilance to our mass transit system.’” Then, explain to students that privacy is not mentioned specifically in the Constitution, but the Supreme Court has ruled that several amendments do establish our constitutional right to privacy. Review and discuss the following amendments, focusing on how they relate to privacy:\n-First Amendment: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”\n-Fourth Amendment: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”\n-Fourteenth Amendment, Section 1: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”\n4. Explain to students that they will be expressing their views on different statements that you will be reading to them regarding domestic security and civil liberties in an age of terrorism. Hang the four “statement” posters in different corners of the room. Because students will be moving around to stand beneath the statements with which they most agree for different questions related to democracy, be sure that students have clear paths in the room to reach the four corners. For each of the statements below, read the statement aloud and allow students to move to the corners of the room that best express their views on the statement. As students take their places, write the statement on the board. Then, ask at least one student in each group to share his or her choice. Encourage students to support their opinions with reasons, facts, and examples, and allow students to challenge one another’s ideas.\n-Sometimes personal rights must be given up in order to protect people from those who could be a danger to all of us.\n-Searches should be conducted at the discretion of police officers based only if they have probable cause to suspect someone of a crime.\n-The phrase “it is better to be safe than sorry” applies when it comes to fighting terrorism.\n-The American government should have the right to investigate to the fullest extent of the law any suspicious person and his or her activities.\n-Civil liberties have been granted in the United States Constitution and should be preserved at all costs.\n5. WRAP-UP/HOMEWORK: Students respond to the following prompt, written on the board for students to copy prior to leaving the classroom: “As quoted in the article read in class, Port Authority’s chairman Anthony R. Coscia stated that ‘people are willing to endure some level of inconvenience to have a higher level of safety.’ Considering the content of the article and today’s class discussions, write a letter to a senator or representative from our state. What balance can be struck between providing domestic security against terrorism and preserving the civil liberties guaranteed by the Constitution? What potential terror targets exist in your state, how are they protected in this age of terrorism, and how successful do you think those measures are?” Students can peer-edit their letters and send them to your state legislators. (You can find the addresses of your legislators at http://www.congress.org/congressorg/home/.)\nFurther Questions for Discussion:\n-Public mass transit systems are currently using a random search method. What other systems might also be subject to searches?\n-If current search methods begin to produce fear in the American people and deter them from using mass transit, how can the government restore faith in this system?\n-Is it fair to compare mass transit search procedures to those used in airports if these modes of transportation do not follow the same protocol? Is one method more effective than the other?\nEvaluation / Assessment:\nStudents will be evaluated based on participation in class discussions and clear presentation and defense of opinions, in both spoken and written forms.\nwidespread, yielding, random, conduct, endure, networks, vigilance, alertness, disclose, intrusive, violating, turnstile, profiling, unconstitutional, precedents, checkpoints, intoxication, guideline, retained, probable cause, diverse, notation, detained, emigrated, overzealous, substantial, submitted, optimistic\n1. Examine other times in history when the United States government has implemented policies that some would consider to be invasions of privacy or threats to individuals’ civil liberties. Create a political cartoon for your school newspaper comparing that historic situation to the current situation discussed in the article read in class.\n2. Research the United States Homeland Security Advisory System. Why was it developed? When and how was it developed? How does it work? What do different people think of this system’s effectiveness? Write a newspaper article sharing your findings, or an editorial piece offering your views.\n3. What is the American Civil Liberties Union? What is their mission? What are their goals? What have they done to attain these goals? In what recent situations were they involved, and to what extent did their involvement impact the outcome? Create an informational poster or illustrated timeline with your findings.\nEconomics/Mathematics- How much has the United States spent on homeland security since September 11, 2001? Create a series of graphs illustrating various angles of answers to this question (e.g., one graph focusing only on New York, another focusing on airline security, another on costs incurred in the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, etc.) Then, write an evaluative piece reflecting on your findings.\nMedia Studies- Identify an issue of privacy related to the news media. Prepare a chart that lists the consequences of maintaining privacy in the situation, and identify these consequences as benefits or costs. Be prepared to explain the issue to your class. Is there a need for legislation related to this issue? What laws currently exist?\nTeaching with The Times- Search for headlines in The New York Times that discuss to the London bombings and terrorism in general. What anti-terrorism methods are other countries taking in response to the London attacks? Then, create a chart to compare and contrast methods being used abroad with those being implemented in the United States. To order The New York Times for your classroom, click here.\nOther Information on the Web:\nThe American Civil Liberties Union, or A.C.L.U. (http://www.aclu.org), is an advocate of individual rights.\nCenter for Civic Education (http://www.civiced.org) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan corporation which provides K-12 programs and curriculum which foster the development of informed, responsible participation in civic life.\nJustice Learning: Civic Education in the Real World (http://www.justicelearning.org) is a collaboration between NPR’s Justice Talking and The New York Times Learning Network, with features on various constitutional issues affecting the world today.\nAcademic Content Standards:\nCivics Standard 18- Understands the role and importance of law in the American constitutional system and issues regarding the judicial protection of individual rights. Benchmarks: Understands the importance of the rule of law in establishing limits on both those who govern and the governed, protecting individual rights, and promoting the common good; Knows historical and contemporary examples of the rule of law; Understands criteria for evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of a rule or law by determining if it is understandable, possible to follow, fair, well designed to achieve its purposes, and designed to protect individual rights and to promote the common good; Understands the basic concept of due process of law; Understands the importance to individuals and to society of major due process protections; Understands why due process rights in administrative and legislative procedures are essential for the protection of individual rights and the maintenance of limited government; Understands current issues regarding judicial protection of the rights of individuals\nCivics Standard 26- Understands issues regarding the proper scope and limits of rights and the relationships among personal, political, and economic rights. Benchmarks: Understands what is meant by the “scope and limits” of a right; Understands different positions on a contemporary conflict between rights; Understands different positions on a contemporary conflict between rights and other social values and interests\nCivics Standard 29- Understands the importance of political leadership, public service, and a knowledgeable citizenry in American constitutional democracy. Benchmarks: Understands why becoming knowledgeable about public affairs and the values and principles of American constitutional democracy and communicating that knowledge to others is an important form of participation, and understands the argument that constitutional democracy requires the participation of an attentive, knowledgeable, and competent citizenry; Understands how awareness of the nature of American constitutional change gives citizens the ability to reaffirm or change fundamental constitutional values\nLanguage Arts Standard 7- Demonstrates competence in the general skills and strategies for reading a variety of informational texts. Benchmarks: Applies reading skills and strategies to a variety of informational texts; Knows the defining characteristics of a variety of informational texts; Uses new information to adjust and extend personal knowledge base; Identifies techniques used to convey viewpoint; Draws conclusions and makes inferences based on explicit and implicit information in texts; Differentiates between fact and opinion in informational texts\nLanguage Arts Standard 8- Demonstrates competence in speaking and listening as tools for learning. Benchmarks: Plays a variety of roles in group discussions; conveys a clear main point when speaking to others and stays on the topic being discussed\nCivics Standard 18- Understands the role and importance of law in the American constitutional system and issues regarding the judicial protection of individual rights. Benchmarks: Understands how the rule of law makes possible a system of ordered liberty that protects the basic rights of citizens; Knows historical and contemporary practices that illustrate the central place of the rule of law; Knows historical and contemporary instances in which judicial protections have not been extended to all persons and instances in which judicial protections have been extended to those deprived of them in the past; Understands why due process rights in administrative and legislative procedures are essential for protecting individual rights and maintaining limited government\nCivics Standard 26- Understands issues regarding the proper scope and limits of rights and the relationships among personal, political, and economic rights. Benchmarks: Knows how to distinguish among personal, political, and economic rights; Understands different positions on a contemporary conflict between rights such as one person’s right to free speech versus another person’s right to be heard\nCivics Standard 29- Understands the importance of political leadership, public service, and a knowledgeable citizenry in American constitutional democracy. Benchmarks: Understands why becoming knowledgeable about public affairs and the values and principles of American constitutional democracy, and communicating that knowledge to others are important forms of participation, and understands the argument that constitutional democracy requires the participation of an attentive, knowledgeable, and competent citizenry; Understands how awareness of the nature of American constitutional change gives citizens the ability to reaffirm or change fundamental constitutional values\nLanguage Arts Standard 7- Demonstrates competence in the general skills and strategies for reading a variety of informational texts. Benchmarks: Applies reading skills and strategies to a variety of informational texts; Knows the defining characteristics of a variety of informational texts; Determines the effectiveness of techniques used to convey viewpoint\nLanguage Arts Standard 8- Demonstrates competence in speaking and listening as tools for learning. Benchmarks: Asks questions as a way to broaden and enrich classroom discussions"}
{"text": "INTEGRATED THEME UNIT: CRUISING THE CARIBBEAN - PART 4 - HONDURAS (ELEM/MIDDLE)\nThis fun unit features the adventures of Melvin and Morris as they visit Honduras while cruising the Caribbean includes a realistic fiction reading selection, comprehension questions and map reading skills. 6 pages including answer key\nAlready an abcteach Member?\nLOG IN TO ACCESS THIS DOCUMENT..."}
{"text": "Deep in a desiccated, Utah desert, surrounded by mountains and fringed with scorched sage and saltbush, stand the surreal remains of German Village. Out of bounds, out of place, out of time and 90 miles from Salt Lake City, it is surely the most bizarre feature of Dugway Proving Ground, a test site created by the Allied military during the second world war to develop weapons of mass destruction for use against civilian targets in Germany and Japan.\nAll that survives of German Village is a single block of high-gabled, prewar Berlin working-class housing. It is accurate in every respect. And it should be: commissioned by the chemical warfare corps of the US army, it was designed by Erich Mendelsohn (1887-1953), the German architect who settled in the US in 1941 after a spell in England.\nI was alerted to the story of German Village by Mike Davis, who features it in his provocative book Dead Cities: A Natural History, a study of the vulnerability of modern cities from New York to Tokyo to destruction by man and nature. Mendelsohn's involvement in this deathly project, seemed, at first, bizarre. A Jew from Allenstein in East Prussia (today, Olsztyn in Poland), Mendelsohn settled in Berlin, where he trained as an architect after studying economics in Munich. From the trenches of the great war he sent home visionary sketches of extraordinary streamlined, or expressionist, buildings. In 1919, during the great flu epidemic, he began work on the Einstein Tower, an astrophysics laboratory for the German mathematician and scientist, at Potsdam on the edge of Berlin.\nOver the next 10 or 12 years, Mendelsohn developed beautiful, sweeping, clean-lined, light-filled architecture - much of it in Berlin - that appeared to catch the spirit of the old German Enlightenment and represent it afresh in the uncertain days of the Weimar Republic. These included the Metal Workers Union building, the Universum Cinema on Kurfürstendamm, the Columbushaus (Galeries Lafayette) and several villas, including his own. Outside Berlin, the streamlined department stores he built for Schocken at Nuremberg, Stuttgart and Chemnitz were hugely influential worldwide.\nMendelsohn left for England when Hitler was voted into power in 1933. Here, with the Russian-born dandy Serge Chermayeff, he built, among a number of fine houses, the De la Warr Pavilion at Bexhill-on-Sea.\nHow can this Erich Mendelsohn be the architect of the dark and deathly German Village in the Utah desert? Mendelsohn left no correspondence or notebooks relating to the Dugway Proving Ground project, where napalm and poison gases were developed and tested. He had been under gas attack in the trenches, yet it is hard not to think that his primary motivation in the desert of Utah was revenge on the Nazis. If this seems fair enough, what remains disturbing is the fact that this work was expressly designed to destroy working-class districts of Berlin, including Wedding and Pankow. These had been communist strongholds, virulently anti-Hitler, before the Gestapo and SS all but destroyed opposition to the Nazi regime.\nA concerted Allied attack, by the British and US air force on working-class districts of German and Japanese cities had, however, become more or less official policy by 1943. Churchill wanted to gas them. Killed and mutilated in sufficient numbers, the German working class would, he argued, rise up against Hitler and bring a quick end to the war. \"It is absurd to consider morality on this topic,\" he told RAF planners when the first German V1 rockets fell on London. \"I want the matter studied in cold blood by sensible people, and not by psalm-singing uniformed defeatists.\"\nSensible people included the prime minister's favourite scientific adviser, Professor Frederick Lindemann (Lord Cherwell), who insisted that \"the bombing must be directed essentially against working-class houses. Middle-class houses have too much space around them, and so are bound to waste bombs.\" Psalm-singing uniformed defeatists included the US's air force's celebrated commander Jimmy Doolittle, who took against Churchill's proposed Operation Thunderclap that aimed to kill 275,000 Berliners in a single 2,000-plane raid scheduled for August 1944. It did not take place.\nWashington's war secretary Henry Stimson said he did not want \"the United States to get the reputation of outdoing Hitler in atrocities\". His less diplomatic deputy, Robert Lovett, pleading the case for adopting anti-personnel bombs loaded with napalm and white phosphorous, said: \"If we are going to have a total war, we might as well make it as horrible as possible.\" Churchill trumped Lovett by calling on US president Franklin D Roosevelt to speed up production of a promised 500,000 top-secret \"N-bombs\" - filled with anthrax, developed at Dugway - to be dropped on Berlin and five other German cities.\nAs the debate raged in political and military circles, Mendelsohn, with scientists from Standard Oil and German-emigre set designers from Hollywood's RKO studio, set to work on German Village. RKO expertise contributed the design of proletarian Berlin interiors down to the last detail. Using forced labour (inmates from Utah state prison), German Village and its six \"mietskasernen\" (rent barracks) apartment blocks were completed in 44 days, in time for experiments scheduled from May 1943.\nMendelsohn and his team had done a good job. Their designs were far superior to the German housing built in England for test destruction by the RAF at Harmondsworth, near Heathrow airport. Assaulted by napalm, gas, anthrax and incendiary bombs, German Village was rebuilt several times during 1943. Nearby, the Japanese Village (long since vanished), designed by the Czech-educated architect Antonin Raymond (1888-1976), paved the way for incendiary attacks on working-class districts of Tokyo. On March 9 1945, 334 US air force B-29 superfortress bombers dropped 2,000 tons of napalm and magnesium incendiaries on the timber and paper houses of Asakusa. Officially, 83,793 Japanese were killed, 40,918 injured and 265,171 buildings destroyed. The same month, German Village aided the fire raids on Dresden. By the time Germany surrendered in May 1945, US and British raids had destroyed 45% of German housing. And, as Davis wryly observes: \"Allied bombers pounded into rubble more 1920s socialist and modernist utopias than Nazi villas.\"Mendelsohn was the architect of some of the very best of these white, concrete dreams. Dugway, Davis argues, \"led the way to the deaths of, say, two million Axis civilians\", and German Village remains \"a monument to the self-righteousness of punishing 'bad places' by bombing them\".\nThere is no doubt that Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan had to be defeated; but did the Allies really need German Village, Japanese Village and the refined architectural efforts of Mendelsohn and Raymond? At the fiery dawn of the 20th century, beneath the civilised, enlightened facades of Britain and the US, as well as Germany and Japan, was a desire for expansion, destruction and terrible revenge. Sitting on the sun-deck of Mendelsohn's pavilion at Bexhill-on-Sea, this axis of modern evil seems so very far removed, as far away, in fact, as the sole surviving \"rent barrack\" of German Village, Utah.\n· Dead Cities: A Natural History by Mike Davis, The New Press, £16.95."}
{"text": "Internet shopping cart is a software program that acts as an online shopping store. It is when integrated on company website enables the customers to choose items from the web store and then help in purchasing those items particularly with the help of few steps.\nIn real world shopping cart is a metal basket where items are physically held together by the walls of the basket. Whereas, online shopping cart is an interface between company website and its infrastructure, allowing consumers to review what all they have selected and make necessary modifications, if required. It works as a web store on a website presenting its own set of unique changes and challenges. Further, the product offering needs to be kept current with statistics, pricing, information on availability and order needs to be fulfilled.\nWhy Is A Shopping Cart Required?\nOnline shopping is a fast means and growing consumer trends. Today most of the consumer’s assume that company offers Internet purchasing. In order to meet the demands of the customer company needs to have a secure, reliable and fast shopping cart system in place.\nUses of a Shopping Cart\nShopping cart software allows online shopping customers to \"place\" items in the cart. Upon \"checkout\" the software typically calculates a total for the order including shipping and handling (i.e. postage and packing) and taxes. It typically provides a means of capturing a client's payment information, but in the case of a credit card payment there is a payment gateway, a secure payment gateway is conducted in order to prefer for a secure transaction.\nBenefits of a Shopping Cart\n- Easily Accept Online Payments: Shopping Cart accepts credit card payments by simple payment gateway.\n- Transactions Are Very Secure: Financial information is securely stored on their servers. There is always a 100% protection against unauthorized payments.\n- Easy set up: There is no complex computer programming it’s simply a product display and sells by payment gateway.\n- Product Details: Product details are mentioned for each item like the shipping charges, price, handling fees, item number which helps in customizing the product for the buyer.\n- Multiple Options: There are multiple options for the customers to make changes or select the product as required by them before making purchases.\nHow Do Shopping Carts Work?\nThere are different types of shopping carts in the market along with its different ways of working. But normally a shopping cart includes a basic structure:\n- A database to store information such as product detail, customer data, order information etc.\n- A storefront that displays this information to store visitors (e.g. product detail pages, checkout pages, etc.)\n- An administration area that allows the store administrator to manage the store. (Like where you add products, set up shipping & payment options, process order etc.)\nStoring the database allows the web owners to see the existing shopping carts at any time, with their amount of purchases. This information is valuable allowing the web owners to get through the basic needs and belongings of a customer who did not proceed to check out process on last visit and who have processed the shopping from the site. Using cookies a virtual shopping cart can be stored in the customer web browser.\nHow Do Shopping Carts Work?\nWeb shopping requires a lot of security for online customers. Customer information should be kept confidential and secure in an online transaction. Working should be done more than the customer’s expectations, without any service disruptions.\nThe most important aspect is to secure the website from any fraud and mismanagement by the user."}
{"text": "|Home :: Building Database :: Extras :: Search :: Map||You are here Architecture Edinburgh Queensferry KY11|\nScroll down for more pictures\nFirth of Forth Bridge\n|Also known as:||Forth Rail Bridge|\nThis structure is a great undulating steel monster rising out of the estuary that is formed by the Forth river as it slowly spreads out toward the North Sea. \"Monster\" is an appropriate word, because this bridge has the looks of a beast, and the strength to back it up. It is considered one of the strongest, most stable, and most expensive bridges in history. That came out of necessity. The bridge was built after the span across the Firth of Tay collapsed, killing 75 people on a train in the middle of the night. Engineers and planners needed to cross the Forth, but had to do it in a way that would be acceptable to a public still shocked by what was then the worst bridge disaster in history. What they came up with wasn't merely another cantilever-truss bridge. What they put together was a marvel of Victorian engineering, and a span so overbuilt that it barely moves in even the heaviest wind, even though a certain amount of sway is expected in most large structures. This is achieved by using steel plate tubes with internal braces. The most stout of these building members are 12-feet in diameter. Its nearly exclusive use of steel, combined with its latticework appearance have made some people refer to it as the \"Eiffel Tower of Scotland.\"\n>1890 - The then-Prince of Wales drives the last rivet into place. It was gold plated and is inscribed. He would later go on to become King Edward VII.\n>57 people lost their lives building the Forth of Firth bridge.\n>The bridge is held together by nearly 7,000,000 rivets.\n>The bridge is made from 54,000 tons of steel.\n>The bridge is made from 194,000 cubic yards of granite.\n>The bridge is made from 21,000 tons of cement.\n>The bridge rests on three piers, 70-feet in diameter.\n>Each of these piers descends up to 90 feet into the earth before resting on bedrock.\n>The bridge is designed to stand up to wind forces as high as 56 pounds per square foot.\nRate This Bridge\nmethod='post' action='/Building.php?ID=307#Rate'>Current rating: 70% name='Rating' id='Rating' value='Praise' class='Plain'> name='Rating' id='Rating' value='Raze' class='Plain'>\nThere are eight comments.\nI am from the County of Fifeand have gone over the bridge many times on the steam trains.On the middle span we through a penny into the water or good luck.I have been in Australia for 37 years but stll consider the Forth Railway Bridge the milestone in engineering and the best in the world.\nJames A Taylor - Saturday, October 10th, 2009 @ 2:28am\nI have riden across the bridge 5 times. If I am lucky enough to get to my favorite overseas city, Edinburgh. I would love to visit it from the shore in North Queensferry and visit Inchgarvie if possible. In my opinion the two most impressive bridges in the world are the Great Forth Bridge and the Brooklyn Bridge.\nJames Anderson - Saturday, February 21st, 2009 @ 7:38am\nI visited the bridge in 1970 and i'm still fascinated by the vast of it....excellent achievement\nrobert ledger - Thursday, April 3rd, 2008 @ 10:20am\nMy brothers and I were born in a little cottage underneath the Forth Bridge on the North side. We think of this Bridge as the Best in the World. It is magic!!\nAvril Hylton - Sunday, January 1st, 2006 @ 12:57pm\nindia - Thursday, July 7th, 2005 @ 5:24am\nTo view this bridge in the mist with just the tops rising above in the sunshine is a dream.\nMal Walker - Sunday, March 13th, 2005 @ 1:51am\n|LACU Community||LACU Extras||LACU Tools||LACU Sister Sites|"}
{"text": "SAVINGS ACTION 59: Lower the temperature on your water heater\nIn a typical household, the water heater thermostat is set to around 140 degrees Fahrenheit. But did you know that setting it to 120 is usually fine? Each 10-degree reduction saves 3 to 5 percent on your energy costs and 600 pounds of CO2 per year for an electric water heater, or 440 pounds for a gas heater. Reducing your water temperature to 120 also slows mineral buildup and corrosion in your water heater and pipes. This helps your water heater last longer and operate at its maximum efficiency. Here's another interesting tidbit from the folks at Power ScoreCard: \"If every household turned its water heater thermostat down 20 degrees, we could prevent more than 45 million tons of annual CO2 emissions — the same amount emitted by the entire nations of Kuwait or Libya.\"\nSavings: 3-5 percent on your monthly energy costs\nEnvironmental Impact: 440-600 pounds of CO2 emissions reduced annually\nTAKE THE CHALLENGE and LEARN MORE about SAVING ENERGY! Visit: www.SouthCoastEnergyChallenge.org"}
{"text": "(CNN) — For parents in Somalia, giving their children immunizations is not a choice.\nIn a country enduring more than 20 years of conflict, Somalia is home to one of the highest child mortality rates in the world, with one in five Somali children dying before their 5th birthday, aid agencies say — in many instances, from diseases that could be prevented by vaccines.\nYet for some equally loving parents in the developed world, the messages surrounding childhood vaccination have become muddied. Some communities in areas previously considered disease-free are now falling below the levels of “herd immunity” required to protect against diseases such as measles, whooping cough and mumps.\nThis week, in Swansea, Wales, the local public health agency announced that 886 people have been diagnosed with measles in an epidemic that started in November. The outbreak has been attributed to low measles, mumps and rubella immunization rates. One man’s death has been linked to the measles virus, while 80 people have been hospitalized.\nIn 2011, six people in France died as a result of a measles epidemic that neared 15,000 confirmed cases, according to the World Health Organization.\nTeens not getting vaccinated\nPFCs’ impact on vaccine effectiveness\nStudy: 10% of kids improperly vaccinated\nVaccine schedules for children\nIn 2010, a whooping cough outbreak, resulting from pockets of under-vaccinated people in California, resulted in 10 deaths, according to the California Department of Public Health. Nine of these were infants were too young to be vaccinated.\n“We are extremely concerned about what’s happening in some parts of the developed world,” said Jos Vandelaer, chief of immunization at UNICEF, one of the groups helping vaccination efforts in Somalia. “In the developing world, many people don’t even get the chance to be immunized. Health systems are not strong enough to take the vaccine to every child despite the fact that their parents want it.”\nParents with real fears\nMeasles, whooping cough and Hib (haemophilus influenzae type B), along with many other childhood diseases, can be deadly, but they are vaccine-preventable. Measles alone killed more than 150,000 people globally in 2011, according to WHO.\nMeasles is also highly infectious, with one carrier likely to pass on the virus to between 14 and 18 other susceptible people, said Dr. Matthew Snape of the Oxford Vaccine Group in the pediatrics department at the University of Oxford, England.\nDespite the severity of these diseases, some parents in the developed world choose not to immunize their children and accept the risks.\n“Studies show that it is the upper middle class, well-educated Caucasian parents who are shunning vaccines,” said Dr. Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “They have generally gone to graduate school, are in positions of management and are used to being in control.”\nA study released this month by the National Health Performance Authority in Australia reflected this trend. A number of affluent Sydney suburbs were identified as regions where low levels of immunity have put entire communities at risk from these diseases.\nThe reasons behind parents’ decisions are complex. Part of the problem is lingering doubts around vaccine safety that were compounded by a retracted 1998 study linking the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine with autism.\nAlthough declared an “elaborate fraud” by the British Medical Journal, it raised questions about the safety of immunization in the minds of many parents. These doubts then were spread worldwide on the Internet and in the media by anti-vaccination groups and some celebrities.\n“If you want to scare yourself about vaccines, it’s not that hard,” Offit said. “Just turn on your computer.”\nFor such parents, the perceived risks of vaccination outweigh the risks they associate with disease.\nIn Australia, where vaccination is not mandatory, the anti-vaccination Australian Vaccination Network website says parents need to make an informed choice. The site offers links to articles and parental accounts of the potential side effects of many vaccines.\nA UNICEF working paper released this week to coincide with World Vaccination Week has tracked the rise of anti-vaccination sentiment in Eastern and Central Europe and concludes that poorly managed immunization campaigns in some countries have also contributed to the problem.\nConcerned parents in the affected countries are taking to blogs and Facebook, discussing their mistrust of vaccines and government programs, questioning the involvement of pharmaceutical companies and often recommending alternative medicine.\nA March survey conducted by the U.S. organization Public Policy Polling showed that 20% of Americans believe there is a link between childhood vaccines and autism, and a further 34% were not sure.\nDiseases long forgotten in the developed world\nWhile there are some risks associated with vaccines, they are mostly minor, such as pain at the vaccine site or low-grade fever, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A serious allergic reaction is rare and usually reported in less than one out of 1 million doses, the agency reported.\n“Hundreds of millions of children every year are vaccinated, and the number of side effects we see is minimal,” UNICEF’s Vandelaer said. “The anti-vaccine groups focus on the potential side effects, not on the real side effects.”\nOn the question of autism, numerous studies conducted over the past decade have all demonstrated there is no scientific link between vaccines and autism.\nWith so much conflicting information readily available to parents, Dr. Dina Pfeifer, program manager for vaccine-preventable diseases and immunization for WHO’s Europe office, said she believes the decision of whether to immunize children has become so fraught that many parents choose to do nothing at all.\n“They have a difficulty dealing with the amount of information for and against (vaccination) on the Internet, and out of this confusion they are failing to recognize the risks of the disease,” she said.\nAnother factor driving parents’ decision not to vaccinate is the security that comes with herd vaccination, as rates of immunization for many diseases remain above 92% for the population.\nBut Europe’s recent battle with measles demonstrates the problems under-vaccinated populations can pose, especially with older children.\n“Europe had 100,000 cases of measles from 2009 to 2012, and that shows how prevalent the pockets of un-immunized populations are in that area,” Pfeifer said. “Almost 50% of those cases were older than 10 years of age, and the older you are when you contract measles, the more severe the course of the disease.”\nAnother factor of these pockets is their affluence; these parents tend to be the ones able to afford overseas travel.\nIn 2008, a 7-year-old U.S. boy whose parents chose not to immunize him against measles traveled with his family to Switzerland. He caught the virus and returned to San Diego, unknowingly exposing 839 people to the disease and infecting 11 unvaccinated children, according to the journal Pediatrics.\nIn Europe and the United States, parents and most people under 45 have never seen the effects of diseases such as measles, diphtheria or polio.\n“The fear factor (among parents in the developed world) is missing now — the knowledge of what’s on the other side if you don’t have vaccinations,” said Dr. Seth Berkley, CEO of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, known as GAVI Alliance.\nThe lack of knowledge of these diseases is also a problem among younger doctors and pediatricians, who may not be able to identify the signs, resulting in misdiagnoses.\n“There is a lot of value in case-based learning, but it is difficult to learn how to recognize these diseases if you haven’t seen them before,” said WHO’s Pfeifer.\nIn contrast, most parents in the developing world, in places such as Somalia, have seen family members suffer, be maimed or die from such diseases, health advocates said.\nEducation and motivation\nTo address the problem, Berkley prescribes localized programs in countries to supplement the already high overall levels of immunization. Other physicians are supporters of parental education and want to ensure parents feel free to ask as many questions of their doctors and health care workers.\nDr. Steve Hambleton of the Australian Medical Association said further motivation may be necessary. “When you incentivize the parents in a meaningful way, whether it be financial or with other incentives, you can make an enormous difference in vaccination uptake,” he said.\nBerkley, a doctor who specializes in epidemiology and global health, said he has seen the devastating effects of vaccine-preventable diseases in war-torn countries and refugee camps.\nBerkley said he wished he could take some parents in the developed world “on a tour, show them how horrible it is. Show them the illness that occurs out of these viruses.”\n“We’ve brought down child mortality dramatically with these vaccination campaigns and we are making dramatic progress, but the challenge is getting people to understand what the world was like before this.”"}
{"text": "Some numbers mean things, and some numbers do things. Making--and breaking--that distinction was central to renowned mathematician John von Neumannâs implementation of Alan Turingâs Universal Machine in 1945-56. In this lecture, you will learn about the unlikeliest place on earth to build such a device and how this vital 5-kilobyte step in the digital revolution was sparked by a collision of ideas between mathematicians and engineers. Combining soldering guns with science, Von Neumann and his Electronic Computing Instrument tackled previously intractable problems ranging from thermonuclear explosions, stellar evolution, and long-range weather forecasting to cellular automata, network optimization, and the origins of life. In this highly visual and informative presentation, George Dyson will impart the full story - from the people to their processors - and where our digital directions through history may lead us next."}
{"text": "Food Safety: Serving\nYou can help prevent food poisoning by taking precautions when serving food.\nWhen you eat out, be sure that meat is cooked thoroughly and that foods that should be refrigerated, such as puddings and cold cuts, are served cold. Also pay attention to the restaurant environment. If the tables, dinnerware, and restrooms look dirty, the kitchen may be too.\neMedicineHealth Medical Reference from Healthwise\nTo learn more visit Healthwise.org\n© 1995-2012 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.\nFind out what women really need.\nMost Popular Topics\nPill Identifier on RxList\n- quick, easy,\nFind a Local Pharmacy\n- including 24 hour, pharmacies"}
{"text": "Look up in the sky - It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a ... hummingbird!\nThose fragile-looking little flecks of light and noise that flit to and fro are not nearly as delicate as they might seem. Looking like dainty little fairies in their plumage of sparkly feathers, hummingbirds are really tough old birds that will fight fiercely to defend a territory or fly thousands of miles solo on their annual migration. Don't let their small size mislead you, for these miniature flyers are really little super heroes in disguise.\nJust imagine all you could accomplish if you could move your arms as fast as the wings of the hummingbird. Actual wing speed varies with species, but the hummingbirds that frequent our valley move their wings at an average speed of 40 to 50 beats per second. This incredible speed is achieved from a combination of features.\nThe hummingbird's average weight is only about 0.13 ounces, 25 percent to 30 percent of which is pure muscle. Additionally, its shoulder joints have a unique design, allowing them to rotate nearly 180 degrees. This permits the hummingbird to move its wings in a figure-eight pattern, generating power on the upstroke as well as the downstroke. This is what enables the hummingbird to hover and fly in all directions - straight up or down, sideways and even backwards.\nHummingbird migration is legendary, and the eastern ruby-throated hummingbird is famous for its solo flights as far south as Panama. For years, researchers have sought to understand how such a small creature could make such a long journey, particularly because it entails crossing the Gulf of Mexico without stopping.\nStories told by generations past rationalized this feat by explaining that the tiny birds must hitch rides on the backs of more legendary migrators, such as the Canada goose. This story, while still told in some places, is completely untrue for so many reasons, starting with the fact that the geese don't go anywhere close to the Gulf of Mexico in their migrations.\nSince our valley is home to lots of visitors and transplants from the East Coast, it's common to hear the local hummingbirds called ruby-throats, since the males share the same red gorget as their East Coast cousins. The predominant species of hummingbirds in our valley, though, is the broad-tail. These birds look similar to the ruby-throats but are slightly larger and hardier and are differentiated primarily by their range. The broad-tailed hummingbirds are primarily a Western species, with occasional sightings as far north as British Columbia. These hardy birds typically migrate down to Mexico, or sometimes as far south as Guatemala, where some populations remain all year long. The larger, rusty-colored Rufous hummingbird usually arrives later in summer, stopping in Colorado on its way from the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico to breeding grounds as far north as Alaska.\nVery tiny animals don't typically fare well in really cold places. These hardy avian champions, though, have developed the ability to enter torpor, or a period of slowed metabolic rate similar to hibernation, during cold spells. During this time, they can lower their heart rate from a typical speed of 500 beats per minute to approximately 50. Body temperatures also decrease dramatically, from a daytime norm of 105 degrees to a nightly average of 50 degrees or so. Additionally, the male broad-tailed hummingbird, free from the obligations of caring for young, typically travels upslope at night, avoiding the cold air trapped in the valleys by thermal inversions. This reduces its overall energy costs by close to 15 percent, which can sometimes mean the difference between life and death. Despite these adaptations, really cold frosts can and do sometimes kill these hardy marvels of nature.\nThe mighty little hummingbird, smallest of all the vertebrate species, continues to amaze and astound. Recent high-tech, super-slow-motion video of these miniature flyers shows that they fight savagely to defend their territories, even body-slamming one another in order to make their point clear. These miniature birds are also champion migrators, with some species traveling more than 12,000 miles round trip each year. The hummingbird, while small in stature, stands as a testament to the tenacity and brilliance of nature's work, reminding us that there is beauty, strength and resilience in a world where appearances don't always tell the whole story.\nJaymee Squires is the director of graduate programs at Walking Mountains Science Center. She enjoys watching the hummingbirds buzz to and fro, but she has given up trying to feed them for this summer."}
{"text": "VLADNIC, Romania (AP) -- Their origins are a mystery. The most widely accepted theory is that the Csango people of Romania's remote eastern Carpathian mountains began settling around the 13th Century, dispatched by Hungarian rulers to defend the kingdom's easternmost frontier.\nOf Roman Catholic faith and speaking a medieval Hungarian dialect, they still live in relative isolation, harvesting vegetables and nuts, some of which they exchange for oil, rice and other necessities brought in by village-to-village Romanian salesmen.\nThe Csangos fear that their culture and language are eroding. Since Romania joined the European Union in 2007, an entire generation of adults has been lured away by the prospect of jobs in countries like Italy and Spain.\nIn some homes, grandparents are looking after as many as 14 grandchildren.\nA group of doctors from a Hungarian Catholic charity recently visited Vladnic and the nearby Csango villages of Ciucan and Tuta to give eye and dental tests.\nFor 14-year-old Tuta resident Annamaria Laura Lupo, the eye exam was long overdue. She said she's been having headaches and it was affecting her studies at school. Now, she and her mother are awaiting glasses that will be sent from Budapest.\nDentist Renata Jaky said there was a near total lack of oral hygiene. \"When I ask the kids how many times they brush their teeth, the most usual answer is 'never,'\" she said.\nChildren are key to the villages' survival and many start work before sunrise.\n\"I get up at five in the morning and start the day by milking the goat and taking the animals out to pasture. Only after that do I go to school,\" said Gyorgy Radavoi, a 14-year-old boy. \"My mother died and my father works abroad all year. I'm happy when my granddad isn't drunk, we have food to eat and it's warm at home.\""}
{"text": "Moderating your food consumption is the most important component of a healthy, balanced diet. Incorporating concepts such as food combining and food rotation can also be beneficial when addressing poor digestion or food allergies. Following these simple guidelines below will help support your digestion and a strong immune system.\nEat Whole Natural Foods:\nWhole natural foods that come direct from gardens, farms and orchards are the best choices for optimal nutrients, energy and vitality. Fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole grains and legumes should ideally constitute 60-70% of your diet. Although processed food has an undeniable convenience factor and longer shelf life, they typically contain unnecessary additives and chemicals that can be detrimental to your health in the long run.\nWhile not always the budget-friendly option, there are many benefits to eating organic whenever possible. Many believe that organically grown foods have a higher nutrient value than commercially grown produce, while others disagree. There are many studies to prove either side. What cannot be disputed is the undeniable benefit associated with the minimization of chemicals sprayed on organically grown produce, and therefore the reduced toxic load our bodies have to deal with.\nEat Naturally-Raised Meats (Fish, Seafood, Poultry, Beef, Lamb and Eggs):\nProtein is an important component in diets, as it is the building block of all of our cells – and therefore our muscles, tissues and organs. And it is a tremendous source of vitamin B12 and iron. Due to its high fat content, it is important to consider only lean sources of protein. And to minimize our chemical and hormone exposure, look for naturally raised sources of protein.\nEat Raw or Lightly Steamed Vegetables:\nFruits and vegetables are best eaten as fresh as possible, though many can be stored well for several weeks. To maximize the nutrient value of fruits and vegetables, it’s best to eat them raw or lightly steamed. When cooked, many of the vitamins, some minerals and certainly the enzymes in fruits and vegetables are lost, thereby reducing their nutrient value.\nEat in Moderation:\nAs a general guideline, every meal and snack should have 40% lean protein, 20% fat and 40% complex carbohydrates for optimum nutrition and satisfaction. One of the best things you can do is to always eat a healthy balanced breakfast, setting up your metabolism properly for the day. If you have time constraints, consider options such as protein smoothies, healthy muffins, hardboiled eggs or granola with fruit, nuts and seeds.\nEliminate or Minimize Caffeine:\nCaffeine is a stimulant that helps us feel temporarily energized, but it has many negative effects to the body. It has a laxative effect that may cover up sluggish bowels; it’s also a diuretic that causes frequent urination and dehydration, which can lead to many physical symptoms if taken in excess, including insomnia, high blood pressure and headaches.\nUse Natural Sweeteners in Moderation:\nGenerally, it’s best to minimize sugar due to its well-documented impact on health, including hypoglycemia, weight gain, cravings, high cholesterol and dental cavities to name a few. When a sweetener is required, consider natural sources such as raw honey and maple syrup instead.\nEliminate or Limit Alcohol:\nThe negative effects of excessive alcohol use are well documented. Even in moderate amounts, alcohol is a diuretic and also uses up B vitamins as it is processed from the body, so it’s best to eliminate or strictly limit consumption.\nGet Plenty of Sleep:\nThe importance of sleep is often overlooked. During sleep, our muscles and tissues are repaired and revitalized, and our minds process experiences and things we have learned during the day. Although we all have different sleep patterns and needs, the average person requires a minimum of seven to eight hours of uninterrupted sleep per night.\nTo achieve optimal sleep, avoid consumption of caffeine, heavy meals, exercise or alcohol within a few hours before bed. Before bed, consider reading, journaling or meditation to relax, as the day’s anxieties and an overactive mind can also impact your ability to sleep. And finally, ensure that your sleeping environment is set up for the best quality of sleep – minimize noise and keep the bedroom as dark as possible.\nExercise – Move your Body!:\nMany feel that exercise only includes weekly classes, trips to the gym or running. The reality is that any form of exercise is beneficial, including morning or evening walks, or even taking the stairs whenever possible. Ideally, find an activity you enjoy doing and do it as frequently as possible. If finding the time becomes a challenge, use simple methods such as parking your car farther away from your destination and even taking business meetings outdoors and making them “walking meetings”. The key is to find every opportunity in a day to get your body moving."}
{"text": "Project management typically has five stages. Some project managers make mistakes during one or more of those stages, which can sabotage the chance of a successful outcome and have disastrous results for everyone involved. Here are two of the most common mistakes — and ways to avoid them — during each of the five stages. Which ones have you made?\nStage #1: Initiating:\n1. Mistake: The project manager “assumes” he knows what the project sponsor (the high-level person who wants the project done and will support the project) considers to be an acceptable project outcome.\nHow to Avoid the Mistake: You must have a detailed conversation with the project sponsor that establishes specific and realistic measurable objectives for the project. This includes the outcome (expected objectives), a defined timeline (when does it start and when is it supposed to end?) and the cost of the project (how much money, labor, and stuff is required and where the resources will come from?)\n2. Mistake: The project manager fails to identify all the stakeholders (those people who will benefit from or be affected by the project and those people who need to be involved in the project at some time during the project).\nHow to Avoid the Mistake: Ask the project sponsor to identify the primary and secondary stakeholders. Who will be directly and indirectly affected by the project’s outcome? Which stakeholders’ support will be needed to provide the required resources for the project? Include additional stakeholders as the progression of the project reveals them.\nStage #2- Planning:\n1. Mistake: The project manager fails to include the team when planning how the outcome is going to be achieved.\nHow to Avoid the Mistake: It is essential to get the team’s ownership of the project and their commitment to produce agreed-upon results on time and within budget. Let the team help create a written project action plan by involving them in:\n- Deciding roles and responsibilities of team members\n- Creating a project schedule\n- Determining the resources needed (personnel, time, material, other resources, etc.)\n- Creating a communication plan for the project (see Planning - Mistake #2)\n- Identifying the risks to the completion of the project, and creating a risk response plan if necessary\n2. Mistake: The project manager fails to keep everyone informed.\nHow to Avoid the Mistake: You and the team should create a communication plan that addresses how and when the team will communicate with each other, with the sponsor, with each stakeholder, and with each team member who is not actively involved in the project. This is often done with status reports (where the project is now), progress reports (how it got there) and change reports (major changes and how they affect the project).\nStage #3- Executing:\n1. Mistake: The project manager does not hold enough team meetings.\nHow to Avoid the Mistake: Start every large project with a kickoff meeting to review the project action plan with the team and generate excitement, and then hold weekly team meetings to discuss progress. Were all activities completed on time and within budget? Did the team exceed, miss or meet targets for the week? Use this time to discuss and reconcile problems, conflicts, disputes and potential issues.\n2. Mistake: The project manager does not celebrate success with the team.\nHow to Avoid the Mistake: Celebration provides momentum for the team, so don’t wait until you achieve the “overall” success identified in the project action plan. Celebrate small milestones, perhaps on a weekly basis, by recognizing team and individual achievements.\nStage #4- Monitoring:\n1. Mistake: The project manager is not constantly looking for trouble.\nHow to Avoid the Mistake: This fix is easy: constantly look for trouble! This means being aware of and managing any issue that might affect the outcome, time frame, or cost of the project. Examples include time slippage (keeping the project on schedule by tracking project activities), scope creep (prohibiting others from enlarging the project by saying “no”) and project changes (knowing how every change may impact — or jeopardize — the project’s success).\n2. Mistake: The project manager loses track of the project’s outcome, time frame and cost by not using an appropriate tracking system.\nHow to Avoid the Mistake: Use tracking systems (i.e.,Microsoft Project, QuickBooks, Excel) that will reveal any issues or problems so timely corrective action can be taken.\nStage #5- Completing:\n1. Mistake: The project manager attempts to complete or “hand off” the project without tying up all the loose ends.\nHow to Avoid the Mistake: When 90 percent of the project has been completed, meet with the sponsor and primary stakeholders and develop a closing checklist and punch list to identify any remaining uncompleted tasks. Those items must be done before handing the project off or declaring the project completed.\n2. Mistake: The project manager fails to debrief and, if warranted, celebrate with the team.\nHow to Avoid the Mistake: Upon completion, a critical step is to hold a debriefing session about the project with the team using an after action review to share lessons learned, mistakes made and overcome, and successes achieved. You and the team can discuss what went right and what went wrong, and evaluate individual and team performance. If the project’s objectives were met, celebrate and recognize the individual and team efforts and accomplishments.\nWhile project management is replete with the opportunity to make mistakes, avoid the common ones during each phase, and virtually all of your projects will end in success."}
{"text": "web page http://www.amperefitz.com\nAmpere's 1824 Laws\nTheserelative motion laws greatly simply all of science:\nThese laws are essentially Ampere's simple 1824 long wire laws with a frequency modification. .These are universal laws that unify all the forces by seeing all forces as space-time creations similar to the way it's done in general relativity. . These laws, though, visualize different space-time intervals (different gauges) being created at various different spin/orbit frequencies.\nDespite the fact that quantum theory does not see our type of spin causing angular momentum in the microcosm, these laws show it is there nevertheless but at a different space-time interval (different gauge - - different spin/orbit frequency level).\nThe \"A\" Laws\n[The reason these \"A\" Laws work relates to the superposition principle that there is no repulsive force with in phase waves but a repulsive force (space) is always generated by out of phase waves].\nYou must also understand Dr. Milo Wolff's concept that particles (andtime) are manufactured by Spinning, Scalar, Standing Wave, Resonances with an immense, finite number of similar surrounding SSSWRs (Mach's principle).\nForce (space) exists not DIRECTLY via scalar resonances but because of individual vector spin and orbital resonances between two similar Spinning, Scalar Standing Wave Resonances.\nRemember, these\"A\" Laws (Ampere or Aufbau) have unified ALL the forces so these are now the NEW laws for everything, from the smallest spinning particle to the largest spinning super cluster of galaxies even where high relativistic speeds and mass are encountered. For simplicity, we must return to the Bohr concept of the electron. I have shown why in numerous other papers.\n*The 1st. \"A\" Law shows us where all SSSWRs in relative motion produce the least space-time between themselves:\nThe space time interval is created theleast between any two SSSWRs, the closest sides of which \"see\" themselves spinning or moving on parallel paths in the same direction at the same frequency (like gears meshing) or a close harmonic thereof. You can also say these two objects will attract each other.\n*The 2nd. \"A\" Law shows us where all SSSWRs in relative motion produce the most space-time between themselves:\nBoth space and time are created themost between any two SSSWRs, the closest sides of which \"see\" themselves spinning or moving on parallel paths in opposite directions at the same frequency (like gears clashing) or a close harmonic thereof. You can also say these two objects will repel each other.\nI use the quoted word \"see\" to emphasize the particular spacetime realm in which these entities actually find themselves although this will NOT be the way it is seen from our particular spacetime reference frame realm.\nOf great importance, in the two preceding laws, is that these laws arefrequency laws and they work separately for each separate spin/orbit frequency level which means these individual wave-particles must \"see\" themselves doing these things from their viewpoint in their local gauge environment. It does not matter how some other spin/orbit frequency level views these things because space and time and indeed the average space time interval is entirely different for each different spin/orbit frequency level (gauge).\nThese two laws look equal and opposite but they are not: The 1st\"A\" law \"locks on\" while its opposite 2nd sister law never does. This is because the total force is generally centralized and you can feel this 1st \"A\" law \"lock on\" when two magnets come together. These two laws result in limits of aggregation being established all throughout this universe: This is why there are limits to the size of atoms and limits to the size of stars as well.\n*The Aufbau or Ampere Corollary\nThe aforementioned forces, or space-time intervals, between two SSSWRs will vary proportionally with the cosine of the angle of their paths. And they will have a torque that will tend to make the paths parallel and to become oriented so that SSSWRs on both paths will be traveling in the same direction.\nAll SSSWRs that \"see\" themselves traveling in the same direction on parallel paths at the same frequency will attract and/or space and time, at that frequency, between them is created the least.\nAll SSSWRs that \"see\" themselves traveling in opposite directions on parallel paths at the same frequency will repel and/or space and time between them, at that frequency, increases or is created the most.\nAnd please don't forget this:\nWhy electrons, stars & galaxies repel each other\nRemember, we have completely chucked out all those invisible forces you are familiar with and all we have now are these two\"A\" Laws.\nPlease remember, in thisnew \"big picture\" of everything, ALL FORCES ARE NOW UNIFIED so there are no such things as gravity, magnetic lines of force or plus and minus charges or for that matter even the strong force.\nPleasepay particular attention to the following.\nElectrons can exhibit either an attraction or repulsion when they are \"locked\" spin up or spin down on orbitals such as like or unlike charges; like or unlike poles OR they may even display a gyroscopic type repulsive behavior when they are \"free\". Our\"A\" Laws show us why this is so and in the next 6 paragraphs you have the best explanation of why electrons and even stars & galaxies repel each other.\nLets look at these free electrons first: They spin and hence they have inertial qualities and this includes gyroscopic inertia which always provides this force 90 degrees to any external force acting on such a spinning item.\nCompletely forget about charge now and only look at our new\"A\" Laws and what they say.\nThe 1st \"A\" Law tells us that there is a possibility that two free electrons can attract each other providing that any portion of their closest sides are spinning in the same direction at the same frequency. This means either their sides can be spinning in the same directions or they can be lined up so that both of their poles can be spinning in the same directions: Any such two electrons will attract each other (magnetism also sigma and pi bonding).\nThen we see that there is something else: This torque twisting force - on BOTH free items - depends on the cosine of the angle of their respective spin planes.\nAs this force begins to act, it in turn causes this 90-degree gyroscopic torque to twist both of those totally free electrons away from this initial attracting position, doesn't it?\nSo because of this gyro torque, two free electrons can never remain in a full attracting position and they will therefore be forced to stay more in arepelling position. Therefore free electrons will always end up repelling each other and this repelling is not explained by using this thing called charge: it is explained only by simply using global inertial qualities and our new global \"A\" Laws.\nThe above6 paragraphs explain not only why electrons repel each other but they also explain why any two perfectly free similar spinning SSSWRs of the same size must repel each other. So now you know why both electrons and galaxies stay well away from each other.\nThisis Einstein's cosmological constant.\nSomething somewhere has to be\"locked\" in place and synchronized in frequency (such as the electron's spin with another electron's spin) or a close subharmonic to get any kind of attracting force:\nYes, the proton attracts an electron but instead of charge please see it this way:\nWhen two up quarks combine with one down quark to form a proton then the two up quarks are able to synchronize in with the electron's spin frequency and\nThis is why aggregations come together(gravity) and larger aggregations come together and accumulate because as these things grow in size there are more things \"locked\" in place strengthening the attractive force of the 1st \"A\" Law.\nOnce we knew about quarks then we should have realized how those two 'up quarks' in the proton are set up spin up-spin down (The 'up quark' does not signify orientation). Those two spin up--spin down 'up quarks' are spinning - in the same equatorial plane - at a higher frequency but all 'up quarks' spin at a harmonic of the electron's spin frequency allowing a spin up and spin down electron to be attracted to them in the same equatorial plane. We will soon know even more about theattractive quark strong force binding functions. Attraction is always a synchronized frequency attraction and it is not simply the old idea of plus and minus charges.\nAllattractions in this theory must be synchronized frequency attractions.\nBoth light and inertial mass are caused by these synchronized frequency attractions.\nAs quantum theory shows us, the orbital of an electron on a distant star goes down a certain amount while the orbital of the electron receiving this quantum of energy---in your eye---goes up the exact same amount. But what quantum mechanics does not tell you is that these two energy-exchanging orbitals must be in the same exact plane. Not only that but each orbital must be a mirror image of the other with the electrons in each rotating and revolving in the exact opposite directions so that at the time the energy exchange takes place the closest sides of both electrons are going in the same direction. You can see from this that this energy change is merely a MOMENTARY DIRECT PULL from the electron, on the star, to the electron in your eye. These electrons will make many revolutions, rotations and wobbling oscillations during each change of those orbitals giving you the light that you see.\nIf two distant quarks are lined up so that their closest sides are in the same directions as the two aforementioned electrons then they too will momentarily bind with each other---even from a vast distance---and cause what we see as inertial mass. But since the quarks in the proton and neutron tri-quark entities do not oscillate and wobble quite like the electron then this pull of the two quarks is a steady momentary binding pull where BOTH quarks are pulled away from the other two quarks but NO PERMANENTEnergy CHANGE is made in either tri-quark entity (neutron or proton).\nWhen you spin a flywheel and notice the gyroscopic inertia, you should also notice that the gyroscopic torque that is always 90 degrees to the axis of rotationcan also be seen as a linkage with the rim of the rapidly spinning flywheel to a path projected in the sky (macrocosm surroundings). The rim tries to stay in this path. This is showing you that you do have an absolute reference frame, which is Mach's principle. Billions of quarks in BOTH the flywheel and in the macrocosm are both being momentarily extended more than normal thus giving you this added gyroscopic inertia.\nYou might have to read the long TOE athttp://www.rbduncan.com/TOEbyFitzpatrick.htm to get the full picture of what happens when you crank up a gyroscope or a flywheel or ride a bicycle and produce gyroscopic inertia. It's similar to the reason you need cyclic pitch on a helicopter. When a helicopter moves forward then the blades on one side travel through the air faster than the blades on the other side and this tries to tip the helicopter over. (Igor Sikorsky had to invent cyclic pitch to prevent this).\nThe same thing happens to certain quarks whose rims line up with the rim of the gyroscope, flywheel or bicycle wheels. The speed that these items are turning---in respect to the macrocosm---now adds to portions of the quark rim speed which before was close to the speed of light and now gets even closer to the speed of light (becoming more massive hence at a higher frequency). So you are moving up an asymptotic curve close to that unsurpassable speed of c. And this---even with a miniscule number of quarks involved---gives us this gyroscopic inertia. It does this because the mass of these few quarks increase tremendously as portions of their rim speed approach the speed of light. As Einstein has shown us, mass increases with speed and especially increases when on that asymptotic portion of the curve.\nOf available electrons, only the smallest fraction link with others a distance away to transfer light and heat. The same with the spinning quark that causes gyroscopic inertia. All spinning quarks link to cause inertial mass. All these binding linkages are momentary with the electron's oscillations causing a permanent transfer of energy and the various momentary quark bindings causing inertial mass. This could be seen---in gyroscopic inertia---as only a temporary transfer of inertial mass. But if you could increase our surroundings---as will be the case when our Milky Way galaxy finally collides with the Andromeda galaxy---then anyone here on earth will find both inertial mass, gyroscopic inertia and centrifugal force have all become stronger with the more crowded surroundings.\nNow let's go to the stars and you will see the same\"A\" Laws apply there as well and, as you can see, these too will always have to remain in a repelling position with each other.\nRecently Perlmutter discovered this acceleration and showed we must have Einstein'scosmological constant---a repulsive force---between all the stars and galaxies.\nScientists have been recently wracking their brains to figure out why we have Perlmutter's acceleration because nothing in our present science has even predicted such a thing.\nBut read those preceding blue sentences again! Now I hope you can finally see that our \"A\" Laws tell you exactly why we have Einstein's \"cosmological constant\" not only in the sky but in the microcosm as well. And they tell you why we have gravity too. Your present science doesn't even do this.\nThe reason these \"A\" Laws work is that this universe is built on an extraordinarily simple principle via an endless supply of vector wave resonances producing lower frequency spherical standing wave, scalar wave resonances that, in turn, produce space-time by spinning, orbiting and precessing.\nAminimum of space (at that particular frequency) is produced between the closest sides of spinning entities that are in the same scalar phase.\nScalar phaseis more like a movie frame than voltage phase, which pertains to a waveform.\nThese \"A\" Laws show us the production of the most important vector forces between the closest sides of such spinning spherical resonances and in the direction of the axis of each spin. There are also vector forces via orbits and spin and orbital and spin precessions.\nThis universe equalizes the energy vector force input to vector force output of these scalar wave resonances by balancing them on specific spin and orbital geodesics.\nThese vector forces, in turn, combine to produce lower frequency, hence lower energy, scalar resonances, which in turn, spin, precess and orbit producing still lower frequency space-time and its related vector forces and this goes on and on: Thus is our universe built from the microcosm to the macrocosm and may continue indefinitely because higher frequency waves would always be producing lower frequency, lower energy scalar wave resonances and they, in turn, would be producing even lower energy, lower frequency resonances.\nThis seems to be an infinite frequency universe with each spin/orbit frequency having inertial and gyroscopic qualities but yet with each spin/orbit frequency having its own distinct symmetry laws.\nDaniel P. Fitzpatrick Jr.\nOver 4 Decades of Fitzpatrick's Books, Papers & Thoughts:\nAnd here's this page duplicated in Adobe.pdf:\nOver 4 Decades of Fitzpatrick's Books, Papers & Thoughts:http://www.amperefitz.com/4.decades.htm\nFitzpatrick's website is athttp://www.amperefitz.com\nAnother older website carrying Fitzpatrick's works FREE is:http://www.rbduncan.com\nThank you, World Scientist Database - - Daniel P. Fitzpatrick Jr.\nHave a good day & visit my site at goodreads:\nClick ANY of these links to get what you want\nRead my latest book FREE:(these two links below)\nhttp://www.amperefitz.com/ua_20071020_ck_ds_jm_ds.pdf (This is the book in Adobe)\nhttp://www.amperefitz.com/unvasleep.htm (This book link opens faster if you have dial up.)\nWhile all the links on this page are OK and presently working, unfortunately only about two thirds(2/3) of the links I gave, years ago, as proof (click & see: http://www.amperefitz.com/presskit.html) for statements in this latest book, published in the year MMVl, are now still working BUT your search engine will probably take you to a similar area where you should be able to read similar proof material."}
{"text": "The specter of chemical weapons has been hanging over war-torn Syria for months.\nAlthough viewed with skepticism by U.S. officials, the latest claims and counterclaims by the Syrian government and opposition forces over their alleged use in Aleppo province and a Damascus suburb have intensified concerns and prompted the United Nations to promise an investigation.\nSyria's government insists it doesn't have chemical weapons, and wouldn't use them against its own people if it did, while the Syrian opposition says it neither has such munitions nor the means to make them.\nWhatever the truth of the latest allegations, military analysts say they believe Syria may have one of the largest stockpiles of chemical weapons in the world. Specifically, the supply could include sarin and VX gases -- both nerve agents -- and mustard gas, which are banned under international law.\nThe prospect that these could potentially be deployed by an increasingly beleaguered regime has made many observers anxious -- and has been cited as a \"red line\" for robust action by the United States.\nSo why would Syria have such armaments?\nFew munitions evoke as much fear as chemical weapons. And unlike nuclear weapons, they are relatively inexpensive to develop and stockpile.\nThis lends them a disproportionate importance for Syria and the region, analysts say.\n\"In the Middle East, chemical weapons have been seen as a possible counter to Israel's nuclear weapons,\" said Dr. Susan B. Martin, of the Department of War Studies at King's College London.\n\"They are seen as a possible strategic deterrent,\" she said, \"and they are cheaper and easier to have than nuclear weapons.\""}
{"text": "American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition\n- n. A soft, silvery, easily oxidized metallic element that ignites spontaneously in air when finely divided. Strontium is used in pyrotechnic compounds and various alloys. Atomic number 38; atomic weight 87.62; melting point 769°C; boiling point 1,384°C; specific gravity 2.54; valence 2. See Table at element.\nCentury Dictionary and Cyclopedia\n- n. Chemical symbol, Sr; atomic weight, 87.37; specific gravity, 2.54. A dark-yellow metal, less lustrous than barium, malleable, and fusible at a red heat. When heated in air, it burns with a bright flame to the oxid. It decomposes water at ordinary temperatures, evolving hydrogen, and uniting with the oxygen of the water to form the oxid strontia. It does not occur native. The chief strontium minerals are the carbonate (strontianite) and the sulphate (celestine). Strontium also occurs as a silicate in the mineral brewsterite. It has been detected in the waters of various mineral springs, as well as in sea-water, and in the ashes of some marine plants. Salts of strontium are chiefly used in pyrotechny, imparting an intense red color to flames.\n- n. A metallic chemical element (symbol Sr) with an atomic number of 38.\nGNU Webster's 1913\n- n. (Chem.) A metallic element of the calcium group, always naturally occurring combined, as in the minerals strontianite, celestite, etc. It is isolated as a yellowish metal, somewhat malleable but harder than calcium. It is chiefly employed (as in the nitrate) to color pyrotechnic flames red. Symbol Sr. Atomic weight 87.3.\n- n. a soft silver-white or yellowish metallic element of the alkali metal group; turns yellow in air; occurs in celestite and strontianite\n- Named in a pseudo-Latin manner for the name of the Scottish town Strontian. (Wiktionary)\n- From New Latin strontia, strontium oxide, from English strontian; see strontianite. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)\n“But the water may contain other harmful substances, such as beta-ray emitting strontium, which is known for causing bone cancers.”\n“The strontium is the secret,\" said Li - although exactly what it is doing is unclear.”\n“One of the procedures is called strontium isotope analysis, a technique that measures the ratio of strontium isotopes in a person's tooth enamel to determine where they grew up.”\n“Answer: A drug called strontium ranelate is commonly prescribed in several European countries.”\n“Recent health department tests on National Gypsum board found it lacked a compound called strontium sulfide - something found in all of the Chinese drywall samples.”\n“When a POS is attacked, when it hits the end of its shields, it goes into 'reinforced mode', and becomes invunerable for a period of time depending on how much 'strontium' it is fueled up with.”\n“Other hazards such as strontium are insignificant.”\n“A: The non-patentable forms of strontium supplements, such as strontium citrate, should dissolve and deliver strontium to the bones just as efficiently as strontium ranelate.”\nThese user-created lists contain the word ‘strontium’.\nA list of words that are odd or words that I have looked up.\nincludes words of the \"Prodcom list\"\nA list of chemical elements\nI'm wading through Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin novels one by one, and someday, I'll wade through them again and list all the words I learned while reading them.\nEdit: I started ma...\nLooking for tweets for strontium."}
{"text": "Establishing awareness of intellectual property amongst staff of your company is essential for early maximizing the value of your intellectual property and the wealth of your business and reducing the possibilities of accidental non-confidential disclosures, that could prejudice successful patent applications and negatively affect the value of your intellectual property and ultimately the wealth of your business.\nRegular training sessions of staff on intellectual property are key and should include the following:\nhow to identify and protect intellectual property;\nhow to use patents to improvements of technology;\nunderstanding Patent Process;\nhow to deal with confidential information (see some examples in the scenarios below);\nrecord keeping of intellectual property, including laboratory notebooks and policy on intellectual property; and\nwho to contact in case of need.\nThe record keeping procedures and manuals will address the following questions:\nhas the inventor kept the idea confidential?\nis there a written description of the idea and has been kept safe and confidential?\nhow the idea has been generated? If during a collaborative programme, then was it agreed beforehand who owns what?\nis the idea a new product, a new material, a new process for making something? If so, is it patentable or protectable in any other way?\nis the idea a variation in a product or material or process? If so, it is still likely to be patentable or protectable in any other way?\nwho generated the idea? The answer to this question is very important in the event self-employed or other third party consultants are involved in any research and development or collaborative project.\nThe main object of this record keeping is to track, protect and maintain all relevant intellectual property rights of the business so that intellectual property can be licensed, assigned or exploited to the fullest extent and benefit of the company.\nThe record keeping procedures should also include a form upon which, potential inventions should be recorded identifying the following:\nWho: department and research area;\nNamed individuals: inventors and authors;\nWhat: technical description;\nWhy: perceived novelty;\nHow to use the information: potential applications/markets;\nWhat else is needed: background or third party intellectual property and information.\nThe correct use of laboratory notebooks by staff is also essential. In the event of a dispute laboratory notebooks may be required to be presented as legal evidence.\nIt is therefore recommended that:\npermanent bindings are used on notebooks (loose leaf books should be avoided to prevent possible removal or substitution of pages);\npages should be numbered and any additional drawings cards or computer printouts should be permanently attached to the notebook clearly identified and have reference made to them in the notebook;\nall projects related and other activities, such as breaks in research due to secondment or holiday should be recorded factually; and\nthe notebook should be reviewed regularly by someone who understands the technology involved, each page should ideally be signed by a witness and again the choice of the witness is important and should not be someone who may be nominated as core inventor. The witness should also sign and date and graphs, chart, printouts, which are inserted into the laboratory notebook.\nIn addition, to the use of appropriate record keeping procedures and notebooks, an evaluation of IPR policy should be adopted. Such an evaluation should include factors, such as potential market, market, impact, competitive products, timing, intellectual property protection available and experience in the field concerned.\nFinally, once relevant intellectual property rights have been identified, protected, exploited and enforced, it is advisable that, regular audit of such rights is undertaken to ensure that, the intellectual property rights reflect the current needs of the business and that expenditure is limited accordingly.\nHow to take care of confidential information:\nScenario 1 –\nHave you been asked to sign a confidentiality undertaking? If so, please check that it is only confidentiality restriction and not a transfer of intellectual rights.\nObtain express confirmation from the discloser, that the information is not confidential, where possible, before disclosure.\nMake a written record of what was disclosed, by whom and when.\nPlease remember that, an obligation, to keep information confidential, includes the obligation of not disclosure or not use of the information, without the permission of the person to whom the obligation is owned.\nScenario 2 –\nPut in writing or some other permanent form.\nMark any documents with appropriate confidentiality and IPR disclaimers.\nKeep a copy of what is disclosed and a record of when and to whom.\nIf an oral disclosure is made in confidence, confirm in writing what was disclosed and what was given in confidence.\nHave the recipient sign a confidentiality undertaking of the disclosure.\nScenario 3 –\nConsider whether anything in the paper describes a new device, chemical compound or manufacturing process or a significant improvement or modification to any such matters.\nDo not disclose anything, without first considering the possibility of the content of the papers being patentable in whole or in part.\nConsider whether there are any restrains, under any relevant agreements (including research and development or collaboration agreements).\nKeep an eye on any relevant timetable for confirming publication.\nRequest that, the publisher confirms confidentiality on receipt of paper pending decision on publication.\nPlease, always remember that, any document exchanged, should be clearly marked as being confidential.\nScenario 4 –\nConsider what background IPR, if any, are free from obligations of confidentiality and may be introduced to the project.\nPrior to disclosing any information to third parties, have a confidentiality agreement signed. Such agreements, may take many forms and the terms should be adjusted in accordance with the particular circumstances.\nYou should always include the following:\n- identification of parties;\n- what information is to be kept secret; and\n- for how long.\nIf in any doubt, consult your legal adviser.\nThe World Intellectual Property Rights Organization, WIPO has organized a three day workshop to educate the public on intellectual property rights. The initiative started today at the Coco palm hotel. The drive which is aimed at sensitizing St. Lucians to intellectual property rights issues will also include a public forum for persons interested in learning more about the issue.\nVideo Rating: 0 / 5\nThe expression, ‘intellectual property’ has come to be internationally recognized as covering mainly two branches, namely; ‘industrial property’ and ‘copyright’. Patents, industrial designs and trade marks used to be considered as different kinds of industrial property. In Bangladesh (during the time of the then British regime), the first legislation of its kind, on copyright was introduced in 1914, which was mainly based on the British Copyright law of 1911. After the independence from Britain new law on copyright was promulgated in 1962. The Copyright Ordinance 1962 has been replaced by the new copyright act of 2000. Now in our country, Copyright law is regulated by the Copyright Act 2000. This is done because of the prevailing situation in Bangladesh and around the world.\nIn case of patent and designs we have law which we inherited from our Colonial ruler. Patent rights are created by statute and governed by the Patent and Designs Act 1911. We have also law related to trademarks and it is regulated by the Trademarks Act 1940.\nIntellectual property has acquired an internationally recognized character. Now it is regarded as “one of the most important sectors” of international law, having its source in various international conventions. At present, each and every country is trying to shape or reshape their legislature, relating to intellectual property; in the light of those international conventions.\nThe convention establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), concluded in Stockholm on July 14th, 1967, provides that, ‘intellectual property’ shall include rights relating to:\n1. literary, artistic and scientific works,\n2. performances of performing artists, phonograms and broadcasts,\n3. inventions in all fields of human endeavor,\n4. scientific discoveries,\n5. industrial designs,\n6. trade marks, service marks and commercial names and designations,\n7. protection against unfair competition,\nAnd all other rights resulting from intellectual activity in the industrial, scientific, literary or artistic fields. (Article 2/VIII) 1\nIntellectual property protects application of ideas and information that are of commercial value.2\nBy virtue of a number of international conventions such as the, Berne Convention and the Universal Copyright Convention, copyright acquired in one country extends to other countries which are member of these conventions. Other intellectual properties are beginning to acquire the same nature as well.\nThe principles of intellectual property law are substantially the same in all countries with little variation to meet the national requirements of each of the countries.\nBangladesh, as a least developed country, has also enacted intellectual property law in its national legislature.\nThe Trade Related aspects of Intellectual Property rights (TRIPs) were included as integral part of World Trade Organization (WTO) due to pressure and interest of basically transnational companies and developed countries to ensure maximum profit or interest out of intellectual property in international trade.3 The TRIPs Agreement has been called the most ambitious international intellectual property convention ever attempted. TRIPs agreement has established the protection of intellectual property as a major part of the multinational trading system embodied in the WTO. As one commentator observer, intellectual property is now a key component of this trading system, “the protection of intellectual property is one of the three pillars of the WTO”.4\nBangladesh is now enjoying the transitional period that has been fixed by WTO under the light of TRIPs. So, we do not have a clear idea about the relation between intellectual property rights and economical development. But, it is certain that after the expiration of transitional period, Bangladesh will have to face a serious and severe situation because of the weak legal framework relating to intellectual property.\nNow, in brief, the main features of intellectual property laws are given below:\n1. The Patents and Designs Acts, 1911:-\n(Act no. 11 of 1911)\nThe salient features of our existing Act are as follows;\nPart-1; of the Patents and Designs Act, 1911; is about of patent. This part starts from section-1 and extends to section-42.\nSection 2(8) contains the definition of invention; it proceeds as – invention means any manner of new manufacture and includes an improvement and all alleged invention. In sub-section (10) of the same section, provides the explanation of manufacture, “manufacture includes any art, process or manner or producing, preparing or making any article and also any article prepared or produced by manufacturer.”\nSection-3 of the Act provides about the manner and mode of an application for patent. According to section-3(1); a patent application can be made by any person, whether he is a citizen of Bangladesh or not. An application can be made, alone or jointly with any other person.\nAccording to section-4 of the Act; there are some provisions about specification. Wection-4(2) states that, a complete specification must particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the invention and the manner in which the invention is to be performed.\nSection-10 of the Act, discusses about the topic, “grant and sealing of patent”. According to section-10(1); if there is no opposition of the patent application or, in case of opposition, if the determination is in favor of the grant of a patent, a patent shall, on payment of the prescribed fee, be granted, subject to such conditions if any as the Government thinks expedient, to the applicant, or in the case of a joint application to the applicants jointly, and the Controller shall cause the patent to be sealed with the seal of the Patent Office.\nTerm of patent, is laid down in section-14(1) of the Act. The duration of patent is sixteen years from its date. Section 15 of the Act; also provides rules regarding extension of the term of patent.\nIf any patent has been ceased, owing to the failure of patentee to pay any prescribed fee within the prescribed time, the patentee may apply to the controller in the prescribed manner for an order for the restoration of the patent. Section-16 of the Act deals with the matter, restoration of lapsed patent.\nSection-22 of the Act contains provisions of “Compulsory Licenses and Revocation”. Both the Govt. and High Court Division are empowered to grant compulsory license or revocation of patent. Any person interested may present a petition to the Govt., alleging that the demand for a patented article in Bangladesh is not being met to an adequate extent and on reasonable terms and praying for the grant of a compulsory license, or in the alternative, for the revocation of the patent.\nAccording to section-25 of the Act, if any patented invention or the mode which it is exercised; is mischievous to the state or prejudicial to the public; Govt. can declare the patent, revoked, by notification in the official Gazette.\nSection-26 of the Act; provides the grounds, on which; a patent can be revoked by the High Court Division. Section-26(2) also provides, who can present a petition for revocation of a patent.\nSection-30 of the Act; declares that; an innocent infringer of a patent; is exempted from liability or damages for infringement.\nPart-II of the Act; describes all about ‘Designs’ or industrial designs. According to section-43(1); any person claiming to be the proprietor of any new or original design not previously published in Bangladesh, can apply to the Controller for the registration of that particular design.\nAccording to section-47(1); the proprietor of a registered design, shall subject to the provisions of this Act, have copyright in the design during five years from the date of registration.\nSection-51(A) of the Act; narrates that, any person interested may present a petition for the cancellation of the registration of a design. Such petition should be presented to the High Court Division.\nPart-III of the Act; is about, Patent Office and proceedings there at.\nAccording to section-59 of the Act; every register kept under this Act shall at any convenient times be open to the inspection of the public, subject to provisions of this Act.\nSection-65 of the Act; states that, in any proceeding under this Act, the Controller shall have the powers of a Civil Court for the purpose of receiving evidence, administrating oaths, enforcing the attendance of witness compelling the discovery and production of documents, issuing commissions, for the examining of witnesses and awarding costs and such award shall be executable in any Court having jurisdiction as if it were a decree of that Court.5\n2. The Trade Marks Act; 1940:\n(Act No. V of 1940)\nThe basic principles of the Trade marks Act are described below:\nSection-2 of the Trade marks Act contains definitions that are related to this Act. As to, section-2(k); trade mark means a mark used or proposed to be used in relation to goods for the purpose of indicating or so as to indicate a connection in the course of trade between the goods and some person having the right, either as proprietor or as registered user, to use the mark whether with or without any indication of that identity of that person.\nThe establishment of Trade marks Registry at Dhaka, appointment of the Registrar and Deputy Registrar are laid down in section-4 of the Act.\nAccording to section-5 of the Act; the registration of a trade mark, requires distinctiveness. Purpose of such distinctiveness is to distinguish those particular goods from the others, which have similarity in nature.\nAny mark, containing scandalous design; or be likely to hurt the religious susceptibilities of any class of the citizens, or to be contrary to any law for the time being in force or morality is prohibited for registration of that mark. Section-8 of the Act, say so.\nSection-16 of the Act; provides that; when an application for registration of a trade mark has been accepted and either has not been opposed or having been opposed, has been decided in favor of the applicant, the Registrar shall, registers the said trade mark.\nSection-18 of the Act, says that; the registration of a trade mark shall be a period of seven years, and may be renewed from time to time in accordance with the provisions of this section.\nAccording to section-20 of the Act; no person shall be entitled to institute any proceedings to prevent, or recover damages for the infringement of an unregistered trade mark.\nAccording to section-46 of the Act; any person aggrieved can apply to the High Court Division or the Registrar, for the cancellation or verification of the registration of a trade mark on the ground of any contravention of, or failure to observe a condition entered on the register in relation there to.\nChapter-IX of the Act; is specially written down for textile goods.\nChapter-X of the Act, states the provisions regarding offences and restriction of use of Royal Arms and state emblems.\nAccording to section-73 of the Act, any suit for the infringement of a trade mark or otherwise relating to any right in the trade mark; shall be instituted to a District Court having jurisdiction to try the suit.6\n3. THE COPYRIGHT ACT; 2000:\n(Act No. 28 of 2000)\nA short overview:-\nSection-2 of the Copyright Act; provides all the definitions related to copyright and so on.\nAccording to Chapter II; section -9, 10 and 11; Copyright Board will consist and the post of Register has made. The board is a quasi-judicial body; while working, it would be deemed as a Civil Court.\nDefinition of copyright is laid down in Chapter III; section 14 of the Act. Section 14(2) includes, ‘computer programs’ as a subject to this Act.\nChapter IV; deals with the ownership of copyright and the rights of the copyright owner. This Chapter starts from section-17; ends to section-23.\nChapter V of the Act; describes all about the term of different types of copyright. Generally the term extends from the lifetime of the author until sixty years from the beginning of the calendar year next following the year in which the author dies; is at section-22. The section also provides that, copyright shall subsist in any literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work (other than a photograph). Section-25 to section-32 of the Act narrates the duration of copyright for different types. For instance, posthumous work, cinematograph films, sound recordings, photograph, anonymous and pseudonymous works, Govt. works, work of any local body, work of international organizations.\nSection-50 of the Act; deals with compulsory licenses in works withheld from public.\nChapter X of the Act is about, registration of copyright.\nChapter XII; section-71, describes about infringement of copyright and section-72 of the Act; provides acts not to be infringement of copyright.\nChapter XIV; is about Civil remedies, that are available against infringement of copyright. Exclusively, section-76 of the Act; provides, remedies against such infringement. According to section-81 if the Act; the Court of District Judge, is the Court of first instance of such proceedings.\nChapter XV of this Act; describes offences and punishment. According to section-82 of the Act; any person who knowingly infringes or abets the infringement of copyright; shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months. But, which may extend to four years and fine which shall not be less than fifty thousand taka but which may extend to Taka two lacks. But; where the infringement has not been made for gain in the course of trade or business; the Court may, adequate and special reasons to be mentioned in the judgment, impose a sentence of imprisonment for a term of less than six months or a fine of less than fifty thousand taka.\nAccording to section-95 of the Act; an order made by the Registrar is a subject to appeal to Copyright Board. According to section-96; against any order; made by the Board; any aggrieved person, within thirty days of such order can file a petition of appeal to the High Court Division.7\nPROBLEMES AND INSUFFICIENCY OF THE EXISTING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAWS:\nPATENTS AND DESIGNS ACT:-\nThe defects are;-\nLike any other national patent system, novelty is an essential requirement of an invention to be patentable under the existing law of our country. But it is clear from the definition of ‘invention’ in section-2(8) of the 1911 Act; the invention to be patentable need not have a commercial pecuniary success. In other words, utility of an invention is not required by this definition. Although lack of utility is a ground for revocation of a patent under section-26(f) of the Act, till now this has not been included in the definition of invention. The 1911 Act makes no difference between patentable and non patentable inventions. Considering the public interest certain items should be kept outside the domain of patent protection. Since under the existing law no item has been excluded from the domain of patent protection, any type of new invention may obtain patent protection although it should not be patentable for the greater interest of the public at large. Under the existing law, the application for a patent must contain a declaration that the applicant is the true and first inventor or the assignor or legal representative of such inventor. But the term, “true and first inventor” is left undefined. Thus any person importing an invention for the first time into Bangladesh or any person to whom an invention is first communicated from outside Bangladesh can claim to be the “true and first inventor” of that invention and thus, can take the advantage of the vagueness of the term. Here; a fact should be added that, such practice already has begun. Some pharmaceutical companies don’t having any research and develop cell, importing some drugs, and by claiming patent, under the ambiguity of the Act, getting patent. A statistic says that, at the 1st and 2nd week of March, 2006; on an average, 40 patents were granted by the patent office, in each week. Thus, the local producers are forced to remain non productive on that particular patented items. The standard of examination varies from country to country. In some countries like Netherlands, Germany, U.S.A. and Japan it is rigorously involving an extensive search for both novelty and obviousness among documents published in many countries, over a period of many years. But according to our existing patent law; examination is less rigorous involving for novelty only, and the extent of search is restricted. Term of patent protection shall, as laid down in section-14, be sixteen years from its date. But the term is not sufficient enough for the exploitation of the patent right. What constitutes infringement of patent isn’t defined in the Patents and Designs Act, 1911. Section-29(1) of the Act only says that, the patentee has a right to sue against the infringer during the continuance of the patent acquired by him. Section-30 of the Act says that, a patentee shall not be entitled to damages against an innocent infringer. But, ignorance of law is no defense. The infringer should pay for the project as compensation of damages. Under the existing law any process or manner of producing, preparing or making an article in patentable as appears from section-2 (8) read with section-2(16). But, the 1911 Act does not confer upon the patentee the exclusive right to exercise the process. The 1911 Act contains provisions regarding compulsory licenses of patent rights but the terms and conditions of conditions of compulsory licenses are not detailed in the Act.\nTRADE MARKS ACT:-\n1. Section-22(3) of Trade Marks Act defined infringement in a very narrow sense though the act has provisions against infringement.\n2. Although Chapter X of the Act, describes about offences and restrictions of use of Royal Arms and state emblems but this chapter does not extends to the infringement of any registered trademark. Any deceptive use of any registered trademark; is not also included in this chapter.\n3. There is no provision for protection of internationally recognized trademark in our existing Trademark Act 1940.\nOur existing copyright law has been enacted in line with the copyright law of India. It has been enacted to cope with the prevailing international set up of copyright system. So, preventive measures have been adopted to tackle the future complications in copyright sector.\nNECESSARY PROPOSAL FOR REFORMATIONS: The term ‘intellectual property’ is still at its nascent stage in our country and people are not aware of the concept and importance of intellectual property. But, in international arena, the concept and coverage of intellectual property is growing so fast than any other brunches of law. We have intellectual property laws but these laws are not sufficient to tackle the challenges that are imminent and threatening us. Keeping in mind the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) agreement and other relevant conventions the following reformation proposals can be made:\nReformations of the Patents and Designs act:\nü The Patent and Designs Act, 1911 should be revised thoroughly.\nü Essential requirements of patentable invention should be described clearly and there must be a clear distinction between patentable and non patentable inventions.\nü The standard of examining a patent application should be made more effective.\nü Term of patent protection shall, as laid down in section 14, be 16 years from its date. But the term should be extended to 20 years for patent and the term of a design, according to sec – 47(1) is 5 years from the date of registration, should be extended to 10 years.\nü Existing Act does not have any definition of infringement, it should be included.\nü The part of “designs;” have some confusing words, as in that part the term, “copyright” has frequently used. But it may create confusion. Such confusion should be effaced.\nü The Act does not have anything to do about the protection “Geographical indication” which could result a huge loss of losing our culture & heritage. So, it should be included.\nü Provisions relevant to PARIS convention should be incorporated.\nü The administrative provisions and complications should be avoided. The complications should be made more subject to judicial decision.\nü The provisions of offences and penalties should be revised and reformed with the need of the time.\nProposal for reformations of The Trademarks Act:\nAfter studying present Trademark Act and different conventions, it is clear that our existing Trademarks Act 1940 should be amended as well. The following suggestions can be made:\nü The reformed trademark law should have a wide view about the marks which can be registerable and which marks cannot be.\nü Infringement of trademark should be defined more accurately. Besides, punishment for infringement should be made stricter.\nü How will we protect our renowned trademarks in international market and reciprocally how other countries trade marks can enjoy protection in our local market, should be defined in our trademarks act, with an assertive view.\nü Offences and penalties, in respect of violation of any provisions of this act, should be made more effective and harder.\nü If any complication or confusion arises in practicing of the act, the judicial body should be involved with more vigilance.\nProposed reformations to the copyright law:\nThe Copyright Act 2000 has been enacted to cover the rules and to cope with the international copyright system. Our existing copyright law has been enacted in line with the copyright law of India. It has been enacted to cope with the prevailing international set up of copyright system. So, preventive measures have been adopted to tackle the future complications in copyright sector. From the face of the Copyright Act 2000, it seems that our copyright law has fulfilled the need of the time.\nThough computer programs, tables complications including data base are recognized to have the copyright protection, there is no legal recognition for transaction carried out by means of electronic data or other means ‘e-commerce’ which involves the use of alternativeness to paper based method of communication and storage of information to facilitate filing of documents with government agencies .\nThe growing global importance of the cyber law is posing new challenges and in view of the peculiarity involved in the fields, the understanding between the nations of the world by treaties or covenants, may be of considerable importance in the absence of which the implementation of the legislation would be near to impossibility. Our present act should be amended to fulfill the shortage.\nFinally we can hope that a stronger protection system of the intellectual property rights, a qualified commission to observe the protection and thus policy making options to bring civil remedies for the violation of the rights and finally a complete law regulation in all sectors of intellectual property rights will surely lead us to a better future.\nNotes and References:\nBackground reading materials on intellectual property: WIPO (Pp-3, 4).\nP.Narayanan.(pp-1). TRIPs agreement. John Madely hungry for trudeyzed books UK (2000) pp-96-97. The Patents and Designs Act 1911 The Trade Marks Act 1940 The Copyright Act 2000\nMost people are attentive of the numerous benefits of owning a trademark registration. Trademark registration in India becoming familiar with complete customer satisfaction. Trademark registration is the protection agreed by the government to the business entities as to reduce the possibility of getting the advantage of the business by others by the way of misuse and to raise the opportunities keeping the mark exclusive under the eye of law.\nGenerally, brand registration refers to the trade mark used to discriminate the goods or services among the consumers. The business group sells their services or goods under the precise name or brand that is called trade mark. Therefore, the brand is registered in order to evade the repetition or use the same mark by others. In vision of this, the brand registration referred to as trademark registration. Trademark brand was initially developed as a name, term, design, and symbol. Powerful brand can bring success in bloodthirsty and financial markets and thus become the markets worthless assets.\nTrademark brand equity dealings the value of brand to the trademark owner. The brand name is used interchangeably with brand to designate written or spoken linguistic rudiments of the brand. Brand name is a form of trademark which identifies the brand owner as the money-making source of products or services. The brand owner may ask for to protect the proprietary rights in relation to a brand name during . Trademark brand is a appliance to create monopoly so that the brand owner can obtain some of the reimbursement to those related to decline price competition. There is legal magnitude as it is essential that the brand names and trademarks are protected by all means. An existing brand name can be used as a vehicle for new and modified products. Individual brand names allow greater suppleness by permitting different products to be sold without puzzling the consumer.\nThe trademark is registered for the business name, brand name and logo as to discriminate, popularize, create the goodwill and put aside the mark from competitors and fraudulent. The trademark office is an organization to provide protection to the inventors and dealing for their inventions and trademark registration in India provide protection and intellectual property recognition.\nIn addition, if some business entity desires to extend its dealing in more than one or several countries, it can ensue with International Trade mark registration. The titled name International Brand Registration is the usual form of the International Trade mark registration. It is meant, when the registration is done through any International pact, that gives the protection in all the countries allied with the treaty.\nThe is an agency, which provides protection to the inventors and business for their inventions and trademark registration for the product and intellectual property identification. The office is provided with funds by the fees, which are charged for processing the patents and trademark. The applications to trademark registration are examined by the trademark office.\nMaster sf Business Administratration Banking and Finance (MBF): Integrative Courses: MS-94 Technology Mangement\nVideo Rating: 0 / 5\n- the various types of merchandising rights including intellectual property rights and monopoly in commonplace articles\n- use of well-know images and features in advertising and unfair competition\n- use of registered trade marks and service marks\n- use of copyright and design law\n- the civil remedies available\n- international framework for the protection of merchandising rights\nFind More Intellectual Property Rights Products\nThe service industry is a tricky landscape, due to the fact that, often times, no tangible property is transferred back and forth. Sure, you may purchase a software program that comes on a disk, but in reality, you are merely purchasing the right to use that program, not the rights to the program itself. The service industry is a world dominated by intellectual property, and protecting yours should be your utmost goal.\nFirst you must define if intellectual property is yours or not. Let’s say you hire an employee to create a software program for you. He creates it, puts his name on it, and hands it over to you. If left unchecked, both of you could walk away thinking that you own the rights to the software, but in reality, only the employer does. Other items may fall under the umbrella of “intellectual property” including trade secrets, client information, and more. Your employees might have access to that information, but in order to legally prevent them from using that information to their own benefit, you must first get them to sign an employment contract informing them that they are not allowed to distribute any information gathered while under your employ.\nAs an employer, you should take pride in the knowledge, contacts, and experience you have accumulated over your years of doing business. Don’t risk letting that information out by avoiding employment contracts or other intellectual property agreements. Furthermore, don’t let subcontractors walk away with information you paid for, just because they created it. Understanding your rights as an employer is the first step towards protecting them. The final step is having the foresight to create contracts which will legally protect you should the situation ever call for it.\nAs part of the Center for Freedom and Prosperity Foundation’s video project, we sponsored a contest for students at the University of South Florida. The winning entry discusses the role of intellectual property rights.\nVideo Rating: 2 / 5\nThe relevant legal norms from the above point of view, although they involved Intellectual property rights The exercise of acts done some direct or indirect restrictions, but these provisions are very fragmented, incomplete, unclear, not specifically from the perspective of preventing the abuse of intellectual property rights to make rules; the majority of existing legal norms applicable to the foreign economic Trading Activities, and not generally applicable to the Chinese market, the exercise of acts of intellectual property, so its very limited scope; from the content point of view, it also needs to be common practice in the world at present updated and perfect.\nPresent, China has no clear regulation of the exercise of acts of intellectual property ” Antitrust Law “, Also led to the present does not exist in China, the corresponding administrative law enforcement and judicial practice, similar Microsoft , Cisco And DVD Alliance patentee of intellectual property rights abuse in China still can not be effective monopoly regulation.\nOrder to achieve Competition Request on behalf of the wider interests of society more important, China has continued to strengthen intellectual property protection, but also abuse of intellectual property should be to rule them. But now, people are more concerned about the previous problems, while the latter issue also seriously enough. Based on this, the urgent need to promptly establish and improve regulation of intellectual property rights abuse in China antitrust law system, give full play to intellectual property rights in the legal system to encourage innovation and promote scientific and technological progress of the positive role of the city and to prevent the abuse of intellectual property rights to maintain a free and fair economic competition order.\nThe “anti-monopoly law,” the exercise of intellectual property regulation act to protect the interests of Chinese enterprises is significant. Trend of economic globalization is bound to be more Chinese enterprises to the market, they may encounter in the domestic market monopoly of multinational enterprises do nothing, and their behavior in foreign markets are subject to strict Competition Law problems. For example, earlier this year, some U.S. Pharmacy Enterprises in China 4 pharmaceutical companies in the United States filed an antitrust lawsuit accusing the Chinese companies in the U.S. market on price cartel. Can be expected, as more and more Chinese enterprises enter the international market, Chinese enterprises in foreign countries have been accused of anti-monopoly situation will be more. Therefore, whether for the maintenance of domestic order, or free and fair competition in international economic exchanges in safeguarding their own interests, China should be established as soon as possible “anti-monopoly law.” The core is to balance and handle competition in intellectual property protection and maintenance of the conflict between the ultimate goal of full respect for and protection of intellectual property rights, encourage innovation and play Excitation The role of competition, but also effectively prevent illegal monopoly by improper use (ie abuse), so on behalf of the interests of society as a whole will not be free and fair competition order of destruction; both the full protection of market competition, but also realistic and reasonable for the time being take care to limit competition business needs, a reasonable balance of intellectual property transactions, the parties (developers, producers, consumers, etc.) interests, in order to promote China’s scientific and cultural innovation and the parallel development of economic competition.\nSpecialized intellectual property law in the regulation of intellectual property rights abuse in the sound system, to further clarify, refine the terms of the abuse of intellectual property, which makes the related intellectual property rights infringement proceedings for the alleged infringer to provide a clear defense based on, or to the right people can be counter-claim, or even be prosecuted separately. This also requires our country, “Patent Law,” “Trademark Law”, “Copyright Law” and other specialized intellectual property law further modified, or other supporting measures. For example, should further improve our procedures for intellectual property litigation related to the legal system, clear that abuse complaint against compensation; in intellectual property cases should be taken provisional measures before litigation, scrutiny, careful decisions; improve the institute confirmed that the provisions of such non-infringement lawsuit .\nIn addition, to effectively safeguard the authority of our laws, to be taken seriously TNC Intellectual property dispute resolution and political trend.\nAs intellectual property rights are private rights, in essence, is a civil right, then the intellectual property dispute resolution, like other civil rights, are primarily to the court through the trial process carried out. Related Intellectual Property Rights in China Laws and regulations After recent amendments, has been full compliance with WTO rules, the minimum requirements, in some ways even more than that can provide effective intellectual property legal relief channel.\nHowever, some multinational companies and Chinese enterprises in intellectual property disputes occur, often by virtue of its strong bargaining power directly to the Chinese government or by their home governments to pressure the Chinese government to meet their special benefit The purpose of treatment, so that would could also go through legal channels, in accordance with strict legal procedures to resolve political. The Chinese Government has always considered positive for a variety of administrative resources to address the use of foreign-related intellectual property disputes. Tasted the sweetness of the multinational corporations, the more value this way, and attract more multinational companies to make the same choice. Moreover, under WTO rules, the MFN principle, a country our government to give preferential treatment for enterprises in this regard should also be automatically and unconditionally to other WTO Organization Members of the business. This is both an expression of some multinational companies in China to protect intellectual property rights and the rule of law framework for the establishment of disrespect and distrust, often the interests of the enterprises in China causing undue damage.\nIs therefore recommended that our government should be treated with a number of multinational corporations will solve the political disputes of intellectual property rights of the tendency to be guided in accordance with our existing law, to follow strict legal procedures to solve problems, in particular, be careful not to as being a political Pressure The expense of the legitimate interests of Chinese enterprises. Access to the judicial process for foreign-related intellectual property disputes, our courts must strictly in accordance with Chinese laws and relevant international rules, rule out all kinds of interference imposed by foreign parties, according to a just ruling, effectively protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises. Which claims the rights for the source of the right to conduct a strict review of the situation, to prevent the use of intellectual property claims on behalf of persons engaged in unfair competition."}
{"text": "The intent of this work is five fold: 1) To spatially characterize and monitor the distribution, abundance, and size of both reef fishes and macro-invertebrates (conch, lobster, Diadema); 2) To relate this information to in-situ data collected on associated benthic composition parameters; 3) To use this information to establish the knowledge base necessary for enacting management decisions in a spatial setting; 4) To establish the efficacy of those management decisions; and 5) To work with the National Coral Reef Monitoring Program to develop data collection standards and easily implemented methodologies for transference to other agencies and to work toward standardizing data collection throughout the US states and territories. Toward this end, the Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment's Biogeography Branch (BB) has been conducting research in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands since 2000 and 2001, respectively. It is critical, with recent changes in management at both locations (e.g. implementation of MPAs) as well as proposed changes (e.g. zoning to manage multiple human uses) that action is taken now to accurately describe and characterize the fish/macro-invertebrate populations in these areas. It is also important that BB work closely with the individuals responsible for recommending and implementing these management strategies. Recognizing this, BB has been collaborating with partners at the University of Puerto Rico, National Park Service, US Geological Survey and the Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources.\nTo quantify patterns of spatial distribution and make meaningful interpretations, we must first have knowledge of the underlying variables determining species distribution. The basis for this work therefore, is the nearshore benthic habitats maps (less than 100 ft depth) created by NOAA's Biogeography Program in 2001 and NOS' bathymetry models. Using ArcView GIS software, the digitized habitat maps are stratified to select sampling stations. Sites are randomly selected within these strata to ensure coverage of the entire study region and not just a particular reef or seagrass area. At each site, fish, macro-invertebrates, and benthic composition information is then quantified following standardized protocols. By relating the data collected in the field back to the habitat maps and bathymetric models, BB is able to model and map species level and community level information. These protocols are standardized throughout the US Caribbean to enable quantification and comparison of reef fish abundance and distribution trends between locations. Armed with the knowledge of where \"hot spots\" of species richness and diversity are likely to occur in the seascape, the BB is in a unique position to answer questions about the efficacy of marine zoning strategies (e.g. placement of no fishing, anchoring, or snorkeling locations), and what locations are most suitable for establishing MPAs. Knowledge of the current status of fish/macro-invertebrate communities coupled with longer term monitoring will enable evaluation of management efficacy, thus it is essential to future management actions.\nNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA)/National Ocean Service (NOS)/National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS)/Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA)/Biogeography Branch, 20101216, St. Croix, USVI Habitat Assessment and Monitoring Data (2001 - Present): NOAA's Ocean Service, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS), Silver Spring, MD.\nHorizontal positions are specified in geographic coordinates, that is, latitude and longitude. Latitudes are given to the nearest 0.00001. Longitudes are given to the nearest 0.00001. Latitude and longitude values are specified in Decimal Degrees.\nThis is a cooperative effort between NOAA's Biogeography Branch, the National Park Service and the Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources.\n1) To spatially characterize and monitor the distribution, abundance, and size of both reef fishes and macro-invertebrates (conch, lobster, Diadema); 2) To relate this information to in-situ data collected on associated benthic composition parameters; 3) To use this information to establish the knowledge base necessary for enacting management decisions in a spatial setting; 4) To establish the efficacy of those management decisions; and 5) To work with the National Coral Reef Monitoring Program to develop data collection standards and easily implemented methodologies for transference to other agencies and to work toward standardizing data collection throughout the US states and territories.\nData are collected on the following: 1) Logistic information - diver name, dive buddy, date, time of survey, site code, and meter numbers at which the quadrat is placed.\n2) Habitat structure - to characterize the benthic habitats of the dive site, the habitat diver first categorizes the habitat structure of the site: hard, soft or mangrove.\n3) Proximity of structure - on seagrass and sand sites, the habitat diver records the absence or presence of reef or hard structure within 3m of the belt transect. A score of zero (0) indicates that no reef or other hard structure is present; one (1) indicates that a reef or hard structure smaller than 4m2 is present; and (2) indicates that a reef or hard structure larger than 4m2 is present within 3m of the diver. The point-count diver also uses this scoring system to record the absence, presence, and proximity of reef or hard structures within their cylinder.\n4) Transect depth profile - the depth at each quadrat position. Depth is measured with a digital depth gauge to the nearest 1ft.\n5) Abiotic footprint - defined as the percent cover (to the nearest 1 percent) of sand, rubble, hard bottom, and fine sediments within each quadrat position. Rubble refers to rocks and coral fragments that are moveable; immovable rocks are considered hard bottom. The percent cover given as a part of the abiotic footprint should total 100 percent. In a seagrass area for example, despite the fact that seagrass may provide 50 percent cover, the underlying substrate is 100 percent sand so this is what is recorded. To estimate percent cover, the habitat diver first positions the quadrat at the chosen meter mark along the transect tape. If the meter mark is an odd number, then the quadrat is placed on the left side of the tape; if even, it is placed on the right. Next, the habitat diver lays the quadrat along the substrate (regardless of the slope) and estimates percent cover based on a two-dimensional (planar) view (e.g. if bottom is sloping, the quadrat is not held horizontally). Also, the diver should try to use the same planar view for all estimates of percent cover. The habitat diver then estimates, for each quadrat, the height (in cm) of the hardbottom from the substrate to get a sense of bottom relief. Note: Height is collected for all hardbottom substrates, excluding rubble; height is not collected for softbottom substrate.\n6) Biotic footprint - defined as the percent cover (to the nearest 0.1 percent) of algae, seagrass, live corals, sponges, gorgonians, and other biota (tunicates, anemones, zooanthids, and hydroids) within each quadrat position. The remaining cover is recorded as bare substrate to bring the total to 100 percent. Again, the diver must use a planar view to estimate percent cover of the biota. Seagrasses and gorgonians should not be stacked upright. For example, if a single seagrass blade crosses 10 squares, then total seagrass coverage should be the sum of the area taken up by that blade in all 10 squares instead of the area covered if the blade was held upright. Species covering less than 0.1 percent of the area are not recorded. Taxa are identified to the following levels: stony coral-species, algae-morphological group (macro, turf, crustose, rhodolith, filamentous, cyanobacteria), sponge-morphological group, and gorgonians-morphological group. When estimating percent cover, it is important to realize there is a balance between precision and time. For stony corals, the approximate area covered by living coral tissue is recorded. Coral skeleton (without living tissue) is usually categorized as turf algae or uncolonized substrate. Data on the condition of coral colonies are also recorded. When coral is noticeably bleached, the entire colony is considered affected and is recorded to the nearest 0.1 percent. Coral colonies are reported as entirely bleached if they contain any portion of white, blotchy, mottled, or pale tissue. This protocol assumes stress throughout the colony and estimates maximum bleaching impact. Diseased/dead coral refers to coral skeleton that has recently lost living tissue because of disease or damage that is still visible, and has not yet been colonized by turf algae. Turf algae include a mix of short (less than 1cm high) algae that colonize dead coral substrate.\n7) Maximum canopy height - for each soft biota type (e.g., gorgonians, seagrass, algae), structure is recorded to the nearest 1cm at the quadrat level.\n8) Number of individuals - for sponges, gorgonians and \"other\" biota type (non-encrusting anemones and non-encrusting hydroids) the number of individuals at the quadrat level is recorded.\n9) Rugosity - measured by placing a 6-m chain at two randomly selected positions along the 25m belt transect. The chain is placed such that it follows the substrate's relief along the centerline of the belt transect. Two divers measure the straight-line horizontal distance covered by the chain. The chain is placed on top of any hard substrate encountered, but not on top of soft corals or sponges since we are measuring hard bottom rugosity. Data on rugosity are collected for reef sites only. Rugosity measurements typically are made by the point-count and belt-transect divers while awaiting the completion of other benthic habitat measurements by the habitat diver. Upon completion of the dive, the rugosity data are transferred from the fish data sheet to the habitat data sheet by the habitat diver.\n10) Abundance and maturity of queen conchs (Strombus gigas) - a count of the total number of conch encountered within the 25 x 4m belt transect are enumerated. The maturity of each conch is determined by the presence or absence of a flared lip and labeled mature or immature, respectively. If conch abundance is counted by a fish diver, the data are then reported to the habitat diver. The decision of who will collect conch data should be made prior to entering the water.\n11) Abundance of spiny lobsters (Panilaurus argus) - a count of the total number of lobsters encountered within the 25 x 4m belt transect. No measurements are taken. If lobster abundance is counted by a fish diver, the data are then reported to the habitat diver. The decision of who will collect lobster data should be made prior to entering the water.\n12) Abundance of long-spined urchin (Diadema antillarum) - a count of the total number of urchins encountered within the 25 x 4m belt transect. No measurements are taken. If urchin abundance is counted by a fish diver, the data are then reported to the habitat diver. The decision of who will collect urchin data should be made prior to entering the water.\nNOTE: If rugosity, conch, lobster or urchin data are collected by a fish diver, data must be transferred to the habitat data sheet. The habitat diver is responsible for transferring the data to their data sheet; however, the fish diver should assist the habitat diver with this task by reporting the data once the dive concludes.\n13) Marine debris - type of marine debris within the transect is noted. The size of the marine debris and the area of affected habitat is also recorded along with a note identifying any flora or fauna that has colonized the debris.\n14) Photography - the point count or habitat diver will take at least two photos in different directions at each site to maintain an anecdotal and permanent visual description of the sites that were sampled. Proper care and maintenance is necessary for all camera and camera housings. It is important to maintain the cameras and housings before, after and in between dives.\nData Caveats: Overtime, some changes were made to the stratified random site selection process as follows: 1) Habitat strata initially consisted of hard bottom, sand, and seagrass. Sand and seagrass strata were subsequently combined into one soft bottom strata at all three locations (Puerto Rico, St. Croix, and St. John). This action was taken after the February 2002 mission to Puerto Rico. 2) A small subset of sites were resampled during each mission through June 2002 in Puerto Rico and October 2002 in St. Croix. These station names contain the letter 'P' indicating they are permanent stations. 3) The sample area in St. Croix has increased over time. Initially, samples were collected within historic Buck Island National Monument boundaries as well as outside up to a distance of 0.5 km from those boundaries. In February 2002 the sampling effort was increased to include the entire expanded monument boundaries. Finally in April 2003 the effort was increased again to include areas outside of the Monument for control sites. This area is now almost entirely enclosed within the East End Marine Park of St. Croix. 4) The habitat map utilized to stratify the samples in St. Croix was changed from the original habitat map created with a 1 acre minimum mapping unit to one with a 100m2 minimum mapping unit beginning with the April 2003 mission. 5) In 2007, algae data collection changed from identification of each alga to the genus level to grouping algae into six morphological groups: macro, turf, crustose, filamentous, rhodolith, and cyanobacteria for more efficient data collection. 6) Shelter characteristics ceased being recorded at the end of 2006. 7) Marine debris data collection began in 2007. 8) The spring St. Croix mission was cancelled in 2007, therefore only one mission was conducted that year. 9) Beginning in 2010, missions to St. Croix was reduced from twice per year (March/April and October) to once per year (October only).\nAlthough the 1m-square-quadrat remained the basic method of choice for habitat data collection, overtime, changes in data collection methods were made for some habitat variables and several additional variables were added. These changes were deemed necessary to capture more precise information and as many variables as possible to explain better the observed variability in reef fish assemblage metrics. Detailed information on all changes to the protocols for collecting habitat data in St. Croix can be found at: <http://ccma.nos.noaa.gov/ecosystems/corealreef/reef_fish/protocols.html>\nProcess Date: 200102 - Present\nThese data consists of multiple fish community surveys across all nearshore marine habitats around St. Croix, US Virgin Islands. Sites were randomly selected and stratified across by habitat types using NOAA's benthic habitat maps of St. Croix, USVI.\nAre there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?\n- Access_Constraints: None\n- Please reference NOAA/NOS/NCCOS/CCMA/Biogeography Branch when utilizing these data in a report or peer reviewed publication. Additionally, knowledge of how this dataset has been of use and which organizations are utilizing it is of great benefit for ensuring this information continues to meet the needs of the management and research communities. Therefore, it is requested but not mandatory, that any user of this data supply this information to the Program Manager: Kimberly Roberson (email: Kimberly.email@example.com).\nThese data were prepared by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, make any warranty, expressed or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference therein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof. Any views and opinions expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof. Although all data have been used by NOAA, no warranty, expressed or implied, is made by NOAA as to the accuracy of the data and/or related materials. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by NOAA in the use of these data or related materials.\n|Data format:||tab delimited text file|"}
{"text": "TamarinsTamarins live in the rainforests of South America. They are endangered because of deforestation, that is an indicator showing that tamarins are endangered because of the same reason pygmy marmosets are threatened. Pygmy marmosets could be endangered easily. Tamarins have the same diet of sap, fruit, small insects and small buds. Tamarins usually have twins and the father and siblings assist in caring for the babies.\nSlightly smaller than squirrels, tamarins are commonly called kings of the jungle because manes around their neck make them look like lions. The lion tamarins are related to pygmy marmosets. They are 12 inches tall not including their tail which can reach up to 17 inches long, and weigh up to 2 pounds. Tamarins jump through trees using their fingers to hold onto branches. Tamarins live in family groups. Parents mate once a year producing 2 offspring per birth. Tamarins live in the eastern forests of Brazil. Tamarins are diurnal. They are sensitive to sunlight so in the day they stay in the dense forests. Tamarins are omnivores. They spend most of their day looking for food like fruits, insects, small lizards, and snakes.\nGolden Lion Tamarin\nGolden lion Tamarins are about 8-13 inches long not including the tail. If you include the tail they are about 21-26 inches long. The golden lion tamarin lives for 10-15 years\nCotton Top tamarin\nCotton Top tamarins are about 6-12 inches long, with tail being almost 16 inches! Their fur is dark brown and they have white tuft of hair on the top of their heads. Cotton Top Tamarins live for about 16 years."}
{"text": "Earthquake off the Coast of Venezuela\nA strong earthquake struck off the Venezuelan coast on September 12, 2009. The magnitude 6.3 earthquake occurred underneath the Caribbean Sea near the city of Puerto Cabello. According to reports from Reuters some buildings in the Venezuelan countryside were damaged, but there were few injuries.\nThe United States Geological Survey indicated that the earthquake epicenter was in the region of the San Sebastián and El Pilar faults, both of which are seismically active. The fault zone is near the boundary of the South American and Caribbean tectonic plates. The Caribbean plate is moving 20 millimeters (0.8 inches) per year with respect to the South American Plate. Previous earthquakes in the region occurred in 1989 and 1967.\nThis image originally appeared on the Earth Observatory. Click here to view the full, original record."}
{"text": "Publisher Council on Foreign Relations\nRelease Date Last Updated: May 21, 2013\nScope of the Challenge\nOceans are the source of life on earth. They shape the climate, feed the world, and cleanse the air we breathe. They are vital to our economic well being, ferrying roughly 90 percent of global commerce, housing submarine cables, and providing one-third of traditional hydrocarbon resources (as well as new forms of energy such as wave, wind, and tidal power). But the oceans are increasingly threatened by a dizzying array of dangers, from piracy to climate change. To be good stewards of the oceans, nations around the world need to embrace more effective multilateral governance in the economic, security, and environmental realms.\nThe world's seas have always been farmed from top to bottom. New technologies, however, are making old practices unsustainable. When commercial trawlers scrape the sea floor, they bulldoze entire ecosystems. Commercial ships keep to the surface but produce carbon-based emissions. And recent developments like offshore drilling and deep seabed mining are helping humans extract resources from unprecedented depths, albeit with questionable environmental impact. And as new transit routes open in the melting Arctic, this once-forgotten pole is emerging as a promising frontier for entrepreneurial businesses and governments.\nBut oceans are more than just sources of profit—they also serve as settings for transnational crime. Piracy, drug smuggling, and illegal immigration all occur in waters around the world. Even the most sophisticated ports struggle to screen cargo, containers, and crews without creating regulatory friction or choking legitimate commerce. In recent history, the United States has policed the global commons, but growing Indian and Chinese blue-water navies raise new questions about how an established security guarantor should accommodate rising—and increasingly assertive—naval powers.\nAnd the oceans themselves are in danger of environmental catastrophe. They have become the world's garbage dump—if you travel to the heart of the Pacific Ocean, you'll find the North Pacific Gyre, where particles of plastic outweigh plankton six to one. Eighty percent of the world's fish stocks are depleted or on the verge of extinction, and when carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere, much of it is absorbed by the world's oceans. The water, in response, warms and acidifies, destroying habitats like wetlands and coral reefs. Glacial melting in the polar regions raises global sea levels, which threatens not only marine ecosystems but also humans who live on or near a coast. Meanwhile, port-based megacities dump pollution in the ocean, exacerbating the degradation of the marine environment and the effects of climate change.\nThreats to the ocean are inherently transnational, touching the shores of every part of the world. So far, the most comprehensive attempt to govern international waters produced the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). But U.S. refusal to join the convention, despite widespread bipartisan support, continues to limit its strength, creating a leadership vacuum in the maritime regime. Other states that have joined the treaty often ignore its guidelines or fail to coordinate policies across sovereign jurisdictions. Even if it were perfectly implemented, UNCLOS is now thirty years old and increasingly outdated.\nImportant initiatives—such as local fishery arrangements and the United Nations Environment Program Regional Seas Program—form a disjointed landscape that lacks legally-binding instruments to legitimize or enforce their work. The recent UN Conference on Sustainable Development (\"Rio+20\") in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, convened over one hundred heads of state to assess progress and outline goals for a more sustainable \"blue-green economy.\" However, the opportunity to set actionable targets to improve oceans security and biodiversity produced few concrete outcomes. As threats to the oceans become more pressing, nations around the world need to rally to create and implement an updated form of oceans governance.\nOceans Governance: Strengths and Weaknesses\nOverall assessment: A fragmented system\nIn 1982, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) established the fundamental legal principles for ocean governance. This convention, arguably the largest and most complex treaty ever negotiated, entered into force in 1994. Enshrined as a widely accepted corpus of international common law, UNCLOS clearly enumerates the rights, responsibilities, and jurisdictions of states in their use and management of the world's oceans. The treaty defines \"exclusive economic zones\" (EEZs), which is the coastal water and seabed—extending two hundred nautical miles from shore—over which a state has special rights over the use of marine resources; establishes the limits of a country's \"territorial sea,\" or the sovereign territory of a state that extends twelve nautical miles from shore; and clarifies rules for transit through \"international straits.\" It also addresses—with varying degrees of effectiveness—resource division, maritime traffic, and pollution regulation, as well as serves as the principal forum for dispute resolution on ocean-related issues. To date, 162 countries and the European Union have ratified UNCLOS.\nUNCLOS is a remarkable achievement, but its resulting oceans governance regime suffers several serious limitations. First, the world's leading naval power, the United States, is not party to the convention, which presents obvious challenges to its effectiveness—as well as undermines U.S. sovereignty, national interests, and ability to exercise leadership over resource management and dispute resolution. Despite the myriad military, economic, and political benefits offered by UNCLOS, a small but vocal minority in the United States continues to block congressional ratification.\nSecond, UNCLOS is now thirty years old and, as a result, does not adequately address a number of emerging and increasingly important international issues, such as fishing on the high seas—a classic case of the tragedy of the commons—widespread maritime pollution, and transnational crime committed at sea.\nThird, both UNCLOS and subsequent multilateral measures have weak surveillance, capacity-building, and enforcement mechanisms. Although various UN bodies support the instruments created by UNCLOS, they have no direct role in their implementation. Individual states are responsible for ensuring that the convention's rules are enforced, which presents obvious challenges in areas of overlapping or contested sovereignty, or effectively stateless parts of the world. The UN General Assembly plays a role in advancing the oceans agenda at the international level, but its recommendations are weak and further constrained by its lack of enforcement capability.\nOrganizations that operate in conjunction with UNCLOS—such as the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), and the International Seabed Authority (ISA)—play an important role to protect the oceans and strengthen oceans governance. The IMO has helped reduce ship pollution to historically low levels, although it can be slow to enact new policy on issues such as invasive species, which are dispersed around the world in ballast water. Furthermore, ITLOS only functions if member states are willing to submit their differences to its judgment, while the ISA labors in relative obscurity and operates under intense pressure from massive commercial entities.\nFourth, coastal states struggle to craft domestic policies that incorporate the many interconnected challenges faced by oceans, from transnational drug smuggling to protecting ravaged fish stocks to establishing proper regulatory measures for offshore oil and gas drilling. UNCLOS forms a solid platform on which to build additional policy architecture, but requires coastal states to first make comprehensive oceans strategy a priority—a goal that has remained elusive thus far.\nFifth, the system is horizontally fragmented and fails to harmonize domestic, regional, and international policies. Domestically, local, state, and federal maritime actors rarely coordinate their agendas and priorities. Among the handful of countries and regional organizations that have comprehensive ocean policies—including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Japan, the European Union, and most recently the United States—few synchronize their activities with other countries. The international community, however, is attempting to organize the cluttered oceans governance landscape. The UN Environmental Programme Regional Seas Program works to promote interstate cooperation for marine and coastal management, albeit with varying degrees of success and formal codification. Likewise, in 2007 the European Union instituted a regional Integrated Maritime Policy (IMP) that addresses a range of environmental, social, and economic issues related to oceans, as well as promotes surveillance and information sharing. The IMP also works with neighboring partners to create an integrated oceans policy in places such as the Arctic, the Baltic, and the Mediterranean.\nLastly, there is no global evaluation framework to assess progress. No single institution is charged with monitoring and collecting national, regional, and global data on the full range of oceans-related issues, particularly on cross-cutting efforts. Periodic data collecting does take place in specific sectors, such as biodiversity conservation, fisheries issues, and marine pollution, but critical gaps remain. The Global Ocean Observing System is a promising portal for tracking marine and ocean developments, but it is significantly underfunded. Without concrete and reliable data, it is difficult to craft effective policies that address and mitigate emerging threats.\nDespite efforts, oceans continue to deteriorate and a global leadership vacuum persists. Much work remains to modernize existing institutions and conventions to respond effectively to emerging threats, as well as to coordinate national actions within and across regions. The June 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development , also known as Rio+20, identified oceans (or the \"blue economy\") as one of the seven priority areas for sustainable development. Although experts and activists hoped for a new agreement to strengthen the sustainable management and protection of oceans and address modern maritime challenges such as conflicting sovereignty claims, international trade, and access to resources, Rio+20 produced few concrete results.\nMaintaining freedom of the seas: Guaranteed by U.S. power, increasingly contested by emerging states\nThe United States polices every ocean throughout the world. The U.S. navy is unmatched in its ability to provide strategic stability on, under, and above the world's waters. With almost three hundred active naval ships and almost four thousand aircraft, its battle fleet tonnage is greater than the next thirteen largest navies combined. Despite recently proposed budget cuts to aircraft carriers, U.S. naval power continues to reign supreme.\nThe United States leverages its naval capabilities to ensure peace, stability, and freedom of access. As Great Britain ensured a Pax Britannicain the nineteenth century, the United States presides over relatively tranquil seas where global commerce is allowed to thrive. In 2007, the U.S. Navy released a strategy report that called for \"cooperative relationships with more international partners\" to promote \"greater collective security, stability, and trust.\"\nThe United States pursues this strategy because it has not faced a credible competitor since the end of the Cold War. And, thus far, emerging powers have largely supported the U.S. armada to ensure that the oceans remain open to commerce. However, emerging powers with blue-water aspirations raise questions about how U.S. naval hegemony will accommodate new and assertive fleets in the coming decades. China, for instance, has been steadily building up its naval capabilities over the past decade as part of its \"far sea defense\" strategy. It unveiled its first aircraft carrier in 2010, and is investing heavily in submarines outfitted with ballistic missiles. At the same time, India has scaled up its military budget by 64 percent since 2001, and plans to spend nearly $45 billion over the next twenty years on its navy.\nEven tensions among rising powers could prove problematic. For example, a two-month standoff between China and the Philippines over a disputed region of the South China Sea ended with both parties committing to a \"peaceful resolution.\"China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and the Philippines have competing territorial and jurisdictional claims to the South China Sea, particularly over rights to exploit its potentially vast oil and gas reserves. Control over strategic shipping lanes and freedom of navigation are also increasingly contested, especially between the United States and China.\nCombating illicit trafficking: Porous, patchy enforcement\nIn addition to being a highway for legal commerce, oceans facilitate the trafficking of drugs, weapons, and humans, which are often masked by the flow of licit goods. Individual states are responsible for guarding their own coastlines, but often lack the will or capacity to do so. Developing countries, in particular, struggle to coordinate across jurisdictions and interdict. But developed states also face border security challenges. Despite its commitment to interdiction, the United States seizes less than 20 percent of the drugs that enter the country by maritime transport.\nThe United Nations attempts to combat the trafficking of drugs, weapons, and humans at sea. Through the Container Control Program (PDF), the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) assists domestic law enforcement in five developing countries to establish effective container controls to prevent maritime drug smuggling. The UNODC also oversees UN activity on human trafficking, guided by two protocols to the UN Convention on Transnational Organized Crime. Although UN activity provides important groundwork for preventing illicit maritime trafficking, it lacks monitoring and enforcement mechanisms and thus has a limited impact on the flow of illegal cargo into international ports. Greater political will, state capacity, and multilateral coordination will be required to curb illicit maritime trafficking.\nNew ad hoc multilateral arrangements are a promising model for antitrafficking initiatives. The International Ship and Port Facility Security Code, for instance, provides a uniform set of measures to enhance the security of ships and ports. The code helps member states control their ports and monitor both the people and cargo that travel through them. In addition, the U.S.-led Proliferation Security Initiative facilitates international cooperation to interdict ships on the high seas that may be carrying illicit weapons of mass destruction, ballistic missiles, and related technology. Finally, the Container Security Initiative (CSI), also spearheaded by the United States, attempts to prescreen all containers destined for U.S. ports and identify high-risk cargo (for more information, see section on commercial shipping).\nOne way to combat illicit trafficking is through enhanced regional arrangements, such as the Paris Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control. This agreement provides a model for an effective regional inspections regime, examining at least 25 percent of ships that enter members' ports for violations of conventions on maritime safety. Vessels that violate conventions can be detained and repeat offenders can be banned from the memorandum's area. Although the agreement does not permit searching for illegal cargo, it does show how a regional inspections regime could be effective at stemming illegal trafficking.\nSecuring commercial shipping: Global supply chains at risk\nGlobal shipping is incredibly lucrative, but its sheer scope and breadth presents an array of security and safety challenges. The collective fleet consists of approximately 50,000 ships registered in more than 150 nations. With more than one million employees, this armada transports over eight billion tons (PDF) of goods per year—roughly 90 percent of global trade. And the melting Arctic is opening previously impassable trade routes; in 2009, two German merchant vessels traversed the Northeast Passage successfully for the first time in recent history. But despite impressive innovations in the shipping industry, maritime accidents and attacks on ships still occur frequently, resulting in the loss of billions of dollars of cargo. Ensuring the safety and security of the global shipping fleet is essential to the stability of the world economy.\nInternationally, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) provides security guidelines for ships through the Convention on the Safety of Life at Sea, which governs everything from construction to the number of fire extinguishers on board. The IMO also aims to prevent maritime accidents through international standards for navigation and navigation equipment, including satellite communications and locating devices. Although compliance with these conventions has been uneven, regional initiatives such as the Paris Memorandum of Understanding have helped ensure the safety of international shipping.\nIn addition, numerous IMO conventions govern the safety of container shipping, including the International Convention on Safe Containers, which creates uniform regulations for shipping containers, and the International Convention on Load Lines, which determines the volume of containers a ship can safely hold. However, these conventions do not provide comprehensive security solutions for maritime containers, and illegal cargo could be slipped into shipping containers during transit. Since 1992, the IMO has tried to prevent attacks on commercial shipping through the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation, which provides a legal framework for interdicting, detaining, and prosecuting terrorists, pirates, and other criminals on the high seas.\nIn reality, most enforcement efforts since the 9/11 attacks have focused on securing ports to prevent the use of a ship to attack, rather than to prevent attacks on the ships themselves. Reflecting this imperative, the IMO, with U.S. leadership, implemented the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS) in 2004. This code helped set international standards for ship security, requiring ships to have security plans and officers. However, as with port security, the code is not obligatory and no clear process to audit or certify ISPS compliance has been established. Overall, a comprehensive regime for overseeing the safety of international shipping has not been created.\nThe United States attempts to address this vulnerability through the Container Security Initiative (CSI), which aims to prescreen all containers destined for the United States, and to isolate those that pose a high-security risk before they are in transit. The initiative, which operates in fifty-eight foreign ports, covers more than 86 percent of container cargo en route to the United States. Several international partners and organizations, including the European Union, the Group of Eight, and the World Customs Organization, have expressed interest in modeling security measures for containerized cargo based on the CSI model. Despite these efforts, experts estimate that only 2 percent of containers destined for U.S. ports are actually inspected.\nConfronting piracy: Resurgent scourge, collective response\nAfter the number of attacks reached a record high in 2011, incidences of piracy dropped 28 percent in the first three months of 2012. Overall, the number of worldwide attacks decreased from 142 to 102 cases, primarily due to international mobilization and enhanced naval patrols off the coast of Somalia. However, attacks intensified near Nigeria and Indonesia as pirates shifted routes in response to increased policing, raising fresh concerns over the shifting and expanding threat of piracy. In addition to the human toll, piracy has significant economic ramifications. According to a report by the nonprofit organization Oceans Beyond Piracy, Somali piracy cost the global economy nearly $7 billion in 2011. Sustained international coordination and cooperation is essential to preventing and prosecuting piracy.\nRecognizing this imperative, countries from around the world have shown unprecedented cooperation to combat piracy, particularly near the Gulf of Aden. In August 2009, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization commenced Operation Ocean Shield in the horn of Africa, where piracy increased close to 200 percent between 2007 and 2009. This effort built upon Operation Allied Protector and consisted of two standing maritime groups with contributions from allied nations. Although the efforts concentrate on protecting ships passing through the Gulf of Aden, they also renewed focus on helping countries, specifically Somalia, prevent piracy and secure their ports. Meanwhile, the United States helped establish Combined Task Force 151 to coordinate the various maritime patrols in East Africa. Other countries including Russia, India, China, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, and South Korea, have also sent naval vessels to the region.\nAt the same time, regional organizations have also stepped up antipiracy efforts. The Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia was the first such initiatives, and has been largely successful in facilitating information-sharing, cooperation between governments, and interdiction efforts. And in May 2012, the European Union naval force launched its first air attack against Somali pirates' land bases, the first strike of its kind by outside actors to date.\nLike individual countries, international institutions have condemned piracy and legitimized the use of force against pirates. In June 2008, the UN Security Council unanimously passed Resolution 1816, encouraging greater cooperation in deterring piracy and asking countries to provide assistance to Somalia to help ensure coastal security. This was followed by Resolution 1846, which allowed states to use \"all necessary means\" to fight piracy off the coast of Somalia. In Resolution 1851, the UN Security Council legitimized the use of force on land as well as at sea to the same end. Outside the UN, watchdogs such as the International Maritime Bureau, which collects information on pirate attacks and provides reports on the safety of shipping routes, have proven successful in increasing awareness, disseminating information, and facilitating antipiracy cooperation.\nHowever, such cooperative efforts face several legal challenges. The United States has not ratified the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which governs crimes, including piracy, in international waters. More broadly, the international legal regime continues to rely on individual countries to prosecute pirates, and governments have been reluctant to take on this burden. Accordingly, many pirates are apprehended, only to be quickly released. In addition, many large commercial vessels rely on private armed guards to prevent pirate attacks, but the legal foundations governing such a force are shaky at best.\nNational governments have redoubled efforts to bring pirates to justice as well. In 2010, the United States held its first piracy trial since its civil war, soon followed by Germany's first trial in over four hundred years. Other agreements have been established to try pirates in nearby countries like Kenya, such as the UNODC Trust Fund to Support the Initiatives of States to Counter Piracy of the Coast of Somalia, established in January 2010. Under the mandate of the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia, the fund aims to defray the financial capital required from countries like Kenya, Seychelles, and Somalia to prosecute pirates, as well as to increase awareness within Somali society of the risk associated with piracy and criminal activity. Future efforts to combat piracy should continue to focus on enhancing regional cooperation and agreements, strengthening the international and domestic legal instruments necessary to prosecute pirates, and addressing the root causes of piracy.\nReducing marine pollution and climate change: Mixed progress\nPollution has degraded environments and ravaged biodiversity in every ocean. Much contamination stems from land-based pollutants, particularly along heavily developed coastal areas. The UN Environment Program (UNEP) Regional Seas Program has sponsored several initiatives to control pollution, modeled on a relatively successful program in the Mediterranean Sea. In 1995, states established the Global Program of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-Based Activities, which identifies sources of land-based pollution and helps states establish priorities for action. It has been successful in raising awareness about land-based pollution and offering technical assistance to regional implementing bodies, which are so often starved for resources. More recently, 193 UN member states approved the Nagoya Protocol on biodiversity, which aims to halve the marine extinction rate by 2020 and extend protection to 10 percent of the world's oceans.\nShipping vessels are also a major source of marine pollution. Shipping is the most environmentally friendly way to transport bulk cargoes, but regulating maritime pollution remains complicated because of its inherently transnational nature. Shipping is generally governed by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), which regulates maritime pollution through the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL). States are responsible for implementing and enforcing MARPOL among their own fleets to curb the most pernicious forms of maritime pollution, including oil spills, particulate matter such as sulfur oxide (SOx) and nitrous oxide (NOx), and greenhouse gas emissions. Port cities bear the brunt of air pollution, which devastates local air quality because most ships burn bunker fuel (the dirtiest form of crude oil). The IMO's Marine Environmental Protection Committee has also taken important steps to reduce SOx and NOx emissions by amending the MARPOL guidelines to reduce particulate matter from ships. Despite such efforts, a 2010 study (PDF) from the Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation found that international shipping still accounts for nearly 3 percent of all greenhouse gasses.\nThe IMO has achieved noteworthy success in reducing oil spilled into the marine environment. Despite a global shipping boom, oil spills are at an all-time low. The achievements of the IMO have been further strengthened by commitments by the Group of Eight to cooperate on oil pollution through an action plan that specifically targets pollution prevention for tankers. The IMO should strive to replicate this success in its efforts to reduce shipping emissions.\nClimate change is also exacerbating environmental damage. In June 2009, global oceans reached their highest recordedaverage temperature: 17 degrees Celsius. As the world warms, oceans absorb increased levels of carbon dioxide, which acidifies the water and destroys wetlands, mangroves, and coral reefs—ecosystems that support millions of species of plants and animals. According to recent studies, ocean acidity could increase by more than 150 percent by 2050 if counteracting measures are not taken immediately. Moreover, melting ice raises sea levels, eroding beaches, flooding communities, and increasing the salinity of freshwater bodies. And the tiny island nation of the Maldives, the lowest country in the world, could be completely flooded if sea levels continue to rise at the same rate.\nIndividual states are responsible for managing changes in their own marine climates, but multilateral efforts to mitigate the effect of climate change on the oceans have picked up pace. In particular, the UNEP Regional Seas Program encourages countries sharing common bodies of water to coordinate and implement sound environmental policies, and promotes a regional approach to address climate change.\nSustainable fisheries policies on the high seas: An ecological disaster\nStates have the legal right to regulate fishing in their exclusive economic zones (EEZs), which extend two hundred nautical miles from shore—and sometimes beyond, in the case of extended continental shelves. But outside the EEZs are the high seas, which do not fall under any one country's jurisdiction. Freedom of the high seas is critical to the free flow of global commerce, but spells disaster for international fisheries in a textbook case of the tragedy of the commons. For years, large-scale fishing vessels harvested fish as fast as possible with little regard for the environmental costs, destroying 90 percent of the ocean's biomass in less than a century. Overall, fisheries suffer from two sets of challenges: ineffective enforcement capacity and lack of market-based governance solutions to remedy perverse incentives to overfish.\nAlthough there are numerous international and multilateral mechanisms for fisheries management, the system is marred by critical gaps and weaknesses exploited by illegal fishing vessels. Articles 117 and 118 of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) enumerate the specific fisheries responsibilities of state parties, placing the onus on national governments to form policies and regional agreements that ensure responsible management and conservation of fish stocks in their respective areas. UNCLOS was further strengthened by the UN Fish Stocks Agreement (FSA), which called for a precautionary approach toward highly migratory and straddling fish stocks that move freely in and out of the high seas. Seventy-eight countries have joined the FSA thus far, and a review conference in May 2010 was hailed as a success due to the passage of Port State Measures (PSMs) to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing. Yet fish stocks have continued to stagnate or decline to dangerously low levels, and the PSMs have largely failed to prevent IUU operations.\nRegional fishery bodies (RFBs) are charged with implementation and monitoring. The RFBs provide guidelines and advice on a variety of issues related to fishing, including total allowable catch, by-catch, vessel monitoring systems, areas or seasons closed for fishing, and recording and reporting fishery statistics. However, only a portion of these bodies oversee the management of their recommendations, and some RFBs allow members to unilaterally dismiss unfavorable decisions. Additionally, RFBs are not comprehensive in their membership and, for the most part, their rules do not apply to vessels belonging to a state outside the body.\nEven when regional bodies make a binding decision on a high-seas case, implementation hinges on state will and capacity. In 2003, the UN General Assembly established a fund to assist developing countries with their obligations to implement the Fish Stocks Agreement through RFBs. The overall value of the fund remains small, however, and countries' compliance is often constrained by resource scarcity. This results in spotty enforcement, which allows vessels to violate international standards with impunity, particularly off the coasts of weak states. Migratory species like blue fin tuna are especially vulnerable because they are not confined by jurisdictional boundaries and have high commercial value.\nSome of the RFBs with management oversight, such as the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources and the South East Atlantic Fisheries Organization, have been relatively effective in curbing overfishing. They have developed oversight systems and specific measures to target deep-water trawl fishing and illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing in the high seas. Many regional cooperative arrangements, however, continue to suffer from weak regulatory authority. At the same time, some regions like the central and southwest Atlantic Ocean lack RFBs. Some have suggested filling the void with market-based solutions like catch shares, which could theoretically alter the incentives toward stewardship. Catch shares (also known as limited access privilege programs) reward innovation and help fisheries maximize efficiency by dedicating a stock of fish to an individual fisherman, community, fishery association, or an individual state. Each year before the beginning of fishing season, commercial fishermen would know how much fish they are allowed to catch. They would then be allowed to buy and sell shares to maximize profit. By incorporating free-market principles, fisheries could reach a natural equilibrium at a sustainable level. According to research, more sustainable catch shares policies could increase the value of the fishing industry by more than $36 billion. Although allocating the shares at the domestic—much less international—level remains problematic, the idea reflects of the kind of policy work required to better manage the global commons.\nManaging the Arctic: At a crossroads\nArctic ice is melting at unprecedented rates. At this pace, experts estimate that the Arctic could be seasonally ice free by 2040, and possibly much earlier. As the ice recedes and exposes valuable new resources, multilateral coordination will become even more important among states (and indigenous groups) jockeying for position in the region.\nThe melting ice is opening up potentially lucrative new sea routes and stores of natural resources. Since September 2009, cargo ships have been able to traverse the fabled Northwest and Northeast Passages, which are significantly shorter than traditional routes around the capes or through the canals. Widening sea routes also means that fishing fleets can travel north in search of virgin fishing stock, and that cruise ships can carry tourists chasing a last glimpse of the disappearing ice. At the same time, untapped resources such as oil, natural gas, rare earth minerals, and massive renewable wind, tidal, and geothermal energy hold enormous potential. In a preliminary estimate, the U.S. Geographic Society said that the Arctic could hold 22 percent of the world's hydrocarbon resources, including 90 billion barrels of oil and 1,670 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. Beyond oil and gas, the Arctic has valuable mineral commodities such as zinc, nickel, and coal.\nBut new opportunities in the Arctic also portend new competition among states. In August 2007, Russia symbolically planted a flag on the Arctic floor, staking a claim to large chunks of Arctic land. Other Arctic powers including the United States, Canada, Norway, and Denmark have also laid geographical claims. The European Union crafted a new Arctic policy, and China sent an icebreaker on three separate Arctic expeditions. Each country stands poised to grab new treasure in this increasingly important geostrategic region.\nThe UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is a solid foundation on which to build and coordinate national Arctic policies, especially articles 76 and 234, which govern the limits of the outer continental shelf (OCS) and regulate activities in ice-covered waters, respectively. However, there remains a formidable list of nagging sovereignty disputes that will require creative bilateral and multilateral resolutions. The Arctic Council, a multilateral forum comprising eight Arctic nations, has recently grown in international prominence, signing a legally binding treaty on search and rescue missions in May 2011 and drawing high-level policymakers to its meetings. While these are significant first steps, the forum has yet to address other issues such as overlapping OCS claims, contested maritime boundaries, and the legal status of the Northwest Passage and the Northern Sea Route.\nU.S. Ocean Governance Issues\nThe United States championed many of the most important international maritime organizations over the past fifty years. It helped shape the decades-long process of negotiating the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and has played a leading role in many UNCLOS-related bodies, including the International Maritime Organization. It has also served as a driving force behind regional fisheries organizations and Coast Guard forums. Domestically, the United States has intermittently been at the vanguard of ocean policy, such as the 1969 Stratton Commission report, multiple conservation acts in the 1970s, the Joint Ocean Commission Initiative, and, most recently, catch limits on all federally-managed fish species. The U.S.-based Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the Monterrey Bay Research Institute have long been leaders in marine science worldwide. And from a geopolitical perspective, the U.S. Navy secures the world's oceans and fosters an environment where global commerce can thrive.\nYet the United States lags behind on important issues, most notably regarding its reluctance to ratify UNCLOS. And until recently, the United States did not have a coherent national oceans policy. To address this gap, U.S. president Barack Obama created the Ocean Policy Task Force in 2009 to coordinate maritime issues across local, state, and federal levels, and to provide a strategic vision for how oceans should be managed in the United States. The task force led to the creation of a National Ocean Council, which is responsible for \"developing strategic action plans to achieve nine priority objectives that address some of the most pressing challenges facing the ocean, our coasts, and Great Lakes.\" Although it has yet to make serious gains (PDF), this comprehensive oceans policy framework could help clear the way for the spadework of coordinating U.S. ocean governance and harmonizing international efforts.\nShould the United States ratify the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea?\nYes: The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which created the governance framework that manages nearly three-quarters of the earth's surface, has been signed and ratified by 162 countries and the European Union. But the United States remains among only a handful of countries to have signed but not yet ratified the treaty—even though it already treats many of the provisions as customary international law. Leaders on both sides of the political aisle as well as environmental, conservation, business, industry, and security groups have endorsed ratification in order to preserve national security interests and reap its myriad benefits, such as securing rights for U.S. commercial and naval ships and boosting the competitiveness of U.S. companies in seafaring activities. Notably, all of the uniformed services—and especially the U.S. Navy—strongly support UNCLOS because its provisions would only serve to strengthen U.S. military efforts. By remaining a nonparty, the United States lacks the credibility to promote its own interests in critical decision-making forums as well as bring complaints to an international dispute resolution body.\nNo: Opponents argue that ratifying the treaty would cede sovereignty to an ineffective United Nations and constrain U.S. military and commercial activities. In particular, critics object to specific provisions including taxes on activities on outer continental shelves; binding dispute settlements; judicial activism by the Law of the Sea Tribunal, especially with regard to land-based sources of pollution; and the perceived ability of UNCLOS to curtail U.S. intelligence-gathering activities. Lastly, critics argue that because UNCLOS is already treated as customary international law, the United States has little to gain from formal accession.\nShould the United States lead an initiative to expand the Container Security Initiative globally?\nYes: Some experts say the only way to secure a global economic system is to implement a global security solution. The U.S.-led Container Security Initiative (CSI) helps ensure that high-risk containers are identified and isolated before they reach their destination. Fifty-eight countries are already on board with the initiative, and many others have expressed interest in modeling their own security measures on the CSI. The World Customs Organization called on its members to develop programs based on the CSI, and the European Union agreed to expand the initiative across its territory. With its robust operational experience, the United States is well positioned to provide the technical expertise to ensure the integrity of the container system.\nNo: Opponents maintain that the United States can hardly commit its tax dollars abroad for a global security system when it has failed to secure its own imports. To date, more than $800 million and considerable diplomatic energy has been invested in CSI to expand the program to fifty-eight international ports, where agents are stationed to screen high-risk containers. Given the scale of world trade, the United States imports more than 10 million containers annually, and only a handful of high-risk boxes can be targeted for inspection. After huge expenditures and years of hard work to expand this program after September 11, 2001, only about 86 percent of the cargo that enters the United States transits through foreign ports covered under CSI, and of that, only about 1 percent is actually inspected (at a cost to the U.S. taxpayer of more than $1,000 per container). Despite congressional mandates to screen all incoming containers, critics say that costs make implementing this mandate virtually impossible. The limited resources the United States has available, they argue, should be invested in protecting imports bound specifically for its shores.\nShould the United States be doing more to address the drastic decline in the world's fisheries?\nYes: Advocates say that the further demise of global fish stocks, beyond being a moral burden, undermines the commercial and national security interests of the United States. Depleting fish stocks are driven in large part by the prevalence of illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and the overcapitalization of the global commercial fishing fleet from domestic subsidies. To protect domestic commercial fisheries and the competitiveness of U.S. exports in the international seafood market, the United States should enhance efforts by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to manage, enforce, and coordinate technical assistance for nations engaging in IUU fishing.\nDomestically, the United States has taken important steps to address the critical gaps in fisheries management. In 2012, it became the first country to impose catch limits on all federally-managed fish species. Some species like the mahi mahi will be restricted for the first time in history. Many environmental experts hailed the move as a potential model for broader regional and international sustainable fisheries policy. To capitalize on such gains, the United States should aggressively work to reduce fishing subsidies in areas such as Europe that promote overcapitalization and thus global depletion of fish stocks. The United States could also promote market-based mechanisms, like catch shares and limited access privilege programs, to help fishermen and their communities curb overfishing and raise the value of global fisheries by up to $36 billion.\nNo: Critics argue that fisheries management is by and large a domestic issue, and that the United States has little right to tell other nations how to manage their own resources, particularly when such measures could harm local economies. They contend that the science behind overfishing is exaggerated, as are the warnings about the consequences of an anticipated fisheries collapse. Existing conventions like the 1995 Fish Stock Agreement already go far enough in addressing this issue. Any additional efforts, they contend, would be a diplomatic overreach, as well as an excessive burden on a struggling commercial fishing industry. Critics also question how market-based mechanisms, such as catch-shares, would be distributed, traded, and enforced, warning that they would lead to speculative bubbles.\nShould the United States push for a more defined multilateral strategy to cope with the melting Arctic?\nYes: The melting Arctic holds important untapped political, strategic, and economic potential for the U.S. government, military, and businesses. This emerging frontier could potentially support a variety of economic activities, including energy exploration, marine commerce, and sustainable development of new fisheries. Countries such as Russia, Canada, Norway, and China have already made claims to the region, yet the United States remains on the sideline without a comprehensive Arctic strategy. The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) remains the premier forum of negotiating and arbitrating disputes over contested territory. As a nonparty, however, the United States loses invaluable leverage and position. In addition, the U.S. military does not have a single icebreaker, whereas Russia operates over thirty. Experts argue that the U.S. government should also adopt the recently proposed Polar Code, which is a voluntary agreement that \"sets structural classifications and standards for ships operating in the Arctic as well as specific navigation and emergency training for those operating in or around ice-covered waters.\"\nNo: Opponents argue that Arctic Council activities and the 2009 National Security Presidential Directive, which updated U.S. Arctic polices, are sufficient. Any collaboration with Canada to resolve disputes over the Northwest Passage might undermine freedom of navigation for U.S. naval assets elsewhere, especially in the Strait of Hormuz and the Taiwan Straits, and this national security concern trumps any advantages from collaborating on security, economic, or environmental issues in the Arctic. Last, given the dominant Russian and Canadian Arctic coastlines, future Arctic diplomacy might best be handled bilaterally rather than through broader multilateral initiatives.\nApril 2013: Japan included in Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations\nJapan agreed to join negotiations over the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), an ambitious free trade agreement between counties along the Pacific rim. Since the broad outline of the agreement was introduced in November 2011, sixteen rounds of negotiations have thus far brought eleven countries together to discuss the TPP. The addition of Japan, a major economic force in the region, as the twelfth participant comes as an important step in creating a robust agreement. Already, the South China Sea is the second-busiest shipping lane in the world, and should the TTP become a reality, transpacific shipping would dramatically increase. The seventeenth round of negotiations will take place in May and the current goal for agreement is October 2013.\nMarch 2013: IMO pledges to support implementation of new code of conduct on piracy\nAt a ministerial meeting in Cotonou, Benin, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) pledged to support the implementation of a new code of conduct on piracy and other illicit maritime activity. The Gulf of Guinea Code of Conduct, drafted by the Economic Community of Central African States and the Economic Community of West African States, in partnership with the IMO, contains provisions for interdicting sea- and land-based vehicles engaged in illegal activities at sea, prosecuting suspected criminals, and sharing information between state parties. The code builds on several existing frameworks to create a sub-regional coast guard. The agreement is set to open for signature in May 2013.\nMarch 2013: New fishing restrictions on sharks and rays\nDelegates attending the annual meeting on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) voted to place robust export restrictions on five species of sharks and two species of manta rays. Over the past fifty years, the three shark species—the oceanic whitetip, hammerhead, and porbeagle—have declined by more than 70 percent. Although experts cautioned that the new rules would be difficult to enforce in practice, the decision marked an important victory over economic interests, particularly of China and Japan.\nJanuary 2013: Philippines to challenge China's maritime claims in South China Sea\nThe Philippine government announced its intention to take China to an international arbitration tribunal based on claims that China violated the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. The dispute dates back to mid-2012, when tensions flared over the Scarborough shoal, which is claimed by both countries.\nChina, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and the Philippines have competing territorial and jurisdictional claims to the South China Sea, particularly over rights to exploit its potentially vast oil and gas reserves. Control over strategic shipping lanes and freedom of navigation are also increasingly contested, especially between the United States and China.\nSeptember 2012: Arctic ice reaches record low\nIn September 2012, ice in the Arctic Ocean reached an all-time low of 24 percent, shattering the previous record of 29 percent from 2007. The finding not only has implications for climate change and environmental stability, but also for heightened competition among states jockeying for access to critical resources in the region. For the first time, the melting Arctic has exposed troves of natural resources including oil, gas, and minerals, as well as newly accessible shipping routes. The United States, Russia, and several European states already control parts of the Arctic, and China is also an increasing presence.\nSeptember 2012: Tensions flare in the East China Sea\nIn September 2012, Japan purchased three islands in the East China Sea that form part of the Senkaku Islands, known as the Diaoyu Islands to the Chinese. The islands, claimed by both countries, have been controlled by Japan since 1895, but sovereignty remains hotly contested. Following Japan's announcement, protests broke out across China, and Chinese leaders accused Japan of \"severely infringing\" upon their sovereignty.\nIn a move to affirm its claim to the islands, China announced its intention to submit their objections to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf under the UNCLOS, and dispatched patrol ships to monitor the islands. In December 2012, tensions flared after a Chinese small aircraft flew into airspace over the islands, and both countries sent naval vessels to patrol nearby waters. Both sides remain adamant that there is no room for negotiations over their control of the islands, which are in close proximity to strategic shipping routes, fishing grounds, and potentially lucrative oil reserves.\nOptions for Strengthening Global Ocean Governance\nThere are a series of measures, both formal and informal, that can be taken to strengthen U.S. and global ocean governance. First, the United States must begin by finally ratifying the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. On this foundation, the United States should then tap hitherto underused regimes, update twentieth-century agreements to reflect modern ocean challenges, and, in some cases, serve as the diplomatic lead in pioneering new institutions and regimes. These recommendations reflect the views of Stewart M. Patrick, senior fellow and director of the International Institutions and Global Governance Program, and Scott G. Borgerson, former visiting fellow for ocean governance.\nIn the near term, the United States and its international partners should consider the following steps:\n- Ratify UNCLOS\nThe United States should finally join the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), an action that would give it further credibility and make the United States a full partner in global ocean governance. This carefully negotiated agreement has been signed and ratified by 162 countries and the European Union. Yet despite playing a central role shaping UNCLOS's content, the United States has conspicuously failed to join. It remains among only a handful of countries with a coastline, including Syria, North Korea, and Iran, not to have done so.\nEmerging issues such as the melting Arctic lend increased urgency to U.S. ratification. By rejecting UNCLOS, the United States is freezing itself out of important international policymaking bodies, forfeiting a seat at decision-making forums critical to economic growth and national security interests. One important forum where the United States has no say is the commission vested with the authority to validate countries' claims to extend their exclusive economic zones, a process that is arguably the last great partitioning of sovereign space on earth. As a nonparty to the treaty, the United States is forgoing an opportunity to extend its national jurisdiction over a vast ocean area on its Arctic, Atlantic, and Gulf coasts—equal to almost half the size of the Louisiana Purchase—and abdicating an opportunity to have a say in deliberations over other nations' claims elsewhere.\nFurthermore, the convention allows for an expansion of U.S. sovereignty by extending U.S. sea borders, guaranteeing the freedom of ship and air traffic, and enhancing the legal tools available to combat piracy and illicit trafficking. Potential participants in U.S.-organized flotillas and coalitions rightly question why they should assist the United States in enforcing the rule of law when the United States refuses to recognize the convention that guides the actions of virtually every other nation.\n- Coordinate national ocean policies for coastal states\nThe creation of a comprehensive and integrated U.S. oceans policy should be immediately followed by similar efforts in developing maritime countries, namely Brazil, Russia, India, and China (BRIC) . These so-called BRIC nations will be critical players in crafting domestic ocean policies that together form a coherent tapestry of global governance. Ideally, such emerging powers would designate a senior government official, and in some cases the head of state, to liaison with other coastal states and regional bodies to coordinate ocean governance policies and respond to new threats. Consistent with the Regional Seas Program, the ripest opportunity for these efforts is at the regional level. With UN assistance, successful regional initiatives could then be harmonized and expanded globally.\n- Place a moratorium on critically endangered commercial fisheries\nCommercial fishing, a multi-billion dollar industry in the United States, is in grave danger. The oceans have been overfished, and it is feared that many fish stocks may not rebound. In the last fifty years, fish that were previously considered inexhaustible have been reduced to alarmingly low levels. Up to 90 percent of large predatory fish are now gone. Nearly half of fish stocks in the world have been fully exploited and roughly one-third have been overexploited. The recent imposition of catch limits on all federally-managed fish species is an important and long overdue first step, which should be expanded and strengthened to a moratorium on the most endangered commercial fisheries, such as the Atlantic blue fin tuna. But tuna is hardly alone in this predicament, and numerous other species are facing the same fate. Policymakers should stand up to intense political pressure and place fishing moratoriums on the most threatened fisheries to give them a chance to rebound. Doing so would be a courageous act that would help rescue collapsing fish while creating a commercially sustainable resource.\nIn the longer term, the United States and its international partners should consider the following steps:\n- Strengthen and update UNCLOS\nThe UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and related agreements serve as the bedrock of international ocean policy. However, UNCLOS is thirty years old. If it is to remain relevant and effective, it must be strengthened and updated to respond to emerging threats such as transnational crime and marine pollution, as well as employing market-based principles of catch shares to commercial fisheries, especially in the high seas. Lastly, UNCLOS Article 234, which applies to ice-covered areas, should be expanded to better manage the opening Arctic, which will be an area of increasing focus and international tension over the coming years.\nThe international community should also counter the pressure of coastal states that unilaterally seek to push maritime borders seaward, as illustrated by China's claim to all of the South China Sea. Additionally, states should focus on using UNCLOS mechanisms to resolve nagging maritime conflicts, such as overlapping exclusive economic zones from extended continental shelf claims, and sovereignty disputes, such as that of the Spratly and Hans Islands.\n- Bolster enforcement capacity\nMany ocean-related governance issues have shortcomings not because rules for better management do not exist, but because weak states cannot enforce them. A failure in the oversight of sovereign waters inevitably leads to environmental degradation and, in cases like Somalia, can morph into problems with global implications, such as piracy. Accordingly, the international community should help less developed coastal states build the capacity to enforce (1) fisheries rules fleets; (2) International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution From Ships regulations to reduce ocean dumping and pollution; (3) other shipping regulations in states with open registries such as Liberia, Panama, Malta, and the Marshall Islands; (4) and existing mandates created to stop illicit trafficking. Developed countries should also help less developed areas monitor environmental variables such as acidification, coral reefs, and fisheries."}
{"text": "Restoring a Waterway for the 21st Century\nA resource for the local community and a habitat for wildlife\nYou may not have heard of the Wilts & Berks Canal as it has been derelict for nearly a century. There are ambitious plans to bring the waterway back to life.\nIts called the Wilts & Berks because it is said that a lazy draughtsman could not be bothered to write in full the county names!\nSwindon is mid point of the waterway which linked the Thames at Abingdon with the Kennet & Avon Canal near Melksham.\nA further link was made from Swindon to the Thames & Severn Canal at Cricklade (The North Wilts Canal). There were also branches to Chippenham, Calne, Longcot (near Shrivenham) and Wantage. The waterway now is located in Wiltshire Swindon and Oxfordshire since Local Government boundary changes in the 1970's.\nThe Wilts and Berks Trust is committed to returning this historic waterway to a navigable state. The canal will restore an important link in the national waterways network, but the project will be part of the green infrastructure of the region, creating connections between existing wildlife habitats and creating aquatic and wetland habitats for endangered species.\nWorking with our partners we aim to restore the canal route, provide wildlife habitats, cycleways and routes for walkers along the restored towpath.\nThe Trust would like your help to complete this exciting project- please explore this website to find out more.\nLatest news follow us on Twitter Donate on line"}
{"text": "Integrated Circuits are found in every conceivable electronic device, and control the on-off behavior of a device capable of conductive behavior. They evolved from vacuum tubes and transistors to incorporate hundreds of thousands of transistors on a single chip today.\nIC's and semiconductors now control computing, communications, networking, and other facets of daily modern life. They are created by \"etching\" a pattern onto a semiconductor platform, such as silicon, which can then be controlled by exposure to electrical current.\nSemiconductors are the individual \"on-off\" switches that make up a electronic devices. By only allowing the conductance of electricity in specific situations (as opposed to conductors and insulators), semiconductors can produce complex and sophisticated behaviors, calculations, and measurements. By working in tandem, many semiconductors can constitute an mp3 player, computer processor, or wireless network adapter."}
{"text": "WebMD Medical News\nDaniel J. DeNoon\nLouise Chang, MD\nOct. 9, 2012 – About 13,000 people in 23 states got the fungus-contaminated steroid pain shots in the ongoing outbreak of fungal meningitis.\nSo far, 119 people who got the shots have come down with fungal infections of the fluid surrounding their spinal cords and brains.\nEleven of those people have died. The case count rises daily, as symptoms of fungal infection can take up to a month to appear, and there's often a delay in case reporting.\nMost of the 13,000 who got the tainted shots will not get the infection, suggests John Jernigan, MD, director of the CDC's office of health care infection prevention, research, and evaluation.\n\"The attack rate is still to be determined, but so far it appears that the vast majority of patients who received the injection have not developed evidence of meningitis,\" Jernigan says in an email. \"But the investigation is ongoing, and exposed patients and their physicians should be vigilant for signs of illness.\"\nAll of the fungal infections to date have been in patients who received spinal injections. Some of the patients who received the contaminated steroids got shots in painful joints such as the knee or elbow. To date, none of these patients has reported a fungal infection.\nThe source of the outbreak is a compounding pharmacy called New England Compounding Center (NECC). The company makes more than 2,400 different medicines sold throughout the U.S. All have been recalled.\nAll cases so far have been in patients who received one of 17,676 single-shot vials of a steroid, methylprednisolone, since May 21, 2012. An FDA investigation of the NECC facility, including studies of whether other medications might be contaminated, is ongoing.\nThere haven't yet been any reports of fungal infection in patients who got joint injections of the NECC steroids. Even so, the CDC is warning such patients to be on the lookout for symptoms of fungal infection:\nPatients who have such symptoms should see a doctor for further tests. Doctors likely will collect joint fluid to test it for fungal infection.\nIf you suspect you may have received a dose of contaminated medicine, contact the health provider who gave it to you. Ask if the medication came from NECC. All NECC products carry the NECC logo.\nClinics that gave the suspect shots are contacting all patients to warn them to look out for symptoms. Symptoms may appear one to four weeks after getting a pain injection.\nFor patients who got spinal injections, early symptoms may be very mild. At first, most patients only feel a little worse than usual. For example, patients with back pain may feel slightly worse pain, or slightly more weakness.\nThe CDC warns patients who have had a spinal steroid shot since May 21, 2012, to call a doctor immediately if they have any of these symptoms:\nTreatment of fungal meningitis is complicated. Antifungal drugs must be given intravenously, every day. At least at first, patients should be treated in a hospital.\nTreatment often lasts for several months, and can have serious side effects.\nAs of Oct. 9, the CDC reports deaths and cases in these states:\nSOURCES:Curtis Allen, public information officer, CDC, email interview.CDC web site.FDA web site.David Kibbe, public information officer, Massachusetts Department of Health."}
{"text": "A grooved pulley wheel like that used for ropes is called a sheave. A single sheave mounted in a block and fixed in place simply changes the direction of force exerted on the rope passing over it. If the end of the rope that ordinarily would attach to the load is passed around a second, unfixed pulley and back to the fixed pulley, a load attached to the free pulley can be raised with half the effort, or with a mechanical advantage of 2. Thus arranged, the device is called a block and tackle. The number of pulley wheels mounted in the fixed and free blocks can be increased indefinitely to get a higher and higher mechanical advantage, the mechanical advantage equaling the number of strands running to the free pulley. Therefore if the rope is run over the first fixed pulley wheel, around the free pulley, over a second pulley wheel in the fixed block, and back to the free block, the mechanical advantage is 3. A 300-lb load can be raised by a pull of 100 lb on the free end of the rope. To raise the load 10 ft, however, the free end of the rope must be pulled 30 ft.\nDisregarding friction, work output will always equal work input. If the action is reversed by attaching the load to the free end of the rope and pulling on the free block, the mechanical advantage becomes a mechanical disadvantage, but a speed advantage. A rope block and tackle is usually for hand operation. To lift larger loads by hand, a chain is substituted for the rope and the pulleys have grooves for gripping the links. A differential pulley consists of two pulleys of different radii connected and rotating as one on a common axle. The pulleys have their circumferences grooved and spiked so that a chain will run in them without slipping. Over the pulleys an endless chain is run, forming two hanging loops. In one loop is placed a movable block, whose pulley is shaped to take the chain. The load is attached to the movable block and is raised by pulling on the other loop of the chain.\nPower-operated machinery usually has cables, as in vertical-lift drawbridges, power shovels, and cranes. Before the extensive use of electric motors, steam engines or water turbines often supplied the power for factory machinery. One engine or turbine might run a whole factory through a complicated system of shafts, pulleys, and belts. Pulleys for flat belts are crowned to keep the belt centered. Raised flanges will serve the same purpose, but they wear the edges of the belt. Drive pulleys for conveyor belts often have a covering, called lagging, to provide better grip. Individual electric motors usually provide drive by means of V belts, the pulleys having raised flanges to form slots that match the trapezoidal cross sections of the belts. Cone pulleys consist of a number of pulleys of varying diameters massed in the shape of a cone. They are used with belt drives for machines (e.g., lathes) requiring a variety of speeds.\nIn mechanics, a wheel that carries a flexible rope, cord, cable, chain, or belt on its rim. Pulleys are used singly or in combination to transmit energy and motion. In belt drives, pulleys are attached to shafts at their axes, and power is transmitted between the shafts by means of endless belts running over the pulleys. One or more independently rotating pulleys can be used to gain mechanical advantage, especially for lifting weights. The shafts around which the pulleys turn may attach them to frames or blocks, and a combination of pulleys, blocks, and rope is called a block and tackle. The pulley is considered one of the five simple machines.\nLearn more about pulley with a free trial on Britannica.com.\nA pulley (also called a sheave or block) is a wheel with a groove between two flanges around its circumference. A rope, cable or belt usually runs inside the groove. Pulleys are used to change the direction of an applied force, transmit rotational motion, or realize a mechanical advantage in either a linear or rotational system of motion.\nA belt and pulley system is characterized by two or more pulleys in common to a belt. This allows for mechanical power, torque, and speed to be transmitted across axes and, if the pulleys are of differing diameters, a mechanical advantage to be realized.\nA belt drive is analogous to that of a chain drive, however a belt sheave may be smooth (devoid of discrete interlocking members as would be found on a chain sprocket, spur gear, or timing belt) so that the mechanical advantage is given by the ratio of the pitch diameter of the sheaves only (one is not able to count 'teeth' to determine gear ratio).\nBelt and pulley systems can be very efficient, with stated efficiencies up to 98%.\nIn a system of a single rope and pulleys, when friction is neglected, the mechanical advantage gained can be calculated by counting the number of rope lengths exerting force on the load. Since the tension in each rope length is equal to the force exerted on the free end of the rope, the mechanical advantage is simply equal to the number of ropes pulling on the load. For example, in Diagram 3 below, there is one rope attached to the load, and 2 rope lengths extending from the pulley attached to the load, for a total of 3 ropes supporting it. If the force applied to the free end of the rope is 10 lb, each of these rope lengths will exert a force of 10 lb. on the load, for a total of 30 lb. So the mechanical advantage is 3.\nThe force on the load is increased by the mechanical advantage; however the distance the load moves, compared to the length the free end of the rope moves, is decreased in the same proportion. Since a slender cable is more easily managed than a fat one (albeit shorter and stronger), pulley systems are often the preferred method of applying mechanical advantage to the pulling force of a winch (as can be found in a lift crane).\nPulley systems are the only simple machines in which the possible values of mechanical advantage are limited to whole numbers.\nIn practice, the more pulleys there are, the less efficient a system is. This is due to sliding friction in the system where cable meets pulley and in the rotational mechanism of each pulley.\nIt is not recorded when or by whom the pulley was first developed. It is believed however that Archimedes developed the first documented block and tackle pulley system, as recorded by Plutarch. Plutarch reported that Archimedes moved an entire warship, laden with men, using compound pulleys and his own strength.\nThese are different types of pulley systems:\nThe simplest theory of operation for a pulley system assumes that the pulleys and lines are weightless, and that there is no energy loss due to friction. It is also assumed that the lines do not stretch.\nIn equilibrium, the total force on the pulley must be zero. This means that the force on the axle of the pulley is shared equally by the two lines looping through the pulley. The situation is schematically illustrated in diagram 1. For the case where the lines are not parallel, the tensions in each line are still equal, but now the vector sum of all forces is zero.\nA second basic equation for the pulley follows from the conservation of energy: The product of the weight lifted times the distance it is moved is equal to the product of the lifting force (the tension in the lifting line) times the distance the lifting line is moved. The weight lifted divided by the lifting force is defined as the advantage of the pulley system.\nIt is important to notice that a system of pulleys does not change the amount of work done. The work is given by the force times the distance moved. The pulley simply allows trading force for distance: you pull with less force, but over a longer distance.\nIn diagram 2, a single movable pulley allows weight W to be lifted with only half the force needed to lift the weight without assistance. The total force needed is divided between the lifting force (red arrow) and the \"ceiling\" which is some immovable object (such as the earth). In this simple system, the lifting force is directed in the same direction as the movement of the weight. The advantage of this system is 2. Although the force needed to lift the weight is only W/2, we will need to draw a length of rope that is twice the distance that the weight is lifted, so that the total amount of work done (Force x distance) remains the same.\nA second pulley may be added as in diagram 2a, which simply serves to redirect the lifting force downward, it does not change the advantage of the system.\nThe addition of a fixed pulley to the single pulley system can yield an increase of advantage. In diagram 3, the addition of a fixed pulley yields a lifting advantage of 3. The tension in each line is W/3, and the force on the axles of each pulley is 2W/3. As in the case of diagram 2a, another pulley may be added to reverse the direction of the lifting force, but with no increase in advantage. This situation is shown in diagram 3a.\nThis process can be continued indefinitely for ideal pulleys with each additional pulley yielding a unit increase in advantage. For real pulleys friction among rope and pulleys will increase as more pulleys are added to the point that no advantage is possible. It puts a limit for the number of pulleys usable in practice. The above pulley systems are known collectively as block and tackle pulley systems. In diagram 4a, a block and tackle system with advantage 4 is shown. A practical implementation in which the connection to the ceiling is combined and the fixed and movable pulleys are encased in single housings is shown in figure 4b.\nOther pulley systems are possible, and some can deliver an increased advantage with fewer pulleys than the block and tackle system. The advantage of the block and tackle system is that each pulley and line is subjected to equal tensions and forces. Efficient design dictates that each line and pulley be capable of handling its load, and no more. Other pulley designs will require different strengths of line and pulleys depending on their position in the system, but a block and tackle system can use the same line size throughout, and can mount the fixed and movable pulleys on a common axle.\nShape up your pulleys: minimize costly downtime and extend conveyor belt life by keeping wing pulleys free of entrapped material.(SPECIAL SECTION: CONVEYING & MATERIAL HANDLING)\nAug 01, 2009; Consider the frequent task of dislodging material from the standard wing pulley. It's necessary yet annoying and time..."}
{"text": "Measuring environmental impact\nOur approach in adopting a responsible attitude to climate change starts with the assessment of the environmental impact of each stage in our products' life by the means of a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).\nAs part of our internal environmental program, Ecophon has carried out LCAs on our products in collaboration with Ecobilan SA (Pricewaterhouse Coopers), and according to the international ISO 14040 to ISO 14044 series of standards.\nTo give you an overview of the process and an idea of our products' carbon footprint, we will consider a fictitious panel, the \"Ecophon index sound-absorbing acoustic panel\" based on the most common physical characteristics of Ecophon products:\nFormat: 1000 x 1000mm\nEdge design: Edge E\nSurface: Akutex FT\nWeight: 1.5 kg/m2\nBased on \"cradle-to-grave\" LCA calculations, the total carbon footprint of our fictitious panel is 2.7kg CO2/m2, from extraction of raw materials through to the end-of-life phase (landfill). Click on the links below to find out more about the various phases of our panel's life and its environmental impact."}
{"text": "Skip to main content\nMore Search Options\nA member of our team will call you back within one business day.\nLow blood sugar (hypoglycemia) occurs when there is too little glucose (sugar) in your child’s blood. It can be caused by skipping meals or snacks, eating too little food, or taking too much insulin or diabetes medication. A lot of physical activity can also cause low blood sugar, even hours later. In severe cases, low blood sugar can lead to seizures or passing out.\nEveryone’s symptoms are different. Your child may feel dizzy, weak, hungry, headachy, or shaky. Your child may seem cranky or confused. If lows happen very often over time, your child may no longer be able to sense them. Encourage your child to recognize his or her symptoms and tell you about them right away.\nStay calm so you can better help your child.\nCheck your child’s blood sugar to make sure that it is low. If you’re not able to check, treat for low blood sugar anyway.\nGive your child 15 to 20 grams of fast-acting sugar such as 3 to 4 glucose tablets, a glass of nonfat milk, or 4 ounces (½ cup) of juice or regular soda. Diet soda will not help at all. Chocolate, cookies, and other fatty sweets will not work as quickly.\nIf possible, recheck blood sugar in 15 minutes. If it is still low, give your child another 15 to 20 grams of fast-acting sugar.\nOnce your child’s blood sugar is normal, give your child a snack or meal to eat.\nIf your child’s blood sugar does not go back up, call the doctor or take your child to the emergency room.\nBe sure your child eats meals and snacks on time, and eats before exercising.\nHave your child carry fast-acting sugar.\nDon’t inject insulin near a muscle that’s going to be exercised.\nCheck your child’s blood sugar often, especially after exercise and at bedtime.\nKeep fast-acting sugars handy.\nCheck blood sugar often, especially after activity and before bed.\nFor severe low blood sugar, your child may need a glucagon injection. Ask your child’s healthcare provider about glucagon emergency kits for home and school."}
{"text": "Modern laparoscopic surgeries may be minimally invasive, but they still require multiple incisions. To make laparoscopies even less intrusive, scientists and surgeons at Columbia University and Vanderbilt University have built a robot that can enter the body through a single 15-millimeter incision or through a natural opening like the mouth. Once inside the body the robot, which has not yet been tested in humans, unfolds like a NASA spaceship, communicates its position through a wire connected to an external computer, and follows instructions to advance, stop, tie sutures and perform other actions. It comes with a camera that tracks the movements of surgical instruments and projects them onto a computer console. Developers say it could perform appendectomies, hysterectomies, some types of kidney surgery, and possibly ear and throat surgery.\nThe Insertable Robotic Effector Platform (IREP) is entering animal testing this fall and could be available within five years. Until now, no study has offered conclusive proof that robotic surgery trumps traditional laparoscopic techniques, but IREP's developers say it is lighter and cheaper than da Vinci, the leading surgical system. “There is definitely a potential here,” says William Lowrance, a robotic surgery expert at the University of Utah, adding that it might offer more dexterity and precision than traditional laparoscopic tools.\nThis article was originally published with the title The Robot Will See You Now."}
{"text": "Posted September 1st, 2002\nIt's like \"something from a bad horror movie\"! This is how Maryland's Interior Secretary Gale Norton described the most widely reported environmental emergency\nThe emergency? The Asian snakehead fish.\nThe snakehead is an intriguing fish native to China. They have a voracious appetite, gobbling up everything they can get their teeth on. This includes other fish,\nbirds, frogs, and even their own offspring. Snakeheads seem to defy nature by being able to crawl on dry land for several days at a time, searching for prey.\nIn their native habitat, these three-foot oddities have natural predators and a specific habitat. However, in a small town in Crofton, Maryland (near Washington, D.C.),\nthe snakeheads made an unscheduled appearance.\nA local resident bought the fish from a market in New York to make soup for an ailing relative. He kept the fish alive at home, but soon his relative got better and\nthe cost of feeding the carnivorous fish became too much. Hoping to get rid of the creatures, he dumped them in the pond.\nIn only a short amount of time, the snakehead fish thrived, producing more than 100 offspring. Even after state officials began treating the pond with herbicide in\nhopes of killing off plant life and shutting down the oxygen supply to the fish, the snakeheads continued to survive. In fact, their uncanny nature to withstand treatment has earned\nthe snakeheads the nickname \"frankenfish.\"\nMaryland officials know that if the snakehead managed to escape the pond, they would wreak havoc in the local ecosystem. There are no natural predators of the snakehead\nin Maryland, and officials feared that it would have a devastating affect on the local environment - especially if they reached the Little Patuxent River, which is located just 250 feet\nfrom the pond.\nAs a secondary tactic, officials built a fence around the pond to catch any snakeheads slithering across the land. Then they sprayed the pond with a pesticide called\nRotenone. This poison blocks oxygen from getting to the fish's blood, killing them.\nOn September 4, 2002, officials sprayed the Rotenone onto the pond. The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) lobbied against the use of the poison because\nit was inhuman, however, they agreed that the fish must be destroyed in this particular habitat.\nBy Thursday morning, September 5, game officials claimed victory over the alien creatures. Eight hundred pounds of dead fish - including a large number of snakeheads\n- floated to the surface. Countless others had sunk to the bottom and are expected to resurface when they start decomposing.\nUse the Internet to research the snakehead fish. In your Science Journal, write an essay about what could happen if the snakeheads were released in the wild throughout"}
{"text": "Even a modest backyard garden can result in an overabundance of homegrown fruits and vegetables, leading to wasted food. You don't have to stuff yourself full of excess produce, give it all away or let it rot - just can it. Home canning is a great way to preserve your garden harvest. Fresher and tastier than store-bought canned goods, home-canned food saves money and reduces packaging waste, too.\nFood can be preserved in glass mason jars using either hot water bath or pressure canner methods. Heating the jars kills microorganisms that cause spoilage, and as the jars cool, air pressure seals the lids tightly. When stored in a dark, cool, dry location, sealed home-canned goods have a shelf life of about one year. Canning your produce is an ideal way to maintain a more local diet year-round, rather than relying on store-bought goods outside the growing season.\nYou can preserve virtually anything you grow in your garden with home canning. Get creative and add herbs, spices and other items to your fruits and vegetables, or make salsa, sauces and soups.\nHome Canning Materials\nTo get started, you'll need the following items:\n- Glass mason jars with lids and sealing rings, sterilized in boiling water and fully dried\n- Large pot or pressure canner\n- Canning rack, to hold jars inside the pot\n- Wide-mouth funnel and ladle, to fill jars\n- Tongs or jar lifters, to remove cans from the pot\n- Home canning guide, such as the USDA's Complete Guide to Home Canning\nThe Basics of Canning Food\nHigh-acid foods such as tomatoes, jams and jellies can be canned in a hot water bath. Sterilized jars are packed with food, sealed and completely submerged in boiling water for 5 to 85 minutes depending on the type of food and the size of the jars. Boiling removes the oxygen that remains in the jar to form a tight seal. This method can only be used with foods that have a pH of 4.6 or less, as the heat used isn't high enough to prevent the growth of a bacteria called Clostridium botulinum.\nModern pressure canners make home canning easier and safer than ever before, and come in a variety of sizes fitting up to two layers of pint-sized jars. Jars filled with food are placed on a rack inside the canner with 2-3 ices of water and processed at high temperatures. This method is ideal for low-acid foods including most vegetables.\nHome canning is not difficult, but the risk of bacteria growth from improperly canned food requires careful attention to safety guidelines. Always follow instructions from a reliable source of home canning information, such as the National Center for Home Food Preservation."}
{"text": "On the Lap of the Mighty Sagarmatha - Solu Khumbu or Everest region\nThe major mountains are the Mt.Everest, Mt.Lhotse, Cho Oyu, Nuptse, Pumori, Ama Dablam, Thamserku, Kantega, Mera Peak and Island Peak.\nMt. Everest, which is part of the Himalaya range, is located on the border between Nepal and Tibet. Rising to a height of 8848m, the world’s highest mountain was named in 1865 after Sir George Everest. The mountain got its Nepali name Sagarmatha during the 1960s, when the Government of Nepal gave the mountain the official Nepali name. In sanskrit Sagarmatha means \"mother of the universe”. The Tibetan name for Mount Everest is Chomolungma or Qomolangma, which means “Goddess Mother of the Snows\". Climbers wishing to scale the peak have to obtain an expensive permit from the Nepal Government, often costing more than $25,000 (USD) per person. Base Camp, which serves as a resting area and base of operations for climbers organizing their attempts for the summit, is located on the Khumbu glacier at an elevation of 5300 m (17,400 ft); it receives an average of 450 mm (18 in) of precipitation a year. The climate of Mount Everest is extreme In July, the warmest month, the average summit temperature is -19° C (-2° F).\nWhen George Mallory, the British climber was asked why he wanted to climb Everest he replied ‘Because it is there’. After two unsuccessful attempts, in 1924 he again tried to climb the peak with Andrew Irvine. They started on June 8, 1924 to scale the summit via the north col route and never returned. Their bodies were later discovered by the Mallory and Irvine Research Expedition near the old Chinese camp in 1999. Edmund Hillary, a New Zealander and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay from Nepal were the first two climbers to set foot on the summit of Mt.Everest. They reached the summit at 11:30 a.m. on May 29, 1953 by climbing through the South Col Route. More than 300 climbers have scaled the highest mountain since then. Also there have been more than 100 deaths on the mountain where conditions are so difficult that most corpses have been left where they fell, some of them visible from standard climbing routes.\nMt. Lhotse (8516m) is the fourth highest mountain in the world. It lies south of Mt. Everest. It was first climbed by two Swiss climbers F. Luchsinger and E. Reiss in 1956 from the West face. The Czech scaled it via the South face in 1984. An impressive ring of three peaks makes up the Lhotse massif: Lhotse East or Middle, Lhotse and Lhotse Shar. The South Face of Lhotse is one of the largest mountain faces in the world.\nCho Oyu, (8201m) the sixth highest mountain in the world, has gained popularity among climbers just recently. The mountain sits on both sides of the border of Nepal and Tibet, about 30 km. west of Mount Everest. Cho Oyu in Tibetan means \"the turquoise goddess .\" The south face of Cho Oyu, facing Nepal, is quite steep and difficult, and is rarely climbed. The north side, accessed from Tibet, is more moderate, and there is a relatively safe route to the summit. In the autumn of 1954, an Austrian team made the first ascent via this route.\nAma Dablam (6856m) which means ‘mother’s jewellery box’, in sherpa language is considered to be one of the most beautiful mountains in the world. Seen from below, the mountain looks like a woman with outstretched arms or a woman wearing a long necklace. Ama Dablam lies alongside Everest in the heart of the Khumbu valley. Mt Lhotse, Mt. Makalu, Mt. Cho Oyu and Mt. Everest can be seen at close quarters from Ama dablam.\nNuptse (7,855m.) lies south west of Mt Everest. It is situated in the Khumbu Himal. From the Thyangboche Monastery Nuptse appears as a massive wall guarding the approach to Everest. The name Nup-tse in Tibetan means west-peak. The main ridge, which is separated from Lhotse by a 7556m high saddle, is crowned by seven peaks and goes west-northwest until its steep west-face drops down more than 2300m to the Khumbu-glacier. Nuptse I was first summited by a British expedition on May 16, 1961\nPumori peak at 7145m is just 8 km away from the world’s highest peak Mt.Everest. The ascent to this peak is described as a classic climb in the 7000m peak category. In Tibetan, ‘Pumo’ means girl and ‘Ri’, mountain. The peak was named by George Mallory, the famous English climber who lost his life trying to ascend Everest in 1924. The German climber Gerhard Lenser was the first to reach the summit of Pumori peak in 1962. Pumori is a popular climbing peak and the easiest. The best season to climb this peak is during autumn and spring.\nMera Peak (6,475m) is the highest of Nepal's trekking peaks. By its standard route, it is also the highest peak in Nepal that can be climbed without prior mountaineering experience. It was first climbed on 20 May 1953, by J.O.M. Roberts and Sen Tenzing, from the standard route at Mera La. The mountain lies to the south of Everest, dominating the watershed between the wild and beautiful valleys of the Hinku and Hongu.\nIsland Peak also known as Imja Tse at 6160m was named by Erick Shipton's group in 1953.It was so named as the peak resembles an island in a sea of ice when observed from Dingboche. The peak was first climbed in 1953 by a British group as preparation for climbing Mt. Everest. Among them one of the climbers was Mr. Tenzing Norgay. The peak is part of the south ridge of Lhotse Shar and the main land forms a semicircle of cliffs that rise to the north of the summits of Nuptse, Lhotse, Middle Peak and Lhotse Shar. Cho Oyu and Makalu lie to the east of the Island Peak. Baruntse, Amphu and Ama Dablam lie to the south.\nLobuche(6,119m) is known as Lhauche among the Locals. It rises above the town of Lhauche which is just a few kilometer from Mt. Everest. The first ascent on this peak was done by Laurice Nielson and Ang Gyalzen Sherpa on 25 April 1984.\nKalapattar is a small mountain 5,545 m (18,500 ft) high on the southern flank of Pumori (7,145 m). It is a trekking peak and every year tourists climb this peak to enjoy the fantastic panoramic views it offers of the Khumbu glacier, the Everest and nearby peaks like Lhotse and Nuptse. To the east, Makalu, Amadablam, Pumori, and Cho Oyu are visible.\nClimate, Flora & Fauna\nThe climate in the Everest region can be divided into four climate zones owing to the gradual rise in altitude. The climatic zones include a forested lower zone, a zone of alpine scrub, the upper alpine zone which includes upper limit of vegetation growth, and the Arctic zone where no plants can grow. The types of plants and animals that are found depend on the altitude. In the lower forested zone, birch, juniper, blue pines, firs, bamboo and rhododendron grow. All vegetation that is found above this zone is shrubs. As the altitude increases, plant life is restricted to lichens and mosses. At an elevation of 5,750m begins the permanent snow line in the Himalayas. From this point there is no sign of greenery or vegetation. A common animal sighted in the higher reaches is the hairy animal yak. Dzopkyo a sterile male crossbreed between a yak and a cow is used to move goods along the trail. Red panda, snow leopard, musk deer, wild yak, and Himalayan black bear are some of the more exotic animals that are found in this region. A variety of birds can be sighted in the lower regions.\nSagarmata (Mt. Everest) National Park\nThe Sagarmatha National Park is the highest national park in the world. It was formally opened to public in July 19, 1976. The park covers an area of 1,148 sq km. It rises from its lowest point of 2,845 m (9,335 ft) at Jorsale to 8,850 m (29,035 ft) up to the summit of Everest. The park’s area is very rugged and steep, with its terrain cut by deep rivers and glaciers. It includes three peaks higher than 8,000 m, including Mt Everest. In 1979 the park was inscribed as a Natural World Heritage Site. The park's visitor centre is located at a hill in Namche Bazaar, where a company of the Nepal Royal Army is stationed for protecting the park. The park's southern entrance is a few hundred meters north of Monjo at 2,835 m. Trekking and climbing groups must bring their own fuel to the park (usually butane and kerosene), and the cutting of wood is prohibited. The Sagarmatha Pollution Control, funded by the World Wildlife Fund and the Himalayan Trust, was established in 1991 to help preserve Everest's environment. About a humdred species of birds and more than twenty species of butterflies have made this park their home. Musk deer, wild yak, red panda, snow leopard, Himalayan black bear, Himalayan thars, deer, langur monkeys, hares, mountain foxes, martens, and Himalayan wolves are found in the park\nEarly expeditions to climb Everest from the Nepalese side started from Jiri. Before the airstrip at Lukla came into existence all the trekking and climbing expeditions to the Everest region started from Jiri. Starting from Jiri, the route passes through the Sherpa villages of the Solu Khumbu, many of them having beautiful Buddhist monasteries.\nLukla, a village in Khumbu boast of the region’s sole airport.Lying at a height of 9000ft, most travelers to this region usually begin and end their adventure in Lukla. The airport was built in 1964 by Sir Edmund Hillary as part of his project in Khumbu region during the early 60s to transport the supplies for the Himalayan Trust projects in the Khumbu region. Today, somewhere between 90-95% of the foreign nationals who reach Lukla, arrive by a half hour flight from Kathmandu.\nNamche Bazar is known as the sherpa capital. Namche is actually a village lying at the junction of the Dudh Koshi and a valley that leads to the frontier pass of Nangpa La . It is tucked away in a niche at a height of 7,845 ft. W. H. Tilman and C. Houston were the first westerners to enter it in 1950 and many more have come since then. Facilities like a bank, a post office, hotels and shops where one can purchase climbing equipment as well as tinned food have sprung up over the years. Namche Bazar is the major regional trading center. Its Saturday market or haat is the place where most of the trading takes place. The headquarters of the Sagarmatha National Park is located in Namche.\nThyangboche is famous for the Thyangboche gompa. It is one of the most important centers of Buddhism in the region. The gompa is the largest in the Khumbu region. It was first built in 1923. Destroyed by a fire in 1989, it was rebuilt later on partly with foreign aid. From Thyangboche, one gets a panoramic view of Kwangde, Tawache, Everest, Nuptse, Lhotse, Amadablam, Kangtenga, and Thamserku.\nBuddhism is believed to have been introduced in the Khumbu region towards the end of the 17th century by Lama Sange Dorjee. According to the legend, he flew over the Himalayas and landed on a rock at Pangboche and Thyangboche, leaving his footprints embedded on the stone. He is believed to have been responsible for the founding of the first gompas in the Khumbu region, at Pangboche and Thami. Pangboche is the highest year-round settlement in the valley. The Imja Khola, coming from the right, joins the Dudh Koshi River a little above the village. The gompa (monastery) in Phyangboche is thought to be one of the oldest in the Khumbu region.\nKhumjung , a village lying west of Thyangboche, is famous for the gompa where the skull of a supposed Yeti, the Abominable Snowman, is preserved under the supervision of the head Lama. The skull seems more like the outer skin of Himalayan Brown Bear, and this is proved by the report of a scientific exploratory expedition conducted by Sir Edmund Hillary, a copy of which is kept in the gompa.\nPheriche is located at an altitude of 13,845 ft. It lies on a level patch. Apart from the basic facilities available here, there is a medical-aid post maintained by the Himalayan Rescue Association of the Tokyo Medical College with Japanese doctors in attendance. Among other facilities, there is an air compression chamber installed for assisting victims of high altitude sickness\nThe scenic village of Gokyo lies below the hilly Gokyo Ri(5483m). The village is a cluster of stone houses and walled pastures.One has to pass by the holy Gokyo lakes on the way to the village. The Ngozumpa Glacier Nepal’s longest glacier at 25 miles has to be traversed enroute to this remote village. Gokyo Ri looms above the village on the northern edge of the lake. The summits of Everest, Lhotse and Makalu are visible from the summit of Gokyo Ri.\nThami at 3750m is in a large valley. The village has a police checkpost and a few lodges and tea shops. A little above the village is the Thami gompa, which is the site of the annual Mani Rimdu festival.\nSherpas live in the upper regions of Solu Khumbu. They emigrated from Tibet about 600 years ago. In the past they were traders and porters, carrying butter, meat, rice, sugar, and dye from India, and, wool, jewelry, salt Chinese silk and porcelain from Tibet and beyond. The closure of the border between India and China undermined their economy. Fortunately, with the mountaineering expeditions and trekkers, the Sherpa's found their load carrying skills, both on normal treks and high altitudes in great demand. The Khumbu region has provided a strong group of able bodied, hardy and fearless Sherpa porters and guides. The sherpas are Buddhists.\nAt the lower elevations lives the Kiranti Rai. The villages of Jubing, Kharikhola, Okhaldhunga, are inhabited by the Rais. Of mongoloid stock they speak their own dialect. Reference is made of their fighting spirit in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. The people from this group have supplied recruits to Gurkha regiments both in the British as well as Indian armies. The Rais follow a religion that is partly animistic with a strong Hindu influence. They revere their ancestors by observing Kul or Pitri puja every year.\nThe Jirels live in the area around Jiri. They are mongoloid and follow Buddhism.\nLosar is celebrated in the month of February by the Sherpas. ‘Losar’ means New Year in Tibetan. Apart from the Sherpas and Tibetans, the Gurungs and Tamangs also celebrate Losar. Buddhist monks offer prayers for good health and prosperity at monasteries. People exchange various goods and gifts among them. Families organize feasts and perform dances.\nDumje is celebrated to mark the birthday of Guru Rimpoche (Padmasambhava).The celebration takes place in June and lasts for six days. It is celebrated in a big way in the villages of Namche, Thame and Khumjung.\nMani Rimdu is a festival that celebrates the victory of Buddhism over the ancient animistic religion of Bon. This festival is celebrated in the monasteries of Thyangboche, Chiwang and Thami. At Thangboche the celebration takes place during the November- December full moon. At Thami the Mani rimdu is festival is celebrated during the full moon in May.Chiwang Gompa generally celebrate this festival during autumn. The lamas wear elaborate brocade gowns and papier-mâché masks while performing. Through the dances, symbolic demons are conquered, dispelled, or converted to Dharma Protectors as positive forces clash with those of chaos. The dances convey Buddhist teaching on many levels from the simplest to the most profound, for those who do not have the opportunity to study and meditate extensively. It gives an opportunity to the Sherpas to gather and celebrate together with the monks.\nSakela (Chandi Dance) is a harvest festival celebrated by the Rai community. The harvest ceremony involves the worship of mother earth, called ‘Bhumi-Puja’. The festival is celebrated twice a year, once in spring before planting begins and once during autumn before harvesting. Ubhauli is celebrated during the spring season on Baishakh Purnima. In the autumn season on Mangsir Purnima, Udhauli is celebrated. The spring worship is done to propitiate mother earth for a good harvest and the rain god to bless the earth with enough rain. The festival is celebrated with more fervor in the remote hills. The Rai villagers celebrate it with priests (dhami) who perform rituals to worship their ancestors. The elders of the community begin the dance with a puja. Later on everybody participate in the dance forming a circle by holding each other’s hands. With drumbeats, they begin dancing at a slow pace but moves faster later with the drumbeats. The dance steps and hand gestures imitate the sowing and harvesting of crops .The festival also provides an opportunity for the Rai people to socialise.\nThe Classic Everest Base Camp Trek\nMt Everest Base Camp is the most popular destination for trekkers in Nepal. Its popularity has grown since the first expedition to the Nepalese side of Everest in the 1950s.One can do this trek the old way, by beginning the trek from Jiri. From Jiri it takes around nine days to reach Namche. On the way you will come across Rai settlements. The other (quicker) alternative is to take a flight to Lukla and to begin the trek from there. The trek follows the Dudh Kosi valley route with an ascent up to the Sherpa capital of Namche Bazaar. From Namche, you traverse along a high path from where you have the first good view of Everest. You head towards Thyangboche Monastery located on top of a mountain ridge and then descend the Imja Khola and continue to the villages of Pangboche and Pheriche. After that you arrive at the Khumbu Glacier. The trek through the glacier takes you first to Lobuche and then to Gorak Shep. From Gorak Shep you can climb up to Kala Pattar for even more spectacular views of the surrounding mountains, including Everest's south west face. Yhou then reach your destination, the Everest Base Camp at the foot of the Khumbu ice fall."}
{"text": "There are two well-known approved apparitions of Saint Joseph - but of which occurred in the context of a Marian apparition.\nOur Lady of Knock (1879)\nOn the evening of Thursday, 21 August 1879 (Eve of the Octave of the Assumption) in Knock, Ireland, three mysterious persons appeared. The one in the middle was immediately identifiable as the Blessed Virgin Mary, veiled, crowned and praying. Immediately on her right was Saint Joseph with a gray beard, bowing toward Mary. To Mary's left was one appearing as a bishop who wore a short mitre. This last saint was the virginal Apostle Saint John the Evangelist.\nOur Lady of Fatima (1917)\nAs we discussed a few days about on the significance of the three Marian visions of the Miracle of the Sun (See: Miracle of the Sun Signifies Rosary Mysteries), the first vision included Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, as Lucia described:\nWhen Our Lady disappeared in the immense distance of the sky, next to the sun we saw Saint Joseph holding the Child Jesus and Our Lady dressed in white with a blue mantle. Saint Joseph and the Child seemed to be blessing the world making the sign of the cross.I find it startling that Saint Joseph, although not a priest, would give the sacerdotal blessing of the sign of the cross in union with his foster-Son, Christ.\nWhat can we observe from these two apparitions of Saint Joseph?\n- In both visions, Joseph does not speak.\n- Joseph appears along with Mary.\n- In the Knock vision, John appears, and John is the \"son\" of Mary is a special way. Is he also a \"son\" of Joseph in a special way?"}
{"text": "S.A.D.D. is an acronym used to described the symptoms/signs/strong behavioral patterns that a nonwhite person is having sex with a white person and/or having frivolous contact with white people (not using the time with white people for constructive benefit).\nS- Space for white people.\nThe nonwhite/victim of racism person will seek space for white people in discussion of racism. Often seeking space for white people who are not racist and have a high problem of not suspecting white people they come in contact with of being racist/white supremacist especially the white person they are having sex/sexual contact with.\nThe C.O.W.S. w/ Dr. Eddie Moore, Jr.\n\"Your definition sounds like it is not leaving space for white people who don't practice racism or is working against racism\" Dr. Eddie Moore, Jr., after hearing Gus T. Renegade/Victim of Racism definition of racism/white supremacy.\nA- Abstract thought and speech.\nThe nonwhite/victim of racism \"They won't talk about racism as if it's live and experienced everyday\" but they will talk about it as if it's \"out there\". They will use words like institutional racism as if institution's are not buildings and are run by the people inside them.\nThe C.O.W.S. w/ W. Kamau Bell\nVictim of Racism known as W. Kamau Bell used the abstract term Halls of Power six times to describe the system of white supremacy.\nD- Defend white people/Divided loyalties\nDefend White People/Defend making white space\nThe nonwhite person will ferociously defend white people and that space they make for white people in discussion of racism. They will often experience from Cognitive Dissonance when they start to think about pondering that the white person they are sleeping with might be a racist/white supremacist.\nThe C.O.W.S. w/ Cynthia McKinney\nA victim of racism called in after Cynthia McKinney left defending the space for white people.\nD- Divided loyalties.\nA metaphor of divided loyalties.\nThe nonwhite person will be on the battlefield of countering racism/white supremacy and instead of going full charge at their enemies, they will be discouraging nonwhite persons from fighting, causing conflict and confusion within the tents making it easy for the white supremacists to come slaughter them."}
{"text": "New York Manumission Society\nThe New York Manumission Society was an early American organization founded in 1785 to promote the abolition of the slavery of African descendants within the state of New York. The organization was made up entirely of white men, most of whom were wealthy and held influential positions in society. Throughout its 71-year history, which ended in 1849, the society battled against the slave trade and for the eventual emancipation of all the slaves in the state; it founded the African Free School for the poor and orphaned children of slaves and free people of color.\nJohn Jay \nJohn Jay had been a prominent leader in the antislavery cause since 1777, when he drafted a state law to abolish slavery. The draft failed, as did a second attempt in 1785. In 1785, all state legislators except one voted for some form of gradual emancipation. However, they did not agree on what civil rights would be given to the slaves once they were freed. In 1799, an emancipation bill passed by not mentioning the subject of civil rights for freed slaves at all.\nJay brought in prominent political leaders such as Alexander Hamilton. He also worked closely with Aaron Burr, later head of the Democratic-Republicans in New York. The Society started a petition against slavery, which was signed by almost all the politically prominent men in New York, of all parties and led to a bill for gradual emancipation. Burr, in addition to supporting the bill, made an amendment for immediate abolition, which was voted down.\nJay founded the New-York Society for Promoting the Manumission of Slaves, and Protecting Such of Them as Have Been, or May be Liberated or the New York Manumission Society, and became its first president in 1785.\nThe organization was originally composed of Jay and a few dozen close friends, many of whom were slave-owners at the time. The first meeting was on January 25, 1785, at the home of John Simmons - who had space for the nineteen men in attendance since he kept an inn. Robert Troup and Melancton Smith were appointed to draw up rules; Jay was elected President. There were 31 members at the second meeting on February 4, including Alexander Hamilton. Several of the members were Quakers.\nThe Society formed a ways-and-means committee to deal with the difficulty that more than half of the members, including Troup and Jay, owned slaves (mostly a few domestic servants per household). The committee reported a plan for gradual emancipation: members would free slaves then younger than 28 when they reached the age of 35, slaves between 28 and 38 in seven years' time, and slaves over 45 immediately. This was voted down; and the committee dissolved.\nThis society was instrumental in having a state law passed in 1785 prohibiting the sale of slaves imported into the state, and making it easy for slaveholders to manumit slaves either by a registered certificate or by will. In 1788 the purchase of slaves for removal to another state was forbidden; they were allowed trial by jury \"in all capital cases,\" and the earlier laws about slaves were simplified and restated. The emancipation of slaves by the Quakers was legalized in 1798. At that date, there were still about 33,000 slaves statewide.\nLobbying and boycotts \nThe Society organized boycotts against New York merchants and newspaper owners involved in the slave trade. The Society had a special committee of militants who visited newspaper offices to warn publishers against accepting advertisements for the purchase or sale of slaves.\nAnother committee kept a list of people who were involved in the slave trade, and urged members to boycott anyone listed. As historian Roger Kennedy reports,\n\"Those [blacks] who remained in New York soon discovered that until the Manumission Society was organized, things had gotten worse, not better, for blacks. Despite the efforts of Burr, Hamilton, and Jay, the slave importers were busy. There was a 23 percent increase in slaves and a 33 percent increase in slaveholders in New York City in the 1790s.\"\nBeginning in 1785, the Society lobbied for a state law to abolish slavery in New York, as all the other northern states (except New Jersey) had done. Considerable opposition came from the Dutch areas upstate (where slavery was still popular), as well as from the many businessmen in New York who profited from the slave trade. The two houses passed different emancipation bills and could not reconcile them. Every member of the New York legislature, but one, voted for some form of gradual emancipation, but no agreement could be reached on the civil rights of freedmen afterwards. Success finally came in 1799, when the Society supported a bill which said nothing about such rights. Jay signed this statement into law as governor.\nThe Act for the Gradual Abolition of Slavery 1799 declared that, from July 4 of that year, all children born to slave parents would be free. It also outlawed the exportation of current slaves. However, the Act held the caveat that the children would be subject to apprenticeship. These same children would be required to serve their mother’s owner until age twenty-eight for males, and age twenty-five for females.\nThe law defined the children of slaves as a type of indentured servant, while scheduling them for eventual freedom. The last slaves were emancipated by July 4, 1827; the process was the largest emancipation in North America before 1861. Thousands of freedmen celebrated with a parade in New York.\nOther anti-slavery societies directed their attention to slavery as a national issue. The Quakers of New York petitioned the First Congress (under the Constitution) for the abolition of the slave trade. In addition, Benjamin Franklin and the Pennsylvania Abolition Society petitioned for the abolition of slavery in the new nation; but the NYMS did not act. (Hamilton and others felt that Federal action on slavery would endanger the compromise worked out at the Constitutional Convention, and so the new United States.) \nAfrican Free School \nSee also \n- Berlin, Ira and Leslie Harris, eds.. Slavery in New York. New Press, 2005. ISBN 1-56584-997-3.\n- Gellman, David N. Emancipating New York: The Politics of Slavery And Freedom, 1777-1827 Louisiana State Univ Press, 2006. ISBN 0-8071-3174-1.\n- Gellman, David N. \"Pirates, Sugar, Debtors, and Slaves: Political Economy and the Case for Gradual Abolition in New York.\" Slavery & Abolition (2001) 22(2): 51-68. Issn: 0144-039x\n- Gellman, David N. \"Race, the Public Sphere, and Abolition in Late Eighteenth-century New York.\" Journal of the Early Republic (2000) 20(4): 607-636. Issn: 0275-1275 Fulltext: online in Jstor\n- Leslie M. Harris. In the Shadow of Slavery: African Americans in New York City, 1626-1863 (2003),\n- Horton, James Oliver. \"Alexander Hamilton: Slavery and Race in a Revolutionary Generation\" New-York Journal of American History 2004 65(3): 16-24. ISSN 1551-5486\n- Roger G. Kennedy, Burr, Hamilton, and Jefferson: A Study in Character (2000)\n- Littlefield, Daniel C. \"John Jay, the Revolutionary Generation, and Slavery.\" New York History 2000 81(1): 91-132. Issn: 0146-437x\n- Edgar J. McManus, History of Negro Slavery in New York (1968)\n- Newman, Richard S. The Transformation of American Abolitionism: Fighting Slavery in the Early Republic. Univ of North Carolina Press, 2002. ISBN 0-8078-2671-5.\n- Schaetzke, E. Anne. \"Slavery in the Genesee Country (Also Known as Ontario County) 1789 to 1827.\" Afro-Americans in New York Life and History (1998) 22(1): 7-40. Issn: 0364-2437\n- Jake Sudderth,\" John Jay and Slavery\" (2002) at \n- \"African-Americans in New York City, 1626-1863\". Emory University Deptartment of History. Retrieved 2006-12-11.\n- \"Race and Antebellum New York City - New York Manumission Society\". New-York Historical Society. Retrieved 2006-12-12.\n- Davis, New York’s Manumission (Free the Slaves!)Society & Its African Free School 1785-1849, as cited.\n- John Jay and Sarah Livingston Jay, Selected Letters of John Jay and Sarah Livingston Jay (2005) pp 297-99; online at \n- Edgar McManus, History of Negro Slavery in New York, Syracuse University Press, 1966\n- Davis, op. cit.; Chernow, Alexander Hamilton p.214\n- Ron Chernow, Alexander Hamilton, p. 215\n- Peter Nelson. The American Revolution in New York: Its Political, Social and Economic Significance. (1926). p, 237.\n- Roger G. Kennedy, Burr, Hamilton, and Jefferson: A Study in Character (2000) p. 92\n- Herbert S. Parmet and Marie B. Hecht, Aaron Burr (1967) p. 76\n- Edgar J. McManus, History of Negro Slavery in New York\n- Edgar J. McManus, History of Negro Slavery in New York\n- Jake Sudderth,\" John Jay and Slavery\" (2002) at\n- Forrest McDonald, Alexander Hamilton, a Biography(1982) p. 177"}
{"text": "- OurWorld 2.0 - http://ourworld.unu.edu/en -\nWhat does Cancún offer the climate generation?\nPosted By Huw Oliphant On December 8, 2010 @ 8:30 pm In General | 4 Comments\nAcross the globe, young people are paying attention to what is happening at the COP16 climate negotiations in Cancun, Mexico. They are the “climate generation” — the ones who are going to have to live with our climate legacy, our tendency to prevaricate and our collective global failure to act sooner. The hope is that we will see substantive progress in Cancun towards an internationally binding agreement.\nThis hope was echoed by a group of 30 young climate champions (from Japan, Korea, Thailand, Indonesia, Australia and Vietnam) who met in Vietnam on 22-26 November 2010 and who called on the leaders of the world to stop talking and take action  on climate change.\nThey were brought together by the British Council Climate Generation Project  in a workshop that focused on green business and entrepreneurship, aimed to help participants develop their green projects through project management and leadership skills training, as well as interaction with experts in the field.\nWhat can the climate generation do?\nTo begin with, business as usual is not an option. These young people are green entrepreneurs and they are all developing “cool” projects aimed at addressing climate and sustainability issues in their community.\nThese young people are green entrepreneurs and they are all developing cool projects aimed at addressing climate and sustainability issues in their community.\nFor instance, Syuichi Ishibashi from Japan has developed an impressive energy literacy project  to help monitor on-line energy use at home. Other projects include a factory  making furniture from recycled materials in Thailand; a community based conservation project  (link in Indonesian) near Lake Buret in Tulungagung, East Java; a green fashion show in Korea; and a project aimed at developing smart grid systems in Vietnam.\nYoung leaders can make a difference\nSiti Nur Alliah, a British Council Climate Champion from Indonesia, is tackling a burning issue in the heart of Indonesia’s countryside in a quest to reverse climate change and lift a community out of poverty. As a community organiser, Alliah was keenly aware that farmers in Sekonyer village, central Borneo, remained poor no matter how much they burned surrounding forest to expand their farmland.\n“Tragically, no matter how many resources are exploited, they are still considered as a community living under the poverty line,” she said.\nSo Alliah decided to see if there were more environmentally friendly agriculture methods that would have the added benefits of raising the quality and quantity of farm yields. The result was the Forest Farming project, which works with villagers in Sekonyer to expand their knowledge of agriculture to find better ways of managing their land.\nAlliah says the project depended on cultivating local knowledge, encouraging the community to take action and fostering commitment in the village to sustained involvement. She says the great willingness of the indigenous people to work with her and her team to change their farming practices is a real sign that they are making a difference.\nClimate Champion Hiroki Fukushima is part of a network of Japanese students who have issued the Climate Campus Challenge to educational institutions throughout the country. To help cut the education sector’s emissions of greenhouse gas, the students encourage universities to use renewable energy sources, retrofit campus buildings and buy green products. They then rank the colleges according to their success.\n“We made an environmental survey of 334 universities and assessed them according to criteria, such as energy consumption per student, reduction in energy consumption, climate change policies, climate education for students and unique initiatives,” Hiroki said. “We published an Eco University Ranking and awarded certificates to universities with good environmental policies and activities, and organised a seminar to promote universities with good practice.”\nHiroki says the number of Japanese students participating in environmental activities has been on the rise since the 1990s but few of the activities were aimed at tackling climate change on campus. To remedy the situation, the core group studied projects overseas and thought how the activities could be best adapted to implement the campus challenge. They then enlisted students at various universities and established a network to realise the project.\nThai Climate Champion Panita Topathomwong is driving home her environmental message through her Cool Bus Cool Smile project. Panita is encouraging residents to cut their greenhouse gas emissions by leaving the car in the garage and hopping on public transport. She says that transport is one of the big sources of carbon dioxide emissions in urban centres and cutting back on car use would help lower the sector’s environmental impact and have the added benefit of easing gridlock.\nSo, with the support of the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) and the Ministry of Transport, Panita and her team organised a design competition to decorate three city buses and take the message to the road. The decorated buses toured Bangkok streets for three months after a high-profile launch in April 2009 attended by the Vice Minister of Transport, the Director of the BMTA, a representative from the British Embassy Bangkok and various media.\nClimate Champions are young green entrepreneurs who are developing innovative projects aimed at addressing climate and sustainability issues in their community.\n“We believe that by redecorating the buses with great images we conveyed the message about climate change to wider audiences in Bangkok. The buses were like mobile billboards which convinced everybody to be concerned about climate change,” Panita said.\nIt is cool to be a Climate Champion\nSince 2008, the British Council Climate Generation has worked with over 120,000 young people from across the world interested in tackling climate change. Through the Climate Generation project, young people have the chance to come up with grassroots projects to combat and offset the effects of climate change. The participants are given the training and resources they need to realise their proposals and spread the word about the issue in their communities.\nClimate Generation encourages young people interested in tackling climate change to connect with each other, come up with local solutions and reach out to local, national and international decision-makers.\nAs Climate Champions, programme participants have access to the training and information they need to ignite discussion in their communities and devise projects that will help people adapt to and mitigate climate change. The result is a global network of enthusiastic young people with the knowledge, contacts and on-the-ground resources to take action on climate change and make positive contributions to people’s lives.\nClimate Champions have come from a wide variety of backgrounds including government, business, entrepreneurship, NGOs, education and media. Through training in communication and negotiation, they can learn how to put their plans into practice and give voice to the concerns of their generation.\nClearly, the Climate Champions are acting in advance of the outcomes at COP16 and “doing it themselves” but hope that real progress can be made at Cancun.\n• ♦ •\nFor more information on the programme, please contact Huw Oliphant .\nArticle printed from OurWorld 2.0: http://ourworld.unu.edu/en\nURL to article: http://ourworld.unu.edu/en/what-does-cancun-offer-for-the-climate-generation/\nURLs in this post:\n stop talking and take action: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8APNC8R57w\n Climate Generation Project: http://climatecoolnetwork.ning.com/\n energy literacy project: http://e-idea2010.climate-change.jp/en/ishibashi.php\n factory: http://www.kokoboard.com\n community based conservation project: http://www.pplhmangkubumi.or.id/\n Huw Oliphant: mailto:email@example.com\nCopyright © 2008 OurWorld 2.0. All rights reserved."}
{"text": "Difference Between SD and SDHC Cards\nSD stands for Secure Digital which is the most popular storage medium for mobile devices in use today. SD cards can reach up to 4GB of storage space and can come in 3 different form factors; the standard size, mini, and micro each one bigger than the next. SDHC (Secure Digital High Capacity) was developed to overcome the 4GB limit that SD faced, with its smallest capacity starting at 4GB and with a 32GB maximum capacity.\nThe move to SDHC came as more and more consumers start wanting higher capacity memory cards than what is available in the market. SD cards were once sufficient for use in digital cameras, but with portable media devices like mp3 players and video players, it becomes very apparent that more is always better.\nSD was limited in the memory capacity not by the physical aspect of the device since you can always add more; it is because of the byte addressing system that is used in SD. Fat32, which is the most commonly used file system in mobile devices can only allocate up to 232 addresses or just under 4.3 billion. If each address is equivalent to 1 byte then there are only 4.3billion bytes or 4GB.\nSDHC utilized sector addressing rather than byte addressing. Each sector is composed of 512 bytes each, allowing a theoretical maximum capacity of 2 terabytes. But currently, it is limited to a maximum of 32GB per card but will probably be increased once that threshold is reached.\nSDHC cards are not necessarily faster than SD cards but the enforcement of minimum write speeds could potentially mean much faster read and write access. SD cards start out at 0Mb/s then gradually increases to its max speed then slows back down. The minimum speed of SDHC cards can range from 2Mb/s to 6Mb/s, meaning it starts at a much faster speed compared to SD cards.\nIn order to maintain backwards compatibility, most devices that take SDHC memory cards can also work with SD cards. Most memory cards are pretty easy to identify as SD or SDHC cards due to their capacities, but cards that have a 4GB capacity would need to be examined further since those could be either.\n1. SD memory cards can only reach 4GB maximum while SDHC can reach 32GB\n2. SD cards use byte addressing while SDHCS utilized sector addressing\n3. SDHC cards can be potentially faster than SD cards\n4. SDHC readers are backwards compatible with SD cards\nSearch DifferenceBetween.net :\nEmail This Post : If you like this article or our site. Please spread the word. Share it with your friends/family.\n- Difference Between SD and HD | Difference Between\n- Difference Between N95 and N96 | Difference Between\n- Difference Between SD and XD | Difference Between | SD vs XD\nLeave a Response"}
{"text": "OHIO DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE\nDivision of Plant Industry – Apiculture\n8995 East Main Street\nReynoldsburg, Ohio 43068-3399\n“SWARM PREVENTION AND CONTROL”\nWhen honey bees swarm it is a natural process where the colonies divide. In essence, it is nature’s way of trying to increase bee colony populations. Beekeepers can not stop all swarming. However, swarm prevention should be incorporated info a beekeeper’s management program, if he/she is interested in obtaining a good honey crop.\nThe following are some things that can be done to reduce swarming.\n- Colonies should be requeened every 2 to 3 years. This can be done in the spring, fall, after a honey flow or as conditions dictate.\n- Clipping the wings on a new queen is another attempt to prevent swarming. This procedure slows down swarming, but may resutt in the colony swarming anyway with a virgin queen.\n- Reversing the hive bodies in the spring results in having an empty hive body being placed above the brood chamber, thus providing more room for queen laying, pollen and honey storage. This procedure may be done several times in the spring.\n- Colonies can be split. This entails dividing the colony population in half to make up 2 hives. This is an effective method in swarm control.\n- Cutting queen cells is a method many beekeepers use. However, the bees usually win out. Once the queen cells are eliminated the bees will produce more queen celIs.\n|Prepared by:||Gordon Rudloff\nOhio Department of Agriculture"}
{"text": "Inflammation Key to the Asthma-Sinus Connection\nPeople with asthma frequently experience problems with their sinuses. And more than half of those who have chronic sinusitis also suffer from asthma.\nIs there a connection? Each condition is marked by inflammation, which is to blame for both the symptoms of asthma—cough, chest tightness, shortness of breath, and wheezing—and sinusitis. Researchers speculate inflammation in the lungs or sinuses affects both. As a result, people with lung symptoms likely will eventually get symptoms in the nose, and vice versa. Plus, sinusitis can trigger asthma attacks.\nWhat is sinusitis?\nSinusitis occurs when air-filled spaces behind the nose, forehead, cheeks, and eyes become inflamed and blocked with mucus. Often, infection results.\nSymptoms usually occur after a cold that fails to improve or gets worse after five to seven days. They include:\nPeople with asthma who experience sinus problems should talk with their doctor about treatment. Studies show that resolving sinusitis often improves asthma and decreases the need for asthma medication.\nHow you can protect yourself\nThose with asthma need to be vigilant about colds and the flu. Viral respiratory infections often worsen asthma. Some prevention tips:\nAvoid smoke and pollution.\nDrink plenty of fluids.\nTake decongestants for upper respiratory infections.\nGet help for allergies.\nUse a humidifier to increase moisture in nose and sinuses."}
{"text": "Sepia is a dark brown-grey color, named after the rich brown pigment derived from the ink sac of the common cuttlefish.\nThe word sepia is Greek for \"cuttlefish\".\nSepia in human culture\nIn the last quarter of the 18th century, Professor Jacob Seydelmann of Dresden developed a process to extract and produce a more concentrated form for use in watercolors and oil paints.\nIt has been suggested that the actual skin color of most black people would be most accurately represented by the color sepia.\nThere is a magazine for African-Americans called Sepia, which was started in 1947.\nSepia ink was commonly used as writing ink in classical times.\nSepia tones are used in photography; the hue resembles the effect of aging in old photographs and photographs chemically treated for archival purposes, an effect sometimes created by purpose. Many digital cameras include a sepia tone effect as well."}
{"text": "The Durban climate change negotiations are about three gaps.\nThe first is scientific and has to do with the amount of Greenhouse gases we are pumping into the atmosphere, and the levels we need to reduce to in order to prevent irreversible changes to the climate system. The second is political and affects the course of the negotiations. The third is the gap between public perception of climate change and the reality of the change that has already begun.\nAll of these gaps are interrelated.\nIn 2009 countries made pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in order to keep global average temperature from increases below 2 degrees Celsius. Last week the United Nations Environment Programme issued “The Emissions Gap Report: Are the Copenhagen Accord Pledges Sufficient to Limit Global Warming to 2oC or 1.5oC?”\nFollowing the conclusion of the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP 15) in Copenhagen, 42 industrialized countries submitted “economy-wide” emissions targets for 2020. Another 43 developing countries also submitted “nationally appropriate mitigation actions.” While the Copenhagen negotiations failed to produce an expected new climate change treaty, these pledges have become the basis for “analyzing the extent to which the global community is on track to meet long-term temperature goals” (for details, see the Emissions Gap Report).\nThey are also the source of much of the wrangling that continues in the Durban negotiations. The 2020 date is significant because that’s the date by which the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change states that emissions cuts need to start being made if the global average temperature increases are to be kept below 2oC.\nThe report states that while it is possible to reach the required level of reductions by 2020, the current reduction pledges “are not adequate to reduce emissions to a level consistent with the 2°C target, and therefore lead to a gap.”\nResearch tells us that annual emissions need to be around 44 gigatonnes (Gt) of CO2 equivalent by 2020 to have a likely chance of holding global average temperatures to 2°C or less. (A gigatonne is equal to 1 billion tonnes of carbon. According to the International Energy Agency, the world emitted a record 30.6 tonnes of CO2 in 2010 - a 5% increase over the previous record level in 2008.\nThe report states that if the “highest ambitions” of all the countries that signed the Copenhagen Accord are implemented, annual emissions of greenhouse gases would be cut by around 7 (Gt) of CO2 equivalent by 2020.\nThis represents a cut in annual emissions to around 49 Gt of CO2 equivalent, which would still leave a gap of around 5 Gt compared with where we need to be—”a gap equal to the total emissions of the world’s cars, buses and trucks in 2005.”\nHowever, if only the lowest ambition pledges are implemented, and if no clear rules are set in the negotiations, emissions could be around 53 Gt of CO2 equivalent in 2020 – “not that different from business-as-usual so the rules set in the negotiations clearly matter.” If it’s “business as usual” emissions could rise to 56 Gt by the same date.\nThis points to the second gap -- in political will. The differences between those who are feeling the brunt of rapid climate change right now -- primarily many of the Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries -- and the major emitters, is growing. The Framework Convention on Climate Change, negotiated nearly 20 years ago in Rio de Janeiro, calls on all nations to cooperate “...in accordance with their common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities and their social and economic conditions.”\nThis has been traditionally interpreted to mean that the industrialized nations of Europe and North America bear a large portion of the responsibility for dealing with the problem since they are primarily responsible for the vast majority of historical emissions. Indeed, the United States was only recently surpassed by China as the largest GHG emitter. However, the US, Canada and others have higher per capita emissions levels.\nNevertheless, Canada has led the charge of developed nations that now say that it is “unfair” for developed countries to cut total emissions while developing nations such as China, India and Brazil are not bound to reduce in the same way. Canada has become the first nation in the world to say it will not abide by the Kyoto Protocol, nor will it agree to a second commitment period.\nThis approach has widened the gap between those that support a renewed Kyoto Protocol -- most of the developing world and the European Union (subject to developing nations such as China getting onboard) -- and those that say they don’t want a second commitment period. This group is led by Canada, Russia and Japan but others have now joined, so many that there is little chance that the Kyoto Protocol, which lapses next year, will be renewed in Durban.\nSuch positioning and politicking is widening the gap between developed and developing countries. For some, like the Small Island Developing States, there is a sense of being abandoned to their fates. Delay does not bode well for the Arctic either. People from both regions need immediate and sustained emissions reductions.\nThe third gap is between what we think or believe is (or is not) happening and what the facts are telling us. The latter are based on observation and a growing body of scientific knowledge. There are literally thousands of peer reviewed scientific papers that demonstrate that the climate is changing and we are primarily responsible.\nThe public in developed countries -- and many developing nations -- still has not embraced this reality. While millions of people are mobilized and calling for action, there is still a strong predilection to ignore the signals that are all around us, or to use the current economic downturn as an excuse for inaction. Both lead to the same end -- they are further narrowing the window in which we have time to act. And they are passing the problem of adaptation on to future generations, when the price will be much higher."}
{"text": "Physical examination by a health care provider confirms the abnormal curve of the spine. The doctor will also look for any nervous system (neurological) changes (weakness, paralysis, or changes in sensation) below the curve.\nMRI (if there may be a tumor, infection, or neurological symptoms)\nTreatment depends on the cause of the disorder:\nCongenital kyphosis requires corrective surgery at an early age.\nScheuermann's disease is treated with a brace and physical therapy. Occasionally surgery is needed for large (greater than 60 degrees), painful curves.\nMultiple compression fractures from osteoporosis can be left alone if there are no nervous system problems or pain. However, the osteoporosis needs to be treated to help prevent future fractures. For debilitating deformity or pain, surgery is an option.\nKyphosis caused by infection or tumor needs to be treated more aggressively, often with surgery and medications.\nTreatment for other types of kyphosis depends on the cause. Surgery is needed if neurological symptoms or persistent pain develop.\nAdolescents with Scheuermann's disease tend to do well even if they need surgery, and the disease stops once they stop growing. If the kyphosis is due to degenerative joint disease or multiple compression fractures, surgery is needed to correct the defect and improve pain.\nDecreased lung capacity\nDisabling back pain\nNeurological symptoms including leg weakness or paralysis\nRound back deformity\nTreating and preventing osteoporosis can prevent many cases of kyphosis in the elderly. Early diagnosis and bracing of Scheuermann's disease can reduce the need for surgery, but there is no way to prevent the disease.\nSpiegel DA, Hosalkar HS, Dormans JP. The spine. In: Kliegman RM, Behrman RE, Jenson HB, Stanton BF, eds. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 18th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2007:chap 678.\nThomas N. Joseph, MD, Private Practice specializing in Orthopaedics, subspecialty Foot and Ankle, Camden Bone & Joint, Camden, SC. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M. Health Solutions, Inc."}
{"text": "Dying Suddenly - Sudden Cardiac Death\nPeople at Risk\n- Individuals who have coronary artery disease, especially those who have suffered myocardial infarctions (\"heart attacks\") in the past\n- Individuals who have congestive heart failure of any cause\n- Individuals with intrinsic heart muscle disease such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy, and arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia\n- Individuals with family history of heart muscle disease and SCD\n- Individuals with syncope of unknown cause\n- Individuals who abuse cocaine or heroin\nCoronary artery disease is the underlying heart disease in 70 to 90% of individuals who succumb to SCD. Although many episodes of SCD are called \"heart attacks,\" most of them, in fact, do not represent new myocardial infarctions. The arrhythmias that occur originate in previously damaged regions of the heart, and no new heart damage is necessary to start the arrhythmias.\nPatients with congestive heart failure are at high risk of SCD. As left ventricular ejection fraction falls, the risk of SCD increases regardless of the underlying cause of the heart disease. Ironically, CHF patients who receive certain types of antiarrhythmic drugs are particularly prone to suffer proarrhythmic side effects of the medications because of interactions between the medications and the diseased tissue. Some non-antiarrhythmic medications, the beta blockers and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, have been shown to decrease the risk of SCD in CHF patients, but the degree of risk is still much higher than that of a normal healthy person.\nSCD is frequently seen in individuals with heart diseases where the primary problem lies with the heart muscle cells themselves; these diseases are called cardiomyopathies. Different cardiomyopathies are caused by different cellular defects, but most of the cardiomyopathies are associated at one time or another with congestive heart failure and the formation of scar tissue in the ventricles. Since many cardiomyopathies are genetically transmitted, individuals in families that exhibit cardiomyopathy who have family members that have died suddenly appear to be more prone to SCD than those without a family history of SCD.\nSyncope is spontaneous loss of consciousness. Since arrhythmias may cause syncope and may also be the first and only manifestation of heart disease, thorough cardiac evaluation following an episode of syncope is very important. Although the most common causes of syncope are relatively benign, \"aborted\" SCD should be considered as a possible cause of syncope, especially in a patient who has not been evaluated. If no heart disease is found after thorough evaluation and the history suggests a simple drop in blood pressure in the absence of arrhythmias, one can be reassured that the likelihood of life-threatening disease is low.\nMany drugs have been associated with serious arrhythmias. Antiarrhythmic medications, when administered to patients with heart disease, can have proarrhythmic effects as noted above. Cocaine has been noted to cause spasm of the coronary arteries and, in large repeated doses, to have a direct toxic effect on the heart muscle. The cocaine-induced cardiomyopathy shows the same tendency toward arrhythmias as other cardiomyopathies. In addition, cocaine increases adrenaline and catecholamine levels in the bloodstream that further stresses the heart and exacerbates the tendency toward arrhythmias."}
{"text": "William Gilly has seen a Kraken. The mythical squid beast with\nship-dooming tentacles surely exists, Gilly says, because he's seen\na baby one. \"It was this big around,\" he says, making a circle as\nbig as a tire with his arms, a proud, boyish smile on his face.\nFishermen spotted the carcass of the 2.4-metre-long, 181-kilogram\nbaby giant squid in Monterey Bay three years ago, according to\n\"If you're an assistant professor proposing to study it, I don't\nthink you'd get tenure,\" he says. \"But one has to exist.\"\nlaboratory at Stanford University's Hopkins Marine Station\nin Pacific Grove brims with squid décor: stuffed animals, preserved\nspecimens, glass figurines, drawings, photographs, plastic toys,\nand piñatas. He has studied these denizens of the sea for almost\nfour decades, and he's handled countless numbers of the fabled\nKraken's smaller cousins, the very real jumbo Humboldt squid. Like\ntheir giant counterparts, Humboldt squid are enigmatic. No one has\nseen them mate or lay eggs. No one has watched them develop from\negg to adult. No one knows how many exist.\nThese tentacled titans have now ensnared marine biologists with\nanother riddle: they have left their normal gathering grounds in\nthe Sea of Cortez in Baja California, Mexico. Fishermen worry that\na critical part of their livelihood may be gone. Many families have\ndepended on Humboldt squid since the slippery creatures moved in\ndroves into the Gulf of California's Guaymas Basin in the\n\"We have a huge problem on our hands,\" says coordinator Juan\nPedro Vela Arreola of the Alianza de Ribereños y\nArmadores, an association of fishermen and producers in Mexico.\n\"Fishermen are desperate.\"\nGilly blames the most recent El Niño in the Pacific Ocean for\nforcing some Humboldt squid to migrate away. Others have physically\nshrunk -- just one bizarre adaptation among their many strange\nbody-shifting traits. Leaders of Mexican fisheries and scientists\nare banding together to figure out whether the diablos\nrojos (red devils) will come back, and how to cope in the\n\"You have to learn to live in a very unpredictable way,\" says\nUnai Markaida of El Colegio de la Frontera Sur (ECOSUR)\nin Campeche, Mexico. \"You live like a squid, and you adapt to the\nlife it leads.\"\n\"They're very mysterious,\" says marine biologist Danna Staaf,\nstressing very in a slightly higher pitch. \"And\nStaaf, a self-described \"cephalopodiatrist,\"\ncompleted her PhD with Gilly's team. She studied Humboldt squid on\ntwo summer research cruises in the Gulf of California before the\nlatest El Niño drove them away. She and her crewmates pulled up to\n15 squid out of the water every night, when they would come up to\nthe surface from depths of more than 975 metres to feed. Many of\nthe 9-kilogram cephalopods she caught were about 1.2 metres long.\nMost were a year old. Scientists can tell their age by looking at\nthe number of rings on tiny crystals located near their brain\ncalled statoliths, like botanists can age a tree by counting its\nrings. These stones help a squid detect gravity and maintain their\nbalance and sense of space.\nThe scientists stored some of the catch in their \"squid condo,\"\nan oversize cooler with continuously flowing water and six clear,\nplastic tubes. They housed squid in separate tubes to keep them\nfrom attacking one another. Over the next few days, they studied\nthe squids' behaviours and neurophysiology. For instance, altering\nthe temperature and oxygen content of the water could trigger or\nchange their escape response -- the way squid dart away when\nstartled by a predator.\nStaaf dissected other squid to study their development, the\nfocus of her dissertation. She used their eggs and sperm to make\nsquid babies. She wanted to discover the temperature range at which\ntheir eggs could hatch and develop. At the time, Humboldt squid had\nspread to waters off the coast of Monterey. Marine scientists\nthought the squid might establish new colonies there, but Staaf\nwanted to know whether it was even possible for the animals to grow\nin the much cooler waters of California's Pacific coast. In the\nlab, she found, their\neggs can grow between temperatures of 15 and 25 degrees\nCelsius, suggesting it is possible they could set up a breeding\npopulation. Whether squid babies have the same preferences in the\nwild is still unknown, Staaf says.\nOther team members studied squid chromatophores, structures in\ntheir muscles that allow them to change colour. Humboldts sometimes\nflash from red to white as they propel themselves through dark\nwaters. Scientists don't know how they control these colour shifts,\nwhether it's the brain or local nerve cells that set off the\nflickering. They also don't fully understand why they suddenly\nchange colours, but some speculate it's a form of\nWhen they're not in direct contact with other squid, their flesh\nflickers from red to white in a random, mosaic-like pattern. Gilly\ncompares this to visual white noise. But as they interact with\ntheir species, the irregular colour waves become more organised,\nlike a cephalopod Morse code, Gilly says. They can change the\nintensity of the flashing, as well as the rhythm and frequency.\nSquid might use these \"calls,\" together with arm posturing, to\nattract mates or to establish hierarchies, for example.\nGilly and his team have seen some of these behaviours through\nunderwater \"Crittercams,\" about\nthe size of 340-gram drink bottle, attached to a squid's back.\n\"Ideally, we'd also like to see what they eat,\" Gilly says, because\nthat might help his team study these animals. Scientists can't get\nHumboldts to eat in the lab, so squid last only a few days in\nIndeed, squid dislike being trapped, strongly. Sometimes they\nget so anxious, they ram themselves against the tank. \"They've\nnever seen the bottom. They've certainly never seen the wall of a\ntank,\" Gilly says. \"They're intelligent organisms. And when you put\none in an abnormal situation, they get totally freaked out. They\ndon't do their flickering in the lab,\" he notes.\nScientists do know that during the day, Humboldt squid forage\nfor silvery lanternfish and other small animals in the oxygen\nminimum zone, a dark, cold netherworld more than 900 metres deep.\nHere, oxygen is scarce, and while few animals can withstand its\nhostile environment, Humboldts seem to thrive. \"Living in low\noxygen -- that's surprising, especially for an animal that's an\nathlete,\" Markaida says. How they move and how their nervous system\nfunctions under these conditions is still a mystery.\nWidespread changes in the temperatures of Earth's oceans have\ncompelled many creatures, including the powerful Humboldt squid, to\nseek new climes. Their dominion usually stretches from Argentina to\nCalifornia, but more recently they've been spotted in Canada and\nAlaska. Scientists don't yet understand how the squid are settling\ninto their new hangouts. This month, a few Humboldts stranded\nthemselves on the beaches of Pacific Grove, Calif, while\nwhale-watching boats have spotted them near Point Pinos. These\nsightings might be a sign they are returning, Gilly says."}
{"text": "Midnight Rising: John Brown & the Raid that Sparked the Civil War\nNovember 2, 2011\nAbolitionist John Brown is best known for his foiled attempt to seize the federal armory and arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia, on October 16th 1859. Three years after he and his sons raided and viciously killed five men at a pro-slavery settlement in Kansas, Brown led 18 men, including five blacks and two of his sons, to what is now Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. Ten of the men were killed in the raid, one got away, and seven were hanged, including Brown. Our guest, Pulitzer-prize winning journalist TONY HORWITZ, considers if Brown’s intention was to be a martyr for his vehement anti-slavery war stance, as he deepened and exposed the divide between the North and the South and forced people to take sides. In his new book, Midnight Rising: John Brown and the Raid that Sparked the Civil War, he researches the beginnings of Brown’s Calvinist, anti-slavery family and ponders the question whether John Brown's legacy is as a hero or a zealous vigilante."}
{"text": "Asbestos Exposure in the Workplace\nAsbestos exposure is common among those who work in the trades or do manual labor. Discuss your work history with your doctor if you fall into one of the high risk categories listed below. This will keep your doctor on the alert for symptoms of asbestos–related diseases, which often take decades to develop after the initial asbestos exposure (see asbestosis, mesothelioma, and lung cancer for details).\nIf your asbestos exposure took place during the course of private employment, you may be eligible to file a workers' compensation claim. You may also have a case against the manufacturer of the asbestos product involved. To learn more about workers' compensation options, visit the asbestos workers' compensation section.\nAdditional Information About High Risk Jobs\nThe following list of trades have a high incidence of asbestos exposure. More specific information about asbestos exposure on the following jobs can be found at Asbestos Network.\nInsulators, or people that worked extensively around asbestos insulation, are especially at risk for the development of an asbestos related disease. Common products that insulators worked with are:\n- asbestos pipe covering,\n- asbestos block insulation,\n- asbestos containing cement,\n- asbestos lagging, or\n- Zonolite Attic Insulation.\nThose involved with the building or maintenance of ships are at risk for high doses of airborne asbestos. Commonly used around boilers and steam pipes, asbestos insulation may become air borne during simple routine maintenance.\nPower Plants, Refineries and Industrial Settings\nPower plants, refineries and industrial settings are jobsites where asbestos was used extensively.\nAsbestos products were used extensively in both home and commercial construction. Fireproofing, insulation, joint compounds, plaster and patching compounds are just a few of the commonly used products that contained asbestos. Plumbers and pipefitters are also at risk—exposed through asbestos laden cement pipes, deteriorating asbestos insulation and pipe coverings.\nPipefitters and Plumbers\nMiners of asbestos, talc and vermiculite are at significant risk for heavy asbestos exposure and asbestos disease. Large amounts of asbestos dust, poor ventilation and lack of proper breathing protection were contributing factors to the high incidence of mesothelioma in the Iron Range miners.\nThe textile industry used asbestos in heat resistant products like heat–resistant pads, asbestos gloves, and woven into cloth coverings and protective blankets.\nThere was extensive use of asbestos in brake pads and shoes, as well as asbestos clutch discs and linings. For mechanics, the danger from asbestos resides in asbestos fibers becoming airborne during brake, clutch, and gasket installation, removal, and inspection.\nThe high heat output of steam and diesel locomotives made them a perfect candidate for the heat resistant properties of asbestos heat insulation. Boilers, steam pipes, hot water lines and refrigeration units were common applications of asbestos heat wrap and insulation. Regular maintenance involved the removal and replacement of asbestos insulation; exposing workers to airborne asbestos fibers.\nAppliance shops, where older asbestos–containing consumer products are dismantled and repaired.\nHelping Those With Asbestos & Work Related Injuries\nOur asbestos attorneys have helped asbestos victims for over 30 years. If asbestos exposure has affected you and you are suffering from an asbestos–related disease, contact our team of expert asbestos attorneys to learn more about how we can help you."}
{"text": "Definition of Alveoli\nAlveoli: The plural of alveolus. The alveoli are tiny air sacs within the lungs where the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide takes place.\nLast Editorial Review: 6/14/2012\nBack to MedTerms online medical dictionary A-Z List\nNeed help identifying pills and medications?\nGet the latest health and medical information delivered direct to your inbox FREE!"}
{"text": "Will our beaches become an example of the Tragedy of the Commons?\nClick on image for full size\nNCAR Digital Library\nThe Tragedy of the Commons\nThe term \"Tragedy of the Commons\" was coined by Garrett Hardin in a 1968 article in Science magazine. The concept, however, dates back to the days of Aristotle. Briefly, it states that a shared resource is inevitably ruined by uncontrolled use.\nThe metaphor that Hardin uses to explain the concept is that of a community common or park on which the town’s people bring their cows to be fed. In the back of everyone’s mind is the fact that the common is going to be ruined because the grass is going to be eaten to depletion. Still, everyone wants to get grass for their cows. No one thinks or cares about the consequences of so many cows eating the grass, and the Tragedy of the Commons occurs.\nHuman actions that many categorize as examples of the phenomenon include human-created air pollution; the hunting of the American buffalo to near extinction in the 1800s; the widespread abuse and destruction of rainforests and our oceans’ coral reefs; and human-induced climate change due largely to the burning of fossil fuels for energy use.\nSome people believe that the Tragedy of the Commons can only be averted by making most commodities private property. But how does someone own the air or the ocean? And can either the air or ocean stay unpolluted with populations of 10 million or more in the world’s megacities? Others believe the \"Tragedy of the Commons\" can be avoided through laws and taxing devices which make it more costly to serve one’s self interest over the common good.\nWhat almost everyone can agree on for now is that such vital resources need some form of control so that the world’s natural resources can be sustained and the Tragedy of the Commons can be avoided.\nLast modified February 19, 2006 by Teri Eastburn.\nShop Windows to the Universe Science Store!Cool It!\nis the new card game from the Union of Concerned Scientists that teaches kids about the choices we have when it comes to climate change—and how policy and technology decisions made today will matter. Cool It! is available in our online store\nYou might also be interested in:\nWhat do smog, acid rain, carbon monoxide, fossil fuel exhausts, and tropospheric ozone have in common? They are all examples of air pollution. Air pollution is not new. As far back as the 13 th century,...more\nRainbows appear in the sky when there is bright sunlight and rain. Sunlight is known as visible or white light and is actually a mixture of colors. Rainbows result from the refraction and reflection of...more\nThe Earth travels around the sun one full time per year. During this year, the seasons change depending on the amount of sunlight reaching the surface and the Earth's tilt as it revolves around the sun....more\nScientists sometimes travel in specially outfitted airplanes in order to gather data about atmospheric conditions. These research aircraft have special inlet ports that bring air from the outside into...more\nAn anemometer is a weather instrument used to measure the wind (it can also be called a wind gauge). Anemometers can measure wind speed, wind direction, and other information like the largest gust of wind...more\nThermometers measure temperature. \"Thermo\" means heat and \"meter\" means to measure. You can use a thermometer to measure the temperature of many things, including the temperature of...more\nWeather balloons are used to carry weather instruments that measure temperature, pressure, humidity, and winds in the lowest few miles of the atmosphere. The balloons are made of rubber and weigh up to...more"}
{"text": "How can we create more effective education systems that provide access and highquality education for all students; capitalizing on emerging technologies for learning anywhere, anytime; and responsive to the 21st century context of an interconnected global economy and rapidly emerging global society?\nThat was an organizing question for more than a thousand people who gathered in Doha, Qatar, for the inaugural World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE) last November. Organized by the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science, and Community Development, the summit brought together key individuals from more than 120 countries on every contintent. The summit’s goal was to examine the key challenges facing education around the globe and to promote visionary thinking about new education models.\nThe summit was opened by Her Highness Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser al-Missned, chair of the foundation, who said, “Today, we place great faith in the power of education to prepare world citizens for a peaceful and cooperative future and to prepare citizens of our individual nations for the cultural transformations that result from globalization.” The WISE Summit was designed to be a multidisciplinary platform to promote international dialogue about best practices, to recognize exceptional impact through an annual WISE awards program, and to promote innovation and educational engagement on a global scale.\nThe summit builds on and extends the Qatar Foundation’s domestic efforts to modernize Qatar’s own education system, including its flagship Education City, where more than eight top-flight American universities offer degree courses to students from a host of countries.\nThis article cannot deal with every issue on the summit agenda. What follows are a few examples of the challenges and innovations under discussion.\nAccess to Education\nAt the most fundamental level, the world has still not achieved the commitment made by the world’s governments to provide basic education for all children. While there has been remarkable progress worldwide in giving millions of children, including girls, access to primary education, 75 million children never receive any schooling, primarily girls and children in conflict zones. Governments usually provide basic education, but since many of these children are in “weak states,” much of the discussion focused on the role of nongovernmental schools and organizations in reaching the hardest to reach and on the need for schools to be declared “protected zones” in times of conflict.\nQuality of Education\nAlthough the size of education systems has increased enormously in recent decades, the quality has not. Therefore, in higher education, summit participants addressed the role of accreditation systems in improving quality in higher education, making education more relevant in the dynamic global knowledge economy, and moving from measuring inputs to outputs. In elementary and secondary education, the growth of international assessments has increasingly led countries to compare themselves to emerging global standards of excellence and to examine how their education systems can emulate the effectiveness of the highest performing education systems.\nIn keeping with the summit’s emphasis on innovation, central themes included using technology to increase access, improve performance, and promote a new conceptualization of education. For example, in Brazil, a distance learning initiative transmits live classes via videoconference to 25,000 students in 700 secondary school classrooms throughout the remote reaches of the Amazon forest. In sub-Saharan Africa, a consortium of 15 universities in nine countries delivers open educational resources to almost one quarter million teachers, many of whom are not formally trained.\nAnd in India, the provocative “hole in the wall” experiments, in which computers are installed in walls in slum areas and left for children to use unsupervised, show just how much children can learn on their own, without teachers, in “self-organized learning environments.” There was also lively debate about the potential educational uses of Twitter, videogames, and, especially, mobile phones, which now have four billion customers around the world (compared with 1.5 billion e-mail accounts).\nGiven this huge penetration of mobile phones, could strong educational applications be developed so that poorer countries can leapfrog the lack of Internet access?\nFinally, there was widespread recognition that the content of education itself needs to change--that a global world requires a global education. Echoing Confucius’ sentiment that “It is better to take a journey of 10,000 li than to read 10,000 books,” there was agreement that more students need to study outside their own countries. Currently, only about 2% of higher education students do so. Migration and increasing diversity within countries also require that schools, from kindergarten on, teach tolerance and respect for other cultures and faiths.\nAnd the rapid pace of globalization is causing countries everywhere to recognize that their young people need to be more globally minded and to ask: What should all education systems teach their young people about other cultures, languages, and global challenges? How can education bring the world to students and students to the world? Overall, the summit made a convincing case that significant rethinking of education is needed. All nations share an interest in creating more effective education systems that provide access and high-quality education for all students, that capitalize on emerging technologies for learning anywhere and anytime, and that are responsive to the 21st-century context of an interconnected global economy and rapidly emerging global society. The WISE Initiative and annual summit were attempts to provoke some answers to the questions that concern all nations.\nAuthor: Vivien Stewart\nOriginally published on pdkintl.org."}
{"text": "As previous research has demonstrated, HIV attacks the host's immune system, including an important category of T cells critical for fighting infection called CD4+ T cells. The virus specifically destroys those CD4+ T cells that reside in the tissues of the body like the intestine and lung that interface with the outside environment. As HIV replicates in the human body, the tissue levels of CD4+ T cells are killed and, when the number of these cells drop below a certain level, a patient develops AIDS. At this point, the patient's immune system is weakened enough to allow infections caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites that are normally held at bay by a healthy human body. The infected body's inability to fight off these \"intruders,\" leads to death.\n\"To learn more about HIV, its impacts and possible treatments, we study simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), a close relative of HIV that infects and causes AIDS in nonhuman primates,\" explained the study's lead author Louis Picker, M.D. Picker serves as director of the VGTI's vaccine program and associate director of the VGTI. He is also a professor of pathology, and molecular microbiology and immunology in the OHSU School of Medicine; and director of the Division of Pathobiology and Immunology at the OHSU Oregon National Primate Research Center.\n\"What we were able to discover using SIV-infected monkeys was that a certain naturally occurring protein called interleukin-15 (IL-15) caused a dramatic restoration of tissue CD4+ T cel\nContact: Jim Newman\nOregon Health & Science University"}
{"text": "Certain lifestyle factors greatly increase your risk of contracting HIV infection and developing AIDS. By avoiding behaviors that are associated with increasing your risk, you can greatly reduce your risk.\nRisk factors include:\nHaving Unprotected Sex\nMost people become infected with HIV through sexual activity. You can contract AIDS by not using a condom when having sexual relations with a person infected with HIV. Not using condoms properly can also put you at increased risk for acquiring HIV infection. During sex, the vagina, vulva, penis, rectum, and mouth can provide entry points for the virus.\nOther risky behaviors include having:\n- Sex with someone without knowing his or her HIV status\n- More than one sex partner\n- Sex with someone who has more than one sexual partner\n- Anal intercourse\nMen who have sex with other men may be at a higher risk of being infected with HIV. Having unprotected sex and using drugs (eg, methamphetamines) during sex can increase this risk. Women who engage in risky behaviors and have both male and female partners may also be at a greater risk.\nIf you inject illegal drugs, this increases your risk of becoming infected with HIV. Using a needle or syringe that contains even a small amount of infected blood can transmit HIV infection.\nHaving Certain Medical Conditions\nSexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and vaginal infections caused by bacteria tend to increase the risk of HIV transmission during sex with an HIV-infected partner. Examples of STDs include:\nFor men, not being circumcised can also increase the risk of getting HIV infection.\nHaving Certain Medical Procedures\nHaving a blood transfusion or receiving blood products before 1985 increases your risk of HIV infection and AIDS. Before blood banks began testing donated blood for HIV in 1985, there was no way of knowing if the blood was contaminated with HIV, and recipients could become infected through transfusions.\nReceiving blood products, tissue or organ transplantation, or artificial insemination increases your risk of HIV infection and AIDS. Even though blood products are now screened for HIV, there is still some degree of risk because tests cannot detect HIV immediately after transmission.\nBeing a Healthcare Worker\nExposure to contaminated blood and needles puts healthcare workers at risk for HIV.\n- Reviewer: Rosalyn Carson-DeWitt, MD\n- Review Date: 12/2011 -\n- Update Date: 12/30/2011 -"}
{"text": "Chapter 31 of the Book of Proverbs in the Hebrew Bible is presented as advice, which Lemuel's mother gave to him about how a virtuous king should reign and also describing how an ideal wife or virtuous woman should behave. The second section of text of this chapter directs women to be industrious and of good report; however, the first section is directed exclusively to men. It seems to me that we normally associate Proverbs 31 with finding a wife of noble character; hence, the popular phrase \"Proverbs 31 Woman,\" while ignoring the advice for men. However, only vv.10-31 talks about the woman of noble character. What about the beginning of the chapter? What about the “Proverbs 31 Man?” On an openminded review of the chapter, it occurred to me that verses 1-9, 23 & 28 talks about male behavior and wise steps towards being a good leader, character and husband.\nMen are called to be nobles. We are to be \"kings,\" or leaders, especially in the house and in the church. More so, just as the nobility are set apart from the common people and are to be distinguished with virtues and high standards, we are to be set apart-set apart from the world, or holy to God-and we are to be marked with honor, dignity, integrity, loyalty, righteousness and holiness. A commentary in my Bible says that \"Lemuel\" means \"belonging to God.\" In other words, the noble man belongs to God, is set apart for God's use only. Proverbs 31:2- 3 -- a noble man guards his heart and sets his priorities straight.\nProverbs 31:4-7 -- a noble man does not get drunk on wine but is instead filled with the Spirit; a noble man does not love the world or anything in the world. Proverbs 31:8-9 -- a noble man stands up for what is right and shows concern for others. Such are the sayings of King Lemuel, a noble man belonging to God. Many biblical scholars believe that Lemuel is another name for King Solomon, whose mother was Bathsheba.\nInteresting enough while King Solomon is often given credit for being the wisest man in the Bible, he did not follow the advice of his mother especially in Proverbs 31: 3 Do not spend your strength on women, your vigor on those who ruin kings. There are countless numbers of prominent men whom felt the consequences of playing loosely with the advice of Proverbs 31:3. Interestingly enough, Solomon had numerous wives and concubines and suffered the repercussions thus do many men of current times.\nAs Christian men fall short of the “Proverbs 31 Man” on so many different levels, it seems hypocritical for men to continue without change in their own lives expect every Christian women to be a “Proverbs 31 Woman.”\nNevertheless, there are Proverbs 31 men and women men but they are not found among the violent, drunkards, or whoremongers we find in our churches and sitting in high places everywhere. We must stop preaching so loudly about the Proverbs 31 woman until we at least take a closer look and begin to teach about the Proverbs 31 man.\n|< Prev||Next >|"}
{"text": "On Cancer’s Trail\nby Florence Williams\nStefanie Raymond-Whish was 9 years old when her grandmother was diagnosed with breast cancer. A traditional Navajo who raised 15 children after her husband died in a car wreck, Raymond-Whish's ama' sa' ni seldom spoke about her illness. Even after her surgery, when she lived with the grandchildren and their mother, she always acted strong around the kids. It became a pattern: When Raymond-Whish was 13, her 38-year-old mother, Nellie Sandoval, was also diagnosed with breast cancer. And Sandoval was equally reserved on the subject. \"My mother was really good about not appearing sick in front of us,\" says Raymond-Whish, now 32. \"As a little girl, I knew about cancer, but didn't understand the impact of it at the time.\"\nShe understood it better by the time she was in college, in Flagstaff, Ariz., when a new tumor appeared in her mother's other breast. \"When my mom had her recurrence, that's when it really hit me ... it was really upsetting. I went home to Farmington for her lumpectomy.\" Sandoval survived the disease, but not without a long struggle that included chemotherapy, radiation, and finally a double mastectomy. \"My breasts were pretty mangled,\" says Sandoval, now 58. \"So I said, 'Just get rid of them.' \" Both Sandoval and her daughter have made breast cancer and its impact on Navajos the focus of their lives. Sandoval became an activist and filmmaker, working out of her papaya-colored home in Farmington, N.M. Raymond-Whish has taken her mission a step further: She works as a molecular biologist at the University of Northern Arizona, searching for breast cancer's root causes. \"Is there any difference in how breast cancer develops in Native Americans and non-Native Americans?\" she asks. One possible - and provocative - answer is emerging from her lab at the university: uranium.\nScientists have long known that uranium damages human cells. But in over six decades of atomic health testing, no one had ever noticed that uranium, at low doses, can act like an estrogen. No one, that is, until recently, when Raymond-Whish and her coworkers observed some unusual effects in lab animals.\nUranium can be found in several of the Jurassic sandstones that lie beneath the Four Corners region like a wrecked layered pastry. The target of frenzied mining throughout the Cold War, uranium ore has been wrenched from the ground, pulverized, milled and tossed in tailings across the Navajo Reservation. Low-level radioactive waste has dissolved into groundwater, escaped onto dust particles and blown off thousands of passing trucks to settle uneasily on surface soils. Over 1,000 abandoned uranium mines pockmark Navajo lands, but only half of them have been reclaimed. Exposure to uranium and its daughter elements has been linked to lung cancer, kidney damage and bone disease in Navajos, and it is the suspected culprit in numerous other medical conditions, from degenerative nerve disease and birth defects to a variety of other cancers.\nRaymond-Whish's research lab is tucked inside a neo-Grecian edifice on the Northern Arizona University campus. With her gloved hands in a ventilated booth, the white-coated scientist carefully measures out uranium in solution into small test tubes. The solution will be injected into dishes of cultivated human breast cells, donated by a nun who died of breast cancer in 1979. The MCF-7 cells, as they are known, have been kept alive by the Michigan Cancer Fund through 178 generations of cell division. They are famous among researchers for the properties they exhibit in lab experiments. For example, estrogen causes them to proliferate rapidly - exactly as it does in real-life breast tissue, which is why many women diagnosed with breast cancer have their estrogen-producing ovaries removed. Raymond-Whish wants to see if the cells react in the same way to uranium.\n\"What I'm really interested in is the development of the mammary gland,\" says Raymond-Whish, who at this point is just weeks away from finishing her doctoral dissertation. A former teen rodeo star in barrel racing, she once wanted to be a veterinarian. But NAU didn't have a vet school, so she majored in zoology. That eventually landed her in the Discovery Research lab, where she studied the effects of pollution on tadpoles. She found she loved research. \"It's like being a detective,\" she says.\nThe lab's discoveries have already demolished the conventional wisdom on the properties of uranium. Not only does the heavy metal appear to alter mammary cells at very low doses, but it also seems to interfere with normal hormonal signals. Sometimes the uranium follows the same pathways as estrogen, but sometimes it doesn't, which means it's triggering other endocrine responses as well. \"We don't yet know the mechanism of how uranium is affecting these cells,\" Raymond-Whish says, \"but we do know an estrogen receptor is involved. We see it in both animals and MCF-7 cells.\"\nAlthough the work in Raymond-Whish's lab is considered pure research science, it is impossible to sift it from the real-world context of her family, her culture and her beliefs. Breast, uterine and ovarian cancers have risen steeply in Indian country since the advent of uranium mining. Having watched her grandmother and mother suffer, and now with two kids of her own, 14 and 4 years old, Raymond-Whish can't help but wonder if she's next in line.\nBut while Raymond-Whish's intimate acquaintance with cancer may harm her credibility as a dispassionate scientist, it may also propel her to help make startling discoveries where no one else has thought to look.\nThe lab's investigation started several years ago, when Northern Arizona University became part of a team that received a five-year grant from the National Cancer Institute. The project is designed to address community health care, so the local Navajo elders had a few suggestions. They told the scientists they wanted to know more about the health effects of uranium pollution.\n\"So I started adding uranium to the drinking water of my lab animals,\" recalls physiologist Cheryl Dyer, who was Raymond-Whish's faculty advisor at the time. \"And because I'm an ovarian physiologist, I wanted to see what happened in the ovary.\" Uranium has long been known to be radioactive and toxic, but no one had ever looked at its effects on follicle counts, or the number of \"pre\" eggs - eggs in the ovary that have not yet been released for fertilization. Dyer and Raymond-Whish found that the number of pre-eggs declined with low exposure to uranium, and that the mice developed heavier-than-normal uteruses. Normally, a toxic chemical will cause an organ such as a kidney to shrink, not expand. \"I said, 'Whoa, what is going on here?' \" says Dyer. \"I started to wonder if there were other heavy metals that cause these changes, and it turns out cadmium does the same thing. That's when a light bulb went off in my head. Cadmium is an estrogen mimic.\" All those decades of lab work with atomic elements, and \"they had completely missed the boat on estrogen mimicry.\"\nRaymond-Whish was the lead author of a paper showing the unexpected effects of uranium on mouse follicle counts, uterine weights and accelerated puberty. \"Drinking Water with Uranium below U.S. EPA Water Standard Causes Estrogen Receptor Dependent Responses in Female Mice\" was published in December in Environmental Health Perspectives, a peer-reviewed journal put out by the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences. Raymond-Whish concluded that uranium acts as an estrogen, and she recommended that Navajo girls and women be followed closely for reproductive cancers. In conversation, Dyer makes her opinion clear: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency should lower its drinking water standard for uranium from 30 micrograms per liter to 20 micrograms, the Canadian standard. But Dyer and Raymond-Whish are tip-toeing out on a treacherous scientific limb by suggesting policy changes that are based on controversial data.\nRaymond-Whish's work and its results have landed her in the middle of a scientific and regulatory quagmire. It's one thing to regulate a chemical known to be toxic at high doses; it's entirely another to suggest regulating minute levels of a substance that is readily found across a large swath of the American West. Many communities, not just those on the reservation, are affected by uranium. Recent tests in Colorado, for example, revealed that 37 cities and towns in the state depend on drinking water that exceeds federal levels for uranium and its daughter nuclides.\nUranium is not just an emotional issue for Raymond-Whish, but for the tribe as a whole. The legacy of mining the element on the 27,000-square-mile reservation is so deeply and collectively felt that the Navajo Nation banned it altogether in 2005 in the face of globally rising ore prices. During the '40s and the Cold War period, the U.S. government used yellow cake - or milled and concentrated uranium ore - to build nuclear weapons. The government stopped buying the ore for weapons in 1971, but the commercial nuclear energy market picked up the slack until the early 1980s. Only about a quarter of all U.S. uranium miners were Native American - Laguna, Hopi, Zuni and Ute as well as Navajo. But Native Americans have been disproportionately affected: Their tribal lands are still contaminated, and former miners suffer illnesses and deaths for which many families are still awaiting compensation.\nDespite the tribal ban, at least five companies are seeking state permits in New Mexico to mine lands just off the reservation, including on tribal allotment land. In Arizona, 700 individual mining claims were filed in 2005. The prehistoric sea and river beds that run underground from Naturita, Colo., to Grants, N.M., and across to Moab, Utah, still hold an estimated 600 million pounds of low-grade ore. But for every 4 pounds of uranium extracted, 996 pounds of slightly radioactive waste is left over, in piles, in pits and eventually in the soil, arroyos and underground aquifers.\nSome Western tailings piles, like those outside of Monticello, Utah, or Grand Junction, Colo., have been cleaned up. But those on tribal lands have fallen through yawning bureaucratic and regulatory gaps. It's estimated that up to 25 percent of unregulated water sources on the Navajo Reservation exceed federal drinking water standards for uranium. And many families still haul water from these wells, despite warnings by health providers and advocacy groups.\nIn her lab experiments, Raymond-Whish applies concentrations of uranium that match those of water supplies in parts of the Four Corners, at or slightly above the current EPA standard. She will treat the mammary cells - which come bathed in a red wash of nutrients that resembles weak Kool-Aid - twice in nine days with differing doses. She will then collect the breast cells, extract their protein signatures, and use a tedious process to examine differences in the number of their estrogen receptors. She will also feed rats different mixtures of uranium-tainted water and examine their mammary glands for altered development. She will compare those results to rats fed a well-known synthetic estrogen, diethylstilbestrol, or DES, and to rats that have drunk plain tap water. She'll look for changes to the mammary glands' terminal end buds, lobules and milk ducts, changes that may make them more prone to breast cancer. The work is controversial, and its implications, both for the science of breast cancer and for the treatment of past and future mining pollution, could be profound.\nLike Marie Curie over a century before, Raymond-Whish is both repelled and fascinated by the heavy element's mysterious abilities to alter living cells. In some respects, Raymond-Whish and Curie are not dissimilar. Curie, a Polish Jew working in anti-Semitic France, was the first woman to teach at the Sorbonne. As the first Navajo to be awarded a Ph.D. in the Biology Department of NAU, Raymond-Whish displays a confident ease in navigating a different dominant culture. Like Curie, she is driven by an unrelenting curiosity.\nIf it was a difficult journey from being Rookie of the Year in barrel racing to creating stunning presentations on heavy metals, Raymond-Whish doesn't show it. She moves through the fluorescent-lit lab in a quiet, deliberate fashion, her long, shiny hair neatly in place.\n\"I like it that you're working on something no one knows the answers to and you're finding the answers,\" says Raymond-Whish. She grew up in Colorado and New Mexico with her siblings, stepfather and mother, who was a high school guidance counselor before becoming a breast-cancer activist. Forty-four percent of Navajos do not graduate from high school, but Raymond-Whish's mother made sure that she did. \"Everybody's saying it's a big deal for me to get a Ph.D. For me, nothing less was expected than, 'You're going to college.' \"\nThe lab work is routine - even tedious - but it's also demanding and consuming. She is tired. With her oral defense looming before a committee of distinguished faculty, she doesn't slow down. In the mornings, she drops her two kids at school. Her husband, Bryan, a Wichita Indian, works nearby in the university's admissions office. She shuttles from the tissue culture room down a long linoleum-floored corridor to the animal histology lab with its wide-screened computer that magnifies mouse ovary sections 40 times over. Scrolling across the screen to count the follicles is her least favorite job. \"I get motion sick,\" she says. The ovaries dominate the screen like giant pink potato chips, lightly salted.\nThe science of endocrine disruptors, which studies chemicals that mimic hormones, is a little over 10 years old and still rife with skeptics. It has only been in recent years that very low doses of chemicals - in the parts-per-billion range - have been measurable. (A part per billion is the equivalent of one kernel of corn in a corn-filled silo 45 feet tall.) But natural hormones do their work at these very low levels in the human body. One theory holds that certain environmental chemicals, both natural and man-made, can bind to and deceive the hormone receptors.\nThese receptors are the signal towers that trigger - or prevent - cellular responses that govern everything from metabolism to sex. Artificial chemicals scramble the signals. They appear to be interfering with normal cellular communication and altering how and when the cells, glands and organs develop. Endocrine disruptors have been implicated in obesity, infertility and the timing of puberty as well as in cancer. When many older women stopped taking synthetic estrogen a few years ago, breast cancer rates in this country dropped for the first time in 40 years. DES, the control substance used by Raymond-Whish, was given to pregnant women to prevent miscarriages up until 1971. Their daughters, who were exposed to it in the womb, have been stricken with unusual reproductive cancers, and recent studies have shown an increased risk of breast cancer as well.\nTypical carcinogens cause a cell's DNA to mutate, eventually leading to cancer. Radiation causes the fragile chains of DNA to break, also leading to errors and mutations. Scientists know a lot about these two types of cancer-causing agents. But endocrine disruption is far more mysterious.\nWhich is why scientists like Raymond-Whish find themselves at a unique moment in science, just as the traditional models of understanding disease are shifting. The field of breast cancer research in particular is driving the debate. Chemicals such as atrazine and DDT (an herbicide and a pesticide, respectively), plastics - such as the bisphenol A compound found in Nalgene that was banned from baby bottles this spring in Canada - and now uranium, are challenging and confounding scientists seeking to understand the actions of chemicals in the human body.\nIn the dynamic field of environmental health, toxicologists - who study traditional dose-response curves of carcinogens - and endocrinologists - who study extremely low levels of chemicals that do not always follow expected linear curves - frequently disagree. Because it is not yet known exactly how chemicals like uranium act upon cells, some scientists flatly dispute Raymond-Whish's findings. \"Uranium is not plausibly linked as an endocrine disruptor,\" says toxicologist Margaret Ruttenber, director of the environmental health studies program of the Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment. \"There is an absence of a known mechanism.\"\nLouise Canfield, director of the Native American Cancer Research Partnership at the University of Arizona, says: \"My personal opinion is that obesity and other lifestyle factors are key risks (for breast cancer), along with access to care. Uranium in drinking water is a health hazard for sure, but I'm not sure it's a primary cause of cancer.\"\nBut others consider the work groundbreaking. \"This is a science of subtlety,\" explains Andrea Gore, a neuroendocrinologist at the University of Texas, Austin, and former advisor to the National Science Foundation. \"(Dyer's and Raymond-Whish's) work is consistent with other good labs. People criticize the field of endocrine disruption because we don't always understand the mechanisms, but the effects are still real. This is why animal studies are so important. The responses we see in lab animals can happen in humans, because we share the exact same hormones. The estrogen receptor is similar.\"\nStill, more evidence is needed before scientists concede a link between uranium and breast cancer in humans. \"You can make a very strong case with animal studies, but it will never be definitive,\" says cancer expert Joaquin Espinosa, professor of molecular, cellular and developmental biology at the University of Colorado, Boulder. \"You hope that nature would have done the experiment for you out there at some point. You need to show that real people are affected.\"\nBut epidemiological data on the reservation is hard to come by. For one thing, it's difficult to sort out reliable cancer statistics and their changes over time. Some Navajo elders consult only medicine men, so some cancers go unreported. Cancer itself is translated in Navajo as Lood doo nadziihii, \"the sore that does not heal.\" Some patients do not seek treatment, nor do they even speak of the disease for fear of wishing it upon their families, according to Fran Robinson, a nurse oncologist at San Juan Regional Medical Center in Farmington. Until recently, the Indian Health Services kept haphazard records in which diagnoses went unconfirmed and doctors came and went. For a variety of reasons, including instances of abuse of trust by researchers, the Navajo Nation guards its own data as closely as any member of the former Soviet bloc.\nThe New Mexico State Tumor Registry keeps statistics on cancers by county, including those on the New Mexico portion of the reservation, which is also where many uranium mines were located. In her published paper, Raymond-Whish cites registry data from the late 1970s showing a 17-fold increase in childhood reproductive cancers there compared to the U.S. as a whole. These are extremely rare cancers that are related to hormone systems. Another study looking at registry data from 1970-1982 showed a 2.5-fold increase in these cancers among all Native Americans in New Mexico. (Although these statistics are not broken down by tribe, most of the Native Americans in the state are Navajo.) A 1981 paper showed a possible link between incidents of birth defects in families and the proximity of those families to uranium mine tailings. The sample sizes of the first two studies were too small to draw solid conclusions, and the birth defects study was flawed, cautions Charles Wiggins, director of the Tumor Registry. He plans to re-examine childhood cancer statistics this fall, using new data gathered since 1982.\nOverall, Native Americans in New Mexico actually suffer less cancer than the rest of the country, including about half the rate of breast cancer. But even as breast cancer rates in the U.S. have leveled or dropped slightly in recent years, they continue to grow among Native Americans, and the rate has increased more steeply over the past three decades. Breast cancer is the number-two killer (after heart disease) of Navajo women and the most common cancer found in Navajos. (In the U.S. as a whole, lung cancer is the most common cancer.) Navajos with cancer also suffer higher mortality rates due to poor access to medical care. One study found that between one-third and one-fifth of Navajo breast cancer patients receive substandard care. Relatively more young Navajo women get breast cancer, although much of this can be explained by demographics: Navajos have a younger population than other groups. To the doctors working on the reservation, the anecdotal evidence is disturbing. \"When we see women in their 30s with breast cancer, it really knocks everyone for a loop,\" says physician Tom Drouhard, who has been practicing in Tuba City, Ariz., for 30 years. \"Our ladies come in with later stages and higher death rates. It's hard to say what the trends are. All of these tumors are multi-factorial, and uranium could be another thing thrown at it. We are very paranoid about the situation with uranium. We had uncovered tailings five miles from Tuba City for 20 years. It's a reasonable concern.\"\nTwo other hormonally active cancers, uterine and ovarian cancers, have doubled or tripled in New Mexico Indians since 1970 while remaining essentially the same for Anglos and Hispanics. But although lung cancer in the Navajo population has been authoritatively linked to uranium exposure, it's harder to make the case for other cancers.\n\"It's a tough nut to crack,\" says Wiggins. \"The rise in breast cancer everywhere almost certainly has to do with hormones more than anything else. Is something going on with hormones and hormone receptors? Our data is not going to make or break any one hypothesis, because there are a zillion factors going up or down. But you have to take seriously any proposition anyone comes out with, because we just don't have answers yet.\"\nIt's difficult to trace a disease to an environmental exposure that may have occurred years earlier. And so far, cancer cases have not been mapped in concert with drinking water sources. \"Is there more breast and reproductive cancer here?\" asks Dyer. \"Yes, but you can't localize it geographically. It would be nice to establish a connection between where people are getting sick and where they drink their water. It's hard to get the data. It's frustrating.\"\nOne major effort is currently under way to do just that, but the sickness in question is kidney disease, not cancer. This five-year, $2.5 million study, a collaboration between the University of New Mexico Community Environmental Health Program, the Eastern Navajo Health Board and the Dine Network for Environmental Health, is being funded by U.S. Health and Human Services. The team is compiling illness data from 1,300 Navajos, backed up by urine and blood samples, and then overlaying the results on a map of 160 drinking wells that have been studied for uranium, arsenic and other contaminants. Preliminary data from 550 residents and 100 wells have already shown that living within .8 kilometer of an abandoned mine is a significant predictor of kidney disease and diabetes. Although the science linking uranium with kidney disease is solid, it's never before been demonstrated on a real-life map showing proximity to mines, says Chris Shuey, an environmental scientist at the Southwest Research and Information Center. Once the kidney data are in, the researchers might look at cancer next, he says.\nOf course, Navajos are not the only population exposed to uranium. What about breast cancer rates in other areas with better data?\nSusan Pinney is an epidemiologist at the University of Cincinnati. She and her colleagues looked at the population surrounding a nuclear processing facility in Fernald, Ohio, which operated between 1952 and 1989. The facility, which made fuel rods for nuclear power plants, was the site of numerous accidental releases of uranium into the surrounding air and water. As a result of a $73 million class action lawsuit in 1990 against National Lead of Ohio and the U.S. Department of Energy, the Fernald Medical Monitoring Project has accumulated 17 years worth of data on illnesses and exposures. Pinney examined the medical records of 8,770 people, including nearly 5,000 women, for a variety of cancers, and was able to model the exposure level of each individual. Her work is still being prepared for publication, and she declined to discuss it. However, a presentation of her preliminary, statistically significant findings last November to the annual conference of the Breast Cancer and the Environment Research Centers is now available on-line. Its provocative conclusion: \"For women living within five miles of a uranium processing plant, degree of exposure to uranium particulates was related to risk of incident breast cancer.\"\nA few months ago, Raymond-Whish held a traditional Kinaalda ceremony for her daughter, Darby, to mark her passage into puberty. One of the most important Navajo rituals, it celebrates fertility, the natural order and harmony with the earth through song and prayer. Raymond-Whish's mother was there along with dozens of other relatives, and Dyer from the biology department at NAU also attended. For Raymond-Whish, it was a happy, soulful event, but shadowed by the uncomfortable realities of her career in cancer research. From now until late middle age, Darby will produce the large pulses of estrogen that have been linked to breast and other cancers in so many women. And natural harmony, as her mother knows, is not what it used to be, especially now that pollutants are acting like even more estrogen in our bodies. Raymond-Whish can only hope that Darby's cells have the normal number of receptors, and that her genes and her environment haven't somehow conspired to reprogram her development.\n\"What does artificial estrogen do to the breast?\" she asks. \"It depends on the time of exposure. If you look at cells of a younger individual who's not yet through puberty, and you expose them to uranium, then that could promote earlier onset of puberty, earlier breast budding. And if they're exposed in the womb, you could be changing the way the receptors are expressed through life.\"\nIn breast cancer research in general, there is a fundamental shift from large epidemiological studies that look at women's current lifestyles and exposures to an examination of what the women were exposed to as children. \"Most epidemiology starts with the moment a tumor is diagnosed,\" said Irma Russo, a molecular biologist at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia. \"We need to look at when normal cells may have transformed many years earlier.\"\nSuzanne Fenton, a research biologist at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, agrees. \"We think one of the main drivers of breast cancer is what changes occurred in very early life to alter breast development. It's a fairly radical re-thinking.\"\nAmong other experiments, Raymond-Whish is exposing pregnant rats to uranium in order to track what happens in their offspring. When she tried this earlier with mice, the female pups exposed in the womb entered puberty approximately two days earlier, just as they did when exposed to DES. It's a subtle difference, but when combined with other real-life exposures, it may add up.\nExplains Fenton: \"It's important to remember that breast cancer risk is likely determined by a number of compounds interweaving with genetic factors and not just any one exposure.\"\nCertainly, lifestyles on the reservation have changed in many ways over the past 50 years. \"Once upon a time there was no diabetes here, no diverticulitis, no colon cancer,\" says physician Drouhard. \"We are now exposed to the same things you are: plastics, fast food, obesity. Now everybody I know eats at Kentucky Fried Chicken.\" One way to learn more is by working with all those nose-twitching rodents in the lab. In the coming months, Raymond-Whish will repeat her experiments, prepare to publish again, and spend more time staring at the nauseating giant ovaries on the computer screen. The rats are euthanized before they actually get sick. Still, she says, they do have to offer up their organs to science. It's not easy for her to kill the animals. \"Culturally, it's an issue,\" she says. \"But I'm searching for something that's going to help somebody or even lots of people. I always say, 'Thank you for your life.' \"\nFlorence Williams is a 2007-2008 Scripps Fellow at the\nUniversity of Colorado, where she is researching endocrine\ndisruption and cancer. A former HCN staffer, she currently serves\non the HCN board.\nThis story was funded by a grant from the McCune Charitable Foundation.\nKathleen Tsosie, who has devoted her life to helping others, now faces the frightening possibility that her breast cancer has returned.\nGlenda Rangel and her family grew up drinking from and swimming in water tanks dangerously polluted with uranium.\nNellie Sandoval, the mother of scientist Stefanie Raymond-Whish, has become an outspoken activist as a result of her own struggle with breast cancer.© High Country News"}
{"text": "Columbia Disaster: What Happened, What NASA Learned\nOn Feb. 1, 2003, space shuttle Columbia broke up as it returned to Earth, killing the seven astronauts on board. NASA suspended space shuttle flights for more than two years as it investigated the disaster.\nAn investigation board determined that a large piece of foam fell from the shuttle's external tank and fatally breached the spacecraft wing. This problem with foam had been known for years, and NASA came under intense scrutiny in Congress and in the media for allowing the situation to continue.\nA fatal strike\nColumbia, on mission STS-107, left Earth for the last time on Jan. 16, 2003. At the time, the shuttle program was focused on building the International Space Station. However, STS-107 stood apart as it emphasized pure research.\nThe seven-member crew — Rick Husband, commander; Michael Anderson, payload commander; David Brown, mission specialist; Kalpana Chawla, mission specialist; Laurel Clark, mission specialist; William McCool, pilot; Ilan Ramon, payload specialist from the Israeli Space Agency — spent 24 hours a day doing science experiments in two shifts. They performed around 80 experiments in life sciences, material sciences, fluid physics and other matters.\nDuring the crew's 16 days in space, NASA was investigating a foam strike during launch. About 82 seconds after Columbia left the ground, a piece of foam fell from a \"bipod ramp\" that was part of a structure that attached the external tank to the shuttle. Video from the launch appeared to show the foam striking Columbia's left wing.\nSeveral people within NASA pushed to get pictures of the breached wing in orbit. The Department of Defense was reportedly prepared to use its orbital spy cameras to get a closer look. However, NASA officials in charge declined the offer, according to the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB) and \"Comm Check,\" a book about the disaster.\nOn Feb. 1, 2003, the shuttle made its usual landing approach to the Kennedy Space Center. Just before 9 a.m. EST, however, abnormal readings showed up at Mission Control. They lost temperature readings from sensors located on the left wing. Then, tire pressure readings from the left side also vanished.\nThe Capcom, or spacecraft communicator, called up to Columbia to discuss the tire pressure readings. At 8:59:32 a.m., Husband called back from Columbia: \"Roger,\" followed by a word that was cut off in mid-sentence.\nAt that point, Columbia was near Dallas, travelling 18 times the speed of sound and still 200,700 feet (61,170 meters) above the ground. Mission Control made several attempts to get in touch with the astronauts, with no success.\nIt was later found that a hole on the left wing allowed atmospheric gases to bleed into the shuttle as it went through its fiery re-entry, leading to the loss of the sensors and eventually, Columbia itself.\nSearching for debris\nTwelve minutes later, when Columbia should have been making its final approach to the runway, a mission controller received a phone call. The caller said a television network was showing video of the shuttle breaking up in the sky.\nShortly afterward, NASA declared a space shuttle \"contingency\" and sent search and rescue teams to the suspected debris sites in Texas and later, Louisiana. Later that day, NASA declared the astronauts lost.\n“This is indeed a tragic day for the NASA family, for the families of the astronauts who flew on STS-107, and likewise is tragic for the nation,” stated NASA's administrator at the time, Sean O’Keefe.\nThe search for debris took weeks, as it was shed over a field of some 2,000 square miles (5,180 square kilometers) in east Texas alone. NASA eventually recovered 84,000 pieces, representing nearly 40 percent of Columbia. Among them were the crew remains, which were identified with DNA.\nMuch later, in 2008, NASA released a crew survival report detailing the Columbia crew's last few minutes. The astronauts probably survived the initial breakup of Columbia, but lost consciousness in seconds after the cabin lost pressure and then died as it disintegrated.\nReport calls for more funding, emphasis on safety\nIn the weeks after the disaster, a dozen officials began sifting through the Columbia disaster, led by Harold W. Gehman Jr., former commander-in-chief of the U.S. Joint Forces Command. The Columbia Accident Investigation Board, or CAIB, as it was later known, later released a multi-volume report on how the shuttle was destroyed, and what led to it.\nBesides the physical cause – the foam – CAIB had a damning assessment about the culture at NASA that led to the foam problem and other safety issues being minimized over the years.\n\"Cultural traits and organizational practices detrimental to safety were allowed to develop,\" the board wrote, citing \"reliance on past success as a substitute for sound engineering practices\" and \"organizational barriers that prevented effective communication of critical safety information\" among the problems found.\nCAIB recommended NASA ruthlessly seek and eliminate safety problems, such as the foam, to help astronaut safety in future missions. It also called for more predictable funding and political support for the agency, and added that the shuttle must be replaced with a new transportation system.\n\"The shuttle is now an aging system but still developmental in character. It is in the nation's interest to replace the shuttle as soon as possible,\" the report stated.\nReturning to flight\nThe shuttle's external tank was redesigned, and other safety measures implemented. In July 2005, STS-114 lifted off and tested a suite of new procedures, including one where astronauts used cameras and a robotic arm to scan the shuttle's belly for broken tiles. NASA also put more camera views on the shuttle during liftoff to better monitor foam shedding.\nDue to more foam loss than expected, the next shuttle flight did not take place until July 2006. After STS-121's safe conclusion, NASA deemed the program ready to move forward and shuttles resumed flying several times a year.\n\"We're still going to watch and we're still going to pay attention,\" STS-121 commander Steve Lindsey said at the time. \"We're never ever going to let our guard down.\"\nColumbia's loss – as well as the loss of several other space-bound crews – receives a public tribute every year at NASA's Day of Remembrance. That date is marked in late January or early February because, coincidentally, the Apollo 1, Challenger and Columbia crews were all lost in that calendar week.\nThe crew has received several tributes to their memory over the years. On Mars, the rover Spirit's landing site was ceremonially named Columbia Memorial Station. Also, seven asteroids orbiting the sun between Mars and Jupiter now bear the crew's names.\n— Elizabeth Howell, SPACE.com Contributor"}
{"text": "One ugly legacy of the Reaganite drug war of the 1980s has found a home in the nation's schools. \"Zero tolerance,\" a term first brought into the national consciousness courtesy of Reagan Attorney General Edwin Meese, who used it to refer to his policy of seizing vehicles and properties no matter how tiny the amount of drugs found, has evolved from a term of propaganda for drug warriors into a fuzzy philosophy for educators. Loosely translated, it means that any violation of the rules, no matter how minuscule or what the circumstances, will be punished severely.\nZero tolerance didn't work for the drug war; the Customs program championed by Meese choked on its own absurdities, finally dying a quiet death after Customs agents attempted to seize a scientific vessel belonging to the Woodshole Oceanographic Research Institute (Cape Cod, MA) because a crewman had a joint in his cabin. Zero tolerance in the schools is generating the same kind of absurd outcomes while failing to increase school safety, according to a new study from the University of Indiana's Indiana Education Policy Center.\nThe report, \"Zero Tolerance, Zero Evidence: An Analysis of School Disciplinary Practice,\" reviewed the use of zero tolerance in schools since its inception in the 1980s. It found that not only does zero tolerance not achieve its stated goals, but that its most common punishments, suspension and expulsion, lead to increased drop-out rates and other negative consequences and that African American students are \"overexposed\" to such punishments.\n\"Zero tolerance is a political response, not an educationally sound solution,\" said Indiana University Professor Russell Skiba, director of the Safe and Responsive Schools Project in the IU School of Education and author of the report. \"It sounds impressive to say that we're taking a tough stand against misbehavior, but the data say it simply hasn't been effective in improving student behavior or ensuring school safety.\"\nTell it to Congress. The Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994 mandates zero tolerance policies for weapons violations at schools. But Congress does not deserve all the blame. States such as California, Kentucky and New York began implementing zero tolerance policies for drugs, fighting and gang activity as early as 1989. By 1993, the trend had swept the nation, broadening as it went to include alcohol, truancy, insubordination, unauthorized use of pagers and laser pointers, and swearing.\nAs Berkeley researcher Joel Brown, head of the Center Research and Development, noted in his recent survey of drug education programs (http://www.drcnet.org/wol/187.html#cerdstudy), although zero tolerance is not a federal mandate when it comes to drug violations, under federal \"no-use\" guidelines, \"students are to be suspended or expelled from school for use, possession or distribution of alcohol, tobacco or drugs.\" Brown found that such policies are in effect in nearly 90% of US schools, and their impact is staggering. In 1997, the only year for which national statistics are available, more than 177,000 students were suspended or expelled for drug, alcohol or tobacco violations. Eighty percent of those students, or about 136,000 kids, were suspended for more than five days or expelled. That ranked drug related reasons second only to physical fights as a reason for school discipline, Brown wrote. \"Young people are removed from mainstream education for drugs nearly three times more often than they are removed for weapons, and ten times more often than the number of young people removed for carrying firearms,\" he noted.\n\"The extent to which those who are removed from school have a drug abuse problem versus the legal problem of being caught with drugs is not known,\" Brown noted wryly. He also reported that no demographic data on those students was available.\nWhile the Indiana study did not explicitly look at racial disparities in zero tolerance drug punishments, it did find clear racial disparities in the administration of zero tolerance policies overall. In his survey of the literature, report author Skiba reported that \"racial disproportionality in the use of school suspension has been a highly consistent finding.\" When Skiba controlled for socioeconomic status, he found that students from poor families were more likely to receive zero tolerance punishments, but that family wealth alone did not explain the difference between punishments for whites and blacks. Nor was there evidence that black students acted out more than white students, wrote Skiba.\nThere are signs of hope, according to the report. Zero tolerance policies, ridiculed for excesses such as suspending five-year-olds for kissing or junior high students for possessing organic cough drops, are beginning to lose favor in some districts, Skiba reported. For those districts pondering a change, the study has several commonsense recommendations:"}
{"text": "About the Dictionary of Old English\nThe Dictionary of Old English (DOE) defines the vocabulary of the first six centuries (C.E. 600-1150) of the English language, using twenty-first century technology. The DOE complements the Middle English Dictionary (which covers the period C.E. 1100-1500) and the Oxford English Dictionary, the three together providing a full description of the vocabulary of English. Under the direction of editors Angus Cameron, Ashley Crandell Amos, and now Antonette diPaolo Healey, the Dictionary has published (as of 2009) the following major research tools: the Dictionary of Old English Corpus on the World Wide Web, the DOE: A to G online, the DOE: A to G on CD-ROM, the fascicles for the letters A-G on microfiche, and an online bibliography of Old English texts and Latin sources cited in the DOE. More than one third of the Dictionary -- eight of the 22 letters of the Old English alphabet -- has been published, and more than 60% of the total entries have been written to date. See DOE on YouTube.\nThe Dictionary of Old English Corpus\nThe DOE is based on a computerized Corpus comprising at least one copy of each text surviving in Old English. The total size is almost five times the collected works of Shakespeare. The body of surviving Old English texts encompasses a rich diversity of records written on parchment, carved in stone and inscribed in jewelry. These texts fall into several categories: prose, poetry, glosses to Latin texts and inscriptions. In the prose in particular, there is a wide range of texts: saints' lives, sermons, biblical translations, penitential writings, laws, charters and wills, records (of manumissions, land grants, land sales, land surveys), chronicles, a set of tables for computing the moveable feasts of the Church calendar and for astrological calculations, medical texts, prognostics (the Anglo-Saxon equivalent of the horoscope), charms (such as those for a toothache or for an easy labour), and even cryptograms.\nFrom the outset, the project has employed innovative methods and technologies. Most dictionaries tend to be deeply indebted to their predecessors. By contrast, it is the database of the Dictionary of Old English Corpus which determines the headwords, definitions and quotations. Research based on a comprehensive analysis of the surviving records of Old English is perhaps the most significant difference between the DOE and the work of earlier scholars. The project has followed in the footsteps of those who have established new standards in modern lexicography by providing parsed lists of all attested spellings, grammatical information, and detailed sense divisions (supported by illustrative citations from the Corpus) for each word. The DOE has an International Advisory Committee with members from Canada, Great Britain, the United States and Germany. The editors also consult with scholars throughout the world who have expert knowledge of specialized vocabulary, such as legal, medical and botanical terms.\nUse of Technology\nThe DOE is a pioneer in the application of technology to lexicography. In 1997 the project launched its most sophisticated research tool--the Dictionary of Old English Corpus on the World Wide Web, which makes the Corpus with its complex search capabilities available to any institution in the world with access to the Internet. In 2007, the Web Corpus was made available to individual subscribers. Also in 2007, the project released DOE: A to G online, the first web version of the first eight letters of the Dictionary. It offers Boolean searches on multiple fields of the Dictionary as well as links to the Oxford English Dictionary.\nThe DOE has received research grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Ottawa; the British Academy, London; the Connaught Fund, University of Toronto; the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, New York; the Early English Text Society, Oxford; the Marc Fitch Fund, Oxford; the Jackman Foundation, Toronto; the McLean Foundation, Toronto; the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, New York; the National Endowment for the Humanities, Washington, an independent federal agency; the Salamander Foundation, Toronto; the TAPoR (Text Analysis Portal) Project, funded by the Canada Foundation for Innovation; the University of Toronto; Lulu, Raleigh, NC; and Xerox Corporation, Palo Alto and Toronto, among others. Support has also been given by many scholars and friends throughout the world. The search for funds is ongoing."}
{"text": "Outer space is a term used to describe everything existing outside of the Earth's atmosphere. It mostly consists of empty space with clusters of stars, but also solid matter such as comets and meteoroids.\nThere is currently little knowledge on the subject of outer space. The basic observations of astronomy have given an understanding of planetary movements as well as basic predictions; from basic waxing and waning of the moon to the arrival of comets and eclipses.\nThe word \"space\" was specifically mentioned as the place from where the meteorite that made Toph's bracelet and Sokka's sword came. The characters demonstrated knowledge that the meteorite did not originate from Earth."}
{"text": "Chemotherapy is poison that happens to kill cancer cells faster than it kills healthy cells; that it wreaks havoc on the bodies of patients is unsurprising. But chemo may also affect their unborn children. According to a new study in PNAS, the offspring of mice treated with chemotherapy have higher rates of mutation, even though the offspring themselves were never exposed to the drugs.\nThe results suggest that these mutations arise from genome destabilization caused by exposure to chemo, rather than just mutated sperm from the treated father. Male mice in the study were exposed to one of three common anticancer drugs—cyclophosphamide, mitomycin C, or procarbazine—and then allowed to mate with untreated females. After sequencing a small piece of DNA from the offspring, the researchers found that mice with treated fathers had mutation rates up to twice that of mice with untreated fathers. Notably, these mutations were present in DNA inherited from both the treated father and untreated mother.\nWhat this likely means, according to the researchers, is that chemotherapy induces epigenetic changes in the sperm. Epigenetic changes don’t affect the underlying DNA sequence, but they alter chemical tags that control how genes are expressed. This in turn lead to genome destabilization in the offspring, allowing sequence mutations to arise in DNA from the mother or father. The exact mechanism for genome destabilization and how it’s inherited is unknown.\nLead author Yuri Dubrova is also cautious about how this data translates to humans. Since most cancer patients are too old to reproduce or are sterilized by treatment, childhood cancer survivors seem to be the only group this can potentially affect. Because of their short life span, the mice in this study reproduced only a few months after chemotherapy, but humans would likely have years in between. If the phenomenon applies to humans though, the nasty effects of chemotherapy might be longer-reaching than we realized.\n[via Nature News]"}
{"text": "- Browse Cases\n- Search Cases\n- Browse Methods\nNiger women campaign for inclusion in National Assembly, 1991\nThe 1990s in Africa was a period of broad political movement towards the greater involvement of women in positions of power—this campaign is a part of that change.\nIn November of 1990 in Niger, President Ali Saibou announced that a Preparatory Committee to organize a National Conference would take place before May 27 of the following year, on which date the National Conference would begin. The agenda of this National Conference, to be held at the National Assembly building in Niger's capital city of Niamey, was to transition the country from 17 years of military-led rule to a multi-party democracy. Out of 68 delegates for the Preparatory Committee, one, Houa Alio, was a woman.\nOn May 11, 1991, the Prime Minister Aliou Mahamidou met with a number of interest groups that were involved with the Preparatory Committee. The meeting participants agreed on a structure of representation in which the Union of Niger Women would have seven representatives at the Preparatory Committee.\nHowever, many Niger women did not accept this low level of representation and wanted a greater input in the future direction of the nation. The first, and most well known protest showing disapproval of the scarce representation of women in the Preparatory Committee took place on May 13, 1991, two weeks before the scheduled National Conference date. Several thousand women marched from the national assembly to the Prime Minister's office in the center of the capital, and occupied the Ministry of External Affairs, where the Preliminary Committee was meant to meet. The women carried signs that read, \"Down with the National Conference without women!\", \"Stop Injustice!\", and \"Equal Rights!\" They also shouted, \"Away with the National Conference without Women!\"\nAlio resigned from the Preparatory Committee in solidarity. Acting as the spokesperson of the movement, she had earlier given the Prime Minister a nine-point letter demanding to have female representation in all of the delegations taking place during the Preparatory Committee.\nDespite the May 13th protest, the Prime Minister began the first meeting of the Preparatory Committee at noon of the same day.\nSix days later, on May 19, the General Assembly of Niger Women urged the people of Niger to become more involved in the political process by joining unions, associations, and political parties with the end goal of contributing to the National Conference's nation building process. The women organized a general assembly in order to begin compromising with members of the Preparatory Committee for greater representation in the soon-to-be-held National Conference.\nAs of May 21, the General Assembly of Niger Women agreed to allow four more women to join the representation. A political party also said it would replace one of its own representatives on the commission with a woman.\nThe date of the conference was postponed allegedly due to a lack of funds, although several political parties in opposition to the Prime Minister at the time saw this postponement as an attempt on his part to keep himself in power, and to slow transitional movements towards a multi-party democracy. The National Conference was rescheduled to take place on July 15, and then postponed again to July 29. Upon this second postponement, women marched again in opposition to their lack of equal representation in the Preparatory Committee and scheduled National Conference.\nBy the spring of 1991 the women of Niger were able to increase their numbers in the formal reform efforts, going from one to five women representatives. Still, that was vastly lower than participation by men\nOn November 25, 1992, May 13th was designated as \"National Women's Day\" to commemorate the march held on that date the previous year."}
{"text": "Removal of Parathyroid Glands\nParathyroidectomy is surgery to remove hyperactive parathyroid glands.\nParathyroid disease is the most common cause of elevated blood calcium levels in adults. Elevated calcium levels can lead to kidney stones and other disturbing symptoms. Most parathyroid disease is due to a benign tumor of a single parathyroid gland that produces excess parathyroid hormone (PTH).\nWHAT ARE PARATHYROID GLANDS?\nThere are typically four parathyroid glands (two pairs) that are located behind the thyroid lobes in the neck. The parathyroid glands secrete parathyroid hormone (PTH) that regulates the calcium level in the body. Parathyroid hormone signals the release of calcium from the bones and increases calcium absorption from the intestines. The correct secretion of the parathyroid hormone maintains a normal level of calcium in the bloodstream to ensure the normal function of muscles and the normal conduction of electrical currents along the nerves.\nIf one or more of the parathyroid glands secretes too much PTH (hyperparathyroidism), sustained elevations of blood calcium levels occurs. This event usually occurs in adults and is rare in children. Hyperparathyroidism is usually caused by an adenoma (non-cancerous tumor) of a single gland. It can also result from regulation problems within all of the glands (hyperplasia) or from parathyroid cancer – which is extremely rare.\nSYMPTOMS OF PARATHYROID DISEASE\n- Loss of energy & persistent fatigue (just don’t feel well)\n- Inability to concentrate or changes in mood\n- Bone pain due to osteoporosis (bone breakdown)\n- Trouble sleeping and general irritability\n- Kidney stones\n- GERD – gastric acid reflux\nIt is not uncommon for people to suffer mildly with 2 or more of these problems at the same time. Due to increased blood testing, hyperparathyroidism is now diagnosed more frequently and often before patients are symptomatic. If left untreated, however, symptoms are likely to arise and worsen with time.\nOver the years physicians have tried to treat parathyroid disease with medications – often without success. Removal of the parathyroid glands continues to be the most effective treatment for primary hyperparathyroidism. Because of the numerous glands and other important structures in the neck, the surgery can be technically challenging and usually is performed in conjunction with preoperative localization studies to help determine which parathyroid glands are responsible for the problem. Surgeons with extensive head and neck surgical training usually perform the operation. The procedure has been proven to have a >94% cure rate when performed by an experienced specialist. Dr. Gunnlaugsson has extensive experience with parathyroid surgery and uses minimally invasive techniques to achieve the best functional and cosmetic result."}
{"text": "|Huang Ti about 1000 BC|\nThat left as the oldest known medical book through most of history as Nei Ching written by Huang Ti about 2,697 BC. The work basically consists of conversations between the emperor and his physician Ch'i Pai. Parts of the dialog are recorded medical descriptions of asthma-like symptoms and possible remedies.\nHuang Ti Nei Ching Su Wen was known as the Yellow Emperor who reined over Ancient China from approximately 2697-2598 B.C. He is known as the Father of Chinese Medicine. (1)\nHe is believed to have ruled China as the third of China's first five rulers from 2696-2598 B.C. There is an ongoing debate as to whether he actually existed or was the work of legends. There's also an ongoing debate as to whether he actually wrote the Nei Ching Su Wen or whether it was actually written about 1000 B.C and antedated \"as to enhance it's value,\" according to one historian. Veith quotes one historian who questioned that Ti could possibly rule a nation and still have plenty of time for dialog with his physician ch'i Pai and also time to write it all down. (2)\nOf significance in the Nei Ching is the relevance of Yang, Yin and Tao. Ilza Veith, in her 2002 book, \"The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine,\" described that in the beginning there was chaos between the three primary substances -- force, form and substance. This ultimately results in a light substance rising to form heaven, and a heavy substance sinking to form the earth.\n|The Nei Chung|\nThis whole concept was similar to other civilizations, such as in the West the belief was that disease was the result of an imbalance of the four humours. In China disease was believed to be caused by too much of the essence yang and/ or too little yin.\nSo in order to maintain health one would have to maintain a balance of Yang and Yin, which was ultimately accomplished by good behaviours towards Tao, which refers to \"the way.\" Veith explains that man must completely adjust to the \"flow\" of the Universe, which was the responsibility of Tao. For example, the earth was dependent on the heavens, such as rain was needed to end drought, sun was needed to melt snow, etc. In this way the yearly cycle of life flowed smoothly and was completed in a year. This was Tao, or the way. Essentially, there was \"the Tao of Heaven, the Tao of the Earth, and the Tao of Man, one fitting into the other as an indivisible entity.\"\nThe first paragraphs of the first chapter of the Nei Ching has the emperor asking his physician, Ch'i Po, why it is that ancient people used to live to be 100 years old and now people only live half that long. The physician answered:\n\"In ancient times those people who understood Tao (the way of self cultivation) patterned themselves upon the Yin and the Yang (the two principles of nature) and they lived in harmony with the arts of divination.... There was temperance in eating and drinking. Their hours of rising and retiring were regular and not disorderly and wild. By these means the ancients kept their bodies united with their souls, so as to fulfill their allotted span completely, measuring unto a hundred years before they passed away.... nowadays people are not like this; they use wine as beverage and they adopt recklessness as usual behavior. They enter the chamber (of love) in an intoxicated condition; their passions exhaust their vital forces; their cravings dissipate their true (essence); they do not know how to find contentment within themselves; they're not skilled in the control of their spirits. They devote all their attention to the amusement of their minds, thus cutting themselves off from the joys of long (life). Their risings and retiring is without regularity. For these reasons they reach only one half of the hundred years and then they degenerate.\" (3)\nIt is this \"degeneration\" then that causes diseases which plague a person in life, and many of which cause an early death. People that lived to be 100 are \"in harmony with Tao, the Right Way.\" Health, or longevity, was completely dependent on a person's \"behavior towards Tao, Veith explained. \"Thus, man saw the universe endowed with a spirit that was indomitable in its strength and unforgiving toward disobedience.\" Longevity, thus, was a \"token of sainthood.\" (4)\nSo asthma-like symptoms were believed to be caused by an imbalance of Yin and Yang. The lungs were believed to be responsible for metabolism and flow of fluids through the body, and an imbalance of Yang and Yin in the lungs will cause too much phlegm, edema, sweat and cause diseases such as breathing disorders. (5)\nThis ultimately obstructs Qi (also referred to as Chi). Imbalances of Yang and Yin are believed to be caused by obstruction of Qi, which may be described as the energy or life force that keeps the humors in balance and the body functioning properly.\nThe force of Qi was the essential force of keeping the body healthy, and it was inhaled with each breath after birth. Once inhaled it was up to each healthy organ to transfer both Qi and nutrients throughout the body.\nIn order for the organs of the body to function properly, Qi must continue to flow properly throughout the body. So dysfunction of the lung will result in failure of respiration, \"leading to failure of fresh air to be inhaled and the turbid Qi of the body to be exhaled, with the resultant inadequate formation of Qi.\" (6)\nLikewise, the lungs were associated with mucus. Yang was heat and Yin was cold. Cold was believed to diminish Yin in the lungs, and this resulted in an imbalance of Qi in the lungs, which resulted in an increase in mucus, which ultimately resulted in difficulty in breathing, or asthma-like symptoms.\nIt should be noted here that unlike Western medical doctrines such as the Hippocratic Corpus, the Nei Ching failed to specifically define any diseases. So terms equivalent to asthma and dyspnea were not used. Instead, diseases were referred to as \"'injuries of the heart,' 'injuries of the lungs,' etc.\" (7)\nThe Nei Ching basically called for diagnosing diseases by measuring the pulse, and treating diseases by remedies that reset Yang and Yin, which mainly involved mental balance, herbal medicine, diet, massage, acupuncture (inserting needle into certain regions of the body) or moxibustion (placing cones of powdered leaves on various regions of the body and burning them until blisters form). Since diseases of the lungs were caused by an imbalance of Yin caused by cold, asthma remedies were believed to warm the lungs, balance Yin, decrease mucus, and make breathing easier.\nAnother neat similarity between the Nei Ching and the later written document the Hippocratic Corpus (such as the Hippocratic Oath) is that both writings mention the use of careful technique and responsibility by the physician.\nThe Nei Ching notes that \"The most important requirement of the art of healing is that no mistake or neglect occur... poor medical workmanship is neglectful and careless and must therefore be combated, because a disease that is not completely cured can easily breed new disease or there can be a recurrence of the old disease... illness is comparable to the root; good medical work is comparable to the topmost branch; if the root is not reached, the evil influences cannot be subjugated... The superior physician helps before the early budding of the disease. The inferior physician begins to help when the disease has already developed; he helps when destruction has already set in. And since his help comes when the disease has already developed, it is said of him that he is ignorant. \" (8)\nWhile Nei Ching is the oldest known recorded Chinese medical treaties, Shen Nung, who lived from 2838-2698 is often considered as the founder of Chinese Medicine as well as the \"Fire Emporor.\" (9)\n|Shen Nung (2838-2698)|\nThe leaves and/ or stems of the Ma Huang plant were dried prepared in such a way that it was served as a drink, often as a bitter tasting tea. Nung believed Ma Huang worked by reversing the flow of Qi.\nOne of the truly interesting things about ancient Chinese asthma treatment is the use of Ma Huang to treat asthma-like symptoms. The modern world refers to this plant as ephedra, and from it was derived the bronchodilator ephedrine in 1901\nLeaves of the plant were crushed and served in a bitter tasting yellow tea. This may actually have provided relief from an asthma attack. While Veith describes that Western medicine reached China early in the 17th century, (10) it would be another 300 years before ephedrine would play a significant role in the treatment of asthma in the U.S. and Europe, as I describe in this post.\nSo while Ancient Chinese asthmatics may have been able to obtain asthma relief by using ephedra, the rest of the world (except for maybe Japan and Korea) would have to wait.\nClick here for more asthma history.\n- Saunders, M, J.B. Dec, \"Huang Ti Nei Ching Su Wen -- The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Mediciner,\" Calif Med. 1967 July; 107(1): 125–126\n- Veith, Ilza, author /translator, \"The Yellow emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine,\" 2002, Los Angeles, pages 4-6\n- Ibid, page 97-8\n- Ibid, pages pages 98 and 10-14\n- \"Qi Theory, damo-qigong.net, http://damo-qigong.net/qi-theory1.htm\n- Ibid, http://damo-qigong.net/qi-theory.htm\n- Veith, op cit, pages 49 and 50\n- Veith, op cit, pages 57-8, also see chapter 26 beginning on page 217\n- Navara, Tova, \"The Encyclopedia of Asthma and Respiratory Disorders,\" 2003, New York, page 177\n- Veith, op cit, page 1"}
{"text": "Understanding the functioning of brain network is one of the grand challenges of Science: many methods have been applied to analyze and study its structure and function. Interest is clearly motivated by the fact that the some general principles of brain functioning seem to govern also other complex networks, including social, biological and communications networks.\nIn principle, a brain network can be modelled as graph representing activities in the brain, where the vertices represent anatomical regions and the edges their functional connectivity. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has been used to extract data about how networks of neurons are performing tasks. In these experiments the activity of the brain is measured, in time steps of a few seconds, in data associated to a number of “voxels” of dimension of about 27 mm3. Data are organised in correlation matrices (also with Multidimensional Scaling techniques) to see where there is a correlation among the variables. A correlation matrix can describe correlation among M variables: it is a square symmetrical MxM matrix with the (ij)th element equal to the correlation coefficient r_ij between the (i)th and the (j)th variable.\nOver the last two decades, said data analysis techniques have transformed neuroscience: some scientists are even claiming they can identify the brain regions responsible for musical ability, food preference, fairness and even skills by analysing and correlating voxels data.\nAlso the recent explosion in gene expression experiments has generated a large amount of data to be correlated: think about The Cancer Genome Anatomy Project (CGAP), a program of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) that is researching the molecular patterns changes occurring when a normal cell is transformed into a cancer cell or the relationships between the gene expression profile of a tissue and the pattern of its neighbours.\nThese are just two example where the capabilities of correlating data have an incredibly high impact value. Analysing interconnectivity is so fundamental to understanding the behaviour of any complex networks.\nAlso Telecom Operators have huge amount of data, still to be leveraged: in this sense, methods and techniques adopted by neuroscience and genomics can provide valuable lessons learnt."}
{"text": "The Flat Rocks fossil site at Inverloch is located approximately 150 km south-east of Melbourne, on the south coast of Victoria. The area has special significance to Australia’s fossil history as the discovery of Australia’s first dinosaur bone, the Cape Paterson Claw, was found at a nearby site in 1903 by William Ferguson. The currently active site was discovered in 1991 when a group of researchers from Monash University and Museum Victoria were prospecting that part of the coastline for suitable locations for potential fossil dig sites.\nThe Cape Paterson claw, found by William Ferguson in 1903 at Eagle’s Nest, was Australia’s first dinosaur bone. Source: Museum Victoria.\nThe first formal dig at Inverloch was in 1992 when researchers spent two weeks testing the productivity of the site. In this time more than 300 fossil bones buried below the surface of the shore platform were recovered. The site proved so productive that organised annual summer digs called ‘Dinosaur Dreaming’ commenced in 1994 and have collected an average of 700 fossil bones and teeth from each field season. The fossil layer at the Flat Rocks site is still producing as many fossil bones and teeth as when digging first started. The Dinosaur Dreaming dig will continue for as long as financial support continues to fund the dig.\nThe sedimentary rocks along the Strzelecki coastline were laid down approximately 120 to 115 million years ago in the Early Cretaceous period. The rocks have been dated using both Fission Track Dating (based on radioactive content) and Palynology (based on the fossil pollen in the rock). Both methods of dating correlate the age of the rocks to about 120 million years plus or minus five million years.\nThe fossil bones of many different animals have been found at the Flat Rocks site. There is evidence of at least five different types of dinosaur as well as the fossil bones of other reptiles, birds, mammals and fish. The fossil bones found at the site are the remains of animals that lived in an ancient river and the surrounding valley. The bones were washed into the river during flooding events and concentrated in the river bed.\nThe Dinosaur Dreaming field dig at Inverloch. Photographer/Source: Lesley Kool\nThe most commonly found dinosaur at Flat Rocks is a small plant eater belonging to the Hypsilophodont family. This dinosaur was the size of a small wallaby and ran on its hind legs. Qantassaurus intrepidus is the latest hypsilophodontid dinosaur to be named from the site, however there are at least two other members of the hypsilophodontidae family represented. Evidence of tiny dinosaur bones at the site suggests that the area may have been a nesting ground for part of the year. There is also evidence of other dinosaurs including ankylosaurs and theropod dinosaurs at Flat Rocks and surrounding areas.\nFlying reptiles (pterosaurs) are sometimes mistakenly called dinosaurs, but belong to a different group of reptiles. A number of unusual teeth found at the Flat Rocks site have been assigned to pterosaurs, as well as some limb bones. The turtles of Flat Rocks appear to have been rather primitive. They had short necks, unlike most of Australia’s modern turtles. A number of isolated teeth have been identified as belonging to small fresh-water plesiosaurs.\nIn 1997, a fossil jaw only 17mm long with four teeth was found. The jaw belonged to an insectivorous mammal no bigger than a mouse and was named Ausktribosphenous nyktos. The teeth resembled those of a placental mammal. However, because all previous fossil evidence supported the idea that marsupials arrived in Australia long before placental mammals, the description of this discovery as a placental mammal was not accepted by many researchers. There has been much debate since the discovery of this jaw, and there is still no agreement as to which group of mammals it belongs to.\nSince 1997 a further 36 mammal jaws have been found at the site, some of which belong to a new group of monotremes (Teinolophos trusleri) and represent the world’s oldest and smallest monotremes. In 2004 a single tooth in a jaw fragment was found that may represent evidence in Australia of a group of extinct mammals called Multituberculates.\nThe fossilised remains of fish are very common at the Flat Rocks site. Before 1997 the only evidence of Early Cretaceous birds in Victoria came from Koonwarra, 40 km north of the Flat Rocks site. In 1997 the first definitive bird bone was found at Flat Rocks. A number of other possible bird bones have since turned up at the site and are currently being studied.\nPlease note: the Dinosaur Dreaming dig project is not currently accepting volunteers.\nVickers-Rich, P., Monaghan, J. M., Baird, R. F. and Rich, T. H. 1991. Vertebrate Palaeontology of Australasia. Pioneer Design Studio, Novacek.\nVickers-Rich, P. and Rich, T. H. 1993. Australia’s polar dinosaurs. Scientific American, July 1993: 50–55.\nVickers-Rich, P., and Rich, T., 2000. Dinosaurs of Darkness. Allen & Unwin, Crows Nest.\nInteresting point, John. While projects like these may appear to have an eerie side, it's also true that almost everything we know about prehistoric life depends on palaeontology projects like this one.\nHi Justin, thanks for the enquiry. You are welcome to visit the beach at Inverloch and search for your own fossils, just as you can go and have a look at the Dinosaur Dreaming site. You will find the many links on this and the other Museum Victoria dinosaur information sheets useful in identifying fossils.\nHi Bob, the Discovery Centre has a free identification service. If you think you may have found a fossil, you can take advantage of this service. You can read all about the details and guidelines for identifications here\nHi Michael – If you contact the Queensland Museum through their Inquiry Centre they may also be able to provide you with advice about fossil hunting in the Ipswich region. Have fun!\nHi Alexander - sorry to say, but unfortunately you need to be over 18 to be involved in the the digging at Dinosaur Dreaming. However, on Sunday February 13 there will be a ‘Friends of Dinosaur Dreaming’ day onsite, where visitors are welcome to come and watch the dig in process, talk to the volunteers and see a selection of some of the fossils found there.\nIf you are interested in going and seeing this, you can visit the site on Feb 13 from late morning. Access to the dig is from ‘The Caves’ carpark on the Inverloch-Cape Paterson road; a few km outside Inverloch, take the steps down to the beach access and look for the Dinosaur Dreaming flags at the site not far from the base of the steps.\nHi Alexander's mum, thank you for checking in and doing the right thing. As the area is a reserve any fossicking/digging on the beach at Dinosaur Dreaming can only be undertaken by Dinosaur Dreaming workers and volunteers who have the required permission to dig in the Bunurong Marine Park from Parks Victoria.\nThank you for the feedback Christopher, however it's not clear to us which of the comments above this relates to; we think it is important that enquirers, regardless of their age, are given accurate information on the legal and safety issues associated with collecting fossils. This isn't intended as a 'brush off', more as responsible advice from our perspective at Museum Victoria.\nFeel free to contact us via the 'Contact Us' link at the bottom of this page if you wish to discuss this further.\nHi Jacqui - there are a few legal issues about excavating fossils, and there is no single permit that is available which allows you to fossick - you would need to get the appropriate permission from the landholder of your fossicking locality; be they private land owners, or government bodies responsible for parks, reserves, council and crown land. Please also be aware of some of the safety precaustions when fossicking, there is some helpful information on this on our Information Sheet at http://museumvictoria.com.au/discoverycentre/infosheets/fossil-collecting---methods/\nHope this helps\nHello Brett; the Friends day for 2012 has not yet been scheduled, but once it is it will be posted here or you can simply call us in the Discovery Centre in early January 2012, and we will hopefully have clearer details by that date.\nHi Naomi and Josh; we'd be most happy to meet you on the 'Friends Day' onsite at Inverloch and show you some of the fossils and the work that is being done, but I'm sorry to say that all active participants in the dig must be 18 years or older for health and safety reasons.\nThe date and details of the 2012 Friends Day will be published on this page soon, stay tuned for an update...\nHi Belinda; unfortunately applications for prospective volunteers closed on September 30th, and the selection process for new volunteers based on these applications is now well underway. As a result, I am sorry to say we can’t assist you with becoming involved in the 2012 dig.\nShould you be interested in participating in the 2013 dig, we recommend you contact the Discovery Centre via the \"Contact us\" link at the bottom of this page around August 2012; by this time we hope to commence the recruitment of new volunteers for the 2013 dig.\nHi Jamie - as excavation only occurs for less than two months every year, there really isn't much opportunity for public engagement beyond the 'Friends' day; you may wish to contact the Bunurong Environment Centre at Inverloch, who occasionally run school holiday activities that might be of interest.\nHi Jenni & Jim - unfortunately we're not able to involve you in this year's dig; applications for becoming a volunteer usually open in August or September in the preceeding year, and involves a selection process followed by specialised training for selected applicants. If you wish to be involved in next years dig, we reccommend you contact the Discovery Centre (via \"Contact Us\" at the bottom of this page) in August 2012 for details on applying for the 2013 dig.\nWe love receiving comments, but can’t always respond.\nHi Donna - the Dinosaur Dreaming dig may be of interest, but participants in the actuall digging are all over 18 for safety reasons; one option worth considering might be to come to the annual \"Friends of Dinosaur Dreaming Day\", which is usally in late February onsite at Inverloch; you may wish to check back on this page around the Christmas Holidays to see when this is scheduled for 2013.\nHi Paula - as the dig is on a public beach, you are free to come and look at any time, digging will be occurring on the beach every day for the next few weeks at low tide.\nHowever, there will be a special \"Friends Day\" on February 17 on site, where the diggers will be set up to show visitors examples of the fossils being found, and can answer questions from the public. If you were interested, you could also sign up to become a \"Friend of Dinosaur Dreaming\" on the day.\nI know it's a long time since your request, but did you have any success with your search. I'm in the same position regarding August 1966 sailing and w...\nTo read the latest tweets from @museumvictoria\nFollow Museum Victoria on"}
{"text": "Simple stain- single human cheek cell with bacteria covering its surface (approx. X 100). Taken from the Wistreich Collection, appearing exclusively in MicrobeWorld. Read More\nPhoto of Hut Cave taken by mountaineer Nick Giguere during the 2008 expedition Exploring the Rock Bottom of the Food Chain in McMurdo's Extreme Environments led by Dr. Laurie Connell and Dr. Hubert Staudigel. For more pictures go to their website: http://earthref.org/ERESE/projects/GOLF439/... Read More\nAn electron photomicrograph of two spiral-shaped Treponema pallidum bacteria.\nHere we see two Treponema pallidum bacteria scanned by an electron microscope, magnified 36,000X. T. pallidum is the causative agent of syphilis. It contains one of the smallest prokaryotic genomes consisting of abo... Read More\nA press release via EurekAlert issued by Howard Hughes Medical Institute:\nHoward Hughes Medical Institute researchers are reporting the first detailed molecular snapshots of a deadly gastrointestinal virus as it is caught in the grasp of an immune system molecule with the capacity to destroy ... Read More\nThe USA300 strain of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, colorized in gold, shown outside a white blood cell.\nStaphylococcus aureus: USA:300 is a strain of gram-positive coccus bacteria responsible for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), or Staph infection in humans. This strain ... Read More\nThis is a live image of the of Diatom Arachnoidiscus under 40x magnification. The picture shows the diatom's silicified cell wall, which forms a pillbox-like shell (frustule) composed of overlapping halves that contain intricate and delicate markings. The picture was obtained with new video enha... Read More\nApplication of the mycopathogen, Beauveria Bassina, that make spores to introduce a fungus on tarnished plant bugs as an alternative to chemical control. Research and develop microbial control strategies for tarnished plant bugs on alternate hosts using entomopathogenic fungi.\n(http://www.ars... Read More\nThis image of laboratory-grown cells was taken with the help of a scanning electron microscope, which yields detailed images of cell surfaces.\nTina Carvalho, University of Hawaii at Manoa. - NIGMS Image Gallery Read More\nPhotomicrograph of Chlamydia grown in culture. The sample was taken from rhesus monkey kidney cells and stained with giemsa. The cell nuclei appear red and the infective 'elementary bodies' of the Chlamydia, which develop in 'blisters' in the cells, fluoresce green. Chlamydia is a very common se... Read More\nCultures of a destructive mold called Phomopsis strains that infect both crop and noncrop plants. One of the species of this genus, Phomopsis viticola, cause a plant disease called phomopsis or dead-arm. Usually, infections begin during early growth stages in spring. This affects leaves, fruit, ... Read More\nUnder a moderately-high magnification of 2500X, this digitally-colorized scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of an untreated water specimen extracted from a wild stream mainly used to control flooding during inclement weather, revealed the presence of unidentified organisms, which included bacter... Read More\nChlamydia psittaci. Infected baby hamster kidney cell cultures, direct FA stain Read More\nMicroscopic view of the green algae Spirogyra filament and a number of primitive worms known as rotifers. (approx. 100X). Taken from the Wistreich Collection, appearing exclusively on MicrobeWorld. Read More\nfluorescent antibody staining of wall deficient mycobacterium tuberculosis var. hominis Read More\nStan Maloy of the American Society for Microbiology participates in the first episode of This Week in Microbiology live from the American Association for the Advancement of Science meeting in Washington, D.C.\nThis Week in Microbiology will officially launch next week. Other guests for the fir... Read More\nThe cyanobacterial mat is on the shores of Lake Fryxell in Taylor Valley- the McMurdo Dry Valley region of Antarctica. These organisms actively grow only a few weeks a year during December and January. Photo taken by Scott Craig and contributed by Dr. Laurie Connell. Read More\nSafranin stained rods. (approx. 1000 X). taken from the Wistreich Collection, appearing exclusively on MicrobeWorld. Read More\nThis is a great visual resource for learning and teaching microbiology lab techniques. You have to join Flickr.com and then sign up to access the groups contents. Read More\nAn Ebola-like hemorrhagic fever has killed three people in western India and dozens of doctors will screen a community of about 16,000 people in efforts to contain the disease, a state health minister said this past Wednesday.\nIndia's National Institute of Virology later confirmed that the th... Read More"}
{"text": "Subsequent Nuremberg Trials\nThe Subsequent Nuremberg Trials formally the Trials of War Criminals before the Nuremberg Military Tribunals were a series of twelve U.S. military tribunals for war crimes against surviving members of the leadership of Nazi Germany, held in the Palace of Justice, Nuremberg, after World War II from 1946 to 1949 following the Trial of the Major War Criminals before the International Military Tribunal.\nAlthough it had been initially planned to hold more than just one international trial at the IMT, the growing differences between the victorious allies (the United States, United Kingdom, France, and Soviet Union) made this impossible. However, the Control Council Law No. 10, which the Allied Control Council had issued on December 20, 1945, empowered any of the occupying authorities to try suspected war criminals in their respective occupation zones. Based on this law, the U.S. authorities proceeded after the end of the initial Nuremberg Trial against the major war criminals to hold another twelve trials in Nuremberg. The judges in all these trials were American, and so were the prosecutors; the Chief of Counsel for the Prosecution was Brigadier General Telford Taylor. In the other occupation zones similar trials took place.\nThe twelve U.S. trials before the Nuremberg Military Tribunals (NMT) took place from December 9, 1946 to April 13, 1949. The trials were:\n- The Doctors' Trial (9 December 1946 - 20 August 1947)\n- The Milch Trial (2 January - 14 April 1947)\n- The Judges' Trial (5 March - 4 December 1947)\n- The Pohl Trial (8 April - 3 November 1947)\n- The Flick Trial (19 April - 22 December 1947)\n- The IG Farben Trial (27 August 1947 - 30 July 1948)\n- The Hostages Trial (8 July 1947 – 19 February 1948)\n- The RuSHA Trial (20 October 1947 - 10 March 1948)\n- The Einsatzgruppen Trial (29 September 1947 - 10 April 1948)\n- The Krupp Trial (8 December 1947 - 31 July 1948)\n- The Ministries Trial (6 January 1948 - 13 April 1949)\n- The High Command Trial (30 December 1947 - 28 October 1948)\nIn total, 142 of the 185 defendants were found guilty of at least one of the charges. 24 persons received death sentences, of which 11 were subsequently converted into life sentences; 20 were sentenced to life imprisonment, 98 were handed down sentences of varying lengths, and 35 were acquitted. Four defendants had to be removed from trials due to illness, and four more committed suicide during the trials.\nMany of the longer prison sentences were reduced substantially by decree of high commissioner John J. McCloy in 1951, and 10 outstanding death sentences from the Einsatzgruppen Trial were converted to prison terms. The same year, an amnesty released many of those who had received prison sentences.\nSome of the NMTs have been criticised for their misguided conclusion that \"morale bombing\" of civilians, including its nuclear variety, was legal, and for their judgement that, in certain situations, executing civilians in reprisal was permissible.\nConduct of the prosecution \nIn a 2005 interview for the Washington Post, Benjamin B. Ferencz, Chief Prosecutor for the United States Army at the Einsatzgruppen Trial, revealed some of his activities during his period in Germany:\n- \"I once saw DPs beat an SS man and then strap him to the steel gurney of a crematorium. They slid him in the oven, turned on the heat and took him back out. Beat him again, and put him back in until he was burnt alive. I did nothing to stop it. I suppose I could have brandished my weapon or shot in the air, but I was not inclined to do so. Does that make me an accomplice to murder?\"\nIn the interview, Ferencz also pointed out that the military legal norms at the time permitted actions that would not be possible today.\n- \"You know how I got witness statements? I'd go into a village where, say, an American pilot had parachuted and been beaten to death and line everyone one up against the wall. Then I'd say, 'Anyone who lies will be shot on the spot.' It never occurred to me that statements taken under duress would be invalid.\"\nSee also \n- Auschwitz Trial held in Kraków, Poland in 1947 against 40 SS-staff of the Auschwitz concentration camp death factory\n- Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials, 1963–65\n- Majdanek Trials, the longest Nazi war crimes trial in history, spanning over 30 years\n- Chełmno Trials of the Chełmno extermination camp personel, held in Poland and in Germany. The cases were decided almost twenty years apart\n- Sobibor Trial held in Hagen, Germany in 1965, concerning the Sobibor extermination camp\n- Belzec Trial before the 1st Munich District Court in the mid-1960s, eight SS-men of the Belzec extermination camp\n- Belsen Trial in Lüneburg, 1945\n- Command responsibility doctrine of hierarchical accountability\n- Dachau Trials held within the walls of the former Dachau concentration camp, 1945–1948\n- Mauthausen-Gusen camp trials, 1946–47\n- Ravensbrück Trial\n- Research Materials: Max Planck Society Archive\nFurther reading"}
{"text": "Anorexia may be a disorder more of the metabolism than the mind, according to a new paper that argues the disease is a sort of cousin of diabetes.\nBut this theory of anorexia as a fundamentally biological disorder, rather than a psychological one, is untested, psychiatrists warn, and patients with the disease should not stray from proven treatments.\nThe review of past research on the topic, published in the June issue of the journal Molecular Psychiatry, finds that certain genetic and cellular processes get activated during starvation in organisms ranging from yeast to fruit flies to mice to humans. The idea, said study researcher Donard Dwyer, is that in people with a broken starvation response, a few initial rounds of dieting could trigger a metabolism gone haywire.\nIn this theory, it’s not stubbornness or a mental disorder that keeps anorexics from eating, it’s their own bodies. The theory could explain why it can be so difficult to convince anorexic patients that anything is wrong with them, Dwyer told LiveScience.\n“Unless we conceive of it as more of a metabolic function, I don’t think we’ll get past the first stage of treatment with a lot of the real hard-core patients,” he said.\nThe diabetes of starvation\nIn the current understanding of anorexia nervosa, an eating disorder in which patients don’t maintain at least 85 percent of their normal body weight for their height, overachieving personality types attempt to control stress and emotion by restricting food and/or extreme exercising.\nDwyer sees the disease, instead, as a condition similar to diabetes. Someone who becomes obese and is genetically susceptible will develop insulin resistance, which then becomes diabetes. An initial trigger — the obesity — is required, but once the patient has diabetes, you can’t talk him or her out of the disease.\nFor anorexia, Dwyer said, the potential trigger is chronic undereating or dieting, and the messed-up molecular process could be any number of biological changes that happen during starvation. In the current review, he and his colleagues focus on a cascade of genetic and cellular events called the IGF-1/Akt/FOXO pathway. Organisms from yeasts to humans activate this pathway in response to starvation, triggering all sorts of biological changes, including a desire to look for food. If this pathway doesn’t work as it should, it could theoretically cause the warped approach to eating seen in anorexia. (The so-called epigenome, the supporting actor to our genes, is what helps determine which genes, or pathways, get switched on and off.)\nIf Dwyer is right, difficult-to-treat anorexic patients may need drugs to get their metabolisms back on track, much as diabetic patients have to take insulin shots. But so far, the idea has not been tested in humans.\n“This is, at the moment, speculative,” Timothy Walsh, a psychiatrist at Columbia University who was not involved in the research, told LiveScience. “There’s no human data to support it, and it’s only part of the answer. It’s not proposed as the complete solution.”\nStarvation and metabolism\nDwyer is careful to say that much more research is needed. But he says there is good reason to continue the work. Research on obesity has shown that being too heavy is more complex than simply calories in, calories out, he said. There are genetic and metabolic factors involved that make it hard for some people to shed weight. And obesity-related changes to the epigenome (our genes’ on-off switches) can even be passed down from mother to child. The same could be true on the flip side, with starvation, Dwyer said.\nThe genes linked to anorexia could be the same ones that regulate the metabolism during starvation, he said.\nAdditionally, studies on starving people suggest that many of the supposed causes of anorexia, including food obsession and anxiety, may be symptoms of starvation. And starving people, like anorexics, often report that they’re doing much better than their physical condition would suggest.\n“Here we have our anorexic patients who are not aware of how sick they are despite how thin they have gotten. … We’re not going to be able to convince them otherwise until we understand that better,” Dwyer said. “It’s probably not going to be something we can just talk them out of.”"}
{"text": "As my 3 year old daughter, Emerson, has grown and excelled in her Montessori school, I’ve thought more and more about what my hopes are for her future education and what I believe an education should provide.\nThere’s a great deal of talk these days about standards in education. I believe that it’s time for a new type of standards. I’ve attempted to put together a set of 10 belief statements that highlight the positive perspective of Emerson’s education and my own learning experiences.\nI didn’t set out to write statements that are exclusive to Montessori, but rather aspirational for the schools that I hope will help Emerson become the best possible version of herself.\nI believe children deserve a PERSONALIZED and PURPOSEFUL education. They should be free to do INDEPENDENT, SELF-DIRECTED and FASCINATION-DRIVEN work. The classroom should be an ENVIRONMENT OF BEAUTY that allows for FREE MOVEMENT and COLLABORATION. A commitment to EXPERIMENTATION and DISCOVERY during childhood will create a foundation for lifelong learning.\n1) PERSONALIZED – I believe that a child deserves an education that is responsive to his or her individual spirit and learning style, utilizes all of the senses, and focuses on his or her dynamic development as a whole person (i.e. emotional, physical, social, spiritual, aesthetic and intellectual.)\n2) PURPOSEFUL – I believe that a child with a positive conception of purposeful and concentrated work is prepared to be present and satisfied with his or her life’s work.\n3) INDEPENDENT – I believe that a child provided an environment for independent decision-making is also prepared for responsibility in an ever-changing world.\n4) SELF-DIRECTED – I believe that a child who learns the value of self-direction and self-correction will develop a positive self-image in a world requiring self-motivation.\n5) FASCINATION-DRIVEN – I believe that a child with freedom to concentrate on his or her fascinations develops a capacity for both self-discipline and self-initiative.\n6) ENVIRONMENT OF BEAUTY – I believe that a child who is taught the value and responsibility of learning in an environment of beauty and harmony will appreciate the value of beauty and harmony in one’s life.\n7) FREE MOVEMENT – I believe that a child requires purposeful movement and activity as an integral component of realizing his or her full intellectual potential.\n8) COLLABORATION – I believe that a child engaged in a classroom collaboration of diverse ages and cultures gains an open, empathetic, and respectful perspective on participation in a community.\n9) EXPERIMENTATION – I believe that a child who is free to exercise critical thinking, experimentation and creativity will have an appreciation for the world of entrepreneurship and innovation in science and art.\n10) DISCOVERY – I believe that a child started and supported on a journey of self-discovery will also discover the possibility of self-fulfillment and a lifetime of learning both inside and outside the classroom.\nIs there something missing? Is something not clear? Does something seem misplaced, overstated or uncomfortable? Don’t worry about formal remarks. I’d just love some kneejerk wisdom from others who care as much about education as I have grown to.\nThanks to Bobby George and many others for feedback on this draft."}
{"text": "(455) At Coalface of Heating\nIn February 2003, a small factory closed down in Seoul; the demand for its product had dropped below the level which made production economically viable. Stories like this are common in Korea and they are seldom seen as newsworthy.\nBut the closure of the Samchully factory attracted the attention of the major media. The reason was simple: the factory was the last in Seoul to produce coal briquettes, known as yeontan. For decades, these briquettes kept Korean houses warm in winter. They were seen as a valuable commodity and, at some point, an embodiment of technical progress.\nHeating has always been a major problem in Korea. In the cold winters one had to keep the house warm. Since times immemorial Koreans used a very efficient system of heated floors, known as ondol, but the ondol hearth had to be fed with fuel. For centuries, it was firewood, but by the early 1900s the use of firewood was increasingly inconvenient.\nThis was due to two major problems. First of all, population growth meant that most mountains around towns were virtually stripped barren (this is still the case in North Korea). Firewood was in short supply, and expensive.\nSecond, the available low-quality firewood was a capricious fuel. It was very time-consuming to feed the hearth. Thus, Korean housewives welcomed the arrival of yeontan with great relief.\nWhat does a yeontan look like? I am pretty sure that many readers have seen these briquettes somewhere on Seoul’s streets. They are cylindrical and about the size of a paint can, with a number of drilled holes _ the standard yeontan had 22 holes. The holes are necessary to make it burn steadily and efficiently.\nThe standard briquette weighs 3.5 kg. Yeontan were produced from a mixture of coal dust and a special gluing agent which kept the dust particles together.\nIt was the standard weight and size that made yeontan so hugely popular. Unlike ``natural’’ coal and firewood, yeontan came in a predictable shape.\nOne could easily stack a few briquettes on top of each other in a stove and leave them burning slowly for hours. In addition, the technology of their composition made it possible to utilize low-quality coal and coal dust.\nWhen did the history of yeontan begin? Despite my labors, I could not find a definite answer. These briquettes are not unique to Korea and their close cousins are widely used in China and Japan as well. This makes me suspect that the yeontan was invented in the early 1900s, but where and by whom I know not.\nThe first yeontan were introduced to Korea by the Japanese in the late 1920s, but for a long time these briquettes remained an expensive luxury. The spread of yeontan began only after the 1950-53 Korean War when the price went down just as firewood became prohibitively expensive.\nKorean households enthusiastically took up the new fuel which _ as they soon discovered _ was so much more convenient than firewood. In a poll conducted in 1970, Koreans even chose yeontan as ``the most important product of our time’’ (in a 2000 poll, the same significance was ascribed to the mobile phone).\nThe government also supported the switch to yeontan _ it helped to protect the then dwindling forests.\nHowever, yeontan was not without its dangers. The most serious one was the ever-present danger of carbon monoxide poisoning.\nThis odorless and colorless gas could filter through the cracks of a damaged ondol floor and suffocate the victims while they were sleeping. Strict precautions were always taken, but gas poisoning remained a major case of death in Korea until quite recently.\nIn 1988, 77.8 percent of all Korean households used yeontan briquettes for heating and/or cooking. By 1993, that percentage had dropped to 32.8 percent. The 1997-98 Asian financial crisis and high oil prices of the late 1990s briefly reversed the trend, but soon the retreat of the venerable coal briquettes continued.\nIn 2001 a mere 1.5 percent of families were still using yeontan. People were switching to oil and gas boilers, generally more expensive but also more convenient and safe (no danger of gas poisoning: the floor was heated not by fumes, but by hot water).\nThus, the good old yeontan is going to soon become extinct. New, automated and computerized heating systems are replacing the coal briquettes. The introduction of these systems has greatly changed the daily lives of Koreans.\nProf. Andrei Lankov was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, and now teaches at Kookmin University in Seoul."}
{"text": "January 10, 2012\nCarlos Peres and Maurício Schneider review the environmental and socioeconomic costs of Brazil's agrarian resettlement schemes, which have run from the 1970s as part an effort to to encourage migration from densely settled areas to low population regions. The largest, run by the Institute for Rural Settlement and Agrarian Reform (INCRA), has moved nearly a million families to settlements encompassing 85.8 million hectares of mostly forest land. The impact on forests has been substantial — by 2004 15 percent of all deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon had occurred in INCRA areas. The proportion has since climbed, with some INCRA settlements reaching 70 percent forest loss.\nFragmentation due to colonization in the Brazilian Amazon. Image courtesy of Google Earth\nBut while the programs drive deforestation, the economic benefits for settlers are less than clear, according to the authors.\n\"The environmental and monetary costs associated with these resettlement schemes are rarely outweighed by the socioeconomic benefits accrued to translocated farmers,\" they write. \"At an average start-up resettlement cost of at least US$12,000 per family, this is an expensive development program.\"\nFrom a macroeconomic standpoint, this strategic investment policy is highly questionable. Brazil was the first tropical country to join the traditional 'big five' breadbaskets, but this 'agricultural revolution' was largely spearheaded by large rather than small properties. Only 8% of the country’s 5.2 million farms are relatively large landholdings (>100 ha) but they earn 52.5% of the overall farm income. This highlights the sociopolitical polarity between highly productive large corporate farms and myriads of relatively inefficient smallholdings.\nThus Peres and Schneider conclude with a call to limit new agricultural settlements to previously deforested areas that are presently used for low-yield cattle pasture; improved law enforcement and forest monitoring programs; and a \"truly integrated policy framework\" that reconciles conflicting policy goals between different government sectors.\n\"Above all,\" write Peres and Schneider, \"both a reorganization of land-tenure law enforcement in settler destination regions and curbing the outflow of migrants from source regions will be central to improving the dismal environmental record of land redistribution policy in Brazil.\"\nCITATION: Carlos Peres and Maurício Schneider. Subsidized agricultural resettlements as drivers of tropical deforestation. Biological Conservation (2011) doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2011.11.011"}
{"text": "\"Actually get to have hands on experience of harvesting and preparing their own food,\" Adrienne Shaunfield, Community Food Systems Coordinator for Feed Fayetteville said.\nHead Start is a preschool program for children whose families fall under the poverty guidelines. Feed Fayetteville teamed up to build a garden for them last month to introduce them to a new way of getting food.\n\"When kids take ownership of their food choices, they're more likely to be excited about it and also to want to try new things,\" Shaunfield said.\nLearning to grow their own food is not just cost effective, but studies have shown that the more time kids spend in a garden, the more vegetables kids will eat.\n\"It's not just mom or dad is making me eat it, but I want to eat it because I helped grow it. If a child pulls a carrot out of the dirt they're more likely to eat it than if you serve one to them on a plate.\"\nShaunfield said what kids learn in the garden they're likely to bring back home to their parents.\n\"I think that children really do influence their parents choices at the grocery store. I know mine do anyway.\"\nFeed Fayetteville also has a farmer's market style program for families called SNAP Garden. It allows families to use food stamps to buy fresh, local produce. Shaunfield said a key element to the program however, is starting them young.\n\"I think it's really important to start healthy eating habits at an early age, and by building the garden here at Head Start we've created an environment that is a learning space for the kids.\"\nFeed Fayetteville is having a food drive throughout October called Protein, Produce and Pennies to help support local families in need. For more information on the programs visit, www.feedfayetteville.org"}
{"text": "Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are an ancient group of molecules that are expressed in many species ranging from bacteria to humans. At least 1200 naturally-occurring AMPs have been identified which display considerable diversity in their primary sequences, lengths, structures, and biological activities (Wang et al., 2009). Generally speaking, these peptides have been studied due to their ability to directly kill medically important-microbes. Indeed, the increased demand for novel anti-infective therapies (due to the spread of drug-resistant bacteria) has likely contributed to the expansion of this field of research. However, there has been a definite change of focus in AMP research in light of the recent recognition of the regulatory functions of these molecules in the innate immune system. This has opened up the exciting possibility of developing novel antimicrobial therapies that centre on boosting host immunity rather than direct microbial killing (Zhang and Falla, 2010). In this volume, with emphasis on emerging technologies, mechanism of action studies and roles in disease, we aim to consolidate some of these developments and stimulate discussion on the therapeutic potential of these important molecules.\nThe first three articles demonstrate how knowledge of AMP structure and amino acid composition is guiding rational peptide design strategies aimed at improving the therapeutic potential of these molecules. Mishra and Wang describe the development of a comprehensive AMP database that is enabling us to link amino acid composition with specific peptide activities (e.g., antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antiparasital, insecticidal, spermicidal, anticancer, etc.). The article suggests how this information may be used to develop novel peptides with a desired activity. Next, Scorciapino and Rinaldi discuss how knowledge of the amino acid sequence of naturally-occurring AMPs can be used to dictate the design of antimicrobial peptidomimetics. The authors note that by retaining the biological activity of natural AMPs and improving their pharmacokinetic properties, these novel molecules may allow systemic use of AMPs to treat microbial infections. The third article by Devocelle describes how conjugation of AMPs to targeting moieties can improve delivery to their desired site of action and reduce potential off-target effects. It is clear that the complementary approaches described in these three articles will play an important part in making therapeutic AMPs a reality.\nThe next two articles describe different, but equally powerful, approaches that may be used to probe the biological functions of AMPs. The development of various “–omics” (genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and others) technologies has truly revolutionised biological research. In this regard, Plichta et al. discuss how the integration of various—omics datasets can help us to understand the role of AMPs in varied contexts from resolution of infections, improvement of prognosis for cancer patients to early detection of transplant rejection. The fifth article by Munoz and Read highlights the use of live cell imaging to study AMP function. With emphasis on the various approaches that may be used to label AMPs, this article demonstrates the central role live cell imaging continues to play in the elucidation of AMP function.\nThe next six articles in this research topic cover recent advances in our understanding of the biological role of AMPs and their mechanism(s) of action. Brender et al. examine the role of cholesterol in dictating the selectivity of AMPs for microbial membranes. Defining the role of cholesterol in AMP-mediated cytotoxicity is important, especially if AMPs are to be used therapeutically. Melo and Castanho discuss the various experimental approaches that may be used to answer this very question. By comparing the use of bacterial membranes with model liposomal membranes, they illustrate the importance of physiological relevance in experimental design. The next two articles in this series illustrate how helminths express AMP homologues that are functionally adapted to either a free-living or parasitic lifestyle. For example, Pujol et al. describe the array of AMPs expressed by the model nematode Caenorhabditis elelgans and how they serve to protect the worm against attack by fungi in the free-living environment. Next, Cotton et al. probe the role of AMP homologues that are secreted by medically-important parasitic worms. This interesting family of molecules may hold the key to the evolution of immunomodulatory function in AMPs. In the following two articles, Ulm et al. and Choi and Mookherjee discuss advances in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms by which members of these major AMP families influence immune cell function.\nThe final two articles in the volume cover the role of AMPs in disease resolution and the outlook for their therapeutic use in humans. The article by David describes how AMPs may fill a gap in our existing therapeutic repertoire. David builds the case for the use of polymyxins to treat Gram-negative sepsis, a condition for which there is currently no single effective therapeutic approach. The article by Berditsch et al. concludes the volume and describes how, perhaps surprisingly, AMPs can stimulate bacterial survival mechanisms leading to persistent infections. This article highlights the importance of understanding how microbial populations respond to exposure to AMPs before they can be used in the clinic.\nIn summary, by inviting opinion articles from leading AMP researchers, the aim of this volume was to highlight recent advances in our understanding of the roles of these important molecules. We also hope that the articles compiled will stimulate discussion and further research in this area so that the therapeutic potential of AMPs may be realised.\nCitation: Robinson MW, Hutchinson AT and Donnelly S (2012) Antimicrobial peptides: utility players in innate immunity. Front. Immun. 3:325. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2012.00325\nReceived: 05 October 2012; Accepted: 08 October 2012;\nPublished online: 25 October 2012.\nCopyright © 2012 Robinson, Hutchinson and Donnelly. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in other forums, provided the original authors and source are credited and subject to any copyright notices concerning any third-party graphics etc."}
{"text": "Life of St. King Stephen of Decani\nKing Stephen of Decani is one of the best known Saints of the\nSerbian Orthodox Church. Through his holy and incorruptible relics\nGod has performed numerous miracles.\nas the Serbian people suffer through another turbulent chapter in their\nhistory, they would do well to bring to mind the exemplary character\nof their martyred King Stephen Uros III (Decanski).\nHe was born the\neldest son of the saintly King Milutin (Stephen Uros II) and his wife\nElizabeth, a Hungarian princess. Living at the court of his parents,\nthe heir-apparent received a good education, his mind exercised by study\nof the language and writings of his people, and his heart strengthened\nby study of the Holy Scripture and the teachings of the Orthodox Faith.\nThe good fruit of his upbringing proved itself when King Milutin was\nforced to send him as hostage to the Tartar chief Nogyi. In spite of\nthe potential dangers, Stephen was obedient to his father's will and\ndid not resist, trusting his life to the Lord. And his hope was not\nin vain. He eventually made friends with one of the Tartar nobles, who\nsucceeded in assisting his safe return home.\nWhen Stephen came of age, his parents arranged that he marry the daughter\nof the Bulgarian King Smilatz, and the young couple were given the land\nof Zeta, where they settled until such a time as Stephen would be called\nto succeed his father to the throne. Meanwhile, King Milutin had remarried,\nand his second wife, Simonide, plotted in order that their son Constantine\ninherit the throne. She convinced Milutin that Stephen wanted to seize\nthe throne prematurely, and the deceived Milutin ordered that his son\nbe captured, that he be blinded to ensure that he never again entertain\nsuch treachery, and that he be sent as a prisoner to Constantinople.\nThe coffin of St. King Stephan of Decani, 14th century\nThe prince was taken\ntogether with his children, Dusan and Dusica, and when they were passing\nthrough Ovcepole (Sheep's Field), the guards took red hot pokers and\nblinded him. That night St. Nicholas appeared to Stephen in a dream:\n\"Be not afraid,\" he said, \"your eyes are in my hands.\"\nComforted not a little by this vision, the sightless Stephen arrived\nin Constantinople. The Emperor Andronicus pitied the young exile, and\nreceived him graciously. He was soon settled in the monastery of Pantocrator,\nwhere he impressed the monks by his meekness and his longsuffering acceptance\nof the bitter trial that had come to him through his own father.\nyears passed. King Milutin was growing old. Hearing good reports about\nhis son, his heart softened, and he called Stephen home to Serbia. Before\nleaving Constantinople, Stephen had a dream in which St. Nicholas appeared\nto him a second time, holding in his hand a pair of eyes. When he awoke,\nhis sight was restored.\nThree years later, his father died, and Stephen, always popular with\nthe people, was crowned King of Serbia by the holy Archbishop Nikodim\nin the church at Pec. His halfbrother, Constantine, resented this turn\nof events, and raised an army in order to wrest the throne away from\nStephen. Desiring to avoid bloodshed, King Stephen addressed a letter\n\"Put far from thee thy desire to come with a foreign people to\nmake war on shine own countrymen; but let us meet one another, and thou\nshalt be second in my kingdom, for the land is great enough for me and\nthee to live. I am not Cain who slew his brother, but Joseph who loved\nhim, and in his words I speak to thee. Fear not, for I am from the Lord.\nYou prepared evil for me, but the Lord has given me good, as you now\nwas unmoved and gave orders to attack. In the ensuing battle, his army\nwas defeated and he himself was slain. For the next ten years, King\nStephen ruled in relative peace, and the Serbian land prospered. His\nson Dusan proved to be an able military leader and was successful in\nbattles with the Bulgarians and the Greeks, who were envious of the\nnow powerful Serbian state and rose up against it. Grateful to the Lord\nfor these victories, King Stephen set about with Archbishop Daniel,\nNikodim,s successor, to find a place to build a church. They settled\nupon a place called Decani, and there, in 1327, King Stephen himself\nlaid the cornerstone for what was to become one of the most magnificent\nand enduring specimens of Serbian church architecture. Inside it was\ngraced by splendid icons, to which more were added in the sixteenth\ncentury by the hand of the celebrated Slav iconographer, Longinos.\nSt. King Stefan of Decani, fresco Decani Monastery, 14th\nclick for a larger size image\nSaint Stephen gave generously to the needy.\nHe also made liberal donations to churches and monasteries on the Holy\nMountain, in Jerusalem, Alexandria, and to the monastery of Pantocrator\nin Constantinople. Nor did he forget his debt to the wonderworker Nicholas:\nhe commissioned a silver altar and sent it together with some icons\nto the church in Bari, Italy, where the Saint's holy relics are located.\nSt. King Stefan - a woodcarving (miniature)\nHaving in a true Christian manner endured the grievous trials and afflictions\nwhich he met through the years, the good king deserved to live out the\nrest of his life in peace. But it was only fitting that he who suffered\nas a martyr in life should be granted an opportunity to receive in death\na martyr's crown. His final trial was the most agonizing. Dusan's successes\non the field of battle had given him an appetite for power and glory,\nand, encouraged by his entourage of nobles, he decided to hasten his\nfather's death. In 1331, St. Stephen was taken prisoner to a fortress\nin the town of Zvecan and cruelly murdered (by some accounts he was\nhung, according to another he was strangled).\nAlmost immediately Dusan was struck by remorse. He earnestly and tearfully\nrepented of his treachery, and the next year, on the feast of the Holy\nApostles Peter and Paul, he had his father's remains transferred from\nZvecan to Decani, where they were placed in a marble tomb. In 1339 the\ntomb was opened, and his body was found to be incorrupt. That same day\nsaw many miracles of healing. Especially did the holy king prove to\nheal diseases of the eyes, and at his relics blind people received their\nFr. Kozma Vasilopoulos\nThe Orthodox Monastery of St Michael, Sidney\nrelics of St. King Stephen of Decani\nSignature of St. King Stefan in his Decani Monastery\nFoundation Charter, 14c.\nTO DECANI MONASTERY PAGE"}
{"text": "Bacterial vaginosis is a mild infection in the vagina caused by a type of bacteria (germ). The vagina normally contains a lot of \"good\" bacteria, called lactobacilli (say: \"lack-toe bah-sil-li\"), and a few other types of bacteria, called anaerobes (say: \"ann-air-robes\"). Too many anaerobes can cause bacterial vaginosis. It is not known why the anaerobe bacteria overgrow and cause this infection.\nYou may notice a discharge from your vagina. The discharge may be clear or colored. It may be very light or heavy. It may have a fishy smell, especially after you have sexual intercourse. Some women have bacterial vaginosis without any symptoms.\nBacterial vaginosis is an overgrowth of bacteria that are normally in the vagina. Researchers do not completely understand why it occurs. However, activities such as douching or having a new sexual partner or multiple sexual partners can put you at greater risk for bacterial vaginosis. While it's more common in women who are sexually active, it also occurs in women who are not sexually active. It's not usually necessary for your sex partner to be treated.\nYour doctor will examine your vagina and use a cotton swab to get a sample of the discharge. This sample will be tested.\nYes. If the infection isn't treated, the bacteria may get up into the uterus or the fallopian tubes and cause more serious infections. Treating bacterial vaginosis lowers this risk. Treatment is especially important in pregnant women.\nIt can be treated in one of several ways. Your doctor may prescribe pills for you to take by mouth, or a cream or gel to put in your vagina. It's important to use your medicine exactly as your doctor tells you.\nIf your doctor prescribes metronidazole or other medicines, don't drink any alcohol while taking the medicine or for 24 hours afterward. Combining alcohol with these medicines can cause nausea and vomiting. Even the small amount of alcohol in many cough syrups can cause nausea and vomiting if you're taking metronidazole. Also, be sure to tell your doctor about any other medicines you are currently taking.\nWritten by familydoctor.org editorial staff"}
{"text": "Coloring pages - Edupics.com\nAll videos (0)\nAmusement park (15)\nChildren's rights (14)\nSpace exploration (103)\nFairy tales (286)\nYouth organization (25)\nFamous people (182)\nFilm and television (67)\nairplane, anatomy, animals, army, baby, beach, bike, birds, boat, boy, butterfly, car, cars, cat, chicken, children, clothes, cow, doctor, dog, dragon, duck, easter bunny, easter eggs, eating, egypt, Elephant, fairy, family, fish, flag, flower, flowers, food, forest, frog, Fruit, garden, girl, graffiti, guitar, heart, hippie, horse, house, human body, ice cream, lion, love, mandala, mandalas, meat, Mexico, MICHAEL JACKSON, monkey, music, music notes, ocean, peace, PEOPLE, pig, princess, rabbit, ROSES, school, spain, sports, sun, teacher, tiger, train, tree, Vegetables, water, weather\nColoring pages, pictures and crafts at Edupics.comEducational pictures, photos and crafts\nOn our website, we offer you a wide selection of coloring pages, pictures, photographs and handicrafts.\nEverything has been classified in themes which are commonly used in primary education.\nThe coloring pages are especially designed to be used throughout the year at school.\nColoring pages are widely used as an educational means in upbringing and education.\nIn a school environment these useful tools can be applied in many ways:\n- to visually clarify concepts that are taught in the classroom.\n- to remind the children of made agreements or certain class assignments.\n- to help children express themselves, or to deal with certain issues.\n- to have fun, relax or encourage creativity.\nAs their educational application is versatile, coloring pages can be a valuable tool in the general upbringing and education of children.\nThis site runs on 100% Green Power!\nPowered by MDKMedia."}
{"text": "US 6543011 B1\nA method for recording events in Java. According to a preferred embodiment, an automator is attached to a Java applet. Responsive to selection by a user, listeners are added for each event type produced in the Java applet. Each time a specified event occurs, that event is captured and saved to a data structure. The recording of events is performed until the user stops the process.\n1. A data processor implemented method of recording events, the steps comprising:\nloading an application;\nadding listeners for each event type produced in the application;\ncapturing user generated events;\nrecording the user generated events to a data structure; and\nreplaying the user generated events.\n2. The method as recited in\n3. The method as recited in\n4. The method as recited in\n5. The method as recited in\n6. The method as recited in\n7. The method of\n8. The method of\n9. A computer program product in computer readable media for use in a data processing system for recording events, the computer program product comprising:\nfirst instructions for loading an application;\nsecond instructions for adding listeners for each event type produced in the application;\nthird instructions for capturing user generated events;\nfourth instructions for recording the user generated events to a data structure; and\nfifth instructions for replaying the user generated events.\n10. The computer program product as recited in\n11. The computer program product as recited in\n12. The computer program product as recited in\n13. The computer program product as recited in\n14. The computer program product as recited in\n15. The computer program product of\n16. The computer program product of\n17. A system for recording events, comprising:\nmeans for loading an application;\nmeans for adding listeners for each event type produced in the application; and\nmeans for capturing user generated events;\nmeans for recording the user generated events to a data structure; and\nmeans for replaying the user generated events.\n18. The system as recited in\n19. The system as recited in\n20. The system as recited in\n21. The system as recited in\n22. The system as recited in\n23. The system of\n24. The system of\n25. A method of recording events, the steps comprising:\nloading an application;\nadding a listener for an event type;\ncapturing an event;\nrecording the event; and\nreplaying the event.\n26. The method as recited in\n27. The method as recited in\n28. The method as recited in\n29. The method of\n30. The method of\n31. A system for recording events generated by an application, comprising:\na listener; and\na file; wherein\nthe automator is attached to an application and adds the listener to a component of an application; and\nthe listener monitors events of the event type received from a system queue within the application and posts received events to the file.\n1. Technical Field\nThe present invention relates generally to computer software and, more specifically, to methods of recording events in Java.\n2. Description of Related Art\nThe evolution of programming languages has, to a great extent, been driven by changes in the hardware being programmed. As hardware has grown faster, cheaper, and more powerful, software has become larger and more complex. The migration from assembly languages to procedural languages, such as C, and to object-oriented languages, such as C++ and Java, was largely driven by a need to manage ever greater complexity—complexity made possible by increasingly powerful hardware.\nToday, the progression toward cheaper, faster, and more powerful hardware continues, as does the need for managing increasing software complexity. Building on C and C++, Java helps programmers deal with complexity by rendering impossible certain kinds of bugs that frequently plague C and C++ programmers.\nIn addition to the increasing capabilities of hardware, there is another fundamental shift taking place that impacts upon software programming, that is the network. As networks interconnect more and more computers and devices, new demands are being placed on software. One of these demands is platform independence.\nJava supports platform independence primarily through the creation of the Java Virtual Machine. The Java Virtual Machine is an abstract computer, and its specification defines certain features every Java Virtual Machine must have. However, the specification for the Java Virtual Machine is flexible, enabling it to be implemented on a wide variety of computers, devices, and operating systems. One of the main tasks performed by a Java Virtual Machine is to load class files and execute the bytecodes they contain.\nOne type of program executed by a Java Virtual Machine is an applet. An applet is a Java program that has a set of standard properties that are defined by the applet class. This class was developed by Sun Microsystems and is included in the standard Java Software Development Kit (Java SDK).\nAlthough, theoretically, a program written in Java for one platform should perform on any Java enabled platform, given the allowable differences among Java platform implementations and other factors, a Java program or applet should be tested on all platforms on which it is anticipated to perform. Since user actions in Java are handled by events, and since it can sometimes take many hours or days for a problem to manifest itself, testing of the entire Java Virtual Machine on a platform can be very tedious. Therefore, it is desirable to provide methods of automating the functional testing of the Java platform on various systems.\nHowever, current methods of automating testing of the Java platform on various systems requires a specialized execution environment, as well as compilation of a separate program. Furthermore, current methods require that the applet or application must be exited before any automation can take place, and they require a significant amount of system resources. Therefore, there is a need for a simpler method of testing the Java platform, that does not require recompilation of code, that does not require the applet or application to be exited before automation, and that uses fewer system resources.\nThe present invention provides a data processor implemented method for recording events in Java. According to a preferred embodiment, an automator is attached to a Java applet. Responsive to selection by a user, listeners are added for each event type produced in the Java applet. Each time a specified event occurs, that event is captured and saved to a data structure. The recording of events is performed until the user stops the process.\nThe novel features believed characteristic of the invention are set forth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:\nFIG. 1 is a pictorial representation of a distributed data processing system;\nFIG. 2 is a block diagram of a data processing system that may be implemented as a server;\nFIG. 3 is a block diagram of a data processing system;\nFIG. 4 is a block diagram of a Java virtual machine (JVM);\nFIG. 5 depicts a sample user interface to an applet recorder;\nFIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating how events are currently handled within Java applets;\nFIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating how events are handled when an automator is attached to a Java applet;\nFIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating how the applet recorder functions;\nFIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating the function performed by an automator listener; and\nFIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating the three main parts of an object created by an automator listener.\nWith reference now to the figures, and in particular with reference to FIG. 1, a pictorial representation of a distributed data processing system is depicted in which the present invention may be implemented.\nDistributed data processing system 100 is a network of computers in which the present invention may be implemented. Distributed data processing system 100 contains network 102, which is the medium used to provide communications links between various devices and computers connected within distributed data processing system 100. Network 102 may include permanent connections, such as wire or fiber optic cables, or temporary connections made through telephone connections.\nIn the depicted example, server 104 is connected to network 102, along with storage unit 106. In addition, clients 108, 110 and 112 are also connected to network 102. These clients, 108, 110 and 112, may be, for example, personal computers or network computers. For purposes of this application, a network computer is any computer coupled to a network, which receives a program or other application from another computer coupled to the network. In the depicted example, server 104 provides data, such as boot files, operating system images and applications, to clients 108-112. Clients 108, 110 and 112 are clients to server 104. Distributed data processing system 100 may include additional servers, clients, and other devices not shown.\nIn the depicted example, distributed data processing system 100 is the Internet, with network 102 representing a worldwide collection of networks and gateways that use the TCP/IP suite of protocols to communicate with one another. At the heart of the Internet is a backbone of high-speed data communication lines between major nodes or host computers consisting of thousands of commercial, government, education, and other computer systems that route data and messages. Of course, distributed data processing system 100 also may be implemented as a number of different types of networks such as, for example, an intranet or a local area network.\nFIG. 1 is intended as an example and not as an architectural limitation for the processes of the present invention.\nReferring to FIG. 2, a block diagram of a data processing system which may be implemented as a server, such as server 104 in FIG. 1, is depicted in accordance with the present invention. Data processing system 200 may be a symmetric multiprocessor (SMP) system including a plurality of processors 202 and 204 connected to system bus 206. Alternatively, a single processor system may be employed. Also connected to system bus 206 is memory controller/cache 208, which provides an interface to local memory 209. I/O bus bridge 210 is connected to system bus 206 and provides an interface to I/O bus 212. Memory controller/cache 208 and I/O bus bridge 210 may be integrated as depicted.\nPeripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus bridge 214 connected to I/O bus 212 provides an interface to PCI local bus 216. A number of modems 218-220 may be connected to PCI bus 216. Typical PCI bus implementations will support four PCI expansion slots or add-in connectors. Communications links to network computers 108-112 in FIG. 1 may be provided through modem 218 and network adapter 220 connected to PCI local bus 216 through add-in boards.\nAdditional PCI bus bridges 222 and 224 provide interfaces for additional PCI buses 226 and 228, from which additional modems or network adapters may be supported. In this manner, server 200 allows connections to multiple network computers. A memory mapped graphics adapter 230 and hard disk 232 may also be connected to I/O bus 212 as depicted, either directly or indirectly.\nThose of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the hardware depicted in FIG. 2 may vary. For example, other peripheral devices, such as optical disk drives and the like, also may be used in addition to or in place of the hardware depicted. The depicted example is not meant to imply architectural limitations with respect to the present invention.\nThe data processing system depicted in FIG. 2 may be, for example, an IBM RISC/System 6000, a product of International Business Machines Corporation in Armonk, N.Y., running the Advanced Interactive Executive (AIX) operating system.\nWith reference now to FIG. 3, a block diagram of a data processing system in which the present invention may be implemented is illustrated. Data processing system 300 is an example of a client computer. Data processing system 300 employs a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) local bus architecture. Although the depicted example employs a PCI bus, other bus architectures, such as Micro Channel and ISA, may be used. Processor 302 and main memory 304 are connected to PCI local bus 306 through PCI bridge 308. PCI bridge 308 may also include an integrated memory controller and cache memory for processor 302. Additional connections to PCI local bus 306 may be made through direct component interconnection or through add-in boards. In the depicted example, local area network (LAN) adapter 310, SCSI host bus adapter 312, and expansion bus interface 314 are connected to PCI local bus 306 by direct component connection. In contrast, audio adapter 316, graphics adapter 318, and audio/video adapter (A/V) 319 are connected to PCI local bus 306 by add-in boards inserted into expansion slots. Expansion bus interface 314 provides a connection for a keyboard and mouse adapter 320, modem 322, and additional memory 324. In the depicted example, SCSI host bus adapter 312 provides a connection for hard disk drive 326, tape drive 328, CD-ROM drive 330, and digital versatile disc read only memory drive (DVD-ROM) 332. Typical PCI local bus implementations will support three or four PCI expansion slots or add-in connectors.\nAn operating system runs on processor 302 and is used to coordinate and provide control of various components within data processing system 300 in FIG. 3. The operating system may be a commercially available operating system, such as OS/2, which is available from International Business Machines Corporation. “OS/2” is a trademark of International Business Machines Corporation. An object oriented programming system, such as Java, may run in conjunction with the operating system, providing calls to the operating system from Java programs or applications executing on data processing system 300. Instructions for the operating system, the object-oriented operating system, and applications or programs are located on a storage device, such as hard disk drive 326, and may be loaded into main memory 304 for execution by processor 302.\nThose of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the hardware in FIG. 3 may vary depending on the implementation. For example, other peripheral devices, If; such as optical disk drives and the like, may be used in addition to or in place of the hardware depicted in FIG. 3. The depicted example is not meant to imply architectural limitations with respect to the present invention. For example, the processes of the present invention may be applied to multiprocessor data processing systems.\nWith reference now to FIG. 4, a block diagram of a Java virtual machine (JVM) is depicted in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. JVM 400 includes a class loader subsystem 402, which is a mechanism for loading types, such as classes and interfaces, given fully qualified names. JVM 400 also contains runtime data areas 404, execution engine 406, native method interface 408, and memory management 424. Execution engine 406 is a mechanism for executing instructions contained in the methods of classes loaded by class loader subsystem 402. Execution engine 406 may be, for example, Java interpreter 412 or just-in-time compiler 410. Native method interface 408 allows access to resources in the underlying operating system. Native method interface 408 may be, for example, a Java native interface.\nRuntime data areas 404 contain native method stacks 414, Java stacks 416, PC registers 418, method area 420, and heap 422. These different data areas represent the organization of memory needed by JVM 400 to execute a program.\nJava stacks 416 are used to store the state of Java method invocations. When a new thread is launched, the JVM creates a new Java stack for the thread. The JVM performs only two operations directly on Java stacks; it pushes and pops frames. A thread's Java stack stores the state of Java method invocations for the thread. The state of a Java method invocation includes its local variables, the parameters with which it was invoked, its return value, if any, and intermediate calculations.\nJava stacks are composed of stack frames. A stack frame contains the state of a single Java method invocation. When a thread invokes a method, the JVM pushes a new frame onto the Java stack of the thread. When the method completes, the JVM pops the frame for that method and discards it. A JVM does not have any registers for holding intermediate values; any Java instruction that requires or produces an intermediate value uses the stack for holding the intermediate values. In this manner, the Java instruction set is well defined for a variety of platform architectures.\nPC registers 418 are used to indicate the next instruction to be executed. Each instantiated thread gets its own PC register (program counter) and Java stack. If the thread is executing a JVM method, the value of the PC register indicates the next instruction to execute. If the thread is executing a native method, then the contents of the PC register are undefined.\nNative method stacks 414 store the state of invocations of native methods. The state of native method invocations is stored in an implementation-dependent way in native method stacks, registers, or other implementation-dependent memory areas. In some JVM implementations, native method stacks 414 and Java stacks 416 are combined.\nMethod area 420 contains class data, while heap 422 contains all instantiated objects. The JVM specification strictly defines data types and operations. Most JVM implementations choose to have one method area and one heap, each of which is shared by all threads running inside the JVM. When the JVM loads a class file, it parses information about a type from the binary data contained in the class file. It places this type information into the method area. Each time a class instance or array is created, the memory for the new object is allocated from heap 422. JVM 400 includes an instruction that allocates memory space within the memory for heap 422 but includes no instruction for freeing that space within the memory. In the depicted example, memory management 424 manages memory space within the memory allocated to heap 422. Memory management 424 may include a garbage collector that automatically reclaims memory used by objects that are no longer referenced by an application. Additionally, a garbage collector also may move objects to reduce heap fragmentation.\nTurning now to FIG. 5, there is depicted a screen image of user interface 500 for an applet recorder in accordance with the present invention, which may run on top of a JVM such as JVM 400. User interface 500 contains a start record button 510 to start recording events, and a stop record button 520 to stop recording events. User interface 500 also contains a close button 530 to close the applet recorder. The applet is viewed in area 550 on the left side of user interface 500.\nThe applet is loaded and started prior to receiving a request to record events. Thus, in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5, the applet has been loaded and started. Start record button 510 is enabled because recording has not commenced. Stop record button 520 is not enabled, for the same reason.\nTurning now to FIG. 6, there is shown a block diagram illustrating normal Java applet operation that runs on top of a JVM such as JVM 400 and may be implemented in a data processing system such as data processing system 300. An applet 620 must be loaded into an applet viewer, such as the applet viewers within Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer. Applet 620 contains all of the user-accessible components. Once applet 620 is loaded, it creates a standard Java class of event listeners (shown in FIG. 6 as applet listeners 640) that are attached to these components and system queue 650. It should be noted that several applet listeners may be (and usually will be) used.\nApplet listeners 640 are event listeners. An event listener is any object that implements one or more listener interfaces. There are different listeners for each category of event in Java. For instance, the MouseListener interface defines methods such as MouseClicked, MousePressed, and MouseReleased. In order to receive events from a component, an object adds itself as a listener for that component's events. If an object implements the MouseListener interface, it listens for a component's mouse events by calling addMouseListener on that component. This allows a component's events to be handled without having to create a subclass of the component, and without handling the events in the parent container.\nIn response to user input 610 on a component in applet 620, such as moving a mouse, a keystroke, or a drag operation, an event 630 is constructed and posted on system queue 650. System queue 650 then dispatches this event to any applet listeners 640 on that component. The component's applet listeners 640 execute tasks according to the properties of event 630. Examples of tasks performed by applet listeners 640 include loading or saving information to a file when a button is depressed, playing a sound or displaying an image when the mouse cursor is moved over a specific area, and closing a program when a specific combination of keys is pressed.\nTurning now to FIG. 7, there is a block diagram illustrating an applet recorder 700 in accordance with the present invention. Applet recorder 700 runs on top of a JVM, such as JVM 400, and may be implemented in a data processing system, such as data processing system 600. Applet recorder 700 consists of automator 760, which loads an applet 620 from a database located either on the local data processing system or on a network computer, such as server 104, for viewing. Automator 760 references applet 620 and adds automator listeners 770 to each of the applet 620 components. In response to user input 610 to a component of applet 620, an event 630 is constructed and posted on system queue 650, as is done with normal applet operation as discussed above.\nHowever, system queue 650 not only dispatches event 630 to applet listeners 640, but also it dispatches event 630 to automator listeners 770 on that component. Automator listeners 770 receive an event 630 and store event 630 information to automator queue 780. When the recording session is complete, automator queue 780 contains all of the events that have occurred on applet 620 components. These events can then be played back by being posted to system queue 650 in the same order in which they were recorded.\nAutomator listeners 770 are similar to applet listeners 640, and are created by the automator and attached to each component of the applet 620. However, rather than perform a specified task to implement applet 620 as applet listeners 640 are programmed to do, automator listeners 770 capture events 630 and record them to automator queue 780, thereby recording the events such that they may be played back at a later time. By having these events stored, testing of a Java Virtual Machine, such as JVM 400, on a particular platform may be automated by having applet recorder 700 replay the user-generated events, thus freeing a person from this tedious task. These events may be required to be played back several times over a period of hours or days.\nTurning now to FIG. 8, there is shown a flowchart illustrating a preferred method for recording events with applet recorder 700. After the applet recorder is started, it waits in idle mode (step 805) until it receives an indication from a user to start recording events 630 from an applet 620 (step 810). Once the indication to start recording is received from the user, an applet 620 is loaded into applet recorder 700 (step 815). The applet recorder then adds automator listeners 770 to each component of the applet (step 820), and then waits for user input (step 825).\nIf user input is received (step 830), then an event is constructed and posted to system queue 650. The system queue dispatches event 630 to automator listeners 770, which capture event 630 (step 835) and record event 630 to automator queue 780 (step 840) for later playback. Applet recorder 700 then continues to wait for user input (step 825).\nIf no user input is received (step 830), then the applet recorder determines if a stop recording command has been received from the user (step 845). If no stop recording command has been received (step 845), then applet recorder 700 continues to wait for user input (step 825). The recording of events generated by the user through applet 620 thus continues until a stop recording command is received (step 845). When a stop recording command is received, automator listeners 770 are removed, and applet recorder 700 ceases to record events generated by applet 620 (step 850). Applet recorder 700 then idles (step 805), waiting for a command to start recording anew (step 810).\nWith reference now to FIG. 9, there is shown a flowchart illustrating the function performed by an automator listener 770. Automator listener 770 idles (step 910) until an event occurs (step 920). Once an event, such as MOUSE_CLICKED, occurs, the event information is saved to an object (step 930). The object is then added to the automator queue 780 (step 940) and the automator listener continues to idle (step 910), waiting for the occurrence of another event (step 920).\nA block diagram illustrating the three main parts of an object created by an automator listener 770 is depicted in FIG. 10. The object consists of event ID 1010, component field 1020, and event information 1030. Event ID 1010 indicates the type of event that occurred, such as MOUSE_CLICKED, ITEM_STATE_CHANGED, etc. Component field 1020 references the component on which this event occurred, such as a button, list, text area, etc. Finally, each object contains specific event information 1030, which includes several event-specific things.\nAs an example of the functioning of an automator listener 770 and the creation of an object, suppose applet 620 button is clicked by a user. The automator listener 770 for that component would create an object with MOUSE_CLICKED as event ID 1010. A reference to the button component would be placed in component field 1020. Event information 1030 would contain all other information about the event, such as the x-y coordinate position, modifiers, click count (double or single click), etc.\nIt is important to note that, while the present invention has been described in terms of recording events generated by Java applets, it is also applicable to applications as well. Furthermore, while described principally with respect to Java, the present invention may be applied to other event-driven object oriented programming languages following a similar “listener interface” model.\nIt is also important to note that, while the present invention has been described in the context of a fully functioning data processing system, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the processes of the present invention are capable of being distributed in the form of a computer readable medium of instructions and a variety of forms, and that the present invention applies equally regardless of the particular type of signal bearing media actually used to carry out the distribution. Examples of computer readable media include recordable-type media, such floppy discs, hard disk drives, RAM, and CD-ROMs and transmission-type media, such as digital and analog communications links.\nThe description of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description but is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.\nCitations de brevets\nCitations hors brevets"}
{"text": "The Olympics: The Basics\nPublished January 19th 2012 by Routledge – 192 pages\nSeries: The Basics\nThe Olympics: The Basics is an accessible, contemporary introduction to the Olympic movement and Games. Chapters explain how the Olympics transcend sports, engaging us with a range of contemporary philosophical, social, cultural and political matters, including:\nThis book explores the controversy and the legacy of the Olympics, drawing attention to the deeper values of Olympism, as the Olympic movement’s most valuable intellectual property. This engaging, lively, and often challenging book, is essential reading for newcomers to Olympic studies and offers new insights for Olympic scholars.\nPreface 1. History and Philosophy 2. Society and Identity 3. Culture and Education 4. Politics and Diplomacy 5. Ethics and Values 6. Management and Economics 7. Media and Communication 8. Impact and Legacy Conclusion: The Future\nProfessor Andy Miah (@andymiah) is Director of the Creative Futures Research Centre at the University of the West of Scotland.\nDr Beatriz Garcia (@beatriz_garcia) is Head of Research at the Institute of Cultural Capital, University of Liverpool."}
{"text": "It is interesting to see how much we learn in our life time. Our learning process starts with very first day of our life; and ends with our life only. Even when we are not consciously learning anything; our subconscious mind keep grasping things. Scientists have proved that humans, as well as animals, learn many things before birth also; process may start as early as ‘Right after conception.’ It is also scientifically proved that leaning between conception and actual birth stays and sticks long. That includes preferences in food, color, general nature /behavior etc\nWhat comes our way naturally; we learn faster. For example;’Mother Tongue / Language’, our own culture, our daily routine etc. We also learn faster; what we like or prefer. This is especially true; in case of education and sports. I have seen many students grow from mediocrity or misery to very top; once they have gone from ‘All subjects’ to ‘Choice subject’ only classes. As they have to focus only on subjects, they actually love; they start getting more interested in studies, excelling or doing much better than before, in process. Many governments and social organisations are now trying to change their education system to find out early; about different preferences of subjects in different students. Same is the case of sports; you learn faster and do better a sport you actually love. That includes playing that sport or have knowledge about that. We know stories of great sportsmen; who started their career or training, in a different sports altogether, changing in between to achieve greatness. Same is case of many movie stars. Some start their ‘Movie Life’ as a singer or dancer; but later excel as an Actor / Actress / Director, and Vice Versa. We have many cases to prove this theory.\nLearning is not easy to everyone of us. It also differs from person to person or from thing to thing. One person may learn something faster than others; where as same person may not be able to learn other things, as fast as others. That explains; why some students excel in mathematics, some in science, some in languages, some in dramatics, some in art, some in sports etc. Learning also is a process; which we can improve, with certain set or unset rules. In our life; from a small student to a working person, learning has lot to do with quality of our performances on all levels. Besides, a natural learner; people who are open to learning / new experiences, also learn better than others. This is especially true about new languages and culture. Language learning is all about practice. More you practice; better you get.\nIn our careers also learning process has a special meaning; whatever we learn gets accumulated as experience. Now this experience can be both; good or bad. If you think; learning is difficult; you should try Unlearning , which is way more difficult. Whenever we start anew or we change our careers / companies / business / location / partner etc; this unlearning becomes necessary. No two companies, businesses, locations or persons are same; different may have different requirements, rules, laws, standards, needs, styles etc. As learning is important and constant part of our life; we must also learn to UNLEARN. A same set of rules or standard or behavior may not apply or recommended to different careers / companies / business / location / partner etc. Unlearning thus is much more difficult (But Important) than learning; you have to remove from your mind / system, which may be there for years or whole your life.\nWhen I first went to learn ‘Horse Riding’; coach asked me if I already know any. I said ‘ I am afraid, not. I know nothing about this.’ I could see big relief on his face; he told me that he prefers to teach ‘Raw students’, to avoid any clash of new and old learning. ‘ It is always better and easier to write on a clean slate than wring on already occupied slate’ He said. Someone told me that new languages comes faster and easier to students from 8 Years old to 12 years old than to students older in age. As their minds are less occupied or corrupt with other things. In general saying their ‘Mind Slate’ is cleaner to write new things on.\nWe sometimes wonder why things are not working with your same routine; which were earlier working fine. With changing time / environment / location etc; we must change our self, and learn to unlearn our now not working experience.\nProcess of unlearning also help us adapt different situations; in a better, easier and faster way. People, who are too rigid to change or unlearn; may find it difficult to fit in to new environments. In case of relationships; it is very important to UNLEARN. No two persons are same; they may have different values, needs, moods, strengths or weaknesses. Actually; to achieve success and peace in life; we must keep a balance between ‘Learning’ and ‘Unlearning’."}
{"text": "On May 28, 1828, began the official life of Kaspar Hauser, a young man who appeared mysteriously in the streets of Nuremberg and died of knife wounds five years later under equally mysterious circumstances. \"Europe's child,\" as pamphleteers referred to him, captured the imagination of salon society. Allegedly raised in a dark cellar and deprived of human contact until the age of sixteen, he became proof of concept for theories about natural man, original sin, and the civilizing mission of culture. Rightful heir to the throne of Baden or a fraud? Redeemer of man's sins or \"ambulatory automatist\"? The curious circumstances and significance of his life have been disputed ever since.\nIn Kaspar, Quebec cartoonist Obom draws on Hauser's own writings, and contemporary accounts, to tell the foundling's strange story. Minimalist grayscale panels and the simplest of line work register the wonder and bewilderment of a trusting and sensitive soul emerging into a fickle society. Gentle and poetic, naive and profound, Obom's first book to appear in English translation is a quiet and compelling charm.\n\"[Caspar] presented an opportunity for observation of the highest interest to the philosopher, the moralist, the religious teacher, the physiologist, and the physician -- an opportunity which must be as rare as the crime which has afforded it.\" -Francis Lieber, 1832, preface to Caspar Hauser: An Account of an Individual Kept in a Dungeon"}
{"text": "Estimates of dinosaur speeds vary because several different methods are used to calculate them. One recent estimate suggests that an average person might have been able to to outrun an adult Tyrannosaurus (although you probably would not volunteer to try). The two basic approaches for estimating dinosaur speed are comparing to recorded speeds of modern animals of similar body size and build, and measuring distances between fossil footprints in a trackway and using these distances to calculate estimated speed. Walking-speed estimates for medium-sized bipedal (two-legged) dinosaurs vary from 4 kph to 6 kph, and peak running-speed estimates vary from 37 kph to 88 kph. The highest figure (88.6 kph) is the same as the peak speed of the currently fastest land animals, such as the North American pronghorn \"antelope\" (Antilocapra americana), and very probably is too high.\nSpeed comparison of some ancient and modern animals\nMaintained by Publications Services.\nLast modified 05-17-01 (krw)"}
{"text": "[A rough transcript of my keynote at the Victorians Institute Conference, held at the University of Virginia on October 1-3, 2010. The conference had the theme \"By the Numbers.\" Attended by \"analog\" Victorianists as well as some budding digital humanists, I was delighted by the incredibly energetic reaction to this talk—many terrific questions and ideas for doing scholarly text mining from those who may have never considered it before. The talk incorporates work on historical text mining under an NEH grant, as well as the first results of a grant that Fred Gibbs and I were awarded from Google to mine their vast collection of books.]\nWhy did the Victorians look to mathematics to achieve certainty, and how we might understand the Victorians better with the mathematical methods they bequeathed to us? I want to relate the Victorian debate about the foundations of our knowledge to a debate that we are likely to have in the coming decade, a debate about how we know the past and how we look at the written record that I suspect will be of interest to literary scholars and historians alike. It is a philosophical debate about idealism, empiricism, induction, and deduction, but also a practical discussion about the methodologies we have used for generations in the academy.\nVictorians and the Search for Truth\nLet me start, however, with the Heavens. This is Neptune. It was seen for the first time through a telescope in 1846.\nAt the time, the discovery was hailed as a feat of pure mathematics, since two mathematicians, one from France, Urbain Le Verrier, and one from England, John Couch Adams, had independently calculated Neptune’s position using mathematical formulas. There were dozens of poems written about the discovery, hailing the way these mathematicians had, like “magicians” or “prophets,” divined the Truth (often written with a capital T) about Neptune.\nBut in the less-triumphal aftermath of the discovery, it could also be seen as a case of the impact of cold calculation and the power of a good data set. Although pure mathematics, to be sure, were involved—the equations of geometry and gravity—the necessary inputs were countless observations of other heavenly bodies, especially precise observations of perturbations in the orbit of Uranus caused by Neptune. It was intellectual work, but intellectual work informed by a significant amount of data.\nThe Victorian era saw tremendous advances in both pure and applied mathematics. Both were involved in the discovery of Neptune: the pure mathematics of the ellipse and of gravitational pull; the computational modes of plugging observed coordinates into algebraic and geometrical formulas.\nAlthough often grouped together under the banner of “mathematics,” the techniques and attitudes of pure and applied forms diverged significantly in the nineteenth century. By the end of the century, pure mathematics and its associated realm of symbolic logic had become so abstract and removed from what the general public saw as math—that is, numbers and geometric shapes—that Bertrand Russell could famously conclude in 1901 (in a Seinfeldian moment) that mathematics was a science about nothing. It was a set of signs and operations completely divorced from the real world.\nMeanwhile, the early calculating machines that would lead to modern computers were proliferating, prodded by the rise of modern bureaucracy and capitalism. Modern statistics arrived, with its very unpure notions of good-enough averages and confidence levels.\nThe Victorians thus experienced the very modern tension between pure and applied knowledge, art and craft. They were incredibly self-reflective about the foundations of their knowledge. Victorian mathematicians were often philosophers of mathematics as much as practitioners of it. They repeatedly asked themselves: How could they know truth through mathematics? Similarly, as Meegan Kennedy has shown, in putting patient data into tabular form for the first time—thus enabling the discernment of patterns in treatment—Victorian doctors began wrestling with whether their discipline should be data-driven or should remain subject to the “genius” of the individual doctor.\nTwo mathematicians I studied for Equations from God used their work in mathematical logic to assail the human propensity to come to conclusions using faulty reasoning or a small number of examples, or by an appeal to interpretive genius. George Boole (1815-1864), the humble father of the logic that is at the heart of our computers, was the first professor of mathematics at Queen’s College, Cork. He had the misfortune of arriving in Cork (from Lincoln, England) on the eve of the famine and increasing sectarian conflict and nationalism.\nBoole spend the rest of his life trying to find a way to rise above the conflict he saw all around him. He saw his revolutionary mathematical logic as a way to dispassionately analyze arguments and evidence. His seminal work, The Laws of Thought, is as much a work of literary criticism as it is of mathematics. In it, Boole deconstructs texts to find the truth using symbolical modes.\nThe stained-glass window in Lincoln Cathedral honoring Boole includes the biblical story of Samuel, which the mathematician enjoyed. It’s a telling expression of Boole’s worry about how we come to know Truth. Samuel hears the voice of God three times, but each time cannot definitively understand what he is hearing. In his humility, he wishes not to jump to divine conclusions.\nNot jumping to conclusions based on limited experience was also a strong theme in the work of Augustus De Morgan (1806-1871). De Morgan, co-discoverer of symbolic logic and the first professor of mathematics at University College London, had a similar outlook to Boole’s, but a much more abrasive personality. He rather enjoyed proving people wrong, and also loved to talk about how quickly human beings leap to opinions.\nDe Morgan would give this hypothetical: “Put it to the first comer, what he thinks on the question whether there be volcanoes on the unseen side of the moon larger than those on our side. The odds are, that though he has never thought of the question, he has a pretty stiff opinion in three seconds.” Human nature, De Morgan thought, was too inclined to make mountains out of molehills, conclusions from scant or no evidence. He put everyone on notice that their deeply held opinions or interpretations were subject to verification by the power of logic and mathematics.\nAs Walter Houghton highlighted in his reading of the Victorian canon, The Victorian Frame of Mind, 1830-1870, the Victorians were truth-seekers and skeptics. They asked how they could know better, and challenged their own assumptions.\nFoundations of Our Own Knowledge\nThis attitude seems healthy to me as we present-day scholars add digital methods of research to our purely analog ones. Many humanities scholars have been satisfied, perhaps unconsciously, with the use of a limited number of cases or examples to prove a thesis. Shouldn’t we ask, like the Victorians, what can we do to be most certain about a theory or interpretation? If we use intuition based on close reading, for instance, is that enough?\nShould we be worrying that our scholarship might be anecdotally correct but comprehensively wrong? Is 1 or 10 or 100 or 1000 books an adequate sample to know the Victorians? What we might do with all of Victorian literature—not a sample, or a few canonical texts, as in Houghton’s work, but all of it.\nThese questions were foremost in my mind as Fred Gibbs and I began work on our Google digital humanities grant that is attempting to apply text mining to our understanding of the Victorian age. If Boole and De Morgan were here today, how acceptable would our normal modes of literary and historical interpretation be to them?\nAs Victorianists, we are rapidly approaching the time when we have access—including, perhaps, computational access—to the full texts not of thousands of Victorian books, or hundreds of thousands, but virtually all books published in the Victorian age. Projects like Google Books, the Internet Archive’s OpenLibrary, and HathiTrust will become increasingly important to our work.\nIf we were to look at all of these books using the computational methods that originated in the Victorian age, what would they tell us? And would that analysis be somehow more “true” than looking at a small subset of literature, the books we all have read that have often been used as representative of the Victorian whole, or, if not entirely representative, at least indicative of some deeper Truth?\nFred and I have received back from Google a first batch of data. This first run is limited just to words in the titles of books, but even so is rather suggestive of the work that can now be done. This data covers the 1,681,161 books that were published in English in the UK in the long nineteenth century, 1789-1914. We have normalized the data in many ways, and for the most part the charts I’m about to show you graph the data from zero to one percent of all books published in a year so that they are on the same scale and can be visually compared.\nMultiple printings of a book in a single year have been collapsed into one “expression.” (For the library nerds in the audience, the data has been partially FRBRized. One could argue that we should have accepted the accentuation of popular titles that went through many printings in a single year, but editions and printings in subsequent years do count as separate expressions. We did not go up to the level of “work” in the FRBR scale, which would have collapsed all expressions of a book into one data point.)\nWe plan to do much more; in the pipeline are analyses of the use of words in the full texts (not just titles) of those 1.7 million books, a comprehensive exploration of the use of the Bible throughout the nineteenth century, and more. And more could be be done to further normalize the data, such as accounting for the changing meaning of words over time.\nSo what does the data look like even at this early stage? And does it seem valid? That is where we began our analysis, with graphs of the percent of all books published with certain words in the titles (y-axis) on a year by year basis (x-axis). Victorian intellectual life as it is portrayed in this data set is in many respects consistent with what we already know.\nThe frequency chart of books with the word in “revolution” in the title, for example, shows spikes where it should, around the French Revolution and the revolutions of 1848. (Keen-eyed observers will also note spikes for a minor, failed revolt in England in 1817 and the successful 1830 revolution in France.)\nBooks about science increase as they should, though with some interesting leveling off in the late Victorian period. (We are aware that the word “science” changes over this period, becoming more associated with natural science rather than generalized knowledge.)\nThe rise of factories…\nand the concurrent Victorian nostalgia for the more sedate and communal Middle Ages…\n…and the sense of modernity, a new phase beyond the medieval organization of society and knowledge that many Britons still felt in the eighteenth century.\nThe Victorian Crisis of Faith, and Secularization\nEven more validation comes from some basic checks of key Victorian themes such as the crisis of faith. These charts are as striking as any portrayal of the secularization that took place in Great Britain in the nineteenth century.\nCorrelation Is (not) Truth\nSo it looks fairly good for this methodology. Except, of course, for some obvious pitfalls. Looking at the charts of a hundred words, Fred noticed a striking correlation between the publication of books on “belief,” “atheism,” and…”Aristotle”?\nObviously, we cannot simply take the data at face value. As I have called this on my blog, we have to be on guard for oversimplifications that are the equivalent of saying that War and Peace is about Russia. We have to marry these attempts at what Franco Moretti has called “distant reading” with more traditional close reading to find rigorous interpretations behind the overall trends.\nIn Search of New Interpretations\nNevertheless, even at this early stage of the Google grant, there are numerous charts that are suggestive of new research that can be done, or that expand on existing research. Correlation can, if we go from the macro level to the micro level, help us to illustrate some key features of the Victorian age better. For instance, the themes of Jeffrey von Arx’s Progress and Pessimism: Religion, Politics and History in Late Nineteenth Century Britain, in which he notes the undercurrent of depression in the second half of the century, are strongly supported and enhanced by the data.\nAnd given the following charts, we can imagine writing much more about the decline of certainty in the Victorian age. “Universal” is probably the most striking graph of our first data set, but they all show telling slides toward relativism that begin before most interpretations in the secondary literature.\nRather than looking for what we expect to find, perhaps we can have the computer show us tens, hundreds, or even thousands of these graphs. Many will confirm what we already know, but some will be strikingly new and unexpected. Many of those may show false correlations or have other problems (such as the changing or multiple meaning of words), but some significant minority of them will reveal to us new patterns, and perhaps be the basis of new interpretations of the Victorian age.\nWhat if I were to give you Victorianists hundreds of these charts?\nI believe it is important to keep our eyes open about the power of this technique. At the very least, it can tell us—as Augustus De Morgan would—when we have made mountains out of a molehills. If we do explore this new methodology, we might be able to find some charts that pique our curiosity as knowledgeable readers of the Victorians. We’re the ones that can accurately interpret the computational results.\nWe can see the rise of the modern work lifestyle…\n…or explore the interaction between love and marriage, an important theme in the recent literature.\nWe can look back at the classics of secondary literature, such as Houghton’s Victorian Frame of Mind, and ask whether those works hold up to the larger scrutiny of virtually all Victorian books, rather than just the limited set of books those authors used. For instance, while in general our initial study supports Houghton’s interpretations, it also shows relatively few books on heroism, a theme Houghton adopts from Thomas Carlyle.\nAnd where is the supposed Victorian obsession with theodicy in this chart on books about “evil”?\nEven more suggestive are the contrasts and anomalies. For instance, publications on “Jesus” are relatively static compared to those on “Christ,” which drop from nearly 1 in 60 books in 1843 to less than 1 in 300 books 70 years later.\nThe impact of the ancient world on the Victorians can be contrasted (albeit with a problematic dual modern/ancient meaning for Rome)…\n…as can the Victorians’ varying interest in the afterlife.\nI hope that these charts have prodded you to consider the anecdotal versus the comprehensive, and the strengths and weaknesses of each. It is time we had a more serious debate—not just in the digital humanities but in the humanities more generally—about measurement and interpretation that the Victorians had. Can we be so confident in our methods of extrapolating from some literary examples to the universal whole?\nThis is a debate that we should have in the present, aided by our knowledge of what the Victorians struggled with in the past.\n[Image credits (other than graphs): Wikimedia Commons]"}
{"text": "QUASAR’S BELCH SOLVES LONGSTANDING MYSTERY\nFebruary 23, 2011\nArtist’s conceptualization of the environment around the supermassive black hole at the center of Mrk 231. The broad outflow seen in the Gemini data is shown as the fan-shaped wedge at the top of the accretion disk around the black hole. This side-view is not what is seen from the Earth where we see it ‘looking down the throat’ of the outflow. A similar outflow is probably present under the disk as well and is hinted at in this illustration. The total amount of material entrained in the broad flow is at least 400 times the mass of the Sun per year. Note that a more localized, narrower jet is shown, this jet was known prior to the Gemini discovery of the broader outflow featured here.\nGemini Observatory Press Release\nFor Immediate Release – February 23, 2011\nWhen two galaxies merge to form a giant, the central supermassive black hole in the new galaxy develops an insatiable appetite. However, this ferocious appetite is unsustainable.\nThe growth of supermassive black holes, which are found in the centers of all normal galaxies (including our Milky Way), is fundamentally linked to the stars in galaxies. Black holes grow and stars form over time, resulting in a tight connection between the mass of the central black hole and the mass in stars of the host galaxy. Since most galaxies in the local universe do not currently have actively growing black holes at their centers, some process must eventually emerge to shut down this growth and development. Theoretical modeling specifically points to quasar outflows as the culprit. In this negative feedback loop, while the black hole is actively acquiring mass as a quasar, the outflows carry away energy and material, suppressing further growth. Small-scale outflows had been observed before, but none sufficiently powerful to account for this predicted and fundamental aspect of galaxy evolution. The Gemini observations provide the first clear evidence for outflows powerful enough to support the process necessary to starve the galactic black hole and quench star formation.\nThis extraction from the data cube shows the large-scale, fast outflow of neutral sodium at the center of the quasar Markarian 231. We are looking down onto the material that moves toward us relative to the galaxy, so the measured velocities are negative. The large black circle marks the location of the black hole, and red lines show the location of a radio jet. In addition to the quasar outflow, the jet pushes the material at the top right, resulting in even greater speeds. Part of the starburst is located at the position of the box at the lower left, and it is likely responsible for the gas motion in this region.\nFor the first time, observations with the Gemini Observatory clearly reveal an extreme, large-scale galactic outflow that brings the cosmic dinner to a halt. The outflow is effectively blowing the galaxy apart in a negative feedback loop, depriving the galaxy’s monstrous black hole of the gas and dust it needs to sustain its frenetic growth. It also limits the material available for the galaxy to make new generations of stars.\nThe groundbreaking work is a collaboration between David Rupke of Rhodes College in Tennessee and the University of Maryland’s Sylvain Veilleux. The results are to be published in the March 10 issue of The Astrophysical Journal Letters and were completed with support from the U.S. National Science Foundation.\nAccording to Veilleux, Markarian 231 (Mrk 231), the galaxy observed with Gemini, is an ideal laboratory for studying outflows caused by feedback from supermassive black holes. “This object is arguably the closest and best example that we know of a big galaxy in the final stages of a violent merger and in the process of shedding its cocoon and revealing a very energetic central quasar. This is really a last gasp of this galaxy; the black hole is belching its next meals into oblivion!” As extreme as Mrk 231’s eating habits appear, Veilleux adds that they are probably not unique, “When we look deep into space and back in time, quasars like this one are seen in large numbers and all of them may have gone through shedding events like the one we are witnessing in Mrk 231.”\nAlthough Mrk 231 is extremely well studied, and known for its collimated jets, the Gemini observations exposed a broad outflow extending in all directions for at least 8,000 light years around the galaxy’s core. The resulting data reveal gas (characterized by sodium, which absorbs yellow light) streaming away from the galaxy center at speeds of over 1,000 kilometers per second. At this speed, the gas could go from New York to Los Angeles in about 4 seconds. This outflow is removing gas from the nucleus at a prodigious rate – more than 2.5 times the star formation rate. The speeds observed eliminate stars as the possible “engine” fueling the outflow. This leaves the black hole itself as the most likely culprit, and it can easily account for the tremendous energy required.\nThe energy involved is sufficient to sweep away matter from the galaxy. However, \"when we say the galaxy is being blown apart, we are only referring to the gas and dust in the galaxy,” notes Rupke. “The galaxy is mostly stars at this stage in its life, and the outflow has no effect on them. The crucial thing is that the fireworks of new star formation and black hole feeding are coming to an end, most likely as a result of this outflow.”\nThe environment around such a black hole is commonly known as an active galactic nucleus (AGN), and the extreme influx of material into these black holes is the power source for quasi-stellar objects or quasars. Merging galaxies help to feed the central black hole and also shroud it in gas. Mrk 231 is in transition, now clearing its surroundings. Eventually, running out of fuel, the AGN will become extinct. Without gas to form new stars, the host galaxy also starves to death, turning into a collection of old aging stars with few young stars to regenerate the stellar population. Ultimately, these old stars will make the galaxy appear redder giving these galaxies the moniker “red and dead.”\nNumerical astrophysicist Philip Hopkins, a Miller Fellow at the University of California at Berkeley, explains that many physical processes unique to rapidly growing black holes are likely to play a role in propelling the winds observed by Gemini. “At its peak, the quasar shines with such intensity that the light itself is ‘trapped’ by a cocoon of gas and dust pushing on material with a force that can easily overcome the gravitational pull of the black hole.” Hopkins adds that the bath of X-rays and gamma rays known to be generated by quasars could also heat up the gas in the galaxy’s center until it reaches a temperature where it \"boils over\" and causes a bomb-like explosion. “But until now, we haven’t been able to catch a system ‘in the act.’” Part of the problem, according to Hopkins, has been that the most visible outflows are those ‘collimated jets’ already known in Mrk 231. These jets are trapped (probably by magnetic fields) in an extremely narrow beam, whereas material is falling into the black hole from all directions. The previously known jets therefore only cause very localized damage – drilling a tiny hole in the cocoon, rather than sweeping it away more broadly as seen in these new, more all-encompassing, outflows.\nThe observations for this study were obtained with the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph (GMOS) on Gemini North, on Mauna Kea, Hawai‘i. The study used a powerful technique known as integral field spectroscopy. The integral field unit (IFU) in GMOS obtains a spectrum at several hundred points around the galaxy’s core. Each spectrum is then, in turn, used to determine the velocity of the gas at that point and represents the third dimension in what is called a data cube.\nMarkarian 231 is located about 600 million light years away in the direction of the constellation of Ursa Major. Although its mass is uncertain, some estimates indicate that Mrk 231 has a mass in stars about three times that of our Milky Way galaxy and its central black hole is estimated to have a mass of at least ten million solar masses or also about three times that of the supermassive black hole in the Milky Way.\nMovie showing the gas in a galaxy merger with a quasar-driven “blowout”: https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~phopkins/Site/Movies_files/collision_BH_run4.avi"}
{"text": "The Hundred Years' War began in the reign of Edward III, who was the King of England from 1327 to 1377. Edward, who loved knightly pursuits such as war, jousting, tournaments and hunting, surrounded himself with warriors, magnates, and chivalrous knights. The Hundred Years' War broke out as a result of a dispute between Edward and Philip, the French King, over French royal succession.\nEdward was the nearest surviving male relative to the French king after the three French Capetian kings, Louis X, Philip V, and Charles IV, all failed to produce male heirs. In order to prevent Edward from claiming the throne, the French parliament and supreme court declared that claims to the French throne could not be passed through women. The French Estates chose Philip of Valois, a first cousin of the preceding kings, to become king and Edward did not initially dispute this decision.\nHowever, there were other points of contention between the British and French. There was a clash of interests in the county of Flanders, whose cloth-making industry relied on England for wool. Early in the 14th century, Flemish artisans rose up in a series of bloody revolts against the aristocratic cloth dealers who had long monopolized power. The Count of Flanders and the French king supported the merchants, while the English sided with the artisans.\nThis tension culminated in 1337, over the status of the feudal territories of Pontheau and Aquitaine. When Philip became the king of France, Edward paid homage for these territories, but Philip then insisted on liege homage, which would have obligated Edward to support Philip against all enemies. Edward refused and Philip attempted to confiscate the region of Gascony from his English \"vassal\" by declaring Edward's feudal territories forfeit. Edward declared war on France and his goal was to claim the crown of his maternal grandfather as well as to reclaim Gascony.\nThe Hundred Years' War accelerated changes in technology and government institutions in both France and Britain. It stimulated the growth of parliamentary privileges, but it also drained the English economy and population. Since all the battles of the war were fought on French soil, English mercenaries continually pillaged the French lands. France suffered far more from the Hundred Years' War than England did. During the war, France was ravaged by civil strife as its population, economy and resources depleted.\n- ^ Swyrich, Archive materials\nThis page was last modified on 5 January 2011 at 14:49.\nhouseofnames.com is an internet property owned by Swyrich Corporation.\nAnderson Surname History\nOver 20 years of research into the family history from the earliest records, showing spelling variations, early origins, notables, settlers and much more. Suitable for framing.\nThe Vikings: A History\n\"A fascinating history of the Viking age and its complex culture and influence"}
{"text": "\"Geneticists know that strength\nof a species comes from its diversity from the fact that\nthe population as a whole can respond in mnay different\nways to many different situations\"\n- Eric S. Lander, MIT\nmore genes two animals have in common, the closer they\nare \"related\" (not by blood, but by evolution) to one\nanother. Therefore, different levels of classification\nexist to illustrate this relationship. There are seven\nlevels of classification, the highest group being a kingdom,\nand the lowest group a species (the others between the\ntwo extremes are, in order, phylum, class, order, family,\nand genus). Many thousands of different organisms may\nbelong to a kingdom, but only one to a species. For example:\nhumans, dogs, porcupines, rats, eagles, and salmon all\nbelong to the same kingdom (Kingdom Anamalia), but only\nhumans belong to the species sapiens and only dogs\nto Canis domesticus. Two organism are more closely \"related\"\nas they approach the level of species. This also means\nthey have more genes in common. Taxonomists (scientists\nwho classify living organisms into the seven groups) define\na species as any group of closely related organisms that\ncan produce fertile offspring. Sometimes, members of the\nsame species will look alike (all brown bears look alike\nand all humpbacked whales look alike) and other times\nthey won't (such as German Shepherds and Chihuahuas, which\nare both members of the same species).\nlevel of species can be further divided into smaller\nsegments. A population is the smallest unit of a species\nand is made up of organisms of the same species. All\nthe hemlock trees in a forest make up a population\nof hemlock trees, and all the rattlesnakes on an island\nmake up a population of rattlesnakes, and so forth.\nSometimes, a population will physically alter over\ntime to suit the needs of its environment. This is\ncalled a cline, and can make members of the same species\nsubspecies is a distinct population of a species.\nA good example of a subspecies is the western flicker\nwhich has red wings and looks different than the eastern\nflicker which has yellow wings. The two types of birds\nbelong to the same species, though, because they can\nproduce fertile offspring (sometimes with orange wings!)."}
{"text": "Conflict and Solidarity in Mudejar Society\nThe activity of the industrious Mudejar at practically all levels of the economy, and the quotidian mingling of Muslim and Christian in field, workshop, and marketplace provided the foundation of—and the most effective adhesive reinforcing—the structure of Valencia's plural society. A common preoccupation with cultivation and harvest, manufacture and profit fostered among Muslims and Christians a certain homogeneity in outlook and understanding and opened the door to more meaningful social interaction, however hesitant and limited. It is, nevertheless, clear that Valencia's plural social structure was imperfectly articulated and fragile, and that the cement of economic relations was ultimately an unequal match to the solvent of overt religious antagonism. Thus, in 1502 when the Mudejars were faced with the threat of forced conversion in Valencia, many chose flight to the Maghrib with its detrimental material consequences, and a century later, after the abject failure of a policy meant to persuade the Moriscos to become true Christians, the Crown decided that the economic repercussions of the Moriscos' expulsion could be more easily endured than the risks of Morisco dissidence. Both episodes are indicative of the tenacious adherence of Valencia's Muslims to Islam, and this adherence reflects a religious and social reality far more compelling than the material life they shared with Christians. The aim of this chapter will be to provide some understanding of that reality and to explain how the Mudejars maintained both their identity as Muslims and a group cohesiveness while living in a Christian world. It will be suggested that Mudejar self-perception and group-perception were founded not only on religious belief per se, but also on\nthe perpetuation of a social world the organization and mores of which were distinct from those of Valencian Christians. Indeed, it is perhaps more accurate to view the Mudejars as forming a distinct subsociety separated from the larger Christian society by patterns of intragroup social and cultural behavior, but intersecting with that Christian society in a number of ways not without telling acculturative impact.\nThe Acculturative Challenge\nHowever durable Mudejar society might have been, it had nevertheless experienced considerable acculturative change. Prior to analyzing late-fifteenth-century Mudejar society, it will be useful to outline briefly some of the more significant of these changes, brought about both subtly by the Muslims' informal interaction with the Christian populace, and forcefully by the formal imposition of Christian authority on an Islamic society.\nValencia's Muslims underwent their most radical cultural adjustment in the half-century immediately following the Christian conquest. During that time the Islamic society was essentially decapitated, losing its political and cultural elites to emigration and in failed rebellions. Islamic government and the public application of the Shariah were rudely shunted aside by a Christian colonial administration with its own body of law, the Furs . Even the autonomous and corporate aljama, vouchsafed to the Muslims by their Christian overlord, had no Islamic antecedent, compelling the Muslim adelantats to administer their communities in a foreign manner analogous to that of the Christian jurates in their corporate universitas . As has been indicated, the Christian bureaucracy, particularly when functioning as a tax-collecting mechanism, intruded on most areas of Mudejar life, so that in even so intimate a family affair as inheritance strict observance of the Shariah had to be modified in compliance with the king's demands. Furthermore, the Muslim by necessity had to learn to function in a Christian as well as Islamic legal system. Although this was to be expected for cases involving both Christian and Muslim parties, the fact that some Muslim litigants pursued civil suits with coreligionists in Christian courts is indicative of an acculturative process potentially damaging to the internal harmony of Mudejar communities.\nAlso important were the more gradual processes of Christian urbanization and seigneurialization, which, coupled with the decreasing size of the Muslim population (from an overwhelming majority in the thirteenth century to 30 percent of the kingdom's total by the midfifteenth century), altered the very appearance of the kingdom, as churches re-\nplaced mosques and Muslims retreated from the urban centers to the countryside. Although the rhythms of agricultural and pastoral life remained largely unchanged, Christian control of the economy, especially of the larger domestic and international markets, meant that Muslim farmers, artisans, and retail merchants were dependent on Christians for marketing their produce, selling their manufactured goods, and purchasing raw materials and bulk goods. Mudejar dependence was further manifested in their vassalage to Christian lords and their loss of ultimate control over their land. Outside of the walls of his own home or mosque, the Mudejar could hardly avoid coming to grips with the Christian presence, and having to do so on Christian terms.\nThe greatest threat to the integrity of the Mudejars' Islamic culture and Muslim identity lay in the cities and towns, where the populations were overwhelmingly Christian. There the expressions of Christian religiosity were most pervasive and most aggressive, while conversely the public observance of Islam was all the more restricted. The best example of this tendency is the anti-Muslim and anti-Jewish preaching of the Inquisitors from the pulpits of Valencia and Cartagena. Another urban danger, particularly in the capital, was the volatility of the Christian mob. Although the evocation of despair fed on fear might have been an efficacious proselytizing tool with some Muslims, it is arguable that the demagoguery of Inquisitors and like-minded clerics and Christian mob violence would have been more likely to repel Muslims from Christianity and to inspire among them a reactionary zeal in their commitment to Islam. The cities posed another threat perhaps more serious than Christian aggression, namely, the possibility of friendly and leisurely contact with Christians and their religion. Adherents of both faiths congregated in city taverns and fonduks, passing their leisure time gambling together, drinking together, and sleeping together. For the Muslim such activities meant a violation of the precepts of his own faith, and signaled his entry into a gray area of cultural amorphousness, where, if his Muslim identity was not overtly challenged, there nevertheless resulted a weakening of his own sense of distinctiveness. That Mudejars flocked to Valencia to enjoy with their Christian friends the spectacle of the Corpus Christi Day processions has a similar significance: it does not mean that these Muslims were on the road to baptism; rather, it indicates that they had acquired non-Islamic cultural accoutrements and forms of behavior born of a long-term exposure to Christian society.\nA useful index of acculturation is the extent of Mudejar bilingualism. Burns, in unison with Fuster and Barceló Torres, concludes that in the thirteenth century the Muslim masses were unilingual Arabic-speakers. For midfourteenth-century Valencia Boswell points to only a minimal change in this pattern: \"the vast majority of the Mudéjares did not\nspeak the language of the dominant culture.\" This was in contrast to the kingdom of Aragon, where the Mudejars spoke Romance but had for the most part lost the ability to function in Arabic. It is thought that throughout the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries this state of affairs remained more or less unchanged. In support of this view historians note the Moriscos' obdurate use of Arabic as their language of daily parlance and the systematic effort of the Christian authorities (from 1565) to discourage the teaching and use of Arabic. Of particular significance is the agreement reached between the Moriscos and Carlos I in 1526, in which the Moriscos maintained that \"the greater part of the Moorish men and almost all of the women do not know how to speak aljamia (Romance).\" Moreover, the Moriscos stated that they would need forty years in which to learn Romance (Carlos I allowed them only ten). The evidence is impressive, and that both the Mudejars and the Moriscos spoke and read Arabic seems indisputable (see below); however, their avowed unilingualism is open to debate. I would argue for a more extensive Mudejar bilingualism, although with Romance spoken with an imperfect accent and syntax. Given the Moriscos' insincere conversion and their anxiety to forestall thorough catechization in the Catholic faith and Inquisitorial inquiries, their presentation of their linguistic status in the negotiations with Carlos I might have been somewhat disingenuous, a device meant to discourage zealous Romance-speaking clergymen. Clearly, in asking for a forty-year period of grace the Moriscos were playing for time. In the years between 1526 and 1609 there very well might have ensued a decreasing bilingualism. As the Moriscos further withdrew from the cities, their contact with the Christian world would have decreased, while, in a reactionary manner, their desire to avoid Christian culture and to cultivate their own cultural distinctiveness—in effect, to freeze the acculturative process—would have intensified. Just as the Christian authorities realized that the Arabic language had to be removed as an impediment to the effective \"Christianization\" of the Moriscos, it is equally possible the Moriscos understood that by inculcating their children in the Arabic language, the sacred language of the Qur'an[*] , and by forbidding them any education in Romance they were strengthening their fidelity to Islam. In sum, the Moriscos' linguistic status is not necessarily an accurate indicator of that of their Mudejar predecessors.\nThe records of cases tried in the court of the bailiff general, in which Muslims appear as litigants and witnesses, are suggestive of a significant Mudejar bilingualism. Normally, if a Muslim witness was in need of an interpreter, a role usually fulfilled by the royal qadi[*] , the latter's participation in the case was explicitly indicated. For instance, Nuzeya, a Muslim prostitute from Oliva, confessed with \"Ali Bellvis, qadi ,\nintervening.\" More explicitly, one defendant, Ubaydal Allepus of Bétera, is described as \"mal algemiat (i.e., he speaks Romance poorly) ... he does not understand algemia,\" but his interpreter, the amin[*] Açen Amet, was a \"Moor molt algemiat and a person who understands la algemia very well.\" Yet it is striking that the large majority of the Mudejars appearing in these trial records did not require an interpreter. While it is not surprising that the Muslims of urban morerías spoke Romance, given their constant mixing with the Christian populace, or that the amin of a rural aljama had mastered enough Romance to act as intermediary between the aljama and its lord, it is impressive that many Mudejars from rural areas could testify in Romance. Some examples are Açen Muça of Serra, Homar b. Perellos of Benaguacil, Ubaydal Suleymen of Mirambell, Maymo ben Çabit of Manises, and Abdulcarim of Oliva, among others. Equally significant are the testimonies of Christians about their seemingly routine verbal exchanges with Muslims. Ursula, the daughter of the innkeeper Joan Jeroni, testified how Alasdrach and Abdalla Sinube of Buñol, and Ali Alcayet of Chiva, \"were speaking Arabic (alguaravia ) with the said captive Moor,\" whom they had allegedly helped to escape, and how later, after returning from a meeting with the lord of Carlet, \"they requested [from her] a good room for sleeping.\" Miguel de la Serra, a tailor of Valencia, remembered that on Corpus Christi Day Muslim youths from Chiva had come to his house, eaten there, and then invited him and others to accompany them to the festivities. The odyssey of Angela de Vanya, a prostitute from Cuenca plying her trade in Onda, is revealing. She was first approached by Hadal, a Muslim from Benigazlo (Vall de Uxó), but did not know he was a Muslim, because he spoke \"in the Valencian tongue and very suavely and not showing any sign of knowing the Moorish tongue.\" Hadal compelled Angela to go with him to Tales, a Muslim village (loch de moros ), and brought her to the house of Mahomat Cotalla. There, as the frightened Angela sat weeping in the Cotallas' kitchen, Mahomat and his wife assured her that she would not be harmed. Although these trial records afford only a glimpse at a small cross section of Mudejar life, they do show an erosion of linguistic barriers since the fourteenth century. The increasing size of the Christian population and the variety and frequency of its economic dealings with the Mudejars must have necessitated the latter's acquisition of at least enough Romance to carry on day-to-day affairs. It is unrealistic to assume that Muslim and Christian artisans, farmers, and merchants all had interpreters at their disposal for conducting their mundane but essential business. The documentation does not indicate that this was so. If the Mudejars assiduously cultivated an Arabic culture, there is still no reason to assume that at this point in time, before the mass\nconversions, they had any reason for a self-conscious refusal to communicate in Romance. Demography and economy advised otherwise, and linguistic adaptation proceeded apace.\nIt should not be thought that such acculturation of the Mudejars to Romance-Christian culture as did take place was necessarily a negative or a degenerative process, or a process the flow of which was only unidirectional, although it is likely that the recessive but resilient culture of the Mudejar minority had experienced greater modification from its continual contact with a dynamic and expanding Christian majority. Rather, such acculturation was inevitable, an evolutionary process of adaptation necessary for the social and economic viability of a society that juxtaposed the proponents of mutually hostile ideologies. Even if the behavior of some Mudejars seemed almost to flout Islamic convention, this did not signal a reorientation of their fundamental religious beliefs. (If anything, it attests to a kind of secularization, in which beliefs were not so much altered as ignored.) In a medieval plural society, where identity was finally defined by religious affiliation, cultural erosion and unorthodox conduct were not evidence of Mudejar assimilation into Christian society. Such assimilation—the lessening of social distance, as opposed to acculturation, the lessening of cultural distance —could be achieved only through religious conversion, that is, through a fundamental change of identity. Therefore, in order to grasp the degree to which Mudejar society was truly threatened by absorption into the Christian body, one must broach the question of the extent of Mudejar conversion to Christianity.\nUnlike the thirteenth century, with its mendicant preachers, schools of Arabic, and refined techniques of polemic, the result of which had been the conversion of a considerable number of Muslims, the Valencia of the Catholic Monarchs saw no organized ecclesiastical campaign of proselytizing. After recovering from the trauma of the conquest, a factor that probably accounted for much of the Dominicans' early success, the Mudejars had regrouped, and so effectively that the Valencian Church seems to have made little or no further headway in the fourteenth century. This caused the Dominican preacher Vicent Ferrer to lament the inactivity of the clergy in missionary work (1413). The stimulus of Ferrer's zeal led to the establishment of an Arabic school in Valencia during the reign of Alfonso V (ca. 1424), but it seems to have quickly faded into oblivion. As we have seen in chapters 1 and 2, although King Fernando cautiously welcomed the baptism of individual Mudejars, he did not promote conversion on a mass scale. The lords of the kingdom, both ecclesiastical and secular, staunchly opposed any attempts to proselytize their vassals, since they could not wring as much rent out of Christian vassals.\nThere were compelling social reasons for not converting. The convert, it seems, entered a sort of \"no-man's land,\" being a full member of neither Christian nor Muslim society. If anything, owing to the strong ties of blood uniting Mudejar families (see below), converts tended to associate more with their Muslim relatives than with Christians. The convert Miguel Crestia was implicated along with his Muslim brother Ubaydal Allepus in the murder of another Muslim. A tornadizo of Cocentaina came to the aid of a Muslim relative, a runaway slave from Córdoba. Of course, Mudejars did not regard the conversion of their fellows favorably. Thus, the Inquisition arrested two Muslims who boldly and vociferously attempted to dissuade some Muslims from receiving baptism. Moreover, the convert put in jeopardy whatever inheritances he hoped to receive from Muslim relations. However, it seems that the Crown was no longer confiscating the estates of deceased converts, as had once been the case. Therefore, the potential convert was not burdened by the fear of depriving his descendants of their inheritances.\nEven so, Christian society did not welcome the convert with open arms. In previous centuries Christians had insulted converts by calling them \"dogs,\" \"renegades,\" and the like. Given the lukewarm reception of the judeo-conversos by Old Christians and the beginning of an obsession with the purity of Christian blood, it is highly unlikely that the situation would have improved. The murder of Mudejar converts by Old Christians supports this supposition.\nNevertheless, a small number of Muslims chose to convert. The large majority of the proselytes were slaves who had the most to gain from conversion. Slaves with Jewish or Muslim masters had to be manumitted after their baptism, for infidels could not own Christian slaves. One Muslim woman preferred conversion to four years of servitude to a Jew. For slaves with Christian masters, the situation was less clear-cut. The law provided that the slave should be freed only if he converted with the consent of his master. Therefore, the decision to manumit the baptized slave was solely the master's. Some masters granted their Christian slaves freedom, but most did not. Business sense usually prevailed over religious scruples. Runaway slaves sometimes converted so as to conceal their fugitive status. When the Muslim slave Fatima fled from Valencia into Aragon, she became Elinor de Vellasquo. From there she journeyed to Barcelona and to Mallorca, where she was apprehended.\nThere were some sincere free converts. The best known of these was the son of a faqih[*] of Játiva, who received baptism in 1487, became a priest, and preached to the Muslims of Granada and Aragon. Under the name of \"Juan Andres\" he translated into Aragonese the Qur'an[*] and the \"seven books of the Sunnah .\" Of the few other Valencian converts\nwho appear in the documentation, we know nothing more than their name or place of residence, or sometimes both. Conversion among the Aragonese and Catalan Mudejars seems to have been equally infrequent. In an extremely bizarre incident, a Muslim woman of Albarracín converted just fifteen days after her wedding and then endeavored to retrieve her bridewealth from her Muslim husband. Perhaps conversion was a way of escaping an unhappy arranged marriage, although divorce might have been easier.\nMudejar conversion, then, was not unknown, but it amounted to, at best, a few drops in the font. The large majority had no intention of abandoning Islam.\nMudejar Feuding and Social Structure\nA discussion of Mudejar acculturation and religious conversion has served to clarify certain aspects of Muslim-Christian interaction and its impact on the minority culture. It has, however, revealed little about the Mudejar subsociety itself when it did not somehow mesh with the public life of the Christian kingdom. Posing a dichotomy between Valencia's Muslim and Christian societies may appear somewhat artificial, since both groups, after all, lived and labored together in the same kingdom. But occupying the same physical space does not necessitate the rigid conformity of all inhabitants to one all-encompassing social system with its prescribed modes of behavior. Even when dwelling in urban morerías amid large concentrations of Christian population, the Mudejars were enmeshed in distinct networks of social relations articulated in accordance with the moral and material demands of their families.\nAs to the precise nature of Mudejar social structure, the documentation affords us only precious glimpses. Of course, the Christian bureaucrats had little intrinsic interest in the internal life of the king's Muslim communities. What they have left are details that for them were incidental to their fiscal and administrative concerns, bits and pieces that in the aggregate form a coherent, albeit by no means complete, picture.\nAn exploration of the royal records for patterns of Mudejar behavior and the social structures underlying them reveals a high incidence of intracommunal violence, greatly exceeding the occurrence of violent conflict between Muslims and Christians (although probably not that between Christians). The discovery of 120 Crown-sponsored truces between antagonistic Mudejar families, not to mention the large number of assaults and murders, suggests that the family feud occupied a central place in Mudejar social life. The Mudejars' internecine violence indi-\ncates that their subsociety was still vital, and represents their channeling of energy inward into prescribed forms of behavior and association that had social meaning for them alone. In order to comprehend the origins of such feuding and the historical significance of this phenomenon, it will be necessary first to discuss the Berber and Arab settlement of the Valencian region and its structural implications, and then to describe the structure of the Arabo-Berber family, particularly its Mudejar variant.\nHistorians differ as to the precise chronology and nature of the Muslim settlement of the Valencian region (Sharq al-Andalus ). Guichard argues in favor of an early (eighth through ninth century) Berberization of the area, but noting that from the eleventh century onward the Berbers were so Arabized that they pretended an affiliation to prestigious Arab tribes, conveniently forgetting their Berber origins. Barceló Torres disputes Guichard's use of toponyms as evidence for early Berber settlement, suggesting that these Berber place names originated in later waves of Berber immigration under al-Hakam[*] II (961–976) and al-Mansur[*] (978–1002), or perhaps during the conquests of the Almoravids and the Almohads. Míkel de Epalza has made important contributions regarding the religious status of Valencia's indigenous population following the Muslim conquest. Taking account of new evidence showing only a limited Christianization of pre-Islamic Valencia, he proposes a rapid mass conversion to Islam (in contrast to Bulliet's model of a more gradual conversion), a trend that was intensified in the tenth and eleventh centuries with a Cordoban-controlled campaign of politicoreligious indoctrination intended to stave off a Fatimid Shic i[*] threat to Sunni[*] al-Andalus. The result was that the Sharq al-Andalus became perhaps the most highly Islamized and Arabized region in the peninsula. From the above it may be said that on the eve of the Christian conquest the Valencian region was Islamized and Arabized with a greater or lesser portion of the population being possessed of Berber roots. Moreover, it is likely that the region was settled on a tribal pattern, in which individual villages were peopled by particular clans. For our purposes, whether these clans were Berber, Arab, or Arabized Berber is not important, inasmuch as Arabs and Berbers had and, indeed, still have, very similar forms of social organization.\nThe social and political consequences of Arab and Berber settlement, and of Islamization and Arabization have been set forth by Guichard. He convincingly repudiates the views of Sánchez Albornoz and like-minded historians who argue in favor of the assimilation of the Muslim conquerors to the social norms of the indigenous population. According to Guichard, not only did the religion and literate culture of the conquerors become predominant in al-Andalus, but Arabo-Berber tribal\nstructures prevailed as well. In terms of social organization, this meant that the Arabs and Berbers were members of agnatic, patrilineal groups in which endogamous marriage was preferred so as to maintain the cohesion, wealth, and power of the lineage. These agnatic groups were embedded in a segmentary social system characterized by the balanced opposition between the increasingly inclusive segments of elementary family, lineage, clan, and tribe. This system allowed for both atomization, when segments of equal size competed within the tribe or clan, and amalgamation, when the various segments of a tribe formed a unified front in opposition to an enemy tribe. Thus, tribal in-fighting, most notably between the confederations of Mudari[*] and Yemeni[*] Arabs, marked the political history of al-Andalus well into the tenth century. The intermarriage of Arabs and Berbers with women of the native population—the offspring would have been Muslims and full members of their father's lineage—and the clientage of muwalladun[*] , the descendants of converts to Islam, to particular tribes allowed for the retention of tribal structures.\nBy the eleventh century tribalism had played itself out as the dominant factor in the political life of al-Andalus. In addition to the political centralization and pacification achieved by c Abd al-Rahman[*] III, Guichard emphasizes the processes of sedentarization and urbanization, which hindered segmentation, the dynamic of tribal organization. David Wasserstein argues that an \"Andalusian identity\" had supplanted tribalism, any politically significant elements of which were destroyed by the military reforms of al-Mansur[*] , which had dissolved the tribally based jund units. Glick suggests an additional factor—the explosion of conversion to Islam in the midtenth century (according to the Bulliet model) saw the Arabs and Berbers being numerically swamped by neo-Muslims for whom tribal issues were not a major concern. However, if Epalza's thesis of an earlier and more intense Islamization of the Valencian region is correct, it may be that Arabo-Berber structures had taken deeper roots there. This may explain the particular vitality of Arabo-Berber social structures among Valencia's Mudejars.\nIn any case, the decline of tribalism as a political force, or the dissolution of the tribal unit as a form of social organization, need not have resulted in the lapse of the more elementary segments of agnatic family and lineage as significant structures. In fact, among the Muslims of Nasrid Granada, and even among the Moriscos of postconquest Granada, agnatic solidarity (c asabiyah[*] ) continued to be a potent social force.\nIt is one thing to remark on the survival of agnatic solidarity in an Islamic polity, or in a recently conquered one like Granada; it is quite another matter to assert that Arabo-Berber social attitudes and structures, at the level of family and lineage, remained largely intact in\nValencia some 250 years after the submission of that region to western Christian domination. The defeat and emigration of Muslim military elites in the thirteenth century had eliminated whatever political significance still remained to either the tribe or clan. Since the government was Christian and denied Muslims access to political power, it is difficult to see what sociopolitical role and aims even the smaller solidarities of family and lineage would have had. Furthermore, progressive Mudejar emigration to Granada or the Maghrib, coupled with the internal migration and fragmentation brought about by seigneurial alteration of rural settlement patterns, must have severely strained or severed the ties binding some Muslim lineages together, in effect, fostering a more radical segmentation.\nStill, at the same time, the conquerors' granting of communal and legal autonomy to the Mudejars was probably conducive to the retention of preconquest structures, or at least to the alleviation of the pressures for fragmentation. As will be seen below, the various official posts of the corporate aljama, however much they were distortions of their Islamic antecedents, became sources of prestige and power within the Mudejar community, prizes over which rival families deemed it worthwhile to feud. Also, Maliki[*] law, according to which the Mudejars regulated their daily lives, seemed to justify the perpetuation of feuding relations by its provision for either retaliation or the payment of blood money (diyah ) in cases of homicide and assault.\nAside from the persisting legal and institutional supports for traditional patterns of social relations, it is important to emphasize the peculiar resilience and structural coherence of medieval Islamic society at its lower levels, despite the frequent and sometimes traumatic political upheavals in its upper reaches. In the Valencian case, this resilience derived from the ability of the larger solidarities of an Arabo-Berber society to segment without disturbing the primary social structures. Thus, if a family were broken up—say, through the emigration of one of two brothers to the Maghrib—the sons of the remaining brother could create a new agnatic solidarity composed of themselves, their father, and their own male children, even though their position would be weakened through the loss of their paternal uncle's support. In other words, so long as traditional attitudes were not eroded, preconquest structures could be perpetuated merely through biological reproduction. If 250 years seems an incredibly long time for such structures to have endured, it was also more than enough time for them to have reemerged and solidified. Since Mudejar political life was reduced to the confines of the local morería or village there was no impetus for the amalgamation of clans or tribes; family and lineage, however, remained important.\nThat lineage long continued to be a special concern of Valencian Muslims is evinced in the claims of a Morisco family in 1567 to have descended from al-Mansur[*] and Valencia's Muslim rulers.c Asabiyah[*] in Valencia was buttressed through the practice of endogamy, that is, through parallel cousin marriage with the daughter of the paternal uncle (bint al-c amm). The negotiations of the newly converted Moriscos with Carlos I in 1526 leave little doubt that this type of marriage had been the preferred one among the Mudejars:\ninasmuch as among the Moors today there are many marriages concluded between close relations in a degree prohibited by the Christian law and permitted by the Moorish law, which law permits marriage to the degree of that between cousins-germane—the children of two brothers inclusive—should the said marriages begin to be disturbed, and to prohibit those marriages which could be made from today henceforth, would result in the greatest damage and disturbance among the said Moors.\nThe Moriscos then requested that Carlos intercede with the papal legate and persuade him to grant a dispensation for the endogamous marriages consummated before the mass conversions.\nOur documentation is less useful on this matter. Normally, only the name (ism ) of the wife is given—as Fatima, wife of so and so—without ascription to her lineage (nisbah ). This was in keeping with the far greater importance given to patrilineal descent, whereby the offspring of the marriage pertained to the lineage of the father. Of course, in the instance of marriage with the bint al- c amm, the husband and wife would have the same nisbah . In a few rare cases the documentation shows unequivocally the marriage of parallel cousins. In Alcira, Fotoix bint (daughter of) Mahomat Xativi was the betrothed of Ali ibn (son of) Abrahim Xativi. Two cases from Aragon (where the practice of endogamy is all the more impressive, given the greater acculturation of Aragonese Mudejars) suggest that although the right of the male cousin to the hand of the bint al-c amm was recognized, the prospective brides were sometimes less than enthusiastic about their fate. For five years there was pending in the courts of the kingdom a decision on the litigation between a reluctant bride, Fatima bint Mahomat Margnan of Huesca, and her cousin, Ybraym ibn Mofferiz Margnan, concerning the marriage that Ybraym and his father \"were claiming\" to contract with her. Fatima bint Jayel de Gali of Zaragoza asked for a divorce from her cousin, Faraig ibn Juçe de Gali, on the grounds that he had maltreated her. Faraig maintained that his mother-in-law had put Fatima up to it and pleaded before the king that his wife be restored to him.\nQuestions of marital harmony aside, there were compelling reasons for the practice of endogamy. The marriage of paternal cousins en-\nhanced the solidarity of the lineage by linking the interests of brothers and their children, and giving the bride's kin more control over the bridegroom. They could then present a more powerful front to rival lineages. Moreover, the reproductive power of the daughter was retained within the lineage; more children, particularly more sons, increased prestige, power, and economic potential. The economic angle was crucial. Since among the Mudejars daughters were able to inherit from their fathers, the exogamous marriage of a daughter implied the loss of property by her lineage. True, the groom had to render a specified bridewealth (sadaq[ *] , Catalan accidach ) to his intended, but, because that was paid to and retained by the bride, her family did not profit from it. In some instances wives left their husbands and took their bridewealth home with them, or when couples separated the wives demanded their bridewealth, but it is highly unlikely that families planned for such eventualities.\nWhile endogamy was preferred, exogamous marriage was not at all unusual. Demography militated against every person being able to wed his or her cousin. More important, exogamy served to define relationships between various lineages. Marriage ties created a community of interest, mitigated conflict between families, and stabilized community life. That Mudejars regarded such affinal connections as determinants of conduct is demonstrated in the judicial appeal of Çaat Siquuti. The lieutenant bailiff of Játiva, with the counsel of the local qadi[*], Yuçeff Alçamba, had passed sentence against Çaat, which sentence was then upheld by the bailiff general, with the counsel of Mahomat Bellvis, the qadi general. Çaat complained that the final ruling had gone against him because the two qadi s \"are joined by a certain affinity, that the son of the said qadi Bellvis had married the niece of the aforesaid Yuçeff Alçamba, daughter of Yahye Alçamba his brother.\" In another case, Mahomat Perpir, when he fled to the Maghrib in 1501, was recorded as having Abdalla Murçi and Yuçeff Zignell as brothers-in-law. In 1499 he had reached a truce with Azmet Murçi, a relation of Abdalla, and in 1500 had done the same with Yuçeff Zignell. It may be that affinal ties had helped to close the rift separating the Perpirs from the Murçis and the Zignells, or perhaps in the end they proved insufficient and Mahomat had reasons other than the fear of forced baptism for taking refuge in the Maghrib.\nSince endogamous marriage was practiced, and the bonds between agnates thereby strengthened, it should follow that agnates acted jointly in the conduct of feuding relations. This is precisely the state of affairs encountered in the documentation. In a number of cases the perpetrators of violence were two or more agnates. Homaymat and Çuleymen Montani of Alacuás, with accomplices, shot and killed with a crossbow\nanother Muslim vassal of the seigneury. Ali Orfayçi and his brother Mahomat Çaffahi of Alcira burst into the house of Pedro Delgado and wounded Juçeff Bolaix with two lacerations. On different occasions Muslims of Valldigna were wounded by Mahomat and Abdalla Giber, and by Çat and Ali Bolarif. Mahomat Malich had the misfortune somehow to incur the wrath of Ali and Mahomat Guayna of Artesa. Clearly casabiyah[*] was crucial for providing the strength in numbers that allowed for such aggression.\nAt the same time, the readiness to resort to violence, combined with the support of sons, brothers, uncles, and cousins, tended to discourage the violent initiatives or retaliation of rivals. The threat posed by the enemy's group solidarity determined the very nature of much of the violence that occurred. Assault and murder were often committed under the cover of night; ambushes were laid and enemies attacked at unexpected moments; and victims were often alone and outnumbered by their assailants who struck in tandem with agnates or other—perhaps affinal—accomplices. We have mentioned elsewhere Juçeff Cabot of Játiva who returned to Valldigna, where, one evening, with henchmen, he did away with an enemy in his own home. Abdalla Çentido and Fuçey Ylel dispatched Azmet Gradano with a dagger-thrust to the throat as he was leaving his father's house in Mirambell. Mahomat Flori of Játiva was fined 110s, in lieu of eighty lashes, \"because he had hidden in his house certain Moors [relatives] from Gandía and from the Vall d'Alfandech [Valldigna] for the purpose of killing Gabix, Moor of the said morería .\" Mahomat Chiquet of Alcira even resorted to arson, attempting to burn down the house of the Arrayço family. Only rarely were attempts made on the lives of more than one member of a family at the same time, and in such cases the elements of surprise, darkness of night, and superiority in arms are apparent. The brothers Çahat and Amet Pachando were the victims of a ferocious nocturnal assault in Liria by Caet Natjar and Abraym Rabaça of Bétera. Natjar practically cut off Çahat's head with his sword, while Rabaça seriously wounded Amet with a poisoned crossbow dart.\nAs casabiyah[*] was predicated on the responsibility of each agnate to uphold the honor of his family, an attack on one member of the group demanded of the others reprisal against the offender or his agnates. Failure to fulfill this responsibility resulted in the family's loss of honor and in a decrease in its prestige and power in the community. Thus violence elicited a violent response, setting in motion a potentially endless sequence of aggressive acts characteristic of the feud.\nThe understanding of family members involved in feuds that violence would inevitably ensue and vengeance be exacted prompted Muslims of Oliva, Carlet, Játiva, the Vall de Uxó, and Valencia to apply for licenses\nto bear arms for the purpose of self-defense against their \"enemies.\" Yuçeff Albanne's application hinged on the presumption that because Abrahim Corumbell had already wounded his brother he was next in line.\nA consideration of the feud between the Murçi and the Torralbi families of the morería of Valencia demonstrates the centrality of agnatic solidarity in the prosecution of a feud. We first encounter the brothers Azmet and Çahat Torralbi receiving from the bailiff general arms-bearing licenses (20 March 1503). Because Çahat had denounced Azmet Murçi before the bailiff's court (for a reason unknown to us), he believed he needed to be armed so that he would not be \"damaged by the said Azmet Murçi or by another relative of his \" (italics mine). Azmet Torralbi, sharing responsibility for his brother's legal actions, whether he liked it or not, felt equally threatened. Such was the expectation of Murçi vengeance that the Torralbis were licensed to bear arms not only for self-defense but also for the defense of \"one other companion who will go in your company.\" Clearly, it was inadvisable for a man embroiled in a Mudejar feud to walk alone.\nLess than three months later the Torralbis took the offensive and, putting his licensed arms to good use, Azmet Torralbi severely wounded Abrahim Murçi. The precise relation of Abrahim to Azmet Murçi is unknown, although it seems most likely that they were brothers. In any case, they had the same enemies. Both Abrahim and Azmet had concluded truces with Mahomat Perpir and Ali Perpir, and both had fallen out with even the same agnate, Ubaydal Murçi, perhaps their cousin. Abrahim had also made Azmet's dispute with the Torralbis his own. Nusa, Abrahim's wife, maintained that Azmet and Çahat Torralbi, and their father Abdalla, all bore a grudge against her husband for no reason, and that Çahat and Abdalla prompted Azmet and planned with him the attack on Abrahim. She also asserted that as early as the previous January (1503) Çahat Torralbi had shown much bravado toward her husband and an intention to kill him.\nThe testimonies of other witnesses contradicted some of Nusa's charges. First, it seems that Abrahim Murçi was not entirely blameless. Abrahim was said to have a \"foul mouth,\" and many thought that \"because of his tongue the said Azmet Torralbi has wounded him.\" Abrahim had indeed gone about stating that Azmet was a fool and deserved to be treated as such. Second, it seems that Çahat and Abdalla Torralbi had not urged on Azmet or planned the crime with him; rather, the attack was more of a spontaneous act on Azmet's part. In fact, Abdalla Torralbi had attempted to mollify his son's animosity toward Abrahim, urging Azmet to make peace with him. On the very day of the assault, Abdalla confronted Abrahim, demanding to know why he was\ndeliberately antagonizing his son. Abrahim retorted that he did not have to answer to Abdalla, then wheeled and strode off.\nAbrahim's inability to hold his tongue proved calamitous, for when Azmet vented his wrath against him, he showed little mercy. Azmet slashed Abrahim about the head and arms with his sword, and, when Abrahim fled into the home of Gil Sanchiz, he followed him there and cut off his right foot. According to the painter Gabriel Gosalbo, it was his own intervention that prevented the affair from escalating into a bloodbath. With a lance he barred the way into Abdalla Torralbi's house against those (Abrahim's relatives, perhaps) who spoke of entering to slit the throats of Abdalla's daughters. Later, he met Çahat Torralbi and advised him to avoid the area of his father's house, lest he fall victim to Murçi revenge.\nIn another case, the brothers Ali and Azmet Thorruc of Millena killed Azmet Araye of Benilloba on account of some disagreement. Consequently, Azmet's brothers, Mahomat and Çahat Araye—their father was an eighty-year-old invalid—recruited some neighbors in Benilloba and proceeded to Millena, where they took their revenge, slaying Azmet Thorruc.\nAçen Muça of Serra was similarly motivated by a desire to vindicate the murder of his half-brother Azmet Gradano (\"jermans de mare,\" a blood tie not as strong as that between sons of the same father) by Abdalla Çentido. For four years he had restrained himself, but on Corpus Christi Day, 1491, he stabbed Abdalla to death as he sat watching the processions in Valencia. Earlier that day, Yuçeff Ada had asked Abdalla about the state of his relations with Açen Muça, and, upon learning that the two were still feuding, admonished Abdalla to be careful. The feud, then, seems to have been a matter of (Mudejar) public knowledge. This makes perfect sense, for the honor and status of a family rested on public evaluation and approval. This approval could best be attained through the display of solidarity and the willingness of the agnates to fulfill their responsibilities to the group, that is, through the family conducting itself properly in a feud.\nA number of victimized Mudejar families, either too weak in numbers or too law-abiding to retaliate against their enemies in kind, or perhaps exceedingly confident in the efficacy of royal and seigneurial justice, beseeched their Christian overlords to mete out the punishment due for assault or homicide. The parents of the murdered Azmet Zichnel of Valldigna, \"although they have the ability and it would be permitted to them to kill with impunity Juçef Cuyta, the killer,\" turned first to the criminal justice of Valldigna, a seigneury, and then, once Juçef had fled the valley, to the Crown \"to have him fittingly punished and chastized through the measures and means of that [justice].\"\nIt is due to this type of legal recourse to the Christian authorities that much of the information concerning Mudejar violence turns up in the documentation.\nThe records of the kingdom's fiscal auditor (Maestre Racional ) indicate that royal officials, and probably their seigneurial counterparts as well, acted as mediators between feuding Mudejar families. The result of a bailiff's intervention in a dispute appears in the records as the payment of a monetary settlement (composicio ) by the offending Muslim or his family to the bailiff. Of course, payment to the Christian official provided little compensation for the victim and his family. It is probably safe to assert, therefore, that either the bailiff and the victim divided the settlement or the victim received a separate settlement equal to that received by the bailiff, who, in either case, would have presided over the entire transaction. This conjecture is substantiated in some cases by scribal notations that state that the victim \"admitted\" or agreed to the settlement. In the eyes of the victim and his family, the settlement would have appeared a form of blood money releasing them from the obligation, although not necessarily from the desire, to retaliate violently.\nA more effective means of maintaining the public peace was in the hands of the bailiff general, namely, the official \"peace and truce,\" supposed to last for 101 years, or its permanent variant, the \"final peace.\" Although many of these officially sponsored truces involved Muslims of the morería of Valencia, for keeping order was most difficult in the capital, many others bound Muslims from all over the kingdom. The truces highlight the importance of agnatic solidarity by emphasizing that each party swearing to abide by the truce was representing himself and his \"relatives, friends, and defenders.\" In some cases entire families were present at the conclusion of the truce. Unfortunately, only in rare instances do the documents state the causes for the mutual hostility necessitating a formal truce. When given, the causes usually are acts of violence. The texts of the truces are written according to standard format, in which steep monetary fines are emphasized as the deterrent to any resumption of the feud.\nFor example, in a truce dated 31 March 1489 we find various members of the Capo family of Alcira, standing \"for themselves, friends, relations, and defenders,\" and Abdalla Pollet, his son Mahomat, Azmet Biari, Çahat Biari and his son Caleth, and Çapdon Eça, all of the same morería, pledging \"a good peace and truce between them, to last for 101 years, concerning whatever debates, quarrels, rumors, ill-will, and wounds that might have existed between them until the present day.\" By virtue of an oath sworn \"with hands and with mouth\" in the presence of Joan Aduart, royal constable and vicar of the bailiff general, \"'to our\nLord God and to the qiblah of Muhammad' the face turned toward midday, according to the Sunnah and the Shariah of the Sarracens,\" both parties promised that \"there will not be done nor caused to be done nor arranged nor attempted, neither openly nor secretly, neither directly nor indirectly, any evil or damage on the persons or goods of them [the other party].\" For any violation of the truce, the Crown would penalize the offending family with a fine of 500 florins—100 florins to the injured party and 400 florins to the royal treasury.\nIt is not difficult to understand why the royal authorities expended such effort to curb the Mudejars' feuding propensities. The death of vassals, the destruction of property, and the disruption of economic activity, all of which resulted from feuding, had the most negative implications for the state of the royal treasury. Moreover, the control of social violence and the efficient administration of justice were essential components of the effective exercise of royal authority. Stated more simply, public order had to be maintained. Feuds not only affected individual families but also at times threatened to engulf entire morerías in tumultuous and bloody disorder. Three royal aljamas were seen to be tottering on the edge of such calamity. In Valencia, the feud between the Roget and the Bizquey families had become so serious that they and \"their fathers and mothers\" had to be banished from the morería . In Alcira, the bailiff believed the aforementioned truce between the Capo and Biari families to be necessary in order to \"pacify the said morería and to put the [morería ] in repose.\" The bailiff general urged the bailiff of Castellón de la Plana to do something to resolve the conflict between the Bocayos and their rivals \"for the benefit and repose of that morería, which today ... is on the road to destruction.\"\nWhile official intervention prevented the growth of widespread violence within morerías, it is less certain that the truces between families always had their intended durability. Social anthropologies have observed in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern societies where the feud is a central element in social relations the ultimate inefficacy of truces and various forms of compensation as means of permanently extinguishing a feud. Rather, despite the fact that hostilities cease for varying lengths of time, feuds tend to be perpetual in nature. The Valencian evidence does not contradict these conclusions. Azmet Coxet of Paterna was to be apprehended \"for breaking the peace and truce.\" Although Azmet Aixbir and Çaat Borrabe had concluded a truce, Azmet later seized the opportunity to attack Çaat. One also encounters the repetition of truces between the same families, such as the Murçis and the Perpirs, or the Bizqueys and the Rogets. Even if different members or combinations of members of the families appear in successive truces,\nthis hardly masks the fact of the continuing and potentially explosive state of animosity existing between them.\nIt should not be thought, however, that without the intervention of royal and seigneurial officials Mudejar society would have destroyed itself through unabated internecine violence. The Mudejars had their own mechanisms for achieving a cessation of hostilities, a state of affairs necessary if routine social and economic life were to continue.\nA settlement arrived at through the efforts of Muslim jurists preceded some of the truces established through the office of the bailiff general. When the powerful Paziar family of Alcira and the Getdi family of Picasent concluded an official \"peace and truce\" after the killing of Abdalla Getdi, the Paziars came with a \"carta morischa (Arabic letter) received from Ali Bellvis, son of Mahomat Bellvis, qadi[ *] of the lord king,\" while the Getdis had an Arabic letter from their local faqih[*] . In other cases Muslims abandoned legal initiatives against enemies, having come to an understanding with them by their own methods and for their own reasons.\nIn the feud between the Araye and Thorruc families, rather than pursuing the prosecution of Mahomat and Çahat Araye in the governor's court, the Thorrucs dropped the charges against them, after having \"established peace with all [their] adversaries.\" It may be inferred that the Thorrucs realized that the capital punishment of the Araye brothers, even if executed through proper legal procedure, would have served only to provoke the perpetration of retaliatory violence by the Araye and their friends in Benilloba. Each family had already lost a son; with the score even, an uneasy truce seemed wiser than more killing and the disruption of the activities of those still alive. When the wife of the murdered Ali Dabbau, his sister, and the guardian of his children, Azmet Pulpul (apparently not an agnate of Ali), dropped charges against the killer, Çaat Melich, the reasons for their doing so were even more pressing than those motivating the Thorrucs. Here, the surviving members of the victim's family, two women and young children, were incapable of either exacting revenge themselves or defending themselves against later retaliation should they press prosecution through the bailiff's court. This evidence suggests that what moved Mudejars to accept compensation or blood money instead of physical retribution, or to make peace with the enemy, however temporary that peace might be, was not so much the threat of censure by the Christian authorities as the fear of triggering further violence, of reactivating the feud in its most destructive form. In other words, the most effective deterrent to feuding was the feud itself. Rival families eyed each other warily and exercised restraint, committing violent acts sporadically in an\noften calculated manner. It was to no one's interest to give violence free rein.\nThe plethora of official truces between rival Mudejar families, the numerous acts of violence in which agnates were implicated, and the importance of vengeance as a motive for such violence all indicate that the feud was so pervasive as to constitute a primary determinant of Mudejar social relations. Jacob Black-Michaud, whose conclusions are based on the studies of various Mediterranean and Middle Eastern feuding societies, goes so far as to state that \"feud can be regarded as a social system per se.\" While it is not our intention to discuss the validity of this conclusion, nor, for that matter, to attempt to fit Mudejar feuding within the framework of an anthropological model, it is crucial to emphasize a viewpoint on which most observers of feuding societies would seem to agree, namely, that feuding is better viewed as a social process than as a social aberration. If this is the case, then there must have been something other than the necessity to respond to a previous act of violence behind much of the Mudejar violence we have observed, a stake, or stakes, worth the risk of initiating a feud. These stakes were wealth and power. Among Mudejar farmers and artisans wealth was attained through the acquisition of land and through the control of a limited market for manufactured goods. Power, or local influence, rested on the prestige and status afforded by the possession of wealth and by the defeat of rivals in the competition for it. The agnates who constituted the feuding group also functioned as an economic unit, holding land jointly and practicing the same crafts, so that mutual material concerns strengthened agnatic solidarity. Mudejar feuding, then, may be interpreted as a consequence of the competition for material wealth and local status, and as a process determining the allocation of these scarce commodities, thereby stratifying individual communities.\nThe official truces, which sometimes indicate the professions of the subscribing parties, strongly suggest that economic competition was at the root of much Mudejar discord. In a number of cases both of the feuding parties were practitioners of the same craft, producing for the same limited market. Conflict occurred between Muslim blacksmiths, shieldmakers, and shoemakers in Valencia, between Muslim fishermen in Oliva, and between hemp sandalmakers in the Vall de Uxó. The competition seems to have been most intense among Valencia's Mudejar shoemakers. The feuding Bizquey and Roget families, whom the authorities had to expel from the morería, both practiced shoemaking. The Bizqueys also concluded truces with other enemy shoemakers, namely, Çatdon Caeli, the brothers Abrahim and Çalema Cabero, Çilim Maymo, and Çahat Perpir with his nephews Ali and Mahomat Perpir. The Perpirs themselves clashed with shoemakers other than\nthe Bizqueys: Çahat Carcaix, Azmet Murçi, Ali Maguarell, and Çaat Abducarim. In the feud which resulted in the wounding of Abrahim Murci, a shieldmaker, by Azmet Torralbi, a shoemaker, it is interesting that the Torralbis seem to have first come into conflict, not with Abrahim, but with Azmet Murçi, a shoemaker (see above).\nHowever, in many other feuds the parties were not of the same profession, in which cases one cannot delineate so precisely the clash of competing economic interests. The ties and common interests created through exogamous marriage or simple friendship complicated intracommunal relations considerably, so that families came into conflict who, had they been guided by economic concerns alone, otherwise might not have. Thus, one encounters truces like the one concluded between the shoemakers Ali Perpir of Valencia and Azmet Naixe of Mislata, on one side, and Ali Maguarell and Çaat Abducarim, shoemakers, and Azmet Claret, a linen salesman, all of Valencia, on the other side. The documentation does not reveal what, other than shoemaking, brought together Perpir and Naixe, Muslims from different families and locales, or why a linen salesman was involved in the feud at all.\nThe frequent and varied business transactions between Mudejars of all walks of life, and matters associated with the complex pattern of land tenure, in which Muslim artisans also were concerned, provided ample opportunity for the sparking of controversy and mutual hostility. For instance, Çale Magarell had Çaat Feçi imprisoned for money Çaat owed him for the purchase of a donkey. In Játiva, Yuçeff Redona complained that Azmet Beniale had planted mulberry trees on his land and demanded that they be uprooted. Muslims of Valldigna went to court over the alleged sale of cloth, while Muslims of Alcira disputed the ownership of goats.\nMaterial interests fueled the fires of dissension even within families. For instance, Ali Gehini, a wealthy amin[*] of la Foyeta, was so afraid of being robbed by his own sons, disreputable characters who frequented taverns, that he hid his money in the walls of his house. Mahomat Negral had the justice of Valldigna sell his brother Abducalem's mule for debts Abducalem owed him on account of the justice's earlier sale of Mahomat's field for debts that had really been Abducalem's. Unfortunately, because most Mudejar civil litigation was handled in Islamic courts, the records of which do not survive, our information on Mudejar disputes over land or other commodities is extremely limited. Consequently, direct correlations cannot be made between such disputes and the occurrence of violence and feuding. Considering the extent of feuding between Muslims of the same profession reflected in the truces and the few instances of Mudejar property litigation encountered, it can be\ncautiously postulated that much of Mudejar feuding had its roots in conflicting economic interests.\nThe feuding that threatened to destroy the morería of Castellón de la Plana was the violent manifestation of a struggle for political power. The struggle centered on the control of the two posts of adelantat and pitted Abdulazis and his son Yuçeff Bocayo against a faction headed by Çale Arroçen and Ubequer Faraig, which also included Caet Fando, Yuçeff Salio, Ali Gordo, and Ali Gerret. Shortly before 19 April 1487 the Bocayos informed the bailiff general of a fight that had broken out between Yuçeff Bocayo and Ali Gerret. Within weeks matters took a more serious turn: two Christians and some unidentified Muslims entered the Bocayos' home and wounded Yuçeff in the arm and hand, cutting off his finger. Investigation revealed that this was not random violence, but that the two Christian assailants had been hired by Çale Arroçen and Ubequer Faraig to do the dirty work. At this point the bailiff general had Ali Bellvis, the qadi[*] general, intervene. Bellvis managed to persuade the Bocayos and their rivals to agree to a power-sharing arrangement. According to this arrangement, the ten councillors of the aljama, among whom were members of both feuding factions, and the adelantats from the previous year would elect the amin[*] and the two adelantats . Most important, it was stipulated that \"in any year either Ubequer Faraig or Çale Arroçen is elected as jurate [adelantat ] that in such case let there be elected as jurate one of the said Bocayos, either the father or the son.\" That the two posts of adelantat were so hotly contested was probably due to the adelantats ' function as advisors to the amin in the apportionment and collection of taxes. This is suggested by the fact that Ali Bellvis also inspected the aljama's account books to ensure that the amin had justly confiscated certain goods of the Bocayos and Yuçeff Pollina, presumably for reason of unpaid taxes. The Bocayos, then, had a clear material interest in being elected as one of the adelantats . Eventually (August 1488), the authorities established a formal truce between the two factions; however, by 1492 Yuçeff Bocayo was again complaining about wounds inflicted by his former antagonists (it is not clear that these were new wounds). There is no further evidence indicating that the feuds in other Mudejar communities were similarly motivated, and the aljama of Castellón, in which the office of amin changed hands annually, may well have been more politically unstable. Still, given that all the communities had more or less the same political structure with officials executing the same functions, it may not be too far-fetched to infer a more general phenomenon of feuding as being in part a contest for local political power, the exercise of which could influence individual rates of taxation. Even families secure in their possession of official posts, like the Paziars, the amin s of\nAlcira, were involved in feuding, which suggests that the holding of office was not the sole basis of power among the Mudejars.\nIntimately linked to the competition for economic and political power as a source of feuding was a punctilious concern for honor. The Mudejar conception of honor differed somewhat from that of western Christians. For the latter, honor was attached to social rank and varied according to the possession of wealth and title. For the Mudejars, honor had the same significance at all socioeconomic levels and was the possession of the family, to be augmented or lost. This may help to explain the apparently unusual phenomenon of Mudejar shoemakers and the like fighting over points of honor.\nAs suggested above, family honor could be maintained and increased only through the agnates' fulfillment of their responsibilities to each other. Inasmuch as the family constituted an economic unit jockeying for its share of wealth and influence in the community, its performance in that contest reflected on its honor. However, a family without honor was by virtue of its loss of face excluded from participation in that same contest. Honor, then, was a prerequisite for the attainment of status and power in the community. Because in economic terms Mudejar society was relatively homogenous, being composed largely of small farmers and artisans and lacking an established aristocracy, the possession of honor, achieved through a family's action in accordance with the dictates of agnatic solidarity, was probably as great a determinant of local status as real wealth.\nThis helps to explain why so much of the violence committed by Mudejars seems to have been in defense of family or personal honor. Although economic competition might have inspired the incidents leading families or individuals to believe that their honor had been somehow sullied, it was not considered to have been in itself a sufficient cause for violence. Questions of purely economic concern were settled licitly in court; questions of honor were settled extralegally in the forum of the community. Of course, the settlement of a question of honor through violence to some extent also resolved the economic question, inasmuch as the competition was then either temporarily or permanently eliminated. Thus, in the feud between the Torralbis and the Murçis, which seems to have originated in the clash between shoemakers—Azmet Murçi against Azmet and Çahat Torralbi—Azmet Torralbi inflicted violence on Abrahim Murqi, a shieldmaker, because Abrahim had ridiculed him and thereby stained his honor. It is worth recalling that many in the morería recognized that Abrahim had incurred Azmet's wrath because of his loose tongue.\nAnother incident involving Muslims of Bétera shows the Mudejars' extreme sensitivity where their honor was concerned. Ubaydal Allepus\nand his convert brother Miguel Crestia went to a hamlet near Bétera where they intended to mow grass with a sickle that a Christian hosteler had given them. There, a Muslim named Raboça accused the two brothers of having stolen the sickle from him. Apparently, Ubaydal and Miguel felt they had been defamed and their honor challenged, for they immediately tried to strike Raboça. Raboça then called for his brother-in-law, Amet Biari, at which point a brawl ensued that resulted in Amet's death. Although Ubaydal denied any previous acquaintance with Amet Biari, the latter's widow claimed that Ubaydal had harbored ill will against her husband. Perhaps Ubaydal's spontaneous violence in defense of his honor was the culmination of a long-standing controversy with Biari's family.\nBecause honor was essentially a social value, the possession of which depended on the community's evaluation of the conduct of an individual and his family, acts that entailed a challenge to or a defense of honor had a meaning recognized and understood by the entire community. Violence begot violence because social norms demanded that vengeance be exacted if honor was to be maintained. Thus, in the aforementioned stabbing of Abdalla Çentido by Açen Muça, Abdalla's friends expected that Açen would be seeking revenge. Açen, it seems, was a somewhat reluctant avenger, but he felt compelled to act when Abdalla passed by him in the street three times making insulting gestures and faces calculated to shame him publicly.\nIf the childrearing methods of Axa, the wife of Abdalla Murçi, are any indication of a widespread phenomenon, then Mudejar children were from an early age socialized in the ways of violent initiative and riposte in the pursuit of honor. When her nine-year-old son came home weeping after having been hit by the son of Alfona, Axa deemed that he had been shamed. She upbraided the boy for not striking back, and she demanded retaliation: \"Look, when he [the son of Alfona] passes, hit him with a rock.\" If this were not enough, she even nagged at her husband and servant: \"If you do not strike either the husband or the wife [the Alfonas] I will not consider you men. If you do not do it, go to the devil!\"\nA consideration of the position of women in Mudejar society confirms the continued importance of Arabo-Berber attitudes and social structures. To some extent women were pawns manipulated by their male relatives in the politics of marital alliance. Ideally, a woman was kept within the lineage through endogamous marriage, so that her lineage benefited from her reproductive power. However, if exogamous marriage were unavoidable, it was better and more honorable to receive than to give a woman in marriage. Families that had to give away their daughters in marriage did so to those families with whom alliance would\nprove most useful in the local scheme of feuding relations. Although the woman in an exogamous marriage lived with her husband's lineage, she still maintained important connections with her father's family. In fact, her behavior, particularly her sexual conduct, affected the honor of her father's family, not that of her husband. This ambivalent position of the woman, bearing children for her husband's family while being responsible for the honor of her father's family, is reflected in a number of ways in the documentation.\nFirst, because the children of a marriage belonged to the husband's family, Mudejar widows lost custody of their children, who were given into the hands of male guardians, presumably the agnates of the deceased husbands. The strategy here was to ensure that the children, along with the inheritances their fathers had bequeathed to them, continued to adhere to the father's family when their mother remarried. This explains why Fotayma resided in Sot with her new husband, Amet Albaytar, while her daughter Axa lived with two guardians in Cuart, the home of her deceased husband. Apparently, the only way a widow could continue to play a significant role in the lives of her children was either not to remarry, or to do so only to a man of the same town.\nThe wife's continued close ties with her father's family divided her allegiance and seem to have contributed to the instability of some exogamous marriages. This is indicated by the fact that when a Mudejar wife separated from her husband she usually returned to the home of her father. When Suçey, the wife of Abrahim Çuleymen of the morería of Valencia, went to her father's home in Petrés to attend her brother's wedding, she never returned, \"her father, mother, and brother detaining her and not allowing her to come in the power of her husband.\" Çoltana departed with her father from the seigneury of Castell de Castells without license of the lord, even though her husband was still living there. When Ali Mançor changed vassalage from Benimuslem to Castellón de Játiva, his wife refused to accompany him and demanded the payment of her bridewealth. The bailiff of Játiva did not quite comprehend what was happening and asserted, as a Christian might, \"the wife has to follow the husband wherever he would wish to go ... and to live.\" Probably her confidence in and attachment to her agnates allowed this woman such freedom of choice.\nAlthough the father's household offered a haven to a woman in case of an unhappy marriage, it also harbored the harshest judges of her sexual misbehavior. An adulterous woman's shameful behavior affected mainly the honor of her father's lineage; that of the husband's remained largely unstained. Therefore, it was the responsibility of the woman's agnates to punish her. In some traditional Arabo-Berber societies the agnates were expected to kill her, and Islamic law required that adul-\nterers be stoned to death. The Valencian documentation records a surprisingly large number of cases of Mudejar adultery, in which the Islamic death penalty was normally commuted by the Christian authorities to enslavement to the king. This indicates not that Muslims involved themselves in adulterous affairs any more than did Christians, but that because the honor of the father's lineage was involved in the case of an adulterous wife—and those prosecuted were almost all women—her agnates were themselves especially eager to prosecute her so as to erase their own shame. Since royal law would not permit the agnates to dispose of the woman themselves, they had to go through the proper legal channels. Unfortunately, the documents do not reveal who brought the adulteresses before the qadi 's[*] court (the criminal penalty itself had to be executed by the local Christian authority), but, all else being consistent, the agnates, not the husbands, seem the most likely candidates.\nThe social origins of Mudejar prostitutes further substantiate the importance of the woman's relation to her agnatic group, for the position of such women seems to have derived precisely from their having lacked the support of their agnates. Fotayma was an orphaned maidservant maltreated by her Muslim master. She ran off with a male servant who subsequently became her procurer. Mariem had left her husband, but, because her mother was forcing her to return to him, she departed from Alacuás for the brothel of Valencia. Nuzeya of Oliva had also separated from her husband, and since her parents were dead she, too, was compelled to earn a living in the brothel. Xuxa left her husband in Villamarchante for a lover who later became her procurer. Having committed adultery, she could not hope for forgiveness from her father's family. Adulterous women and prostitutes were the outcasts of Mudejar society.\nIf fathers were preoccupied with the sexual conduct of their married daughters, so much more were they anxious to defend the chastity of their unmarried ones. The violation of a daughter's chastity, committed with the consent of the daughter or not, constituted an assault on the family's honor. Daughters could not bring honor to a family; they could only bring shame through sexual impropriety. Thus, Aragonese Mudejars conducting business in Zaragoza brought their daughters with them and kept them secluded in the fonduk so that they would not be \"maltreated\" or spoiled for marriage. The Mudejars' concern to guard their daughters' chastity in defense of family honor may be explained as a reaction to an unusual phenomenon encountered in the documentation, namely, the abduction of women. In pre-Islamic Arab society, and also to some extent among Arabs in Islamic times, women were\nabducted in order to shame the victimized family. The honor of the abductor's family was at the same time increased. Mudejars in royal and seigneurial morerías also seem to have employed abduction as a tactic to disgrace their enemies. Although in some cases abduction might have been, in fact, only an elopement, which still would have shamed the father who could not control his daughter, in other cases the participation of more than one man in the abduction indicates a deliberate intention to dishonor the woman's family. Mahomat and Omeymet Maixquarn of Valldigna paid a 340s settlement to the bailiff of Játiva \"for having kidnapped Çayma, Mooress, daughter of the amin[ *] of the place of Manuel.\" The knight Miguel Çetina was sent to the Vall de Villalonga to search for the daughter (\"mora donzella\") of a Muslim of Millena who had been abducted by Muslims of Cocentaina. The fate of the abducted women is unknown, but it is likely that abduction lessened their prospects for a good marriage.\nThe passive role of women (outside of the home at least) in the maintenance or loss of family honor was linked to the economic and local political considerations underlying much of Mudejar feuding. The primary factor at stake was the woman's reproductive power. Children, particularly sons, increased a family's economic potential, and the family with many sons and strong casabiyah[*] was a force to be reckoned with in the community. Thus endogamous marriage was preferred to keep offspring within the lineage, while if exogamous marriage was necessary, it was preferable to receive the woman of another family. The widow lost control of her own children to her late husband's family for the same reasons. Adulterous unions were frowned upon because the bastard offspring did not belong to any lineage and were of no help to anyone. Prostitutes, bereft of honor and family ties, existed on the margin of Mudejar feuding society.\nAbove the level of family or lineage the most important solidarity among the Mudejars was that formed by the rural village or urban morería . During the era of Islamic rule such solidarity had greater force owing to the settlement of particular localities by individual clans (thus the prevalence of \"Beni\" in Valencian toponyms). The dissipation of larger tribe or clan solidarities and the post-Christian conquest seigneurialization of the countryside significantly modified the basis of local identity. The Mudejar no longer identified himself as the member of a particular clan, but as the vassal of a particular lord. Seigneurial control of a rural community meant that the lord's interests largely determined those of his vassals. So long as Muslim vassals stayed put, their lords tended to defend them, but not without a large degree of self-interest (see chaps. 1 and 2). The vassals themselves acted as a unit, and appear\nin the documentation as the aljama of a particular place of which a particular nobleman is lord. The community of interest between vassals, and between vassals and their lords, was necessitated by economic pragmatism and a scarcity of resources. Labor, water, arable land, and livestock were all in short supply. Efficient exploitation of available resources demanded communal cooperation, and retention of these resources required collective action for purposes of communal defense. Endogamous marriage, creating large extended families, and exogamous marriage, binding different families together, both would have served to reinforce the community's unity of purpose.\nOne manifestation of the ability of Mudejar communities to overcome their internal differences and present a united front to their antagonists was their aggressive and joint defiance of the authorities, particularly of those sent to their villages to make arrests or to confiscate goods. When a royal constable and other officials arrived in Callosa, where they were to collect 19,666s 8d from the Muslims for pensions owed, they discovered that the Muslims had hidden their goods in places nearby. As they were returning with the goods from one of these places, the Muslims ambushed them with a barrage of stones. Officials sent to Matet to arrest two Muslims, fugitive vassals from Gaibiel, had even less luck: \"there was made a great resistance by the Moors of the said place, not only breaking open the prisons where the said constable had put one arrested Moor and carrying him away, moreover, they inflicted on the said constable many blows with swords on the staff and one on the arm by which they wounded him.\" Three years later the amin[*] and adelantats of Matet were still refusing to cooperate in the matter. Muslim vassals of Alcocer possessing lands in the huerta of Castellón de Játiva together cleverly constructed hidden threshing floors near the river, so that they could quickly send threshed wheat downstream without paying their agricultural taxes. When the tax collector later confiscated a horse as a pledge for the unpaid taxes, two Muslims with a lance convinced him to let the horse go.\nMore numerous than the instances of resistance to royal officials were the clashes between vassals of various seigneuries. Neighboring villages were frequently at odds over boundaries, possession of land, distribution of irrigation water, and other such matters that affected the livelihood of their residents. Conflict of interests issued in the courts as litigation, but not infrequently took on the more sinister aspects of theft and violence. Animosity between lords also soured relations between their vassals. It is often unclear whether the actions of vassals against communities nearby were perpetrated with the consent and direction of their lord or whether the vassals took action of their own accord. For the most part one can probably presume a concurrence between lords and\nvassals in such affairs, inasmuch as any gains or losses sustained by the vassals were also felt by the lord.\nA brief description of the difficulties and hostility faced by the vassals of some seigneuries should provide some sense of the necessity for communal cooperation and a minimal degree of cohesion. The Muslims of Llombay's marketing of their wheat in Alcira seems to have threatened the interests of some Muslims of the town's morería . Litigation ensued between them, and the bailiff of Alcira confiscated the wheat and pack animals of Yuçeff Carroff of Llombay. A decade later eight Muslims of Llombay murdered a rival of Alcira just outside the walls of the town, which suggests a long-term dispute. Llombay's bailiff and Muslims also rustled livestock from the pastures of neighboring Carlet, for which crime the residents of Carlet planned to enter Llombay and take action. The vassals of Carlet had already been involved in a more serious dispute with Alcudia, which had resulted from the feud between their respective lords, Gaspar de Castellvi and Pere de Montagut. The latter and two henchmen killed Silim Bono of Carlet and wounded his son. Muslims and Christians of Carlet retaliated by wounding a Christian miller and killing a farmer in Alcudia. The feud was finally resolved when Montagut married Castellvi's daughter. Some conflicts were more one-sided. The attack of the brothers Ferrer with their squires and Muslim vassals so terrorized the Muslim residents of Faldeta that they deserted the place.\nPerhaps the most frequent cause of strife was a community's misappropriation of irrigation water, which placed in jeopardy the crops of other communities in the vicinity. The lord of Alginet complained that his village was \"perishing\" because the officials, including the amin s[*] , of the Foya de Llombay were not allowing the water to flow as accustomed. The consequences of such disputes could prove dire, such as the one between Antella and Sumacárcel over \"a bridge or a duct of an irrigation canal,\" which provoked Muslim and Christian vassals of Antella to kill Çahat Torraboni of the rival village.\nAt the local level Mudejar society displays two conflicting tendencies: on one hand, fragmentation, as manifested in the feuding relations between rival family or lineage groups; and, on the other hand, a reflexive solidarity necessitated by the struggle between communities over the possession of scarce natural resources. The former tendency was rooted in traditional Arabo-Berber modes of social organization. The sources of the latter tendency are more complex, for the importance of seigneurial rivalry and the role of Christian vassals in the strife between communities disallows a description of local solidarity as a purely Mudejar phenomenon. Nevertheless, it is evident that the Muslims inhabiting individual villages were able to unite when the livelihood of the entire\ncommunity was threatened, even if at the behest of their lord and in conjunction with their Christian neighbors. That such was the case perhaps can be explained in part by the ability of Arabo-Berber segmentary societies to amalgamate when necessary, as well as to atomize.\nConsiderable space has been devoted to a discussion of Mudejar social structure and to an analysis of Mudejar feuding relations not only to provide some insight into life within the morería below the surface of the Muslim-Christian interface but also to make a point crucial to the understanding of the remarkable tenacity with which the Mudejars and, later, the Moriscos adhered to Islam despite considerable pressures, both informal and formal, to the contrary. The point is that for the Mudejars religious conversion involved much more than a change in their religious beliefs, a change radical enough in itself; it demanded a fundamental alteration of their social attitudes and social organization. The Mudejars were shielded from the allure of Christianity not only by their profession of a faith as exclusive as Christianity but also by the vitality and structure of their subsociety, which was founded on social practices and assumptions distinct from those of their Christian neighbors. While Mudejar feuding in its outward bloody manifestations did not differ from Christian feuding, the social significance Muslims ascribed to it and the family structures and system of values on which it was based were distinct. The feud as a process of status determination was group-specific, functioning in its very intensity to reinforce traditional attitudes and structures. Moreover, religious belief and social practice were largely coterminous, so that the Mudejars' distinct social customs were as much a sign of their \"Moorishness\" as was their belief in the oneness of God and the prophethood of Muhammad. For instance, conversion to Christianity would have meant a prohibition of the practice of endogamous marriage (between first cousins), a custom sanctioned by the Prophet and essential for the maintenance of their Arabo-Berber social structures. The frequent and often friendly meeting of Muslim and Christian on the neutral ground of marketplace or tavern no more resulted in a merging of their different forms of social organization than it did in religious syncretism. Indeed, Mudejar social behavior, particularly the marked propensity for feuding—or at least the style and dynamic of that feuding—was sufficiently different so as to evoke comment from among the Christians. Francesch Centelles, a shoemaker well acquainted with the Muslims of Valencia's morería , when asked to testify in court about the character of Abrahim Murçi, responded in a manner that suggests that the feuding Mudejar had become a stereotype: \"he is a man who seeks fights and quarrels, like any other Moor.\"\nIt seems clear that the Mudejars' distinctively Arabo-Berber mode of social organization helped to shore up their cultural boundaries against the acculturative attrition of an overwhelming Christian presence. These boundaries preserved the essential element of their ethnic identity, the profession of Islam. Although social mores and behavior were intimately bound up with and were to a large extent the product of religious belief, nevertheless, they in themselves were insufficient to perpetuate the religious faith of the social group. The decision of Mudejars to flee the kingdom in 1502–1503 instead of abandoning Islam was the expression of an intensity of faith that transcended the more amorphous \"Moorish\" cultural identity engendered by repetitive social practice. It is necessary, therefore, to comprehend how the Mudejars actively instilled and fostered their Islamic faith and identity.\nAn essential element buttressing the faith of individual Muslims was the sense of belonging to a larger community of believers, the ummah . Whatever the situation of the ummah 's individual component polities, even those long since subjugated to Christian powers, membership in the ummah served to distinguish them from all non-Muslims. Unfortunately, the Muslims' adherence to a common faith did not preclude divisiveness within the ummah . Since the fall of the Umayyads in the eighth century the Islamic world had been rent by factionalism, and, as has been seen, this was no less true of the Mudejars. However, making allowances for human imperfection and the not unusual inconsistency between religious precept and social practice, that the Mudejars frequently embroiled themselves in feuds, despite the fact that Muhammad had inveighed against such fratricidal strife among Muslims, does not mean that they had lost their sense of Muslim identity, particularly their collective identity vis-à-vis the Christian world. On the contrary, there were a number of instances in which the Mudejars appear to have acted as a collectivity or were perceived by the Christian authorities to have been such. Let us recall how the nobility advised Fernando against the forced conversion of Valencia's Muslims (1502), noting that \"they have their communications with each other,\" and that any untoward royal initiatives would provoke a violent mass Mudejar reaction. The Mudejars also seem to have been united in a common concern for the embattled sultan of Granada, as was manifested in their taking up collections on his behalf, praying in their mosques for his victory, and negotiating with the Ottoman Turks to come to his rescue. Likewise, the aid provided to runaway slaves by the Mudejars—not just by one community but by any number of morerías in which the fugitives hid on\ntheir way to freedom—demonstrates their ability to act together as Muslims for the benefit of other Muslims.\nMudejar group-consciousness may be seen as the sum of each Muslim's perception of the fundamental difference between himself and his Christian neighbor, and of each Muslim's participation in the life of an autonomous community juridically framed by the Shariah, a corpus of law at once religious and secular. This aggregate awareness of individual Mudejars, however, seems in itself insufficient to have counterbalanced the animosity between feuding families and competing communities, or to have allowed for the Mudejars' alleged network of \"communications\" and their ability to act as almost a single political entity. One must seek a more concrete pattern of relations transversing the cleavages between agnatic lineages and rival neighboring communities.\nThe role of exogamous marriage in binding families together and the factor of intercommunal strife in promoting solidarity among the inhabitants of any one village has been discussed. The apparent impediment of intercommunal conflict to a larger, kingdom-wide Muslim solidarity presents a greater problem. Mudejar economic activity, establishing contacts between Muslims of all walks of life from a variety of localities, would have been a key factor in circumventing, or at least lessening, the rivalry between communities. It must be emphasized that while the Mudejars were vassals of particular royal or seigneurial morerías , their economic activities were not circumscribed by the boundaries of any one place. This was especially true of itinerant retail merchants, whose vending took them from the northern to the southern reaches of the kingdom. Since by the nature of their work they were more or less unattached to any particular local interest, these merchants would have served as an appropriate medium for relaying information from one community to another, tying together the separate worlds of distinct aljamas.\nAnother group whose activities were equally unhampered by specifically local concerns were the licensed mendicants, who traveled throughout the kingdom begging alms from their Muslim brethren. Since charity was one of the Five Pillars of Islam, these itinerant mendicants provided an opportunity for pious Muslims to express their religiosity in a manner unrelated to the secular aims of the family and community. Both the giver and the receiver of alms participated in a transaction that emphasized exclusively their obligations as members of an Islamic community, not those stemming from kinship or from residence in a particular place.\nThe economic interplay between town and countryside made the kingdom's urban centers sites for the meeting and mingling of Muslims from various rural villages. Mudejars traveled to town to market pro-\nduce, to purchase the manufactures of local artisans, or to pass their leisure time in the taverns or fonduk. The large Christian populations of the towns would have induced Muslims from out-of-town to congregate with their coreligionists before turning to Christians for comradeship. If towns like Játiva, Alcira, Castellón de la Plana, and Villarreal attracted Muslims from surrounding hamlets, the capital city gathered in Muslims from all over the kingdom—indeed, from all over the peninsula. Valencia, a veritable teeming metropolis, served as a \"melting-pot\" for the kingdom's Mudejars. This is indicated in the documentation by the frequent appearance of non-local Muslims working, purchasing, and pursuing litigation in the capital. Furthermore, new vassals in Valencia's morería originated from seigneuries of a wide geographic range, whereas those swearing vassalage to the king in towns such as Játiva or Alcira came from seigneuries nearby. Change of vassalage in itself accentuated two other trends that created links between Muslims of different communities. First, many Muslims who changed vassalage still continued to hold and cultivate land in their former seigneuries, either themselves or through local sharecroppers. This further complicated the already complex Valencian pattern of land tenure, which saw farmers and artisans renting small parcels of land in a variety of places, not just in their place of residence. Mudejars with economic interests in diverse localities likely would have had friends and contacts of equally diverse origins. Thus land tenure itself sometimes cut across the lines of economic competition contingent upon strictly local affiliations. Second, change of vassalage caused the fragmentation of local lineage groups as nuclear families left their agnates behind when they settled elsewhere. Given the importance of c asabiyah[*] in Mudejar society, agnates living in different places were probably still bound by kinship. In addition to these intercommunal agnatic links, there also occurred exogamous marriages between families of different towns, such as the one uniting the niece of Játiva's qadi[*] to the son of Valencia's qadi . Therefore, kinship, both agnatic and affinal, created a network of interests that would have mitigated the intensity of the rivalry between communities for economic reasons alone.\nThe individual Mudejar's sense of belonging to a kingdom-wide Muslim community and the ritual expression of his commitment to Islam coalesced in the act of pilgrimage to the mosque of Atzeneta in the Vail de Guadalest. This mosque housed the sepulcher of the Sufi mystic Abu[*] Ahmad[*] Jac far b. Sid-bono[*] al-Khuzac i[*] (d. 1227). From the thirteenth century until 1570, when King Felipe II had the mosque of Atzeneta destroyed, the tomb of this saint attracted Muslim pilgrims from all over the kingdom of Valencia, and sometimes from Aragon, Catalonia, Granada, and the Maghrib as well. Ecclesiastical views, expressed at the\nCouncil of Vienne in 1311, that such Muslim pilgrimages were an affront to the Christian community, combined with royal misgivings about large numbers of Muslims of diverse origins gathering each year at the shrine of Atzeneta by 1379 resulted in Crown attempts to prohibit this pilgrimage. The royal authorities, however, were unsuccessful, for throughout the fifteenth century and much of the sixteenth century Valencian Muslims continued in \"semiclandestine\" fashion to journey to the tomb of Sid-bono[*] . This annual act of Islamic devotion thus became for the individual Mudejar a statement of resistance to Christian authority, a politically dangerous affirmation of identity with the other participants in the pilgrimage.\nAs evinced by the Mudejars' awareness of the events occurring in the wider Islamic world, especially in Granada and the Maghrib, and by their political activities in conjunction with Granadan, Maghriban, and Ottoman Turkish Muslims, their understanding of what constituted the community of believers extended far beyond the borders of the kingdom. Recognition of this much larger community alleviated their sense of isolation and hopelessness, and strengthened their own Muslim identity, particularly when the large majority of that community was governed by Muslim rulers, some of whom, like the Ottoman sultan, were extremely powerful. As was pointed out in chapter 2, concrete family and commercial connections underlay the Mudejars' politicoreligious identification with the dar[*] al-Islam[*] . As a consequence of previous Mudejar emigration to Granada and the Maghrib, Valencian Muslims had family branches in Islamic lands. On account of these kinship ties, Mudejars traveled to Almería, Tunis, and Oran for the purpose of collecting the inheritances left them by deceased relatives, or, like Ali Fotoffa of Bétera, in order to visit those still alive. A Muslim family of Cocentaina journeyed to Granada to attend a family wedding, while a widow of the morería of Valencia married a Granadan Muslim and then departed with him to North Africa. Like this marriage, there were other instances of recent emigration that forged new links of kinship between Valencia and the Maghrib. The sub-qadi[*] of Játiva decided to spend his retirement in the Maghrib, while his son stayed behind in Játiva and succeeded him in office. Yahye Bellvis, the brother of the qadi general, moved to Tunis and continued to benefit from his commercial connections in Valencia. It was precisely such ties of kinship that facilitated Fernando's settlement of Granadan Muslims in Valencia after the conquest. Thus, Mahomat Fuçey of Bellreguart was licensed to travel to Almería \"in order to fetch some relations that he has in the city.\" Reciprocal commercial interests strengthened Mudejar affinity for Granada and the Maghrib. Mudejars journeyed to Almería and Tunis to sell their merchandise, while Maghriban mer-\nchants came to Valencia on business. The royal licenses that permitted these merchants to reside in the kingdom for a year or more created ample opportunity for contact with Mudejars. Religion, kinship, and commerce all bound the Mudejar inextricably to the dar[*]al-Islam[*] . It is doubtful that the Mudejars' Muslim identity and group consciousness would have fared as well had they been isolated.\nRelative isolation of a different sort actually abetted the Mudejars in their preservation of an Islamic culture. Historians have puzzled over the fact that despite royal efforts to attract Muslims to urban royal morerías , where the tax burden was lighter, the large majority nevertheless preferred to remain on seigneurial lands. The Mudejars' choice of residence is best interpreted as having had a religiocultural foundation, rather than an economic one. Life in the largely Christian cities posed obvious threats to the integrity of Mudejar Islamic culture. Either militant Catholics were endeavoring to eradicate all signs of Islam—calling for the destruction of minarets, prohibiting the call to prayer, and the like—or the pleasantries of city life were insidiously weakening the Muslims' resolve to live in accordance with the Shariah. That pious Muslims were sensitive to the latter threat is evinced in the complaint of the aljama of Játiva regarding the nocturnal activities of Christian youths in the morería and the deleterious effect that the \"dishonest dress\" of the alfondeguer 's wife might be having on Muslim youths.\nIn contrast, life in seigneurial villages afforded the Mudejars a refuge from an aggressive and expanding Christian presence. In these villages Muslims sometimes composed the majority of the population, and their freedom and comfort in religious observance were correspondingly greater. The lords seem to have had few qualms about the public manifestations of Islamic worship. For instance, they allowed their Muslim vassals to make the call to prayer with a horn and perhaps vocally, whereas it was prohibited in the cities. During the time of the Moriscos, the seigneurs were infamous for permitting their ostensibly Christian vassals to practice Islam and for protecting them from the Inquisition. The Mudejars also seem to have benefited from their lords' religious tolerance, even if at a price. For most Mudejars the religious freedom thus secured was sufficient compensation for the heavier burden of seigneurial dues.\nNot surprisingly, the centers of Islamic learning in Valencia, such as they existed, were for the most part located in rural villages, not in urban morerías . Of the twenty-five Mudejars who journeyed to Almería, Tunis, Oran, and Granada for the purpose of studying the Arabic language and Islamic law (see table 19), only five came from urban morerías —four from Játiva and one from Castellón. The others all came from seigneurial lands—Ondara, Cuartell, Artana, Mascarell, Valldig-\nna, Benilloba, the Vall de Uxó, and so on. Barceló Torres, intimating the cultural inferiority of the urban morerías , notes that of the 270 Mudejar and Morisco Arabic documents she has found, only nine were drawn up in the morería of Valencia. It is indicative of this state of affairs that Çahat Coret of the Foya de Buñol, who \"applied himself diligently to Agarene letters,\" was appointed faqih[*] of Valencia, after the aljama had failed to find anyone in the morería sufficiently learned to fill the post.\nIt appears, then, that the Mudejars' Muslim identity was nurtured both through the unobstructed public worship of Islam, a freedom they\nsecured by their choice of residence, and through the maintenance of and participation in a literate Arabic culture. Clearly, the latter was needed to sustain the former. Even a minimal level of popular religious awareness necessitated the mediation of learned men (c ulama[*] ') who could read and interpret the Qur'an[*] for the faithful (the Arabic dialect spoken by Mudejars was different from the classical language of the Qur'an). Beyond that, men conversant in jurisprudence (fiqh ) and all that entailed—a knowledge of the Qur'an and of the customs of Muhammad and his companions (Sunnah ) as set down in the traditions (hadith[*] )—were needed to administer justice in the Islamic courts, either as qadi[*] or as faqih[*] , and to see to it that the community lived as much as possible within the framework of the Shariah. Taking into account the Mudejars' situation as a minority enclave composed primarily of farmers and artisans, the grooming of even a small group of culama[*] ' required a determined and sustained effort. Mudejar acquisition of the necessary cultic and legal knowledge was in itself a considerable achievement. The social and intellectual environment was unpropitious for the creation of original scholarly works.\nArabic instruction given to Mudejar children in local schools perpetuated this rudimentary but essential Arabic culture. The thirteenth-century capitulations had granted the basic privilege of maintaining schools to the Mudejars. The Muslims inhabiting the new morería of Orihuela (formed in 1446, but lasting only until 1451) were allowed \"to have a schoolmaster.\" The morería of Valencia also had a school, at least until 1455. Documentation from Fernando's reign contains references to schools operating in Ondara, Oliva, and Valldigna. Perhaps Çahat Coret of the Foya de Buñol began his studies of \"Agarene letters\" in his hometown. Since the Mudejars were able to give at least an elementary Arabic education to their children in Valencia, one may infer that the Mudejars who took the trouble to travel to Granada or North Africa for study did so not merely \"to learn to read and write Moorish,\" as the travel licenses state, but to pursue more advanced studies, particularly in jurisprudence. Tunis and Almeria were both well equipped to meet the academic needs of the aspiring Mudejar faqih[*] .\nIt is difficult to know whether there were schools for more advanced studies in Valencia, although it seems that the Mudejars possessed a sufficient amount of learned Arabic works to have allowed for at least the informal meeting of erudite culama[*] ' with students eager to learn. Juan Andres, the convert from Játiva, recounted that his father, a faqih[*] , had taught him jurisprudence. Barceló Torres's search for the bits of Arabic literature surviving in Valencia reveals that fifteenth-century Mudejars had access to Qur'ans, hadith literature, devotional works,\nand legal works. Also, in 1450 a faqih[*] of Paterna brought back from Cairo a treatise on trigonometry, in which the use of an astronomical instrument is explained. The most impressive information on Mudejar higher learning comes, surprisingly, from the kingdom of Aragon. The letter of a student to a faqih in Belchite reveals the existence of a madrasah (school) in Zaragoza as late as 1494. There the student in question studied theology, and medicine from the Qanun[*] of Ibn Sina[*] (Avicenna). Considering that such a school still functioned in Aragon, where the Muslims' fluency in Arabic was much less than that of their brethren in Valencia—although perhaps not as minimal as was once thought —it would seem that similar centers of advanced study must have existed in Valencia as well. It is doubtful that every Valencian faqih had the opportunity to travel to Islamic lands for study; some were probably purely local products. Moreover, there were Mudejar physicians and surgeons in Valencia, and these professions required a certain amount of learning, perhaps in the classical Arabic medical texts. Juçeff Alatar, a surgeon of Valencia, was granted a royal license to practice after administering to a Christian knight and passing the examination given by a Christian \"master in medicine.\"\nThe Mudejars frequently utilized their Arabic literacy in a far more mundane fashion in the writing of letters and contracts for official and private business. The extant Arabic documentation contains records of tax payment, and letters to and from local amin s[*] concerning the collection of taxes and debts from Muslim vassals or judicial procedure against them. Much of this correspondence was between amin s and royal bailiffs, which indicates the functioning and interpenetration of two levels of bureaucracy: the all-encompassing royal Romance-Latin administration and the local Mudejar Arabic administration manned by amin s, qadi s[*] , and faqih s. It has already been demonstrated how the two bureaucracies interrelated in the matter of the Crown's taxation of Mudejar inheritances (chap. 4). The Christian authorities' recognition of Arabic documents as valid evidence in litigation and as contractually binding in business transactions, even those between Muslims and Christians, gave Arabic an \"official\" status in the kingdom of Valencia. For instance, when passing sentence in favor of Fatima Bisquey, who claimed that she owned half of a house given to her as bridewealth (sadaq[*] ) by her husband, against the opposing claimant, the merchant Berthomeu Pinos, the bailiff general pointed out that the decisive evidence was \"an act of acidach (sadaq[*] ) and/or marriage contract—exhibited in the trial on behalf of the said Fatima—received by the qadi[*] and/or faqih[*] Mahomat ben Abdulaziz Alcari on the date of 11 March 892 of the Moorish calendar.\" Muslims bound themselves to pay debts to Christian creditors by acknowledging their debts in Arabic\ndocuments. In an Arabic document written in his own hand, Ubaydal Donzell confessed, \"I, Ubaydal Donzell, recognize that I owe to you, Manuel Bou, eighteen and one-half pounds, which are for spices and alum.\"\nThe cultivation of Arabic for higher intellectual pursuits—Qur'anic[*] study, fiqh , medicine, and so on—for the drawing up of legal instruments of various sorts—marriage contracts, letters of debt, and tax records—and for daily parlance lent the Mudejars a common ethnic identity and group consciousness on the basis of language alone. Their knowledge of Arabic allowed them to participate in the intellectual life of the wider Islamic world, just as their understanding of Romance enabled them to function more efficiently in Valencia's Christian society. The Mudejars' use of Romance, however, was far more occasional, employed only when they desired or needed to communicate with Christians. Otherwise, Arabic was an effective social and intellectual barrier between Valencia's Muslim and Christian communities. Indeed, the Mudejars' use of Arabic sometimes aroused Christian suspicions. When Muslim slaves escaped from their masters, any Mudejar who had been seen speaking with the slave in Arabic was considered a prime suspect as an accessory to the crime. The Christians assumed that the Mudejars' choice of language defined their sympathies and guided their actions as persuasively as did their religious faith. There was much truth in this assumption. Since Arabic was the language of the Qur'an[*] , literally the word of God dictated to Muhammad, its use by the Mudejars had a special spiritual significance, and therefore contributed to their perception of themselves as Muslims. The veneration of the Arabic language itself explains the Aragonese and Castilian Mudejars' and Moriscos' writing of aljamiado literature (Romance written in Arabic script) as a means of strengthening their Muslim identity. It also explains why the Christian authorities decided to prohibit the Valencian Moriscos' teaching of Arabic to their children as a means of effecting their true conversion to Christianity.\nSocial structure, language, communal and judicial autonomy, ties of kinship and commerce within Valencia and with their coreligionists in the dar[*]al-Islam[*] —all contributed to the Mudejars' distinct religioethnic identity and to their perception of themselves as a single body united in stark cultural opposition to Christian society. Still, the body required animation and direction, a sense of purpose particularly Islamic. This was provided by the faqih s[*] . They functioned in the Mudejar social body as spiritual cadres, infusing its individual communal cells with a commitment to Islam and, by virtue of their grounding in a common intellectual tradition and world view, binding those cells together in a unity of religious purpose. As the local fonts of religious and legal knowledge, the\njurists were eminently suited for this task. By offering their legal opinions and resolving disputes on the basis of the Shariah, they ensured that it remained the lofty standard against which Mudejars evaluated their own conduct and by which they endeavored to regulate their lives.\nThe plea of the newly converted Moriscos in their negotiations with Carlos I in 1526 reflects the great esteem in which the faqih s[*] were held by the kingdom's Muslim populace. The Moriscos informed the king that in the days before the conversions, \"when the call to prayer was made in the mosques,\" the Muslims of the kingdom used the rents from those properties bequeathed by the pious to the mosques to pay the salary of the faqih s, \"who have consumed their whole life in studying and knowing the Moorish law and have not been concerned with other offices.\" The Moriscos went on to request that a portion of the rents pertaining to the new Morisco churches, formerly mosques, continue to be reserved for the support of the baptized jurists. The Morisco faqihs —and they are still referred to as alfaqins in the sixteenth-century documentation—continued throughout the sixteenth century to form the core of Morisco resistance to the official Christian program of religious and social assimilation.\nThe aforementioned Morisco request reveals important information about the Mudejar jurists. It is clear that they devoted their entire lives to the study of Islamic law and, presumably, of its foundations, the Qur'an[*] and the Sunnah . Because the study of the jurists ensured the continuity of Islam as a living religious and intellectual tradition, the Mudejars deemed it an essential activity, so essential that they used the pious endowments (waqf ) bequeathed by the faithful to the mosques to support the jurists. Furthermore, the jurists were supported in such a way that they would not need to bother themselves with any labor other than that properly religious and legal. It is important to note that in Islam there were neither priests nor an ecclesiastical hierarchy for whom financial support was institutionalized, as was the case with the Catholic Church. The Mudejars' support of the faqih s was made possible by the will of the community, a local adaptation to a situation in which Islam had long been deprived of public primacy.\nDespite the faqih 's key role in the life of the Mudejar community, the documentation provides, unfortunately, very little information about him. The reason for this is that the faqih 's sphere of activity—the mosque, the madrasah , the Islamic court—was very rarely impinged on by the Christian world. Matters concerning Muslims alone and not affecting the public life of the kingdom had no importance for the king and his officials. As a result, it is the amin[*] , the fiscal and juridical intermediary between Muslim and Christian worlds, who appears most often in the\ndocumentation. The activities of the faqih[*] held as little interest for the Christians as did the Muslims' theological views.\nThe primary role of the faqih was that of jurisconsult, acting either as counsellor or as arbitrator in litigations between Muslims. Ageg b. Çaat Ageg of Alcira paid 10s to the faqih of Villalonga for having counseled him in his dispute with Abraym Xativi. A faqih of Ondara traveled to Ribarroja in order to \"treat with and reconcile a Moor and a Mooress, husband and wife, who wanted to separate.\" The faqih also taught in the local school, a task for which his years of study had well prepared him.\nAlso, as the Moriscos stated in 1526, the faqih s \"were serving in the mosques,\" undoubtedly as preachers. Regarding the content of their sermons, the only information comes indirectly from the allusions made by the nobility when, in 1502, they beseeched Fernando not to convert their Muslim vassals. It seems reasonable to assert that the sermons of the jurists comprised primarily instruction in the basic tenets and precepts of Islam and positive exhortation to conduct oneself accordingly. As a consequence of their teaching, the lords stated, \"among them [the Mudejars] each one defends the said sect [of Islam] and has worked and works [to the end] that the Moor may be a good Moor.\" More interesting is a type of sermon more negative in tone, which constituted a defense of Islam through a disparagement of Christianity. The nobles offered an illuminating explanation of why the Mudejars were \"beside themselves\" with fear that the Inquisition would proceed against them all:\nthey [the Mudejars] say that ... none of them could be excused [from prosecution by the Inquisition] because publicly they have had and have in the present kingdom their mosques and their faqih s, who publicly admonish them that the sect of Mahomat is better than the law of the Christians and that all [Christians] end in this damnation.\nBy emphasizing the threat of eternal damnation, the jurists hoped to discourage potential Muslim apostates who might be toying with the idea of baptism for worldly reasons. This kind of preaching may be interpreted as a reaction to the pressures exerted by an increasingly militant Spanish Church and to the threatening pervasiveness of Christian culture. The tragic end of the Spanish Jews and Conversos, and the incipient movements of the Inquisition against Islam, could hardly have failed to impress upon the faqih s the necessity of a defensive anti-Christian posture.\nThe contemporary struggle between Christian and Islamic states did\nnot fail to influence the direction of the faqih s[*] ' activism. The jurists understood what implications the conquest of Granada might have for the future of Islam in the Iberian peninsula, in terms of both the morale of the Mudejar populace and the Mudejars' treatment by the Catholic Monarchs. Consequently, the jurists' activity, particularly their preaching, took on a markedly political tone. It was they who collected in the morerías funds for the aid of the beleaguered Nasrid sultan. Moreover, the king was informed:\nthe said Moors and the faqih s of the said morerías since the time of this enterprise [the war against Granada] have ordered a certain prayer and they make that [prayer] continually in their hours [of prayer], [the prayer] containing, in effect, that God should exalt the said king of Granada and that He should destroy us [King Fernando] and all our people.\nWhile the efforts of Mudejar jurists could hardly have altered the course of political events, they nevertheless succeeded admirably in strengthening the commitment of their congregations to Islam. This commitment is evinced in the very low rate of Mudejar apostasy. One document offers a rare glimpse of Mudejar sensitivity in matters of faith, an area of life where Christian interference was not easily endured. When royal officials made the mistake of entering a mosque in Ondara in order to apprehend a condemned Muslim criminal, the reaction of the congregation was one of violent indignation. \"The Moors, amin s[*] , jurates [adelantats ], and all the people\" hurled \"stones and ... the tiles from the roofing, and with lances and crossbows wishing and working to damage you [the lieutenant governor] and your ministers, made a great resistance against you, perturbing you and preventing the capture of the one convicted.\"\nThe success of the faqih s in overcoming intracommunal and intercommunal factionalism and imparting to each community a sense of commitment to the common cause of Islam was furthered by two factors: the communication between those possessed of religious and legal knowledge, and the foundation of the jurists' status on terms different from those which determined the prestige of other community members. Even though each faqih belonged to a particular community, the faqih s did not exist in a state of intellectual isolation, instructing their congregations and offering legal opinions without consideration of the opinions and perhaps greater knowledge of their learned fellows in other places. On the contrary, their role as the transmitters of a common tradition and their very similar intellectual formation—all having been educated in Granada, the Maghrib, and Valencia—facilitated consultation among the learned and, indeed, advised it, if they were to\nmaintain a consistent orthodox standard. The activities of the faqih[*] Abdalla, originally a captive from Tripoli, suggest a network of communication and consultation among the Muslim judges and jurists of the kingdom. While in Valencia, Abdalla met the faqih of Manises, and they discussed Islamic law. The latter then invited him to dinner in Manises. He was also a friend of the qadi[*] of Benaguacil and lodged in his home. In Ribarroja Abdalla acted as marriage counselor to an unhappy couple. He taught school in Ondara, Oliva, and other places, and while in Oliva he conferred with the faqih and \"read in the said morería .\" More interesting still, he and the faqih of Paterna exchanged Arabic books. Abdalla's career was probably somewhat more peripatetic than that of most jurists, since he had to wander about collecting alms to repay the aljama of Ondara for having ransomed him. Nevertheless, Abdalla was able to \"go among the faqih s of the present kingdom begging for the love of God,\" because there were established channels of communication among the learned, and because he himself was \"a man of knowledge.\"\nThe career of Abdalla also demonstrates that the Mudejars on the whole respected and heeded the opinions of learned and holy men. Abdalla was known by Muslims throughout the kingdom and was reputed to lead the life of a saint. The qadi of Játiva, the kingdom's largest morería , related why he and the aljama wished to make Abdalla their jurist. Abdalla, the qadi pointed out, \"is a very good Moor and ... leader of prayers [oracioner ],\" so much so that after the death of the former faqih of Játiva, Abdalla, owing to his \"good fame, life, and knowledge,\" was the unanimous choice to succeed him.\nClearly, the prestige of Abdalla, a foreigner and technically a slave, and of men like him in the eyes of the Mudejar community, rested neither on wealth nor on family backing; rather, their status and influence, both local and, in the case of Abdalla, kingdom-wide, derived from their knowledge of religious and legal tradition and from the holiness of their lives. This is suggested in two other cases mentioned above: the intervention of a faqih from Villalonga as legal counselor in a litigation between Muslims in distant Alcira, and the appointment of a Muslim of the Foya de Buñol as faqih of Valencia on the basis of his diligent studies alone. Put in another way, the jurists were able to rise above the petty feuding between Mudejar families and villages because their way of life, financially supported by the community, removed them from the competition for honor, wealth, and political power. Their opinion was heeded because they were nonpartisan and had no stakes in that competition. It is probable that the jurists were able to attenuate the intensity of local feuding by acting as legal counselors and arbitrators between disputants. Their preaching was persuasive because it was an expression\nof the knowledge and piety that so few possessed. The jurists were able to appeal to the Mudejars as Muslims on a level of consciousness unrelated to mundane local concerns. Because the jurists themselves had a scholarly network of sorts and a certain consensus of opinion regarding the Mudejar community's needs, they preached a similar message. Their message, that of Muslim resistance to Christian assimilative pressure, had efficacy and resonance because, on one hand, they themselves were dispersed throughout the kingdom's Muslim population, local products closely tied to their people, while on the other hand, they possessed vital knowledge that raised them above the mass of Mudejars in an overarching network of religious leadership.\nFor reasons beyond the control of Valencia's faqih s[*] , the Muslims of the kingdom were to spend their final years in the peninsula as unwilling Christians. As has been seen, the chain of events that led to the Mudejars' conversion began with the fall of Granada. This signal and seemingly conclusive event in the long and bloody peninsular struggle between Islam and Christianity had an unforeseen and somewhat ironic consequence. For the Mudejars of Valencia it resulted in a cultural windfall that would help them in the difficult days ahead.\nWhen Fernando settled conquered Granadan Muslims in Valencia and promoted the sale of Maghriban and Granadan prisoners of war within the kingdom, he was not only helping himself by increasing royal revenues but also unconsciously contributing to the Mudejars' Muslim identity and group solidarity. The influx of numerous Muslim captives—hundreds from Málaga alone—elicited from the Mudejars considerable cooperative effort on behalf of their Muslim fellows. Mudejar communities collectively ransomed Muslims and, in a seemingly organized fashion, provided assistance to runaway slaves. More important still was the type of Muslim brought into the kingdom through Christian conquest and piracy. These Muslim captives and settlers, unaccustomed to Christian rule and little affected by the acculturative impact of long-term coexistence with Christians, were in all likelihood more steadfast in their commitment to their ancestral faith. Among the new arrivals were men of learning. There were physicians from Granada, jurists and readers of the Qur'an[*] from both Granada and the Maghrib, and a Sufi mystic from the Maghrib. True, it is not known what became of these men, although the career of the faqih Abdalla of Tripoli, a captive known throughout the kingdom for his learning and piety, is, if not typical, suggestive. In this regard, a puzzling but interesting comment was made by some Christians about Abdalla. When the Christian hostess of a hostel and some Muslims lodging there introduced Abdalla to some Christian guests as a faqih , the Christians remarked,\napparently in jest, \"he is black and he could be a faqih[*] .\" Given the similarity between Iberian Muslims and Christians in terms of skin color, the reference to Abdalla's darker coloration as if it were part of a widespread stereotype of Valencia's faqih s hints at a perhaps more general phenomenon of Mudejar religious leaders with Maghriban origins. In any case, the social organization of Mudejar society would have facilitated the integration of Granadan and Maghriban Muslims, both erudite men and less extraordinary folk. Thus, Mudejar society was strangely reinvigorated as a result of the Monarchs' war against Islam. While the conquest of Granada ushered in the tragedy of the Moriscos, it also ensured that the Christian authorities of Valencia would have more formidable opponents in their struggle to eradicate Islam from the kingdom. Islam survived in Valencia not as a fossilized remnant of thirteenth-century Almohad glory, but as a resilient and adaptive society, steeled by its social structure and inspired by its faqih s."}
{"text": "Humans aren't the only ones who like fatty foods - bearded vultures do, too. A study by Antoni Margalida from the Bearded Vulture Study and Protection Group in El Pont de Suert, Spain, has found that the bearded vulture will discard less energy-dense bones and choose only the bones containing the highest fat content both for its consumption and delivery to its young. His findings will be published this week in the Springer journal Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology.\nThe bearded vulture is the only vertebrate with a bone-dominated diet and can ingest bones up to 28 cm (11 inches) long and up to 4 cm (1 inches) wide. This makes sound ecological sense because due to their high fat content, mammal bones actually have a higher energy content than muscle tissue. To aid ingestion or transportation, the bearded vulture breaks up large bones on rocky surfaces, known as 'ossuaries', throwing the bones down from the air until they break up into small enough pieces to be swallowed or carried. Bearded vultures are one of the few species of vulture who do not feed their young by regurgitation but transport prey remains to the nest in their feet and bills.\nMargalida chose to study bearded vultures living in the mountains of the Pyrenees in Spain. It is a harsh environment and the author believes this contributes to the bearded vultures' high energy requirement leading them to choose smaller, more energy dense bones. This way they ensure that the energy consumed is greater than the energy expended in obtaining the food. As well as energy density, he also wanted to study whether larger bones were discounted as being too difficult to transport and swallow.\nAs he had expected, bones left in the feeding stations and ossuaries, which had not been selected by the bearded vultures, had a lower content of oleic acid than those bones which had been selected. This would imply that nutritive content had a greater impact on choice than bone size.\n|Contact: Joan Robinson|"}
{"text": "A spectacular night launch from Cape Canaveral marked the beginning of the almost seven-year journey of the Cassini-Huygens mission to the ringed planet Saturn and its icy moons.\nAfter a decade of preparations, a Titan IVb, NASA’s most powerful launch vehicle, first brought the spacecraft into an orbit around Earth, and then boosted it with a Centaur upper stage in order to bring it into its complicated trajectory through the inner Solar System. Two close flybys of Venus and one each of Earth and, around the turn of the year 2001, of Jupiter, accelerated Cassini-Huygens to its ultimate cruising speed.\nOn 1 July 2004, the mission entered into orbit around Saturn. On 25 December 2004, Cassini released the European probe Huygens, which landed on Saturn’s moon Titan on 14 January 2005. The Cassini orbiter will be circling Saturn until at least 2010."}
{"text": "Easy Magic Tricks for Scouts\n> > > Triple Prizes < < <\npiece of paper\n- Write 1089 on the paper without showing anyone, fold it, and place it on the table in plain view.\n- Give someone a piece of paper and pencil.\n- Tell them to write down any 3 digit number that uses 3 different numerals in the middle of the paper. Not 111 or 202 or 330 where the same numeral is used more than once.\n- Tell him to reverse the number. If the number is larger, write it above the first one. If smaller, write it below.\n- Subtract the smaller from the larger.\n- If the resulting number has 2 digits, fill in ahead of it with a zero.\n- Reverse the number and write it below the bottom number.\n- Add the bottom two numbers.\n- Unfold your paper and ask if it matches their result - 1089!\nGuessing the Coins\n- Give the penny and nickel to a friend.\n- Turn your back and tell him to hold one coin in each hand.\n- Say that you want him to focus on the coins and mathematics is the best way to get his mind in gear.\n- Ask him to multiply the coin in the right hand by 2 and to say 'OK' when he has the answer.\n- Ask him to multiply the coin in the left hand by 17 and to say 'OK' when he has the answer. If it took about the same amount of time for each, then the nickel is in the right hand since 1x17 is easy to compute. If the 2nd one was much slower, then the nickel is in the left hand.\nThe next time you do the trick, use different numbers like 13 or 19.\n- Give your friend these instructions:\n- Think of any number from one to 10.\n- Multiply it by 9. [Pause while they do this]\n- If it's a two-digit number, add them together.\n- Now, subtract 5 from the number in your head. [Pause again]\n- Now, think of the letter in the alphabet that corresponds with the number you are thinking about. For instance, if you are thinking of the number 1, it would be \"A\". Number 2 would be \"B\". 3 is \"C\", and so on.\n- Now, think of a country that starts with the letter you're thinking of.\n- Spell the country in your head. [Pause here]\n- Think about the second letter in that country's name. Now, quickly think of an animal who's name begins with that letter.[Pause here]\n- Now, think of the animal's color.\n- [Pause and concentrate] That's funny... this can't be right... there ARE no gray elephants in Denmark!\nAdd to 15\npaper and pencil\n- Write your answer (15) on a slip of paper, fold it, and lay it on the table.\n- Give your fiend the paper and pencil.\n- Ask him to draw a Tic-Tac-Toe board.\n- Ask him to write down the numerals 1 to 9 in order in the diagram. 1,2,3 on top. 4,5,6 middle. 7,8,9 on bottom.\n- Have him circle any numeral in the first row.\n- Have him circle any numberal in the second row that is not in the same column as the first one circled.\n- Have him circle the numeral in the bottom row that is in the column with no circled numerals.\n- Have him add up the circled numbers.\n- Have him unfold your answer - 15!\nJump the Coin\n- Bet your friend that he will not be able to jump over this coin when you set it down.\n- Have him stand with his arms stright down at his sides and then place the coin on top of his head.\n- If he complains that you tricked him, then give him another chance - put the coin in the very corner of the room.\nGuess the Color\n4 pieces of paper - 3 inch square\nred, blue, and green markers\n- Put a red spot on one piece of paper, blue on another, green the third.\n- On the back of the red paper, write in small neat printing - \"YOU CHOSE RED\"\n- On the envelope where the stamp would go, write \"YOU CHOSE BLUE\" - not too big so you can cover it with your thumb.\n- On the 4th piece of paper, write \"YOU CHOSE GREEN\", fold it, and put it in the envelope.\n- Put the 3 colored papers in the envelope and now the trick is ready.\n- Pull the envelope out of your bag covering the writing with your fingers and lay it front down on the table.\n- Slide the 3 colored papers out and lay them in a line on the table with the colors facing up.\n- Ask a friend to think of one of the colors. Really concentrate on it.\n- Say Kalamazoo and then ask him to tell you the color he chose.\n- If he says \"BLUE\", put the papers back into the envelope, fold the flap over to close it and then hold up the front and have your friend read what is written there.\n- If he says \"RED\", turn over the Green, then Blue, then Red papers and have him read what is written.\n- If he says \"GREEN\", pick up the envelop, and spread it open so he can see the paper inside. Ask him to take it and read what is on it as you pick up the papers and put them away.\n- Immediately retrieve the materials and put them away before they can be inspected. Do not do the same trick twice.\nFind the Card\ndeck of cards\n- Separate the deck so all reds are together and all blacks are together. Place the reds on top of the blacks.\n- Fan out the deck face down on the table making just the bottom half of it spread out and the top half still piled. This will encourage the person to take a black card.\n- Tell him to look at his card and show it to his buddies.\n- While he is checking out his card, stack the deck back together.\n- When he is ready, fan the deck again, this time trying to keep the bottom half stacked and fanning the top half.\n- Have him slip his card into the deck wherever he wants.\n- Stack the deck and ask him to cut the deck once.\n- Stack the deck after the cut and ask someone else to cut it also.\n- You can have it cut quite a few times without much chance of it going wrong.\n- When ready, pick up the deck and look through it for a single card that is a different color from those around it. This is the card.\nThe Best Card Trick Ever\nThis is the card trick I learned in 6th grade and have used it ever since. It's easy but very entertaining for those that have never seen it before. And, it takes awhile to figure out.\ndeck of cards\n- Count 21 cards off the top of the deck and give them to your friend.\n- Ask him to shuffle and cut them as much as he wants. Tell him this is his only chance to touch the cards so he needs to do a good job.\n- Have him give you the stack of cards face-down when he is finished.\n- Deal the cards face-up into 3 columns of 7 cards each with each card in a column overlapping the one under it so they are easy to scoop into a stack keeping the cards in order. Put the rest of the deck aside.\n- Point to each column telling everyone this is column 1, column 2, and column 3 from left to right.\n- Ask your friend to select in his mind one card. Have him tell a friend if he wants.\n- Have him tell you if the card is in column 1, 2, or 3.\n- Whichever column he chooses, stack up each column and put his chosen column between the other two to create one large stack. At this point, you know his card is between the 7th and 15th cards.\n- Now, lay the cards out in 3 columns again just like the start. The important thing to remember is to lay the cards out by row from left to right! This arranges them correctly.\n- Ask which column the card is in now and repeat the stacking and column creation.\n- Ask which column the card is in. At this point, you know the card is the middle card in the chosen column! Believe me. :-)\n- When you recreate the stack putting his column in the center, his card is now the 11th card. The next part is the fun part of the trick.\n- Deal out the cards into 4 card stars facedown. You will make 5 stars with 4 cards and the last one will have a 5th card in the center on top. As you deal out the cards, count them in your head so when you lay down card number 11, you know right where his card lays.\n- Ask him to point (do NOT touch or the magic will evaporate) to 2 piles of cards. If he points to the pile his card is in, then swipe away the other piles. Otherwise, swipe away the piles he pointed to.\n- Repeat asking him to point to 1 pile. Take away the pile or piles that do not contain his card.\n- You may have to do it a 3rd time until there is just one pile left.\n- Spread the cards apart a bit and have him point to 2 cards. Remove either the ones he pointed to or the others, leaving his chosen card behind.\n- Repeat until only his card is left.\n- Just sit there and wait for him to ask, or take all the other cards and shuffle them back into the deck and get up and go get a drink, or think of some other dramatic way to flip the card over.\nHow Many Cards Moved?\ndeck of cards\n- Retrieve these cards of any mixture of suits - A, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack or Joker\n- Arrange the 11 cards on the top of the deck as 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, A, J, 10, 9, 8, 7 with the 6 on the very top.\n- Deal the top 11 cards from the prepared deck face-down into a row on the table going from left to right so the 6 is on the far left and the 7 is on the far right.\n- Explain that you want your friend to move as many cards as he wants from his left to right, one at a time, while you turn your back.\n- After he has moved the cards, turn back around and turn over the 7th card from your left. That number is the number of cards he moved! If it is the Jack, he tried to fool you by not moving any cards or by moving all of them.\ndeck of cards\n- Separate a deck into two piles, those whose printed numeral has a ROUND top ( 2 6 8 9 10 Q ) and those whose printed numeral has a FLAT top ( 3 4 5 7 J K A )\n- Put these two piles back together into one deck. It looks mixed up, but isn't really. It helps if you have the Ace of Spades as the bottom card for the Flat top group so it is easy to find in the middle of the deck.\n- Divide the deck in half, giving each half to a friend. (this is where having the Ace of Spades as the center card helps.)\n- Turn your back and ask them to each shuffle and cut their own decks as much as they like and let you know when they are finished.\n- When they are ready, tell them to fan out their decks and pull one card from the other person's deck.\n- Tell them to look at the card and then insert it anywhere into their own deck.\n- If they would like, shuffle and cut their own decks as much as they'd like and tell you when they are done.\n- When they are ready, turn around and have them give you their decks. Put the two decks together into one.\n- Fan out the cards in your hand looking for the ROUND top number in among the flat tops and the FLAT top number among the round tops.\n- Pull out the two cards and toss them on the table.\ndeck of cards\n- Pull out all the Kings, Queens, and Jacks from the deck.\n- Arrange them into 2 piles - the KH, JC, KS, QD, QC, JD in one pile, the QH, KC, JH, QS, KD in the other, The JS is not needed.\n- Put the 5-card deck on your lap under the table and the 6-card deck on the table.\n- Deal the 6 cards face-up into a row on the table.\n- Have someone choose in their mind one of the cards and have him tell a friend.\n- Ask them to really concentrate on that card as you collect all the cards into a deck and bring it under the table.\n- While the cards are under the table, concentrate very hard, making mental contact with the two friends.\n- Switch decks with the 5-card deck and deal out all the cards, stating that their card has disappeared!\n- (of course ALL the cards have disappeared so it doesn't matter which card they chose. Don't do it twice!)\ndeck of cards\n- Pull out all the Aces into a pile, all the Kings into another, and the Queens, and Jacks. Tell the audience that these are the King, Queen, Jack, and Ace patrols getting ready for a campout.\n- Flip the piles over and stack them one on top of the other into one deck.\n- Say that the patrols decided to mix it up and have one member of each patrol in a tent. Lay down (face-up) each Ace in a row. Then, on top of the Aces, flip the Kings, then the Queens, then the Jacks. Now, there are 4 piles with one of each card.\n- Flip the piles over and say the Scoutmaster called lights out and its time to sleep.\n- Pick up each pile, making a stack of the cards.\n- Cut the cards 3 or 4 times saying that during the night the scouts tossed and turned and had a terrible time sleeping.\n- Deal the cards one at a time into 4 piles (face-down) and say, \"But morning finally came ...\"\n- Flip the piles of cards over as you say, \"and they all woke to find themselves back with their own patrol!\"\nFinding the Aces\ndeck of cards\n- Pull out all the Aces into a pile face-up.\n- Shuffle the remaining cards and deal the top 3 cards into a row face-down.\n- Deal out the remainder of the cards face-down onto these 3 cards until there are 14 on each. Then, put one more card each on the middle and right piles and put the remaining 4 cards face-down to the right as a 4th pile.\n- You have 4 piles and the 4 Aces.\n- Have a friend take the first pile and shuffle it all he wants, then put it back face-down.\n- Have him place the top Ace face-down on top of the first pile.\n- Have the friend shuffle the 2nd pile all he wants and then put it back.\n- Have him take any number of cards from the 2nd pile and place them on top of the 1st pile.\n- Have him place the 2nd Ace face-down on the 2nd pile.\n- Have him shuffle the third pile, replace it, and take any number of cards and put them on the 2nd pile.\n- Have him place the 3rd Ace face-down on the 3rd pile.\n- Have him shuffle the 4th pile and place it face-down on top of the 3rd pile.\n- When he is finished, place the 3rd pile on the 2nd, then the 2nd on the 1st. You still have the 4th Ace sitting aside.\n- Now announce that even though the Aces are well hidden throughout the deck, you will bring them to the top.\n- Deal 2 cards face-down next to each other. Continue dealing face-down alternating between the two piles until all cards are dealt.\n- Pick up the left-hand deck and deal the top card from it onto the remaining deck. Deal the next card down where the left-hand deck had been. Continue dealing out cards alternating between the two piles.\n- Repeat picking up the left-hand deck and dealing out the cards, first card on top of the remaining deck, until there are only 3 cards left.\n- Dramatically show that these are the 3 missing Aces!\nA Number from 1 to 9\ndeck of cards\n- Give the deck of cards to a friend and turn your back to him.\n- Let him shuffle the deck as much as he'd like.\n- Tell him to think of a number from 1 to 9 and then deal out that many cards face-down into a pile quietly so you can not hear them.\n- Tell him to now search through the rest of the deck for a card that matches the number he chose. So, if he chose 5, find the 5C or 5H or 5D or 5S.\n- Once he finds his card, tell him to put the deck face-down on the table and put his card face down on top of it.\n- Then, place his dealt out pile on top of the deck.\n- Now, have him deal off each card from the top of the deck face-up on the table and announce the name of each card as it is dealt.\n- Starting at zero, mentally count the cards he deals. When he calls a card that matches the number in your head, that is his card, so memorize it. If he calls 5 Spades when you are at '5', then that is his card.\n- Let him continue to deal out cards up to 10 and then ask him to stop.\n- Tell him his card was the 5 of Spades, or whichever matched.\n- Then, turn around for the applause. :-)\nMore Cub Scout Information to Use:\nCub Scouts - information about the cub scout program\nBobcat Info - any grade\nTiger Info - 1st grade\nWolf Info - 2nd grade\nBear Info - 3rd grade\nWebelos - 4th and 5th grade\nTo help make your Cub Scouts of America program the best it can be, use these pages to find good stuff:\nMonthly Cub Scout Themes\nActivities - find age-appropriate, advancement-supporting activites for Cub Scouts\nGames - den or pack games just right for 1st through 3rd graders\nProjects - fun projects for cub scouts to use to do a good turn\nRecipes - easy recipes\nCub Scout Skits - skits that Cub Scouts love\nSongs - songs to liven up a cub scout den or pack meeting\nStories - choose stories that cub scouts will enjoy and understand\nAwards - see what awards are available to all cub scouts\nCub Scout Academics & Sports - extra recognition opportunities\nPinewood Derby - advice for the big race\nYukon Jack on Starting post\nYvonne N P on Outdoor Activity award\nNew Advanc Chair on Merit Badges\nMark Kirkendall on Project Search\nTamara on Project Search\nKim on Uniforms\nDwight S on Outdoor Activity award\nDawn on Webelos Super NOVA award\nAnna R. on Arrow of Light\nContest - Ask a Question - Add Content - scout software\nThis site is not officially associated with the Boy Scouts of America"}
{"text": "What is a raw food diet?\nThe recent boon in backyard and community gardens, farmers markets, and availability of organic foods offer evidence of increased consumer demand for more wholesome, sustainable, and environmentally-friendly foods. This growing trend to eat more fruits and vegetables and less processed foods combined with Americans’ favorite past-time of adopting restrictive, hard-to-maintain, weight-loss inducing diets at the turn of the New Year, creates a perfect storm for a surge in interest and popularity of the raw food diet.\nThe raw food diet emphasizes intake of foods in their natural, unprocessed, uncooked form. Raw fruits and vegetables top the list of food options. Add to that a mix of beans and legumes and it seems like you should have a nutrient-dense, filling, and weight-loss inducing “perfect diet.” After all, each of these foods is packed with nutrients, light on calories, and high in fiber. In a nation known for massive portion sizes and ready access to highly processed foods, this way of eating should be a welcome change. But a closer looks reveals a more complicated, expensive, and questionable eating plan.\nBeyond promoting every nutrition expert’s mantra of “eat more vegetables and fruits”, the standard raw food diet is true to its name – most, if not all, foods need to be “raw”. This means dieters are prohibited from cooking food. The only allowed “cooking” is dehydration which requires a special machine that blows hot air through the food and increases the temperature to no more than 118F. Since grains are indigestible raw and the diet prohibits boiling them, raw grains must be soaked overnight or allowed to sprout before consumption. Proponents argue that avoiding heat exposure keeps food enzymes intact leading to better digestion; however, this argument does not physiologically hold merit since the acid in the stomach inactivates the enzymes once the food is eaten. Plus, the body already makes all the enzymes it needs to digest and absorb food. Since food can’t be cooked, meat and most animal products are off limits (unless a dieter chooses to put the risk of severe foodborne illness aside and eat raw meat). For this reason, the raw food diet typically resembles a vegan diet that is free of processed and cooked food. Most raw food devotees also consume a mostly organic foods to avoid exposure to pesticides and other synthetic chemicals. The extent of adherence to these tenants is pending the level of commitment to adopting a “pure” version of the diet.\nFew published studies evaluate risks and benefits of a raw food diet. The limited available research suggests a variety of potential benefits such as improved “bad” LDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels (Koebnick et al, 2005), weight loss (Koebnick et al, 1999), improvement in fibromyalgia symptoms (Donaldson et al, 2001) and decreased blood pressure (Douglass et al, 1985) as well as potential harmful effects including decreased “good” HDL cholesterol (Koebnick et al, 2005), decreased bone density (Fontana et al, 2005), and vitamin B12 deficiency (due to elimination of animal products) (Koebnick et al, 2005). Extremists who do not adopt the vegan approach but instead consume raw animal products risk serious foodborne illness. Plus, as with any restrictive diet, strict adherence to a raw food diet is challenging. But it turns out that this imperfect adherence may be its major redeeming feature. After all, an overall concerted effort to eat a healthier, more wholesome, mostly plant-based diet should be the goal of any dietary overhaul.\n- Koebnick C., et al. (2005). Long-term consumption of a raw food diet is associated with favorable serum LDL cholesterol and triglycerides but also with elevated plasma homocysteine and low serum HDL cholesterol in humans. Journal of Nutrition, 135, 10, 2372-2378.\n- Koebnick C., et al (1999). Consequences of a Long-Term Raw Food Diet on Body Weight and Menstruation: Results of a Questionnaire Survey. Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism, 43, 2, 69-79.\n- Donaldson M.S., et al (2001). Fibromyalgia syndrome improved using a mostly raw vegetarian diet: an observational study. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2001, 1, 7. Douglass, J. M., et al (1985). Effects of a raw food diet on hypertension and obesity. Southern Medical Journal, 78, 7, 841-844.\n- Fontana L., et al (2005). Low bone mass in subjects on a long-term raw vegetarian diet. Archives of Internal Medicine, 165, 684-689."}
{"text": "Alexander Todorov, an associate professor of psychology and public affairs at Princeton University, has designed a new freshman seminar, \"The Face: The Forces That Shape How We Perceive Others,\" to teach students about humans' specialized mechanisms for processing, recognizing and socially assessing faces — as well as the biases that lead to errors in perception.\nPhoto by Denise Applewhite\nAcademic journeys begin with freshman seminars\nPrinceton's newest undergraduates are setting out on a path of inquiry and discovery this fall through the University's freshman seminar program.\nFreshman seminars enable students to build strong relationships with faculty members and classmates in a close-knit intellectual setting. Many students cite the freshman seminar as one of the highlights of their time at Princeton.\nAmong other subjects, freshmen this fall are exploring forces that shape facial perception, issues related to global environmental change, experiences with sound and music, and notions of individuality. A total of 480 freshmen are enrolled this semester in 35 seminars, each of which is hosted by a residential college. Class discussions often continue in informal settings both on and off campus, through meals, guest lectures, field trips and other activities.\nThis is part of a series of features highlighting freshman seminars offered at Princeton this semester. Other features:\nExploring the science and nuance of facial perception\nPosted October 31, 2011; 12:00 p.m.\nProfessor Alexander Todorov showed the students in his freshman seminar a series of images of the same blurry face — with the hint that it was a non-American political leader — as it would appear from 200, 100 and 50 meters. At 50 meters, only one student figured out who it was — Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.\nTodorov's next example illustrated how facial recognition can have serious consequences. He showed the students a photo of Darrell Edwards, a man who is currently fighting a 1999 murder conviction based in part on eyewitness testimony. Then Todorov demonstrated what Edwards would have looked like to the eyewitness who said she saw him the night of the murder from 271 feet (about 82 meters) away, without her prescription eyeglasses. The shocked students laughed at the blurry photograph.\n\"The jurors didn't have that reaction. They thought it was actually possible from this distance to identify a person,\" Todorov said. \"The fact of the matter is, from this distance, you can't identify a person. You might be able to identify somebody who's a highly familiar person based on their gait and other things, but in this case an unfamiliar person, the eyewitness, didn't know who Darrell is.\"\nIn class, Todorov shows students photos of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi from 200, 100 and 50 meters away to demonstrate how distance and familiarity influence facial recognition. (Images courtesy of Geoffrey Loftus)\nTodorov, an associate professor of psychology and public affairs at Princeton University, uses a wide array of visual aids in his course \"The Face: The Forces That Shape How We Perceive Others,\" which is being offered for the first time this fall. His 15 students are learning about humans' specialized mechanisms for processing, recognizing and socially assessing faces — as well as the biases that lead to errors in perception.\n\"My ambition is to make them excited about psychology and cognitive science. It's a specialized topic but has something for everybody,\" Todorov said, with applications from eyewitness testimony to electoral outcomes to Hollywood casting of \"attractive\" performers.\nFreshman Miriam Pearsall had enjoyed her psychology class in high school and was drawn immediately to the seminar topic.\n\"I was especially attracted to the fact that face perception has such great relevance in understanding society and the world as a whole,\" Pearsall said. \"I love that this freshman seminar allows me to voluntarily delve in the topic. Then I can discuss what I've learned with people who are just as interested in the topic as I am.\"\nTodorov (left) incorporates material related to topics ranging from criminal justice to Hollywood casting to show students, such as Victor Hsiao (center) and David Dohan (right), the many applications of facial perception. (Photo by Denise Applewhite)\nTodorov began the course, which is designated as the Shelly and Michael Kassen '76 Freshman Seminar in the Life Sciences, by explaining how the brain develops facial representations. Students learned about unique ways the brain processes faces unlike other objects almost from birth; the fact that it takes less than 50 milliseconds of glimpsing a face to extract informatino about its familiarity, age, sex, race and attractiveness; and parts of the brain such as the fusiform face area dedicated to face processing.\nThe class also visited the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) lab in Green Hall on campus where Todorov, with the help of a graduate student, demonstrated how brain scans are done, and students received a primer on analyzing the scans.\nFor Sarah Cuneo, the trip to the fMRI lab has been the highlight of the class up to this point.\n\"It was amazing to be able to see for ourselves all the techniques and results that we had been reading about for weeks — there's definitely a huge difference between understanding something in theory and seeing it in practice,\" Cuneo said.\nThe classroom discussions have also shed light on and enlivened some of the more technical material, she said.\n\"The small size of our freshman seminar gives the class an incredibly collaborative feel; we get to really engage our classmates in discussion, which means that we legitimately learn from each other,\" Cuneo said. \"A lot of what we do in class is discussion of scientific journal articles, and it's great to have an active debate about the results. Different people in the class will offer several perspectives on the significance of any given study, and that means we get to examine a hypothesis from a variety of angles.\"\nFrom left, freshmen Miriam Pearsall, Jacob Simon and Sarah Cuneo are among the 15 students who engage in lively discussions about the nuances of facial perception and recognition in Todorov's seminar. (Photo by Denise Applewhite)\nTodorov's lesson on eyewitnesses was meant to contrast sophisticated perception skills for familiar faces with the factors in play when observing unfamiliar faces. Scientists have not yet discovered why and how the processes for perceiving familiar and unfamiliar faces are so different.\nIn the same class as the discussion on Edwards, students picked out Michael Jordan, Bill Clinton and Jay Leno in a slide of blurry faces. Yet earlier, students had performed poorly on a hypothetical lineup. When they were asked to match the photo of a suspect to one of 10 mug shots, the students came to a consensus on one man and were surprised when Todorov told them that none of the 10 was the suspect.\n\"It makes sense that we would be less able to identify unfamiliar faces, but I didn't think we would be as bad as we were. We were really, really bad,\" Cuneo said.\nStudents suggested many factors and biases that could lead to a misidentification — witnesses may be agitated or motivated to find a culprit, or they may compare the faces in the lineup to each other rather than their own memory, or expect some variation between their memory and the lineup, among other factors.\n\"We can use these insights for better police procedures for not arresting innocent people,\" Todorov said, adding that New Jersey is one of the states that changed its lineup procedures to reflect research in this area and remove some sources of bias. \"The point is not to dismiss this sort of evidence but to look at it with a critical eye.\"\nFrom left, students Abidjan Walker, Kelly Kremer and Tova Bergsten listen attentively as Todorov (right) explains how overconfidence plays a role in facial perception. (Photo by Denise Applewhite)\nIn his own lab, Todorov studies the social perceptions of faces, and he will focus on related issues for the rest of the semester. Some discussion topics include how people perceive emotional expressions, how people form first impressions, how they assess personality traits such as trustworthiness, and what makes a face attractive.\n\"It's great to explain the basic concepts, and I also learn from teaching them,\" Todorov said. \"I don't really want the students to be face experts, but if they get excited about the right way to do an experiment, how to test a theory, how to rule out alternative explanations and get excited about psychology, that's great.\""}
{"text": "Small group learning\nis a useful educational\napproach. The group\nwork has to be carefully planned and frequently requires a facilitator\nto ensure group progress. In addition the group function and the learning that takes place needs to be assessed and evaluated. The material learned is just as important as the group's ability to achieve a common goal\n. Facilitatory skills are important and require the teacher\nto ensure that both the task is achieved and the group functioning is maintained.\nSmall group learning allows students to develop problem solving, interpersonal, presentational and communication skills, all beneficial to life outside the classroom. These generic skills are difficult to develop in isolation and require feedback and interaction with other individuals.\nSmall group communication"}
{"text": "During slavery, some slaves were given a day of rest while others were forced to continue work. In some parts of the country, slaves were given a yule log to burn in the big house. As long as the log burned, they were granted rest during the holiday. Sometimes the log would burn until the New Year.\nDuring the days of rest, some slaves would hold quilting bees, with both men and women. It was also sometimes tradition that slaves could keep the money they earned for the sale of goods during the holiday.\nWhile the holiday season was meant to be a joyous occasion, slaves that worked inside the house would be worked hardest during Christmas, as many owners and their families would host Christmas parties.\nThe Christmas holiday would also be a time that some slaveowners gave wine and alcoholic beverages to their slaves. With business still in mind, the effects of alcohol were something unknown to many slaves, and most would overindulge. The increased lounge and slumber would discourage runaways during the break. This was a theory held by abolitionist Frederick Douglass. Despite, some slaves were given passes to see nearby relatives during Christmas time and allowed visitors from neighboring plantations.\nAlong with the traditions of the Christmas holiday in Western culture, slaves had dancing and singing in the slave quarters. Sometimes the white masters would come to the slave quarters to watch the celebration. Parents would give children small, homemade tokens.\nAnother celebration known as Jonkonnu, or a Christmas masquerade, took place on the plantations. It was a basic traveling show in which the slave would put on makeshift costumes and go from house to house to perform for gifts and money.\nThe traditions of Christmas during slavery were tools for celebration in the harshest working and living conditions for blacks. While the whites in the “big house” were being showered with gifts and feast, they shared a portion of those with their captives, and at the same time, used the opportunity to convince slaves that slavery was their best option for living peacefully and safely among the masters."}
{"text": "Oh my, do I love this video.\nBut seriously. Don’t do this.\nThanks to Approximately Normal for the find.\nI have to show that to my students – or maybe not – do you think they would be insulted?\nMary, it could definitely go south on you. Proceed with caution! I could imagine it being a way to open a conversation about how the class is going for students. As in, “I want to show you something funny, and the I want to talk about it. This video shows a math class going very very badly and I don’t want our class to be like this. So let’s talk afterwards about ways I can keep you from feeling like the student in this video…”\nWith a class of future teachers, we can use the video to discuss teaching and learning of math in the abstract. But in a College Algebra or Math Center course, we would have to be super careful.\nWow–on the other hand it’s hard to know what to do when you’re the teacher in that sort of situation. So what do you do?\nI know some of the answers, of course–acting it out, using manipulatives, making it a more concrete problem (if you had 6 cookies and you ate one, how many would be left), using smaller numbers (if you had 3 cookies and you ate one, how many would be left), and those are the sorts of things I’d hope that my future teachers would come up with if we discussed this video, but even with those mental tools, you do come across students where nothing works.\nI was working with a third grader some time ago, for whom the answer to taking away 0 was almost always 0 (what’s 4-0? 0!). Changing the wording and acting it out would work temporarily (though rarely the first time–asking if you had 4 cookies and you ate none of them how many would you have left generally resulted in the answer 0), but the next day we were generally back to 4-0=0, and I was never sure if anything was working or if it was all illusory. So–what should you do? If you have answers (or good resources) I’d love to have them. You never know when you might run into a child where you need a new trick.\nThanks for the thoughtful comment, LSquared.\nLet me make explicit what I see in this video.\nFirst of all, I was finishing up a morning’s worth of writing Talking Math with Your Kids posts. So I wasn’t coming at the video so much from the teacher perspective as the parent one.\nEither way, though, I suppose I have the same perspective. Namely: The learner’s ideas are nowhere present in this conversation. The goal in the interaction is getting to a right answer to a particular problem. The things you mention, LSquared, are all means to that end. Manipulatives, contextualizing the problem, etc. All positive moves.\nBut I would argue for putting the learners’ ideas at the center of the lesson (in school) or conversation (at home). My main resource for this is always going to be Children’s Mathematics, from the Cognitively Guided Instruction research project (CGI). CGI begins with the premise that children have mathematical ideas that do not match those of adults very well, but that these ideas have predictable structure and can be used to help kids move forward.\nSo I would say that what to do involves digging for kids’ ideas. Not giving them strategies so much as asking to find out what they do know. Then build on that.\nOr we can just laugh along with the video and marvel at what a crazy and complex profession we’ve chosen for ourselves. I’m cool doing that too.\nFill in your details below or click an icon to log in:\nYou are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out / Change )\nYou are commenting using your Twitter account. ( Log Out / Change )\nYou are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out / Change )\nConnecting to %s\nNotify me of follow-up comments via email.\nNotify me of new posts via email.\nRSS - Posts\nRSS - Comments\nEnter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.\nJoin 1,051 other followers\nGet every new post delivered to your Inbox."}
{"text": "The UNESCO World Heritage Convention provides a unique framework for securing the conservation of over 200 of the world’s most important natural areas, recognized as being of Outstanding Universal Value.\nThe identification of these Sites through the Convention is a direct response to the need to preserve and restore globally outstanding protected areas based on criteria that include scale of natural habitats, intactness of ecological processes, viability of populations of rare species, and rarity, notwithstanding aesthetic appeal which almost always accompany these natural wonders.\nThe Convention provides a unique platform for developing and sharing best-practice, and can act as a barometer of global protected area performance.\nIUCN advises UNESCO on natural World Heritage Sites.This means that IUCN:\n- Evaluates sites nominated for inscription on the World Heritage List\n- Monitors the conservation state of existing natural sites, working with a global network of member organizations\n- Trains and strengthens capacity of site managers, governments, scientists and local communities"}
{"text": "PURPOSE: To easily input a three-dimensional picture to a computer by reading positions of picture elements of the reflecting light beams from its two-dimensional picture and inputting the positions to the three-dimensional coordinates of the three-dimensional surface or the surface of the solid body after conversion.\nCONSTITUTION: When a solid body 3 is scanned in such a way that an origin O of three-dimensional coordinates is fixed inside the solid body 3 and light beams on a straight line are projected on the radial direction parallel to the XZ-plane by means of a 45°-inclined revolving mirror which successively makes relative movement along the fixed straight line of '0' on Z-axis and a fixed value on X-axis, one sides of plane mirrors 2 and 2' are respectively made coincident the fixed straight line of '0' on X-axis and a fixed value on Z-axis and the inclinations of the mirrors 2 and 2' are adjusted so that the optical beam can reflect in the direction parallel to Z-axis on one sides of the mirrors. Therefore, the optical beam never scans the area where the X-coordinate becomes negative and the terminating ends of the line images of the reflecting light always stay on the YZ-plane. Thus a solid body which is '0' or a positive value on X-coordinate can be scanned over its entire surface. Therefore, a three-dimensional picture can be inputted to a computer easily.\n|WO/2011/111506||METHOD FOR DRIVING CIRCUIT AND METHOD FOR DRIVING DISPLAY DEVICE|\n|JP2013003629||IMAGE FORMING DEVICE AND CONTROL PROGRAM|\n|JP2008242758||PATTERN PRINT TRANSPARENT SHEET|"}
{"text": "Forces and Fields: The Concept of Action at a Distance in the History of Physics\nDover Publications (1961)\n|Abstract||This history of physics focuses on the question, \"How do bodies act on one another across space?\" The variety of answers illustrates the function of fundamental analogies or models in physics as well as the role of so-called unobservable entities. Forces and Fields presents an in-depth look at the science of ancient Greece, and it examines the influence of antique philosophy on seventeenth-century thought. Additional topics embrace many elements of modern physics--the empirical basis of quantum mechanics, wave-particle duality and the uncertainty principle, and the action-at-a-distance theory of Wheeler and Feynman. 1961 ed.|\n|Keywords||Physics History Physics Philosophy Force and energy|\n|Buy the book||$11.15 new (45% off) $11.15 used (45% off) $15.60 direct from Amazon (22% off) Amazon page|\n|Call number||QC7.H62 2005|\n|External links||This entry has no external links. Add one.|\n|Through your library||Configure|\nSimilar books and articles\nPeter Kosso (1998). Appearance and Reality: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Physics. Oxford University Press.\nKarl Rogers (2005). On the Metaphysics of Experimental Physics. Palgrave Macmillan.\nLawrence Sklar (1992). Philosophy of Physics. Westview Press.\nEdward G. Ruestow (1973). Physics at Seventeenth and Eighteenth-Century Leiden: Philosophy and the New Science in the University. The Hague,Nijhoff.\nGordon Fraser (ed.) (2009). The New Physics for the Twenty-First Century. Cambridge University Press.\nC. W. Kilmister (1994/2005). Eddington's Search for a Fundamental Theory: A Key to the Universe. Cambridge University Press.\nPaul M. Clark (ed.) (1981). Modern Physics and Problems of Knowledge. Open University Press.\nJosé M. Sanchez-Ron (1985). Physics and Philosophy: Action at a Distance in 20th Century Physics. Theoria 1 (2):439-459.\nEdward Rosen (1962). Book Review:Forces and Fields: The Concept of Action at a Distance in the History of Physics Mary Brenda Hesse. [REVIEW] Philosophy of Science 29 (4):434-.\nMary B. Hesse (1962/1970). Forces and Fields. Westport, Conn.,Greenwood Press.\nSorry, there are not enough data points to plot this chart.\nAdded to index2009-01-28\nRecent downloads (6 months)0\nHow can I increase my downloads?"}
{"text": "ASIA NEWS NETWORK\nWE KNOW ASIA BETTER\nPublication Date : 01-02-2013\nGolden goose floats used in the funeral procession are based on the hamsa\nThe golden goose floats used in the funeral procession for the late King Father Friday are based on the hamsa, the Sanskrit name for an aquatic bird in Hindu mythology.\nAt least three such floats were seen as the procession got underway. One carried Venerables Bou Kry and Tep Vong, the heads of the two main Buddhist sects in Cambodia.\nA second carried National Assembly President Heng Samrin, Prime Minister Hun Sen, Royal Palace Minister Kong Samol and Senate Vice President Say Chhum.\nA third carried members of the royal family, who appeared to be grandchildren of the former king.\nBrahma, the god of creation, is typically represented with four faces and four arms mounted on a hamsa.\nHamsas are still used as symbols and for decoration in India and Southeast Asia, especially in Myanmar, where they appear on some regional flags, and Thailand, where the mythical bird is featured on the royal barge.\nIn Cambodia, where the goose is known as a hang, the hamsa is found in the logo of the Ministry of Economy and Finance as well as Acleda Bank.\nThe Chu Nath Dictionary defines the hang as a wild goose distinguished by a long neck and wings that are usually white but sometimes yellow. It says the geese are known for flying long distances at extremely high altitudes and swimming on water to find food.\nSome believe the mythical creature to be based on the bar-headed goose (Anser indicus) which migrates south across the Himalayas to spend the winters in India.\nA paper published by America's National Academy of Sciences in 2011 said this species makes one of the highest trans-mountain migrations in the world.\nThe birds typically cross the Himalayas in a single day, climbing between 4,000 and 6,000 metres in seven to eight hours. According to the paper, they can support minimum climb rates of 0.8 to 2.2 kilometres an hour.\nAccording to Birdlife International, the bar-headed goose mainly breeds in China, Afghanistan and Mongolia. Non-breeding populations are found in Pakistan and India as well as Bangladesh, Myanmar and Thailand."}
{"text": "Summary: With substance and style, Samaha helps students master the complexities of the criminal justice system and the law. His presentation engages students in active learning and encourages them to understand, rather than memorize. That students truly enjoy reading CRIMINAL JUSTICE is a testament to Samaha's skill as a teacher, writer, and scholar. Featuring a critical-thinking approach that encourages students to explore all sides of the criminal justice system, this thor ...show moreough introduction draws students in and encourages them to learn more. Samaha provides students with an important and realistic understanding of the formal and informal dimensions of criminal justice: from there, they have the ideal framework to learn about the sociology, politics, economics, and law of the discipline. ...show lessEdition/Copyright: 7TH 06\nMore prices and sellers below."}
{"text": "Conservation and Research projects\nAt Wellington Zoo we support a number of conservation and research projects both at the Zoo (ex situ) and in the field (in situ).\nGrand and Otago skinks\nWellington Zoo, in partnership with the Department of Conservation (DoC), is housing and caring for three pairs each of grand and Otago skinks – some of New Zealand’s rarest lizards. We hope that these skinks will breed to create a larger insurance population to conserve them for years to come. Our partnership with DoC allows Zoo staff to gain valuable field experience by monitoring wild skinks in their natural North Otago habitat.\nGrand and Otago skinks are two of New Zealand’s rarest reptiles, estimated to remain in just 8% of their natural habitat and under increasing threat from predators. With no further protection in the wild, these species are predicted to become extinct within the next 10 years. The Department of Conservation has been working on grand and Otago skink recovery in Central Otago for several years. The decision was made in early 2007 to create an insurance population of both species in captivity, to ensure survival of genetic diversity of the skinks into the next decade.\nWellington Bush Builders\nBush Builders is a hands-on environmental education programme coordinated by Wellington Zoo, with the aim of connecting urban students with their local flora and fauna.\nThe programme uses the living world to excite and empower students to take positive action in their own communities. Bush Builders accesses a range of Wellington Zoo resources to create and in-depth learning experience for local students at curriculum levels 1 -8.\nThe Bush Builders programme develops environmental literacy over three distinct phases including a launch at Wellington Zoo and biological surveying at school. Schools can also choose to use Bush Builders as a Primary CREST Award activity.\nTo talk with us about how your school can get involved with Bush Builders contact firstname.lastname@example.org\nBrothers Island tuatara\nFor just over six years, Wellington Zoo was the guardian of 53 Brothers Island tuatara – the rarest sub-species of New Zealand’s living dinosaur. Incubated and hatched at Victoria University of Wellington, the tuatara came to us in 2001 and were raised and cared for, off display, at the Zoo. In October 2007 the tuatara were released onto Long Island in the Marlborough Sounds, in conjunction with Victoria University, the Department of Conservation and Te Ati Awa, in hopes of establishing an insurance population for this rare reptile.\nOther research projects undertaken by Zoo staff include:\n- Kakapo vaccination 05/06: veterinary project: DoC asked us to help with the vaccination of all kakapo after an outbreak of Erysipelotrix rhusiopathiae (bacterium). Wellington Zoo staff went to Codfish Island and vaccinated and took blood samples from over 20 birds.\n- Kea respiratory research 04/05: veterinary research project: First publication of chronic cystic pulmonary disease in a Kea together with Dr B Gartrell of Massey University. CT scans at Pacific Radiology helped make the diagnosis.\n- New Zealand fur seal Jan 08: veterinary conservation project: Landcare Research asked us to perform the veterinary work on the Fur seals. 64 animals were caught and assessed by the vet team of the Zoo in January 2008.\n- New Zealand sea lion 06 ongoing: veterinary conservation project: ongoing project with DoC in which we support them by providing the veterinary staff to anaesthetise sea lions and conduct health exams.\n- Oral vaccination of exotic birds against salmonella strain May 08: Veterinary research: world first large scale vaccination of exotic birds with salmonella vaccine. Research trial into the efficacy of the vaccination by one of our vet residents."}
{"text": "Household Safety Checklist\nIn order to protect you and your family, a thorough safety check of every room in your home should be conducted on a regular basis. Unintentional accidents, injuries, and nontraumatic emergencies may be prevented and your family will be healthier and safer when you practice a little prevention.\nThe following checklist may be printed so it can be used for the inspection of your home.\n___ Do not leave medications, toiletries, or other household products in drawers or on night stands.\n___ To avoid accidental injuries or choking, keep penknives, nail files, scissors, and pocket change out of reach.\n___ Install a smoke detector in the hallway outside of the bedrooms. Check and change the batteries regularly.\n___ Make certain drapery cords and/or blind cords are well out of reach of children.\n___ Make certain the crib mattress fits snugly.\n___ Crib slats should be placed no wider than 2 and 3/8 inches apart.\n___ Make certain the crib has been put together properly and is not missing screws or bolts to prevent it from collapsing.\n___ Make certain there is a carpet or rug beneath the crib or changing table to soften the impact if an infant falls.\n___ Make certain drapery cords and/or blind cords are well out of reach of children and cribs.\n___ Remove all crib gyms, hanging toys, and decorations form a crib by the time a baby can raise up on hands and knees.\n___ Make sure there is a safety belt on the infant changing table, and that it is used consistently and properly.\n___ Make sure baby powder and lotions are out of a baby or child's reach. But, make sure the baby powder and lotions are within your reach, so you do not have to leave the infant to reach these items.\n___ If your child can climb out of the crib, consider a youth bed with guard rails, or place the crib mattress on the floor.\n___ Never leave small parts or pieces of a toy(s) in a child's room.\n___ Make certain a night light is not near or touching drapes or the bedspread.\n___ Never place a crib, playpen, or bed near a window.\n___ Make certain window screens are securely in place, or that window guards are present to prevent a child from falling from a window.\n___ Make certain there are plug protectors in the unused electrical outlets.\n___ If there is a lid on the toy box, it should not be heavy, hinged, or lockable. Children may crawl inside and become trapped.\n___ Put a nonskid bathmat on the floor and a nonskid mat or decals in the bathtub.\n___ Protect all electrical outlets with ground fault circuit interrupters.\n___ Store medicines, cosmetics, toiletries, and cleansers well out of reach of children.\n___ When children are present, put child-resistant safety latches on all cabinets storing potentially harmful substances.\n___ Store electrical appliances, such as hair dryers and curling irons, out of reach.\n___ Always unplug such an appliance before leaving it unattended, no matter how briefly.\n___ To avoid accidental scalding, make certain to set the water heater no higher than 120 degrees Fahreinheit (49 degrees Celsius).\n___ Never leave a child or disabled person unattended in a bathtub, or in a bathroom where there is a tub, sink, or bucket containing water.\n___ Keep toilet lids closed.\n___ Do not store vitamins (or medications) on the kitchen table, counter top, or window sill.\n___ Make certain knives, scissors, and other sharp utensils are out of reach.\n___ Store dishwasher detergent and other cleaning supplies in their original containers and out of reach.\n___ When children are present, install safety latches on cabinets and drawers within a child's reach.\n___ Keep chairs and step stools away from counters and stoves.\n___ Always turn pot handles inward when cooking on the stove. Use back burners whenever possible.\n___ Keep the toaster out of the reach of toddlers.\n___ Make certain appliance cords are not dangling, so they cannot be pulled from a counter.\n___ Unplug appliance extension cords when not in use.\n___ When children are present, use plug protectors for all unused wall outlets.\n___ If a child is in a highchair, make sure it is sturdy and has a seat belt with a strap between the legs.\n___ Keep a working fire extinguisher in your kitchen.\n___ Keep houseplants out of reach of children. A number of plants are poisonous.\n___ Make certain television sets and other heavy items are secure so they cannot be tipped over.\n___ Remove unnecessary extension cords.\n___ Put plug protectors in any unused electrical outlets when children are present.\n___ Move tables and other objects with sharp edges away from the center of a room, especially if there are toddlers or disabled persons in the home.\n___ Place protective material on sharp furniture edges.\n___ Keep drapery and blind cords out of reach of children and/or disabled persons.\n___ Secure area rugs to prevent falls and slips.\n___ Keep stairs and walkways clear of snow, wet leaves, or other debris.\n___ Repair cracks or chips in cement sidewalks and stairs.\n___ Make certain railings, gates, and fences are secure and in good repair.\n___ Keep garbage cans covered.\n___ There should be a fence with a locked gate between the house and the backyard swimming pool.\n___ Garden tools and lawn equipment should be securely stored.\n___ Play equipment, such as swing sets and garden furniture, should be properly anchored and assembled. Check regularly for rust, splintered wood, or cracks.\n___ If you have a fireplace, wood burning stove, or other heat source, place barriers around it to avoid accidental burns.\n___ Inspect and clean chimneys and stovepipes regularly.\n___ Make certain hazardous items, such as bug sprays, cleaners, auto care products, and weed killers, are secured and stored in their original containers in the garage, utility room, or basement.\n___ Place \"Mr. Yuk\" stickers on all hazardous items.\n___ The first action when a person has ingested a toxic substance is to consult with the local poison control center at the universal telephone number in the United States--800-222-1222.\n___ Make certain plastic bags, broken pieces of toys, buttons, screws, and other choking or suffocation hazards are stored out of reach of children.\n___ Post emergency telephone numbers near each telephone in your home.\n___ When children are present, safety devices, such as gates, locks, and doorknob covers, should be in use at all stairways and exits in your home.\n___ Make sure all indoor and outdoor stairways and entries are well-lighted and clear.\n___ Make certain bathrooms and bedrooms can be unlocked from the outside.\n___ Keep matches and lighters out of the reach of children and disabled persons.\n___ A home should have two unobstructed exits, in case of fire or other emergency.\n___ Check all electrical cords to make sure they are not cracked or frayed.\n___ Make certain outlets or extension cords are not overloaded.\n___ It is best not to use space heaters. If they are used, make sure they are in safe condition. Never plug them into an extension cord. Do not place them near drapes or furnishings.\n___ Paint or wallpaper should not be chipping or peeling.\n___ Keep purses, backpacks, and other portable storage bags out of a child's reach. They may contain medicines, penknives, hard candies, and other items that may harm children."}
{"text": "T2T || FAQ || Ask T2T || Teachers' Lounge || Browse || Search || Thanks || About T2T\nView entire discussion\nI have a person in my class who has trouble communicating with math language. Recently I taught my class fractions. He has a hard time trying to do word problems with fractions. He understands how to change improper fractions to mixed fractions, fractions to decimals etc. He has trouble with word problems. What activities can I do to support the areas he has trouble with and not interrupt the whole class's learning pace?\nMath Forum Home || The Math Library || Quick Reference || Math Forum Search"}
{"text": "The Rand Corporation has released a new report \"Strategies for Advancing Preschool Adequacy and Efficiency in California.\"\nAmong the reports key findings:\n- Disadvantaged children, who are more likely to start school behind and stay behind, are also the least likely to attend high-quality preschool programs.\n- California's underfunded preschool system serves only half the eligible three- and four-year-olds, and the system does not reward higher-quality providers.\n- Increasing access to high-quality preschool for disadvantaged children can narrow existing achievement gaps.\n- In the short term, California can allocate existing resources more efficiently and provide infrastructure supports for raising quality in the future.\n- In the longer term, new resources should be used to expand access to and raise the quality of preschool programs for those who can benefit most."}
{"text": "This 1914 fire aerial ladder truck was in service at the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition (world's fair) held in San Francisco to celebrate the completion of the Panama Canal.\nIt is a 1905 Cadillac with an original price tag of $950.00 from Detroit. It was restored and has been part of the museum for 35 years. The sign says only 4,029 of these vehicles were made and very few remain today.\nDrum roll, please...\nFrom what I read, early fire departments used baking soda and acid (vinegar) together to form carbon dioxide gas to extinguish fires; thus, the term \"chemical\" hose.\nIt was purchased for $4,345.00 in 1890, a lot of money back then, and used in the 1906 earthquake. The fire station collapsed, but the firemen dug out the engine and used it to fight fires for 2 straight days."}
{"text": "Build a solid foundation in science, formulation and product development—find out more!\nMost Popular in:\nFormulate This: Inverse Emulsions\nBy: Ken Klein, Cosmetech Labs\nPosted: February 1, 2010, from the February 2010 issue of Cosmetics & Toiletries.\nEditor’s note: Cosmetics & Toiletries presents \"Formulate This,” a new column highlighting commonly asked formulating questions with answers provided by seasoned industry experts. This feature is designed to provide cosmetic chemists and formulators with ideas and advice to solve formulating challenges. To submit a question, e-mail FormulateThis@allured.com.\nQuestion: I’m trying to understand cosmetic emulsion inversion. What actually happens inside the emulsion at the phase borders?\nAnswer: First, remember the HLB system. For ethoxylated emulsifiers, as the temperature increases, the HLB decreases--i.e., they switch from o/w emulsifiers at a low temperature to w/o emulsifiers at a high temperature. When an oil phase is added to a water phase, an o/w emulsion is formed.\nAs the temperature heats to 75°C, the HLBs of the o/w emulsifiers (ethoxylates) decrease and they orient to w/o. As the temperature is lowered, the HLB increases and there is a point at which the emulsifiers then orient to form an o/w emulsion (the Phase Inversion Temperature or PIT), resulting in an inverse emulsion.\nFrom a theoretical standpoint (and in reality, too), to form an o/w emulsion, it is a good idea to first form a w/o emulsion and invert it into an o/w emulsion. The resulting resistant emulsion will have a narrow particle size distribution, and oftentimes a smaller average particle size, thus making it a more stable emulsion."}
{"text": "For many people, learning a language involves going to classes, doing homework, taking tests and trying to memorise vocabulary. Others try to teach themselves languages using similar techniques. These are all useful things to do, but won’t necessarily give you a fluency in the language. Conscious learning of a language using these methods tends to feel like hard work.\nIf you really want to become highly proficient in a language, you need to spend a lot of time immersed in it. To become good at speaking the language, for example, you need to find opportunities to use it with other people, ideally in situations where you have to use it, or at least try to say as much as you can without falling back on your native language. Listening to radio programmes, watching videos, films and TV programmes, reading books and other material, and writing it as often as you can are also good things to do. This may not feel like study, especially if they involves subjects and activities you really enjoy, but you will be absorbing and acquiring a lot of the language without realizing it.\nConscious learning and sub-conscious acquisition are both good ways to learn languages. You can probably make faster progress if you study a language consciously, but sub-conscious acquisition probably gives you a deeper knowledge of it. Combining the two together is even better."}
{"text": "All the evidence to date shows that value-added techniques are being employed responsibly\nIn one suburban school district, teachers across the system were ranked and evaluated according to the contribution they had made to student learning–based on a value-added analysis of state test results. When they were ranked again the next year, the results were very similar except for one teacher who moved from a top rank to a very low rank. When the school superintendent looked at the results, he immediately identified the teacher–her husband had died during the second year of rankings.\nWhat does this anecdote illustrate? For starters, that value-added assessments can misidentify good and bad teachers–and that the discrepancies can be cleared up by local administrators. More important, however, was the fact that the findings were robust; teachers’ rankings were similar across three years of analysis. Moreover, these rankings were used to grant a standard reward to a top group of teachers, not to make fine distinctions in the amount of compensation that teachers received. In other words, the results of value-added analysis, when examined over a period of two or three years, were stable and were used in a way that respected the margin of error involved in using these statistical techniques.\nCritics of value-added assessment tend to embrace the concept but don’t want the results gleaned from such analysis to be used for accountability purposes–and especially don’t want to use the results to reward or sanction teachers. But teachers are the dominant school input, in terms of both spending and impact on student learning. Excluding them essentially leaves the education system without accountability.\nThe main concern with value-added assessment is that the technique exacerbates the amount of random error involved in measuring student performance. The risk is that teachers and schools may be wrongfully rewarded or punished because value-added techniques either over- or underestimated their students’ learning gains. However, no intelligent users of standardized testing would make policy choices based on a single year’s result or small differences among schools and teachers. Texas, for example, rewards schools based on value-added achievement gains calculated using two-stage regression analysis. The state does not hand out awards based on decimal-point differences among schools; officials reward a previously set percentage of top-ranking schools. The point here is that most of the statistical objections to value-added measurements assume a misuse of the analysis. The statistical “noise” involved in measuring value-added should preclude decisions that are based on small, unreplicated analysis; it should not preclude decisions that are based on gross findings.\nConfidence in gross findings can be developed by replication, by averaging results over several time periods, and by using several measures of the development of human capital–not tests alone, but also attendance rates, dropout rates, and promotion rates (a very high-quality assessment will track indicators of human capital such as post-secondary school earnings and higher-education outcomes as well). The richer the measures used, the less weight there is on the psychometric concerns involving test scores. The alternative is to rest teacher compensation on factors that have little to do with student learning. It is now well established, for example, that the number of degrees teachers possess and the number of hours teachers spend in education courses are unrelated to student learning. Put another way, an important criterion in the determination of a teacher’s salary does not have any bearing on the ability of the teacher to develop human capital. We know that because it has been replicated in many studies in many school districts, even though salary schedules have yet to reflect this information.\nCritics often cite the difficulty of comparing the results of large and small schools and comparing one subject with another. It is essential in the debate over the usefulness of the value-added assessment approach that the unit of observation and the comparison group be specified. If, as has been the case in a number of places, the comparison group is all the teachers in a given grade in the school district–with, say, the top 15 percent of the 4th grade teachers receiving an award–what is the significance of a big or small school? The class is the unit, and class size tends to be uniform within a school district. At the high-school level, the comparison group is likely to be, for example, all history teachers or all science teachers across the district. The award-receiving group is a percentage of that comparison group, and it is not affected by the test scores in another subject.\nIf multiple factors are used for assessment, efforts to check on robustness are made, only extreme performances are rewarded or sanctioned, and comparison groups are selected carefully, the technical psychometric points raised by critics should not swamp the incentive and information benefits of performance-based compensation plans for teachers. If we are ready to determine reading programs, language labs, class sizes, and the use of computerized learning on the basis of value-added assessments, we should be ready to reward teachers using the same techniques.\nThere is already considerable evidence from several places–such as Tennessee and Florida, where value-added analysis has been used for accountability purposes–that low-achieving students are the main beneficiaries of the changes that occur when these techniques are implemented. When low-achieving students are taught the same body of knowledge over and over again, and when they are taught how to work under a time constraint, they benefit. Value-added assessment techniques reveal that information.\nThe Illusion of Transparency\nCritics of value-added assessment say that it is just too complicated for teachers and the public to understand the results these systems will generate. In other words, the results will not be transparent. But if transparency is the criterion that trumps all other criteria, we would be compelled to use an assessment method that we know to be wrong. For example, there is no satisfactory way to make judgments about which method of teaching reading is superior–whole language or phonics–without factoring in the socioeconomic, school, and teacher characteristics of each of the groups of students in the experiment. Statistical controls must be used if the assessments of teachers, schools, or programs are to be accurate, even though very few educators understand the statistical principles and methods involved. I do not require a transparent understanding of the efficacy of the flu shot I take, nor do I require a transparent understanding of the operating characteristics of my car; I trust the experts on the techniques. So must it be in educational evaluation.\nThe problems with the use of value-added assessments, even for teachers, are greatly exaggerated, and the alternatives are simply untenable.\nOne proposed alternative is the use of one or more methods of subjective evaluation. Other teachers, students, and/or parents can be surveyed to make the judgments. Most of those surveys focus on whether respondents like the teacher, are happy in the classroom, or equally soft attributes. They do not really determine what kind of learning gains a certain teacher is eliciting relative to other teachers. Most people look back at their primary and secondary schooling and identify an extremely demanding teacher (whom they disliked at the time) as the one who made the biggest contribution to their educational development.\nA second possibility is to set up a standard–some threshold–of student achievement as an absolute hurdle to define adequate performance. The problems with this are legion. How should the threshold be determined? Those who want to be rewarded set lower thresholds than those who watch budgets. The threshold becomes a major bargaining tool, quite divorced from the informed decisionmaking objective. What incentives for improvement are there for those who crossed the threshold?\nBasically, subjective evaluation allows the information essential to the rational allocation of educational resources to be derived politically rather than scientifically.\nThe state of American public education has been deplored by critics for many years. The notion that student learning has remained somewhat stagnant over the past century, though the country has spent steadily more real resources on education, is a matter of profound concern. This surely indicates that we do not know a lot about what works and what doesn’t.\nWe need to know if we are to change the pattern. We must have calibrated results; we must use sophisticated statistical methods to interpret the data; we need to use multiple measures of performance; and we need to implement the analysis in ways that are appropriate to the quality of the information. And teachers, the most important school-controlled input into the educational process, cannot be exempt from this information-gathering activity. Our current unhappy results are consistent with the subjective and/or unsophisticated tools we use for assessing effectiveness and creating incentives.\n-Anita A. Summers is a professor emeritus of public policy and management at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.\nSign Up To Receive Notification\nwhen the latest issue of Education Next is posted\nIn the meantime check the site regularly for new articles, blog postings, and reader comments"}
{"text": "Monday, September 24, 2012 - 18:30 in Astronomy & Space\nNASA's rover Curiosity touched a Martian rock with its robotic arm for the first time on Sept. 22, assessing what chemical elements are in the rock called \"Jake Matijevic.\"\n- Curiosity on Mars sits on rocks similar to those found in marshes in MexicoTue, 30 Oct 2012, 11:07:11 EDT\n- How Martian winds make rocks walkThu, 8 Jan 2009, 14:01:08 EST\n- MIT moves toward greener chemistryFri, 3 Sep 2010, 12:51:40 EDT\n- Martian rock arrangement not alien handiworkWed, 7 Jan 2009, 13:17:55 EST\n- ASU instrument on NASA rover helps identify outcrop of long-sought rare rock on MarsThu, 3 Jun 2010, 14:52:54 EDT"}
{"text": "Ike Dike Proposed to Protect Texas Coast\nOne year after the Hurricane Ike's 20-foot storm surge devastated Galveston, Texas, and surrounding areas, local governments are in the midst of making a decision about the proposed \"Ike Dike\" - an expansion of the existing Galveston Seawall that would cost the federal government billions of dollars.\nThe Ike Dike, as proposed by Texas A&M University at Galveston professor William Merrell, would extend the existing seawall by over 50 miles and add floodgates that would close before an approaching hurricane (more details). The idea is based on the Delta Works, a series of dams and barriers that protect the southwest Netherlands from storm surge and coastal flooding.\nSupporters suggest that these additions would prevent future damage to Galveston Bay and the Port of Houston, protecting the region's oil production and shipping industry, in addition to Galveston Island's residents, infrastructure and the Galveston National Laboratory, a high-security medical research facility that houses some of the most contagious diseases in the world. Given the estimated $32 billion in damages to the Houston-Galveston area already caused by Ike and the likelihood of another catastrophic hurricane and rising sea levels, the Ike Dike's $2 to 3 billion dollar price tag and ten year timeline could make the project a worthwhile investment.\nOpponents voice concern that the proposed storm barrier would alter the fragile Gulf of Mexico ecosystem, cause more coastal erosion and offer no protection from hurricane-force winds, which contributed to damage during Ike. They argue that the region could take alternative actions and that the Ike Dike should not be considered a final solution, but rather one step toward protecting the coast.\nThe questions remain: if rising sea levels and strong hurricanes remain constant threats to the Gulf Coast, should development along the shoreline and on barrier islands continue? Would the Ike Dike prove to be a lasting solution or just a band-aid to the already-injured subtropical shoreline that will be susceptible to hurricanes indefinitely?\n| September 9, 2009; 10:00 AM ET\nCategories: Posegate, Tropical Weather\nSave & Share: Previous: Forecast: Overcast, Cool & Damp Through Friday\nNext: A Hot and Dry August for the Region\nPosted by: nematode1 | September 9, 2009 11:55 AM | Report abuse\nPosted by: Ann-CapitalWeatherGang | September 9, 2009 12:16 PM | Report abuse\nPosted by: Jamie66 | September 9, 2009 12:30 PM | Report abuse\nPosted by: VaTechBob | September 9, 2009 2:22 PM | Report abuse\nPosted by: Ann-CapitalWeatherGang | September 9, 2009 6:50 PM | Report abuse\nPosted by: Mr_Q | September 10, 2009 2:23 AM | Report abuse\nPosted by: Mr_Q | September 10, 2009 11:34 AM | Report abuse\nThe comments to this entry are closed."}
{"text": "The fillings referred to as \"silver\" are actually a mixture of silver, tin, copper, and mercury, and are more properly called amalgam fillings. The silver, tin, and copper are provided in a powder form by various manufacturers, with silver being the major constituent (40 to 70 percent), and tin and copper constituting 4 to 33 percent each, depending on the manufacturer. This powder is then mixed rapidly with mercury in a special machine, usually by the dental assistant, yielding a liquid that is from 50 to 60 percent mercury. The filling material is then placed in the tooth and smoothed with various dental tools.\n|DID YOU KNOW . . .\nMercury (Hg), sometimes known as quicksilver, is named for the speedy Roman god who served as messenger for the other gods. The silver-white chemical is the only common metal that is a liquid at room temperature. It is used in thermometers, barometers, and some batteries, as well as in dental amalgams.\nSince the 1970s, there has been controversy in the dental profession regarding the safety of mercury as a filling material. Some dentists contend that no matter what the amount used in dental fillings, the mercury is toxic. At the same time, the American Dental Association (ADA) asserts that only a small percentage of individuals exhibit allergies to mercury, and that once mercury is mixed and hardened as a filling material, the percentage of individuals who are sensitive to it becomes even smaller.\nWhile the ADA has maintained that mercury in amalgam is stable, various researchers have demonstrated that it is not. In 1970, dentist Wallace Johnson and others published the results of their research in Journal of the American Dental Association. The report indicated that \"mercury, an essential element of dental amalgams, is not a stable material but one that vaporizes at ordinary temperatures.\" In 1985, the Journal of Dental Research published a report by dentists Murry Vimy and F.L. Lorscheider, who also claimed that mercury vapor is released from amalgam fillings. These researchers further stated that the vapor is then distributed throughout the body via the respiratory system, but accumulates mostly in the brain, kidneys, and gastrointestinal tract. Some of the symptoms associated with mercury toxicity include a metallic taste in the mouth, severe headaches, dizziness, fatigue, weakness, depression, hair loss, memory loss, coma, and death. Furthermore, a natural balance of microorganisms in the body is upset by excess mercury in the gastrointestinal tract, and this imbalance may lead to candida.\nIn addition, the previously mentioned researchers have reported that when the metal comes in contact with saliva, there is a \"battery effect\" in which currents are generated, causing mercury molecules from the surface of the fillings to be released into the tissues.\nAnother negative report was published in the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry in 1983. David Eggleston, a dentist in private practice and a researcher and professor at the University of Southern California School of Dentistry, indicated that when amalgam and nickel-based fillings are present, there is a reduction in the T-lymphocytes of the immune system. Lymphocytes are white blood cells that are the core of the body's immune system. Lymphocytes that circulate through the thymus gland are called T-lymphocytes (thymocytes). They recognize foreign invaders in the body and form antibodies against them. Eggleston concluded that the introduction of mercury into the body might weaken the immune system by reducing the number of T-lymphocytes."}
{"text": "UNICEF says Children's Lives Are Improving\nBut 20 years after the adoption of a treaty guaranteeing children's rights, hundreds of millions still go without basics like food and health care, and violence against children remains a global problem.\nLast updated on: November 20, 2009 3:54 AM\nIt's 20 years since the United Nations adopted a treaty guaranteeing children's rights and now the U.N. says children's lives have been transformed during those two decades. But it says there's a lot still to be done - to this day hundreds of millions go without basics like food and health care and violence against children remains a global problem. Selah Hennessy brings us this report from London.\nThe United Nations Children's Fund, commonly known as UNICEF, released a special report to mark this 20th Anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.\nVOA spoke to the author of the report, David Anthony. He said globally the lives of children have improved over the last 20 years.\n\"During its era, we have seen tremendous progress in child survival and development,\" he said. \"For example, on average 10,000 fewer children now die every day than they did in 1990 - that's something that saves countless of millions of lives over the years.\"\nThe report lists a series of positive statistics showing great leaps in children's quality of life. It says globally 84 percent of primary-school-age children are in class and the gender gap is narrowing. And important steps have been taken, it says, to protect children from serving as soldiers or being trafficked into prostitution.\nBut Anthony adds there is still a long way to go. He says as many as one billion children still live without basic necessities such as clean water and food. And he says more needs to be done in the fields of protection and participation - the right of all children to have their opinions taken into account.\nThese problems, Anthony says, are global.\n\"You find that violence is something that no society can say it's immune from,\" he said. \"I think protection in particular, and participation, are things which the industrialized countries, and the richer countries, cannot feel any great superiority over the developing countries and the least developed countries.\"\nMore than 70 countries have adopted the convention's principles into their own legal codes. Only two countries in the world, Somalia and the United States, have not ratified the treaty. The U.S. has been slow to approve the Convention because of fears of government interference in family life.\nAnthony says although the convention has the widest support of any human rights treaty, not all countries are implementing its basic principles.\n\"One of the main emphasis of this report has been implementation,\" he said. \"Countries who ratify the treaties - who sign the treaties - then have an obligation to implement them and the symbolism I think of endorsement is most welcome but the more important thing is that all countries apply the principles that are embodied within the convention and to ensure that all of their children have their rights met.\"\nThe report says despite progress, 24,000 children under the age of five die every day from largely preventable causes. And it says 150 million children between five and 14 are engaged in child labor."}
{"text": "What Is a Virtual Tape Library\nLast Updated: 09-01-2010 , Posted: 06-16-2006\nVirtual tape is a concept that has been in the data center for many years. Originally introduced for IBM mainframes, it is now exploding in the open systems arena. VTLs are logically just like physical tape libraries: They logically appear and operate as physical tape devices including virtual tape drives, data cartridges, tape slots, barcode labels and robotic arms.\nTraditional Tape SolutionsTraditional tape devices have a few problems: They are slow and the only way to solve that problem is to add more and more tape drives. Tape library robotics are prone to failure and the tape media itself is \"delicate\" and must be stored in a conditioned, secure environment.\nTo increase backup performance, backups can be multiplexed across multiple drives and tapes. This increases the odds of a failed backup due to a bad tape, a faulty drive or malfunctioning robotics.\nRestores from tape are also time-consuming. Consider trying to recover a file that was part of a five-tape multiplexed backup. Each of the five tapes must be located in the library and loaded into tape drives. If the drives have tapes in them already, the tapes must be removed from the drives and moved to free slots before another tape may be loaded. Once the tapes are loaded, they must be advanced to where the file is and then, finally, the file can be read from tape. It can take many minutes just to start the recovery. If the tapes are not in the library, it can take many hours to recover a single file.\nOn the plus side, tape-based solutions are usually considered to be relatively inexpensive. But when the tape media is considered, the cost can skyrocket.\nSome studies show that users will buy 30 times the amount of slots worth of tapes during the life of a library. For a medium-sized, 100-slot library, that's 3,000 tapes. LTO-3 tapes are currently in the $100 price range. Add the fact that extensive human intervention is required to manage and maintain a tape solution and they are not very inexpensive. It can cost a lot of money to be able to successfully backup your data 60 percent of the time.\nComparing the problems associated with tape solutions with a virtual tape solution shows how a VTL can change how a data center can be run.\nA virtual tape library solution can perform 10-times tape speeds for backups. Speeding up the backups will greatly shrink the backup window, which allows servers to be backed up faster. With existing backups finishing quicker, second- and third-tier servers that have not been backed up in the past may now fit into the backup schedule.\nRecoveries are also significantly faster using a VTL (typically much faster than the backup). A single file can be recovered from a VTL faster than most tape libraries can find and load a tape into a drive. Full backups that span multiple tapes (as apposed to multiplexed) will also recover very slowly compared to a VTL since after the data is read from one tape the next tape must be located and loaded compared to a VTL that just keeps streaming data from disk.\nAll virtual tape loads are immediate so there is virtually no delay when a new \"tape\" is \"loaded.\" People who resort to multiplexing backups to increase the performance of the backup are usually shocked to discover that their recovery times will be about twice as long as the backup was.\nMost virtual tape library solutions also contain RAID-protected storage that has redundant, hot-swap components (drives, power, cooling). Backups that use a VTL rarely fail because of a VTL failure. Recoveries will never fail due to a bad or lost tape.\nVTLs are just not prone to the types of failures that a traditional tape library has. For example, a backup to disk will never fail because of a bad tape, broken tape drive or broken robotics.\nThe initial cost of a tape library can be less than the cost of a VTL. But when a three- or five-year cost-of-ownership is considered (tape media, failed backups, lost data due to failed recoveries, management costs, and so on) a VTL will be less expensive.\nAlso consider the lower cost of backup software. Some backup software is tiered based on the number of tape slots. By configuring a virtual library to have few slots, but very large \"tapes,\" the software tier can be lowered. For backup software that is tiered on the number of tape drives, configure a virtual library with fewer \"drives.\" Some backup software solutions are now adding a virtual tape library option that is priced based on the capacity of the library.\nToday's virtual tape libraries range from a customer-supplied server with VTL software and separate disk to a completely productized solution where the server, software and disk are all bundled.\nThere are pros and cons for both extremes.\nWith an unbundled solution, the user gets to purchase each piece separately. The pieces include the VTL software, server, disk and potentially the SAN infrastructure. Unfortunately, the user must also purchase separate support agreements for the VTL software, server, disk and SAN infrastructure and each piece must be managed and monitored by the IT staff.\nWith a bundled solution, all the pieces are included, tightly integrated and guaranteed to work together. The solution is managed and monitored as one entity and support is covered by one contract.\nWith current bundled VTL solutions expanding to a petabyte or more, scaling the solutions is not an issue. Adding an additional VTLs for each petabyte of backup is acceptable for most environments. The only negative with a bundled solution is that it is bundled. Some people just do not like that. When it comes to backup, it is best to keep things simple so a bundled VTL solution is probably the best bet (there are not very many home-made tape libraries in production so why make your own VTL solution?).\nAdding a virtual tape library into an existing tape environment will always improve the reliability of backups and recoveries. Even if a VTL is configured to backup only as fast as an existing library, the increase in performance for day-to-day data recovery makes the investment a no-brainer.\nAdd the robust data processing capabilities not available in physical tape libraries (e.g., replication, single-instance data storage) and a VTL can open the door for tremendous advances in tape backup methodology and revolutionize traditional operations.\nDid You Know...\n|Key Terms To Understanding VTL:\nvirtual tape library"}
{"text": "International Women’s Day 2013\nEvery year the United Nations chooses a theme for that year’s International Women’s Day. This theme is something many organizations choose to build on, make their own, or change it completely. This year, 2013, I believe the UN has chosen a great theme: “A promise is a promise: Time for action to end violence against women.”\nInternational Women’s Day has been celebrated since the early 1900s and is still thriving, and unfortunately necessary, today. We live in a country where the Violence Against Women Act comes up for reauthorization too often, with too much debate about its merits. Really, who could be against anything that aims to reduce violence against women?\nCampaigning against violence against women does not diminish any pursuance of eliminating violence for all humans, but there is a particular reason why this must be a focus of the world at this time:\nThe United Nations General Assembly defines “violence against women” as “any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.” The 1993 Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women noted that this violence could be perpetrated by assailants of either gender, family members and even the “State” itself.\nWomen are often the victims of violence simply because they are women.\nTo end these horrific acts, it must be a decision made by our local communities and global society. We must prioritize a solution for all. What kind of world do we want our daughters, and sons, to grow up to inherit?\n- Follow @womensday on twitter #womensday\n- Network at facebook.com/internationalwomensday.\n- Celebrate and understand women’s strength and through photographs.\n- Take action with We Are Equals: Join the Big Inequality Debate. The Facebook App showing your 1950s life is interesting.\n- Learn more about International Women’s Day.\n- Share, share, share!\nWhat will you do today to support women?\nThis post was written for the Global Team of 200, a highly specialized group of Mom Bloggers for Social Good members who focus on maternal health, children, hunger, and women and girls."}
{"text": "What does a price tell you?\nAssume that you were going to purchase a GE Advantium 120 microwave oven on Sunday, August 12. Comparing Sears, Best Buy and Amazon’s sellers at 3 a.m., you would have seen, respectively, $899.99, 809.99 and 744.46. At Amazon’s website, the price changed to slightly more than $850 at 5 a.m., it dropped again to their $744.46 low several hours later and then back above $850 at 10 p.m. During that day, Sears kept the same price, Best Buy changed twice and Amazon, 9 times.\nCall it dynamic pricing.\nThe story of dynamic pricing begins with airline deregulation in 1978. American Airlines (although some say Delta) was the first to realize that different classes of passengers were willing and able to pay different fares. Of course they could not ask if someone was planning a vacation or a business trip, but they could snag the business traveler by charging more if the flight was the next day. And so began what they called yield management. Spreading to hotels and cruises, rental car businesses and a host of others, yield management helped many firms increase revenue.\nThe dynamic pricing version of yield management has the same revenue enhancing goal. As you probably know, all sorts of goods like bicycles, jewelry and detergents are dynamically priced online. One baby clothes vendor changes his prices every 15 minutes because being cheaper than everyone else means he will top the list of price related search results.\nBut what does this mean? In a market economy, price is a source of information. Prices enable the supply side to assess productivity, to identify cost and to project profits. On the demand side, price can convey quality and affordability. With price changing frequently, the information flow increases.\nOr, as one market participant commented, “The long term implication is that a price is no longer a price.”\nMy sources and other resources: A front page WSJ article, “Don’t Like This Price? Wait a Minute ” was interesting and had this fascinating graphic comparing price changes from Sears, Amazon and Best Buy. In addition, this academic article explains yield management while this more recent study looks at internet dynamic pricing."}
{"text": "System designed for household and neighborhood power generation\nRICHLAND, Wash. – Individual homes and entire neighborhoods could be powered with a new, small-scale solid oxide fuel cell system that achieves up to 57 percent efficiency, significantly higher than the 30 to 50 percent efficiencies previously reported for other solid oxide fuel cell systems of its size, according to a study published in this month's issue of Journal of Power Sources.\nThe smaller system, developed at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, uses methane, the primary component of natural gas, as its fuel. The entire system was streamlined to make it more efficient and scalable by using PNNL-developed microchannel technology in combination with processes called external steam reforming and fuel recycling. PNNL's system includes fuel cell stacks developed earlier with the support of DOE's Solid State Energy Conversion Alliance.\n\"Solid oxide fuels cells are a promising technology for providing clean, efficient energy. But, until now, most people have focused on larger systems that produce 1 megawatt of power or more and can replace traditional power plants,\" said Vincent Sprenkle, a co-author on the paper and chief engineer of PNNL's solid oxide fuel cell development program. \"However, this research shows that smaller solid oxide fuel cells that generate between 1 and 100 kilowatts of power are a viable option for highly efficient, localized power generation.\"\nSprenkle and his co-authors had community-sized power generation in mind when they started working on their solid oxide fuel cell, also known as a SOFC. The pilot system they built generates about 2 kW of electricity, or how much power a typical American home consumes. The PNNL team designed its system so it can be scaled up to produce between 100 and 250 kW, which could provide power for about 50 to 100 American homes.\nGoal: Small and efficient\nKnowing the advantages of smaller SOFC systems (see the \"What is an SOFC?\" sidebar below for more information), the PNNL team wanted to design a small system that could be both more than 50 percent efficient and easily scaled up for distributed generation. To do this, the team first used a process called external steam reforming. In general, steam reforming mixes steam with the fuel, leading the two to react and create intermediate products. The intermediates, carbon monoxide and hydrogen, then react with oxygen at the fuel cell's anode. Just as described in the below sidebar, this reaction generates electricity, as well as the byproducts steam and carbon dioxide.\nSteam reforming has been used with fuel cells before, but the approach requires heat that, when directly exposed to the fuel cell, causes uneven temperatures on the ceramic layers that can potentially weaken and break the fuel cell. So the PNNL team opted for external steam reforming, which completes the initial reactions between steam and the fuel outside of the fuel cell.\nThe external steam reforming process requires a device called a heat exchanger, where a wall made of a conductive material like metal separates two gases. On one side of the wall is the hot exhaust that is expelled as a byproduct of the reaction inside the fuel cell. On the other side is a cooler gas that is heading toward the fuel cell. Heat moves from the hot gas, through the wall and into the cool incoming gas, warming it to the temperatures needed for the reaction to take place inside the fuel cell.\nEfficiency with micro technology\nThe key to the efficiency of this small SOFC system is the use of a PNNL-developed microchannel technology in the system's multiple heat exchangers. Instead of having just one wall that separates the two gases, PNNL's microchannel heat exchangers have multiple walls created by a series of tiny looping channels that are narrower than a paper clip. This increases the surface area, allowing more heat to be transferred and making the system more efficient. PNNL's microchannel heat exchanger was designed so that very little additional pressure is needed to move the gas through the turns and curves of the looping channels.\nThe second unique aspect of the system is that it recycles. Specifically, the system uses the exhaust, made up of steam and heat byproducts, coming from the anode to maintain the steam reforming process. This recycling means the system doesn't need an electric device that heats water to create steam. Reusing the steam, which is mixed with fuel, also means the system is able to use up some of the leftover fuel it wasn't able to consume when the fuel first moved through the fuel cell.\nThe combination of external steam reforming and steam recycling with the PNNL-developed microchannel heat exchangers made the team's small SOFC system extremely efficient. Together, these characteristics help the system use as little energy as possible and allows more net electricity to be produced in the end. Lab tests showed the system's net efficiency ranged from 48.2 percent at 2.2 kW to a high of 56.6 percent at 1.7 kW. The team calculates they could raise the system's efficiency to 60 percent with a few more adjustments.\nThe PNNL team would like to see their research translated into an SOFC power system that's used by individual homeowners or utilities.\n\"There still are significant efforts required to reduce the overall cost to a point where it is economical for distributed generation applications,\" Sprenkle explained. \"However, this demonstration does provide an excellent blueprint on how to build a system that could increase electricity generation while reducing carbon emissions.\""}
{"text": "Wheezing is a high-pitched whistling sound during breathing. It occurs when air moves through narrowed breathing tubes.\nWheezing is a sign that a person may be having breathing problems. The sound of wheezing is most obvious when breathing out (exhaling), but may be heard when taking a breath (inhaling).\nWheezing most often comes from the small breathing tubes (bronchial tubes) deep in the chest, but it may be due to a blockage in larger airways or in persons with certain vocal cord problems.\nClick to download\nAlways take all of your medications as directed.\nSitting in an area where there is moist, heated air may help relieve some symptoms. This can be done by running a hot shower or using a vaporizer.\nCall your health care provider if\nCall your health care provider if:\nIf wheezing is severe or occurs with severe shortness of breath, you may have to go directly to the nearest emergency department.\nWhat to expect at your health care provider's office\nThe doctor or nurse will perform a physical examination and ask questions about your medical history and symptoms, including:\n- When did the wheezing begin?\n- How long does it last?\n- When and how often does it occur?\n- Is it worse at night or in the early morning?\n- What does the wheezing sound like?\n- Does it make breathing difficult?\n- What seems to cause it?\n- Eating certain foods?\n- Taking certain medications?\n- Do any of the following things make it worse?\n- Being around pollens, insects, dust, chemicals (perfumes, cosmetics)\n- Being in cold air\n- Sickness (such as a cold or the flu)\n- Does it go away without treatment?\n- What helps relieve it?\n- Medications such as bronchodilators?\n- Do you have any other symptoms, such as:\n- Did you have an episode of choking\n- Did you have an insect bite?\n- Do you have a history of asthma\n- What medications do you take?\n- Have you been around tobacco smoke?\n- Have you recently been sick?\nThe physical examination may include listening to the lung sounds (auscultation\n). If your child is the one with symptoms, the doctor will make sure he or she did not swallow a foreign object.\nTests that may be done include:\n- Blood work, possibly including arterial blood gases\n- Chest x-ray\n- Lung function tests\nA hospital stay may be needed if:\nBreathing is particularly difficult\nMedicines need to be given through a vein (IV)\nSupplemental oxygen is required\nThe person needs to be closely watched by medical personnel\nSchatz M. Asthma in adolescents and adults. In: Bope ET, Rakel RE, Kellerman R, eds. Conn’s Current Therapy 2012. 2nd ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2012:section 6.\nSzefler SJ. Advances in pediatric asthma in 2009: gaining control of childhood asthma. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2010 Jan;125(1):69-78.\nNeil K. Kaneshiro, MD, MHA, Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M. Health Solutions, Ebix, Inc."}
{"text": "It may be the site of the town of Hilfa, which is mentioned in the Talmud. The foundations of an ancient synagogue were discovered near there in 1929 by explorations done on behalf of the Hebrew University. The synagogue, measuring 46 x 92 feet, included a courtyard, hall, two side aisles and a women's gallery. It faced south toward Jerusalem. A small cavity in the floor probably served as a genizah; above it was an Ark for scrolls of the Law. The whole floor of the building is paved with mosaics.\nTwo inscriptions were found at the entrance to the hall. One, in Aramaic, states that the mosaics were made during the reign of Emperor Justin (518--527). The other, in Greek, gives the names of those who made the mosaics, Marianos and his son Hanina. There are three mosaic panels in the center of the hall. The first shows the Akedah, the binding of Isaac on the altar. The second mosaic represents the signs of the Zodiac. The third depicts a synagogue ark with a gabled roof and an \"eternal light\" suspended from its top. On either side is a lion with a seven-branched menorah. Above the menorah and between the lions are pictured ritual items such as lulavim (palm branches), etrogim (citrons), and incense holders. Curtains adorned it on either side. The designs are simple and strong. In these mosaics, the artists took great care to make each scene expressive. The mosaics of Bet Alfa are striking in their coloring and style, and are among the finest examples of Jewish art in the Byzantine period.\nKibbutz Bet Alfa was founded at in 1922.\nA scene at one of the children's houses\nMaking up the daily work schedule (August 1946)\nA Man with his cow (August 1930)"}
{"text": "Literary Research Paper\nSimple Ways To Write A Literary Research Paper\nUnlike most other research papers, a literary research paper generally requires an argumentative style of writing rather than a descriptive style. Loads of support content would be available to support an opinion, but knowing how to present it is a totally different ball game.\nThe topics in these research papers may vary from character analysis of a fictitious character to analyzing the change in writing styles of different authors. Different alternative endings may have to be suggested for a plot. For instance, the assignment could be to write a critical commentary on a Shakespearian tragedy or Joyce’s writing. Attempting such varied topics is not easy. It is absolutely essential that research is conducted the right way to come up with a decent paper.\nGuidelines To Adapt While Writing A Literary Research Paper\n- Read the whole works several times. Literature is interesting, and reading it often makes you an expert on the piece. Ideas develop in your mind, which then become part of the review process.\n- Have a fair idea of your own opinion on the topic. Personal opinions carry great weight, because readers are more interested in what is written about the storyline .They may or may not actually know the story in detail.\n- Learn to come up with your own original content after you have read the piece of literature. Attempt writing each paragraph and try to rewrite it with your own ideas in place. This is a practical way to improve writing skills.\n- Develop the right research skills. For instance, to write a review of William Shakespeare’s style of writing, check other works by the same author. It would offer you further insight.\nResearchPaperWriter.net specializes in providing you with your own blueprint for the essay. Experienced writers are at hand to guide you along the way. The dedicated writer would most certainly assist in putting your thoughts together in your literary research paper. A draft of the essay is reviewed at every step, and we can even assist you in choosing the style and format to best suit the nature of your essay. When the right metaphor or quotation eludes you, rely on us to supply you with the appropriate alternative.\nBe it the pre-classical poems of Byron and Shelley or the cold, morbid nature of a Dostovievskian character, we have expert writers on our panel to ease your workload. To help you make a decision, we have provided research paper samples to suit various levels of writing.\nResearchPaperWriter.net has achieved excellence in the field of academic writing, and caters to a wide range of students and researchers. We leave no stone unturned in ensuring that our clientele get the best custom writing services. Our authors use the latest anti-plagiarism software to ensure that all research papers are original.\nCorrespondence with our clients is always strictly confidential. For a very nominal amount, you can choose to avail of our services. We guarantee that your order for a literary research paper will be well received and appreciated."}
{"text": "Type of Culminating Activity\nGraduate Student Project\nAs world-wide energy consumption continues to increase, so does the demand for the use of alternative energy sources, such as Nuclear Energy. Nuclear Power Plants currently supply over 370 gigawatts of electricity, and more than 60 new nuclear reactors have been commissioned by 15 different countries. The primary concern for Nuclear Power Plant operation and lisencing has been safety. The safety of the operation of Nuclear Power Plants is no simple matter- it involves the training of operators, design of the reactor, as well as equipment and design upgrades throughout the lifetime of the reactor, etc. To safely design, operate, and understand nuclear power plants, industry and government alike have relied upon the use of best-estimate simulation codes, which allow for an accurate model of any given plant to be created with welldefined margins of safety. The most widely used of these best-estimate simulation codes in the Nuclear Power industry is RELAP5-3D. Our project focused on improving the modeling capabilities of RELAP5-3D by developing uncertainty estimates for its calculations. This work involved analyzing high, medium, and low ranked phenomena from an INL PIRT on a small break Loss-Of-Coolant Accident as well as an analysis of a large break Loss-Of-Coolant Accident. Statistical analyses were performed using correlation coefficients. To perform the studies, computer programs were written that modify a template RELAP5-3D input deck to produce one deck for each combination of key input parameters. Python scripting enabled the running of the generated input files with RELAP5-3D on INL’s massively parallel cluster system. Data from the studies was collected and analyzed with SAS. Summaries of the results of our studies are presented.\nGertman, Alexandra E. and Mesina, George L., \"Uncertainty Analysis of RELAP5-3D©\" (2012). Mathematics Graduate Projects and Theses. Paper 1."}
{"text": "Charles Robert Darwin (18091882). Origin of Species. The Harvard Classics. 190914.\nXI. On the Geological Succession of Organic Beings\nOn the Forms of Life Changing Almost Simultaneously throughout the World\nSCARCELY any palæontological discovery is more striking than the fact that the forms of life change almost simultaneously throughout the world. Thus our European Chalk formation can be recognised in many distant regions, under the most different climates, where not a fragment of the mineral chalk itself can be found; namely in North America, in equatorial South America, in Tierra del Fuego, at the Cape of Good Hope, and in the peninsula of India. For at these distant points, the organic remains in certain beds present an unmistakable resemblance to those of the Chalk. It is not that the same species are met with; for in some cases not one species is identically the same, but they belong to the same families, genera, and sections of genera, and sometimes are similarly characterised in such trifling points as mere superficial sculpture. Moreover, other forms, which are not found in the Chalk of Europe, but which occur in the formations either above or below, occur in the same order at these distant points of the world. In the several successive palæozoic formations of Russia, Western Europe, and North America, a similar parallelism in the forms of life has been observed by several authors; so it is, according to Lyell, with the European and North American tertiary deposits. Even if the few fossil species which are common to the Old and New Worlds were kept wholly out of view, the general parallelism in the successive forms of life, in the palæozoic and tertiary stages, would still be manifest, and the several formations could be easily correlated.\nThese observations, however, relate to the marine inhabitants of the world: we have not sufficient data to judge whether the productions of the land and of fresh water at distant points change in the same parallel manner. We may doubt whether they have thus changed: if the Megatherium, Mylodon, Macrauchenia, and Toxodon had been brought to Europe from La Plata, without any information in regard to their geological position, no one would have suspected that they had co-existed with seashells all still living; but as these anomalous monsters co-existed with the mastodon and horse, it might at least have been inferred that they had lived during one of the later tertiary stages.\nWhen the marine forms of life are spoken of as having changed simultaneously throughout the world, it must not be supposed that this expression relates to the same year, or to the same century, or even that it has a very strict geological sense; for if all the marine animals now living in Europe, and all those that lived in Europe during the pleistocene period (a very remote period as measured by years, including the whole glacial epoch) were compared with those now existing in South America or in Australia, the most skilful naturalist would hardly be able to say whether the present or the pleistocene inhabitants of Europe resembled most closely those of the southern hemisphere. So, again, several highly competent observers maintain that the existing productions of the United States are more closely related to those which lived in Europe during certain late tertiary stages, than to the present inhabitants of Europe; and if this be so, it is evident that fossiliferous beds now deposited on the shores of North America would hereafter be liable to be classed with somewhat older European beds. Nevertheless, looking to a remotely future epoch, there can be little doubt that all the more modern marine formations, namely, the upper pliocene, the pleistocene and strictly modern beds of Europe, North and South America, and Australia, from containing fossil remains in some degree allied, and from not including those forms which are found only in the older underlying deposits, would be correctly ranked as simultaneous in a geological sense.\nThe fact of the forms of life changing simultaneously, in the above large sense, at distant parts of the world, has greatly struck these admirable observers, MM. de Verneuil and dArchiac. After referring to the parallelism of the palæozoic forms of life in various parts of Europe, they add, If, struck by this strange sequence, we turn our attention to North America, and there discover a series of analogous phenomena, it will appear certain that all these modifications of species, their extinction, and the introduction of new ones, cannot be owing to mere changes in marine currents or other causes more or less local and temporary, but depend on general laws which govern the whole animal kingdom. M. Barrande has made forcible remarks to precisely the same effect. It is, indeed, quite futile to look to changes of currents, climate, or other physical conditions, as the cause of these great mutations in the forms of life throughout the world, under the most different climates. We must, as Barrande has remarked, look to some special law. We shall see this more clearly when we treat of the present distribution of organic beings, and find how slight is the relation between the physical conditions of various countries and the nature of their inhabitants.\nThis great fact of the parallel succession of the forms of life throughout the world, is explicable on the theory of natural selection. New species are formed by having some advantage over older forms; and the forms, which are already dominant, or have some advantage over the other forms in their own country, give birth to the greatest number of new varieties or incipient species. We have distinct evidence on this head, in the plants which are dominant, that is, which are commonest and most widely diffused, producing the greatest number of new varieties. It is also natural that the dominant, varying, and far-spreading species, which have already invaded to a certain extent the territories of other species, should be those which would have the best chance of spreading still further, and of giving rise in new countries to other new varieties and species. The process of diffusion would often be very slow, depending on climatal and geographical changes, on strange accidents, and on the gradual acclimatisation of new species to the various climates through which they might have to pass, but in the course of time the dominant forms would generally succeed in spreading and would ultimately prevail. The diffusion would, it is probable, be slower with the terrestrial inhabitants of distinct continents than with the marine inhabitants of the continuous sea. We might therefore expect to find, as we do find, a less strict degree of parallelism in the succession of the productions of the land than with those of the sea.\nThus, as it seems to me, the parallel, and, taken in a large sense, simultaneous, succession of the same forms of life throughout the world, accords well with the principle of new species having been formed by dominant species spreading widely and varying; the new species thus produced being themselves dominant, owing to their having had some advantage over their already dominant parents, as well as over other species, and again spreading, varying, and producing new forms. The old forms which are beaten and which yield their places to the new and victorious forms, will generally be allied in groups, from inheriting some inferiority in common; and therefore, as new and improved groups spread throughout the world, old groups disappear from the world; and the succession of forms everywhere tends to correspond both in their first appearance and final disappearance.\nThere is one other remark connected with this subject worth making. I have given my reasons for believing that most of our great formations, rich in fossils, were deposited during periods of subsidence; and that blank intervals of vast duration, as far as fossils are concerned, occurred during the periods when the bed of the sea was either stationary or rising, and likewise when sediment was not thrown down quickly enough to embed and preserve organic remains. During these long and blank intervals I suppose that the inhabitants of each region underwent a considerable amount of modification and extinction, and that there was much migration from other parts of the world. As we have reason to believe that large areas are affected by the same movement, it is probable that strictly contemporaneous formations have often been accumulated over very wide spaces in the same quarter of the world; but we are very far from having any right to conclude that this has invariably been the case, and that large areas have invariably been affected by the same movements. When two formations have been deposited in two regions during nearly, but not exactly, the same period, we should find in both, from the causes explained in the foregoing paragraphs, the same general succession in the forms of life; but the species would not exactly correspond; for there will have been a little more time in the one region than in the other for modification, extinction, and immigration.\nI suspect that cases of this nature occur in Europe. Mr. Prestwich, in his admirable Memoirs on the eocene deposits of England and France, is able to draw a close general parallelism between the successive stages in the two countries; but when he compares certain stages in England with those in France, although he finds in both a curious accordance in the numbers of the species belonging to the same genera, yet the species themselves differ in a very, difficult to account for, considering the proximity of the two areas,unless, indeed, it be assumed that an isthmus separated two seas inhabited by distinct, but contemporaneous, faunas. Lyell has made similar observations on some of the later tertiary formations. Barrande, also, shows that there is a striking general parallelism in the successive Silurian deposits of Bohemia and Scandinavia; nevertheless he finds a surprising amount of difference in the species. If the several formations in these regions have not been deposited during the same exact periods,a formation in one region often corresponding with a blank interval in the other,and if in both regions the species have gone on slowly changing during the accumulation of the several formations and during the long intervals of time between them; in this case the several formations in the two regions could be arranged in the same order, in accordance with the general succession of the forms of life, and the order would falsely appear to be strictly parallel; nevertheless the species would not be all the same in the apparently corresponding stages in the two regions."}
{"text": "stockArticle Free Pass\nstock, in finance, the subscribed capital of a corporation or limited-liability company, usually divided into shares and represented by transferable certificates. The certificates may detail the contractual relationship between the company and its stockholders, or shareholders, and set forth the division of the risk, income, and control of the business.\nCommon stock, or ordinary shares.\nMany companies have only one class of stock, often called common stock, or ordinary shares. This class of stock carries residual ownership of the company, entitling the holder to unlimited interest in the earnings and assets of the company after limited claims are paid. Common stockholders have the right to control the company through their voting rights, unless such rights are specifically withheld, as in special classes of “nonvoting” shares. The common stockholders’ legal rights may also include preemptive rights to maintain their proportion of equity when new stock is issued. Dividends paid on common stock are usually unstable because they tend to vary with earnings; they are also usually less than earnings, the difference being used by management to expand the firm and allow the stockholders’ equity to grow. The market price of common stock is often subject to wide fluctuations, because it depends largely upon investors’ expectations of future earnings.\nPreferred stock, or preference shares.\nTo appeal to investors who wish to be sure of receiving dividends regularly, many companies issue what is called preferred stock, or preference shares. This class of stock has a prior claim to dividends paid by the company and, usually, to the assets of the company in the event of its dissolution. Dividends are usually set at a fixed annual rate that must be paid before dividends are distributed to the common stockholders. Preferred stock may be participating, meaning that its holders share with common stockholders in any company earnings over and above the stated dividends on the preferred stock. Preferred stock may be cumulative or noncumulative: if cumulative, dividends not paid in one year must be paid in addition to dividends earned in the following year, before any dividend payments are made on the common stock.\nWhat made you want to look up \"stock\"? Please share what surprised you most..."}
{"text": "Originally printed in 1997, this revised \"Orion DeepMap 600\" is among those indispensable publications that Company Seven recommends to anyone who interested in learning their way around the night sky. The editor Steve Peters conceived of this as a very helpful device for anyone interested in astronomy and who may little or no observational experience. This has become the most popular chart of the night sky among our customers who are new to the hobby and who buy a telescope or binocular and now seek out what to see and when. This is often bought as a economical but valued and durable gift.\nFully color illustrated, it is the first-ever star chart that folds up like a road map! DeepMap 600 shows the positions of more than six hundred of the finest celestial objects visible from the Northern Hemisphere. Each of these objects are plotted on a giant 33 x 21 inch full-color star chart by world-renowned celestial cartographer Wil Tirion. But what really makes this star chart invaluable is its convenience; it folds \"accordion style\" into a thin, pocket-size 4-¾ x 10-½ inches format - just like a road map!\nEven with no knowledge of the night sky one should be able to go out and find the patterns that make up the larger Constellations, and then match them to the DeepMap 600 chart to obtain their orientation to the night sky. But note that since this does mention some astronomical/navigational terms (zenith, meridian, latitude, magnitude, etc.) then a little homework about these terms in advance of going out at night with this chart will help the least understanding buyer to mover forward quickly.\nAbove: sample of the Star Chart showing some of the symbols and nomenclature about to scale, and all readable by red light (189,505 bytes).\nOn the side opposite the chart is a map of the northern circumpolar region, as well as a listing of essential data for each of the objects plotted on the DeepMap 600 chart. The information including coordinates (very helpful for those who have telescopes with Setting Circles), apparent magnitude (to help one know how bright the object is), angular size ('how big is big'), and even a brief description of how it will appear to the eye when looking through binocular or a telescope. Instructions offers tips on using the \"Orion DeepMap 600\", with general observing hints, and more.\nThe contrast and clarity of your computer screen are not likely to match the original so you may click on image to see enlarged view (487,844 bytes).\nNo longer must you fumble with bulky books, star atlases, and observing references to find interesting objects to view. The quick-reference DeepMap 600 is all you need to get started."}
{"text": "WebMD Medical News\nBrenda Goodman, MA\nLaura J. Martin, MD\nJuly 14, 2011 -- People who say they vigilantly apply sunscreen are more likely to experience painful, damaging sunburns, a new study shows.\nThe study, the first to look at how people in the U.S. shield themselves from the sun and how well those different strategies work, analyzed information on more than 3,000 white adults that was collected through the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.\nSunscreen was the most commonly used kind of protection, grabbing the top spot with 30% of people saying they regularly apply it when they’re outside for longer than an hour.\nThe next most common skin-saving strategies were seeking shade (25% said they frequently stayed under cover when the sun was blazing), wearing a hat (16%), and donning long sleeves (6%).\nPeople who said they frequently used sunscreen, however, had 23% greater risk of multiple sunburns in the past year compared to people who said they seldom used the stuff.\nThose who frequently sought shade and pulled on long sleeves, however, had about a 30% lower sunburn risk compared to people who rarely used those measures.\nThose risks remained even after researchers corrected for factors known to influence burn risk, including the skin’s sensitivity to the sun, alcohol use, season, physical activity, age, gender, education, and income.\n“I really like this study,” says Ronald P. Rapini, MD, professor and chairman of the department of dermatology at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. “I’ve always felt the same way, and I tell my patients the same thing.”\n“Just last week, one of my melanoma patients came in with a sunburn all over their back, and I said, ‘What happened?’ and they said, ‘Well, I had sunscreen.’ But they missed an area on their back, which is what always happens. They think that they can stay out in the sun because they’re using sunscreen, and the truth is it doesn’t really cover stuff that well,” says Rapini, who was not involved in the research.\n“Myself, personally, I’m a dermatologist, and I don’t even wear sunscreen all that much. I stay in the shade,” he says. “I try to stay out of the sun.”\nThe study is published in the journal Cancer Causes & Control.\n“I was quite surprised to find the associations that we’ve found with the different types of sun protection,” says study researcher Eleni Linos, MD, DrPH, MPH, a dermatologist at Stanford University.\n“What we saw was that wearing long-sleeved clothing, wearing a hat, and staying in the shade were associated with fewer sunburns,” she says. “However, wearing sunscreen was actually associated with more sunburns.”\nLinos is quick to point out that her results don’t mean that sunscreen doesn’t work or shouldn’t be used.\nThe study was designed to look at patterns, not to prove cause and effect.\nIt’s possible that people with the fairest, most easily burned skin are also simply the group most likely to use sunscreen.\nBut if that were the case, Linos says, she would have expected to see the same phenomenon across all the different groups. That is, frequent shade seekers and long-sleeve wearers would also report having more burns compared to those who rarely reported those tactics.\nThe more likely explanation, she thinks, is user error -- people simply aren’t applying as much sunscreen as often as they should.\nNumerous studies have shown that most people, even after they’re carefully schooled in proper sunscreen application, still don’t get enough on.\nOne of the latest, from researchers in Brazil, asked study participants to cover both forearms with sunscreen, and 30 minutes later, to reapply the sunscreen to just one arm.\nResearchers used tape strips to measure how thickly the lotion went on.\nSunscreen is tested to work at its SPF when it’s applied to a depth of at least 2 milligrams per square centimeter on the skin.\nAfter the first application, study participants got only a quarter of that amount on. For the arm that got the second application, the depth of the sunscreen eventually reached half of what it should have been, suggesting that even people who remember to reapply aren’t being fully protected.\nAnother problem is that many people rely on sunscreen as their sole form of protection, when really, shade and protective clothing need to be part of a multi-pronged approach to avoiding sunburns, which increase the risk of skin cancer.\n“There’s still a lot of work that we as physicians, especially dermatologists, need to do to educate individuals about proper photoprotection,” says Henry W. Lim, MD, chair of the department of dermatology at Henry Ford Health System in Detroit.\nHe says this study is consistent with previous research.\n“It’s known that people use sunscreen, but they don’t use it at the appropriate amount and because of that, they have a false sense of a security,” says Lim, who was not involved in the research.\nThat false sense of security can lead people to stay in the sun longer than they safely should, leading to an increased risk of sunburns and greater UV exposure, which can cause skin cancer.\nSunscreen use has been shown to reduce some kinds of skin cancers, however, and earlier this year, a prospective study, the first of its kind, found that regular sunscreen use in a group of 1,621 Australian adults cut their risk of melanoma by 50%.\nImportantly, however, the study participants in that trial carefully and repeatedly applied sunscreen while also seeking shade and wearing protective clothing.\n“The best data that’s out there shows the combination of seeking shade, wearing protective clothing and wearing sunscreen, those three things together clearly lower your risk,” says Darrell S. Rigel, MD, a clinical professor of dermatology at New York University.\nRigel says there is an important caveat about this study which should reassure people about their sunscreen.\nThe latest data used in the study is now about five years old, and he says sunscreens have improved in a couple of key ways since then.\n“How long it lasts, 'substantivity' it’s called, has markedly improved, really with new formulations,” he says, and many of the newer formulations offer better broad-spectrum protections against both UVB, the burning rays, and UVA, the cancer-causing rays.\nNew FDA rules for sunscreens, which will go into effect next year, should make it easier to pick a good product.\nThat’s important, Rigel points out, because it’s not always possible to stay in the shade or wear longs sleeves.\nIn those cases, it’s more important than ever to put sunscreen on correctly.\nExperts say the rule of thumb is a golf ball-sized blob for every exposed body part, applied at least 30 minutes before going outside, since sunscreen takes that long to absorb into the skin.\nThat much sunscreen should be reapplied every two hours, and even more frequently, every 60 to 90 minutes, when swimming, sweating, or using a spray product, since those don’t last as long.\nSOURCES:Linos, E. Cancer Causes & Control, June 2011.De Villa, D. Photochemistry and Photobiology, March-April 2011.Kester, B. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, July 2010.Burnett, M. Photodermatology, Photoimmunology and Photomedicine, April 2011.Robinson J. Journal of the American Medical Association, June 28, 2011.Autier, P. Journal of Clinical Oncology, April 4, 2011.Ronald P. Rapini, MD, professor and chairman, department of dermatology, University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston.Eleni Linos, MD, DrPH, MPH, Stanford University.Henry W. Lim, MD, chair, department of dermatology, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit.Darrell S. Rigel, MD, clinical professor of dermatology, New York University.\nHere are the most recent story comments.View All\nThe views expressed here do not necessarily represent those of KOKI FOX23 - Tulsa\nThe Health News section does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information."}
{"text": "You are here\nEdward Elgar (1857-1934) was 50 years old before he began what was to become his first symphony. It was not, strictly speaking, his first attempt at a symphony: he had actually composed a symphony modeled on Mozart as an exercise 30 years earlier (only one movement survives), and in 1898 took a stab at a programmatic symphony based on the life of the English military-imperial hero General Gordon, which, fortunately, did not get far.\nAny composer approaching the symphony after Beethoven might well have had some trepidation about it. Brahms’ difficulties with his first symphony were legend. By the early 20th century, there was the additional problem of whether the symphony’s day had passed. Though some composers of Elgar’s generation were moving away from the symphony, Elgar remained convinced that it was still viable. In a 1905 lecture at Birmingham University, he said\n“It seems to me that because the greatest genius of our days, Richard Strauss, recognizes the symphonic-poem as a fit vehicle for his splendid achievements, some writers are inclined to be positive that the symphony is dead… but when the looked-for genius comes, it may be absolutely revived.”\nA few years later, Elgar took it upon himself to be the “looked-for genius,” and the result was a staggering immediate success: the Symphony was performed about 100 times worldwide within a year after its premiere in December 1908. It has not done so well since, and is now only an occasional visitor to the standard repertory.\nThe Symphony might be regarded as a battle, a study of opposites in conflict: the stately versus the agitated, the singable diatonic melody against the sinewy chromatic theme, the foreboding against the triumphant. At the very outset, Elgar pens one of his most stately melodies (he already had four of the five “Pomp and Circumstance” marches behind him). Elgar uses the unusual key of A-flat major for this introduction and “motto” theme, but does not stay there long. The tumultuous Allegro begins in D minor, a key as far as possible from A-flat (Elgar wrote to his friend August Jaeger that he had “thrown over all key relationships as formerly practiced” but that he “was not silly enough to think (or wish) that I have invented anything” in the process), with the motto inserting itself, and its mood, into the storm, and eventually establishing calm at the end. Throughout the symphony, Elgar uses a peculiar device to insinuate motifs such as the motto in an almost subliminal way: he writes them as “solos” for the players on the last stand of a string section. He commented:\n“I have employed the last desks of the strings to get a soft diffused sound: the listener need not be bothered to know where it comes from — the effect is of course different from that obtained from the first desk soli.”\nThe second movement is another kind of battle. A turbulent main section, (in another distant key, F-sharp minor) features a driving perpetual motion figure and an ominous quick march. It modulates to B-flat major, where gossamer strings, flutes, and harp play an idyllic interlude that Elgar said should be played “like something we hear down by the river.”\nThe perpetual motion figure reasserts itself, but gradually slows until, improbably, it becomes, note for note, the principal theme of the Adagio third movement. Both Hans Richter, who conducted the premiere, and August Jaeger, a longtime champion of Elgar’s music, compared this movement to the adagios of Beethoven, though to modern audiences it will more likely recall Mahler in its breadth, heart-on-sleeve passion, and richness (a richness which is due considerably to Elgar’s subdividing the strings into nine parts instead of the usual five).\nThe finale begins with another slow introduction, in D minor, in which a foreboding opening gives way to a minor-key march figure in the low strings and bassoons, and then to the motto theme. Elgar gives the march figure a series of startling transformations, including thundering it out fortissimo and turning into a lush cantabile. At the end, the motto theme emerges triumphant over hammer blows from the brass and percussion, the battle clearly won.\n— Lawyer and lutenist Howard Posner has also annotated programs for the Los Angeles Baroque Orchestra and the Coleman Chamber Concerts. His notes have appeared in the program of the Salzburg Festival.\nLength: 50 minutes\nOrchestration: piccolo, three flutes, two oboes, English horn, two clarinets, bass clarinet, two bassoons, contrabassoon, four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, bass drum, snare drum, cymbals, two harps, and strings\nFirst Los Angeles Philharmonic performance: July 29, 1926, Sir Henry Wood conducting"}
{"text": "BlogsCan Chocolate Make You Slimmer?\nNew research hints at another potential health benefit of chocolate.\nChocolate continues to gain ground as a health food, this time as a way to stay slim while enjoying regular decadent snacks. Yes, regular. A new study found that people who ate chocolate a few times a week were leaner than those who ate it once in a while. The study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, compared the diet, chocolate intake, and body mass index of over 1,000 men and women. The researchers used BMI as an indicator of whether the participants were overweight or obese. Even when taking into account other factors, like exercise and total calories consumed, people who ate chocolate regularly had lower BMIs. While there was a connection between frequency and thinness, there was none for quantity. So it’s more important to eat chocolate throughout the week than to load up on King Size bars. Previous studies have shown that chocolate has many other health benefits. Eating chocolate can promote beneficial changes to your blood pressure and cholesterol levels, both of which are good for the heart. Chocolate, especially dark, also contains plentiful levels of antioxidants that neutralize damage done to cells by “free radicals.” The researchers are uncertain what aspect of chocolate promotes slender physiques, but suspect it is caused by catechins. These compounds have been shown to improve lean muscle mass and reduce weight in mice. Chocolate also contains caffeine, which can boost metabolism. This research, however, is not a free pass to binge on chocolate. Further research is needed to determine whether the health benefits of chocolate outweigh the additional calories consumed. Don’t be concerned about eating the occasional chocolate bar. If you are trying to lose weight, though, eating more fruits and vegetables is a better option."}
{"text": "Studies of Disorders With Increased Susceptibility to Fungal Infections\n- Researchers are interested in studying disorders that make individuals more susceptible to fungal infections, specifically infections with the Candida yeast. These disorders are often related to problems with the immune system and may have genetic factors, which suggests that researchers should study not only the individual with the disorder, but also his or her first- and second-degree relatives (such as parents, siblings, children, and first cousins). To provide material for future research, individuals with immune disorders and their first- and second-degree relatives will be asked to provide blood and other samples for testing and comparison with samples taken from healthy volunteers with no history of immune disorders.\n- To collect blood and other biological samples to study immune disorders that make individuals more susceptible to fungal infections.\n- Individuals of any age who have abnormal immune function characterized by recurrent or unusual fungal infections, recurrent or chronic inflammation, or other types of immune dysfunction.\n- First- or second-degree genetically related family members (limited to mother, father, siblings, grandparents, children, aunts, uncles, and first cousins).\n- Healthy volunteers at least 18 years of age (for comparison purposes).\n- Participants will provide blood samples and buccal (cells from the inside of the mouth near the cheek) samples.\n- Participants with immune disorders will also be asked to provide urine samples, saliva or mucosal samples, or skin tissue biopsies, and may also have imaging studies (such as x-rays) to collect information for research.\n- Samples may be collected at the National Institutes of Health or at other clinical locations for the samples to the sent to the National Institutes of Health.\n- No treatment will be provided as part of this protocol....\nPrimary Immune Deficiency\nAutoimmune Polyendocrinopathy Candidiasis Ectodermal\nChronic Mucocutaneous Candidiasis (CMC)\n|Study Design:||Time Perspective: Prospective|\n|Official Title:||Studies of Disorders With Increased Susceptibility to Fungal Infections|\n|Study Start Date:||September 2010|\nThis study is designed for the evaluation, diagnosis, and long-term follow up of selected patients with primary immune deficiencies and other conditions associated with fungal, and more specifically with Candida spp. infections. The primary immune deficiencies to be studied include, but are not limited to, autoimmune polyendocrinopathy candidiasis ectodermal dystrophy (APECED), chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis (CMC), myeloperoxidase deficiency (MPO), immune dysregulation polyendocrinopathy enteropathy X-linked (IPEX), Job's syndrome, chronic granulomatous disease (CGD), and biotinidase deficiency. Diabetic patients and infants also show increased susceptibility to such infections and might be studied. Patient participants (who we will refer to as patients in this study) will undergo evaluations that include history/physical, blood sampling, genetic testing, and possible tissue sampling. We may use some of the blood cells to investigate the utility of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) for immune cell derivation and targeted gene correction. First or second degree genetically related family members (limited to mother, father, siblings, grandparents, children, aunts, uncles, and first cousins of an affected patient and who we will refer to as relatives in this study) might also be screened for clinical, in vitro, and genetic correlates of immune abnormalities. Healthy volunteers will be enrolled as a source of control samples for research testing. Among the aims of this protocol are to better understand the genetic and pathophysiologic factors that lead to defects in host defense, and to use modern and evolving methods in molecular and cellular biology to elucidate the pathogenesis of this particular susceptibility. A better understanding of primary immunodeficiency could allow for the rational development of novel therapies for such diseases and to benefit future patients, but it might not benefit current patient participants directly. Routine follow-up may occur every 6 months -with evaluation and blood sampling. Under some circumstances, we may provide treatment that relates to the immune deficiency. These treatments will follow standard medical practice.\n|Contact: Sandra Maxwell, R.N.||(301) email@example.com|\n|Contact: Sergio D Rosenzweig, M.D.||(301) firstname.lastname@example.org|\n|United States, Maryland|\n|National Institutes of Health Clinical Center, 9000 Rockville Pike||Recruiting|\n|Bethesda, Maryland, United States, 20892|\n|Contact: For more information at the NIH Clinical Center contact Patient Recruitment and Public Liaison Office (PRPL) 800-411-1222 ext TTY8664111010 email@example.com|\n|Principal Investigator:||Sergio D Rosenzweig, M.D.||National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)|"}
{"text": "A new report from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research shows that the pay gap between men and women increased between 2011 and 2012, leaving women making $163 less per week:\nIn 2012, the ratio of women’s to men’s median weekly full-time earnings was 80.9 percent, a decline of more than one percentage point since 2011 when the ratio was 82.2 percent. This corresponds to a weekly gender wage gap of 19.1 percent for 2012. Women’s median weekly earnings in 2012 were $691, a marginal decline compared to 2011; men’s median weekly earnings were $854, a marginal increase compared to 2011.\nAnother measure of the earnings gap, the ratio of women’s and men’s median annual earnings for full-time year-round workers, was 77.0 in 2011 (data for 2012 are not yet available), less than half of a percentage point lower than in 2010 and equal to the gap in 2009. (This means the annual gender wage gap for full-time year-round workers is 23 percent.)\nAs Bryce Covert noted at Forbes, “What’s particularly strange about this is that the wage gap typically narrows during a recession.” But women have been hammered by the hemorrhaging of public sector jobs that has occurred in the last few years, as states and the federal governments cut back significantly due to conservative insistence on austerity.\nThe wage gap between women and men persists even for high-paying jobs, and women are significantly more likely to work for the minimum wage. A woman’s total lifetime earnings lost to the pay gap could feed a family of four for 37 years."}
{"text": "The 65 ft tall interactive sculpture was created from wood from the 165 ft long schooner Wawona, which sailed from 1897 to 1947. It is connected to the museum at its top and bottom. © John Grade\nThe new sculpture at the Museum of History and Industry in Seattle required a great deal of structural analysis to ensure it can withstand seismic forces—and curious visitors.\nJanuary 29, 2013—It’s plain to see that turning the remains of a sailing schooner more than a century old into a 65 ft tall interactive sculpture for the Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI) in Seattle, required a great deal of artistic vision. But what might not be as obvious is the amount of structural analysis required to ensure the sculpture maintains its structural integrity under seismic forces and human-induced loads.\nDedicated to preserving and sharing the history of Seattle and the Puget Sound region, the MOHAI commissioned Seattle-based artist John Grade to create a sculpture for the museum’s new home: the renovated Naval Reserve Armory along the shore of Lake Union. Shortly after winning the commission, Grade was entrusted with the remains of the dismantled schooner Wawona.\nBuilt by influential shipbuilder Hans Ditlev Bendixsen, the 165 ft long schooner Wawona sailed from 1897 to 1947, carrying lumber and, later, fish through Puget Sound. After it was decommissioned, the ship was on display until 2009, when it was disassembled. A great deal of the vessel’s wood had rotted significantly by that time, but much of the planking was in good condition despite having been under water all those years. Leaching from the ship’s wrought iron and temporary copper cladding and staining from the oils of the fish it once carried brought out a variety of colors within the wood, making it perfect for the sculpture, Grade said in written responses to questions posed by Civil Engineering online.\nNamed for the vessel from which the wood was derived, the 10,000 lb Wawona sculpture extends from the floor of the museum to its ceiling. Grade said the vertical orientation of the sculpture references the old-growth trees that once covered the landscape near the museum. Its tapered shape—roughly 10 ft in diameter at its base and approximately 4 ft in diameter at its top— recalls a ship’s hull, he said. To further connect it to the natural world, the sculpture penetrates the museum’s floor and ceiling, enabling visitors who walk within the hollow form to see the lake below and the sky above, Grade explained.\nCreating such a large sculpture required a great deal of engineering expertise. Grade worked with the Seattle office of Arup, an international engineering firm headquartered in London, to turn his vision into a reality. “Arup provided structural engineering services, starting at concepts ... on through artwork permitting, construction documents, and construction administration,” said Hans-Erik Blomgren, P.E., P.Eng., M.ASCE, the project manager for Arup, in written responses to questions from Civil Engineering online. “Interactive artwork of this scale, weight, and permanence requires it to be treated as an element and component of the building from a code standpoint.”\nArtist John Grade wanted visitors to be able to walk within the\nsculpture, to be able to view the lake below and the sky above, and\nto be able to touch and push on the sculpture without damaging it.\n© John Grade\nBut before they began getting into the details of the structural design, Arup’s engineers suggested using digital technology to fabricate the components of the sculpture. As a result, Grade engaged the University of Washington College of the Built Environments to individually cut the sculpture’s more than 200 wooden pieces using computer numerical control (CNC) fabrication. The CNC technology was also used to fashion the steel hangers and rods that hold the sculpture’s wooden components together horizontally and vertically. The digital fabrication plans were developed parallel with the structural design.\nArup had several performance objectives for the project, including ensuring that the sculpture could endure human-induced movement, resist metal fatigue under cyclic motion, and withstand seismic forces. The team also had to ensure that the wood was kiln dried to the correct moisture content and that the sculpture would hang vertically through its center of mass over the correct location on the museum’s floor, Blomgren said.\nTo meet these objectives, Arup and the team from the college used Rhino 3D and a parametric plug-in tool known as Grasshopper (both produced by Seattle-based Robert McNeel & Associates) to model each of the sculpture’s steel and wooden components for fabrication and structural analysis. They then exported a wireframe model from the Rhino files into another program that enabled them to analyze the sculpture under its own weight, seismic forces, and human-induced loads, Blomgren said.\nFor the seismic forces, the team treated the sculpture as an element and component as defined in ASCE Standard 7-05 (Minimum Design Loads for Buildings and Other Structures, ASCE, Reston, Virginia, 2006.) “We then applied an equivalent static force in orthogonal directions,” Blomgren said. On the basis of the analysis, the team added rubber damper restraints at the base of the sculpture to provide lateral support under seismic loads and make the sculpture flexible between the floor and the ceiling, Blomgren said.\nArup engineers used computer numerical control techniques to\nfabricate the more than 200 wooden pieces that form the sculpture\nas well as the steel hangers and rods that hold those wooden\ncomponents together. © Arup\nThe human-induced forces were studied as a 200 lb force at a height of roughly 4 ft from the sculpture’s base. “We wanted to be sure the wooden planks supporting this concentrated load were sufficient,” Blomgren explained. As a result of the analysis, the team included a steel rod that extends from the underside of the sculpture to approximately 10 in. below the floor. This rod is allowed to articulate but a viscoelastic polymer disk provides resistance to quickly dampen human-induced oscillation, Blomgren said. “It was important to me that people directly, physically interact with the sculpture,” Grade explained. “I wanted it to have enough flex that a small child could push the base of the sculpture into movement but that movement would stop quickly and not endanger other people simultaneously interacting with the sculpture.”\nFollowing 20 months of design, the Wawona sculpture was unveiled when the MOHAI opened at its new location on December 29, 2012. “The MOHAI is a fantastic and rich place full of cherished Seattle artifacts,” Blomgren said. “The Wawona sculpture, however, stands apart as something distinct because it is a new creation that employs state-of-the-art design but is richly and brilliantly tied to the Pacific Northwest’s history of shipbuilding, fishing, and old-growth forests.”"}
{"text": "I mentioned Wolbachia in my parthenogenesis post; here I will talk about it in more detail, because it’s a really cool parasite, as well as in the center of much research nowadays.\nWolbachia are Gram-negative ⍺-Proteobacteria (order Rickettsiales, family Anaplasmataceae; Dumler et al.,2001), systematically split into 6 supergroups, lettered from A to F (Lo et al., 2002). Those in supergroups C and D have coevolved with their nematodan hosts and are mutualistic (Bandi et al., 1998). Those in supergroups A and B are parasites in arthropods. Morphologically, they come in two groups: ~1µm large rods, and ~0.5µm diameter coccoids. They can be found in a membrane-bound vacuole in the host cell’s cytoplasm (Yen & Barr, 1971); in arthropods, this will be in egg and ovarian cells (see diagram above, from Weiss et al. (2009)), although it has also been found in other tissues, including the Malpighian tubules, and muscle and nervous tissue (Stouthamer et al., 1999). When found in sperm cell cytoplasm, it disappears during spermatogenesis (Clark et al., 2002).\nNote that in this post and in the literature, what’s referred to as Wolbachia is Wolbachia pipientis. Before DNA sequencing, when bacteria were classified morphologically, W. persica and W. melaphagi were also thought to be related, but these have nothing to do with the famous Wolbachia (W. persica is a γ-proteobacterium, W. melaphagi is a rhizobacterium).\nBeing present endosymbiotically in 20+% of all known insect species (Werren & Windsor, 2000), and given that some estimate that over half of all insect species are infected by it (Hilgenboecker et al., 2008), it’s obviously extremely successful, although it should be noted that the virulence of each Wolbachia strain is different (Min & Benzer, 1997), and each species is has a different susceptibility. In Australian and Panamanian fig wasps, Wolbachia has been found to infect over 70% of all species (Haine & Cook, 2005). A host database can be found here.\nThe biggest reason for its success is its parasitic effect: it’s always transferred maternally in the cytoplasm of the eggs, and in order to ensure maximal transfer rates, it alters its host’s reproductive abilities to favour their own reproductive success (Charlat et al., 2003). It has four ways to do this, in contrast to the one or two ways present in other such parasites:\n- Inducing thelytokous parthenogenesis in haplodiploid organisms, e.g. hymenopterans, thus making sure that only female offspring are produced (e.g. Stouthamer et al., 1993). It occurs by forcing the fusion of the two nuclei of the first mitotic division (Huigens et al., 2000).\n- Feminizing males, i.e. males reproduce as females (Wilkinson, 1998). The mechanism for this varies; for example, in the pillbug, Wolbachia blocks the formation of the androgenic gland which produces the masculinising androgenic hormone (Martin et al., 1990).\n- Killing males, either in the embryonic stages or later (Hurst, 1991). The mechanisms of action are still largely unknown, although recent pioneering research by Riparbelli et al. (2012) shows that it happens due to Wolbachia (purposely?) messing around with male chromosomes at various stages in development, leading to defective embryos and death.\n- Inducing cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI) between infected males and uninfected females (Hurst & Werren, 2001), causing sterility (Bordenstein & Werren, 2007) and eventually reproductive isolation within a species.\nThe latter was the first of Wolbachia‘s effects to be discovered, by Yen & Barr (1971) in mosquitoes; Wolbachia itself was first spotted by Hertig & Wolbach (1924). What happens is that the sperm enters the cell as normal, but its chromosomes don’t decondense and fuse with maternal chromosomes due to a delay in the breakdown of the nuclear envelope in the male’s pronucleus (Tram & Sullivan (2002); see Landmann et al. (2009) for more molecular details), and so can’t enter the first mitosis, meaning they get discarded (Lassy & Karr, 1996). The embryo either becomes a haploid female (in haplodiploid organisms), or it dies. In evolutionary theory terms, in a population susceptible to Wolbachia-induced CI, uninfected females become more unfit, therefore giving a fitness advantage to infected females (Bourtzis et al., 2003), hence explaining how the phenotype persists.\nWhich manipulation happens cannot be predicted even within the same species, as demonstrated by Hornett et al. (2008), who found that in their North American Hypolimnas bolina butterflies, Wolbachia was a male killer while in Southeast Asian ones, it was a CI-inducer. The difference came from a dominant allele in the SE Asian butterfly genome suppressing the male-killing. Charlat et al. (2007) showed that such a mutation can become fixed in a population in under 10 generations due to the extreme selection pressure to maintain a decent sex ratio, a testament to the ecological power of Wolbachia.\nHowever, in some cases, Wolbachia can be so prominent that the entire affected population gets a very female-biased sex ratio, which in the case of the butterfly Acarea encedon has led to females reversing their sexual roles and behaving like males (Jiggins et al., 2000). In other cases, Wolbachia is counteracted by other elements, for example the B chromosome in the parasitoid wasp Trichogramma kaykai which turns Wolbachia-feminised males back into regular males (Stouthamer et al., 2001).\nIt must be mentioned that part of their success is their ability to be transmitted horizontally across different species (Raychoudhury et al., 2009) – they aren’t host-specific. This has been shown as happening through parasitoids (Heath et al., 1999) or through the environment (e.g. by sharing a common food source (Huigens et al., 2000)). This also means that a single individual may have multiple Wolbachia species (or, better said, strains) co-existing and mingling inside it; the largest number I know of is eight, in the fire ant Solenopsis daguerrei (Dedeine et al., 2005). Note that this ability only comes in the arthropod-associated Wolbachia, whose genomes are more plastic, with recombination and phage-derived elements (Wu et al., 2004), none of which are characteristics present in their nematodan counterparts (Foster et al., 2005).\nOne study also reported the possibility of Wolbachia having transferred part or all of its genome to its hosts, albeit with only 2% of the genes able to be transcribed and none of them having any described effect (Hotopp et al., 2007).\nThe negative effects of Wolbachia are obviously of great interest for biocontrol of pests and disease vectors. For example, Alam et al. (2011) discuss the possibility of using Wolbachia to control the tsetse fly, a vector of trypanosomiasis; Atyame et al. (2011) do the same for mosquitoes. Such biocontrol would work by allowing a chosen genotype to dominate the population by infecting the undesired genotype (e.g. Xi et al. (2005)), or by shortening lifespans to prevent sexual maturity (e.g. Moreira et al. (2009)). Wolbachia can also lead to population bottlenecks with very few individuals becoming able to reproduce (Nice et al., 2009), which is another way to control a pest population.\nIn non-pest studies, Wolbachia leads to increased susceptibility to parasitoids in Drosophila (Fytrou et al., 2006). It also leads to a less effective immune system in the pillbug Armadillidum vulgare, as seen by a lower density of haemocytes and higher density of bacteria (Bracquart-Vanier et al., 2008). These would be other avenues for pest control if a similar effect is seen in pest groups.\nPositive Effects of Wolbachia\nInterestingly, the effects of Wolbachia aren’t all negative. In the Cimicidae (bed bugs), Wolbachia is a mutualist; getting rid of it with antibiotics reduces the amount of food the host gets (Hosokawa et al., 2010). In mosquitoes, Wolbachia was found to boost their immune system and cause resistance to dengue virus (Bian et al., 2010). Pinto et al. (2012) describe how this happens at the genetic level. This is another potential use of Wolbachia as a biocontrol agent for disease vectors. In Drosophila, Wolbachia has been shown to confer resistance to several RNA viruses (Teixeira et al., 2008). In a Drosophila lab culture, Weeks et al. (2007) showed that the Wolbachia went from being a parasite to being a mutualist within two decades.\nAt the extreme end, nematode-infecting Wolbachia are needed for nematode development and fertility (Foster et al., 2005), so Wolbachia antibiotics could be used to control their populations (Taylor & Hoerauf, 1999). This is useful knowledge, given that some of the affected nematodes are vectors for very serious diseases like elephantiasis and onchocerciasis. It’s a similar story with the wasp Asobara tabida, wherein no ovocyte can even be produced when Wolbachia isn’t present (Dedeine et al., 2001) because its absence promotes excessive apoptosis in the ovarioles (Pannebakker et al., 2007).\nOther effects of Wolbachia on sexual physiology have been documented, for example an increase in sperm competition in Tribolium beetles (Wade & Chang, 1995), or changes to the spermathecal duct in female Allonemobius crickets (Marshall, 2007).\nAn interesting point can be made about the process of molecular evolution in Wolbachia. As I said in the introductory paragraph, Wolbachia is a nematode mutualist and arthropod parasite (generally speaking). One of the Wolbachia genes involved in interaction with the host is wsp, which codes for cell membrane proteins. It was found to be undergoing divergent selection when it is in a parasitic relationship, but not when it’s in a mutualistic relationship (Jiggins et al., 2002). This is in line with what we expect: wsp being involved in host recognition means it theoretically should experience heightened evolutionary rates, and this is confirmed by the empirical data.\nMany, if not all, negative and positive effects of Wolbachia have evolved by natural selection in order to maximise the transmission of the strain, either by allowing the bacterium to survive in the host (depressed immune system), or reducing competition by blocking the transmission of other pathogens (as Teixeira et al. (2008) suggest for the viral resistance effect). By extension, this means that parthenogenic arthropods aren’t expected to be Wolbachia hosts, since the manipulations are useless there. In terms of evolutionary theory, they can be treated as nothing more than selfish genetic elements.\nWhen I first heard of Wolbachia, my intuition was that it played a sizeable role in speciation, since it promotes reproductive isolation, or by selecting for subdivided populations (Hatcher et al., 2000). Some analyses showed it not to be true (Rousset & Raymond, 1991), but more and more recent studies are supportive of the idea (Bordenstein, 2003), so it’s accepted as a cause of speciation. It definitely has been demonstrated (Thompson, 1987), and in some cases has also induced rapid speciation (Bordenstein et al., 2001).\nOn a general evolutionary synthesis level, Wolbachia is pretty interesting as a very recognisable case of inheritable symbiosis, one of the few proper examples that lend credence to the view that symbioses are a driving force behind evolution.\nMilder effects of large-scale Wolbachia infection and sex ratio-skewing include altering dispersal ability – many insects have dispersing females and non-dispersing males, or vice versa. On a more influential level, there is also evidence that they can play a role in sexual selection (Jiggins et al., 2000), since sexual conflict gets reduced when levels of polyandry fall (Arnqvist & Rowe, 2005).\nWolbachia can sometimes present a methodological stumbling block for molecular phylogenies based on mitochondrial DNA, since mtDNA will also hitchike maternally, favouring the maternal mtDNA haplotype, eventually leading to the entire dataset being worthless; see Ballard & Rand (2005) for more information. However, Arthofer et al. (2010) tested this idea using infected bark beetles and found no significant effect from Wolbachia, so it is still unsure just how significant this slight inaccuracy is.\nWhere it is definitely a problem is in barcoding initiatives using mtDNA. For successful barcoding of a species, a stable molecular marker needs to be used that is guaranteed not to vary across individuals, populations, or ecomorphs. However, there are some studies that show that Wolbachia causes divergences in mtDNA sequences even among individuals of the same species, e.g. in the butterfly genus Hypolimnas (Galtier et al., 2009). The reason for this is that mitochondrial genes are transferred only maternally, so only the maternal set plays a role in evolution. Given the ubiquity of Wolbachia, this is definitely a large problem that should be studied carefully before proceeding with mtDNA barcoding.\nWolbachia alone can’t be cultivated, but it is possible to keep a Wolbachia line using host cell lines (Noda et al., 2002), so experimental evolution studies are possible with them.\nFor the entomologists among you, make sure to check any colonies for Wolbachia infections, as they could invalidate your results, especially if you’re doing population biology. They can be gotten rid of using any antibiotic. I hear that tetracycline is recommended; if that’s not possible, high heat is enough, since Wolbachia is sensitive to temperature. If you’re sequencing your insects as well, using DNA from the legs is probably the safest way to avoid getting contaminating Wolbachia DNA amplified (this is standard procedure anyway).\nOther symbionts that alter the reproduction of their arthropod hosts include Buchnera and Cardinium – but I’ll leave them for other posts.\nAlam U, Medlock J, Breisfoard C, Pais R, Lohs C, Balmand S, Carnogursky J, Heddi A, Takac P, Galvani A & Aksoy S. 2011. Wolbachia Symbiont Infections Induce Strong Cytoplasmic Incompatibility in the Tsetse Fly Glossina morsitans. PLoS Pathogens 7, e1002415.\nArnqvist G & Rowe L. 2005. Sexual Conflict.\nArthofer W, Avtzis DN, Riegler M & Stauffer C. 2010. Mitochondrial phylogenies in the light of pseudogenes and Wolbachia: re-assessment of a bark beetle dataset. 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PNAS 107, 769-774.\nHotopp JCD, Clark ME, Oliveira DCSG, Foster JM, Fischer P, Torres MCM, Giebel JD, Kumar N, Ishmael N, Wang S, Ingram J, Nene RV, Shepard J, Tomkins J, Richards S, Spiro DJ, Ghedin E, Slatko BE, Tettelin HE & Werren JH. 2007. Widespread Lateral Gene Transfer from Intracellular Bacteria to Multicellular Eukaryotes. Science 317, 1753-1756.\nHuigens ME, Luck RF, Klaassen RHG, Maas MFPM, Timmermans MJTM & Stouthamer R. 2000. Infectious parthenogenesis. Nature 405, 178-179.\nHurst LD. 1991. The Incidences and Evolution of Cytoplasmic Male Killers. Proc. R. Soc. B 244, 91-99.\nHurst GDD & Werren JH. 2001. The role of selfish genetic elements in eukaryotic evolution. Nature Reviews Genetics 2, 597-606.\nJiggins FM, Hurst GDD & Majerus MEN. 2000. Sex-ratio-distorting Wolbachia causes sex-role reversal in its butterfly host. Proc. R. Soc. B 267, 69-73.\nJiggins FM, Hurst GDD & Yang Z. 2002. 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WOLBACHIA PIPIENTIS: Microbial Manipulator of Arthropod Reproduction Annual Review of Microbiology DOI: 10.1146/annurev.micro.53.1.71"}
{"text": "86 is conjectured to be the largest power of 2 not containing a zero. This simply stated conjecture has proven itself to be proof-resistant. Let us see why.\nWhat is the probability that the nth power of two will not have any zeroes? The first and the last digits are non-zeroes; suppose that other digits become zeroes randomly and independently of each other. This supposition allows us to estimate the probability of 2n not having zeroes as (9/10)k-2, where k is the number of digits of 2n. The number of digits can be estimated as n log102. Thus, the probability is about cxn, where c = (10/9)2 ≈ 1.2 and x = (9/10)log102 ≈ 0.97. The expected number of powers of 2 without zeroes starting from the power N is cxN/(1-x) ≈ 40 ⋅ 0.97N.\nLet us look at A007377, the sequence of numbers such that their powers of 2 do not contain zeros: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 24, 25, 27, 28, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 39, 49, 51, 67, 72, 76, 77, 81, 86. Our estimates predicts 32 members of this sequence starting from 6. In fact, the sequence has 30 conjectured members. Similarly, our estimate predicts 2.5 members starting from 86. It is easy to check that the sequence doesn’t contain any more numbers below 200 and our estimate predicts 0.07 members after 200. As we continue checking larger numbers and see that they do not belong to the sequence, the probability that the sequence contains more elements vanishes. With time we check more numbers and become more convinced that the conjecture is true. Currently, it has been checked up to the power 4.6 ⋅ 107. The probability of finding something after that is about 1.764342396 ⋅10-633620.\nLet us try to approach the conjecture from another angle. Let us check the last K digits of powers of two. As the number of possibilities is finite, these last digits eventually will start cycling. If we can show that all the elements inside the period contain zeroes, then we need to check the finite number of powers of two until this period starts. If we can find such K, we can prove the conjecture.\nLet us look at the last two digits of powers of two. The sequence starts as: 01, 02, 04, 08, 16, 32, 64, 28, 56, 12, 24, 48, 96, 92, 84, 68, 36, 72, 44, 88, 76, 52, 04. As we would anticipate, it starts cycling. The cycle length is 20, and 90% of numbers in the cycle don’t have zeroes.\nNow let’s continue to the last three digits. The period length is 100, and 19 of them either start with zero or contain zero. The percentage of elements in the cycle that do not contain zero is 81%.\nThe cycle length for the last n digits is known. It is 4 ⋅ 5n-1. In particular the cycle length grows by 5 every time. The number of zero-free elements in these cycles form a sequence A181610: 4, 18, 81, 364, 1638, 7371, 33170. If we continue with our supposition that the digits are random, and study the new digits that appear when we move from the cycle of the last n digits to the next cycle of the last n+1 digits, we can expect that 9/10 of those digits will be non-zero. Indeed, if we check the ratio of how many numbers do not contain zero in the next cycle compared to the previous cycle, we get: 4.5, 4.5, 4.49383, 4.5, 4.5, 4.50007. All of these numbers are quite close to our estimation of 4.5. If this trend continues the portion of the numbers in the cycle that don’t have zeroes tends to zero; however, the total of such numbers grows exponentially. We can even estimate that the expected growth is 4 ⋅ 4.5n-1. From this estimation, we can derive the conjecture:\nConjecture. For any number N, there exists a power of two such that its last N digits are zero-free.\nIndeed, the last N digits of powers of two cycle, and there are an increasing number of members inside that cycle that do not contain zeroes. The corresponding powers of two don’t have zeroes among N rightmost digits.\nSo, how do we combine the two results? First, the expected probability of finding the power of two larger than 86 that doesn’t contain zero is minuscule. And second, we most certainly can find a power of two that has as many zeroless digits at the end as we want.\nTo combine the two results, let us look at the sequences A031140 and A031141. We can deduce from them that for the power 103233492954 the first zero from the right occupies the 250th spot. The total number of digits of that power is 31076377936. So 250 is a tiny portion of the digits.\nAs time goes by we grow more and more convinced that 86 is the largest power of two without zeroes, but it is not at all clear how we can prove the conjecture or whether it can be proven at all.\nMy son, Sergei, suggested that I claim that I have a proof of this conjecture, but do not have enough space in the margin to fit my proof in. The probability that I will ever be shamed and disproven is lower than the probability of me winning a billion dollars in the lottery. Though then, if I do win the big bucks, I will still care about being shamed and disproven."}
{"text": "I have been trying to consolidate my beliefs and understandings about practice the last few weeks. As the mother of a hockey player and two dancers I am all too familiar with the idea of practice in sport. In their activities my children have the opportunity to work on isolated skills repeatedly until they become fluid, efficient and second nature. Their coaches are constantly giving them feedback, modelling and helping them get the “feel” for their sport. These practiced skills are constantly being put into use…be it a game or a dance. It is in those game situations where I really see my kids light up. They love to play, perform and just plain have FUN!! In those moments all of the practice becomes worth it and it is in those moments they become reenergize for and reinvested in further practice.\nIt is with this notion of practice in my head that I began to explore what practice is in education. How it is like practice in sport? I do believe that practice is important in both sport and students learning, but I also believe that not all practice is created equal. Some practice can support learning, consolidate understanding and build confidence for students while other practice can frustrate, confuse and create a barrier for learning. Practice can make “perfect” or at least better but it can also make permanent…and if the practice isn’t effective we run the risk of making permanent misconceptions.\nBut what is “perfect” practice? Can “perfect” practice really exist? I do not think that “perfect” is an attainable goal but I do think that purposeful is. Purposeful practice implies that teachers and coaches have an aim…intent…goal…target for the practice they want students to engage in. They identify a student/player need, envision what success would look like and with those things in mind create a plan to support the learning with practice. Purposeful practice takes careful thinking into the what, how and why of the practice with the goal of furthering individual students’ learning in ways that are the most meaningful. It is more than just practice for practice sake, more than a stack of worksheets for all students to complete…it is practice with purpose, practice that is deliberate, powerful and focused. The thing that I think we as teachers need to remember and that coaches do so well, is to put the practice into the game. After all it is in the game where the FUN is.\nAs I continue to think about Purposeful Practice I am consolidating my beliefs into what it truly is in education. These beliefs are far from set in stone but are hopefully the start of a discussion.\nMy Purposeful Practice Beliefs:\n- Students should practice what they understand. Practice without understanding can change the goal of the practice from fluidity of skills to simply getting to the end of the page to make the teacher happy.\n- Practice should focused on supporting individual student learning challenges and enhancing strengths.\n- Practice should be focused on progress and monitored constantly. If a student is not progressing then the practice needs to change.\n- Practice can be and should be messy…we need to see where errors are occurring so that we can help.\n- When students make mistakes (and they will) teachers need to be there to help them by offering support, feedback and additional instruction. We should use practice to inform instruction.\n- Practice should be sustained over time. It is not a one time thing. In order for practice to become permanent students will need to move the learning into their long-term memory\n- Students should be given opportunities to put their practice into authentic “game like” situation as often as possible. It is through the game that students can discover the purpose for the skills, transfer them to new situations and make connections.\n- Practice can be cooperative and noisy. Students can learn from each other.\nOnce upon a time, in a land not so far away there lived a girl named Jennifer. Jennifer was a student and on this particular day she was sitting in her desk carefully writing her name on the back of a piece of white paper. When her teacher said GO and not a second before (it was strictly forbidden to peek) she turned over her paper to reveal a page full of math basic facts. As quickly as possible, she began computing math facts and writing the answers on the paper. The whole class was silent, the only exception was the quite sounds of pencils frantically scratching and the odd moan. The gauntlet had been thrown down and the race was on to conquer the sheet and then celebrate your triumph in front of your friends. After two minutes the class was told to stop..turn the page over and put their pencils down. Some students smiled with victory as the teacher walked between the rows collecting the sheets. Some students hung their heads defeated, deflated and quite frankly exhausted from the effort. Jennifer lived in both groups some days she felt the sweet sensation of victory, some days the sheer agony of defeat. On this day the sheet, only half completed had declared it’s victory over her. The teacher would return the worksheet the next day with X’s and checks marks on it, along with the final score out of 50. Students who did well were told to keep up the good work. Those who didn’t were told to try harder next week when Mad Minute day came. On this particular day Jennifer asked her teacher if they had to have Mad Minutes day every week. She was given this short, simple answer…”It will help you learn your basic facts”.\nYears later Jennifer was a teacher, with her own group of students sitting before her eagerly awaiting their signal to turn over the sheet of paper and begin. She had been given the most wonderful opportunity to teach students their basic math facts and was using the one tool she knew would ensure that students learned… The Mad Minute. After all, she had successfully learned her basic facts and had long since abandoned using her fingers and toes…well most of the time anyways. Some of her students experienced success, some struggled, some downright refused to start. Jennifer reflected on this fact with a colleague the next day. Why didn’t the kids get it?…she was doing all she could…she had even increased her Mad Minute time to twice a week…yet they refused to learn. Her colleague suggested sending the worksheets home for more practice. Maybe parents would have the time to help the students continue to learn those basic facts. After all they had now completed the unit on operations.\nAs I reflect on this story I feel sad, for that young girl who felt defeated, that young teacher who knew very little about teaching mathematics, and for all of those students. I was that girl and knew how defeated the Mad Minute made me feel…yet I created that same experience for my students. I simply knew no other way. A few years later I heard a speaker say something that really struck home to me… “When teachers align what they teach… with what students learn…and with what they assess… they honour the learners in their classrooms.\nMad Minutes, at least the way they had been modelled for me, were considered the one stop shop for teaching students to learn and assessing progress in basic facts. Knowing what I know now I understand that they are none of those things. They didn’t teach…they evaluated, they didn’t support learning…they evaluated, at best you could say they assessed and provided feedback for teacher planning and instructional decision-making (which they didn’t). At worst…they evaluated. They became an activity for survival of the fittest. The strong survived to basked in their success. The weak were defeated, crushed and left to feel like math failures. No one was honored. If you were one of those bright-eyed, trusting students in my classroom…I sincerely apologize. You deserved a teacher who would teach so that you could learn. A teacher who would assess and use those assessments for learning. A teacher who would not send home the very object of your frustration only to have you experience failure in a new environment. You deserved better! Knowing what I know now…I COULD do better. I now believe that:\n- Teaching mathematics is about developing student competence AND confidence\n- Teaching of basic facts should be done in a way that is strategic, and in attainable steps that can inspire confidence\n- Practice should be purposeful and targeted\n- Fluency is important and students should be given opportunities to develop fluency that is built on a foundation of conceptual knowledge\n- Monitoring of Progress is key and should inform instructional decisions\n- Assessments can be timed if necessary but students should be allowed to finish and only “compete” with themselves\n- Students should be given opportunities to see patterns within operations and connections between addition/subtraction and multiplication/division\n- Numbers are flexible and teaching/ learning about them should be as well\nMy next few posts will continue to develop my thinking on purposeful practice and procedural fluency in a way that I hope honors our learners and inspires success. As always your comments and feedback are always welcome."}
{"text": "Ongoing developments into memristor technologies have helped researchers come even closer to bendable, wearable electronics.\nMemristors are a fourth class of electric circuit, and, despite being hypothesised in the seventies, are a very new addition to the transistors, capacitors and inductors that usually make up chips.\nAnd now researchers at the Korean Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), have found a novel use for memristors that could see bendable electronics become commonplace in the “near future”.\nThe team says that one of the main problems with the production of flexible electronics has been the development of operational flexible memory.\nHowever they believe that they have solved this with what they describe as “fully functional” flexible resistive random access memory (RRAM). With this memory, they say, a cell can be randomly accessed, written and erased on a plastic substrate that is able to be bend and rolled easily.\nIt is not the first time that flexible memory has been under development. However the researchers believe that their device overcomes one of the major problems of cell to cell interference.\nTo solve this it is necessary to integrate switching elements like transistors with memory elements. However most transistors which are built on flexible plastic substrates are unable to achieve the performance level required to drive conventional memory.\nThe team at KAIST managed to fix this by developing memory which is not affected by cell to cell interference, using the properties of memristors alongside a silicon transistor on flexible substrates.\nBy applying the properties of both technologies they were able to get all the memory function in a matrix memory array functioning without problems."}
{"text": "By DANIEL SUDDEATH\nNEW ALBANY —\nJudging by the pleasure clearly shown by the children as they wheeled their robots around the Ed Endres Boys & Girls Club, it would be easy to assume the kids were only having fun Wednesday afternoon.\nBut the hours they spent turning Lego kits into functional robots that can play music, light up on command and spin around on four wheels introduced the kids to computer programming and basic engineering.\nInstruction is part of the reason behind the RoboTech program, officials and organizers behind the project said. In September, students at the New Albany club were selected to pilot the program locally.\nTime Warner Cable — parent company of Insight Communications — partnered with Boys & Girls Club of America and FIRST Robotics to bring the program to 20 chapters across the country.\nIn September, New Albany students at Ed Endres Boys & Girls Club were introduced to robotics for the first time. When they saw the Lego Mindstorms boxes waiting to be opened, many had no idea the toy parts could be transformed into a robot.\n“They didn’t actually know they could build it themselves,” said Santanna Lea, program director at the Ed Endres Boys & Girls Club.\nShe conceded she didn’t know much about robotics at the time either, or how drawn to the program the kids would be. They almost immediately were enticed with the idea of building their own robots, and their interest only grew with the more functions they learned how to program, she continued.\n“They actually taught me a lot,” Lea said. “It was a learning process for all of us.”\nScience-Technology-Engineering-Math — or STEM — youth activities and programs are vital because they help train kids for a new frontier of jobs, Insight Communications Director of Communications Dan Ballister said.\n“Time Warner and Insight are very excited about partnerships like these,” he said.\nThe program is geared toward middle school students, though some younger kids also participated in the project at Ed Endres. The children formed groups to work on the robots and demonstrated their work Wednesday at the club.\nTo congratulate them for their progress, Ballister and Insight donated several gifts to the clubs including games and gadgets that emphasize science and technology.\nBallister said robotics are quite popular across the country, and there are tournaments regularly where kids can enter their robots in competitions based on functionality.\nHopefully the students at the Ed Endres Boys & Girls Club will continue their interest in robotics and enter some tournaments, he continued.\n“The kids have to practice and practice and work as a team to make sure their robot can compete,” Ballister said.\nJennifer Helgeson, president and CEO of Boys and Girls Clubs of Kentuckiana, was on hand to see the kids display their robots. Seeing the pride the kids had for their work proved how valuable the project was, she said.\n“I think the program is incredible,” Helgeson said. “It encourages them and gets the kids excited about science and technology.”"}
{"text": "With the exceptions of peas and broad beans, fruit vegetables are warm-season crops, and with the exception of sweet corn and peas, all are subject to chilling injury. Fruit vegetables are not generally adaptable to long-term storage. Exceptions are the hard rind (winter) squashes and pumpkin. A useful classification for postharvest discussion of the fruit vegetables is based on the stage of maturity at harvest. This presents an overview of the general postharvest requirements and handling systems for this group of commodities.\nLegumes: snap, lima, and other beans, snow pea, sugar snap and garden peas\nCucurbits: cucumber, soft rind squashes, chayote, bitter melon, luffa\nSolanaceous vegetables: eggplant, peppers, tomatillo\nOthers such as okra and sweet corn\nCucurbits: cantaloupe, honeydew, and other muskmelons; watermelon, pumpkin, hard-rind squashes\nSolanaceous vegetables: mature green and vine-ripe tomatoes, ripe peppers\nThe harvest index for most immature fruit vegetables is based principally on size and color. Immature soft-rind squashes, for example, may be harvested at several sizes or stages of development, depending upon market needs. Fruit that are too developed are of interior internal quality and show undesirable color change after harvest. This also applies to other immature fruit vegetables such as cucumber and bell peppers.\nThe harvest index for mature fruit vegetables depends on several characteristics, and proper harvest maturity is the key to adequate shelf life and good quality of the ripened fruit. For cantaloupe, the principal harvest indices are surface color and the development of the abscission zone.\nMost fruit vegetables are harvested by hand. Some harvest aids may be used, including pickup machines and conveyors for melons. Cantaloupe is also harvested with \"sack\" crews who empty the melons into bulk trailers. Crenshaw and other specialty melons are easily damaged and require special care in handling and transport to the packing area. Mature green tomatoes are usually hand harvested into buckets and emptied into field bins or gondolas. Almost all fresh market tomatoes grown in California are bush type, and the plants are typically harvested only once or twice. At the time of harvest, 5 to 10 percent of the tomatoes have pink and yellow color and are separated out later on the packing line as vine-ripest\nImmature fruit vegetables generally have very tender skins that are easily damaged in harvest and handling. Special care must be taken in all handling operations to prevent product damage and subsequent decay. Sweet corn, snap beans, and peas may be harvested mechanically or by hand.\nMany of the mature fruit vegetables are hauled to packinghouses, storage, or loading facilities in bulk bins (hard rind squashes, peppers, pink tomatoes), gondolas (mature green tomatoes and peppers), or bulk field trailers or trucks (muskmelons, hard rind squashes).\nHarvesting at night, when products are the coolest, is common for sweet corn and is gaining in use for cantaloupe. Products reach their lowest temperature near daybreak. Night harvest may reduce the time and costs of cooling products, may result in better and more uniform cooling, and helps maintain product quality. Fluorescent lights attached to mobile packing units have permitted successful night harvesting of cantaloupe in California.\nThe trend is increasing toward field packing of fruit vegetables. Grading, sorting, sizing, packing, and palletizing are carried out in the field. The products are then transported to a central cooling facility. Mobile packing facilities are commonly towed through the fields for cantaloupe, honeydew melon, eggplant, cucumber, summer squashes, and peppers. Field-pack operations entail much less handling of products than in packinghouses. This reduces product damage and, therefore, increases packout yield of products. In melons, for example, field packing means less rolling, dumping, and dropping and thus helps reduce the \"shaker\" problem, in which the seed cavity loosens from the pericarp wall. It also reduces scuffing of the net which reduces subsequent water loss. Handling costs are also reduced in field pack operations. One difficulty with field packing, however, is the need for increased supervision to maintain consistent quality in the packed product. Field packing is not used for commodities that require classification for both color and size, such as tomato.\nLoaded field vehicles should be parked in shade to prevent product warming and sunburning. Products may be unloaded by hand (soft rind squashes, eggplant, some muskmelons, cucumber, watermelon), dry-dumped onto sloping, padded ramps (cantaloupe, honeydew melon, sweet peppers) or onto moving conveyor belts (tomatoes), or wet-dumped into tanks of moving water to reduce physical injury (honeydew melon, tomatoes, and peppers). Considerable mechanical damage occurs in dry-dumping operations; bruising, scratching, abrading and splitting are common examples. The water temperature in wet-dump tanks for tomatoes should be slightly warmer than the product temperature to prevent uptake of water and decay-causing organisms into the fruits. The dump tank water needs to be chlorinated. An operation may have two tanks separated by a clean water spray to improve overall handling sanitation.\nPresizing. For many commodities, fruit below a certain size are eliminated manually or mechanically by a presizing belt or chain. Undersize fruit are diverted to a cull conveyor or used for processing.\nSorting or selection. The sorting process eliminates cull, overripe, misshapen, and otherwise defective fruit and separates products by color, maturity, and ripeness classes (e.g. tomato and muskmelons). Electronic color sorters are used in some tomato operations.\nGrading. Fruit are sorted by quality into two or more grades according to U.S. standards, California grade standards, or a shipper's own Trade standards.\nWaxing. Food grade waxes are commonly applied to cucumber, eggplant, sweet peppers, cantaloupe, and tomato, and occasionally to some summer squashes. The purpose is to replace some of the natural waxes removed in the washing and cleaning operations, to reduce water loss, and to improve appearance. Waxing may be done before or after sizing, and fungicides may be added to the wax. Application of wax and postharvest fungicides must be indicated on each shipping container. Waxing and fungicides are used only in packinghouse handling of fruit vegetables. European cucumbers are frequently shrink-wrapped rather than waxed.\nSizing. After sorting for defects and color differences, the fruit vegetables are segregated into several size categories. Sizing is done manually for many of the fruit vegetables, including the legumes, soft and hard rind squashes, cucumber, eggplant, chili peppers, okra, pumpkin, rnuskmelons, and watermelon. Cantaloupes may be sized by volumetric weights, or diverging roll sizers, sweet peppers are sized commonly by diverging bar sizers, and tomatoes are sized by diameter with belt sizers or by weight.\nPacking. Mature green and pink tomatoes, sweet and chili peppers, okra, cucumber, and legumes are commonly weight- or volume-filled into shipping containers. All other fruit type vegetables and many of the above are place-packed into shipping containers by count, bulk bins (hard rind squashes. pumpkin, muskmelons, and watermelon) or bulk trucks (watermelon). Fruit type vegetables that are place-packed are often sized during the same operation.\nPalletizing. Packed shipping containers of most fruit vegetables in large-volume operations are palletized for shipment. This is a common practice with cantaloupe, muskmelons, sweet peppers, and tomato. Except for sweet corn, the immature fruit vegetables are often handled in low volume operations, where palletizing is not common because of lack of forklifts. In these cases, the products are palletized at a centralized cooling facility or as they are loaded for transport. Palletizing is usually done after hydrocooling or package-ice cooling, but before forced-air cooling. In field-pack operations, palletizing is generally done in the field.\nVarious methods are used for cooling fruit vegetables. The most common methods are discussed here.\nForced-air cooling is used for beans, cantaloupe, cucumbers, muskmelons, peas, peppers, soft rind squashes, and tomato. Forced-air evaporative cooling is used to a limited extent on chilling-sensitive commodities such as squashes, peppers, eggplant, and cherry tomato.\nHydrocooling is used before grading, sizing, and packing of beans, cantaloupe, sweet corn, and okra. Sorting of defective products is done both before and after cooling. Hydrocooling cycles are rarely long enough during hot weather. The need to maintain a continuous, adequate supply of cantaloupes to the packers often results in the melons being incompletely cooled. This can be remedied if, after packing and palletizing, enough time is allowed in the cold room to cool the product to recommended temperatures before loading for transport to markets.\nPackage icing and liquid-icing are used to a limited extent for cooling cantaloupe and routinely as a supplement to hydrocooling for sweet corn.\nTemporary cold storage. In large-volume operations, most fruit vegetables are placed in cold storage rooms after cooling and before shipment. Cold rooms are less used in small farm operations; the products are often transported to central cooperatively owned or distributor-owned facilities for cooling and short-term storage.\nLoading for transport. Some tomatoes, cantaloupe, and other muskmelons are shipped in refrigerated railcars, but most fruit vegetables are shipped in refrigerated trucks or container vans. Except for the major volume products such as cantaloupe and tomato, most are shipped in mixed loads, sometimes with ethylene-sensitive commodities. Among the immature fruit type vegetables, products such as cucumber, legumes, bitter melon, and eggplant are sensitive to ethylene exposure. Among the mature fruit types, watermelon is detrimentally affected by ethylene, resulting in softening of the whole fruit, flesh mealiness, and rind separation.\nFor uniform and controlled ripening, ethylene is often applied to mature green tomatoes and sometimes to honeydew, casaba, and Crenshaw melons. Ethylene treatments may be done at the shipping point or the destination, although final fruit quality is generally considered best if the treatment is applied at the shipping point soon after harvest. Satisfactory ripening occurs at 12.5° to 25°C (55° to 77°F), the higher the temperature, the faster the ripening (table 29.3). Above 30°C (86°F), red color development of tomato is inhibited. An ethylene concentration of about 100 ppm is commonly used. Honeydew melons (usually class 12 melons) are sometimes held in ethylene up to 24 hours; tomatoes are usually held at 20°C (68°F) and treated for up to 3 days.\nTomatoes may be ethylene-treated before or after packing, but most are treated after packing. An advantage of treating before packing is that the warmer conditions favor development of any decay-causing pathogens on the fruit, so infected fruit can be eliminated before final packout. Packing after ethylene treatment also permits a more uniform packout. Because most of the mature green tomatoes produced in California are packed and then treated with ethylene, \"checkerboarding\" may still occur and make a repack operation necessary.\nModified atmospheres are seldom used commercially for these commodities, although shipments of melons and tomato under modified atmospheres are being tested for long-distance markets. Consumer packaging of vine-ripe tomatoes may also involve the use of modified atmospheres. For tomatoes held at recommended temperatures, oxygen levels of 3 to 5 percent slow ripening, with carbon dioxide levels held below 5 percent to avoid injury. Muskmelons have been less studied, but recommended atmospheres under normal storage conditions are 3 to 5 percent oxygen and 10 to 20 percent carbon dioxide.\nRecommended storage/transit conditions\nFor mature fruit type vegetables temperature can effectively control the rate of ripening. Most mature-harvested fruit vegetables are sensitive to chilling injury when held below the recommended storage temperature. Chilling injury is cumulative, and its severity depends on the temperature and the duration of exposure. In the case of tomato, exposure to chilling temperatures below 10°C (50° F) results in lack of color development decreased flavor, and increased decay\nThe optimum temperatures for short-term storage and transport are:\nMature green tomatoes, pumpkin, and hard rind squashes: 12.5° to 15° C (55° to 60° F)\nPartially to fully ripe tomatoes, muskmelons (except cantaloupe): 10° to 12.5° C (50° to 55° F).\nHoneydew melons that are ripening naturally or have been induced with ethylene are best held at 5° to 7.5° C (41° to 45° F).\nWatermelon: 7° to 10° C (45° to 50° F)\nCantaloupe: 2.5° to 5° C (36° to 41° F)\nThe optimum relative humidity range is 85 to 90 percent for tomato and muskmelons (except cantaloupe), 90 to 95 percent for cantaloupe, and 60 to 70 percent for pumpkin and hard rind squashes.\nImmature fruit vegetables\nAll fruit vegetables harvested immature are sensitive to chilling injury. Exceptions are the peas and sweet corn, which are stored best at 0° C (32° F) and 95 percent RH.\nThe optimum product temperatures with RH at 90 to 95 percent for short-term storage and transport are as follows:\nEggplant, cucumber, soft rind squashes, okra: 10° to 12.5° C (50° to 55° F)\nPeppers: 5° to 7° C (41° to 45° F)\nLima beans, snap beans: 5° to 8° C (41° to 46° F)\nDivision of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of California.\nAll contents copyright © 2011 The Regents of the University of California. All Rights Reserved.\nDevelopment funding from the University of California and USDA, CSREES.\nPlease e-mail your comments to: email@example.com\nLast updated: February 15, 2012 | Website design by Lauri Brandeberry"}
{"text": "Women Bear Greatest Burden of Alzheimer's\nSurvey finds they're more likely than men to have Alzheimer's or take care of someone with the disease.\nMONDAY, July 18 (HealthDay News) — Women fear Alzheimer's disease more than any other illness except cancer, and they are more often on the front lines of providing care for loved ones battling the disease, new research shows.\n\"With statistics consistently pointing to the fact that more women are living with Alzheimer's and caring for people with Alzheimer's, it is clear women are disproportionately affected by this disease,\" said Angela Geiger, chief strategy officer of the Alzheimer's Association.\nA survey of women in France, Germany, Spain, Poland and the United States revealed that women are at the center of the global Alzheimer's epidemic. The multinational research team found women in all five countries were more concerned than men about a loved one developing the disease.\nWomen in all countries, the survey also found, were more likely than men to be involved in the daily care of someone with the disease. In fact, women in France and Poland were significantly more involved in the decision-making and financial support of an Alzheimer's patient.\nIf roles were reversed and those polled were to develop the disease, most identified their spouse as the person who would be responsible for their primary care. Men, however, identified their wives 6 percent to 18 percent more often than wives identified their husbands. In contrast, women were more likely to say they would rely on their children or paid caregivers outside the family to care for them.\nDespite their fear of the disease, which currently affects 36.5 million people worldwide, and their greater burden as caregivers, 71 percent of women in France and 76 percent of women in the United States seem to be more optimistic that a treatment for Alzheimer's will be developed within five years. That may be one reason why the survey also showed that women believe government spending on Alzheimer's research should be increased.\n\"These insights reinforce the conclusions published in The Shriver Report: A Women's Nation Takes on Alzheimer's, which found the impact of Alzheimer's on women is significant. The perspectives we see in this survey must prompt thoughtful conversations about Alzheimer's with our friends, family members and government officials to change the trajectory of Alzheimer's disease,\" concluded Geiger.\nThe research was slated for presentation Monday at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference in Paris. Research presented at medical meetings should be viewed a preliminary until it is published in a peer-reviewed medical journal."}
{"text": "51°15' / 22°34'\nTranslation of \"Lublin\" chapter from Pinkas Hakehillot Polin\nPublished by Yad Vashem\nPublished in Jerusalem\nProject Coordinator and Translator\nMorris Gradel z\"l\nOur sincere appreciation to Yad Vashem\nfor permission to put this material on the JewishGen web site.\nThis is a translation from: Pinkas Hakehillot:\nEncyclopedia of Jewish Communities, Poland, Volume VII, pages 13 - 38, published by Yad Vashem, Jerusalem\nJewishGen is not responsible for inaccuracies or omissions in the original work and cannot rewrite or edit the text to correct inaccuracies and/or omissions.\nOur mission is to produce a translation of the original work and we cannot verify the accuracy of statements or alter facts cited.\nLublin (hereafter L), the largest town in Eastern Poland, is the main town of the region and province. It stands on the banks of the River Bystrzyca. In the 12th century it was a fortified settlement on the trade route leading to Ruthenia. In the 13th century it was destroyed several times during invasions by the Tatars, Ruthenians and Jadvingians (a Lithuanian tribe). For some time the settlement was under the ægis of the Princes of Halicz. In 1317 L was granted the Magdeburgian privileges of a town by King Wladislaw Lokietek. His son, Casimir the Great, erected a wall around the town. It was granted the privilege in 1385 of free trade with the Lithuanian Principality and in 1392 the right to store in the town goods in transit - and these advantages contributed to its rapid development. In 1474 L was the seat of the king's representative (the Woiwoda). It reached the zenith of its prosperity in the 16th and beginning of the 17th centuries, when its markets attracted merchants from the whole of Poland and even beyond. The same period also saw the expansion of various trades.\nIn the 16th century L was also a political centre, where the nobility held its meetings; in 1578 it became the seat of the Crown Court and the Appeal Court of \"Lesser Poland\", and in 1569 there convened in L the Sejm that united Poland and Lithuania under one crown (this was the celebrated Polish-Lithuanian \"Unia\"). Resident in the town were writers and poets renowned at the time (Kochanowski, Rej and others), and a printing works and paper factory were established.\nIn the 16th and 17th century the population of L was more than 10,000, and embraced some suburbs. In the period of the \"deluge\" (the wars in the middle of the 17th century waged in Poland by the Cossacks, the Swedes and the Muscovites) L suffered heavy damage to life and property. Repairs were not undertaken for some time, and only in 1780 did work on reconstruction begin. In 1795 L passed under the sovereignty of Austria, in 1809 it formed part of the \"Principality of Warsaw\", and from 1815 until the rise of independent Poland in 1918 it was included in Congress Poland.\nIn the course of the 19th century L developed into the metropolis of the eastern part of the Polish Kingdom. Its population increased from 7,000 at the beginning of the century (during the Napoleonic Wars) to 56,000 at its conclusion. During the century it was under the \"Jurisdiction of Wieniawa\" (a suburban noble estate with autonomous legal status). Only late in the century did L start to develop a modern economy. After being linked to the rail network in 1877 existing industries developed and new ones were established. Concomitant with this there was cultural development and cultural and educational institutions were founded. L contained some well-known Polish writers, such as Kraszewski, Vincenty Paul and Boleslaw Prus, and many figures of the Polish national underground movement chose to settle there.\nThe 20th century saw no radical changes in L's economic structure, and the town remained the centre of an agricultural area. World War I had a considerable stagnating effect on local industry, and its recovery between the two world wars was protracted. In the 20s and 30s new plants connected with the aviation industry were established, as were factories for pipes, screws, tobacco and chicory (coffee substitute). The town's public services (sewage, waterworks, electric power, slaughterhouse and the like) were also developed. Nevertheless, during the whole inter-war period L was in economic decline, or at best stagnant. The number of unemployed went on increasing and with it the number of demonstrations and strikes. The process of impoverishment affected broad spectra of the population. The situation was particularly bad during the crisis of 1929-33, and even in 1933 the number of unemployed (12,000) surpassed the number in employment. There was virtually no natural increase of population in the years preceding the Second World War.\nDuring the 19th and 20th centuries L was the scene of activity by political movements and youth organisations, both open and clandestine. In 1918, after Poland gained its independence, a council of Polish representatives assumed political control of the town and its environs.\nOn the very first day of World War II L suffered heavy bombardment. During the German occupation the leading Polish intellectuals were liquidated. Many people were imprisoned in the town's fortress on political grounds. In 1941 the first batch of 160 prisoners was despatched to the concentration camp at Ravensbrück. In 1941 too, an extermination camp was established at Majdanek, near L. It served at first as a camp for 2,000 Soviet prisoners of war. In Majdanek some 360,000 beings met their death, most of them Jews from Poland, but also from other parts of occupied Europe.\nDuring the German occupation whole quarters of the town were destroyed, as was most of the infrastructure (such as roads and bridges). L became an important centre of the Polish Resistance.\nOn July 24th, 1944, L was liberated by the Red Army, and for seven months was the capital of the new Poland. The process of recovery was rapid: ruined factories were restored and new ones built, and L again became an important cultural centre. New institutions of higher education were set up, including the University of Marie Sklodowska Curie, as were various categories of secondary schools. The Theatre and the Philharmonic Orchestra resumed their activities. The Lupaczinski Library was expanded to contain 200,000 volumes. However, in the 60s stagnation and even recession set in, as was the case in the rest of \"Socialist Poland\". The crisis reached its peak in the late 80s, and even continued into the beginning of the new Polish Republic that came into being in 1990-91, following the collapse of the \"Polish People's Republic\".\nThe first Jews in L are mentioned in documents from the 15th century, though there may possibly have been some there earlier. A few Jews lived in the town itself, with the consent of the authorities, despite the royal edict of 1535 that forbad Jews to live in L. In the 15th and 16th centuries many Jews settled in the town and established a Jewish quarter to the north and north-east of the palace and the fortress. For the privilege of living there the Jews were obliged to pay a tax to the fortress administrators. In 1555 the boundaries of the Jewish quarter were extended; the Governor of Lublin, Stanislaw Winczinski, with the approval of the King of Poland, Sigismund August, granted the Jewish community three large plots of land, One of these was to contain the slaughterhouse and butcher shops; the second, on the palace hill near the old cemetery, was to serve as an additional burial-ground; and the third, on the slopes of the palace hill, was set aside for religious purposes. In return for these plots the community agreed to pay an annual tax of 12 marks and an annual sum for candle grease.\nIn 1557 Governor Winczinski presented Dr. Yitzhak Maj, a well-known doctor in L, a large plot (which also had a pool) and permitted him to build on it. In 1566 a synagogue was erected there in the name of the Maharashal (Rabbi Shlomo Luria), and the following year other buildings were added, in one of which a yeshiva was opened. In 1603 the merchant Yaakov ben Aharon received from Governor Firlay a plot on which to erect buildings and shops. The Jewish quarter continued to grow, from 24 houses in 1550 to 100 at the end of the century. The main street was Sieroca Street, where the activities of the community were concentrated. In addition to the Maharashal Synagogue and the Bet Midrash, there was another prayer-house, in the name of Avraham ben Chaim, one of the leaders of the Council of the Four Lands*, and the study house of the \"Seer of Lublin\". A third synagogue was built in Podzamcze Street - the \"Leifer\", associated with the name of Shaul Wahl, of whom it was said that he ruled Poland for one day, but gave up power in favour of a Pole. In 1638 Tsvi Hirsch, an agent of the royal court and a leader of the Council of the Four Lands, built a synagogue in the name of his father, Moshe Doctor (\"Doctor-Shul\"), this too in Sieroca Street.\nIn time the Jewish quarter became too restricted and some of its inhabitants tried to circumvent the rule of \"de non tolerandis judais\" (not to tolerate Jews within the confines of the city) implemented by watchful citizens, with a view to moving to other parts of the town. Few, however, were permitted to do so, and these only for a limited period. In 1655 a fire broke out in the Jewish quarter and most of the houses went up in flames. Reconstruction took many years. As mentioned above, after the \"deluge\" (the wars of 1648-60) L lost its privileged status. The Council of the Four Lands, which until then usually met in L, moved in 1680 to Jaroslaw, which was developing at the time and was an important centre of trade and markets.\nIn the 18th and the second half of the 19th century also, the Jews continued their attempts to be allowed to live outside the Jewish quarter, but generally without success. In 1761 Jews who were there without authorisation were expelled from the centre of town and, with a few fortunate exceptions, were compelled to return to the crowded conditions of the quarter. This state of affairs continued until the Tsar's edict of 1862 annulling the restrictions on Jewish dwellings in the Kingdom of Congress Poland.\nThanks to its status as an important commercial centre as early as the 15th century and its position at the crossroads of the trade route from Western Poland to the North and South-East of the country, the markets of L attracted large numbers of Jewish merchants from all corners of Poland and beyond. The Jews traded in almost all the wares bought and sold on these occasions. In 1530/31 Jewish merchants transported through the auspices of the Chamber of Commerce in L 136 barrels of wine, 503 oxen, 15,000 ells of cloth, 47 rolls of silk, 38,297 furs and hides, 5 wagons of iron, 82 stone of steel, 22,170 ells of fabrics, and other wares. In 1584 Jewish merchants from Krakow brought to the market in L 185 wagons loaded with goods. The communities of Poznan and Krakow even had in L brokers, whose task was to settle differences between the merchants during the markets. For their part, the merchants of L maintained contact with important merchants outside Poland.\nAt the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the 16th the name of the merchant Yoska Szachnowicz of L (the father of Rabbi Shalom Shachna Hacohen) was well-known for his trading and leasing activities. Yoska was the King's excise officer and in charge of customs in Reisen and Podolia.\nThe markets of L, where Jewish notables from all over Poland gathered, became in time the core around which the Council of the Four Lands grew. However, before they achieved commercial status the Jews of L had to overcome many difficulties. In 1518 King Sigismund I acquiesced in the request of the citizens and town council, and ordered his representative in L, Jan of Filicia, to curtail the trading rights of the local Jews. In 1521 the king issued an edict forbidding Jewish pedlars to purchase produce brought into town by the local farmers. Two years later another order was published with a view to placing the trading rights of the L Jews on an equal footing with those of Lwow, Poznan and Krakow. This order contained a set of restrictions, mainly a ban on retail trading by Jews and a curb on their wholesale activities. The Jews of L were also forbidden to have shops, and were only allowed to set up temporary booths in their own quarter. Christians were forbidden to lease shops or stalls to Jews, infringements being punishable by fines. In spite of this, the Jews managed to rent stalls and shops during the annual markets.\nIn 1531 there was an action brought by the Municipality of L against the Jews concerning payment of tax on imports of woven goods. The king ruled that the Jews had to pay this tax, despite the fact that non-Jewish citizens were exempt. Contrariwise, there were instances where the Jews were freed of various taxes by royal order; for example, in 1530 the Jews were exempted from paying road tax.\nGenerally speaking, the Jews strove to arrive at a compromise with their non-Jewish townsmen. The Christians in the Podzamsze quarter held a monopoly on the right to produce and market wines, beer and mead; and in 1590 the king forbad the Jews to engage in these activities. They, however, managed to circumvent this ban through an arrangement whereby, cash in advance, they could sell spirits purchased from the Christians. In return for this favour, the Jews agreed to make an annual gift of 35 ells of finest quality cloth to each member of the town council, and twice a year a pound of pepper to the town clerk and the seven members of the council. The Jews were forbidden to sell bread and flour to non-Jews. This agreement was renewed by the two parties every few years, with the approval of the king. From time to time new edicts and restrictions were imposed on the Jews. In 1650, as a result of Jesuit pressure, Jewish apothecaries were forbidden to prepare or sell medicine. And four years later, in 1654, Jewish musicians were banned from appearing in public without special permission from the town authorities.\nIn their battle against Jewish trade the other citizens employed not only legal means, but also violence. Now and then they would burst into the Jewish quarter and kill, and loot property and wares. Such an incident occurred in 1623. There was also violence for its own sake. In 1646 pupils of the ecclesiastical \"colleges\" (also known as \"Dzakim\") fell upon the Jewish quarter. In the course of this disturbance eight Jews were killed, many injured, and 20 houses emptied of their contents. In 1598 a rumour of blood libel spread through the town; three Jews of L were accused of murdering a Christian child for ritual purposes, and the mob tried them and slaughtered them brutally. Members of the Jesuit Order in L set up a printing press and distributed leaflets with virulent accusations against the Jews.\nJewish artisans too were forced to wage a hard battle against their non-Jewish competitors for the right to engage in their trade. Even before the \"deluge\" the Christian artisan guilds enjoyed privileges that entailed bans or restrictions on Jewish business. In 1535, for example, the Christian tailors' guild obtained from the king an order banning Jewish tailors from engaging in their trade, and in 1595 the bakers' guild obtained a similar decree from King Sigismund III forbidding Jews to bake bread or trade in flour. This devout king also granted privileges to the guilds of carpenters, glaziers and ropemakers, according to which the guilds were excluded from accepting as members unbelievers, heretics and Jews.\nThe municipality, the official patron of the arts, also approved many measures directed against Jewish artisans. In the 17th and 18th centuries Christian artisans, with the approval of the municipality, adopted regulations designed to forbid the Jews to engage in various trades, or to restrict them to marginal activities. The Christian artisans also obtained from the authorities a ban on Jewish merchants supplying various trades with raw materials.\nHowever, in not a few cases the Christian organisations waived some of the prohibitions and restrictions in return for money; a typical example of this was the agreement of 1689 with the guild of weavers of gold and silver threads, by which three Jewish weavers were permitted to work in eight workshops, and 13 Jewish brokers and suppliers in the branch were allowed to buy and sell raw materials - apart from Christian ritual articles - exclusively to non-Jewish artisans. In return the Jews consented to pay to the guild 100 guilders four times a year and to accept supervision of their workshops by the guild. Clearly the Jewish artisans could not put up with these numerous restrictions and endeavoured to circumvent them by all means possible, both legal and illegal. In 1600 a group of Christian tailors seceded from their guild and started a separate guild in Podzamcze (a residential area open to Jews). The new guild accepted 24 Jewish tailors on payment of an annual fee. Since, however, the number of active Jewish tailors far exceeded those accepted by the guild, and since this majority also had to earn a living, many of them plied their trade illegally. This led to friction and violence. In 1781 a new agreement was signed by which the number of Jewish tailors permitted to work was increased to 42; but this new arrangement also included the old restrictions and obligations incumbent upon the Jews. In 1792 the parties concerned drew up yet another agreement, but neither did this put an end to dissension. The Christian guild continued to complain that the Jews were in arrear of payments and that they employed Jewish tailors from other towns. In 1805 the two tailoring guilds of the town amalgamated, and 15 years later the number of Jewish members had surpassed that of the Christian. One restriction though still remained: Jews were not eligible for election to the guild council. But in 1832 this disability was also removed, and two Jews were elected to this body.\nSimilar struggles were waged by other Jewish artisans. For example, in 1595 the Christian bakers were granted by the king's representative the privilege of trading in flour and baking products - this was denied to the Jews. This right was renewed in 1611 by Sigismund III, and again several times by successive Polish kings. Yet after a difficult struggle by the Jewish bakers a breach was made; it transpired that the Jews were allowed to bake products for their own use, and they also exploited this paragraph with extra-legal activity.\nThe attitude of the royal authorities in the town to Jewish artisanship was far more obdurate than towards Jewish trade. The reason for this was mainly fiscal: Jewish trade constituted an important source of revenue for the king and the town, and the authorities were therefore prepared to compromise and allow Jewish trade, albeit with various restrictions. Despite such difficulties and curbs, however, Jewish workshops in L increased their activity and extended into more and more branches. According to the Census of 1764/5 there were 38 artisan workshops in all, nine of which were unspecified. Over 20 years later, in 1786, there were 30 tailor-shops (only nine were Christian); 30 shoemakers (masters only, excluding journeymen and apprentices); 30 glaziers (only one Christian); an unspecified number of jewellers (nearly all Jews - only two non-Jews are mentioned); and furriers, where Jews outnumbered non-Jews by four to one. The tinsmiths and coppersmiths were all Jews, as were the bookbinders and coopers.\nIn addition to trade and artisanship the Jews engaged in credit transactions and leased the right to collect national and municipal monies (taxes and public revenue). Some of the tax and rent collectors and lessees prospered greatly and accumulated much capital. Joska Szachnowicz, who lived at the end of the 15th and the beginning of the 16th century, and was the main lessee of royal revenue in \"Lesser Poland\" and in Reisen, has already been mentioned. After his death in 1507 his wife Golda took over his business, and she was followed by her son, Pesach Joskowicz (his younger brother, Szachna, was known as the greatest of L's rabbis). Much business in credits was carried out in the 16th century by the doctor Yitzhak Maj and his brothers Moshe and Joel. The sum of these transactions amounted to 5,000 guilders, an enormous figure for those times. In 1604 Moshe Doktorowicz (son of a doctor), a leader of the community, leased tax collection of the Jews in 20 towns in the districts of Belz and Chelm.\nThe struggle of the Jews to earn a living was especially difficult because of the heavy tax burden. These included royal taxes, municipal taxes, and other duties and payments, both regular and extraordinary - property taxes to estate owners (juridically included in L), and the constant need to give presents to the royal functionaries, to the artisan guilds, to priests, to the Jesuit schools, and so on and so forth.\nIn addition to a poll-tax (one guilder for every Jew over the age of one - this was raised to three guilders in the 18th century) the Jews of L in 1640 paid to the royal treasury (via the Starustra) 700 guilders a year. To this sum was added an annual tax to the Woiwoda (300 guilders), payments for maintenance of the royal court and entourage whenever they passed through L, and a tax called \"royal szos\" on houses and land. The Jews of L contributed \"voluntarily\" to the liquidation of the kingdom's public debts - their share sometimes amounted to as much as 60,000 guilders.\nThe Jews of L paid a whole series of direct and indirect taxes to the municipality and to the council of Podzamce, where the Jewish quarter lay. The shopkeepers, artisans, and house owners paid duties on goods, funeral tax, tax on drinks, market tax, import tax, and so forth. In addition to all these, the Jews also paid taxes to the community - a direct tax (\"sum\") and indirect taxes (\"maintenance\", \"clientele\", etc.). The burden of payments on each Jewish head of family was very heavy, and many could not meet the demand.\nIn times of war taxes and duties on the Jews were doubled and redoubled. The Jews paid most of the enemy's impositions on a town under siege and the conqueror's ransom money, amounting to thousands and tens of thousands of guilders. In 1676 the Jews were required to pay 8,000 guilders for military expenses. In 1698 they contributed 4,000 guilders towards renovation of the town hall. Large sums were also demanded to finance the town's water supply and other services. Contemporary documents naturally make no mention of the sums paid to officials, to merchant guilds or to artisan guilds.\nThe municipal taxes had no foundation in law, since the Jews were not considered citizens of the town - but the municipality and the Christian organisations took no account of this. Nor did the appeals of the Jews to the royal court help. Thus, Jewish debt grew and grew, and for many years (until the beginning of the 19th century, after the division of Poland) not only was the community unable to repay the principal - it could not even pay the interest and compound interest to be paid to its creditors (the nobility, the church, and the non-Jewish citizens).\nThe community of L was considered the most important in Poland, by virtue of its reputation as a centre of Jewish Law and Culture. Almost all the celebrated rabbis of the time officiated for shorter or longer periods as rabbis of L. In 1475 R. Yaakov Matrident (died 1541) arrived in L, and his presence there brought added renown to the community.\nThe most eminent rabbis of Poland throughout time graced the rabbinical chair in L. First there was R. Yaakov Halevi (died 1541). His successor, R. Shalom Shachna Hacohen, who had lived in L since 1520, was not only L's spiritual Jewish head, but also a man of wealth and responsible to the State for the public finances of the community. Nearly all the renowned authorities on Halacha (Jewish Law) in Poland in the 16th century studied at the yeshiva he established - among them the Rem”a (R. Moshe Isserles). In 1541 he was appointed by the king Chief Rabbi of all \"Lesser Poland\". His gravestone in L has remained untouched. After his death in 1559 he was succeeded by his son, Israel, who set up another Yeshiva, headed by R. Shlomo ben Yechiel Luria (the Maharashal). R. Luria's books \"Yam shel Shlomo\" (Solomon's Sea) and \"Chochmat Shlomo\" (The Wisdom of Solomon) are cornerstones of Talmud and Halacha.\nRabbis Isserles and Luria were considered the leading exegists of their time. R. Luria was one of the founders of \"Nusach Polin\" (the Polish Version) of Judaism. After his death in 1574, the post of Chief Rabbi went to his son-in-law, the Principal of the Yeshiva, R. Shimon Wolf Auerbach, son of R. David Teyvele - he too renowned in his time. R. Auerbach officiated as Rabbi of Prague towards the end of his life, and died there in 1632. His successor in L was R. Mordechai Jaffe, author of the Levushim, a popular exposition of Jewish Law; he too was a renowned scholar and also the founder of the Council of the Four Lands. He died in 1612. At the turn of the century until his death in 1623 the L rabbinate was occupied by R. Yitzhak ben Nute Hacohen. Also Chief Rabbi of L was R. Yehoshua Falk, a pupil of the Maharashal. Another renowned rabbi was the Maharam of L, Meir ben Gedalia, who served as Principal of the Yeshiva and Rabbi of the town (died in 1616). Other Rabbis of L in the 17th century worthy of note are Shmuel Eliezer ben Yehuda Eidles, the Maharasha (1614-25); Yoel Jaffe Sirkes; Naftali ben Yitzhak Hacohen; Efraim Zalman Shor the Elder, author of \"Tvuot Shor\" (Shor's Harvest) (died 1634); Avraham Halevi Epstein (1638); and Yaakov ben Efraim Naftali Hirsh.\nIn the second half of the 17th century too there were many eminent rabbis, amongst them: Naftali ben Yitzhak Katz, son-in-law of the Maharal of Prague (died 1650); Heshel ( son of the former Rabbi Yaakov), whose name was a symbol of Jewish wisdom and perspicacity, and who was popularly known simply as Rabbi Heshel (died 1652); Aharon Shimon Szapira (died 1680); Moshe, son-in-law of the Maharasha and author of \"Mahadura Batra\" (The Last Edition), and his son Israel Isser (died 1692); Tsvi Hirsh ben Zecharia Mendel (died 1690); and Mordechai Ziskind, author of \"Shu\"t Hamaram Ziskind\" (Responsa of R. Mordechai Ziskind).\nThe voices of the Rabbis of Lublin within Jewish Law and Tradition echoed throughout Poland and beyond. In 1587, by special permission of King Sigismund August, there were established in L a Yeshiva and a Bet Midrash. Their first principal was R. Yitzhak Maj, who was not subject to the authority of the town rabbinate.\nIn all matters relating to the internal affairs of the community its leaders and rabbis followed Hebrew Law. In 1631 the Woiwoida, Petro Tarlo, confirmed the right of the Jews of L to manage their affairs on the basis of their religious laws, and to try cases involving Jews only in a Jewish court. Only in cases needing clarification, or those where one of the participants was a non-Jew, was judgment made in the court of the Woiwoida (Governor) or the king.\nL plays an important role in the annals of the Hebrew press in Poland. As early as 1547 sacred Hebrew books were printed there at the works founded by the Shachor family. The first printer in the town, Josef, bequeathed his printing works to his daughter Chana and her husband Yitzhak. In 1559 these two were granted the royal privilege of a monopoly on the publishing and distribution of Hebrew books. Despite this privilege, however, another press was set up near L, in Konskowola. Neither of these two printers survived long. In 1566 two Jews, Eliezer ben Yitzhak and Josef, were in turn given the royal privilege of starting a printing press, but this too had a brief life. In 1578 Klonimus Jaffe, son of R. Mordechai Jaffe, obtained permission from King Stefan Batory to set up a printing press. This works was passed on by Klonimus Jaffe to his descendants, and, with short intervals, was still operating at the beginning of the 19th century. Between 1550 and 1690 it published no less than 103 books. The presence of many printing works in L is evidence of the community's status as an important Jewish cultural centre in Poland.\nL was the home of doctors renowned in Poland and beyond. At the beginning of the 16th century there was a Jewish doctor there called Yechezkiel who, in return for his services, was exempted by King Alexander Jagiello from all taxes. Another Jewish doctor, Yitzhak Maj, occupied a prominent position in the community. As mentioned above, in 1557 he was granted a plot of land on which to build a house of prayer and a yeshiva. One of his contemporaries in L was Dr. Moshe Doktor. His son, Tsvi Hirsz was a leader of the community and an agent at the courts of the kings Sigismund III and Wladislaw IV. At the end of the 16th century there lived in L the doctors Shlomo Luria (a relative of the Maharashal), author of the medical book \"Luach Chaim\" (Table of Life); Shmuel ben Matatyahu; and Moshe Montalto, the descendant of a well-known Marrano family from Portugal, bearer of the title \"Medical Adviser to the King of France\". He died in 1637, and his gravestone still stands in L. His father, Eliezer, returned to Judaism and served as doctor to the French kings Henri IV and Louis XIII. In the 17th century the doctor Chaim (Felix) Vitalis was renowned in L. He had studied In Padua and served as doctor to the court of King Mikael Wisnowiecki. This king invested him with the authority to test all the Jewish doctors. In the second half of the 17th century some of the members of the Jewish community of L went to study medicine in Padua. The best-known of these were Avraham Szapira and Moshe Izrael Polak ben Yitzhak.\nWithin the community there arose organisations and commitees concerned with welfare and mutual help, as well as with education and culture. In L, as in the other Jewish communities in Poland, the foremost among these was the Chevra Kadisha. This was a closed and privileged body, not open to everybody. In its hands, and through it the community, lay the authority to impose on the Jews discipline and moral precepts. It was enough for the Chevra to threaten an offender to be placed on its black list (i.e., when his time came they would not arrange his burial) for him to repent. The offences recorded in this connection were slander, infringement of the rights of possession, contact with non-Jewish legal instances, etc. Among its other tasks the Chevra took upon itself reception of the emissaries, expounders of the Torah, preachers, writers and contractual experts from many countries who came to the community in L; and it also administered the Hospice for the Needy. In the period 1690 to 1760 the records of the Chevra name guests from Italy, Turkey, Prague, Moravia (Mahren), Belgrade and Budapest, in addition to those who came from all parts of Poland. As well as the Chevra Kadisha, documents of the 18th century mention the institutions \"Ner Tamid\" (Eternal Light), \"Bikur Cholim\" (Visiting the Sick), \"Rodfei Tsedaka\" (Seekers of Charity), and \" 7 Kruim (The 7 Guests)\". Ner Tamid was to be found in every prayer-house.\nThe Jewish children were taught in the Cheder by private teachers. There was a Yeshiva in L, headed by the town rabbi and supported by the community council. The Yeshiva students, some of whom were not from L but who came from all parts of Poland, were supported by the \"houseowners\", lived in their houses, and ate daily at their tables - each day in a different house.\nIn the 16th and 17th centuries the Council of the Four Lands convened in L, but moved in 1680 to Jaroslaw. The Rabbi of L, Yehoshua Falk-Cohen, was the leader of the Council and the author of its set of rules. L was also the seat of the Jewish Rabbinical High Court in Poland, among whose duties was granting permission for the publication of Hebrew books. One of the latter was the edition of the Babylonian Talmud (1559-80), that was published to meet the needs of the Torah schools and other Jewish schools (cheders and yeshivas) in Poland.\nIn 1655 Lublin was attacked by the Cossack hetman, Zoltarnko, and the Muscovite Voivoda, Piotr Ivanovitch. The town was occupied after a long siege. The conquerors imposed a tribute of 10,000 guilders on the town, in return for which they promised not to inconvenience the citizens. They did not, however, honour this pledge. First of all, they burst into the Jewish quarter and slaughtered some 10,000 Jews, among them refugees from the surrounding area who had sought refuge in the fortified city, and plundered whatever they could find. A group of Jews wrapped themselves in their prayer-shawls and asked their tormentors to bury them alive in the Jewish cemetery (so that they would be sure to be interred in Jewish soil); the butchers acceded to this request. The names of the victims are engraved on the wall surrounding the cemetery. A description of these events is given in the book \"Hesed Shmuel\" (The Mercy of Samuel - Amsterdam 1699), written by Szmuel ben Dawid. The massacre took place during the Feast of Succot, and for many years it was the custom in L to mourn in this period.\nThe damage wrought on L by the Cossacks was not repaired for some time, and only at the beginning of the 19th century did the population return to its former level, before the \"deluge\", i.e. 4,000 souls. The economic derpression that followed in the wake of the Cossack aggression continued till the middle of the 19th century, when the town began to recuperate.\nOn the conclusion of the bloodbath, as was the custom of the times, the king promulgated a number of orders designed to alleviate the plight of the victims, and the Jews were included in these. A decree of 1669 allowed them to trade inside and outside the walls. Permission was likewise given for the Jews to acquire houses and building plots. In 1679 King Jan Sobieski replaced this decree with one that still allowed the Jews to do business within the walls, except on Christian Holydays. In 1675 the Satrusta Danilowicz issued a decree placing the Jews of L and the \"little they possessed\" under his protection. In 1696 the king renewed the right of the Jews to trade within the walls, like the Christian merchants.\nHowever, these days of clemency did not last. During the \"Catholic Reaction\" in the first half of the 18th century, the non-Jewish citizens renewed their efforts to eject the Jews from business activity, and even to expel them from the town. There were again calls for rigorous measures against them. In 1720 King August II issued an ordinance accusing the Jews for economic and religious reasons, as it were, of mocking the Christian religion, and forbad them completely to engage in commerce; he further ordered them to leave the dwellings they had rented \"by guile\" from the Christians of the town.\nThe last king of the Kingdom of Poland, Stanislaw August Poniatowski, confirmed, however, in 1769, the \"privileges\" granted to the Jews of L in the past - only in 1780 to issue a decree forbidding them permanently to live or engage in trade in L and its suburbs. This situation prevailed until the town was occupied by the Austrians in 1795.\nThe period under review was also marked by a decline in the internal affairs of the Jewish community in L, which was enmeshed in debts and unable to pay the interest and compound interest on the loans taken, and certainly unable to repay the principal. The status of the community declined drastically, and individuals and groups began to act with an irresponsibility that bordered on anarchy. Many stopped paying their taxes to the community and avoided payment of sums the community had undertaken to pay to the authorities. Nor did they honour the code of conduct in business and crafts, with the result that unrestrained competition was rampant, and this seriously affected the livelihood of many of their fellows. These miscreants placed their trust in the hands of the estate owners near the town, on whose land they settled. The Community Council complained to King August III about this situation; and he empowered it to exercise force and even to impound possessions in order to collect the outstanding taxes. The Chevra Kadisha issued a proclamation warning the Jews of L that it would use all its power to combat disturbers of the peace, slanderers, and Jews having recourse to non-Jewish instances. Here too, as in the past, the Chevra threatened to blacklist their names: they would not be given a Jewish burial, and the protection of the nobility would not help them.\nThe second half of the 18th century heralded the spread of Chassidism. At its beginning the rabbis who officiated in L were \"mitnagdim\", like Yaakov Chaim (died in 1769), son of the great mentor R. Avraham ben Chaim, who was the leader of the Council of the Four Lands, and examined the learning abilities of the Baal Shem Tov. After R. Yaakov came R. Shaul Margules (died 1788), who was not a Chassid himself, but whose father, R. Meir Margules, belonged to the circle of the Baal Shem Tov. There is no doubt that only in the time of the latter was R. Yitzhak Horowitz, the \"Seer of Lublin\", able to fix his place of residence in L and to make it the \"Jerusalem of Chassidism\". Large numbers converged on hsi Bet-Midrash, and the whole following generation of holy men in Poland were his students. The \"Seer\" taught and inspired many renowned \"Admorim\" (Chassidic Rabbis) and Heads of Chassidic dynasties throughout Poland, among them the Heads of the Dinover dynasty, R. Tsvi Elimelech Szapira, and his son, R. David; R. Shalom Rokeach, Head of the Admorim of Belz; and many others.\nOpposed to the Chassidim was the Rabbi of the Community, R. Azriel Horowicz, known as “der ayzerner kop\" (died in 1819). The struggle between Mitnagdim and Chassidim weakened the community. With the death of the \"Seer\" the position of L as a centre of Chassidism declined.\nIn the period under review many different rulers held sway over the area which included L; but the legal and civil status of the Jews hardly changed. Neither the Austrians nor the authorities of the \"Principality of Warsaw\", which spoke in its constitution of equality for all its subjects, granted equal status to the Jews, or alleviated their restrictions. The period of a \"decade\", during which equal rights for the Jews were postponed \"until they mended their ways\", lasted till 1862. The regime of Congress Poland that followed made no changes in the legal status of the Jews in that kingdom, including the Jews of L. The so-called privileges granted by August II (in 1720) and Stanislaw August Poniatowski (in 1780), according to which the Jews were permitted to live permanently in the \"Jewish town\" of Podzamsze and in other quarters separated from the Christian sections of the city, remained in force until all restrictions on Jewish residence in Poland were annulled by the Tsarist Decree of June 1862.\nDuring the Polish uprising of 1863 Jewish inhabitants of the town sided with the insurgents.\nFrom 1765 until the 50s of the 19th century the Jewish population of L increased fivefold or more. Most of this was due to natural increase, though part was also explained by Jewish migration - legal and illegal - from nearby provincial towns. From the annulment decree of 1862 to the end of the 19th century the number of Jews in L grew from 8,747 (1857 figure) to 23,586 in 1897. An additional increase took place in the first two decades of the 20th century, numbering in 1921 37,337, or more than a third of the total population.\nIn the second half of the 19th century the Jews of L began to settle in the \"old town\" within the walls. In the course of time, as the Poles preferred to move outside the walls, the Jews formed a majority and the \"old town\" thus became a new ghetto.\nDuring this period the Jews of L earned their living mainly by petty trade and artisanship. There were times when the number engaged in the latter surpassed that of those engaged in the former. The area around L was agricultural. Until 1864 most of the villagers were poor serfs tied to the soil, and their purchasing power was thus very limited. Most of them lived off their own produce and had little need to buy goods. One of the branches that depended on the peasants of the area was the production and sale of strong drinks, and here there was competition between the Jewish lessees and the declining nobility. The few implements needed by the peasants, mainly of iron, were not enough to warrant the establishment of industry or the development of trade.\nThe main agricultural product was corn, and trade in it gave a living to many Jews. They bought the produce at markets, or through the middlemen and distributors of the estate owners, and sold it in Warsaw, or shipped it on rafts to the port of Danzig (Gdansk), with a view to export abroad. Other important products traded in were hides, pig bristles (for brush-making), and wood felled in the surrounding forests. These goods too were sold in Warsaw or exported abroad.\nThe majority of Jewish merchants, however, were merely small shopkeepers or pedlars who wandered round the villages with their merchandise (haberdashery, i.e. needles, buttons, and the like, cheap cloth, etc.). In return they bought in the villages eggs, poultry, feathers, etc. The impoverished rural surroundings were the deciding factor in the miserable situation of the Jewish merchant in L and the extent of his business. No significant change took place in this situation after the emancipation of the serfs. The tiny plots of land given to the latter were insufficient to produce an agricultural surplus for sale.\nUnder these conditions no real industry developed in L, and the share of the Jews in what little manufacture there was remained small: of the 27 larger industrial plants only three were in Jewish hands. Most of these local industries were engaged in processing the agricultural produce.\nIn contrast, the number of Jewish artisans in L increased. Proof of this was the continued existence of craft branches begun in the preceding centuries.The most prominent, as far as numbers and organisation were concerned, were the tailors and furriers. Towards the end of the 19th century the salesmen were almost as numerous. There was considerable Jewish representation in all artisan branches; and in general non-Jews were in a minority in them.\nIn the last two decades of the 19th century three provident funds were established in L. In 1906 they embraced 1,200 members (artisans and small traders) and their equity capital amounted to 91,000 roubles. The clerks and petty traders set up a similar organisation, called \"Igud Le'ezra Hadadit shel Pekidim Usocharim Zeirim Bnei Dat Moshe\" ( The Mutual Aid Society of Clerks and Small Traders of the Mosaic Faith).\nAs stated, in the second half of the 18th century the situation of the Jewish Community Council in L deteriorated as a result of growing debt, and thus led to growing dependence on the local authorities, who were also the main creditors of the community. The interference of the Woiwoda and the Starusta in its activities was a frequent occurrence. The collection of community taxes was subject to the approval of the Woiwoda.\nWithin the community itself conflicts erupted that often involved non-Jewish mediation.\nThere was constant friction between the affluent merchants (who were dominant in the council) and the lesser merchants and artisans. Even the Rabbinate, which, as mentioned, was one of the most important in Poland, was not spared the animosity of these conflicts, and its incumbents were the subject of quarrels without end. The diagreements that arose out of the difficult financial situation grew even worse with the advent of Chassidism.\nThe propagator of Chassidism in L was, as stated, the Seer of Lublin, R. Yaakov Yitzhak Horowicz. During his tenure the community split into two: to begin with the Mitnagdim were in the ascendant, under the leadership of R. Azriel Horowicz, (der ayzerner kop) (died in 1819); but after his death the Chassidim grew stronger, and they determined the choice of the Chassid R. Yehoshua Heshel, Head of the Rabbinical Court at Tarnopol, as Rabbi of L. He was not, however, well received by the Jews of the town: three brothers, prominent members of the community, and Mitnagdim, instituted a campaign against him, and in 1826 he was forced to resign. From that year until his death in 1843 the Rabbi of L was Meshulam Zalman Ashkenazi, who was a Mitnaged, but conciliatory towards the Chassidim. On his death the struggle for the rabbinate was renewed - and this time too the mitnagdim carried the day. The new Rabbi chosen was Dov Berish Ashkenazi from the faction \"Noda Beshearim\" (Known in the Gates). He followed in his predecessor's path, and enjoyed general support in the town. During his term of office the new \"Parnas\" Bet Midrash was built and its activities recorded. Upon his death in 1852, his son, Yaakov Heshel Ashkenazi was chosen as Rabbi, and he fought a bitter war against Chassidism, which had once more established itself in L with the arrival of R. Yehuda Leib Eiger, who established a new dynasty in the town. This dynasty continued until the Holocaust through his son, R. Avraham Eiger, and his grandsons, R. Azriel Meir and R. Shlomo. The last two perished under the German occupation, the former in 1940 and the latter in 1941.\nIn 1868 the Chassidic Rabbi, Shneur Zalman Ladjer, author of \"Torat Chesed\" (Torah of Mercy), was appointed Rabbi of L. In 1892 he left for Palestine, and was replaced by a Mitnaged - R. Hillel Aryeh Lifszyc, who maintained good relations with the Chassidim. Two Chassidic candidates stood against him - R. Gershon Chanoch of Radzin and R. Meir Yechiel of Ostrowiec, but R. Lifszyc won; he was also a man with a more liberal educational background.\nDuring this period several Admorim settled in L, among them R. Tsadok Hacohen, who inherited some of the disciples of R. Yehuda Leib Eiger and was renowned as a great Jewish thinker; R. Moshe Mordechai Twerski, author of \"Maamar Mordechai\" (The Sayings of Mordechai); and many others.\nIn 1910 R. Eliahu Klackin (the father of Professor Yaakov Klackin) was chosen Chief Rabbi. He emigrated to Palestine in 1925 and settled in Jerusalem, where he died in 1932. He wrote several important books, that are mentioned in his last work, \"Dvarim Achadim\" (A Few Things\").\nIn addition to the community institutions, organisations and synagogues mentioned above, note should also be made of other institutions that arose and operated in the 19th century. In 1886 a Jewish hospital was opened, and at the end of the century it contained 90 beds. The community also had an Old Age Home and an Orphanage, and in almost every Jewish quarter there were various charitable organisations alongside the local prayer-houses.\nTowards the end of the century the children of the community - 800 boys and 100 girls - were studying in 43 private cheders. The community also ran a Talmud-Torah for children of the poor. During this period non-Jewish private schools also sprang up in the town, first for girls and afterwards for boys. Their language of instruction was Russian or Polish. They also had Jewish pupils. In the 1890s a government school for Jewish children was established in the Catholic Cathedral building, and the language used here was Russian. At one time it had some 300 pupils; but it closed when the Russians withdrew from the town in 1915. In 1897/8 two elementary schools were opened, with Hebrew as the language of instruction, based on the system \"Hebrew through Hebrew\". One of them, the Pines School, functioned until 1907; the other until the First World War. 1913 also saw the establishment of the \"Yavneh\" school, which closed in 1927 for lack of money, and after the headmaster, Szmuel Rotensztajn, had emigrated to Palestine.\nIn addition to the above there were also government elementary schools for Jewish children, beginning with the Austrian occupation and continuing into the 1930s. They were closed on Sabbaths and Holydays, and were therefore known as \"Szabsuvka\".\nAn important many-sided cultural institution was \"Hazamir\" (The Nightingale), established in 1908 with the aim of fostering a love of Hebrew songs and literature among the young. Hazamir also possessed a library of Yiddish, Hebrew, Russian and Polish books - the first modern Jewish public library in L; and it also boasted an orchestra, and a drama group, that gave performances of Jewish classical plays in L and the nearby provincial towns. The rooms of Hazamir were also the setting for lectures on current and Jewish subjects, with some speakers coming from as far away as Warsaw. In 1910 the organisation \"Chovevei Sfat Aver\" (Lovers of the Hebrew Tongue) was founded; it held Hebrew courses and published Hebrew books. During the First World War, however, this organisation folded, and its assets, including the library, passed into the hands of the \"Bund\".\nAt the end of the 19th century the first groups of \"Chovevei Zion\" (Lovers of Zion) appeared; to begin with their activities were more social than political. At the beginning of the 20th century small groups of the \"Bund\" appeared on the L scene; in 1903 its first pamphlets were distributed; and in the following year a branch was officially established. In 1905, the year of revolution, the Bund attracted many members, who organized demonstrations and strikes. Activity also increased of the Jewish groups affiliated to the PPS, the Polish Socialist Party. Folders and booklets in Yiddish were distributed in the streets. A small group of Jewish anarchists also came on the scene. The activities of the Bund resulted in some of its members being exiled to Siberia. A Jewish police agent was murdered, and during his funeral disturbances ensued and the Cossacks were called upon to restore order.\nThe outbreak of the First World War brought with it clear signs of antisemitism by the Russian rulers, who accused the Jews of treachery and aiding the enemy.The Cossacks of the garrison were permitted to plunder Jewish property and to forego payment for goods acquired from Jewish merchants. Some of the town's Jews were exiled to the depths of Russia. Another affliction that affected many Jewish families was forced military conscription. Many young Jews were mobilized, and soon messages began to arrive of their dear ones being killed or wounded in battle. As the front drew near many refugees streamed to L, the economy of the town stagnated, and many Jews were left without work or livelihood.\nIn July 1915 the Russians withdrew from the town and gave way to the Austrians. Before the retreat the Russian commander summoned the engineer Tomorowicz, one of the leading citizens, and ordered him to organize a militia to guarantee order in the town. Tomorowicz was a known liberal, and he also saw to it that a militia was formed in the Jewish quarter (\"the Sixth Commissariat\"). The head of this militia was Bernard Glowinski. It numbered some 200 men aged 18 and above, and who had an unblemished record. Its members were armed with revolvers. A tribunal was also set up with judges from among reputable Jewish lawyers in the town. This militia, which consisted only of volunteers, carried out its duties impeccably and to the satisfaction of the citizens. At the end of November 1915, however, it was disbanded and replaced by professionals, but many of the Jewish militiamen joined the new body.\nDuring the Austrian occupation the existing Jewish political organisations increased their activities, and new ones were founded, including youth movements and groups.\nThe Jewish community and the various organisations of the time opened public soup kitchens that provided warm meals and food to the needy, and especially to children.\nWith the cessation of hostilities and the proclamation of the independent state of Poland in November 1918, the Jews of L, and Poland in general, hoped for a better future in the new nation. They set about repairing the ravages of war and looked forward to a normalisation of economic, political and social life.\nHowever, as early as 1919 events took place in the town that cast a shadow over the community. On a Thursday, which was the market day, Polish army recruits ran amok, attacked Jewish passers-by, destroyed and even looted Jewish shops. Jewish youngsters organised self-defence, and to begin with even managed to repulse the rioters; but in the afternoon there burst onto the scene in Lubartowska Street gangs of butchers and simple trouble-makers, with butchers' knives, iron bars, and other weapons, and began a pogrom that went on until evening. The police did not interfere. The leaders of the Jewish community met with the Mayor, and only then were the police ordered to stop the pogrom. The results of these disturbances were 60 injured Jews, of whom three died, and widespread damage to shops and houses. Thus was Jewish L included in the many Jewish communities in Poland that were victims of the riots of 1918-19, after Poland's resurgence.\nWhen the disturbances were over the Jews began to reconstruct their businesses and the institutions of the community. Their first concern was the wretched economic situation following the war. In 1921, after two years of rehabilitation, there was still no renewal of activity in 57 of the 1,714 Jewish-owned workshops and businesses, some of which did not employ hired labour. The units that did begin to operate, 1,657 in number, were mostly small businesses that all in all employed 4,871 persons, half of whom (2,366 - or 48.5%) were the owners and their families. The remainder were employees (2,068 Jews and 437 non-Jews). Most of these businesses made clothing (made -to-measure and ready-made), and hats (to order and for shops); there were also furriers, shoemakers, and leather workshops. Together these employed 2,444 persons, of whom 1,031 were workshop owners, 394 were members of their families, and 997 Jews and a mere 22 non-Jews were hired workers. The next largest group were 139 food businesses, employing 804 persons, more than half of them (424 Jews and 129 non-Jews) employees. The remaining plants and workshops were engaged in a variety of manufactures - timber, building, etc., with a small number of participants compared to the leading segments of clothing and food. Most of the workers in production, particularly the hired ones, were men; a few of the hired workers were children (116 Jews and 34 non-Jews). Most businesses were only active part of the year (construction work lay dormant in the winter, and the manufacture of clothing was also seasonal). In the \"dead\" periods the unemployed and their would-be employers waited for \"better times\". In the larger plants there were few Jews employed, partly because they were not welcome, and partly because the Jews themselves did not want to work in them (since work continued on the Sabbath and Jewish Holydays). Jews were not employed in government offices or the municipality, in public transport, or even in cleaning the streets.\nThe most important sphere after crafts and minor industry were the various forms of trading - wholesale, retail, peddling, and market stallholding. Most of those involved were petty traders, who set up market stalls or peddled their wares in the streets of the town or in the surrounding villages. Their volume of goods and of course their turnover were limited. Their customers were the Polish peasants or the labourers, who were economically poorly off and also subject to unemployment. Most of the peasants had smallholdings that supplied nearly all their needs, though there were articles they had to buy outside, such as tobacco, salt, spirits and matches, all of which were state monopolies. Government policy was to squeeze Jewish traders out of this monopoly sector.\nOne branch was a kind of Jewish monopoly: the leather industry. In the years preceding the Second World War some 95% of production and tanning of hides was in Jewish hands. In 1939 150 workers, 75 of them Jews, were employed in the large tanning plant in the town. The annual turnover of this branch amounted to 20 million zloty (about 4 million dollars). Under Jewish ownership were also a brandy distillery, a brewery, brickworks, flour mills, and a cigarette and tobacco factory, established in 1860 and at its peak employing 400 workers, all of them Jews. After the war, however, this factory was taken over by the State Monopoly and its Jewish workers dismissed.\nBranches employing a majority of Jews were the ones to suffer most in times of crisis. Usually it was not only Jewish apprentices and salesmen who became unemployed, but also the workshop owners, most of whom were self-employed. These latter were not entitled to unemployment benefits, nor were they registered in a sick fund, and they and their families were thus unable to receive medical treatment.\nIn the early years of the 20s the Jews of L, as in other places, set about restoring the mutual aid societies that had existed before the war, and establishing new ones. In the inter-war period there were in L ten provident funds affiliated to the prayer-houses and the political organisations and trade unions. The largest of them was set up immediately after the war by the \"Va'ad Hahatsala\" (Rescue Committee), and its equity capital amounted in the 30s to 140,000 zloty, and its annual turnover to more than 11 million zloty. This fund gave loans at a low rate of interest, and sometimes at no rate of interest, mainly to workshop owners and petty merchants. These loans were often the only way in which shopkeepers and pedlars could replenish their stocks or replace workshop equipment.\nIn this period too ten Jewish banks were established, the first of them, \"Kupat Halvaa Uchisachon\" (Loan and Savings Bank) at the end of the 19th or the beginning of the 20th century. Later there appeared \"Chevra Le'ezra Hadadit Lefkidei Mischar Usocharim Ze'irim Bnei Dat Moshe\" (Mutual Aid Society of Trading Clerks and Small Traders of the Mosaic Faith); \"Habank Harishon Levaalei Mlacha\" (First Bank for Artisans); \"Bank Hasocharim\" (Merchants' Bank); \"Bank Baalei Batim\" (Householders' Bank); and \"Bank Shitufi\" (Cooperative Bank). The employees too established their own mutual aid societies in conjunction with the trade unions. Other bodies were set up at the beginning of the 20th century within the framework of existing organisations. In the 20s there was widespread organized professional activity, embracing most of the Jewish workers. One of the most prominent organisations, in terms of number of members and level of activity was the Union, or Guild, of Needleworkers, founded as early as 1915. Other unions of considerable size followed, such as those of the cobblers, printing workers, tanners, carpenters, butchers, porters, and bakery workers. The largest of them, \"Haigud Hameuchad shel Poalei O'r\" (The United Guild of Leather Workers) counted some 500 members; while the Textile Workers' Guild numbered some 200 members.\nThe community of L was blessed with many institutions of welfare, charity and aid. Especially renowned was the society \"Achiezer\" (Brotherly Aid), which on the threshold of Sabbaths and Festivals distributed food to hundreds of the needy. Money for its activities came from contributions from members of the community (at Purim, on the Eve of Yom Kippur and at weddings). The institution also ran a kitchen for the poor. The organisation \"Linat Tsedek\" (Hospice for the Poor) provided the sick and destitute with medical care and drugs free of charge, and its members helped their families stand watch by the bedside of the ill. In 1919 the organisation \"Zichron Nes\" ( Token of Miracle) was inaugurated with the aim of helping war invalids, bereaved parents, and orphans. It was financed from the sale of the privilege of being called to the Torah (\"Kearot Nedava\" - Collections of Charity) on the occasion of weddings etc. Members of the \"Shabta Tava\" (Good Sabbath) society were wont to walk through the streets on a Friday to collect chalot (Sabbath bread) for the needy. The society \"Hachnasat Orchim\" (Hospice) opened a lodging for indigent travellers: each night tens of them were accommodated. In addition to all these bodies other groups of community volunteers were active, for example, in visiting the vick, supporting the poor, collecting a dowry for penniless brides, and other causes.\nIn 1923 a branch of \"TOZ\" (Polish initials for the Jewish Health Organisation of Poland) was established in L. Its activities were many and varied: in its clinics there were 22 doctors and X-ray and radiography facilities. TOZ ran an advice service for women and a child care centre, and even supported Jewish sports organisations and provided them with training areas. Each summer TOZ organised camps for school pupils. In 1924, the first year these took place, 300 children participated; in 1939 this number reached 1,200.\nAnother institution the community boasted was the Jewish Hospital, opened, as stated, in 1886, but not allowed to function during the Great War. Afterwards, however, it quickly resumed and expanded its activity, with the support of former residents of L in the USA. It contained 30 beds for men and 26 for women, and had an X-ray department, a bacteriological laboratory, and a clinic for quartz radiation. In the late 30s a children's department was opened, and became known for its high professional standard; and an Institute for Hydrotherapy was also inaugurated. Every week the hospital held lectures and symposia, with the participation of doctors from L and the vicinity.\nThe inter-war years saw increased activity by the Jewish political parties and youth movements. Prominent among the parties were the various Zionist factions. Zionist activities in L began, as stated, with the groups of \"Chovevei Zion\" that sprang up at the end of the preceding century. The Zionist Federation crystallised in L during the Austrian occupation (1915-18), and its activity increased following the Balfour Declaration in 1917. When the Mandate for Palestine was decided upon there was much celebration in the community, and all the Jewish shops were closed. At the same time the young people set up \"Tseirei Zion\" (Youth of Zion), which existed until it split into \"Socialist Zionist Youth\" and \"Poalei Zion Smol\" (Leftist Workers of Zion). In 1920 a branch of \"Hechalutz\" (The Pioneer) was set up. In the Zionist Federation building in L lectures and evening classes were held. The Zionists in L were active in all speheres of the political and social life, took part in elections to the Polish parliament, were represented on the Town Council, and of course in the Community Council.\n1924 saw the establishment of \"Haliga Lema'an Eretz-Izrael Haovedet\" (The League for Labour Israel), with the participation of Socialist Poalei Zion, Hashomer Hatsair, Hechalutz Hatsair, Dror (Freedom), and Hapoel. In 1929 the organisation \"Haoved\" (The Worker) was launched in L, consisting of the workshop owners, and particularly those who intended to emigrate to Palestine. After the schism in \"Poalei Zion\" in 1921 the majority of the members of the L branch remained loyal to the left wing of the party. This party exercised much influence among students and pupils; its youth movement, \"Jugent\", had some 140 members in L. In the late 30s, when the atmosphere in the whole of Poland was permeated with national-fascist ideas, the party was persecuted by the authorities, who regarded members of Left Poalei Zion as clandestine communits, and in 1936-37 some of them were even arrested. Prominent among the Zionist youth movements was \"Hashomer Hatsair\" (The Young Watchman). The L cell was set up in 1916, and between the two world wars its membership and activity increased, and a kibbutz training farm was even established. There was also in L a large branch of \"Hanoar Hazioni\", the youth movement of the General Zionists. In 1927 was founded the children's organisation in the name of Borochov, called \"Jungbor\", which was active in the fields of education, information and scouting.\nThe L branch of \"Hamizrachi\" was founded in 1903, and was reorganized at the end of the Great War. Its activities were centred on the Mizrachi Synagogue in Novorowna Street, while for its lectures and discussions it rented the \"Hazamir\" hall once a week. Its members opened the \"Yavneh School\" in L, which turned out several graduation classes. Hamizrachi's youth movement (Tseirei Mizrachi) established several training centres outside the town. In the early 20s branches of \"Hapoel Hamizrachi\" and \"Hechalutz Hamizrachi\" were also set up.\nThe Revisionist Movement was active in L from 1925 on. The first branch to be set up was \"Hashachar\" (The Dawn), and a year later saw the arrival of the youth movement \"Beitar\" (Covenant of Josef Trumpeldor). The Revisionist movement in L and district expanded, and in 1934 had some 50 branches. In the same period one of its important fractions, called \"Brit Hachayil\" (Covenant of Strength), also developed. Beitar ran several amateur groups - drama, literature, etc., as well as a brass band. Each year it organised summer camps, where the young boys and girls received instruction with regard to emigrating to Palestine. To the congresses of the L branch of the Revisionists there came speakers from the national Polish and the world organisation (including Ze'ev Jabotinsky and Menachem Begin) and their meetings attracted a large audience.\nNevertheless, not all the Jews of L belonged to the Zionist camp. Up to 1914 the \"Bund\" operated clandestinely, but renewed its public activities during the Austrian occupation of 1915-18. During the war there was a shortage of food bordering on famine, and the members of the Bund therefore opened a kitchen and set up cooperatives of consumers and a bakery, which employed ten workers. Bund members were also active in the field of culture, and among other things established a library (in the name of Groser), a choir, and a drama group. In 1917 was held the L Congress, where it was decided to sever all connection with the Bund of the Russian Empire and to maintain an independent Polish section. In November 1917, after the October Revolution in Russia, a Workers' Council was set up in L, also with the participation of the Bund. At this time there were attacks on the Jews in L, and to counter them a militia of Polish and Jewish members of the Polish Socialist Party was formed. In 1920 during the Polish-Soviet War the Polish authorities arrested some of the active leaders of the Bund in L. After the war the Bund played an influential role in the Central Committee of the Jewish trade unions in L, with five representatives; and in most of the individual unions it formed a majority, while Poalei Zion and the communists usually had only one representative. The youth and children's movements of the Bund in L - \"Zukunft\" (The Future) and \"Sakif\" ( Threshold ?? ) - had large and active branches.\nSome L Jews were members of the Communist Party, which operated several illegal cells in the town. These members often infiltrated the other Jewish workers' parties (Poalei Zion and Bund). They were mainly active in organising strikes and demonstration and in spreading propaganda. During the 30s some active Jewish communists were arrested and imprisoned; and the threat of imprisonment impelled others to flee abroad, particularly to France, where they continued to maintain contact and help one another.\nAlso present in L were \"Agudat Israel\", its labour faction \"Poalei Agudat Israel\", and its youth movement \"Tseirei Agudat Israel\". Most members of Aguda were to be found among the various Chassidic groups; and their field of action was within the Community Council and in religious education.\nUp to 1932 the majority in the community council were religious representatives, and only a few came from among the \"Neurim\" (The Enlightened or Illuminati), as secular Jews were then called. The council consisted of the general body, or council, and the executive committee. In the inter-war period elections to the council were only partly democratic; women were not eligible to vote, and there were also restrictions with regard to age and economic status. From 1932 on the elections were held on the basis of party lists, and in that year all the parties that had branches in L participated, with the exception of the Bund, which boycotted the elections. Five representatives of Agudat Israel and the Chassidim were elected, together with two from the Artisan List, and one each from the General Zionists, Socialist Poalei Zion, Left Poalei Zion, Mizrachi, the \"People's Party\", and the \"Assimilationists\". At first the Chairman chosen was the lawyer M. Alten, but the Polish authorities withheld their approval, and his place was taken by Y. Zilber. As Chairman of the executive committee, the \"assimilationist\", the lawyer A. Levinsohn, was chosen. He held this post for only a year, when he resigned, and his place was taken by S, Halberstadt from Agudat Israel.\nIn 1930 R. Meir Shapira (1886-1933), one of the leaders of Agudat Israel, was elected Chief Rabbi of L. He established the largest Yeshiva in Poland, \"Yeshivat Chachmei Lublin\" (The Yeshiva of the Wise Men of L). R. Shapira was a brilliant speaker, and was a member of the Polish parliament (Sejm). He initiated learning of the ”Daf Hayomi\" (The Daily Page) throughout the Diaspora. On his death there were no more chief rabbis in L, and the community contented itself with dayanim (judges).\nThe closing years of the 20s and the beginning of the 30s found the community in grave circumstances. It was weighed down with heavy debts, and its income, mainly accruing from schechita (ritual slaughtering), payment for burial plots, and direct taxes, did not cover expenditure, viz., wages in the religious sector (in the Rabbinate there were a rabbi, five dayanim, and a number of \"minor\" rabbis in the suburbs); allocations to various religious institutions and a Talmud-Torah, to the Yeshivat Chochmei Lublin, to the orphanage, to schools where the language was Yiddish; and so forth. Due to the economic problems these allocations were not made on time. and the institutions of the community therefore operated at a low level. The orphanage, for example, was almost without supervision, the children were neglected, and some of them became subject to bad influences, The cemetery too was neglected, and sometimes waterlogged, and there was no vacant ground for new burials.\nIn 1932, following election to the new council, its members set about a thorough reorganisation. Hours of work and reception times for the public were scheduled; the collection of taxes came under strict control; renovations were carried out on the synagogues, especially that of the Maharashal; and the amount and times of payment for allocations to the various institutions were laid down.\nIn the elections of 1939 members of the Bund were also represented. The community faced a crisis, when the authorities insisted on the shochtim (ritual slaughterers) being given functionary status. These schochtim exploited the situation by refusing to pay slaughtering fees to the community, and this seriously undermined its finances. One of the last decisions of the community before the Holocaust was that of August 7th, 1939 - to grant the Jewish Hospital an allocation of 6,000 zloty, and to issue bonds to the samount of 30,000 zloty to ensure normal operation of the council and its subsidised institutions.\nThe Jews of L were represented in the town council via the party lists. In the elections of 1927 16 Jews (most of them from the Bund) were elected to the council, i.e. a third of all its members. At its meetings they put forward the claims of the Jewish institutions and of the Jews of L in general, and protested against all forms of discrimination.\nFrom earliest times there were in L cheders, where Chumesh, Mishna and Talmud were studied. Poor children went to the Talmud Torah, subsidized by the community. Older boys studied at Batei Midrash; and in the evenings, by candlelight, lessons were held in Gemara, Mishna, or the weekly passage of the Torah for adults and married men - and there were among these some veritable scholars.\nIn the inter-war period L, as in other parts of Poland, possessed some state elementary schools for Jewish children - the Szabasuvka. After Polish independence three additional schools of this type were opened.\n* For explanations of these and other organisations and movements mentioned in this survey readers are kindly referred to more detailed reference works. Back\nYizkor Book Project JewishGen Home Page\nCopyright © 1999-2013 by JewishGen, Inc.\nUpdated 10 Apr 2004 by LA"}
{"text": "Lycopene Is a Rising Star of Health BenefitsLycopene Protects Skin, Heart, and More\nf you plan to spend much time outdoors this summer, you might want to make sure that tomatoes figure prominently in your diet. So look forward to eating plenty of tomatoes and dishes made with tomato sauce, drinking some tomato juice, having a bowl of steaming hot tomato soup (better for you than the delicious cold tomato soup gazpacho), and topping it all off with a big wedge of watermelon. Why should you eat these specific foods? Well, for starters, they are loaded with lycopene. You already knew that lycopene is good for prostate health, but now there's a new and unexpected angle: according to a recent report by European researchers, lycopene protects your skin from damage caused by solar ultraviolet radiation.\nLYCOPENE IS A POWERFUL ANTIOXIDANT\nLycopene is a natural carotenoid that has received much attention lately because of its potent antioxidant activity. Carotenoids are common in the plant world and are responsible for giving many vegetables and fruits, such as carrots and tomatoes, their characteristic colors. (You knew that a carrot is a vegetable, but did you know that a tomato is technically a fruit?) These plant compounds are important for much more than just pretty colors, however. Antioxidants such as lycopene (as well as vitamin E, vitamin C, and beta-carotene, a precursor to vitamin A) help to neutralize rogue molecules called free radicals.\nFree radicals can greatly damage our bodies' tissues and have been implicated in cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cataracts, Alzheimer's disease, and others. They also figure prominently in the aging process. These pesky little molecules are hard to escape, as they are all around us and are especially prominent in cigarette smoke and air pollution. To make matters worse, we produce them in our own bodies as natural metabolic byproducts. In addition, the UV rays in sunlight can induce the formation of free radicals in the cells of our skin to generate further oxidative stress.\nFor many years now, we have understood the dangers of excessive sun exposure. And while it looks nice to have a good tan, exposure to solar UV that results in sunburn dramatically increases the risk of skin cancer. Fortunately, many people now routinely use sunscreen to protect themselves from the sun's harmful rays. Over your lifetime, however, much of the UV exposure you experience is likely to occur when your skin is not protected on the outside.1 For this reason, you should take proactive measures to ensure that your skin is protected from the inside. A good way to do that, it seems, is with lycopene.\nTOMATOES PROTECT SKIN FROM UV DAMAGE\nGerman and Dutch researchers have found that diets rich in tomato paste dramatically reduce UV-induced skin damage.1 In a study recently published in the Journal of Nutrition, nine volunteers consumed a diet supplemented with 40 grams (about 1.4 oz, or 3 tablespoons) of tomato paste mixed with olive oil, while ten control subjects received just olive oil (in addition to their normal diet) for ten weeks. The amount of lycopene in the tomato paste was about 16 mg. At the beginning of the study, and again four weeks and ten weeks later, all the subjects were exposed to UV radiation to induce mild erythema (or sunburn, if you prefer a less clinical term) on their shoulders. The participants, aged 26-67 years, were homogeneous in their coloring. They all had lightly pigmented skin, light-colored hair, and blue eyes, and had experienced minimal tanning.\nThe degree of skin damage (called the a-value) caused by the repeated UV exposures was measured in both groups at the three stages of the study. After the first exposure, both groups had similar a-values (6.0 for controls and 5.6 for those consuming tomato paste), as would be expected for a random sample of individuals. Four weeks later, the a-values caused by UV exposure were slightly lower (5.4 for controls, 5.1 for the test group) but were still not significantly different. At the tenth week, however, UV exposure caused a much lower a-value (3.8) in the tomato-paste eaters than in the controls (6.3). To put this another way, those who ate 3 tablespoons of tomato paste daily for ten weeks had 40% less UV-induced skin damage than those who did not.\nLYCOPENE IS THE PROTECTIVE AGENT\nOne way to explain the results of the erythema study is to look at the level of lycopene in the two groups. By the tenth week, the control group showed an 8% decrease in lycopene levels in their blood, and a whopping 51% decrease in total carotenoids in their skin. Conversely, those who consumed the tomato paste increased their blood lycopene levels by 95% and their skin carotenoid content by 15%. It is likely that the increased levels of lycopene and other carotenoids in their skin cells offered a protective benefit against the UV radiation to minimize skin damage.\nAdditional experiments support this idea. A separate study at Tufts University revealed that lycopene levels are depleted much more than those of other carotenoids (beta-carotene, for example) in UV-damaged skin when compared to adjacent undamaged skin.2 The researchers concluded from this that lycopene is preferentially sacrificed to protect the skin when UV radiation creates free radicals in the skin cells.\nDO I HAVE TO EAT MY TOMATOES?\nJust about everyone loves tomatoes, but they were regarded with great suspicion in Europe when Spanish explorers first brought them back from their native South America. They were thought to be poisonous, in fact, because they were recognized as belonging to the Nightshade family of plants, many of which are deadly. But fear soon gave way to enthusiasm for the delectable red fruit, which came to be known as the \"love apple\" because of its supposed aphrodisiac properties. It was the Italians, God bless 'em, who took the tomato to its greatest culinary heights, without even knowing about the benefits of lycopene. Mangia!\nLycopene intake is most strongly\nassociated with reducing the\nrisk of prostate, stomach,\nbreast, and lung cancer.\nBased on a 1999 Canadian study of dietary habits, the average daily intake of lycopene is 25 mg, an amount that falls well short of the recommended intake of 35 mg/day.3 Individuals with a tomato-poor diet are especially susceptible to lycopene deficiency, as 80-85% of dietary lycopene is typically supplied by tomatoes. We could all eat a lot more tomatoes, but not everyone wants to do that, especially not every day. An easier and more reliable way to make up the deficit is through supplementation.\nBut we'll still eat some tomatoes, of course, and Table 1 demonstrates that cooked, processed tomatoes are the best source of lycopene, because they have significantly higher levels than raw tomatoes. In addition, oils or fatty foods, such as cheese, eaten together with tomato products increase the amount of lycopene released into your bloodstream, making that much more of it available to the cells that need it most. Pizza, it turns out,is especially good in this regard - but don't use that as an excuse to become a pizza pig, or you'll probably die young.\nLYCOPENE MAY ALSO PROTECT AGAINST CANCER AND HEART DISEASE\nWe've already seen that lycopene is a potent antioxidant. Thus it is surprising to find that the amount of lycopene in a particular food does not directly correlate to the antioxidizing power of that food. When the foods listed in Table 1 were analyzed for total antioxidant capacity, it was found, e.g., that tomato soup has at least twice as much antioxidant capacity as any of the other foods.4 This can be explained by considering that tomatoes contain multiple antioxidants in addition to lycopene, such as vitamin C, lutein, beta-cryptoxanthin, alpha-carotene, and beta-carotene (and possibly many more).7 These antioxidants likely tolerate the processing procedures differently, and consequently the foods in Table 1 have different antioxidant capacities than would be predicted based solely on lycopene content.\nWhile it is true that lycopene is an important antioxidant, it may have a host of other beneficial effects on the body as well. For example, it has been proposed that lycopene may participate in improving hormonal, immune, and metabolic processes in our bodies to improve our health and reduce the risk of certain diseases.8\nSeveral studies indicate that tomato-enriched diets promote improved health by reducing the risk of various cancers and heart disease. For example, when the dietary habits of 1271 elderly individuals in Massachusetts were examined, it was found that a tomato-rich diet reduced the cancer death rate by 50%, whereas a diet rich in carrots or beta-carotene had no protective effect.9 Additional studies support these results and indicate that lycopene intake is most strongly associated with reducing the risk of prostate, stomach, breast, and lung cancer.10\nMen with the highest\nconcentrations of lycopene had a\n48% lower risk for heart attack\nthan those with the lowest\nThere are also numerous studies indicating that a high intake of tomatoes reduces the risk of certain types of cardiovascular disease.11 But is it tomatoes in general, or lycopene in particular, that reduces the risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease?\nSTUDIES LARGE AND SMALL POINT TO LYCOPENE\nA number of studies have recently been initiated in an effort to ascertain whether lycopene, and not some other compound in tomatoes, is responsible for improved health benefits in people who consume a tomato-rich diet. Many of these studies have not yet been completed, because it takes a long time, especially with diseases such as cancer and heart disease, to establish a link between a specific compound and a reduced risk of disease. However, the results of a few studies indicate that lycopene is the specific ingredient in tomatoes that provides improved health benefits.\nOne study showed that high lycopene intake reduced the risk of prostate cancer by 21%, whereas other antioxidants found in tomatoes, including beta-carotene, alpha-carotene, lutein, and beta-cryptoxanthin, had no beneficial effect with respect to this cancer.12 Importantly, this study involved 47,894 male health professionals and is the largest study of its kind completed to date.\nSeparate studies have been conducted to investigate the role of lycopene in cardiovascular diseases. One important study examined a group of men under the age of 70, recruited from ten European countries, who had experienced an acute myocardial infarction (death of heart cells due to lack of oxygen in the heart tissue) and compared them to an appropriate control group.13 The results indicated that men with the highest concentrations of lycopene in their adipose (fat) tissue had a 48% lower risk for myocardial infarction than those with the lowest lycopene concentrations.\nA small pilot study (employing only 19 healthy adults) showed that dietary supplementation with lycopene (40-75 mg/day) at least doubled the amount of lycopene in the blood and decreased the amount of lipid peroxidation, a damaging oxidative degradation of fatty molecules or molecular complexes, such as LDL.14 Reducing lipid peroxidation is important because oxidized LDL leads to the formation of artery-clogging plaque and increases the risk of heart disease. It turns out that lycopene is carried in the blood by LDL and may help to protect it from oxidation. Thus, lycopene may help reduce the risk of heart disease. It sounds like lycopene is a good deal all around.\nWhatever route you take, make sure you arm yourself with the natural substances that will ensure your general good health during your active, sun-drenched summer.\n- Stahl W, Heinrich U, Wiseman, et al. Dietary tomato past protects against ultraviolet light-induced erythema in humans. J Nutr 2001;131:1449-51.\n- Ribaya-Mercado JD, Garmyn M, Gilchrest BA, Russell RM. Skin lycopene is destroyed preferentially over beta-carotene during ultraviolet irradiation in humans. J Nutr 1995;125:1854-9.\n- Rao AV, Waseem Z, Agarwal S. Lycopene contents of tomatoes and tomato products and their contribution to dietary lycopene. Food Res Intl 1999;31:737-41.\n- Djuric Z, Powell LC. Antioxidant capacity of lycopene-containing foods. Intl J Food Sci Nutr 2001;52:143-9.\n- Agricultural Research Service. USDA-NCC Carotenoid Database for US Foods - 1998. Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, Beltsville, MD, 1998.\n- Clinton SK. Lycopene: chemistry, biology and implications for human health and disease. Nutr Rev 1998;56:35-51.\n- Duke JA. Handbook of Phytochemical Constituents of GRAS Herbs and Other Economic Plants. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, 1992, pp 345-9.\n- Rao AV, Agarwal S. Role of antioxidant lycopene in cancer and heart disease. J Am Coll Nutr 2000;19:563-9.\n- Colditz GA, Branch LG, Lipnic RJ. Increased green and yellow vegetable intake and lowered cancer death in an elderly population. Am J Clin Nutr 1985;41:32-6.\n- Giovannucci E. Tomatoes, tomato-based products, lycopene, and cancer: review of the epidemiologic literature. J Natl Can Inst 1999;91:317-31.\n- Arab L, Steck S. Lycopene and cardiovascular disease. Am J Clin Nutr 2000;71(Suppl):1691-5S.\n- Giovanucci EL, Ascherio A, Rimm EB, Stampfer MG, Colditz GA, Willett WC. Intake of carotenoids and retinol in relationship to risk of prostate cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst 1995;87:1767-76.\n- Kohlmeier L, Kark JD, Gomez-Garcia E, et al. Lycopene and myocardial infarction risk in the EURAMIC study. Am J Epidemiol 1997;146:618-26.\n- Agarwal S, Rao V. Tomato lycopene and low-density lipoprotein oxidation: a human dietary intervention study. Lipids 1998;33:981-4."}
{"text": "The North River in New Netherland\nJoan Vinckeboons (1617–70) was a Dutch cartographer and engraver born into a family of artists of Flemish origin. He was employed by the Dutch West India Company and for more than 30 years produced maps for use by Dutch mercantile and military shipping. He was a business partner of Joan Blaeu, one of the most important map and atlas publishers of the day. Vinckeboons drew a series of 200 manuscript maps that were used in the production of atlases, including Blaeu’s Atlas Maior. This pen-and-ink and watercolor map ..."}
{"text": "Biology exquisitely creates hierarchical structures, where initiated at nano scales, are exhibited in macro or physiological multifunctional materials to provide structural support, force generation, catalytic properties or energy conversion1 (see Figure 1). This is exemplified in a wide range of biological materials such as hair, skin, bone, spider silk or cells, which play important roles in providing key functions to biological systems2.\nOur research focuses on studying the mechanisms of deformation and failure of biological materials by utilizing a computational materials science approach. Our goal is to elucidate nature's design principles that facilitates the formation of materials with exceptional material properties1,3, despite typically inferior building blocks4,5.\n|Figure 1. Three example biological protein materials (A, intermediate filaments, B, collagenous tissues, C, amyloid proteins), revealing their hierarchical makeup. Our research focuses on the development of multiscale material models, specifically focused on their mechanical behavior at deformation and failure (figure taken from Ref. #3).\nThese efforts are part of a broader field of investigation referred to as materiomics. Materiomics is defined as the study of the material properties of natural and synthetic materials by examining fundamental links between processes, structures and properties at multiple scales, from nano to macro, by using systematic experimental, theoretical or computational methods6,7.\nIn order to provide a bottom-up description of materials behavior, our interdisciplinary team of undergraduate students, graduate students and postdocs applies an experimentally validated atomistic based multi-scale simulation approach that considers the structure-process-property paradigm of materials science and the architecture of proteins from the atomistic level up to the overall structure. This novel viewpoint links chemistry and genetics to resulting functional material properties, and provides us with a powerful foundation to ask fundamental questions about the behavior of biological materials.\nMoreover, the development of multi-scale, hierarchical models to explain the deformation and failure mechanisms of biological materials provides critical insight into how biological materials are made and how they derive their unique properties. This learning-from-failure-approach has already proven to be useful for engineered materials, and its application to biological materials holds the promise to transform our understanding of key material design principles that have evolved in nature8.\nIn the following sections we review two case studies that demonstrate the application of materiomics.\nHierarchical Structures are Crucial to Provide Multiple, Disparate Properties in a Single Material\nOur work has contributed to explain some of the most remarkable properties of biological materials, specifically their ability to provide multiple functions despite severe limitations in the quality of available building blocks, and the ability to adapt to different environmental conditions (for a review, see Ref. #3).\nFor example, strength, robustness and adaptability are properties of fundamental importance to biological materials and structures, and are crucial to providing functional properties to living systems. Strength is defined as the maximum force (or pressure) a material can withstand before breaking. Robustness is defined as the ability of a material to tolerate flaws and defects in its structural makeup while maintaining its ability to provide functionality.\nAdaptability refers to the ability of a material to cope with changing environmental conditions. These properties are crucial for materials in biology (such as skin, bone, spider silk, or cells), which either provide structural support themselves (such as the skeleton formed by bone), or need to withstand mechanical deformation under normal physiologic conditions (such as cells and tissue associated with blood vessels that are exposed to the pressure of the blood).\nIn engineering, strength and robustness are disparate properties (see Figure 2), and it remains challenging to create materials that combine these two features. Glass or ceramics, for example, are typically very strong materials. However, they are not very robust: Even a small crack in a glass, or an attempt to deform glass considerably will lead to catastrophic failure.\n|Figure 2. Schematic of the robustness-strength domain, comparing engineered materials and biological materials. The squares represent different hierarchical structures, designed based on more than 16,000 alpha-helical protein filaments. The analysis shows that most random arrangements (98.13%) fall on the so-called banana curve, while fewer, specifically designed structures (1.98%) fall on the inverse banana curve (figure taken from Ref. #3).\nIn contrast, metals such as copper are very robust; however, they do typically not resist large forces. Yet, these materials allow for large deformation, and even the existence of cracks in the material does not lead to a sudden breakdown. Yet, many biological materials (such as cellular protein filaments, blood vessels, collagenous tissues such as tendon, spider silk, bone, tendon, skin) are capable of providing both properties - strength and robustness, very effectively, and are also combined with the ability to adapt to changes in the environment1,3.\nThe key to understand these remarkable properties is the particular structural makeup of biological materials, consisting of few distinct elements (such as alpha-helices or beta-sheet protein domains), but a great diversity in structural arrangement of these elements at multiple material levels, from nano to macro1,3. Most fibers, tissues, organs and organisms found in nature show a highly hierarchical and organized structure, where features are found at all scales, ranging from protein molecules (≈50 Å), protein assemblies (≈1 to 10 nm), fibrils and fibers (≈10 to 100 µm), to cells (≈50 µm), and to tissues and organs (≈1000s and more µm).\nMost early studies have focused on investigations at single scales, or treated tissues or the cellular microenvironment as a continuum medium without heterogeneous structures (e.g. studies that examine isolated effects of material stiffness or the role of chemical cues alone on cell behavior). However, the cause and effect of biological material mechanics is more complex than a singular input at a specific scale, and thus, the examination of how a range of material scales and hierarchies contribute to certain biological function and dysfunction has emerged as a critical aspect in advancing our understanding of the role of materials in biology in both a physiological and pathological context. Specifically, the origin of how naturally occurring biological protein materials are capable of unifying disparate mechanical properties such as strength, robustness and adaptability is of significant interest for both biological and engineering science, and has attracted significant attention.\nThrough the development of multiscale computational models that provide a representation of multiple material hierarchy levels in a single model, we have elucidated the key role that multiscale mechanics plays in defining a material's ultimate response at failure, and how nature's structural design principles define the hierarchical makeup of biological materials9,10. This process, likely evolutionarily driven, enables biological materials to combine disparate properties such as strength, robustness and adaptability, and may explain the existence of universal structural features observed in a variety of biological materials, across species (Figure 2)11.\nOsteogenesis Imperfecta, Brittle Bone Disease\nMateriomics can also be applied to study the catastrophic breakdown of biological materials under disease conditions. Osteogenesis imperfecta is a genetic disorder in collagen characterized by mechanically weakened tendon, fragile bones, skeletal deformities and in severe cases prenatal death12. Our work has shown that osteogenesis imperfecta mutations severely compromise the mechanical properties of collagenous tissues at multiple scales, from single molecules to collagen fibrils13,14.\nMutations that lead to the most severe osteogenesis imperfecta phenotype correlate with the strongest effects, leading to weakened intermolecular adhesion, increased intermolecular spacing, reduced stiffness, as well as a reduced failure strength of collagen fibrils that compromises the ability of collagen to provide strength and toughness to connective tissue. Our work has shown that the reason for this is a change in the stress distribution inside collagen fibrils, and is due to the formation of nano-cracks where stress concentrations at the corners develop (Figure 3).\n|Figure 3. Effect of osteogenesis imperfecta on the stress distribution inside collagen fibrils (left), and resulting change in the stress-strain response (right)14. The formation of nanocracks at the location of mutations result in local stress concentrations (marked with red color), which reduces the overall strength of the fibril as it induces intermolecular shear at moderate applied loads.\nOur findings provide insight into the multi-scale mechanisms of this disease, and lead to explanations of characteristic osteogenesis imperfecta tissue features such as reduced mechanical strength, lower cross-link density and changes in the way mineral platelets are distributed. Our results for the first time explain how single point mutations at the nanoscale can lead to catastrophic tissue failure at much larger length-scales.\nThe key to understand this dramatic change in material behavior is that failure must be understood as a multi-scale phenomenon, where the interplay of mechanisms at multiple scales defines the ultimate material response. Conventional models of failure and disease that consider only one level of the material's structure, do not capture the full range of relevant structures and mechanisms and as such remain limited in their ability to describe their behavior of intervene in material breakdown processes associated with disease. The understanding of failure in the context of defects and mutations could fundamentally change the way diseases are modeled and potentially treated.\nOutlook to Future Research\nMateriomics is a powerful tool to enhance the understanding of materials in biology, at multiple scales and in a variety of functional contexts. The long-term goal of our research is to develop a new engineering paradigm that encompasses the analysis and design of structures and materials, starting from the molecular level, in order to create new materials that mimic and exceed the properties of biological ones by utilizing material concepts discovered in biological materials.\nWe envision that our work can lead to the development of a new set of tools that can be applied, together with synthetic biological and self-assembly methods, to select, design, and produce a new class of materials, similar to the approaches used today in computer aided design of buildings, cars and machines. The availability of multifunctional and changeable materials reduces the necessity for the use of different materials to achieve different properties, and as such, may provide significant savings in weight and cost. The utilization of abundant natural building blocks such as organic (e.g. peptides or proteins) or inorganic (e.g. minerals) constituents, combined with novel synthesis techniques based on self-assembly, could lead to new lightweight materials for structural applications in cars, airplanes, and buildings that could reduce the overall energy consumption and ecological footprint of materials.\n1. Buehler, M.J. and Y.C. Yung, Deformation and failure of protein materials in physiologically extreme conditions and disease. Nature Materials, 2009. 8(3): p. 175-188.\n2. Fratzl, P. and R. Weinkamer, Nature's hierarchical materials. Progress in Materials Science, 2007. 52: p. 1263-1334.\n3. Buehler, M.J. and Y.C. Yung, How protein materials balance strength, robustness and adaptability. HFSP Journal, 2010: p. doi:10.2976/1.3267779.\n4. Keten, S. and M.J. Buehler, Geometric Confinement Governs the Rupture Strength of H-bond Assemblies at a Critical Length Scale. Nano Letters, 2008. 8(2): p. 743 - 748.\n5. Keten, S., Z. Xu, B. Ihle, and M.J. Buehler, Nanoconfinement controls stiffness, strength and mechanical toughness of beta-sheet crystals in silk. 2010.\n6. Espinosa, H.D., J.E. Rim, F. Barthelat, and M.J. Buehler, Merger of structure and material in nacre and bone - Perspectives on de novo biomimetic materials. Progress in Materials Science, 2009. 54(8): p. 1059-1100\n7. Buehler, M.J., S. Keten, and T. Ackbarow, Theoretical and computational hierarchical nanomechanics of protein materials: Deformation and fracture. Progress in Materials Science, 2008 53: p. 1101-1241.\n8. Buchanan, M., Learning from failure. Nature Physics, 2009. 5(10): p. 705.\n9. Qin, Z., L. Kreplak, and M.J. Buehler, Hierarchical structure controls nanomechanical properties of vimentin intermediate filaments. PLoS ONE, 2009. 4(10): p. e7294.\n10. Ackbarow, T., D. Sen, C. Thaulow, and M.J. Buehler, Alpha-Helical Protein Networks are Self Protective and Flaw Tolerant. PLoS ONE, 2009. 4(6): p. e6015.\n11. Buehler, M.J. and S. Keten, Failure of molecules, bones, and the earth itself. Rev. Mod. Phys., 2010. in press.\n12. Rauch, F. and F.H. Glorieux, Osteogenesis imperfecta. Lancet, 2004. 363(9418): p. 1377-1385.\n13. Gautieri, A., S. Vesentini, A. Redaelli, and M.J. Buehler, Single molecule effects of osteogenesis imperfecta mutations in tropocollagen protein domains. Protein Sci, 2009. 18(1): p. 161-8.\n14. Gautieri, A., S. Uzel, S. Vesentini, A. Redaelli, and M.J. Buehler, Molecular and mesoscale mechanisms of osteogenesis imperfecta disease in collagen fibrils. Biophys J, 2009. 97(3): p. 857-65.\nCopyright AZoM.com, Professor Markus J. Buehler (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)"}
{"text": "|Part of a series on|\n|Types of creationism|\n|Other religious views|\nThe Omphalos hypothesis states that God created the universe to appear old, but that He created the universe around 6000 years ago. The idea was first proposed in the 1800s in response to the growing popularity of modern Geology and the Theory of Evolution. The idea was poorly received, as theologians felt it made God seem deceitful.\n|This article is a stub. You can help Christian Knowledgebase Wiki by.|"}
{"text": "F. A. Hayek, “Planning, Science and Freedom”, Nature, Nov. 15, 1941, Vol. 148, pp. 580-584.\nThe reasons why the adoption of a system of central planning necessarily produces a totalitarian system are fairly simple. Whoever controls the means must decide which ends they are to serve. As under modern conditions control of economic activity means control of the material means for practically all our ends, it means control over nearly all our activities. The nature of the detailed scale of values which must guide the planning makes it impossible that it should be determined by anything like democratic means. The director of the planned system would have to impose his scale of values, his hierarchy of ends, which, if it is to be sufficient to determine the plan, must include a definite order of rank in which the status of each person is laid down. If the plan is to succeed or the planner to appear successful, the people must be made to believe that the objectives chosen are the right ones. Every criticism of the plan or the ideology underlying it must be treated as sabotage. There can be no freedom of thought, no freedom of the Press, where it is necessary that everything should be governed by a single system of thought. In theory Socialism may wish to enhance freedom, but in practice every kind of collectivism consistently carried through must produce the characteristic features which Fascism, Nazism and Communism have in common. Totalitarianism is nothing but consistent collectivism, the ruthless execution of the principle that ‘the whole comes before the individual’ and the direction of .all members of society by a single will supposed to represent the ‘whole’."}
{"text": "Early in the 14th century the Turkish tribal chieftain Othman (Osman) founded an empire in western Anatolia (Asia Minor) that was to endure for almost six centuries. As this empire grew by conquering lands of the Byzantine Empire and beyond, it came to include at the height of its power all of Asia Minor; the countries of the Balkan Peninsula; the islands of the eastern Mediterranean; parts of Hungary and Russia; Iraq, Syria, the Caucasus, Palestine, and Egypt; part of Arabia; and all of North Africa through Algeria.\nThe Early Empire, 1300-1481\nThe dynasty that Othman (1258-1326) founded was called Osmanli, meaning \"sons of Osman.\" The name evolved in English into Ottoman. The Ottoman Empire was Islamic in religion. During the 11th century bands of nomadic Turks emerged from their home in Central Asia to raid lands to the west. The strongest of the Turkish tribes was the Seljuks. In time they established themselves in Asia Minor along with other groups of Turks.\nFollowing the defeat of the Seljuks by the Mongols in 1293, Othman emerged as the leader of local Turks in the fight against the tottering Byzantine Empire. The final conquest of the Byzantines was not achieved until 1453 with the fall of Constantinople (now Istanbul), but by that date all the surrounding territory was in Ottoman hands.\nThe initial areas of expansion under Othman I and his successors Orkhan (ruled 1326-59) and Murad I (ruled 1359-89) were western Asia Minor and southeastern Europe, primarily the Balkan Peninsula. During Orkhan's reign the practice began of exacting a tribute in children from Christian subjects. The boys were trained to become soldiers and administrators. As soldiers they filled the ranks of the infantry, called the Janizaries (also spelled Janissaries), the most fearsome military force in Europe for centuries.\nMurad I conquered Thrace, to the northwest of Constantinople, in 1361. He moved his capital to Adrionople (now Edirne), Thrace's capital and the second city of the Byzantine Empire. This conquest effectively cut off Constantinople from the outside world, and allowed Murad to control the principal invasion route through the Balkan Mountains, giving the Ottomans access to further expansion to the north.\nDuring Murad I last victorious battle against Balkan allies, he was killed. His successor, Beyazid I (ruled 1389-1402), was unable to make further European conquests. He was forced to devote his attention to eastern Asia Minor to deal with a growing Turkish principality, Karaman. He attacked and defeated Karaman in 1391, put down a revolt of his Balkan subjects, and returned to consolidate his gains in Asia Minor. His successes attracted the attention of Timur Lenk (Tamerlane). Encouraged by Turkish princes who had fled to his court from Beyazid I's incursions, attacked and overwhelmed him in 1402. Taken captive by Timur Lenk, Beyazid died within a year.\nTimur Lenk soon retired from Asia Minor, leaving Beyazid's sons to take up where their father had failed. The four sons fought for control until one of them, Mohammed I, killed the other three and took control. He reigned from 1413 to 1421 and his successor Murad II, from 1421 to 1451. Murad II suppressed Balkan resistance and eliminated all but two of the Turkish principalities in Asia Minor. The task of finishing the Balkan conquests and seizing all of Asia Minor fell to Murad II's successor, Mohammed II (ruled 1451-81). It was he who completed the siege of Constantinople in 1453 and made it the capital of the Ottoman Empire. The whole Balkan Peninsula south of Hungary was incorporated as well as the Crimea on the north coast of the Black Sea. Asia Minor was completely subdued.\nIn addition to conquering a large empire, Mohammed II worked strenuously for consolidation and an adequate administrative and tax system. He was assisted by the fact that the whole Byzantine bureaucratic structure fell into his hands. Although Islamic, Ottoman sultans were not averse to using whatever talent they could attract or sometimes, capture.\nThe Golden Age, 1481-1566\nThree sultans ruled the empire at its height: Beyazid II (1481-1512), Selim I (1512-20), and Suleyman I the Magnificent (1520-66). Beyazid extended the empire in Europe, added outposts along the Black Sea, and put down revolts in Asia Minor. He also turned the Ottoman fleet into a major Mediterranean naval power. Late in life he became a religious mystic and was displaced on the throne by his more militant son, Selim I.\nSelim I's first task was to eliminate all competition for his position. He had his brothers, their sons, and all but one of his own sons killed. He thereby established control over the army, which had wanted to raise its own candidate to power. During his short reign the Ottomans moved south-and eastward into Syria, Mesopotamia (Iraq), Arabia, and Egypt. At Mecca, the chief shrine of Islam, he took the title of caliph, ruler of all Muslims. The Ottoman sultans were thereafter the spiritual heads of Islam thereby displacing the centuries-old caliphate of Baghdad.\nBy acquiring the holy places of Islam, Selim I's cemented his position as the religion's most powerful ruler. This gave the Ottomans direct access to the rich cultural heritage of the Arab world. Leading Muslim intellectuals, artists, artisans, and administrators came to Constantinople from all parts of the Arab world. They made the empire much more of a traditional Islamic state than it had been.\nAn added benefit of Selim I's efforts was control of all Middle Eastern trade routes between Europe and the Far East. The growth of the empire had for some time been an impediment to European trade. In time this led European states to seek routes around Africa to China and India. It also impelled them to face westward and led directly to the discovery of the Americas.\nSelim I's's surviving son, Suleyman, came to the throne in an enviable situation. New revenues from the expanded empire left him with wealth and power unparalleled in Ottoman history. In his early campaigns he captured Belgrade (1521) and Rhodes (1522) and broke the military power of Hungary. In 1529 he laid siege to Vienna, Austria, but was forced to withdraw for lack of supplies. He also waged three campaigns against Persia. Algiers in North Africa fell to his navy in 1529 and Tripoli (now Libya) in 1551. In more peaceful pursuits he adorned the chief cities of Islam with mosques, aqueducts, bridges, and other public works. In Constantinople he had several mosques built, among them the magnificent Suleymaniye Cami named for him.\nImperial Decline, 1566-1807\nDuring Suleyman's long reign the Ottoman Empire was at the height of its political power and close to its maximum geographical extent. The seeds of decline, however, were already planted. As Suleyman grew tired of campaigns and retired to his harem, his viziers, or prime ministers, took more authority. After his death the army gained control of the sultanate and was able to use it for its own benefit. Few sultans after Suleyman had the ability to exercise real power when the need arose. This weakness at home was countered by a growing power in the west. The nation-states of Europe were emerging from the Middle Ages under strong monarchies. They were building armies and navies that were powerful enough to attack a decaying Ottoman military might.\nIn 1571 the combined fleets of Venice, Spain, and the Papal States of Italy defeated the Turks in the great naval Battle Lepanto, off the coast of Greece. This defeat, which dispelled the myth of the invincible Turk, took place during the reign of Selim II (ruled 1566-74). But the empire rebuilt its navy and continued to control the eastern Mediterranean for another century.\nAs the central government became weaker, large parts of the empire began to act independently, retaining only nominal loyalty to the sultan. The army was still strong enough, however, to prevent provincial rebels from asserting complete control. Under Murad III (ruled 1574-95) new campaigns were undertaken. The Caucasus was conquered, and Azerbaijan was seized. This brought the empire to the peak of its territorial extent.\nReform efforts undertaken by 17th-century sultans did little to deter the onset of decay. The Ottomans were driven out of the Caucasus and Azerbaijan in 1603 and out of Iraq in 1604. Iraq was retaken by Murad IV (ruled 1623-40) in 1638, but Iran remained a persistent military threat in the east. A war with Venice (1645-69) exposed Constantinople to an attack by the Venetian navy. In 1683 the last attempt to conquer Vienna failed. Russia and Austria fought the empire by direct military attack and by fomenting revolt by non-Muslim subjects of the sultan.\nBeginning in 1683, with the attack on Vienna, the Ottomans were at war with European enemies for 41 years. As a result, the empire lost much of its Balkan territory and all the possessions on the shores of the Black Sea. In addition, the Austrians and Russians were allowed to intervene in the empire's affairs on behalf of the sultan's Christian subjects.\nThe weakness of the central government, as manifested by its military decline, also showed itself in a gradual loss of control over most of the provinces. Local rulers, called notables, carved for themselves permanent regions in which they ruled directly, regardless of the wishes of the sultan in Constantinople. The notables were able to build their power bases because they knew of the sultan's military weakness and because local populations preferred their rule to the corrupt administration of the faraway capital. The notables formed their own armies and collected their own taxes, sending only nominal contributions to the imperial treasury.\nSelim III (ruled 1789-1807) attempted to reform the empire and its army. He failed and was overthrown. When Mahmud II (ruled 1808-39) came to the throne, the empire was in desperate straits. Control of North Africa had passed to local notables. In Egypt Muhammad Ali was laying the foundation of an independent kingdom. Had the European nations cooperated, they could have destroyed the Ottoman Empire.\nIn 1826, five years after Greece began its fight for independence, the Janizaries revolted to stop reforms. Warfare between the Turks and Greeks was fierce, and eventually a new military system in the style of European armies. He also reformed the administration and gained control over some of the provincial notables, with the exception of Egypt. By the time of Mahmud's death the empire was more consolidated and powerful, but it was still subject to European interference.\nMahmud's sons, Abdulmecid I (ruled 1839-61) and Abdulaziz (ruled 1861-76) carried out further reforms, especially in education and law. Nevertheless, by mid-century it was evident that the Ottoman cause was hopeless. Czar Nicholas I of Russia commented on the Ottoman Empire in 1853: \"We have on our hands a sick man, a very sick man.\"\nThe \"Sick Man of Europe\" 1850-1922\nThe conflicting interests of European states propped up the Ottoman Empire until after World War I. Great Britain especially was determined to keep Russia from gaining direct access to the Mediterranean from the Black Sea. Britain, France, and Sardinia helped the Ottomans during the Crimean War (1854-56) to block the Russians.\nThe Russo-Turkish war of 1877-78 brought Russia almost to Constantinople. The Ottomans were forced to sign the Treaty of San Stefano, which would have ended their rule in Europe except that the European states called the Congress of Berlin. It succeeded in propping up the old empire for a few decades more.\nAbdulhamid II (ruled 1876-1909) developed strong ties with Germany, and the Ottomans fought on Germany's side in World War I. Russia hoped to use the war as an excuse to gain access to the Mediterranean and perhaps capture Constantinople. This aim was frustrated by the Russian Revolution of 1917 and withdrawal from the war. Ottoman defeat in war inspired an already fervent Turkish nationalism. The postwar settlement outraged the nationalists. A new government under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal, known as Ataturk (father of the Turks), emerged at Ankara. The last sultan, Mohammed VI, fled in 1922 after the sultanate had been abolished. All members of the Ottoman Dynasty were expelled from the country two years later. Turkey was proclaimed a republic, with Ataturk as its first president."}
{"text": "Prehistoric mammal hair discovered in Cretaceous amberJune 16th, 2010 - 1:53 pm ICT by ANI\nLondon, June 16 (ANI): Palaeontologists have discovered two mammal hairs encased in amber that is a 100 million years old.\nThe oldest 3D specimens, found alongside a fly pupa in amber uncovered in southwest France, are remarkably similar to hair found on modern mammals, implying that the shape and structure of mammal hair has remained unchanged over the years. They have a very similar cuticular structure to those in modern mammals.\n“We have 2D hair imprints as early as the Middle Jurassic,” the BBC quoted Dr Romain Vullo of the University of Rennes, France, who discovered the hair, as saying.\n“However, carbonised hair provides much less information about the structure than a 3D hair preserved in amber,” Vullo added.\nThe piece of amber, which is fossilised tree resin, was found in the Font-de-Benon quarry at Archingeay-Les Nouillers in Charente-Maritime, southwest France. Above it, the team found four teeth of a primitive marsupial called Arcantiodelphys, to which the hair seems to belong, according to the team.\nThe researchers have cited three possibilities as to why the hair was encased in amber - Either amber swamped part of an animal’s corpse, or a living animal that brushed past the resin lost the hair, or the hair was lost in a similar manner by a mammal that came to feed on insects trapped in the resin, which later fossilised into amber.\nThe details of the discovery are published in the journal Naturwissenschaften. (ANI)\n- Oldest mammalian hair found in France - May 20, 2010\n- Midair collision kills four in France - Oct 18, 2009\n- Fossils, mineral rocks attract huge crowds at expo (With Images) - Jan 05, 2012\n- Mammals running speed determines eye size - May 03, 2012\n- Female mites dominated males in sex: Experts - Mar 17, 2011\n- Flowering plants may have appeared 180 million years earlier than believed - Oct 05, 2009\n- Dinosaur-bird 'missing link' could be egg - Jul 13, 2012\n- Did Ice Age giants' ancestors originate in Tibet? - Sep 05, 2011\n- 49-million years old spider now gets 3-D makeover - May 19, 2011\n- Sea urchin's teeth: Key to everlasting sharp tools - Dec 26, 2010\n- How snakes lost their legs - Feb 08, 2011\n- Bigger brains make dogs friendlier than cats - Nov 23, 2010\n- New tool shows dinosaurs lighter than thought - Jun 06, 2012\n- Dino-era feathers might hold key to how dinosaurs gave rise to birds - Mar 12, 2008\n- Amber Portwood is now out of hospital - Jun 20, 2011\nTags: 100 million years, amber, bbc, charente maritime, corpse, cretaceous, discovery, hairs, insects, mammal, mammals, naturwissenschaften, possibilities, pupa, quarry, rennes france, southwest france, specimens, tree resin, university of rennes"}
{"text": "Residual Data is data that is unintentionally left behind on computer media. In forensic usage, remnant data is typically left behind after attempts have been made to delete the data, after the data has been forgotten, or after the media on which the data resides has been decomissioned.\nResidual data appears at all levels of modern computer systems:\n- Computer systems that are discarded.\n- Partitions in hard drives that are deleted.\n- Files on hard drives that are deleted but not overwritten.\n- Snippets of text in Microsoft Word files.\n- Heap variables that are freed with free()\n- Automatic variables left on the stack of languages like C or garbage collected in languages like Java.\nByers, Simon. Scalable Exploitation of, and Responses to Information Leakage Through Hidden Data in Published Documents, AT&T Research, April 2003\nChow, J., B. Pfaff, T. Garfinkel, K. Christopher, M. Rosenblum, Understanding Data Lifetime via Whole System Simulation, Proceedings of the 13th USENIX Security Symposium, 2004.\nGarfinkel, S. and Shelat, A., \"Remembrance of Data Passed: A Study of Disk Sanitization Practices,\" IEEE Security and Privacy, January/February 2003."}
{"text": "Henry Gray (18251861). Anatomy of the Human Body. 1918.\nand liver, and the falciform and coronary ligaments between the liver and the abdominal wall and diaphragm (Fig. 989).\nFIG. 987 Diagrams to illustrate two stages in the development of the digestive tube and its mesentery. The arrow indicates the entrance to the bursa omentalis. (See enlarged image)\nFIG. 988 Final disposition of the intestines and their vascular relations. (Jonnesco.) A. Aorta. H. Hepatic artery. M, Col. Branches of superior mesenteric artery. m, m. Branches of inferior mesenteric artery. S. Splenic artery. (See enlarged image)\nFIG. 989 Schematic figure of the bursa omentalis, etc. Human embryo of eight weeks. (Kollmann.) (See enlarged image)\nThe Rectum and Anal Canal.The hind-gut is at first prolonged backward into the body-stalk as the tube of the allantois; but, with the growth and flexure of the tail-end of the embryo, the body-stalk, with its contained allantoic tube, is carried forward to the ventral aspect of the body, and consequently a bend is formed at the"}
{"text": "You are here\nThe flaws in this chapter go deeper than merely deepening confusion over basic concepts and omitting references to work which address questions they raise. At critical points, EE quotes biologists in ways which misrepresent their views and distort the state of scientific and philosophical discourse about homology and related concepts. To present the discredited 19th century quibbles of Louis Agassiz as if they had never been addressed is ahistorical and absurd. Claiming that Brian Goodwin rejects evolution as a force which explains homology is plainly wrong. David Wake's concerns over the philosophical definition of homology does not reflect any objection to the use of biological similarity and difference to develop and test hypotheses about evolution. This merely reflects EE's needless focus on a single word, rather than the way that evolutionary biology is actually practiced in the 21st century."}
{"text": "CONTRIBUTION OF MUSLIMS SCIENTIST IN THE FIELD OF MEDICINE AND PHARMACY\nIn the Modern Muslim world is seen as many things , but rarely is it viewed as a source of inspiration and enlightenment . Though it is a force of enlightenment and it is not only verses of the Quran that testy to that fact, but also the great body scholarship produced during the Middle Ages. While Europe was in the midst of darkness, it was the Muslims spurred on the light of their news who picked up the torch of scholarship and science .It was the Muslims who preserved the knowledge of old days , elaborate upon it and passed it to Europe .\nIslamic scientist in Medicine and Pharmacy was not known for many age due to many factors including a) Colonialism and lack of knowledge among Muslims generation in this modern world, other factors is b) lack of institution based facts how and when Islamic Scientists what contribution was . Although every people earn what they do pass on it generation after generation. So we the Islam of today learners should make important to look back over and make research topic selected on this issue and gain knowledge of, respected and Prized the contribution Islamic Civilization by early Muslim scholars\nThe first Muslim physician is believed to have been Muhammad himself, as a significant number of hadiths concerning medicine are attributed to him. Several Sahaba are said to have been successfully treated of certain diseases by following the medical advice of Muhammad. The three methods of healing known to have been mentioned by him were Honey, Cupping, and Cauterization, though he was generally opposed to the use of cauterization unless it “suits the ailment.” According to Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, Muhammad disliked this method due to it causing “pain and menace to a patient” since there was no anesthesia in his time. Muhammad also appears to have been the first to suggest the contagious nature of leprosy, mange and sexually transmitted disease; and that there is always a cause and a cure for every disease, according to several hadiths in the Sahih al-Bukhari, Sunan Abi Dawood and Al-Muwatta attributed to Muhammad, such as:\n“There is no disease that Allah has created, except that He also has created its treatment.\n“Make use of medical treatment, for Allah has not made a disease without appointing a remedy for it, with the exception of one disease, namely old age.\n“Allah has sent down both the disease and the cure, and He has appointed a cure for every disease, so treat you medically.\n“The one who sent down the disease sent down the remedy.\nThe belief that there is a cure for every disease encouraged early Muslims to engage in biomedical research and seek out a cure for every disease known to them. Many early authors of Islamic medicine, however, were usually clerics rather than physicians, and were known to have advocated the traditional medical practices of prophet Muhammad’s time, such as those mentioned in the Qur’a n and Hadith. For instance, therapy did not require a patient to undergo any surgical procedures at the time.\nFrom the 9th century, Hunayn ibn Ishaq translated a number of Galen‘s works into the Arabic language, followed by translations of the Sushruta Samhita, Charaka Samhita and Middle Persian works from Gundishapur. Muslim physicians soon began making many of their own significant advances and contributions to medicine, including the fields of\nALLERGOLOGY, ANATOMY, BACTERIOLOGY, BOTANY, DENTISTRY, EMBRYOLOGY, ENVIRONMENTALISM, ETIOLOGY, IMMUNOLOGY, MICROBIOLOGY, OBSTETRICS, OPHTHALMOLOGY, PATHOLOGY, PEDIATRICS, PERINATOLOGY, PHYSIOLOGY, PSYCHIATRY, PSYCHOLOGY, PULSOLOGY AND SPHYGMOLOGY, SURGERY, THERAPY, UROLOGY, ZOOLOGY, AND THE PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES SUCH AS PHARMACY AND PHARMACOLOGY, AMONG OTHERS.\nMedicine was a central part of medieval Islamic culture. Responding to circumstances of time and place, Islamic physicians and scholars developed a large and complex medical literature exploring and synthesizing the theory and practice of medicine Islamic medicine was initially built on tradition, chiefly the theoretical and practical knowledge developed in Arabia, Persia, Greece, Rome, and India. Galen and Hippocrates were pre-eminent authorities, as well as the Indian physicians Sushruta and Charaka, and the Hellenistic scholars in Alexandria. Islamic scholars translated their voluminous writings from Greek and Sanskrit into Arabic and then produced new medical knowledge based on those texts. In order to make the Greek and Indian traditions more accessible, understandable, and teachable, Islamic scholars ordered and made more systematic the vast and sometimes inconsistent Greco-Roman and Indian medical knowledge by writing encyclopedias and summaries. It was through Arabic translations that the West learned of Hellenic medicine, including the works of Galen and Hippocrates. Of equal if not of greater influence in Western Europe were systematic and comprehensive works such as Avicenna‘s The Canon of Medicine, which were translated into Latin and then disseminated in manuscript and printed form throughout Europe. During the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries alone, The Canon of Medicine was published more than thirty-five times.\nMuslim physicians set up the earliest dedicated hospitals in the modern sense, known as Bimaristans, which were establishments where the ill were welcomed and cared for by qualified staff, and which were clearly distinguished from the ancient healing temples, sleep temples, hospices, assylums, lazarets and leper-houses which were more concerned with isolating the sick and the mad from society “rather than to offer them any way to a true cure. The Bimaristan hospitals later functioned as the first public hospitals, psychiatric hospitals and diploma-granting medical universities.\nIn the medieval Islamic world, hospitals were built in all major cities; in Cairo for example, the Qalawun Hospital could care for 8,000 patients, and a staff that included physicians, pharmacists, and nurses. One could also access a dispensary, and research facility that led to advances, which included the discovery of the contagious nature of diseases, and research into optics and the mechanisms of the eye. Muslim doctors were removing cataracts with hollow needles over 1000 years before Western physicians dared attempt such a task. Hospitals were built not only for the physically sick, but for the mentally sick also. One of the first ever psychiatric hospitals that cared for the mentally ill was built in Cairo. Hospitals later spread to Europe during the Crusades, inspired by the hospitals in the Middle East. The first hospital in Paris, Les Quinze-vingts, was founded by Louis IX after his return from the Crusade between 1254-1260.\nHospitals in the Islamic world featured competency tests for doctors, drug purity regulations, nurses and interns, and advanced surgical procedures. Hospitals were also created with separate wards for specific illnesses, so that people with contagious diseases could be kept away from other patients.\nOne of the features in medieval Muslim hospitals that distinguished them from their contemporaries and predecessors was their significantly higher standards of medical ethics. Hospitals in the Islamic world treated patients of all religions, ethnicities, and backgrounds, while the hospitals themselves often employed staff from Christian, Jewish and other minority backgrounds. Muslim doctors and physicians were expected to have obligations towards their patients, regardless of their wealth or backgrounds. The ethical standards of Muslim physicians was first laid down in the 9th century by Ishaq bin Ali Rahawi, who wrote the Adab al-Tabib (Conduct of a Physician), the first treatise dedicated to medical ethics. He regarded physicians as “guardians of souls and bodies”, and wrote twenty chapters on various topics related to medical ethics.\nAnother unique feature of medieval Muslim hospitals was the role of female staff, who were rarely employed in ancient and medieval healing temples elsewhere in the world. Medieval Muslim hospitals commonly employed female nurses, including nurses from as far as Sudan, a sign of great breakthrough. Muslim hospitals were also the first to employ female physicians, the most famous being two female physicians from the Banu Zuhr family who served the Almohad ruler Abu Yusuf Ya’qub al-Mansur in the 12th century. Later in the 15th century, female surgeons were illustrated for the first time in Şerafeddin Sabuncuoğlu‘s Cerrahiyyetu’l-Haniyye (Imperial Surgery)\nThe first encyclopedia of medicine in Arabic was Ali ibn Sahl Rabban al-Tabari‘s Firdous al-Hikmah (“Paradise of Wisdom”), written in seven parts, c. 860. It was the first to deal with pediatrics and child development, as well as psychology and psychotherapy. In the fields of medicine and psychotherapy, the work was primarily influenced by Islamic thought and ancient Indian physicians such as Sushruta and Charaka. Unlike earlier physicians, however, al-Tabari emphasized strong ties between psychology and medicine, and the need of psychotherapy and counseling in the therapeutic treatment of patients\nMuhammad ibn Zakarīya Rāzi (Rhazes) wrote the Comprehensive Book of Medicine in the 9th century. The Large Comprehensive was the most sought after of all his compositions, in which Rhazes recorded clinical cases of his own experience and provided very useful recordings of various diseases. The Comprehensive Book of Medicine, with its introduction of measles and smallpox, was very influential in Europe.\n(HALY ABBAS)’S KITAB KAMIL AS-SINA’A AT-TIBBIYYA (“Complete Book of the Medical Art“), c. 980, became better known as the Kitab al-Maliki (“Royal Book“, Latin: Liber regalis) in honour of its royal patron ‘Adud al-Dawla. In twenty sections, ten of theory and ten of practice, it was more systematic and concise than Razi’s Hawi, but more practical than Avicenna’s Canon, by which it was superseded. With many interpolations and substitutions, it served as the basis for the Pantegni (c. 1087) of Constantinus Africanus, the founding text of the Schola Medica Salernitana in Salerno\n(Abulcasis), regarded as the father of modern surgery contributed greatly to the discipline of medical surgery with his Kitab al-Tasrif (“Book of Concessions“), a 30-volume medical encyclopedia published in 1000, which was later translated to Latin and used in European medical schools for centuries. He invented numerous surgical instruments and described them in his al-Tasrif.\nAvicenna (Ibn Sina), a Hanbali and Mu’tazili philosopher and doctor in the early 11th century, was another influential figure. He is regarded as the father of modern medicine, and one of the greatest thinkers and medical scholars in history. His medical encyclopedia, The Canon of Medicine (c. 1020), remained a standard textbook in Europe for centuries, up until the renewal of the Muslim tradition of scientific medicine. He also wrote The Book of Healing (actually a more general encyclopedia of science and philosophy), which became another popular textbook in Europe. Among other things, Avicenna’s contributions to medicine include the introduction of systematic experimentation and quantification into the study of physiology,the discovery of the contagious nature of infectious diseases, the introduction of quarantine to limit the spread of contagious diseases, the introduction of experimental medicine, evidence-based medicine, clinical trials,randomized controlled trialsefficacy tests, clinical pharmacology, risk factor analysis, and the idea of a syndrome in the diagnosis of specific diseases,the first descriptions on bacterial and viral organisms, the distinction of mediastinitis from pleurisy, the contagious nature of phthisis and tuberculosis, the distribution of diseases by water and soil, and the first careful descriptions of skin troubles, sexually transmitted diseases, perversions, and nervous ailments, as well the use of ice to treat fevers, and the separation of medicine from pharmacology, which was important to the development of the pharmaceutical sciences.\nIbn al-Nafis (1213-1288) wrote Al-Shamil fi al-Tibb (The Comprehensive Book on Medicine), a voluminous medical encyclopedia that was originally planned to comprise 300 volumes, but he was only able to complete 80 volumes as a result of his death in 1288. However, even in its incomplete state, the book is one of the largest known medical encyclopedias in history, though only a small portion of The Comprehensive Book on Medicine has survived. During his lifetime, The Comprehensive Book on Medicine had eventually replaced Ibn Sina’s The Canon of Medicine as a medical authority in the medieval Islamic world. Arabic biographers from the 13th onwards considered Ibn al-Nafis the greatest physician in history, some referring to him as “the second Ibn Sina”, and others considering him even greater than Ibn Sina\nIn the 9th century\nAL-KINDI (ALKINDUS), IN DE GRADIBUS Demonstrated the application of mathematics and quantification to medicine, particularly in the field of pharmacology. This includes the development of a mathematical scale to quantify the strength of drugs, and a system that would allow a doctor to determine in advance the most critical days of a patient’s illness, based on the phases of the Moon.\nIn the 10th century, RAZI (RHAZES) Introduced controlled experiment and clinical observation into the field of medicine, and rejected several Galenic medical theories unverified by experimentation.The earliest known medical experiment was carried out by Razi in order to find the most hygienic place to build a hospital. He hung pieces of meat in places throughout 10th century Baghdad and observed where the meat decomposed least quickly, and that was where he built the hospital. In his Comprehensive Book of Medicine, Razi recorded clinical cases of his own experience and provided very useful recordings of various diseases. In his Doubts about Galen, Razi was also the first to prove both Galen‘s theory of humorism and Aristotle‘s theory of classical elements false using experimentation He also introduced urinalysis and stool tests\nAVICENNA (IBN SINA)\nIs considered the father of modern medicine,for his introduction of systematic experimentation and quantification into the study of physiology, the introduction of experimental medicine, clinical trials, risk factor analysis, and the idea of a syndrome in the diagnosis of specific diseases, in his medical encyclopedia, The Canon of Medicine (c. 1020), which was also the first book dealing with evidence-based medicine, randomized controlled trials,and efficacy tests.\nAccording to Toby Huff and A. C. Crombie, the Canon contained “a set of rules that laid down the conditions for the experimental use and testing of drugs” which were “a precise guide for practical experimentation” in the process of “discovering and proving the effectiveness of medical substances. The Canon laid out the following rules and principles for testing the effectiveness of new drugs and medications, which still form the basis of clinical pharmacologyand modern clinical trials:\n- “The drug must be free from any extraneous accidental quality.”\n- “It must be used on a simple, not a composite, disease.”\n- “The drug must be tested with two contrary types of diseases, because sometimes a drug cures one disease by Its essential qualities and another by its accidental ones.”\n- “The quality of the drug must correspond to the strength of the disease. For example, there are some drugs whose heat is less than the coldness of certain diseases, so that they would have no effect on them.”\n- “The time of action must be observed, so that essence and accident are not confused.”\n- “The effect of the drug must be seen to occur constantly or in many cases, for if this did not happen, it was an accidental effect.”\n- “The experimentation must be done with the human body, for testing a drug on a lion or a horse might not prove anything about its effect on man.”\nIBN ZUHR (AVENZOAR)\nWho introduced the experimental method into surgery, for which he is considered the father of experimental surgery.Other early supporters of human dissection and autopsy include Ibn Tufail,Saladin‘s physician Ibn Jumay, Abd-el-latif,and Ibn al-Nafis\nThe experimental method was introduced into botany, materia medica and the agricultural sciences in the 13th century by the Andalusian-Arab botanist Abu al-Abbas al-Nabati, the teacher of Ibn al-Baitar. Al-Nabati introduced empirical techniques in the testing, description and identification of numerous material medica, and he separated unverified reports from those supported by actual tests and observations.\nANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY: In anatomy and physiology, the first physician to refute Galen‘s theory of humorism was\nMUHAMMAD IBN ZAKARĪYA RĀZI (RHAZES) In his Doubts about Galen in the 10th century. He criticized Galen’s theory that the body possessed four separate “humors” (liquid substances), whose balance are the key to health and a natural body-temperature. Razi was the first to prove this theory wrong using an experiment. He carried out an experiment which would upset this system by inserting a liquid with a different temperature into the body resulting in an increase or decrease of bodily heat, which resembled the temperature of that particular fluid. Razi noted particularly that a warm drink would heat up the body to a degree much higher than its own natural temperature, thus the drink would trigger a response from the body, rather than transferring only its own warmth or coldness to it. This line of criticism was the first comprehensive experimental refutation of Galen’s theory of humours and Aristotle‘s theory of the four classical elements on which it was grounded. Razi’s own chemical experiments suggested other qualities of matter, such as “oiliness” and “sulfurousness“, or inflammability and salinity, which were not readily explained by the traditional fire, water, earth and air division of elements.\nEXPERIMENTAL ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY\nThe contributions of Avicenna to physiology include the introduction of systematic experimentation and quantification into the study of physiology in The Canon of Medicine (c. 1020). The contributions of Ibn al-Haytham (Alhacen) to anatomy and physiology include his correct explanation of the process of sight and visual perception for the first time in his Book of Optics, Other innovations introduced by Muslim physicians to the field of physiology by this time include the use of animal testing.\nIbn Zuhr (Avenzoar) (1091-1161) was the first physician known to have carried out human dissections and postmortem autopsy. He proved that the skin disease scabies was caused by a parasite, a discovery which upset the theory of humorism supported by Hippocrates and Galen. The removal of the parasite from the patient’s body did not involve purging, bleeding, or any other traditional treatments associated with the four humours.\nIn the 12th century, Saladin‘s physician Ibn Jumay was also one the first to undertake human dissections, and he made an explicit appeal for other physicians to do so as well. During a famine in Egypt in 1200, Abd-el-latif observed and examined a large number of skeletons, and he discovered that Galen was incorrect regarding the formation of the bones of the lower jaw and sacrum.\nCirculatory anatomy and physiology:\nIBN AL-NAFIS The father of circulatory physiology was another early proponent of human dissection In 1242, he was the first to describe the pulmonary circulation, coronary circulation and capillary circulation, which form the basis of the circulatory system, for which he is considered the one of the greatest physiologists in history The first European descriptions of the pulmonary circulation came several centuries later, by Michael Servetus in 1553 and William Harvey in 1628. Ibn al-Nafis also described the earliest concept of metabolism, and developed new Nafisian systems of anatomy, physiology and psychology to replace the Avicennian and Galenic doctrines, while discrediting many of their erroneous theories on the four humours, pulsation, bones, muscles, intestines, sensory organs, bilious canals, esophagus, stomach, and the anatomy of almost every other part of the human body.\nThe Arab physician Ibn al-Lubudi (1210-1267), also from Damascus, wrote the Collection of discussions relative to fifty psychological and medical questions, in which he rejects the theory of four humours supported by Galen and Hippocrates, discovers that the body and its preservation depend exclusively upon blood, rejects Galen’s idea that women can produce sperm, and discovers that the movement of arteries are not dependant upon the movement of the heart, that the heart is the first organ to form in a fetus‘ body (rather than the brain as claimed by Hippocrates), and that the bones forming the skull can grow into tumors. He also advises that in cases of extreme fever, a patient should not be released from hospital.\nPULSOLOGY AND SPHYGMOLOGY: Muslim physicians were pioneers in pulsology and sphygmology. In ancient times, Galen as well as Chinese physicians erroneously believed that there was a unique type of pulse for every organ of the body and for every disease. Galen also erroneously believed that “every part of an artery pulsates simultaneously” and that the motion of the pulse was due to natural motions (the arteries expanding and contracting naturally) as opposed to foced motions (the heart causing the arteries to either expand or contract). The first correct explanations of pulsation were given by Muslim physicians.\n“Every beat of the pulse comprises two movements and two pauses. Thus, expansion: pause: contraction: pause. The pulse is a movement in the heart and arteries … which takes the form of alternate expansion and contraction.”\nAvicenna also pioneered the modern approach of examining the pulse through the examination of the wrist, which is still practiced in modern times. His reasons for choosing the wrist as the ideal location is due to it being easily available and the patient not needing to be distressed at the exposure of his/her body. The Latin translation of his Canon also laid the foundations for the later invention of the sphygmograph.\nIbn al-Nafis, in his Commentary on Anatomy in Avicenna’s Canon, completely rejected the Galenic theory of pulsation after his discovery of the pulmonary circulation. He developed his own Nafisian theory of pulsation after discovering that pulsation is a result of both natural and forced motions, and that the “forced motion must be the contraction of the arteries caused by the expansion of the heart, and the natural motion must be the expansion of the arteries.” He notes that the “arteries and the heart do not expand and contract at the same time, but rather the one contracts while the other expands” and vice versa. He also recognized that the purpose of the pulse is to help disperse the blood from the heart to the rest of the body. Ibn al-Nafis briefly summarizes his new theory of pulsation:\n“The primary purpose of the expansion and contraction of the heart is to absorb the cool air and expel the wastes of the spirit and the warm air; however, the ventricle of the heart is wide. Moreover, when it expands it is not possible for it to absorb air until it is full, for that would then ruin the temperament of the spirit, its substance and texture, as well as the temperament of the heart. Thus, the heart is necessarily forced to complete its fill by absorbing the spirit.”\nEPIDEMIOLOGY, ETIOLOGY, PATHOLOGY: In etiology and epidemiology, Muslim physicians were responsible for the discovery of infectious disease and the immune system, advances in pathology, and early hypotheses related to bacteriology and microbiology. Their discovery of contagious disease in particular is considered revolutionary and is one of the most important discoveries in medicine. The earliest ideas on contagion can be traced back to several hadiths attributed to Muhammad in the 7th century, who is said to have understood the contagious nature of leprosy, mange, and sexually transmitted disease. These early ideas on contagion arose from the generally sympathetic attitude of Muslim physicians towards lepers (who were often seen in a negative light in other ancient and medieval societies) which can be traced back through hadiths attributed to Muhammad and to the following advice given in the Qur’an\n“There is no fault in the blind, and there is no fault in the lame, and there is no fault in the sick.”\nThis eventually led to the theory of contagious disease, which was fully understood by Avicenna in the 11th century. By then, the pathology of contagion had been fully understood, and as a result, hospitals were created with separate wards for specific illnesses, so that people with contagious diseases could be kept away from other patients who do not have any contagious diseases. In The Canon of Medicine (1020), Avicenna discovered the contagious nature of infectious diseases such as phthisis and tuberculosis, the distribution of diseases by water and soil, and fully understood the contagious nature of sexually transmitted diseases. In epidemiology, he introduced the method of quarantine as a means of limiting the spread of contagious diseases, and introduced the method of risk factor analysis and the idea of a syndrome in the diagnosis of specific diseases.\nIn order to find the most hygienic place to build a hospital, Muhammad ibn Zakarīya Rāzi (Rhazes) carried out an experiment where he hung pieces of meat in places throughout 10th century Baghdad and observed where the meat decomposed least quickly. Razi also wrote the Comprehensive Book of Medicine in the 9th century. The Large Comprehensive was the most sought after of all his compositions, in which Razi recorded clinical cases of his own experience and provided very useful recordings of various diseases, as well as the discovery of measles and smallpox. The Large Comprehensive also criticized the views of Galen, after Razi had observed many clinical cases which did not follow Galen’s descriptions of fevers. For example, he stated that Galen’s descriptions of urinary ailments were inaccurate as he had only seen three cases, while Razi had studied hundreds of such cases in hospitals of Baghdad and Rayy.The Comprehensive Book of Medicine, especially with its introduction of measles and smallpox, was very influential in Europe.\nIBN ZUHR (AVENZOAR Was the first physician to provide a real scientific etiology for the inflammatory diseases of the ear, and the first to clearly discuss the causes of stridor. Through his dissections, he was also able to prove that the skin disease scabies was caused by a parasite, a discovery which upset the theory of humorism supported by Hippocrates, Galen and Avicenna. He also gave the first accurate descriptions on neurological diseases, including meningitis, intracranial thrombophlebitis, and mediastinal germ cell tumors. Averroes suggested the existence of Parkinson’s disease and attributed photoreceptor properties to the retina. Maimonides wrote about neuropsychiatric disorders and described rabies and belladonna intoxication.\nALLERGOLOGY AND IMMUNOLOGY: The study of allergology and immunology originate from the Islamic world.\nMUHAMMAD IBN ZAKARĪYA RĀZI (RHAZES) Was responsible for discovering “allergic asthma“, and was the first physician known to have written articles on allergy and the immune system. In the Sense of Smelling, he explains the occurrence of rhinitis after smelling a rose during the Spring. In the Article on the Reason Why Abou Zayd Balkhi Suffers from Rhinitis When Smelling Roses in Spring, he dicusses seasonal rhinitis, which is the same as allergic asthma or hay fever. Al-Razi was the first to realize that fever is a natural defense mechanism, the body’s way of fighting disease.\nThe distinction between smallpox and measles also dates back to al-Razi. The medical procedure of inoculation was practiced in the medieval Islamic world in order to treat smallpox. This was later followed by the first smallpox vaccine in the form of cowpox, invented in Turkey in the early 18th century.\nDR. ABDIRIZAK HAJI MOHAMED\nPharm-D University of Karachi-Pakistan\nContribution of Muslim scientist is far-reaching topic\nSo part two will be publish soon, please your comments and any suggestions send to firstname.lastname@example.org"}
{"text": "Chondroitin sulfate consists of repeating chains of molecules called glycosaminoglycans\n(GAGs). Chondroitin sulfate is a major constituent of cartilage, providing structure, holding water and\nnutrients, and allowing other molecules to move through cartilage—an important property,\nas there is no blood supply to cartilage.\nWhere is it found?\nThe only significant food source of chondroitin sulfate is animal cartilage.\nChondroitin sulfate has\nbeen used in connection with the following conditions (refer to the\nindividual health concern for complete information):\nWho is likely to be deficient?\nBecause the body makes chondroitin, the possibility of a dietary deficiency remains\nuncertain. Nevertheless, chondroitin sulfate may be reduced in joint cartilage affected by osteoarthritis and possibly other forms of\nHow much is usually taken?\nFor atherosclerosis, researchers have\nsometimes started therapy using very high amounts, such as 5 grams twice per day with meals,\nlowering the amount to 500 mg three times per day after a few months. Before taking such high\namounts, people should consult a doctor. For\nosteoarthritis, a typical level is 400 mg three times per day. Oral chondroitin sulfate is\nrapidly absorbed in humans when it is dissolved in water prior to ingestion. Approximately 12%\nof chondroitin sulfate taken by mouth becomes available to the joint tissues from the\nAre there any side effects or interactions?\nNausea may occur at intakes greater than 10 grams per day. No other adverse effects have\nOne doctor has raised a concern that chondroitin sulfate should not be used by men with prostate cancer. This concern is based upon two\nstudies. In one, the concentration of chondroitin sulfate was found to be higher in cancerous\nprostate tissue as compared to normal prostate tissue.2 In the other study, it was\nshown that higher concentrations of chondroitin sulfate in the tissue surrounding a cancerous\nprostate tumor predict a higher rate of recurrence of the cancer after surgery.3 However, no studies\nto date have addressed the question of whether taking chondroitin sulfate supplements could\npromote the development of prostate cancer. Simply because a substance is present in or around\ncancerous tissue does not by itself suggest that that substance is causing the cancer. For\nexample, calcium is a component of\natherosclerotic plaques that harden the arteries; however, there is no evidence that taking\ncalcium supplements causes atherosclerosis. To provide meaningful information, further studies\nwould need to track the incidence of prostate cancer in men taking chondroitin supplements.\nUntil then, most nutritionally-oriented doctors remain unconcerned about this issue.\nIt is not known whether taking glucosamine\nsulfate and chondroitin sulfate in combination is a more effective treatment for osteoarthritis than taking either one by itself.\nAt the time of writing, there were no well-known drug interactions\nwith chondroitin sulfate.\n1. Ronca F, Palmieri L, Panicucci P, Ronca G. Anti-inflammatory activity\nof chondroitin sulfate. Osteoarthritis Cartilage 1998;6(Supplement\n2. De Klerk DP, Lee DV, Human HJ. Glycosaminoglycans of human prostatic\ncancer. J Urol 1984;131:1008–12.\n3. Ricciardelli C, Quinn DI, Raymond WA, et al. Elevated levels of\nperitumoral chondroitin sulfate are predictive of poor prognosis in patients treated by\nradical prostatectomy for early-stage prostate cancer. Cancer Res"}
{"text": "Cambrian predator had killer eyes\nView to a kill A fearsome predator that swam in the Cambrian oceans was in fact a metre-long arthropod with killer vision, say researchers.\nPalaeontologist Dr John Paterson, from the University of New England, and colleagues, have discovered the fossilised remains of compound eyes from a creature called anomalocaris.\n\"The fact that each eye in anomalocaris would have had over 16,000 lenses, means it would have very, very good resolution,\" says Paterson, whose work is published today in the journal Nature.\n\"When you consider that a modern housefly, for example, has about 3000 lenses, it's pretty impressive that an animal half a billion years old already has remarkable vision like this.\"\nAround 500 million years ago, during the Cambrian, large alien-like creatures began to resemble modern animals, says Paterson.\n\"But you still had the odd freak swimming around,\" he says, referring to the metre-long free-swimming anomalocaris.\n\"It's an animal that's on its way to becoming an arthropod from an evolutionary point of view,\" says Paterson.\nThe creature would have propelled itself through the water by moving flaps down the length of its body in a wave-like pattern, he says.\nIt had a soft shrimp-like exoskeleton and fierce grasping claws and would have dined on soft-bodied organisms such as worms.\nBut anomalocaris has presented a bit of puzzle to scientists because while it looked like it might be an arthropod, it was missing certain attributes.\nArthropods include animals with jointed legs such as insects, spiders, crustaceans and millipedes.\n\"But when you look at anomalocaris, it doesn't actually have any jointed legs,\" says Paterson.\nNow, the discovery of fossilised compound eyes belonging to the animal has confirmed it is indeed an arthropod.\n\"Compound eyes are actually a definitive arthropod characteristic or trait,\" says Paterson.\nThe fossilised eyes were discovered alongside remains of the grasping claws and the body flaps in shale at Emu Bay on the northern coast of Kangaroo Island, off South Australia.\nThe soft tissue of the compound eyes were slowly replaced by a mineral called pyrite in a low oxygen sediment, says Paterson.\nThe discovery supports the idea that compound eyes evolved very early on in arthropod evolution, before the evolution of jointed legs or hardened exoskeletons.\nThe surprisingly sophisticated eyes of anomalocaris are rivalled only by modern dragonflies, which can have up to about 28,000 lenses in each eye, says Patterson.\n\"Dragonflies are known for their exceptional vision,\" he says.\nLenses in a compound eye can be likened to pixels on a computer screen and the more lenses you have the better the resolution.\nThe small size of the lenses in the anomalocaris eyes suggests the animal would have lived in well-lit waters and had a major advantage over its prey.\n\"The little that we do know about the contemporaries of anomalocaris, they either had fairly poor eyesight or they were completely blind,\" says Paterson.\nHe says the presence of anomalocaris would have driven the development of protective adaptations in prey animals, and in turn, counter adaptations in predators.\nSuch an escalatory 'arms race' would have seen, for example, the evolution of such adaptations in prey as shells, camouflage and burrowing into sediments.\nPaterson now hopes to find the remains of even more Cambrian creatures in the Emu Bay Shale.\n\"It would be great to find a hybrid that looked like anomalocaris but it had walking legs. That would be a beautiful missing link,\" he says."}
{"text": "A couple of months or so ago, I began talking about SQL functions and what they're used for. This article picks up where I left off. It defines the two types of functions, and begins to explain them in great detail.\nPoor Arnold; in addition to being vertically challenged, he was also beset with frequent ear infections, and never knew what his brother Willis was talking about. Fortunately for him, Mr. Drummond was looted up, and all Arnold really needed to understand was that money talks. And when Arnold wanted to count the oodles of money he would have once old man Drummond kicked the bucket, well...he could have used Aggregate functions to help with that.\nAn aggregate function helps summarize large volumes (or even small ones, really) of data. If you have a collection of phone numbers you've collected and want to know how many you have (let's face it, you're a programmer, so you don't) or you want to get a count on the number of days you've spent alone and eating a giant bag of Doritos, you could do just that.\n(Just as a side note: the word \"Doritos\" is actually in the built-in spell check of Microsoft Word).\nBelow is a list of some aggregate functions and what they can do:\nWhat it Does\nGives you the average value of the column\nCounts the number of rows with data in a column\nCounts the number of selected rows\nGives the value of the first record in a specified field\nGives the value of the last record in a specified field\nGives the maximum value in a column\nGives the minimum value in a column\nSums up the value of a column\nI don't have to tell you what average means; you've been that way your entire life. I mean come on, you're no James Marsden. And if you are, please don't sue me for using your name.\nThe average function in SQL returns the average value of a given column. Let's say we have a table that lists a person's name, age, and salary and we want to see the average age of the employees listed in the database. Want to follow along? Okay, go ahead and create a table named Employees with the data below:\nKing Kong Wong\nClearly this company has an age discrimination suit waiting to happen. But never mind that for now. I think our table lists a realistic situation, don't you? Coincidentally, all names are fictitious, and any resemblance to real names is purely coincidental.\nHere's the code for the average age:\nSelect AVG(Age) from Employees\nThis would result in the answer: 45.75.\nNow let's say you are gearing up for that age discrimination lawsuit and need some more data to back you up. Let's say you want to see the average salary of anyone over 30 years old:\nSelect AVG(Salary) From Employees WHERE Age>30\nYour answer would be $31,000. You might also wish to see the average salary of those under thirty. To do that, simply reverse the criteria:\nSelect AVG(Salary) From Employees WHERE Age<30\nWhich results in: $90,000. A clear case for age discrimination."}
{"text": "16. Granitic Intrusion, Chanaral, Chile\nThe light-toned circular area at the right center of the photograph is a Paleozoic granodiorite exposed near the Pacific coast of Chile at Chanaral. The Humboldt current flowing northward along the coast gives rise to cool onshore breezes. As these move overland, they warm up, and are capable of carrying more water vapor; thus they have a very drying effect and are responsible for the long thin Atacama Desert, which extends all the way along the coast of South America from Central Chile to Ecuador. The desert is one of the driest in the world, and the absence of soil or vegetation makes it ideal for investigation using satellite remote sensing techniques.\nThe pale tones of the intrusion contrast sharply with the darker tones of the metamorphic basement, enabling rapid mapping. A swarm of mafic dikes cuts the intrusion, and some of the larger dikes, with northeast trend, are just visible. The valley just south of the intrusion contains a stream draining from the large porphyry copper mine at El Salvador. The stream and the beach at Chanaral on which it debouches are grossly polluted with mineral residues.\nSTS-8, August-September 1983. Picture #8-50-1798."}
{"text": "It took quite a bit of convincing before Mey Som agreed to be the first Cambodian to try the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) in 2000. But in the end, Som relented and, on a small plot of land, planted rice in a way that went against all his experience and instincts.\nFollowing the advice of the Cambodian Center for Study and Development in Agriculture, or CEDAC, Som abandoned his use of chemicals in favor of organic fertilizer. He planted fewer seeds and spaced them widely apart. He kept the soil moist—without flooding it. He transplanted the rice seedlings while they were young and took the time to weed. Halfway through that first season, Som noticed his rice plants were growing bigger and stronger.\n\"The same seeds used to produce plants that came up to my knees,\" he said. \"Now they reach above my head.\"\nSince Som's experiment, CEDAC has trained more than 60,000 Cambodian farmers to modify their farming techniques to correspond with SRI. Like farmers in Madagascar, China, and Bangladesh, they have increased their yields by 50 to 100 percent, and sometimes more.\nYang Saing Koma, the president of CEDAC, better known as \"Dr. Koma,\" calls it the \"Root Revolution,\" and eventually he wants the majority of Cambodia's rice farmers to have joined in.\n\"It's just a question of changing your attitude and thinking,\" he said. \"Conventional agriculture just looks at the plant above ground. With SRI, you look at the roots—big, strong roots.\"\nA new method takes off\nUsing grants from Oxfam America totaling about $222,000 since 2003, CEDAC has used SRI to build financial and food security in one of Southeast Asia's poorest countries. More than 70 percent of the workforce depends on agriculture to make a living—most of them, rice farmers.\nDr. Koma says it's like a metaphor for human development. If you give people enough room to grow, they flourish. If you plant seedlings far enough apart, the seedlings sprout several stalks and the stalks produce hundreds of grains of rice.\nHe first learned about SRI after reading a magazine article chronicling the experiences of farmers in Madagascar. Jesuit priest Father Henri de Laulanié spent 20 years working with Malagasy farmers, refining a set of practices that required less land, seed, water, and money.\nAt first, the Cambodian farmers who are approached by CEDAC about trying SRI had trouble believing what they were hearing. Some even ridiculed the farmers who tried the new method.\nWhen So Tith began planting through SRI three years ago, his neighbors saw him pressing fewer seeds into the soil and pitied him, thinking he couldn't afford to buy more. \"They offered to give me some of their seed,\" he said.\nEven after Tith's new stalks began to grow, his neighbors wouldn't attribute their sturdiness to SRI. They attributed it to \"trickery\" instead. But Tith didn't mind, for in a couple years these same doubters would end up changing their practices, and more important, their minds.\nAccustomed to using oxen and carts to take water to their fields, they now fill jugs and carry them on their shoulders to small plots of land near their homes. They plant during the wet and dry seasons, doubling their production and incomes.\n\"Daily life is better than before,\" said Sorn Ton, another rice farmer who adopted SRI. \"When we used to farm, there wasn't enough rice to support the family for the whole year. We had to borrow money to buy rice from others in the village. Now my family has enough to eat.\"\nThe farmers use the extra profits to invest in more rice seed, send their children to school, and participate in the simple joys of everyday life—the religious and family ceremonies, the weddings and festivals.\nAll this from a little bit of creative thinking informed by the people who work the land themselves.\n\"Throughout Cambodia, the farmers who adopted SRI—they have more self confidence. They see what they can get from what they do,\" Dr. Koma said."}
{"text": "May 16, 2002 A region in the western tropical Pacific Ocean may help scientists understand how Venus lost all of its water and became a 900-degree inferno. The study of this local phenomenon by NASA scientists also should help researchers understand what conditions on Earth might lead to a similar fate here.\nThe phenomenon, called the ‘runaway greenhouse’ effect, occurs when a planet absorbs more energy from the sun than it can radiate back to space. Under these circumstances, the hotter the surface temperature gets, the faster it warms up. Scientists detect the signature of a runaway greenhouse when planetary heat loss begins to drop as surface temperature rises. Only one area on Earth – the western Pacific ‘warm pool’ just northeast of Australia – exhibits this signature. Because the warm pool covers only a small fraction of the Earth’s surface, the Earth as a whole never actually ‘runs away.’ However, scientists believe Venus did experience a global runaway greenhouse effect about 3 billion to 4 billion years ago.\n\"Soon after the planets were formed 4.5 billion years ago, Earth, Venus and Mars probably all had water. How did Earth manage to hold onto all of its water, while Venus apparently lost all of its water?\" asked Maura Rabbette, Earth and planetary scientist at NASA Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley. \"We have extensive earth science data to help address that question.\"\nRabbette and her co-investigators from NASA Ames, Christopher McKay, Peter Pilewskie and Richard Young, used atmospheric conditions above the Pacific Ocean, including data recorded by NASA’s Earth Observing System of satellites, to create a computer model of the runaway greenhouse effect. They determined that water vapor high in the atmosphere produced the local signature of a runaway greenhouse.\nAt sea surface temperatures above 80 F (27 C), evaporation loads the atmosphere with a critical amount of water vapor, one of the most efficient greenhouse gases. Water vapor allows solar radiation from the sun to pass through, but it absorbs a large portion of the infrared radiation coming from the Earth. If enough water vapor enters the troposphere, the weather layer of the atmosphere, it will trap thermal energy coming from the Earth, increasing the sea surface temperature even further.\nThe effect should result in a chain reaction loop where sea surface temperature increases, leading to increased atmospheric water vapor that leads to more trapped thermal energy. This would cause the temperature increase to ‘run away,’ causing more and more water loss through evaporation from the ocean. Luckily for Earth, sea surface temperatures never reach more than about 87 F (30.5 C), and so the runaway phenomenon does not occur.\n\"It’s very intriguing. What is limiting this effect over the warm pool of the Pacific?\" asked Young, a planetary scientist. He suggests that cloud cover may affect how much energy reaches or escapes Earth, or that the ocean and atmosphere may transport trapped energy away from the local hotspot. \"If we can model the outgoing energy flux, then maybe we can begin to understand what limits sea surface temperature on Earth,\" he said. The Ames researchers are not the first to study the phenomenon, but no consensus has been reached regarding the energy turnover or the limitation of sea surface temperature.\nRabbette analyzed clear-sky data above the tropical Pacific from March 2000 to July 2001. She determined that water vapor above 5 kilometers (3 miles) altitude in the atmosphere contributes significantly to the runaway greenhouse signature. She found that at 9 kilometers (5.6 miles) above the Pacific warm pool, the relative humidity in the atmosphere can be greater than 70 percent - more than three times the normal range. In nearby regions of the Pacific where the sea surface temperature is just a few degrees cooler, the atmospheric relative humidity is only 20 percent. These drier regions of the neighboring atmosphere may contribute to stabilizing the local runaway greenhouse effect, Rabbette said.\nIt is important to note that the Ames team uses real climate information such as relative humidity and temperature–not hypothetical numbers–in the Moderate Resolution Atmospheric Radiative Transfer, or MODTRAN, modeling program. The program calculates how much energy escapes back to space from the top of Earth’s atmosphere. The researchers plan to experiment with the model to test the runaway greenhouse signature’s sensitivity to climate conditions. By varying the abundance of other greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and by adding clouds in the model, they will see the overall effect on the outgoing energy.\nThe model may help researchers uncover why Venus experienced a complete runaway greenhouse and lost its water over a period of several hundred million to a billion years. The research may also help determine which planets in the so-called ‘habitable zone’ of a solar system might lack water, an essential ingredient for life as we know it.\nOther social bookmarking and sharing tools:\nNote: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.\nNote: If no author is given, the source is cited instead."}
{"text": "Since 1976, every U.S. president has designated February as Black History Month. From slavery to civil rights, and science to music, the following books for young readers honor the accomplishments of African Americans.\nOn the Radar: Top Picks from the Editors at Junior Library Guild: K-8 Books on African Americans Who Inspire\nShow Way. DVD. 12 min. Weston Woods. 2012. ISBN 978-0-545-47811-3. 59.95. CD, ISBN 978-0-545-47810-6: $12.95; CD with hardcover book, ISBN 978-0545-47827-4: $29.95.\nGr 2-5–A Show Way was a quilt that had messages stitched into it showing the family’s journey North to freedom, offering hope and a guide for slaves in the South. That theme of “leading the way” is a thread running through Jacqueline Woodson’s carefully woven story (Putnam, 2005). Soonie’s great-grandma was only a child when she was sold away [...]\nBOLDEN, Tonya. Emancipation Proclamation: Lincoln and the Dawn of Liberty. 120p. bibliog. chron. glossary. illus. index. notes. photos. reprods. Abrams. Jan. 2013. RTE $24.95. ISBN 978-1-4197-0390-4. LC 2012000845.\nGr 5-9–After a dramatic opening description of abolitionists waiting for word that the Emancipation Proclamation had been signed, this title reviews the events that led up to the Civil War, examines Lincoln’s reasons for writing it, and details the role of abolitionists. Bolden makes excellent use of primary sources; the pages are filled [...]\nThe Freedom Maze. By Delia Sherman. 8 CDs. 8:19 hrs. Prod. by Listening Library. Dist. by Listening Library/Books on Tape. 2012. ISBN 978-0-499-01463-9. $55.\nGr 5-8–Sophie’s mother drops her off to spend the summer at her grandmother’s house in the Louisiana Bayou. Once a prolific sugar plantation, the property is derelict and overgrown. In the garden, Sophie discovers a maze, now in ruins, much like Sophie’s life since her parents’ divorce. It’s 1960, and the stigma of the divorce, combined with [...]\nBaseball season may be coming to an end, but a true fan’s enthusiasm for the sport never wanes. Reason enough to consider two new digital products for your iPad: Ryan Woodward’s Bottom of the Ninth and The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. The first is an animated graphic novel, the second, a reference guide. Here’s what our reviewers had to say about these releases.\nMy Hands Sing the Blues: Romare Bearden’s Childhood Journey. By Jeanne Walker Harvey. cassette or CD. 15 min. Recorded Books. 2012. cassette: ISBN 978-1-4640-0209-0, CD: ISBN 978-1-4640-0206-9. $15.75; hardcover book, ISBN 978-0-7614-5810-4: $17.99.\nK-Gr 3–In a first-person narrative that incorporates some of artist Romare Bearden’s phrases and ideas, and using his famous painting “Watching the Good Trains Go By” as her inspiration, Jeanne Walker Harvey gives voice to the history and experiences that inspired his famous collages. Born in North Carolina, [...]"}
{"text": "Haga Palace. Drawing by Princess Eugenia (daughter of Oscar I and Queen Josefina).\nGustav III's palace building - the ruin The history of Haga differs somewhat to that of the other Royal retreats. At Drottningholm, for example, the palace was built first and then surrounded by extensive grounds.\nAt Haga, the original feature is the park, which over time has gradually been joined by buildings of various different characters. Gustav III's dream palace was never completed and today it is known as the ruin, with only the cellar and foundations finished.\nGustav III's Pavilion. Photo: Charless Hammarsten, IBL.\nGustav III's Pavilion Gustav III's Pavilion (originally the King's Pavilion) could be regarded as The King's private residence at Haga and was intended to complement the official palace that was never finished. Today this pavilion is an excellent example of Gustavian architecture and interiors.\nHaga Palace Gustav III's Pavilion in Haga Park was often used by Gustav III's son and successor, Gustav IV Adolf.\nGustav IV Adolf ordered the construction of a second pavilion close by for his wife, Queen Fredrika, and their children. This building, which is now called Haga Palace, was erected between the years 1802 and 1805 according to plans drawn by the architect Carl Christoffer Gjörwell. Haga is slightly different in this respect as well. The palace was constructed as a home at Haga for the Queen and her children, and not as an official residence. It is also around the time of Gustav IV Adolf and his family that we get a first glimpse of family life in the modern sense.\nItalian villa style In terms of its style, the palace building is most like an Italian villa, where family life is focused around the central living room. The white colouring and the temple-like design of the central part, with its temple gables and classic columns, emphasise the Italian nature of the building\nHaga Palace and the Bernadotte dynasty Haga Palace has been a much-used and loved home for the Bernadotte dynasty. Oskar I and his family often stayed at Haga and for several years the palace was occupied by King Oskar's son, the 'song Prince' Gustaf. Prince Gustaf's youngest brother August and his wife Theresia lived at Haga for many years, and the first interior photographs from their home were taken during their time there in the late 19th century. These images convey a feeling of homeliness according to the ideal that was characteristic of the end of the 19th century.\nThe Green salon at Haga Palace. Photo: the Royal Court\nThe Haga princesses In 1932, heir presumptive Prince Gustaf Adolf married Princess Sibylla of Sachsen Coburg and Gotha and Haga Palace was renovated in order to function as their family home. The building underwent a transformation, which meant that the interiors reflected the more functional style of the time rather than the historical heritage of the early 19th century. Family photographs from Haga that were published in books and magazines, and perhaps even more so shown on cinema newsreels, spread the image of a royal family idyll at Haga.\nGuest house for Swedish government Haga Palace functioned as the Swedish government's guest house for distinguished visitors between 1964 and 2009. In 2009, the government transferred the royal right of disposal to Haga Palace back to H.M. The King and the palace was placed at the disposal of the Crown Princess Couple for use as a home following the wedding on 19 June, 2010.\nFor further information about Haga Palace and Haga in general, see 'Haga: a Royal Cultural Heritage', from the book series, 'The Royal Palaces', published 2010."}
{"text": "This is the second part of two posts examining how North Korea fell behind South Korea. The previous part can be found here.\nAs the previous post found, for several decades North Korea kept up with South Korea. Then, during the mid-1970s, the country started falling behind. Ever since then the gap between the two countries has widened.\nThis post will explore several factors behind what caused North Korea to fall behind. There seem to be three main causes: the failed ideology of juche (self-reliance), the end of Soviet aid, and Kim Jong-Il’s incompetent rule.\nIf one looks at Gapminder’s graphic, North Korea and South Korea are neck-and-neck until the mid-1970s:\nThen North Korea falls behind:\nWhat caused this? Well, in 1972 North Korea adopted the ideology of juche into the constitution. Juche stands for self-reliance. There’s a lot of fancy Marxist philosophical complexity behind the idea, but in its essence it seems to be basically a fancy form of protectionism.\nJuche was very harmful to the North Korean economy. Here is North Korea before the official adaptation of juche:\nAs is evident, North Korea was progressing during this period. This is not to say that juche wasn’t part of the state’s ideology in these years. Rather, it seems to have played less of a role.\nA description on this website provides a good description of the progress during this time:\nThe 1954-56 three year plan repaired the massive damage caused by the war and brought industrial production back to prewar levels. This was followed by the five- year plan of 1957-61 and the seven year plan of 1961-67. These plans brought about further growth in industrial production and substantial development of state infrastructure. By the 1960s North Korea was the second most industrialized nation in East Asia, trailing only Japan. While a number of internal limitations appeared, such as in the production of consumer goods, the national standard of living was considered by many third-world nations as an alternative to the capitalist model of development sponsored by the United States. Building upon the ruins left by the Korean War, the North Korean economy by the late 1960s provided its people with medical care, universal education, adequate caloric intake, and livable housing.\nHere is what happens after the official adoption of juche:\nThe website continues with a description of North Korea’s economic decline. I will quote the discussion in full because it’s quite comprehensive:\nIn the 1970s the expansion of North Korea’s economy, with the accompanying rise in living standards, came to an end and a few decades later went into reverse. A huge increase in the price of oil following the oil shock of 1974 hurt the economies of countries throughout the world, North Korea among them. North Korea has no oil of its own, and it had few export commodities of interest to the west. Compounding this was a decision to borrow foreign capital and invest simultaneously in the military and mining industries. North Korea’s desire to gain as much independence as it could from China and Russia prompted the expansion of its military power. They believed such expenditures could be covered by foreign borrowing and increased sales of its minerals in the international market. North Korea invested heavily in its mining industries and purchased a large quantity of extractive machinery and tools from abroad. However, soon after making these investments, the international prices of for many of these minerals fell, leaving North Korea with large debts and an inability to pay off the debts and provide a high level of social welfare to its people.\nAdding to the above, the centrally planned economy, which emphasized heavy industry, had reached the limits of its productive potential in North Korea. Juche repeated demands that North Koreans learn to build and innovate domestically had run its course as had the ability of North Koreans to keep technological pace with other industrialized nations. By the mid to late-1970s some parts of the capitalist world, including South Korea, were advancing into new phases of technology and economic development and phasing out the coal-and-steel-based economies of the earlier period.\nKim ll-sung, trapped in an ideology that had once been highly successful, was unable to respond effectively to the challenge of an increasingly prosperous and well-armed South Korea, which undermined the legitimacy of his own regime. Having failed at their earlier attempt to turn to the market and conduct market-economy reforms such as those carried out in China by Deng Xiaoping, Kim opted for continued ideological purity. The DPRK by 1980 was faced with the choice of either repaying its international loans, or continuing its support of social welfare for its people. Given the ideals of Juche, North Korea chose to default on its loans, and by late 1980s its industrial output was declining.\nOne should note that the images above are models of North Korea’s economic path rather than based on North Korean statistics. Since North Korea doesn’t reveal its GDP, people have to make educated guesses. The people on Gapminder put North Korea as slightly wealthier than South Korea in 1944 and then modeled equal economic growth rates until the mid-1970s. At that point they put 0% GDP per capital growth to model North Korea’s stagnation during that period. Finally, they use slightly more accurate estimates after the fall of the Soviet Union to model North Korea’s famine and its most recent years.\nNevertheless, these models are based off what happened in real life. It’s undeniable that North Korea was stagnating during the late ’70s and ’80s. It’s also undeniable that there was a famine during the late ’90s. So while the graphic isn’t perfect, it’s a decent representation of reality.\nThe End of Soviet Aid\nJuche seems to have been the main turning point in North Korean economic history. Nevertheless, it’s worth noting that there are in fact two “parts” of North Korean economic decline. The first part, during the late ’70s and 80s, is stagnation – when North Korea doesn’t go forward but doesn’t go backwards. The second part starts in the ’90s, when North Korea actually starts going backwards.\nWhat caused this?\nWell, for all of its economic history North Korea depended extensively on communist aid. The Soviets were determined to prove that their system was superior and, like the Americans, gave lots of aid to their allies. Eventually it turned out that their system was in fact not superior, and by the end the Soviet Union couldn’t really afford to give out that aid. In 1991 the Soviet Union collapsed and all Soviet aid withdrew.\nThis hit North Korea hard:\nIn fact, it eventually created a famine. This graphic shows North Korea after the fall of the Soviet Union. This is the second part of the country’s economic decline, when it actually starts going backwards. Soviet aid was particularly important because the Soviet Union sold North Korea oil at low prices. North Korea’s inefficient economy and agricultural system depended badly on petroleum, but it couldn’t afford to buy petroleum at market prices. When the Soviets stopped giving North Korea oil, North Korea collapsed.\nHere’s a comparison with South Korea:\nKim Jong-Il’s rule was incompetent and terrible for North Korea. Let’s take a look at North Korea under his father Kim Il-sung, until his death in 1994.\nWe see progress throughout most of Kim Il-sung’s rule. During his final years, however, stagnation and finally decline sets in. Nevertheless, one could say that Kim Il-sung did good for North Korea.\nWhat happens under Kim Jong-Il?\nDecline. Indeed, there’s a startling coincidence between Kim Jong-Il’s path to power and North Korea’s economic decline. Kim Jong-Il began taking power during the 1980s. During that time North Korea is well into stagnation. He takes over the armed forces in 1991. North Korea then begins going backwards. His father dies in 1994, leaving him in absolute control. North Korea then suffers a famine from 1994 to 1998.\nHere’s North Korea and South Korea during Kim Jong-Il’s rule:\nIt seems that there were three main events that caused North Korea’s economic decline: juche, the end of Soviet aid, and the incompetence of Kim Jong-Il. Juche turned economic growth into stagnation. The end of Soviet aid turned stagnation into absolute decline. This backwards path gained momentum as Kim Jong-Il gained power and ruled incompetently.\nNorth Korea’s tale is fairly unique. It’s the story of a country which achieved a decent standard of living and high industrialization under communism. Then the strains of the system became apparent, such as the overreliance on petroleum, and it eventually collapsed. This is why one hears of a lot of North Korean factories that used to work but now don’t. One hopes that the new leader Kim Jong-un will turn things around for his people."}
{"text": "The mendelschen laws became in the 60's 19. Century of the scientifically interested Augustinermönch Gregor Mendel by crossing attempts at Erbsenpflanzen determines and ina first little considered publication formulated. Only over 1900 was confirmed these innovative realizations, brought with the Chromosomentheorie the transmission in connection and to the common property of the classical genetic science.\nTable of contents\nthe mendelschen the laws or rules\nthe discoveries Mendels is based on statisticValues. Therefore they are called frequently also rules, with the reason that laws - differently than rules - would apply without reservation. Nevertheless they are well-known in the vernacular also as “Mendel pea equation”.\n1. mendelsches law (uniformity law and/or.Reciprocity)\nif two individuals of a kind (“parents “or Parentalgeneration P called) to be crossed with one another, in a characteristic, for which it pure-bend (homozygot) are, differ, then are the descendants of the first generation (“children” or first branch generation F1called) uniformly, i.e. both genotypisch and related to the phenotype directly. It is irrelevant, which represents the two individuals nut/mother or father. (Exception: The characteristic is on a Geschlechtschromosom (Gonosom). Then it can be that thoseF1 is not really uniform!)\n2. mendelsches law (splitting law)\nis crossed if the first descendant generation among themselves, then the individuals of the second generation (“grandchild “or second branch generation, F2) are no longer uniform, but point again thoseCharacteristics of the parents generation in certain numerical ratios up. There the uniformity is lost\n- concerns it thereby dominance rezessive transmission, then three quarters form the dominant factor and a quarter the rezessive variant out (relationship of 3:1).\n- of the 1 points second ) generation with intermediate transmission per a quarter of the descendants one of the two pure-curved variants and half of the individuals. Generation on (relationship by 1:2: 1).\n3. mendelsches law (independence law/new combination law)\nof two characteristics is separately from each other left, whereby starting from the 2. Generation (“grandchild”) new, pure-bends combinations to arise can. This law applies however then only if forthe characteristics responsible persons of genes on different Chromosomen sit (polyhybride hereditary courses). If the genes lie on the same Chromosomen, they are left in groups of couplings.\nMendel could do neither the term of the genes nor that of the Chromosomen. The actual nature of the hereditary factors was thus not well-known it. Only 1904 became by Suez clay/tone andBoveri the Chromosomentheorie of the transmission justifies. With the help of this theory the Mendelregeln can be explained without contradiction.\nThe Chromosomen are the units on those the hereditary factors (genes) to be passed on. (This explains the groups of couplings.) in the body cells the Chromosomen arise in pairs.Thus humans possess 23 Chromosomenpaare thus 46 Chromosomen. One speaks of a double Chromosomensatz. The Chromosomen are present in pairs in the body cell, because a Chromosom from the father and one from the nut/mother come. These two Chromosomen become also ashomologous Chromosomen designates. In a body cell the hereditary factors per characteristic are thus always doubly present.\nWith the formation of the sex cells the homologous Chromosomenpaare is separated. In an egg and/or one Spermium is thus only the simple Chromosomensatz. In a sex cellthe hereditary factors per characteristic are thus always once present. (The splitting rule becomes so understandable.) with fertilization thus the fusion of egg and Spermium to bring both sex cells in each case a hereditary factor per characteristic also. The body cell resulting from this fusion has thusagain the double Chromosomensatz. The hereditary factors can so again be combined. (Independence rule, free combination of the genes)\nWith large homogeneity of the genes of respective parents:\nIf A is dominance, each combination, which at least one A contains, has the appropriate characteristicthe parents AA. If AA stands for example for red blooms, and BB for blue blooms, and the gene for red blooms dominance is, have all “children” from AA and BB red blooms, but a quarter of the “grandchildren” again blue blooms.If none of the genes dominates, also mixtures develop - in this case possibly for lila blooms with the combination OFF.\nIf several genes on different Chromosomen result in together a characteristic, also completely new results can develop - for z. B. yellow blooms.The same applies to mutations.\nThe use of this recombination - thus the sexual Vermehrung - lies in the fact that more different gene combinations contribute to the evolution. Without sexual Vermehrung there would be only to a large extent identical copies from each organism. With sexual Vermehrung it givesa high range at descendants, and thus at survival strategies and - possibilities. To it comes that errors or weaknesses in hereditary property with sexual Vermehrung very much uneven on descendants distributed are - so that some descendants of clearly fewer problems have than their parents,and thus a reconciliation for errors when copying the heiress formations is created. Finally the sexual Vermehrung makes possible the assumption of the best characteristics of two occasionally separate populations into a common population and concomitantly a faster appropriation of abilities, those elsewherebefore already developed.\nthe mendelschen laws are used in particular in the animal and plant breeding, e.g. with the breed of hybrids. They can be used also for descending appraisals, e.g. in order to prove that did not determine humansas parents of a certain child are applicable. DNA.\nwhich by Mendels theory not be explained could, became only understandably because of the Chromosomentheorie of the transmission. The genes for for example the stature height and fruit form of the tomatoes(A/a and/or. B/b) lie on the same Chromosom and therefore coupled to the germ cells are passed on. The germ cells can contain then only the combination OFF or off, not however off or off. 3. mendelsche rule must be limited therefore: Alleles are freely combinable, if the genes lie on different Chromosomen.\n- H. Frederik Nijhout: The context macht's! Spektrum der Wissenschaft, April 2005, S. 70 - 77 (2005), ISSN 1702971\n- biology book six-form high school Baden-Wuerttemberg class 9-10.\nthus “everything” is written. (above in the text with reference)"}
{"text": "The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1945\nArtturi Ilmari Virtanen\nBorn: 15 January 1895, Helsinki, Russian Empire (now Finland)\nDied: 11 November 1973, Helsinki, Finland\nAffiliation at the time of the award: University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland\nPrize motivation: \"for his research and inventions in agricultural and nutrition chemistry, especially for his fodder preservation method\"\nField: Agricultural chemistry\nArtturi Ilmari Virtanen\nwas born in Helsinki on the 15th of January, 1895, as the son of\nKaarlo Virtanen and Serafiina Isotalo. He was educated at the\nClassical Lyceum at Viipuri, Finland. After finishing school, he\nstudied chemistry, biology, and physics at the University of\nHelsinki, where he took his M.Sc. in 1916 and obtained his\nD.Sc. in 1919. Subsequently he studied physical chemistry in\nZurich in 1920 under G. Wiegner, bacteriology in Stockholm in\n1921 under Chr. Barthel, and enzymology in Stockholm during\n1923-1924 under H.\nvon Euler. Since 1923, his interest turned to\nHe was first-assistant of the Central Laboratory of Industries at Helsinki during 1916-1917, and chemist in the Laboratory of Valio, Finnish Cooperative Dairies' Association, during 1919-1920. In 1921 he became Director of this laboratory, and in 1931 of the Biochemical Research Institute at Helsinki. After having been docent in chemistry at the University of Helsinki since 1924, he was appointed Professor of Biochemistry at the Finland Institute of Technology at Helsinki in 1931, and at the University of Helsinki in 1939. Since 1948 he has been member and President of the State Academy of Science and Arts in Finland.\nProfessor Virtanen is a member of the Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish, Flemish, Bavarian, and Pontifical Academies of Science, and of the Swedish and Danish Academies of Engineering Sciences. He is an honorary member of learned societies in Finland, Sweden, Austria, Edinburgh, and the U.S.A., and holds honorary degrees of the Universities of Lund, Paris, Giessen, and Helsinki, the Royal Technical College at Stockholm, and the Finland Institute of Technology. Numerous medals and other distinctions have been conferred upon him from Sweden, Finland, Belgium, and Italy.\nVirtanen established the indispensability of cozymase in lactic and propionic acid fermentations, as well as the phosphorylation of sugar (1924). In these works the similarity of different fermentation processes as to the first stages in the decomposition of sugar became apparent. Together with his collaborators he continued the fermentation experiments, special attention being paid to the mechanism of different bacterial fermentations. The fermentation of dioxyaceton to glycerol and glyceric acid in the presence of phosphates by the effect of Coli bacteria (1929) was the first sugar fermentation which was elucidated chemically from beginning to end. In this work attention was also paid to the adaptive formation of enzymes, which phenomenon his collaborator H. Karström treated in great detail in his doctor's thesis (constitutive and adaptive enzymes). The phenomenon of adaptation, and in connection with it the uptake of nutrients by cells, is still subjected to investigations in his laboratory. The concept that almost all proteins in bacterial cells are enzyme proteins led to investigations on the relation between the protein content and enzymic activity of cells.\nSince 1925, the biological nitrogen fixation which takes place in the root nodules of leguminous plants has been subjected to many-sided investigations in his laboratory. The importance of the red pigment, leghaemoglobin, in active root nodules for the fixation of nitrogen was proved.\nThe formation of vitamins in plants, as well as the ability of plants to utilize organic nitrogen compounds as their nitrogen source, have been treated in many publications from his laboratory.\nSince the end of the 1940's, the chemical composition of higher plants has been given special attention in his laboratory. A large number of new amino acids have been isolated from different plants, and have been characterized chemically. Numerous organic sulphur compounds, which may be of importance for the nutrition of man and domestic animals, have also been isolated from vegetables and fodder plants.\nThe application of biochemistry to agriculture and the dairy industry belongs to the practical activities of his laboratory. Among works performed in this field are the creation of a theoretical basis for the preservation of fresh fodder and the development of a practical method on this basis (the AIV method), with the aim to promote an effective utilization of protein-rich crops, and to produce milk of the same vitamin content in winter as that produced on summer pastures. Investigations aiming at the improvement of the quality of dairy products also have to be mentioned as belonging to the field of applied research.\nVirtanen married Lilja Moisio in 1920; they have two sons, Kaarlo and Olavi.\nFrom Nobel Lectures, Chemistry 1942-1962, Elsevier Publishing Company, Amsterdam, 1964\nThis autobiography/biography was written at the time of the award and first published in the book series Les Prix Nobel. It was later edited and republished in Nobel Lectures. To cite this document, always state the source as shown above.\nArtturi Virtanen died on November 11, 1973.\nCopyright © The Nobel Foundation 1945\nMLA style: \"Artturi Virtanen - Biography\". Nobelprize.org. 25 May 2013 http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/laureates/1945/virtanen.html"}
{"text": "Bronze Age use of a cave in the limits of the present village marks the earliest evidence for settlement in this area. The population appears to have flourished in Phoenician times, a fact revealed by the presence of a number of tombs found during this century at Hal-Qormi Beyond that, the history of this village remains obscure until it emerges as one of the first parishes in fifteenth century Malta.\nDespite a number of adverse events, the villagers managed to build the largest parish church in the countryside at the time. Inspired by the works of Sebastiano Serlio, an as yet anonymous architect managed to design a church which has a facade that combines elegance and grace with an underlying mannerist style. In the seventeenth century the church was crowned by a dome designed by Malta's foremost architect Lorenzo Gafa. Through the years the church managed to gather a number of paintings by the islandsí leading artists namely Stefano Erardi, Francesco Zahra, Giuseppe Cali and Joseph Briffa. The titular painting is a work by Mattia Preti.\nThe village's population grew over the years and earlier this century the eastern part of the village was proclaimed as a new parish. A new church was built and dedicated to St. Sebastian. Imposing on the surrounding landscape, the church's interior has remarkable pieces of sculpture in local limestone.\nQormi is known for its numerous bakeries which until recently supplied most of the southern side of the island. The life in the village is punctuated by a number of events. In Holy Week, one of the largest Good Friday processions occurs at Hal-Qormi, an event which attracts a large number of maltese people and tourists .\nIn the summer months the Maltese celebrate a number of\ntraditional festas. Hal-Qormi also makes its contribution. For two\nweeks the village's life rotates around celebrations dedicated to the two\npatron saints. Street and church decoration ,\nfireworks and brass band marches make this occasion an unforgettable\nContact author by E-Mail"}
{"text": "Alcohol abuse affects the whole family. The health effects of alcohol abuse can include heart disease, liver disease, and even cancer. Treatment consists of medical attention, prescription medications, or treatment centers.\nIt's not clear why some people\nabuse alcohol or become\naddicted to it and others do not. Alcoholism often\nruns in families (genetic), but your drinking habits also\nare influenced by your environment and life situations, such as friends or"}
{"text": "In a heartbreaking case of parental neglect, a 12-year-old girl in Scotland has been admitted to a hospital after a life-long vegan diet left her with the spine of an 80-year-old. Raised on meat- and dairy-free meals since birth, the young child is said to have developed a severe case of rickets (a degenerative bone condition) and numerous bone fractures as a result of her nutritional deficiencies. Sadly, this is not the first time a child has suffered a vegan-related health calamity.\nIn a similar case five years ago, a 15-month-old child was taken into foster care after a strict vegan diet left her with internal injuries, broken bones, missing teeth, and rickets. And since then, at least two vegan children have died from similar complications. In one Florida case, a 5-month-old girl was still at newborn weight when she died from malnutrition. Her siblings were severely malnourished, and at least two had developed rickets.\nThese grievous examples show how important it is to exercise caution when promoting vegetarian and vegan diets—especially for children. A New York Times columnist explained after a 6-week-old Atlanta vegan died last year:\nA vegan diet may lack vitamin B12, found only in animal foods; usable vitamins A and D, found in meat, fish, eggs and butter; and necessary minerals like calcium and zinc. When babies are deprived of all these nutrients, they will suffer from retarded growth, rickets and nerve damage.\nAs animal activists tout the supposed superiority of meatless eating, it’s important to note that a vegan diet can be downright dangerous unless it’s undertaken with caution. Extra steps like vitamin supplements and careful planning are particularly crucial for kids, since their bodies are not fully developed. Yet vegan activists at PETA and the woefully misnamed Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) continue to push vegan diets without emphasizing the special needs of growing children.\nThat PETA aggressively markets its messages to children is nothing new. PETA activists have been instrumental in promoting the misleading idea that going vegetarian or vegan is a hip style statement, or a way to stay thin. Regardless of its (lack of) merits, that notion seems to be catching on. According to the American Dietetic Association, eleven percent of girls ages 13 to 17 identify themselves as vegetarian or vegan. But nowhere in today’s animal-rights propaganda will you find sufficient warning about the drawbacks, including protein and vitamin deficiencies.\nPCRM has been particularly irresponsible in promoting vegan diets for kids. Despite ample evidence to the contrary, the group’s psychiatrist president even insists that \"vegan diets are not only good for kids, it’s a preferable diet for kids.\"\nAs the recent news from Scotland so tragically illustrates, this advice is dangerously misleading. Vegan advocacy groups should stop glossing over the potentially disastrous details of their dietary agenda."}
{"text": "A Probabilistic Relational Model (PRM), , , is a directed probabilistic graphical model used in the field of Statistical Relational Learning (SRL). PRMs define a language that can be used to describe the relationships - structural and probabilistic - between classes and variables, and thus allows representing dependencies between sets of objects. Heckerman et al. introduced the directed acyclic probabilistic entity-relationship (DAPER) model which is based on the entity-relationship model used to design relational databases.\nProbReM is built on the DAPER specification of a PRM, thus it requires the data to be modelled with a entity-relationship diagram. The probabilistic structure defines the dependencies among the probabilistic attributes of the entity-relationship model.\nThe parent and the child attribute of a dependency can be associated with different entities or relationships; Getoor et al. refer to the path from child to parent attribute the slotchain whereas Heckerman et al. associate a more general constraint with the dependency instead. The traditional slotchain is the most common constraint, ProbReM makes use of both expressions depending which one is more appropriate in the context.\nRelationships are either of type 1:n or m:n, therefore it is possible that attribute objects have multiple parent attribute objects for the same probabilistic dependency. Aggregation of the parent attribute objects is a common way to deal with this problem, ProbReM allows to define generic aggregation functions (avg, min, max).\nDifferent inference methods have been implemented, all of which are based on Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods.\nThe section Using ProbReM illustrates the approach used in ProbReM, and the example model is a walkthrough with an applied example. For theoretical background, we recommend Introduction to Statistical Relational Learning by Lise Getoor & Ben Taskar for an excellent introduction to the different approaches introduced in the SRL field. For more background on using MCMC in graphical models, D. Koller & N. Friedman’s Probabilistic Graphical Models: Principles and Techniques is an excellent reference.\n- Numpy / Scipy\n- Matplotlib / Pylab\nIt is hard to draw a line between the core functionality of the framework and the functionality needed by a specific ProbReM project. For this reason the source code will be provided as a folder and the framework has to be added to the PYTHONPATH of the ProbReM project. In the future it might be useful to create a proper Python package. The code is available as is on github.\nSee Using ProbReM for how to start a new project."}
{"text": "Today, there’s a chance that the U.S. Senate will return to some semblance of a functioning legislative body. A majority of senators could vote to eliminate Rule XXII, which authorizes the notorious filibuster.\nArticle 1, Section 6 of the Constitution, which gives to both houses of Congress the determination of “the rules of its proceedings,” offers that opportunity on the first day of each new Congress.\nThe filibuster, which requires a supermajority to cut off debate, entered the Senate’s rules in 1807 as a courtesy to speakers. Since then, Rule XXII has metastasized into a procedural vise that threatens the democratic foundation of our government.\nThe filibuster lost all semblance of being an aid to discussion in the middle of the 19th century, when some senators began using the rule to hold the floor for lengthy speeches to prevent voting on bills they didn’t like.\nUntil 40 years ago, this partisan weapon was used sparingly — no more than 10 times in any two-year congressional session. Then, in the 1970s, frustrated by even that small number of interminable talkathons, senators introduced the concept of the “silent filibuster” which enabled members to merely indicate that they intended to filibuster to block a measure.\nSince 2007, the Republican minority has expanded the use of the filibuster beyond any recognizable procedural rule. In the 110th, 111th and 112th Congress, they filibustered 380 times. Today no legislation can be introduced, no nominations considered, no votes taken without a supermajority of 60 votes.\nThis formidable, partisan tactic has become so common that bills like the Dream Act and the Paycheck Fairness Act have failed in the Senate despite having enough votes for passage because of the deadly filibuster.\nThe Founding Fathers, rebelling against monarchy, were so partial to majority rule that they specified in the Constitution only five instances requiring a supermajority. They were: to override a presidential veto, to expel a member, to approve treaties, to convict in an impeachment and to propose a constitutional amendment.\nThe Constitution does not require a supermajority for adopting the rules for Senate proceedings. When senators insist upon supermajority votes for rule-changes and filibusters, they are stealthily amending the Constitution.\nTwo years ago, Sens. Tom Udall, Jeff Merkley and Tom Harkins mounted a campaign for rules reform. They succeeded in getting rid of the anonymous filibuster, an even more egregious practice. Now, after two additional years of accelerating legislative obstruction, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has finally called for ending the silent filibuster.\nReid’s proposal would prevent the use of the filibuster to block the introduction of new measures. More important, it would require a senator to speak if he or she wished to halt a vote, instead of effortlessly indicating an intention to demand supermajority concurrence to continue any action.\nNewly elected Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Angus King, Heidi Heitkampf and Martin Heinrich have joined the filibuster’s foes, but the outcome of even Reid’s mild proposal is far from certain. Sen. Carl Levin is now assembling a bipartisan group to oppose any substantive change in the Senate’s rules.\nFar more promising than Reid’s “make them talk” effort is the lawsuit filed by the public advocacy group Common Cause. Contending quite correctly that the Senate’s arcane rule is actually threatening our democratic process, their case highlights the stake that we American citizens have in the filibuster issue.\nSuing on behalf of Reps. John Lewis, Michael Michaud, Hank Johnson and Keith Ellison and three young people hurt by the use of the filibuster to block the Senate from passing the Dream Act in 2010, Common Cause must demonstrate that its case does not fall under “the political question doctrine,” which posits that the judiciary can’t interfere with Congress’ procedures. Lawyers for Common Cause are arguing in the litigation that the Senate’s rule-making powers are not absolute, particularly when they violate actual constitutional law, in this case the principle of majority rule.\nResistance to changing the pernicious rule that is stifling the will of the majority rests on a historical myth and both parties’ fear of being curtailed when they are in a minority.\nThe myth teaches that the Senate was meant to counteract the democratic structure of the House. The opinions of the Founding Fathers tell otherwise.\nThe so-called Great Compromise at the Constitutional Convention of 1787, which granted each state two Senate seats regardless of its population, reflected a concession, not a principle. Because there were far more small states in the original 13 than large ones, the arrangement proved necessary to getting the delegates in Philadelphia to agree on a draft constitution.\nAs a consequence, Wyoming’s 180,000 registered voters have the same number of senators as California’s 18 million. Today’s filibustering senators are only furthering this imbalance.\nThe Founders designed the Senate to be a steadying force in Congress, with six-year terms and a requirement that members be at least 30 years old, but no Founding Father ever spoke in favor of minority rule.\nJames Madison, the father of the Constitution, recognized that majorities could err, but insisted persuasively that majority rule was far superior to any other mechanism for making legislative decisions. His views anticipated Winston Churchill, who noted that democracy might be considered the worst form of government except for all the others.\nThe rationales for the filibuster are but fig leaves to hide the fact that substantial numbers of senators in both parties want an insurance policy against minority impotence, and they are willing to curb the workings of our democracy to get it.\nNow only an aroused public can get Democrats and Republicans in the Senate to see the damage that the filibuster is doing to our political order.\nMajority rule is the bedrock democratic principle. When we citizens of the United States elect a majority, we want it to govern. Wisdom, experience, and the Constitution are on our side; let’s hope that enough members of the Senate move there also by Jan. 3 when the opening of the 113th Congress gives them a chance to vote with their hopes instead of their fears.\nJoyce Appleby is an emeritus professor of history at UCLA and author of “The Relentless Revolution: A History of Capitalism.” She lives in Taos, N.M., and she wrote this for the Los Angeles Times."}
{"text": "|The following information - excerpted from NutriBase Software - is a discussion about \"desirable\" body weights and \"desirable\" percentage body fat contents for men. (Information and body weight/fat charts for women are also available.)\nIn 1942, Louis Dublin, a statistician at Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, grouped some four million people who were insured with Metropolitan Life into categories based on their height, body frame (small, medium or large) and weight. He discovered that the ones who lived the longest were the ones who maintained their body weight at the level for average 25-year-olds.\nThese Metropolitan Life tables became widely used for determining recommended body weights. In 1942, the tables gave \"ideal body weights.\" In 1959, they were revised and became \"desirable body weights.\" And in 1983, they were revised once again, this time called \"height and weight tables.\" The weights given in the 1983 tables are heavier than the 1942 tables because, in general, heavier people live longer today.\nExperts have criticized the validity of these tables for several reasons:\nMany experts say the 1942 tables are more accurate because they indicate lower \"ideal weights.\" Many experts support the use of the 1983 tables, citing that these are the latest statistical sampling of such matters. The American Heart Association recommends using the 1959 tables rather than the newer tables that suggest somewhat higher weights. This Guide shows you the 1959 tables.\nSome experts criticize the Metropolitan Life tables stating that they are okay for persons in their forties, but that the numbers are too heavy for younger persons and too light for older persons. For this and other reasons, NutriBase shows you recommended body weights from four sources: the 1959 Metropolitan Life Insurance chart, the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics, North American Association for the Study of Obesity, and the U.S. Department of the Army. NutriBase displays the heights and weights from these charts, showing you the entries that are appropriate for your sex, height, frame size, and age.\nThe Metropolitan Life chart is organized by sex and body frame size (small, medium, or large frame) and all the other charts are sex and age-graded except for the North American Association for the Study of Obesity, which lists weights by sex only.\nWeight Charts for Men\nMetropolitan Life Insurance Company, 1959 - Male\nUS National Center for Health Statistics - Male\nNorth American Association for the Study of Obesity - Males\nUS Army - Males\nBody Fat Content Chart for Men and Women"}
{"text": "Worksheets and activities\nIf you want to support your child’s learning at primary school with some extra practice at home, TheSchoolRun has hundreds of resources for you to choose from.\nOur free English worksheets cover phonics, spelling, handwriting, grammar, reading comprehension and more.\nOur free maths worksheets for Reception, KS1 and KS2 offer activities and games to help with multiplication, division, fractions, decimals, times tables and all other areas covered in the national curriculum.\nOur free primary science worksheets will help you revise key science concepts with hands-on experiments.\nBrowse through all our worksheets and filter your search by subject and year group to find the best resources for your child.\nThese SATs past test papers can be downloaded for free and used to help with SATs revision.\nThe Learning Journey is a guided revision programme for primary English and maths. Every week of the school year we suggest two activities to offer your child at-home practice; we'll also email you worksheet suggestions and teachers' tips to help you get the most from our resources.\nThe Learning Journey is exclusive to TheSchoolRun subscribers. Find out more by watching our introductory video.\nStart your child's Learning Journey today!\nFractions? Punctuation? Telling the time? Handwriting? If there’s a specific area of learning your child needs support with, our packs offer information, advice and plenty of engaging practical activities to help you.\nWritten by teachers and experts and exclusively available to TheSchoolRun subscribers, learning packs (each 50+ pages long) are fun as well as practice-packed.\nAbout TheSchoolRun: If you’re passionate about helping your children achieve their full potential with fun but educational activities, TheSchoolRun.com is the parenting website for you. TheSchoolRun aims to demystify school for parents, giving you all the tools you need to understand what and how your child is learning at primary school. Our informative articles, packed with advice from experts and practical tips from teachers, help parents get to grips with new educational techniques and feel confident about supporting their kids’ schoolwork."}
{"text": "Thirty years ago, a summertime rain could produce huge gullies, badly eroded slopes dotted much of the region, and on average, a Tennessee farmer was losing almost 2,000 tons of soil per year.\nBut that was before no-till farming.\nThese days, thanks to extensive work by researchers with the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture, and educational forums like the Milan No-Till Field Day, those sights and stats are a thing of the past.\nIn 2009, more than 70 percent of Tennessee farmers used no-till practices, and an additional 20 percent used some type of conservation tillage. The results can be seen in better production efficiency, cleaner water and air, and drastic improvements in our soils.\nWhen the 30th Milan No-Till Crop Production Field Day rolls around on July 22, most visitors to the AgResearch and Education Center will be familiar with no-till practices, but this event is about more than no-till education. It’s about helping farmers determine the best methods for agricultural production.\n“We’re proud of our heritage as the birthplace of Tennessee No-Till,” says Blake Brown, director of the AgResearch and Education Center at Milan, Tenn. “As no-till becomes the conventional tillage method in Tennessee, we hope to continue in the footsteps of those early no-till researchers whose main goal was to help the farmers of this state produce crops more efficiently and economically.”\nVisitors to Milan No-Till Field Day will have the opportunity to hear presentations on research involving every major row crop grown in Tennessee, delivered by leading crop experts from across the Mid-South.\nTours will also feature workshops on weed, insect and disease management. Plus, sessions will be offered on topics like financial planning and emerging biofuels markets.\nIn addition to the array of educational tours, visitors can also enjoy a large tradeshow or a walk through the West Tennessee Agricultural Museum, which features more than 20,000 agricultural antiques.\nAs always, the field day will be held at the AgResearch and Education Center at Milan. The Milan No-Till Field Day begins at 7 a.m. on Thursday, July 22. Admission is free and open to the public.\nFor more information, including directions to the AgResearch & Education Center, visit the website: http://milan.tennessee.edu or call (731) 686-7362. You can also check out the Milan No-Till page on Facebook for the latest updates.\nThe UT AgResearch and Education Center at Milan is one of 10 outdoor laboratories operated by the Tennessee Agricultural Experiment Station system as part of the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture. In addition to its agricultural research programs, the UT Institute of Agriculture also provides instruction, research and public service through the UT College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, the UT College of Veterinary Medicine, and UT Extension offices in every county in the state."}
{"text": "Debates about energy often get testy. That’s because the arguments are usually clouded by emotions. The number one reason people buy mileage efficient hybrid cars, for example, is that it makes them feel good about themselves; the purchase provides for a moral superiority especially over those who continue to drive gas guzzlers. The fact that the premium paid over a comparable non hybrid vehicle cannot be economically justified with gas prices at current levels is irrelevant. It’s the environment that’s important even though the ecological benefit of driving a hybrid cannot be quantified.\nAs with hybrid cars, most arguments about energy are devoid of facts about cost. Politicians love to spout their support for alternative environmental friendly energy development, particularly ethanol, wind, and solar. They never mention the reality that these energy sources cannot be developed without enormous government subsidies and delivery consumption prices that will be a multiple of present energy costs. Add in other development problems such as land use, delivery unreliability, other adverse environmental effects and it obvious that these energy alternatives will never supply more than a fraction of our power needs.\nIf energy independence and protecting the environment is truly important it is necessary to recognize that costs do matter as a conservation motivator. For example, higher gasoline prices-say $5.00 per gallon- would drive more people to hybrid and smaller more fuel efficient cars purchases than any environmental benefit factor. Of course few politicians would support a consumption tax on gasoline and oil companies and speculators would be vilified if market prices got that high. Needless to say, the public wouldn’t like it either.\nBut there are other area where cost rationality is making progress. One example is the planned installation by utilities of smart meters in some 10 million homes and businesses. These devices are programmed to measure a customer’s use of electricity incrementally during the day, say every ten minutes or hour. This information is automatically forwarded to the utility which will charge different prices for energy depending on peak or non peak power demand. Customers opting for lower bills could reduce energy usage during the higher cost peak period. Ultimately, smart meters could directly control a household’s appliances making the home more energy cost efficient. This is real energy smarts."}
{"text": "Questions for Photo 1\n1. This view is looking from the area around the railroad crossover up the tracks of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad. Locate this view on the map shown in Illustration 1. Can you identify Battery Williams (to the left of the tracks) and Battery Robinett (behind the tent camp on the right) in the photo?\n2. What clues can you identify in the photo to suggest why the two batteries were located where they were?\n3. The tent camp is located between Battery Robinett and Battery Williams, near the tracks. Why do you think that might be the case?\n4. The objects next to the tracks on the right side of the photo appear to be wheels for railroad cars. Why do you think there are so many of them? What might they be used for? How do you think they would have been transported to Corinth?\n* The photo on this screen has a resolution of 72 dots per inch (dpi), and therefore will print poorly. You can obtain a larger version of Photo 1, but be aware that the file will take as much as 35 seconds to load with a 28.8K modem."}
{"text": "Upper Level Low - Meteorological Physical Background\nby ZAMG and FMI\nUpper Level Lows are closed cyclonically circulating eddies in the middle and upper troposphere. They are sometimes also called \"cold drops\", because the air within an Upper Level Low is colder than in its surroundings.\nThe development of a typical Upper Level Low goes through four stages, during which a bottom of an upper trough is detached from the main stream, until it finally fills up or merges with another trough:\n- Upper level trough\n- Final stage\n1. Upper Level Trough stage\nThe prerequisite of the forming of the Upper Level Low are unstable waves within the main stream, where the temperature wave is behind the geopotential wave.\n- There is cold advection within the trough and warm advection on the ridge of the geopotential wave.\n- The vertical axis of the trough has a backward-oriented inclination with height.\n- The amplitudes of the waves increase; the wavelenght can decrease.\nCyan: 500 hPa geopotential height, green: 500 hPa temperature\n2. Tear-off stage\n- The amplitudes of the waves increases further.\n- The isohypses form an inverse omega-shape and the cold air flows into the middle of this omega.\n- Often at the same time the ridge behind the main upper trough continues to move eastward quicklier than the trough, appearing to \"fall\n- In the end of this stage the cold bottom of the trough is detached from the main stream.\n3. Cut-off stage\n- The bottom of the upper trough is completely detached from the main stream forming a closed circulation.\n- If there is a strong forward-falling ridge behind, it may also separate from the main stream and form an upper level high (a counterpart for the\nupper level low). This happens in most of the ULL cases.\n- The cold core of the Upper level Low warms up slowly because of the diabatic warming of the sinking clod air.\n- If a cold Upper Level Low is situated over a warm surface, convection arises within the core. This occurs especially over the Atlantic Ocean\n(Canarian Isles) and over the Mediterranean in summertime.\n- Another location for convection is ahead of the low within the area of a thickness ridge.\n4. Final stage\nWithin an Upper Level Low there is convection, unless the surface is very cold. The air near the surface is warm and the circulation is slowed down by the friction. The convection brings warm air and friction upwards. Consequently, the Upper Level Low weakens slowly.\n- In most cases the Upper Level Low merges with the main stream before it has completely dissolved by the convection. Usually a large trough in\nthe main stream approaches from the rear and catches the upper level low.\n- The Upper Level Low can also merge with another Upper Level Low.\nFor an example see Key Parameters.\nIf the Upper Level Low is far from the main stream, it can dissolve solely by convection. This kind of development occurs mostly in southern areas; in Europe they can be found over the Mediterranean.\nUpper Level Lows can be divided into two classes according to their size and lifetime:\n- small lows with a lifetime of 2-4 days\n- big lows with a lifetime of 5-14 days\nBig lows are slightly more common than small ones.\nNote that over land an Upper Level Low can also form when a surface low of an extratropical cyclone disappears due to friction. This is just a late stage of a cyclone development and the upper low fills up relatively quickly."}
{"text": "There are so many ways that you can do extra research and investigate into many more aspects of Clare. Below are some ideas.\nYour local library is an excellent source for all the information you may need: it may have some maps you can look at. Perhaps you could do a project about aspects of Clare.\nThere might be some more photographs or images related to Clare in the Media Bank.\nMaybe you need some tips on how to be a researcher? Click on one of the icons below.\nAsk Your Librarian or Teacher\nAsk your librarian or teacher if they can help you find out about Clare.\nInformation you can look out for includes photos and media publications, such as old newspapers, which may provide you with interesting insights.\nNot sure exactly what you can ask the librarian for? Click on the icon for some suggestions.\nhttp://www.museum.ie has loads of artefacts and evidence from Ireland throughout the centuries, even before your grandparents were born."}
{"text": "DIY Industrial Art Pieces Made from Rubbings\nI was in a used book store one day and I saw a book on art rubbings. Of course, I was familiar with the idea of putting a penny or leaf under a paper and running a pencil over the top to transfer the image, but this book was taking it to a whole new level. So we grabbed our art supplies and went outside to make some new art pieces from rubbings!\n- Paper … and plenty of it. I found that I like using very thin paper, personally. I bought a cheap sketchpad and I really liked the texture and thinness of the paper for this project.\n- Rubbing Materials. There are all sorts of rubbing materials you could use! Take a bunch with you and try them out to see what you prefer. Graphite, colored pencils, pastels, chalks, wax, you name it! Although I did not expect it, I ended up preferring crayons for larger pieces. Colored pencils were nice for more detailed/smaller items.\n- A Kneeling Pad. If you’re going to be crouching on sidewalks and streets making your rubbings, it’s a little more comfortable if you have something under your knees.\n- A Folder. Or something to put your finished rubbings in to prevent them from getting bent up and wrinkled.\n- Masking Tape. You need for need something to hold the paper still while making a rubbing, and I found masking tape to work very well. It’s especially helpful for working on vertical surfaces, of course, but even on a flat horizontal surface, it is a good idea. Be aware, though, that depending on the kind of paper you are using, the area with the masking tape may need to be trimmed away. This is usually fine because of the nature of rubbings, often the edges are not the most attractive part, anyway, and can be cut away.\n- Scissors. This is helpful to have so you can trim away the excess masking tape to prevent the papers from sticking together in the folder.\n- A Tote. Or something similar to carry all these supplies!\nYou could do a variety of themes out of rubbings, such as a nature theme where you make rubbings of tree bark and feathers and other natural objects.\nBut I wanted to do a more urban and industrial theme. Of course, this works best if you live in a fairly urban area. However, even in a small town we were able to find some interesting subjects for rubbings.\nTry man hole covers, engraved signs, and plaques for more definite rubbings, or try brick walls, metal plates and concrete for more textural subjects. Be aware, though, that you need to know what you are allowed to make rubbings of; it is illegal some places to make rubbings of gravestones, and, of course, you shouldn’t wander onto private property to make rubbings.\nStill, it is a unique way to wander around a town, looking for interesting spots to make into rubbings – you notice all sorts of things you would not have seen before.\nA few tips on making rubbings:\n- Look for a subject for the rubbing that has texture or relief to it, and tape the paper over the area you want to transfer to the paper. Choose which art medium you want to use for the particular rubbing.\n- Don’t use a sharp point of whatever art medium you are using, but rather use a blunt point or use it on an extreme angle as you begin to make the rubbing.\n- Move your pencil, or other rubbing tool, smoothly and evenly over the surface of the paper. Start out marking lightly. If you press too hard, you’ll just be drawing on top of the surface, not really picking up the texture. But if you start lightly and gradually get to darker/harder strokes, you’ll get a better feel for what works well.\n- While making the rubbing, try to keep your hand moving in the same plane. In other words, if you’re rubbing right to left, do not suddenly switch to up and down, or you will probably end up with some unattractive competing lines.\n- When you are finished, gently remove the paper from the surface and trim away the masking tape. Place the rubbing your folder for safe keeping.\nSo try exploring your local area and think outside the box of what you can turn into rubbings!\nThis tutorial is brought to you by April Starr.\nShe likes to say that her motto is \"living the amazement\" She never wants to lose her sense of wonder and adventure.\nApril Starr is a designer, writer, creative entrepreneur of FlourishCafe, lover of spicy food, amateur explorer and worth very little in the early mornings. Her husband and four year old daughter are always up for trying a new dish she has created, or working on a project together. She is learning, laughing, and living the amazement every day!"}