text stringlengths 522 249k |
|---|
No. 24; Updated March 2011
Click here to download and print a PDF version of this document.
Parents are usually the first to recognize that their child has a problem with emotions or behavior. Still, the decision to seek professional help can be difficult and painful for a parent. The first step is to gently try to talk to the child. An honest open talk about feelings can often help. Parents may choose to consult with the child's physicians, teachers, members of the clergy, or other adults who know the child well. These steps may resolve the problems for the child and family.
Following are a few signs which may indicate that a child and adolescent psychiatric evaluation will be useful.
- Marked fall in school performance
- Poor grades in school despite trying very hard
- Severe worry or anxiety, as shown by regular refusal to go to school, go to sleep or take part in activities that are normal for the child's age
- Frequent physical complaints
- Hyperactivity; fidgeting; constant movement beyond regular playing with or without difficulty paying attention
- Persistent nightmares
- Persistent disobedience or aggression (longer than 6 months) and provocative opposition to authority figures
- Frequent, unexplainable temper tantrums
- Threatens to harm or kill oneself
- Marked decline in school performance
- Inability to cope with problems and daily activities
- Marked changes in sleeping and/or eating habits
- Extreme difficulties in concentrating that get in the way at school or at home
- Sexual acting out
- Depression shown by sustained, prolonged negative mood and attitude, often accompanied by poor appetite, difficulty sleeping or thoughts of death
- Severe mood swings
- Strong worries or anxieties that get in the way of daily life, such as at school or socializing
- Repeated use of alcohol and/or drugs
- Intense fear of becoming obese with no relationship to actual body weight, excessive dieting, throwing up or using laxatives to loose weight
- Persistent nightmares
- Threats of self-harm or harm to others
- Self-injury or self destructive behavior
- Frequent outbursts of anger, aggression
- Repeated threats to run away
- Aggressive or non-aggressive consistent violation of rights of others; opposition to authority, truancy, thefts, or vandalism
- Strange thoughts, beliefs, feelings, or unusual behaviors
See other Facts for Families:
#25 Where to Seek Help for Your Child
#52 Comprehensive Psychiatric Evaluation
#57 Normal Adolescent Development, Middle School, and Early High School Years
#58 Normal Adolescent Development, Late High School Year and Beyond
#00 Definition of a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist
The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) represents over 8,500 child and adolescent psychiatrists who are physicians with at least five years of additional training beyond medical school in general (adult) and child and adolescent psychiatry.
Facts for Families© information sheets are developed, owned and distributed by AACAP. Hard copies of Facts sheets may be reproduced for personal or educational use without written permission, but cannot be included in material presented for sale or profit. All Facts can be viewed and printed from the AACAP website (www.aacap.org). Facts sheets may not be reproduced, duplicated or posted on any other website without written consent from AACAP. Organizations are permitted to create links to AACAP's website and specific Facts sheets. For all questions please contact the AACAP Communications & Marketing Coordinator, ext. 154.
If you need immediate assistance, please dial 911.
Copyright © 2012 by the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. |
Previous abstract Next abstract
Session 40 - The Interstellar Medium.
Display session, Tuesday, June 09
Gamma Ray Burst (GRB) explosions can make kpc-size shells and holes in the interstellar media (ISM) of spiral galaxies if much of the energy heats the local gas to above 10^7 K. Disk blowout is probably the major cause for energy loss in this case, but the momentum acquired during the pressurized expansion phase can be large enough that the bubble still snowplows to a kpc diameter. This differs from the standard model for the origin of such shells by multiple supernovae, which may have problems with radiative cooling, evaporative losses, and disk blow-out. Evidence for giant shells with energies of \sim10^53 ergs are summarized. Some contain no obvious central star clusters and may be GRB remnants, although sufficiently old clusters would be hard to detect. The expected frequency of GRBs in normal galaxies can account for the number of such shells.
Program listing for Tuesday |
Average life span in the wild: 12 years
Size: 21 in (50 cm)
Weight: 14.4 oz (408 g)
Did you know? Chameleons don't change colors to match their surroundings. Each species displays distinct color patterns to indicate specific reactions or emotions.
The Meller's chameleon is the largest of the chameleons not native to Madagascar. Their stout bodies can grow to be up to two feet (two-thirds of a meter) long and weigh more than a pound (one-half kilogram).
Meller's distinguish themselves from their universally bizarre-looking cousins with a single small horn protruding from the front of their snouts. This and their size earn them the common name "giant one-horned chameleon."
They are fairly common in the savanna of East Africa, including Malawi, northern Mozambique, and Tanzania. Almost one-half of the world’s chameleons live on the island of Madagascar.
As with all chameleons, Meller's will change colors in response to stress and to communicate with other chameleons. Their normal appearance is deep green with yellow stripes and random black spots. Females are slightly smaller, but are otherwise indistinguishable from males.
They subsist on insects and small birds, using their camouflage and a lightning-fast, catapulting tongue, which can be up to 20 inches (50 centimeters) long, to ambush prey.
Exotic pet enthusiasts often attempt to keep Meller's chameleons as pets. However, they are highly susceptible to even the slightest level of stress and are very difficult to care for in captivity. In the wild, they can live as long as 12 years. |
Nuclear Energy in France
Nuclear energy is the cornerstone of french energy policy. In the ‘70s France chose to develop nuclear as its base load electricity source as a response to the oil crisis and assure its energy independence.
Nuclear Electricity Production: France currently counts 58 commercial nuclear reactors in operation responsible for producing 80% of French domestic electricity. As a comparison, the 104 US reactors produces 20% of US electricity.Despite scarce natural resources, France has reached an energy independence of 50% thanks to its strategic choice for nuclear energy.
Environment: As well as providing safe and reliable energy, nuclear helps to reduce French greenhouse gas emissions by avoiding the release of 31 billions tones of carbon dioxide (contrary to coal or gas generation) and making France the less carbon emitting country within the OECD. As a leader in nuclear energy, France has developed clean technology for radioactive waste disposal. Reprocessing currently allows France to recover valuable elements from spent fuels and permit a significant reduction of high level waste and lead to safer and optimized containment, for final radioactive waste disposition. French nuclear power plants produces only 10 g/year/inhabitant of highly radioactive waste.
International Cooperation and research: France is one of the forerunner in nuclear research and participates in numerous international cooperation programs alongside the United States such as the development of the next generation of nuclear power plants (Gen IV) and the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) that will be built in Cadarache, South of France.
The French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA)
The French Atomic Energy Commission is a public body established in October 1945 by General de Gaulle. It constitutes a power of expertise and proposition for the authorities. A leader in research, development and innovation, the CEA is involved in three main fields:
It develops and acquires the technological building blocks necessary to the development of the nuclear reactors of the future (Contribution to Generation IV and GNEP research),
It contributes to reducing greenhouse gas emission with its research on hydrogen, fuel cells, biomass, energy storage…,
It supports the nuclear utilities in France by optimizing the nuclear power plants of the French nuclear fleet and by optimizing the fuel cycle,
It offers safe and economically viable technical solutions for managing nuclear waste,
It conducts fundamental research in climate and environmental sciences, high energy physics, astrophysics, fusion, nanosciences…
Information and Health technologies:
It tackles micro and nano-technologies for telecommunication and nuclear medicine for radiotherapy and medical imaging,
It researches programs on biotechnology, molecular labelling, biomolecular engineering and structural biology,
It shares its knowledge and know-how through education and training through the National Institute for Nuclear Sciences and Technologies (INSTN),
It manages over 300 priority patents and is active in the creation of clusters.
Defense and National Security:
It conceives, builds, maintains then dismantles the nuclear warhead of the French deterrence force,
It helps to fight against nuclear, biological and chemical weapons (NRBC program).
The missions of the CEA are similar to the Department of Energy in the United States. The CEA has a network of counselor or representatives in French Embassies around the world (see joint map).
The French Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN)
Created in 2006, from the former DSIN (Directorate for the Safety of Nuclear Facilities), the French Nuclear Safety Authority is an independent administrative authority which is tasked with regulating nuclear safety and radiation protection in order to protect workers, patients, the public and the environment from the risks involved in nuclear activities. It also contributes to informing the public. Like the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in the United States, it carries out inspections and may pronounce sanctions, up to and including suspension of operation of an installation.
French Institute for Radioprotection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN)
Created in 2001 by merging the Protection and Nuclear Safety Institute (IPSN) and the Ionizing radiations Protection Office (OPRI), the Institute for Radioprotection and Nuclear Safety is a public establishment of an industrial and commercial nature placed under the joint authority of the Ministries of the Environment, Health, Industry, Research and Defense. It is the expert in safety research and specialized assessments into nuclear and radiological risk serving public authorities whose work is complementary to the ASN.
Its scope of activities includes:
environment and response,
human radiological protection,
research on the prevention of major accidents,
power reactor safety,
fuel cycle facility safety,
research installation safety,
waste management safety;
nuclear defense expertise.
National radioactive Waste Management Agency (ANDRA)
Created in 1991, the French National Agency for Radioactive Waste Management is a public industrial and commercial organization that operates independently of waste producers. It is responsible for the long-term management of radioactive waste produced in France under the supervision of the French Ministries for Energy, Research and the Environment. It can be compared to a certain extent to the Office for Nuclear Waste of the Department of Energy in the United States.
Andra also pursues industrial, research, and information activities as it designs and implements disposal solutions suited to each category of radioactive waste:
the collection, conditioning, disposal of radioactive waste from small producers (hospitals, research centers, industry),
specification of waste packages for disposal,
disposal in suited sites,
monitoring of closed disposal facilities,
research programs for long-lived and high level activity waste, especially through the operation of an underground research laboratory in a deep clay formation…
General Directorate for Energy and Climate (DGEC)
The General Directorate for Energy and Climate represents the government and is part of the Office of the Department for Ecology and Sustainable Development. It defines the French nuclear policy. The DGEC takes care of the energy supply, the security of supply, oil refining and logistics, nuclear industry, and coal and mines.
Consequently, its activities include:
the design and implement energy and raw material supply policy,
to ensure opening of electricity and gas markets,
track key energy and raw material sectors,
to oversee enterprises and public institutions in energy sector,
to ensure compliance with rules and regulations governing energy sector,
to participate in European and international energy projects and working groups,
to provide economic, environmental, and fiscal expertise on energy matters.
The Rise of Nuclear Power Generation in France. |
- Action research (6 posts)
- Artist CPD (11 posts)
- Barriers to participation (2 posts)
- Change management (8 posts)
- Co-construction (3 posts)
- Community cohesion (12 posts)
- Creative curriculum development (13 posts)
- Creative teaching and learning (28 posts)
- Cross-curricular working (21 posts)
- Developing school ethos (6 posts)
- Disability awareness (4 posts)
- Diversity (3 posts)
- Exchanges and trips (4 posts)
- Experiential learning (6 posts)
- Extracurricular work (3 posts)
- Learning outcomes for artists (23 posts)
- Learning outcomes for teachers (27 posts)
- Learning outcomes for young people (37 posts)
- Learning styles (13 posts)
- Mentoring (2 posts)
- Outdoor learning environment (1 post)
- Parent engagement (4 posts)
- Participation and engagement (29 posts)
- Partnerships (37 posts)
- Role of the practitioner (32 posts)
- School networks (2 posts)
- Teacher CPD (17 posts)
- Whole school working (13 posts)
- Young people in decision making role (9 posts)
- Youth leadership (5 posts)
- Youth voice (16 posts)
Select from the categories above, and scroll over the thumbnails to view information about each resource. You can download many of the resources as PDFs, view film or listen to audio.
A New Direction Schools Forum: Effective Partnership WorkingThis resource summarises key ideas from schools and arts & cultural organisations from a series of discussions around six different…
A Personal Journey through Preferred Learning StylesAn essay written by a creative practitioner who undertook action research into students' preferred learning styles and creativity.
Artists and Teachers PartnershipsAn essay exploring partnerships between creative practitioners and teachers from an Early Years setting and a Secondary school.
Arts Beyond the ClassroomA film documenting the experiences of the pupils and parents in the Arts Beyond the Classroom project.
Beneath the HoodA pack including a poignant film portrait of students at a PRU, poetry cards and a resource guide for similar…
Building PartnershipsAn essay describing three effective partnership projects delivered in two primary schools and one FE College.
Co-construction of LearningA case study exploring examples of creative projects which supported young people to guide school change through 'co-construction'.
Connecting Countries: London to VancouverA film of a group of Secondary School students who journey to Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Paralympic Games.
Creative Interventions in the English FacultyAn essay providing an arts organisation's perspective of creative teaching strategies within an East London school's English curriculum.
Creative Teaching and LearningA case study discussing the ways creative programmes have supported the development of creative teaching and learning.
Creativity and ChangeAn essay exploring structural and institutional change through creative programmes in three primaries and one special school.
Cross-Curricular Creative ProjectsAn essay describing cross-curricular approaches in 3 primary schools and 1 secondary school in East London.
Developing a Learning Strategy for ArtsadminA paper detailing the development of an arts organisation's education programme in partnership with artists and local schools.
Engaging Parents Creatively in the Foundation StageA paper presenting two examples that aimed to increase parental engagement and community involvement in the pupils' work.
Forensic Science Murder MysteryA film documenting a cross-curricular drama project with secondary school students inspired by a TV crime series.
Grove Park Special School Takes Over the Borough of BrentA film made by students with a range of physical and learning disabilities who investigate their local area.
ImagiNationA film charting an 18 month whole school cross-curricular project culminating in a community carnival.
Imagine NationA short film of a poem and set of accompanying activities for literacy lessons exploring creativity and imagination.
Institutional ChangeA paper exploring two different approaches to whole school change in a Special School and a Secondary School.
IPC Media Schools Design ProgrammeAn essay describing the IPC Media Schools Design Programme, a graphic design work-related learning programme initiated in 2005.
Learning about Learning: Preferred Learning Styles and CreativityA publication exploring education approaches to preferred learning styles. Essays and a toolkit of lesson activities are included.
London to Beijing - a Dance TravelogueA film about dance students from a Further Education college who visit a dance school in Beijing, China.
Making Things Happen - HereA project case study and two films. A group of Primary Schools imagine something extraordinary for their community.
Olympics Literacy ResourceA set of classroom resources for all year groups for creating poetry around the theme of the Olympics. |
Octodon degus is generally considered endemic to west central Chile, where it inhabits the lower slopes of the Andes. Although some have argued that its range may extend north into Peru, this is not well supported. It is common in the international pet trade, however, and is often used in laboratory studies outside of its native range. (Contreras, et al., 1987; Woods and Boraker, 1975)
Octodon degus inhabits a mediterranean-type semi-arid shrubland ecosystem called "matorral", which is found on the western slopes of the Andes between 28 and 35 degrees south latitude. Further north the climate becomes too arid to support this plant community, and further south it is too wet. Degus appear to be limited to elevations below 1200 meters, both by the distribution of their habitat and by their intolerance of low oxygen partial pressure. Degus are well able to inhabit lands influenced by cattle grazing, and are agricultural pests in some areas. (Contreras, et al., 1987; Fulk, 1976)
Octodon degus superficially resembles a gerbil, but is much larger. Degus typically weigh between 170 and 300 g, and measure between 325 and 440 mm in length, including the tail. The fur is yellow-brown on the back and head, and the underparts and feet are cream colored. There is a pale band around the eye and, in some individuals, the neck. The tail is moderately long and conspicuously tufted. The ears are large and darkly pigmented. The fifth digit is reduced, and on the forefeet it has a nail instead of a claw. The cheekteeth are hypsodont and their biting surfaces resemble a figure of eight. Sexes are difficult to distinguish, but males tend to be about 10% larger than females. Pups are born furred and able to see, and begin exploring within hours of birth. Octodon degus can be distinguished from the two other members of the genus Octodon by slight differences in dental morphology. It is also smaller than its relatives and its tail is said to be more noticeably tufted. (Fulk, 1976; Lee, 2004)
During the annual breeding season, male-male aggression temporarily increases. Males exclude other males from their burrow and monopolize the females (usually 2 to 4) who live there. Dustbathing and urine marking may be used in the defense of territory by both sexes, but these behaviors particularly increase in the male during the breeding season. Courting males often engage in mutual grooming with females, and frequently perform a courtship ritual which involves wagging of the tail and trembling of the body. The male then raises a hind leg and sprays urine onto the female. This may serve to familiarize her with his scent and perhaps make her more receptive to his advances in the future. Receptive females may sometimes enurinate males in a similar fashion. Related female degus may nurse each other's young. (Ebensperger and Caiozzi, 2002; Fulk, 1976; Kleiman, 1974; Soto-Gamboa, 2005)
In the wild degus tend to breed once per year. The breeding season usually begins in late May (autumn in Chile), and the young are conceived in late winter to early spring (September to October). In wet years, degus may produce second litters. It has been suggested that degus may be induced ovulators, but this has not been established for certain. There is also some evidence that male reproductive organs may be sensitive to changes in photoperiod. The gestation period is 90 days, and litter size is typically 4-6 pups. The young are precocial. They are born with fur and teeth; their eyes are open and they are able to move about the nest on their own. Pups are weaned at 4 to 5 weeks, and become sexually mature between 12 and 16 weeks of age. Degus do not reach adult size until about 6 months of age, however, and they generally live in same-sex social groups until they are about 9 months old and their first breeding season occurs. It has been reported that pups raised in isolation in the laboratory experience severe neural and behavioral abnormalities. (Ebensperger and Hurtado, 2005; Lee, 2004; Woods and Boraker, 1975)
Before conception can occur, the male degu must invest considerable energy in the defense of his territory and harem from other males. The female subsequently expends considerable energy in gestation and lactation. The pregnancy is relatively long for a rodent, and the young are born well developed. After birth, both parents protect and provision the pups. Degus nest communally, and groups of related females nurse one another's young. In the laboratory, the female remains close to the pups until two weeks after birth, and males have been observed to huddle with the young during this period without instances of infanticide. In the wild, male degus may spend as much time feeding and huddling with the young as females do. Pups begin to eat solid food at about two weeks of age, and venture out of the burrow at three weeks. Upon weaning at four to six weeks, the pups are able to live independently of the parents and form same-sex social groups until their first breeding season. (Ebensperger and Hurtado, 2005; Fulk, 1976; Lee, 2004; Woods and Boraker, 1975)
In laboratory conditions, degus typically live five to eight years.
Degus are social and tend to live in groups of one to two males and two to five related females. Females participate in rearing on another's young. Groups maintain territories throughout much of the year. Degus are semi-fossorial, digging extensive communal burrow systems. These burrows are often shared by Bennett's chinchilla rat (Abrocoma bennettii). Degus feed exclusively above ground, however, and have been observed climbing into the low branches of shrubs while foraging. Dustbathing is an important social behavior among degus. Groups repeatedly mark favorite wallows with urine and anal gland secretions. This may help the group identify each other by scent as well as delineating territorial boundaries. Degus are mainly diurnal, and are most active during the morning and evening. (Ebensperger, et al., 2004; Fulk, 1976; Woods and Boraker, 1975)
Fulk (1976) estimated that social groups of degus occupy home areas of roughly 200 square meters, and that their density is about 75 degus per hectare. This may be an underestimate, however, due to the trapping methods used. (Fulk, 1976)
Degus have well-developed sight, smell, and hearing. They are highly vocal and use various calls to communicate with one another, including alarm calls, mating calls, and communication between parents and young. Vision is very important in avoidance of predators and in foraging. It has been shown that degus are able to see ultraviolet wavelengths, and that their urine reflects in the UV range when fresh. It has therefore been suggested that degus' urine scent marks are also visual cues. These scent marks are also used as dust wallows, allowing members of a social group to identify each other by scent. (Chavez, et al., 2003; Fulk, 1976; Woods and Boraker, 1975)
Degus are generalist herbivores. They feed on the leaves, bark, and seeds of shrubs and forbs. Among their favorite foods are the bark of Cestrum palqui and Mimosa cavenia, leaves and bark of Proustia cuneifolia, Atriplex repunda, and Acacia caven, annuals such as Erodium cicutarum when in season, green grasses, and thistle seeds. Degus choose food items that reduce fiber and increase nitrogen and moisture in the diet, and thus prefer young leaves and avoid woodier shrubs. Degus rely on microbial fermentation in their enlarged cecum (they are "hindgut fermenters") to digest their food. They reingest a large percentage of their feces, usually during the night. This allows them to maximize their digestion. Degus store food in the winter, and it has been reported that they occasionally eat meat in old age. (Gutierrez and Bozinovic, 1998; Kenagy, et al., 1999; Veloso and Kenagy, 2005; Woods and Boraker, 1975)
Octodon degus is subject to predation by larger mammals such as culpeo foxes (Lycalopex culpaeus), and from the air by raptors such as barn owls (Tyto alba), short-eared owls (Asio flammeus), and black-chested buzzard eagles (Geranoaetus melanoleucus). Degus use vigilance and cover to avoid predators. Their pelage is also counter-shaded and matches the soil color, which reduces visibility to predators. Degus live socially and use alarm calls to warn others of danger. When a predator is spotted, they take cover in shrubby areas and may retreat to the communal burrow. (Ebensperger and Wallem, 2002; Woods and Boraker, 1975)
Octodon degus affects the plant community in its habitat by selective browsing. Degus behaviorally reduce the fiber content of their diet, preferrentially eating shrubs such as Adesmia bedwellii, Baccharis paniculata, and Chenopodium petioare, which are less fibrous and less thorny than others. These species have been shown to increase their foliage area upon exclusion of degus. As degus are very common, they are themselves an important food source for their predators. (Gutierrez and Bozinovic, 1998)
Degus often live in association with Bennett's chinchilla rats (Abrocoma bennettii). The two species are known to share burrow systems and have even been observed in the same chamber within a burrow. This is believed to be a mutualistic relationship, but it is not well understood. (Fulk, 1976; Woods and Boraker, 1975)
Degus are frequently kept as pets, and are used extensively in laboratory research. Because they are largely diurnal, they are useful in research on circadian rhythms, and their intolerance of sugars makes them ideal models for diabetes research. (Lee, 2004)
Degus are significant agricultural pests in some areas. They take advantage of cultivated prickly pear cactus, wheat, vineyards, and orchards as abundant food sources, and can do considerable damage. They are also known to host three species of parasites that can infect humans. (Fulk, 1976)
Tanya Dewey (editor), Animal Diversity Web.
Mary Hejna (author), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Phil Myers (editor, instructor), Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
living in the southern part of the New World. In other words, Central and South America.
uses sound to communicate
living in landscapes dominated by human agriculture.
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
Found in coastal areas between 30 and 40 degrees latitude, in areas with a Mediterranean climate. Vegetation is dominated by stands of dense, spiny shrubs with tough (hard or waxy) evergreen leaves. May be maintained by periodic fire. In South America it includes the scrub ecotone between forest and paramo.
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
helpers provide assistance in raising young that are not their own
an animal that mainly eats the dung of other animals
active at dawn and dusk
having markings, coloration, shapes, or other features that cause an animal to be camouflaged in its natural environment; being difficult to see or otherwise detect.
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
an animal that mainly eats leaves.
Referring to a burrowing life-style or behavior, specialized for digging or burrowing.
an animal that mainly eats seeds
An animal that eats mainly plants or parts of plants.
offspring are produced in more than one group (litters, clutches, etc.) and across multiple seasons (or other periods hospitable to reproduction). Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
the business of buying and selling animals for people to keep in their homes as pets.
having more than one female as a mate at one time
specialized for leaping or bounding locomotion; jumps or hops.
communicates by producing scents from special gland(s) and placing them on a surface whether others can smell or taste them
breeding is confined to a particular season
remains in the same area
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
associates with others of its species; forms social groups.
places a food item in a special place to be eaten later. Also called "hoarding"
uses touch to communicate
that region of the Earth between 23.5 degrees North and 60 degrees North (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle) and between 23.5 degrees South and 60 degrees South (between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle).
Living on the ground.
defends an area within the home range, occupied by a single animals or group of animals of the same species and held through overt defense, display, or advertisement
uses sight to communicate
reproduction in which fertilization and development take place within the female body and the developing embryo derives nourishment from the female.
young are relatively well-developed when born
Chavez, A., F. Bozinovic, L. Peichl, A. Palacios. 2003. Retinal spectral sensitivity, fur coloration, and urine reflectance in the genus Octodon (Rodentia): implications for visual ecology. Investigative Opthalmology & Visual Science, 44/5: 2290-2296.
Contreras, L., J. Torres-Mura, J. Yanez. 1987. Biogeography of Octodontid rodents: An eco-evolutionary hypothesis. Fieldiana: Zoology, New Series, 39: 401-411.
Ebensperger, L., F. Bozinovic. 2000. Energetics and burrowing behaviour in the semifossorial degu Octadon degus (Rodentia: Octodontidae). Journal of Zoology, 252: 179-186.
Ebensperger, L., A. Caiozzi. 2002. Male degus, Octodon degus, modify their dustbathing behavior in response to social familiarity of previous dustbathing marks. Revista Chilena de Historia Natural, 75: 157-163.
Ebensperger, L., M. Hurtado. 2005. On the relationship between herbaceous cover and vigilance activity of degus (Octodon degus). Ethology, 111/6: 593-608.
Ebensperger, L., M. Hurtado. 2005. Seasonal changes in the time budget of degus, Octadon degus.. Behaviour, 142: 91-112.
Ebensperger, L., M. Hurtado, M. Soto-Gamboa, E. Lacey, A. Chang. 2004. Communal nesting and kinship in degus (Octodon degus). Naturwissenschaften, 91: 391-395.
Ebensperger, L., P. Wallem. 2002. Grouping increases the ability of the social rodent, Octodon degus, to detect predators when using exposed microhabitats. Oikos, 98: 491-497.
Fulk, G. 1976. Notes on the activity, reproduction, and social behavior of Octodon degus. Journal of Mammalogy, 57/3: 495-505.
Gutierrez, J., F. Bozinovic. 1998. Diet selection in captivity by a generalist herbivorous rodent (Octodon degus) from the Chilean coastal desert. Journal of Arid Environments, 39: 601-607.
Kenagy, G., R. Nespolo, R. Vasquez, F. Bozinovic. 2002. Daily and seasonal limits of time and temperature to activity of degus. Revista Chilena de Historia Natural, 75: 567-581.
Kenagy, G., C. Veloso, F. Bozinovic. 1999. Daily rhythms of food intake and feces reingestion in the degu, an herbivorous Chilean rodent: optimizing digestion through coprophagy. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology, 72/1: 78-86.
Kleiman, D. 1974. Patterns of behaviour in hystricomorph rodents. Symposium of the Zoological Society (London), 34: 171-209.
Lee, T. 2004. Octodon degus: A diurnal, social, and long-lived rodent. ILAR Journal, 45/1: 14-24.
Soto-Gamboa, M., M. Villalon, F. Bozinovic. 2005. Social cues and hormone levels in male Octadon degus (Rodentia): a field test of the Challange Hypothesis. Hormones and Behavior, 47/3: 311-318.
Soto-Gamboa, M. 2005. Free and total testosterone levels in field males of Octodon degus (Rodentia, Octodontidae): accuracy of the hormonal regulation of behavior. Revista Chilena de Historia Natural, 78/2: 229-238.
Tokimoto, N., K. Okanoya. 2004. Spontaneous construction of "Chines boxes" by Degus (Octodon degus): A rudiment of recursive intelligence?. Japanese Psychological Research, 46/3: 255-261.
Veloso, C., G. Kenagy. 2005. Temporal dynamics of milk composition of the precocial caviomorph Octodon degus (Rodentia : Octodontidae). Revista Chilena de Historia Natural, 78/2: 247-252.
Woods, C., D. Boraker. 1975. Octodon degus. Mammalian Species, 67: 1-5. |
Details of Glycemic Index (GI)
The GI Scale
The glycemic index uses a scale from 1 to 100, which indicates the rate at which 50 grams of carbohydrate in a particular food is absorbed into the bloodstream as blood-sugar. The main reference food (rated 100) is glucose.
GI Rating Categories
The glycemic index divides carbohydrate
foods into three categories:
GI Food Testing is Ongoing
Not all foods have been given a GI value, although most food-types are covered. However, due to the way GI is measured using volunteer subjects, results can vary, so GI values for some specific foods are not yet uniformly established.
GI - Diabetes and Weight Control
Although the glycemic index was first designed to assist diabetes patients manage their blood-sugar levels, dietitians and weight experts now use it as a tool to help treat obesity, food cravings and appetite swings, and improve eating habits.
Both the type AND quantity of carbohydrate in our food influence the rise in blood glucose. But the glycemic index only rates a standard 50 gram serving size of digestible carbohydrate in a particular food, which may not be appropriate for all foods. For example, foods whose serving size contains only a small amount of carbohydrate may in practice be better for blood sugar control than foods whose normal serving size contains a large amount of carbs. Therefore, to provide a more meaningful GI-rating system, researchers at Harvard University invented the term Glycemic Load, which applies the glycemic index to normal food serving sizes.
OBESITY, OVERWEIGHT and |
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.
2010 August 12
Explanation: Each August, as planet Earth swings through dust trailing along the orbit of periodic comet Swift-Tuttle, skygazers can enjoy the Perseid Meteor Shower. The shower should build to its peak now, best seen from later tonight after moonset, until dawn tomorrow morning when Earth moves through the denser part of the wide dust trail. But shower meteors have been spotted for many days, like this bright Perseid streaking through skies near Lake Balaton, Hungary on August 8. In the foreground is the region's Church of St. Andrew ruin, with bright Jupiter dominating the sky to its right. Two galaxies lie in the background of the wide-angle, 3 frame panorama; our own Milky Way's luminous arc, and the faint smudge of the more distant Andromeda Galaxy just above the ruin's leftmost wall. If you watch for Perseid meteors tonight, be sure and check out the early evening sky show too, featuring bright planets and a young crescent Moon near the western horizon after sunset.
Authors & editors:
Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U. |
1. Why is extremism an issue in prisons?
Extremist groups often pose special security risks in prisons. They may encourage the overthrow of the government, and prison officials can be targeted as agents of "illegal" government authority. Further, their literature often encourages ethnic hatred, promoting a violent and racially charged prison atmosphere.
Since the 1980s, white supremacist organizations have spread throughout the American prison system, beginning with the growth of Aryan Brotherhood.1 Aryan Nations, although not permitting inmates to become members, has engaged in "prison outreach" since 1979. In 1987, it began publishing a "prison outreach newsletter" called The Way to facilitate recruitment. Aryan Nations also disseminates its literature and letters to inmates. The World Church of the Creator and some Identity Church groups engage in similar outreach activity, as do other racist groups, such as Nation of Islam. The situation is further complicated by the fact that nonideological criminal prison gangs are often organized based on race, which increases racial polarization.
Imprisoned extremists also pose a security threat by continuing their activities while incarcerated. They recruit inmates, and teach other inmates extremist tactics. Some imprisoned extremists also have attempted to continue to influence adherents outside of prison by, for instance, publishing newsletters from the prison to maintain their outside following.
Prison officials have responded in various ways, reflecting the fact that each state has its own prison system (as do cities, counties and the federal government), and that prisons have varying populations. At times, prison officials have tried to limit access to extremist literature, and these responses have occasionally given rise to litigation because they potentially impinge upon inmates' First Amendment rights. The questions are especially complicated when the censored material comes from a group that claims to be religious.
1 Aryan Brotherhood, at one time associated with Aryan Nations, began as a virulent racist and anti-Semitic prison gang, and has since developed into a crime gang associated with extortion, drug operations and prison violence.
2. Do inmates have the same First Amendment rights as everybody else?
The United States Supreme Court has said that "prison walls do not form a barrier separating prison inmates from the protections of the Constitution." Nevertheless, inmates' First Amendment rights are less extensive than other citizens' and their rights can be limited due to security or other penological concerns. Because of the particular challenges administrators face running prisons, the Supreme Court has acknowledged there is a compelling government interest which warrants limiting prisoners' rights. Courts have been deferential to prison officials' assessments of security threats, and sensitive to their related regulatory decisions, even if such decisions impact inmates' First Amendment rights.
A prison regulation that impinges on an inmate's constitutional rights will be upheld in court if that regulation is reasonably related to legitimate penological objectives. This means that, generally, prison officials can ban extremist materials from prisons because of concerns that the distribution of such material will undermine prison security. Extremist books, leaflets, and magazines have been forbidden to prisoners on this basis. Such material has not been allowed through the mail and has not been kept in the prison library.
However, prisons have less discretion to limit inmates' religious practices than other First Amendment rights due to a new federal law. Because of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), prison officials' discretion in limiting access to extremist material may depend in part on whether such material is related to an inmate's religious exercise. Therefore, prison regulations that affect religious exercise, including access to religious literature, will be reviewed carefully if challenged in court.
3. What legal standard is used to determine the constitutionality of prison regulations?
The Supreme Court announced the standard under which it would review the constitutionality of prison regulations in Turner v. Safley, a case involving a challenge to a complete prohibition on inmate marriage. As noted earlier, a prison regulation is constitutional if it is reasonably related to legitimate penological objectives. Under this standard, courts have upheld regulations based on the consideration of certain factors:
- Is there a valid, rational connection between the prison regulation and the legitimate governmental
interest put forward to justify it?
- Are there alternative means of exercising the assert- ed right that remain open to inmates?
- How great a negative impact will accommodating the inmates' rights have on guards, other inmates,a
nd on the allocation of prison resources?
Courts will consider the existence of obvious and easy alternatives to a challenged regulation as evidence of a regulation's arbitrariness.
4. Is the same legal standard used to determine the constitutionality of prison regulations that implicate an inmate's right to free exercise of religion?
No, the same standard is not applicable to determining the constitutionality of prison regulations alleged to violate inmates' free exercise rights. The constitutionality of such regulations is determined under the more stringent standard set forth in RLUIPA. RLUIPA says that the government cannot impose a substantial burden on the religious exercise of an inmate, even if the inmate's religious exercise is being limited by a generally applicable rule. However, an inmate's religious practices can be limited if the prison official demonstrates that the regulations in question (i) further a compelling interest and (ii) the same interest cannot be served in a manner that is less restrictive of the inmate's free exercise rights.
Since RLUIPA was enacted in September 2000, it has not yet been interpreted by the courts. Therefore, how this statute will impact prison regulations that affect inmates' religious exercise remains unclear.
5. How should prison officials evaluate whether particular material can be withheld from inmates?
Generally, the First Amendment does not allow speech to be censored by the government because of the content of that speech. The government can only limit the time, place, and manner of speech. However, because inmates have more limited First Amendment rights than other citizens, some content-based discrimination is allowed for security reasons. For example, the United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit upheld a prison official's decision to withhold entire issues of the magazine, Muhammad Speaks, because certain articles in the magazine created a danger of violence by advocating racial, religious, or national hatred. This decision was prior to the passage of RLUIPA, and therefore the Court's analysis might be somewhat different today. Under current law, if having the entire magazine withheld was determined to be a substantial burden on inmates' free exercise rights, the Court might require that the offending material be removed rather than the entire issue being withheld.
Regulations that exclude publications from a prison because of security concerns have been found constitutional when the regulations have required individualized review of any material before it is banned, notification to inmates that the material has been denied, and the possibility of review of such decisions. Courts have tended to find prison regulations that ban all literature from particular groups unconstitutional. However, the determination of the constitutionality of a given regulation or the implementation of the regulation has tended to be very fact-specific. Courts look not only at the regulation at issue but also consider the nature of the prison (high, medium, or low security) and the particular administrative challenges faced by the prison (such as crowding and quantity of incoming mail) in determining reasonableness, or the practical existence of less restrictive alternative measures.
6. Can prison officials apply the same restrictions to outgoing prison material?
The Supreme Court does not allow content regulation with respect to outgoing mail from inmates. While outgoing mail can be searched for contraband,2 content regulation of outgoing mail is also more restricted because it implicates the First Amendment rights of non-prisoner addressees.3 In addition, outgoing material does not pose a threat to internal prison security; therefore content limitations have been considered less urgent. However, regulations can limit the content of outgoing mail categorically. For example, escape plans, threats, running a business, and blackmail are categories that have been disallowed. Therefore, correspondence from prisoners to extremist groups cannot be banned outright because of its content. However, inmates can be prevented from distributing a newsletter from prison when doing so constitutes running a business.
2 Special rules exist with respect to attorney-client correspondence or mail that implicates an inmate's right to access the courts that are beyond the scope of this discussion.
3 However, prison officials can forbid all correspondence between incarcerated individuals.
7. Can extremist "missionaries" be prevented from visiting prisons?
Prison officials can ban categories of prison visitors, such as former inmates or visitors who have previously broken visiting rules. An extremist "missionary" can be barred from a prison because of generally applicable rules. In addition, prisons can create procedures for requesting visiting ministers, and impose conditions on the selection of the ministers, such as sponsorship by an outside religious organization. Prison officials can also exclude prison "missionaries" if they are advocating violence or otherwise fomenting prison unrest by encouraging racial tension. However, under RLUIPA, the prison would have to show that any restrictions on visiting clergy are the least restrictive means of achieving its end.
Prison officials do not have a responsibility to hire a minister for each religious denomination represented in the prison population. However, if visiting ministers of one denomination are compensated, visiting ministers of other denominations must be equally compensated. Security limitations can be placed on inmate-led prayer or services, but again, under RLUIPA, the prison would have to show that any restrictions on such gatherings is the least restrictive means of achieving its end. For example, it is more likely that the prison could limit the frequency of such meetings, the number of attendees and require supervision than that such gatherings could be banned outright.
8. Under what circumstances must prisons accommodate prisoners' religious dietary requirements?
Accommodating religiously based dietary rules has become an issue when dealing with extremists because incidents have raised concern that extremists "adopt" religious practices that are not based on sincere beliefs in order to obtain special privileges, such as specialized diets. Generally, if an inmate's request for a special diet is because of a sincerely held belief and religious in nature, the inmate has a constitutionally protected interest. Under RLUIPA, a request for a special religious diet can only be refused based on a compelling prison interest and if it is the least restrictive means possible for the prison protecting that interest. Prisons may offer more limited food selection to prisoners with religious dietary limitations, such as providing only cold kosher meals rather than hot food. In the past, when determining whether a prison was required to provided a special diet for a prisoner, courts have considered whether the dietary restrictions were central to the prisoner's religious observance. Under RLUIPA, such a determination would probably not be relevant. The threshold question in evaluating the prison's obligation to accommodate a request would still be whether the inmate's dietary request arose out of sincerely held beliefs that were religious in nature. |
Wars have given us the Jeep, the computer and even the microwave.
Will the war in Iraq give us the Tiger?
Military scientists at Edgewood Chemical Biological Center at Aberdeen Proving Ground hope so. The machine - its full name is the Tactical Garbage to Energy Refinery - combines a chute, an engine, chemical tanks and other components, giving it the appearance of a lunar rover. It's designed to turn food and waste into fuel. If it works, it could save scores of American and Iraqi lives.
Among the biggest threats that soldiers face in the war in Iraq are the roadside bombs that have killed or maimed thousands since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. Because some military bases lack a landfill, transporting garbage to dumps miles away in the desert has become a potentially fatal routine for U.S. troops and military contractors.
The Tiger would attempt to solve two problems at once: It would sharply reduce those trash hauls and provide the military with an alternative source of fuel.
It is the latest in a long line of wartime innovations, from can openers to desert boots. The conflict in Iraq has produced innovations such as "warlocks," which jam electronic signals from cell phones, garage door openers and other electronic devices that insurgents use to detonate roadside bombs, according to Inventors Digest.
"In wartime, you're not worried about making a profit necessarily. You're worried about getting the latest technology on the street," said Peter Kindsvatter, a military historian at Aberdeen Proving Ground, who added that money is spent more freely for research when a nation is at war. "Basically, you find yourself in a technology race with your enemy."
The Tiger, now being tested in Baghdad, would not be the first device to turn garbage into energy - a large incinerator near Baltimore's downtown stadiums does it. But it would be among the first to attempt to do it on a small scale. Its creators say it could one day become widely used in civilian life, following the lead of other wartime innovations.
During World War II, contractors developed the Jeep to meet the military's desire for a light, all-purpose vehicle that could transport supplies.
The development of radar technology to spot Nazi planes led to the microwave, according to historians.
The World War II era also gave birth to the first electronic digital computer, the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer, or ENIAC. Funded by the Defense Department, the machine was built to compute ballistics tables that soldiers used to mechanically aim large guns. For years it was located at Aberdeen Proving Ground.
This decade, the Pentagon determined that garbage on military bases poses a serious logistical problem.
"When you're over in a combat area and people are shooting at you, you still have to deal with your trash," said John Spiller, project officer with the Army's Rapid Equipping Force, which is funding the Tiger project. "How would you feel if somebody was shooting at you every other time you pushed it down the curb?"
He and other Army officials said they could not recall any specific attacks against troops or contractors heading to dumpsites.For years, large incinerators have burned trash to generate power. Baltimore Refuse Energy Systems Co., the waste-to-energy plant near the stadiums, consumes up to 2,250 tons of refuse a day while producing steam and electricity.
The process is so expensive that it has only made sense to do it on a large scale, scientists say.
The military has spent almost $3 million on two Tiger prototypes, each weighing nearly 5 tons and small enough to fit into a 20- to 40-foot wide container. The project is being developed by scientists from the Edgewood, Va.-based Defense Life Sciences LLC and Indiana's Purdue University.
The biggest challenge was getting the parts to work together, said Donald Kennedy, an Edgewood spokesman. Because the Tiger is a hybrid consisting of a gasifier, bioreactor and generator, much of it is built with off-the-shelf items, including a grinder.
Another big challenge: expectations.
"When we would initially talk to people about the Tiger system, a large percentage would refuse to believe it could actually work," Kennedy wrote in an e-mail. "Alternatively, a similar percentage would be so intrigued by the idea that they would demand to know when they could buy one for their neighborhood."
The Tiger works like this: A shredder rips up waste and soaks it in water. A bioreactor metabolizes the sludge into ethanol. A pelletizer compresses undigested waste into pellets that are fed into a gasification unit, which produces composite gas.
The ethanol, composite gas and a 10-percent diesel drip are injected into a diesel generator to produce electricity, according to scientists. It takes about six hours for the Tiger to power up. When it works, the device can power a 60-kilowatt generator.
The prototypes are being tested at Camp Victory in Baghdad
Initial runs proved successful. The prototypes have been used to power an office trailer. At their peak, they could power two to three trailers.
In recent weeks, the scientists suffered a setback: The above-100 degree temperatures caused a chiller device to overheat and shut off occasionally. A new chiller from Edgewood just arrived at the site, Kennedy said.
After the 90-day testing phase that ends Aug. 10, the Army will decide whether to fund the project further.
Its developers envision the device being used to respond to crises such as Hurricane Katrina, when there is no lack of garbage but a great need for electricity.
Spiller, of the Army's Rapid Equipping Force, said he is optimistic.
"The mere fact we wrote a check means we think it's got a high chance of success," Spiller said. |
Then and now, there is ample proof that Americans do take Supreme Court nominations seriously. With good reason.
Sooner or later, the nation's most vexing disagreements over our most vital issues wind up before the Supreme Court. None quite penetrates to the core of our democratic being more than those involving First Amendment rights and values.
Each term, the nine justices must grapple with profound questions involving freedom of speech, freedom of thought and freedom to participate in political discourse: Just how free is freedom of speech? What is the role of religion in public life? Does national security trump the public's right to know?
During the Court's last three terms, the First Amendment has not fared well. The high court has accepted for review far fewer free-expression-related cases than usual and it has been unusually stingy in recognizing First Amendment claims. In only two of the 15 decisions rendered in free-expression cases did the Court sustain those claims.
How the First Amendment will fare in the future depends on how Chief Justice John Roberts differs from his predecessor, William Rehnquist, and how Miers, if confirmed, differs from O'Connor.
During his 33 years on the Court as an associate justice and chief justice, Rehnquist consistently voted against free-speech and free-press claims. O'Connor, however, played a pivotal role during her time as justice, frequently casting the decisive fifth vote in religion cases and occasionally in expression cases.
The justices over the next 12 months will hear arguments, review briefs and render opinions in several cases that have direct bearing on whether we have full or constricted freedoms when we wish to play a role in the crucial political, cultural or religious issues that confront us.
In five cases, the Court will once more take up the question of whether state laws regulating campaign contributions and expenditures pose an unconstitutional threat to political expression: Is money speech?
The issues of compelled speech and government funding of speech are raised in another case. A coalition of university law schools which object to the military's ban against acknowledged homosexuals contends that requiring them to allow military recruiters on campus violates their rights.
Another case tests the limits of the free exercise of religion. The justices will decide whether the federal government can prohibit a small group of followers of a Brazilian religious sect in New Mexico from importing a banned substance, a hallucinogenic tea, for use in its ceremonies.
In a case involving anti-abortion protests appearing before the Court for the third time since 1986, the justices' ruling could affect protest and picketing rights and practices.
And a Los Angeles deputy district attorney wants the Court to declare that his free-speech rights were violated when he was disciplined for informing a defense attorney about ethical problems in a pending case.
The confirmation process for Miers should be complete by the end of the year. At present, chances seem good that she will be confirmed. Since 1789, the Senate has rejected only 34 of 155 nominations to the Supreme Court.
Not much is known about Roberts' views on these issues; even less about Miers'. First Amendment advocates, of course, hope they set the new Court on a new course as far as free expression is concerned. In that regard, Justice Brandeis set a great example as a First Amendment champion during his 23 years on the Supreme Court.
"Those who won our independence," he wrote in 1927, "believed liberty to be the secret of happiness and courage to be the secret of liberty. They believed that freedom to think as you will and to speak as you think are means indispensable to the discovery and spread of political truth."
The cause of liberty would be better served if this Court's future rulings transcend individual temperament and ideology to embrace the freedom for speech and the tolerance for belief that define a vital democracy.
Editor's note: Paul K. McMasters is First Amendment ombudsman at the First Amendment Center, 1101 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, Va. 22209. Web: www.firstamendmentcenter.org. E-mail: email@example.com. |
The vaunted protection that intellectually active adults get from Alzheimer’s disease has a dark downside, a study released Wednesday has found. Once dementia symptoms become evident and Alzheimer’s disease is diagnosed in such patients, their mental decline can come with frightening speed.
That finding, published in the journal Neurology, comes from a study of 1,157 Chicago-based seniors who were followed for an average of just over 11 years. Six years after gauging the extent to which the study participants engaged in activities that challenged their mental capacities, researchers from Rush University Medical Center Alzheimer’s Disease Center made periodic assessments of the study participants’ cognitive health and traced the trajectories of their brain health.
All told, 148 of the participants were diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease during the follow-up period, and 395 were found to have mild cognitive impairment—intellectual problems that are less severe than Alzheimer’s disease, but which often precede such a diagnosis.
While all participants’ mental function showed yearly declines, the steepest downward trajectories belonged to those who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, but who had reported high levels of mental engagement at the outset of the study. Fellow Alzheimer’s sufferers who had not sought out much intellectual stimulation at the study’s outset showed a more gradual decline in their function.
“In effect, the results of this study suggest that the benefit of delaying the initial appearance of cognitive impairment [in Alzheimer’s disease] comes at the cost of more rapid dementia progression,” the author wrote.
The findings support a common observation of those who treat intellectually minded patients who go on to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease—that once diagnosed, their decline is rapid. It also underscores a growing body of evidence that the bright and mentally-active may not beat Alzheimer’s disease, but can hold off its ravages for months or years longer than those who are not so engaged.
Dr. John M. Ringman, a UCLA neurologist and assistant director of the Mary S. Easton Center for Alzheimer’s Disease Research, said he sees regular evidence of the phenomenonen in his clinical work, as well as in brain-imaging scans that can detect the physical signs of Alzheimer’s disease while a patient is still alive: Patients with a history of intensive mental engagement seem to develop a “cognitive reserve,” said Dr. Ringman. That mental strength frequently allows them to function almost normally, he said, even as the amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles that are the hallmarks of the disease have advanced upon the brain.
By the time such a patient comes to his office complaining that his memory and mental function are not what they used to be, the disease has progressed significantly, said Ringman. The decline from that point can be precipitous.
In a disease that evidence now suggests takes years, perhaps decades, to show up in everyday behavior, Ringman said “it’s hard to quantify this cognitive reserve.” The strength of the study published Wednesday is that it gathered copious evidence of participants’ mental status and activity at the outset and followed them for more than a decade, he added.
--Melissa Healy/Los Angeles Times |
Discrimination against citizens because of their sexual orientation or their youth is just as unfair as discrimination based on race, religion or gender. Access to housing, hotels, theaters and restaurants should be equal to all, as a matter of plain fairness.
The Palm Beach County Commission recognized this truth in passing an ordinance protecting homosexuals, unmarried couples and young people from discrimination in renting or buying housing and in public accommodations. The ordinance also bans discrimination based on race, religion, gender, ethnic origin or disability, but it was the protection of gays that generated opposition and demands for a countywide referendum on the issue.
No other Florida county protects homosexuals against housing discrimination. In the 1970s, Dade County passed a similar ordinance but it was repealed in a voter referendum after a bitter fight.
A Broward County effort to revise the human rights law to protect homosexuals is more complicated. The Broward law was adopted through the Florida Legislature, so a revision must get legislative approval and be ratified in a public referendum.
Palm Beach County`s ordinance passed 4-1; commissioner Ron Howard dissented. The other four commissioners demonstrated courage by refusing to buckle under to opponents or to pass the buck to the public in a referendum. Commissioners were elected to make tough decisions; this time they did.
The ordinance provides exceptions: A landlord who lives on his property of four or fewer housing units and rents the rest won`t have to comply. Nor will a seasonal resident who rents his home to someone else part of the year and lives in it himself the rest of the time. Also exempt are religious organizations that own housing units.
Those sensible exceptions leave the vast majority of housing covered under the new ordinance. Violators will face fines of up to $50,000, but it may be difficult to prove a violation. Early decisive action against violators by law enforcers, prosecutors and judges could make a clear statement that the county means business and won`t tolerate further discrimination in housing and public accommodations. |
"Helplessness" and "confusion" are words that easily come to mind when the issue of sick building syndrome is mentioned. It is a problem that does not have a regulatory solution, and is bound with engineering, medicine and emotions that will challenge the best of school administrators.
A careful management style and knowledgeable use of technologies in medicine, toxicology and property maintenance are a school administrator's best allies in preparing to deal with or prevent this new generation of health and safety challenges.
Defining sick building syndrome There is no regulatory definition for sick building syndrome. Although it often relates to indoor-air-quality problems, it simply means that the environment of a building is inspiring complaints of discomfort and/or disease.
Fundamentally, the causes of sick buildings relate to architecture and engineering patterns institutionalized in school construction following World War II. Schools of glass, rock and wood, with high ceilings, cross-ventilation via a transom over the door, and windows and radiators that could be adjusted by teachers no longer were built. These schools were being replaced with new, factory-like buildings featuring a temperamental, eccentric system of master controls for indoor environment. Buildings were constructed with no regard to the environment around them or to people within the property. Today, allowing for the ambiguity in defining sick buildings, somewhere between 1-in-5 and 1-in-15 school facilities are in a situation where discomfort and disease can be attributed to operations of the building.
Health symptoms in a sick building are highly variable, but generally split into three categories:
-Radical reaction--a number of people clearly and suddenly ill. This usually involves limited air exchange combined with a "smoking gun," which can include a new chemical cleaner, misbatched chlorine in a pool area, a weather inversion preventing a kiln from venting properly or a failure of a mechanical air-exchange system.
-Unhealthy atmosphere--many people experiencing ongoing subtle illness or discomfort. The most common symptoms involve the dehydration of sensitive tissue, including sore eyes, throat or nasal membranes; a feeling of lethargy; a higher incidence of upper-respiratory infection; asthmatic reactions; low-grade headaches; and a continuum of muscle pain and general discomfort among building occupants. Much of this relates to oxygen deprivation typically caused by oxygen being displaced by other compounds, and occasionally by infestation of microbes as a result of excessive moisture remaining within the property.
-Hypersensitive reaction or multiple chemical sensitivity reaction--one or two individuals extremely ill. This can result if even tiny exposures occur to anyone that has a highly sensitive reaction to certain chemicals. Typically, these complaints should be viewed as warnings that some low-level toxin is in the area.
Although sick building syndrome usually relates to the general nature of the building itself, there are some specifics that account for most indoor-air problems:
*Combustibles; any possible introduction of carbon monoxide. *Moisture as it may relate to mold (look for growths on drywall). *Moisture as it may relate to airborne infectious agents (standing water and consequent growths). *Volatile organic compounds (VOCs), usually cleaning agents or building materials, which may give off unpleasant, sometimes toxic gases. *Formaldehydes in new carpet, pressed wood or other building products. *Any new or newly exposed particleboard. *Applied poisons (pesticides, insecticides, rodenticides, herbicides).
A proactive approach Administrators are dealing with a generation of post-World War II properties prone to indoor-air-quality problems, particularly buildings constructed or remodeled during the 1970s energy crisis. A school district should take several steps before a problem strikes. First, initiate patterns for preventing air-quality problems. Second, establish baseline information that will profile the building to facilitate an efficient, inexpensive and confidence-inspiring response. Building occupants and the community need to see a clear and confident administrative approach should a problem arise in the future.
The proactive investigation of the building should involve a limited amount of basic testing, particularly a professional review of the microbial matrix within the building--the number of colony-forming units or what kinds of microbes presently are nesting in the building. Understanding what is living in the ambient air can help administrators understand if there is a problem or, more importantly, can help to quickly isolate the exact nature of a problem.
Similarly, administrators should consider hiring an outside contractor to review how air-handling and mechanical-engineering systems are managed. A knowledgeable person should walk the area and observe the mechanical systems to see how the filtering system, the air-dispersion system and the air-dilution patterns of the building are operating. Finally, a reliable epidemiological profile of comparative absenteeism should be archived.
Administrators also need to be ready to implement a smooth, confidence-building reporting system for occupants regarding air-quality or sick-building concerns. How fast and capably the district responds can be the key to getting the issue under control. The costs for responding to indoor-air problems decrease dramatically if there is baseline data and a plan in place. |
Ethiopian kids hack Zoom tablets in five months.
The One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project recently tried a new approach to distributing computers to developing countries, by leaving boxes of tablets in remote Ethiopian villages with no instructions. The Motorola Zoom tablets had a custom English language OS, a solar charger, and tracking software to monitor how they were used.
To the surprise of the organization, not only could the kids who started using the tablets easily figure out how to switch on and use them, but they also learnt to hack into the OS and enable features - amazing especially seeing as most of the kids had never seen a printed word before, let alone in English.
“We left the boxes in the village. Closed. Taped shut. No instruction, no human being. I thought, the kids will play with the boxes! Within four minutes, one kid not only opened the box, but found the on/off switch. He’d never seen an on/off switch. He powered it up. Within five days, they were using 47 apps per child per day. Within two weeks, they were singing ABC songs [in English] in the village. And within five months, they had hacked Android. Some idiot in our organization or in the Media Lab had disabled the camera! And they figured out it had a camera, and they hacked Android.”
OLPC used the experiment to see whether kids can teach themselves to read and write English. Research shows that 100,000,000 kids worldwide don’t even make to to first grade, often because there are no schools or teachers available. For the cost of a tablet, that could all change. Previous OLPC studies have also shown that the kids will also teach their parents to read and write as well. |
The Independent Jane
For 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.
Elizabeth’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.
The 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.
Although 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.
When accosted by Mrs. Elton, Jane Fairfax says,
“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.”
“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.”
“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.”
That same sentiment is emphasized in Emma’s shock when Mrs. Weston tells her of Frank Churchill’s secret engagement to Jane.
“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!”
I 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.
John 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.
Comparing 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.
Jefferson’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.
Jane 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. |
"GOT NOTHING BUT BLUE SKIES"
It is September 19,1783. The place, Lyons, France. Preparations are being made for a journey. A journey that will eventually take man from his secure environment of terra firma, and place him in a hostile environment called the atmosphere. The vehicle to be used is a hot air balloon. The brainchild behind this trek is a wealthy paper maker named Joseph Montgolfier. There has been much speculation over just how Montgolfier made the discovery of the hot air balloon. The most commonly-believed story is that his wife was standing too close to a fire and that the smoke caused her skirt to be inflated and lifted above her knees. This caused Montgolfier to wonder-if this smoke, and its magical lifting powers, could be captured in a very large container, it might rise and lift a passenger along with it.
So, Montgolfier went about building the first hot air balloon. In 1783,
not much was known about the atmosphere and its effects on human beings.
Upon examination of the occupants for any ill effects caused by this lofty height, it was discovered that the duck had a broken wing. Could this have been an effect of exposure to altitude? Actually, several observers noted that as the balloon left the ground, the sheep had an anxiety attack and kicked the duck. Montgolfier reasoned that it would be safe for humans to ascend to altitude. So on November 21, 1783, Jean Francois Pilatre de Rozier (a surgeon) became the first aeronaut and flight surgeon. Over 200 years have passed since that first flight. Technology has allowed us to ascend through the atmosphere and into space, but the hazards of high altitude flight (hypoxia, altitude-induced decompression sickness, and trapped gases) will always be present. That is because humans are best suited to live in what is known as the "physiological efficient zone". This zone extends from sea level to 12,000 feet. When humans are exposed to altitudes above this zone, they are subjected to physiological hazards beyond their natural ability to adapt.
One thing to keep in mind is that everything that occupies space and exerts weight is considered to be matter. All matter is made up of atoms and molecules in varying densities. These particles within the matter are kinetic and in constant motion. The slower the motion of the particles, the more dense the matter becomes. Also, as the particles are pushed closer together, the matter also becomes more dense. The best way to slow down kinetic molecules is to cool the matter. The best way to get them to move closer together is to add pressure to the matter. Inversely, when you remove the pressure or heat any material, the molecules within the material moves faster and further apart, thus making the material less dense.
The least dense form of matter is, of course, gas. If a gas is cooled and compressed, at some point it will become a liquid. If that liquid is then cooled further, then at some point it will become a solid. Also, when you take the pressure off any gas or liquid, that material will grow less dense and expand. This is essentially what happens to the gaseous molecules of our atmosphere.
Our atmosphere contains approximately 79% nitrogen and 21% oxygen, a constant ratio until you reach an altitude of about 270,000 feet. So the question that always comes up is; "If I have 21% oxygen at sea level and 21% at 40,000 feet, why do I succumb to the effects of hypoxia within 20 seconds at that altitude?"
The answer is, ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE! If you could picture all the gaseous nitrogen and oxygen molecules in the atmosphere, they would stack up from the surface of the earth to the fringe of space. All these molecules stacking on top each other create a great deal of weight, or pressure. At sea level, one square-inch of any surface has about 15 pounds of air sitting on top of it. At 18,000 feet, that same square inch has only 7.5 pounds per square-inch (psi) exerted on it. What has caused this atmospheric pressure drop? The answer is simple: There is more air stacked up at sea level than above 18,000 feet, and therefore, more weight.
As you recall, when molecules are subjected to this pressure, they are going to move closer together. This will make the air more dense with oxygen and nitrogen molecules. For example, if at sea level you take in a breath of air that has an atmospheric pressure of 15 psi, then that air may contain 500 billion molecules of oxygen (this a fictitious number to be used only as an example); if you go to 18,000 feet and take the same breath where atmospheric pressure is 7.5 psi, then you will pull in only 250 billion molecules of oxygen. But, you require 500 billion per breath to function normally, and you're getting only half of what you need. That's HYPOXIA!
Not only do gaseous molecules in the atmosphere expand with reduced total pressure, gases in the human body are also subject to the same expansion. There are several areas in the body- ears, sinuses, lungs, gastro-intestinal tract, and teeth - where these gases can expand and cause a variety of problems. As long as the gas can expand and escape, there will be no problem. But if the gas becomes trapped, then pain will be the usual result.
As we have discussed earlier, the air we breathe contains about 79% nitrogen. Nitrogen is inhaled into the lungs and distributed and stored throughout the body. According to gas laws, gases of higher pressure always exert force towards areas of low pressure. When you inhale nitrogen, it will be stored at a pressure of about 12 psi (79% nitrogen) of 15 psi (total atmospheric pressure), equal to about 12 psi).
When you ascend to altitude and the pressure around your body begins to drop, this creates a pressure gradient (higher nitrogen in the body than outside the body) and the nitrogen will try to equalize and escape outside the body. Sometimes this nitrogen can leave so quickly and in such quantify that it may form a bubble. If this bubble forms at a body joint, the pain it causes is know as "the bends."
These are just a few of the problems that can occur when the human body is exposed to high altitude conditions. These problems will always be there for aviation. But through education and knowledge of the mechanisms that cause these problems, we can take steps toward protection and prevention so that your BLUE SKIES won't give you a case of the blues.
by J.R. Brown
|ŠAvStop Online Magazine Contact Us Return Home|
Grab this Headline Animator |
Here to There: A History of Mapping
From the 16th to 18th centuries, many European mapmakers were convinced that California was an island — an Edenic paradise populated by black Amazons. The error persisted for over a hundred years after expeditions had proven that California was, in fact, firmly attached to the mainland. The idea of California as a fierce paradise appealed to Europeans, who were reluctant to let the mundane reality interfere with their vision of the world.
So in that spirit, we’re devoting this episode of BackStory to maps — asking what they show us about who we are and and where we want to go. How do maps shape the way we see our communities and our world? What do they tell us about the kind of information we value? And what do they distort, or ignore?
Please help us shape this show! Share your questions, ideas and stories below. Have opinions on New York vs. D.C. subway maps? On the merits or shortcomings of Google Maps? And do you even still use old-fashioned, ink-and-paper maps? Leave us a comment! |
Nursing a critically ill state back to health
|Indranill Basu Ray highlights the core problems that afflict Bengal's health sector and suggests a few ways to improve the situation|
Despite many technological and other achievements that have propelled India from being a developing nation to one of the top economies of the world, one field that India continues to lag behind in is health. This is why stories of babies dying in large numbers haunt newspaper headlines. India is behind Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in life expectancy at birth or under-five mortality level. India accounts for about 17 per cent of the world population, but it contribute to a fifth of the world's share of diseases. A third of all diarrhoeal diseases in the world occurs in India. The country has the second largest number of HIV/AIDS cases after South Africa. It is home to one-fifth of the world's population afflicted with diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.
A common excuse that I often hear is that we have limited resources to tackle the huge and burgeoning health problems. But even the richest country on earth, the United States of America, has failed to provide appropriate health services to a large section of the populace. The problem in India is quite different. Apart from being a poor nation with limited resources, it also has a sizeable population in need of basic health services. Furthermore, the lack of appropriate sanitary measures and education ensures an ever increasing presence of communicable disease that have been controlled and even eradicated in the developed nations.
India's list of woes does not stop here. Lack of foresight on the part of successive governments and selective and fragmented strategies to counter daily problems without a definite public health goal have been the mainstay of India's health policies. Resource allocation to this sector is influenced by the prevailing fiscal situation as well as by the priorities of the reigning government. Unfortunately, in Bengal — a state that faces a dismal fiscal situation — the government's priorities have been skewed as a result of political necessities. Although we have a new government at the helm, it is important to realize that gross changes at the practical level cannot be initiated without having a team with experience and knowledge define a well-thought-out strategy. It is also essential to have a government that is willing to fulfil the financial needs necessary for the strategy to work.
It is difficult, if not impossible, to paint a picture of the present state of public health in West Bengal and to suggest measures to rectify the same in a short article like this. My intention is to highlight the core problems plaguing the system and to suggest solutions based on accepted principles of public health and healthcare management. The steps that need to be taken are as follows: reducing disease burden, including infectious diseases as well as non-communicable epidemics like diabetes mellitus and coronary heart disease; restructuring the existing primary healthcare system to make it more accountable; creating a skilled and professional workforce which is quality driven; financial planning to bring more investment to the health sector.
Reducing disease burden is the cornerstone of any good health policy. The factors that help reduce communicable diseases are clean drinking water, improved sanitation and an effective vaccination programme. A paradigm shift, from the prevalent curative approach to a preventive approach, including health promotion by inculcating behavioural changes, is imperative to reduce disease burden. West Bengal is one of four states that urgently needs high investment in safe drinking water and toilet facilities. It is estimated that Rs 18,000 crore is required to provide effective drinking water and sanitation facilities for the entire country. Kerala, Maharashtra, West Bengal and Odisha would account for more than 60 per cent of the total outlay.
Similarly, a huge investment is required to provide nutritional supplements to malnourished children and pregnant and lactating mothers living below the poverty line. According to a report by the national commission on macroeconomics and health, West Bengal would need to harness an additional resource requirement of rupees (in crore) 1,286, 2,459, 4,693, 13,811 and 8,485 in sectors such as health, water and sanitation, nutrition, primary schooling and roads. It has been projected that in the next five years West Bengal will spend a large portion of its revenues on wages and salaries, interest payments and pensions, leaving very little for discretionary expenditure in the field of health. It is imperative that the present government rethink and strategize in collaboration with the Centre to ensure the appropriate funding necessary to make the state healthy.
Restructuring the present healthcare delivery system is also equally important. Most primary healthcare centres are old, dilapidated buildings with few or no facilities. Some do not even have basic resources like healthcare workers or pharmacists. What is required is a radical overhaul of the existing system. There are differences in health systems of different countries. A State-run health system, such as the one in Canada, suffers from delayed medical care. A privately-run health system like the one in the US provides only limited health services to its poor. India's healthcare should carve out the best of both systems. Private healthcare is thriving in India. It is uncontrolled and aimed at profit-making. Government-run hospitals are poorly managed, providing few or no facilities to those living below the poverty line.
Different models have been suggested to take care of this disparity. While private investment will always be geared towards profit-making, it is mandatory to rein in these bodies under well-defined rules. Large private hospitals in the US are non-profit bodies, which have to follow stringent rules in patient care. At the other end of the spectrum is the National Health Service in Britain in which small, medium and even a few large hospitals are making way for a more competent and accountable government-controlled health system with fewer hospitals.
Human resource management is very important in running an effective health system. One of the biggest lacunae of government health service is its poor human-resource management. Many physicians are not paid appropriate salaries or are posted in places that are not of their choice. Political intervention and favouritism play a big role in posting physicians. Consequently, dedicated physicians who want to serve the public or work in the academic setting found in government hospitals are forced to remain in private hospitals. To boost morale and efficacy, discipline needs to be instituted in the system and a transparent posting policy adopted. The doctor-population ratio needs to be improved by filling up vacancies in the West Bengal health service. It is important to free postings from the grip of bureaucrats to ensure the registration of quality candidates. Physicians failing to report to duty or indulging in indiscipline must be punished. Doctors who do sign up need to provide relevant and quality medical care. This can only be done if some form of recertification of doctors is made mandatory once every 10 years. Physicians' salaries in the state health service must be made on a par with those of the Central government to make sure that it remains a lucrative option. Senior physicians providing exemplary public service must be rewarded for the same. A commonly-held notion is that most physicians run after the lucrative salaries that are offered in private hospitals. Hence it is difficult to retain them in the government sector. This, however, is true of a minority. The majority of physicians are willing to work in a healthy, progressive and academic environment if there are appropriate non-financial incentives. Let us take the example of Christian Medical College, Vellore. Most of the faculty there are paid salaries that are much lower than those of the private sector. However, physicians are provided with other facilities such as good housing, free schools, free-to-highly-subsidized college education and, most importantly, a progressive and research oriented work environment.
West Bengal lags behind many other states when it comes to medical education. There is an urgent need to increase the number of medical colleges in the state. Private investment for the same should be welcomed but appropriate laws must be instituted so that huge capitation fees are not charged for seats. Furthermore, selection should be made through competitive examinations. A certain percentage of seats can be reserved for the economically weaker sections. Students passing out of such medical colleges must be given postings in rural hospitals. This has been true on paper for many decades now, but the rule has been poorly implemented even in government-run medical colleges.
Innovative schemes ought to be thought of to involve the cash-rich private sector to service the medical needs of the state. Private institutions using government money or land must be asked to provide free service to 20 per cent of their capacity. Appropriate punitive measures — such as temporarily withholding or cancelling licences — can be taken when a private institution fails to honour this commitment. Institutions willing to set up large hospitals, particularly around Calcutta, must be helped through the provision of low-cost land. But in return, promises to set up satellite hospitals in far-flung district headquarters have to be met.
The biggest challenge to the rejuvenation of the healthcare system is the garnering of funds. West Bengal is financially broke, thanks to the misrule of the communists. Unlike most other communist rulers, our home-grown variants failed to provide basic sanitation, good roads, a working healthcare system and appropriate nutritional supplements to women and children. The lack of social services resulted in poor health and in increased mortality among the vulnerable sections of society. Government efforts to improve basic health services must fund programmes that provide sanitation, nutritional supplements, and daily meals for school-going children. Substantial investments in these sectors can reduce mortality in children. It is popular to blame doctors for not being able to save severely ill, malnourished children. But things won't change unless determined steps are taken to root out the problems, such as poor funds, minimal resources and an incompetent workforce, that affect the West Bengal health service.
In the next five years, in collaboration with the Centre and the non-government organizations involved in public health, the state government must chalk out a definitive strategy to improve the supply of clean drinking water, provide better sanitation and one full meal to school-going children and arrange for nutritional supplements to pregnant women. Private investment should be wooed in the health sector to set up hospitals in large metropolitan areas as well as in small district towns. While government land is needed at an appropriate price to help investors build hospitals, steps must be taken to bring about the inclusion of the deprived sections in their service plans. Strong regulatory bodies that can monitor private hospitals and nursing homes must be instituted. Many of the profiteering health institutions do not provide basic facilities, lack trained nurses and paramedical staff, and some are even run by quacks without medical degrees. It is of utmost importance that a regulatory body conducts surprise checks on these institutions, registers complaints and takes remedial steps.
Many NGOs have been able to set up large projects benefiting thousands of people. They have also succeeded in bringing foreign aid to tackle malaria and HIV. The state government should help these NGOs achieve their goals while exercising control to prevent financial irregularities. Their services ought to be applauded and single-window processing of applications instituted to help them tackle bureaucratic delays. Health is a service industry and not a lucrative business. Unfortunately, in Bengal, most large hospitals are owned by corporates. Only a few are owned or run by doctors. There is thus a sustained effort to make profit. Poor consumer protection makes the man on the street vulnerable to substandard service at high prices.
These are trying times for Bengal, after years of mismanagement in the health sector. It is important for the present rulers to rectify the situation by laying down the stepping stones for a better tomorrow.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Nursing a critically ill state back to health Indranill Basu Ray highlights the core problems that afflict Bengal’s health sector and suggests a few ways to improve the situation |
A “magic” herb, Carissa Edulis, that drew thousands of people to a remote Loliondo village in Tanzania was identified by Kenyan scientists a few years ago as a cure for a drug-resistant strain of a sexually transmitted disease, gonorrhoea. This herb also is believed to cure many other diseases besides gonorrhoea. The Kamba refer to as mukawa or mutote and use it for chest pains, while the Nandi boil the leaves and bark to treat breast cancer, headache and chest pains.
Researchers discovered the plant could be used for the treatment of the herpes virus. Led by Dr Festus M Tolo of the Kenya Medical Research Institute (Kemri), the team from the University of Nairobi and the National Museums of Kenya found the herb could provide an alternative remedy for herpes infections.
“An extract preparation from the roots of Carissa edulis, a medicinal plant locally growing in Kenya, has exhibited remarkable anti-herpes virus activity for both wild type and drug resistant strains,” they reported in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology. |
The concept of a numbering machine is quite simple. It consists of various wheels inside and all wheels are stamped with numbers. But, what could be done with this? Well, the wheels of a numbering machine can be set and arranged to form a date or various other numbers. Basically numbers machines are used to imprint items with sequential numbers. Over the time, people have been using this type of machine to stamp many different kinds of paperwork. By adjusting the numbers stamped on wheels, you can keep an organized record of your date paperwork and label contracts.
Numbering machines are considered as an inevitable stationery in offices or corporations, especially small businesses. They are used for any paperwork that requires to be printed with unique and trackable numbers. It is a way to keep an organized record of whatever you do. There are many applications in an office set up that require sequential numbering, such as purchase orders, invoices, production orders, inventory paperwork, insurance claims, property documents, serial number tags and much more. (more…) |
Did You Know?
Facts, Figures & Folklore
About Fall / Autumn
Sept 18 : 04 days to Fall
Did you know that the word autumn comes from the French word, automne?
The word came into common usage around the 16th century, before which “harvest” was used to refer to this time of year. The use of harvest fell out of popularity as people gradually began living in towns and working the land became less common.
Did you know that Americans colloquially refer to the season between summer and winter as “Fall”?
While Brits prefer the more scientific terms “Autumn”!
Do you feel that? The crisp morning air is a sure sign that the Fall season is right around the corner. As the days get shorter and the temperatures fall, Autumn heralds its coming with fiery red leaves and bright orange pumpkins. Get yourself ready to fall back into Fall with Holidays on the Net’s fun-filled Autumn trivia. Join us for a new “Did You Know?” fact each day as we countdown to Autumn (Sept 22 @ 11:09 PM EDT)! So stop by again tomorrow. |
In 2006, two scientists announced that they had cooked an egg by placing it in between two cell phones. It has been thrououghly disproven and analyzed since the surface of the claim, but it is still an excellent opportunity to use the Scientific Thinking Principles on!
#1: Ruling Out Rival Hypotheses
This principle isn't the most relevant because the experiment doesn't exactly prove any hypotheses. But it can still apply to the attempt to cook an egg between two cell phones because there could be other effects causing that outcome.
#2: Correlation vs. Causation
There are so many other reasons that the egg could've cooked! Maybe it was really hot out? Or the cell phone egg set up was within a microwave? Not the most probable of all possible causations, but it proves the point. There could be many other ways this egg could've cooked (or in actuality, the fact that it didn't cook at all) that we need to examine or at least acknowledge that they could be there.
This claim is very out there so it has a really good chance of being able to be falsified. As we will see in #4, after replicating the incident one can find almost instantly that it is in fact a hoax.
As many people did, reproducing the egg cooking experiement will prove that it is in fact a hoax. Every reproduction that was prodcued failed to yield the same results as the first, which made everything make sense when the site's webmaster that published the article stepped forward to say it was in fact completely fake.
#5: Extraordinary Claims
The claim that you can cook an egg with two cell phones is pretty extraordinary yet there is no extraordinary evidence to back it up! In fact, it is just too extraordinary to be real.
#6: Occam's Razor
In my mind, the simpliest explaination would be that it simply is not true. The end.
I'm not going to lie, if this claim was true I would be thrilled. In addition to being in awe of the power of technology, it would make cooking meals for myself in my dorm room a whole lot easier! Unfortunately though, this is a hoax. With the help of the Six Principles of Scientific Thinking, I will never fall for this or any other raw food cooking claim ever again! |
How To Win At Science Fairs (Dec, 1960)
How To Win At Science Fairs
by Ronald Benrey
YOU CAN WIN at a Science Fair as long as one thing interests you more than winning does. This is your project itself. It is going to be judged on scientific thought, creative ability, and presentation. You will really have to know the field your project is concerned with. This takes effort. Since you lack the means of a professional laboratory, you will have to do much with little. This takes trial and error and just plain work. Your presentation must be attractive and clear. This means good workmanship, which takes time and care. You are going to have to show some originality. After all, there is no use doing what everybody else is doing: be different. For this, you have to have the other three under control. By the way, the “laymen” who see your exhibit will ask all kinds of questions. Have good answers at your fingertips. The judges won’t be laymen, and any double-talk will scream to them that you don’t know your subject. It may also make them suspect that the best parts of your project are not your work. This would be unjust, perhaps, but deadly. Now, whether your entry covers a large table top or can just be tucked under your arm, it is going to be a big job. It can’t be left for a “crash program” in the last few weeks before the Fair. It is going to eat up big portions of your time, energy, and spending money for the next several months. All this demands your interest. But it isn’t simply a matter of “fun. ” Licking this challenge may be a turning point in your life. With or without a scholarship prize, your career may begin with it.
As a reader of Electronics Illustrated your project will probably deal with electronics or applied physics rather than with biological or earth sciences. Select your topic carefully from a broad subject that really interests you. A massive effort in the direction of a passing fancy will result in a mediocre project at best. Take a limited subtopic that you think worth investigating and that you feel able to handle.
To ease financial strain, plan now to build your project over a long period of time, say six months, on a pay-as-you-build basis.
Once you have a rough idea of your project’s general form, don’t dash into construction.
Visit technical libraries and learn all you can about current professional work in the field, and its technical jargon. This will give you much important information and helpful hints, and when you finally face the judges, you will know your subject.
Here is a prickly question. It is up to you to be realistic and honest with yourself when you choose a topic. Your science teachers and advisers will certainly be helpful, but the final decision must be yours. In other words, if you have never handled a soldering iron before, don’t take on a project requiring elaborate electronic instrumentation. If you have enough time you can work up to a complex project by building a few simpler devices, like many described in EI. This is another reason for starting NOW. – Why not get your feet wet by assembling some test equipment from kits? You will certainly need a multimeter anyway, for any project, and it will be something you can use “forever. ”
Another touchy subject: discussion of this often scares off good potential science fairers. Nobody requires or expects a science fair project to produce a radical new scientific discovery. However, this does not imply that an entrant can’t find a new angle on an old problem. Merely duplicating a project described in a magazine shows the judges only one thing: the builder can follow directions. The main benefit of entering a science fair is the challenge of thinking a real problem out, all the way through. Your project can be for “demonstration” rather than “research, ” but make sure you come up with fresh, clear, meaningful ways to present your material. Stay away from last year’s winning project: it was good last year. Avoid “staples” (like Tesla coils) unless they are only part of a ‘wider original project.
Your project should be well presented and look impressive, but impressive need not mean expensive. Judges seldom look twice at an exhibit loaded down with excess and borrowed equipment when the same results could have been obtained more economically and without false show. Novel use of common materials shows creative ability, and this is an important judging criterion. Remember, how you solved your problem is what counts at a science fair, and not merely that you solved it. Also, neatness counts! Aside from being impossible to troubleshoot, a rat’s nest of wiring is typical of losing projects. Time spent color-coding leads, installing wire harness and cable clamps will result in a much more attractive and more reliable project. But know what you are doing! Don’t harness leads in a circuit that demands point-to-point wiring, or cable grid and plate leads together in an amplifier circuit. Read up on layout and construction techniques, and allow yourself time to make and correct mistakes. Prior planning will also pay off in dollars and cents, since you can save by purchasing some components (like resistors) in quantity, and if you live near a big city you can shop around for some items in the military surplus stores, modifying your design if necessary to take odd-value components. Now, sit back and start your thinking. The time to start is right now.
IS YOUR WINNING PROJECT HERE?
RADIO TELESCOPE: Home-built sensitive low-noise receiver, simple antenna system. Try to make simple “radio map.”
GUIDANCE SYSTEM: For model ear. Can be programmed to run around science fair grounds without hitting anything, or to reach pre-chosen destination.
SOLAR CELLS: Home-built unit as part of demonstration of basic physics of solar cells: display on recent professional research results: off-beat practical applications (eyeglass type hearing aid?).
MOON MOUSE: “To be landed on the Moon. ” Self-propelled, radio controlled from Earth, instrumented and transmitter equipped. Some functions solar powered ?
These are only suggestions. You may come up with ideas regarding fuel cells, space communications, navigation, etc. |
With the development of science and technology, computer has become more and more popular in our daily life, which is intended to be a part of our life. But at the same time it also brings the safety problem, because increasing number of bad people would like to break into computer systems to steal the secret information. It seems that computer safety has been a serious problem by now. Maybe you could learn something about the safety terms in Microsoft so that you could adopt the different methods according to different cases.
What is malware? In fact malware, short for “malicious software”, is any kind of software which is installed without your complete permission and is not in need at all.The famous malware areviruses, worms, and Trojan horses, which are almost known to us all. Even though you are not familiar with them, you must have heard of it at ordinary times. If you want to protect your computer from the malware, you could make sure that the automatic updating is turned on all the time to get the latest updates.
2 antispyware software
Antispyware software helps protect your computer, and prevent the pop-ups, slow performance, and security threats caused by spyware and other adverse software. Every computer user must keep antispyware software up to date in order to keep in touch with the latest spyware. Aimed at protecting our computer, we could use Microsoft Security Essentials, free download software, to be against spyware and other malicious software.
A firewall is used to help screen out hackers, viruses, and worms that try to attack your computer through the Internet.In fact, if you are the one who use the computer at home, the most efficient and important step is to enable firewall when you start your computer. A virus will slip through and infect you; the only effective way by protecting yourself is using a firewall. A firewall monitors your Internet connections and allows you to specify which programs are allowed to connect and which are not.
4 antivirus software
Antivirus software is a kind of computer program which can be used to test, defend, and take actions to remove or delete malicious software program. As we all know, computer virus is some programs, which can specially disturb computer operation. So we should update antivirus software in regular time to prevent against the latest virus.
5 Windows password
Besides the above mentioned software, you could have an alternative at the same time, namely Windows password. With a password like this, you can prevent your privacy from being let out or being viewed. Of course you should set up a Windows password reset disk to set the password reset in case that you forget it.
As a computer user, you should have a general knowledge of these safety terms so that you can protect your computer better. And with these terms, your computer can be protected better than that without them. In a word, please have a brief understanding of them in the first place, and then you could know how important they are. |
.8grams X kilogram of body weight/day
How to convert pounds into kilograms: #pounds/2.2 = kg
For example someone who weighs say 110 would be 50kg. So we take 50kg and multilpy that by .8gm and they should be getting about 40 grams of protein a day. Low protein diets can result in weak bones, muscle wasting, and decrease in time for wounds to heal. Protein is essential in the diet and having enough is very important especially if you are exercising. When you are working with weights and building muscle adequate protein intake is essential in building those muscles.
If you are taking a protein supplement in powder try to find one that does not have any added saturated or transaturated fats. There are some protein supplements out there that are made for gaining weight so they will have additional calories and fats in them. So make sure you read the label and everything says 0 except the protein.
This brand is an excellent choice and very safe :
Just remember to read label and consult with your doctor if it is safe for you to take a protein supplement.
The following foods are excellent sources of protein:
- cottage cheese
- nuts and seeds
- soy beans
- Greek yogurt
Make sure at every meal you have a protein, a healthy carbohydrate(whole wheat or whole grain), and good fat. (monounsaturated fats) Keep your meals and snacks balanced so you can stay full and not feel hungry throughout the day. |
Our opinion: Fostering better nutrition is a key to reducing public health costs. That makes the scarcity of large grocery stores in some urban neighborhoods, especially poor ones, a matter of public policy.
It’s easy, and comforting, to assume that in an modern, industrialized nation, everyone eats well. Surely with programs like food stamps, even needy people are doing OK, right?
More than 40,000 people in Albany and Schenectady live in what are known as food deserts — places where a grocery store is at least a mile away. Many are poor. The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that about 3,700 of the more than 23,000 people in Albany who don’t live near a large grocer are poor. In Schenectady, about 5,400 of the more than 19,000 people for whom a supermarket trip is more like a trek are low income. Moreover, those estimates were based largely on information gathered before a recession that has made even more people poor.
That’s not just an inconvenience. It’s a public health issue in a society where the problems associated with poor nutrition and obesity are linked to the growing cost of public health care.
One suggestion for alleviating the problem comes from the American Cancer Society, which is reviving the controversial idea of a tax on soda and other sugar-sweetened drinks. The group suggests using the tax to help fund and evaluate child obesity programs. An even more productive use might be to devote a portion of such a tax to local efforts to lure larger grocery stores to urban neighborhoods that don’t have them now.
It would seem doubtful, though, that the state Legislature will be any more inclined to implement a soda tax than it was last year, when it refused to do so even with the prospect of raising $400 million in new revenue and even with the urging of the state health commissioner and then-Gov. David Paterson.
That doesn’t mean it’s not worth trying for a soda tax — encouraging kids in particular to cut back on sugary beverages is not a bad goal at all, nor is raising funds that could be used to promote a healthier citizenry. But the more likely reality is that New York and communities will have to find ways to do something about poor nutrition and food deserts without the help of a soda tax.
Here’s one direction: Since last March, Capital District Community Gardens has been supplying nine convenience stores and markets with fresh produce under a five-year, $175,000-a-year grant from the state Health Department that also helps underwrite fitness programs. Veggie Mobile Sprout, as this program is called, delivers produce twice a week at wholesale prices, enabling urban stores in Albany and Schenectady to sell fresh food at supermarket rates and offer something better than their typical fare of often fattening and less nutritious processed food. The program’s goal is to become self-sustaining.
How many more ideas to promote healthy and affordable food choices are there that might perhaps benefit from some initial public investment or other support? Why not make identifying and nurturing those ideas part of the mission of local community development or economic development entities?
Funding for such programs would not be handouts; beyond improving nutrition and reducing obesity with a long-term eye toward reducing public health costs, they would help get greater value out of the public assistance that goes to people in low-income neighborhoods.
Sounds like a shopping cart full of public interest to us. |
Yesterday’s House passage of cap-and-trade legislation designed to confront climate change is a landmark achievement, the first tangible step taken by the country that emits more greenhouse gas per capita than anyone in the world.
The bill itself still faces a tough test in the Senate. Passage is far from assured, and without similar actions by other major emitting countries, it won’t mean much. But it does finally demonstrate to the rest of the world that the United States is prepared to do its part, which puts the pressure on them to follow suit.
The bill itself, the product of a thousand political compromises, also isn’t perfect. But it also isn’t what its hysterical opponents claim it is. As Bryan Walsh acknowledges in Time:
… critics have vastly overstated the likely cost. In fact, they’re all but lying. During the House debate, Republican whip Eric Cantor, using numbers from an American Petroleum Institute study, said that the bill would eventually cost more than $3,000 per family per year — but those numbers assume that billions of tons worth of inexpensive carbon offsets won’t be available under the bill, which would significantly inflate the overall cost. That’s not going to happen. A more reliable study from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office forecast that the bill would cost the average U.S. household $175 in higher energy costs annually by 2020 — and other studies estimate that the energy-efficiency provisions in the bill might even save Americans money over time.
When opponents are forced to lie so blatantly — in this case exaggerating the likely cost 17 times over — they don’t have much of an honest argument. |
Just as there are many variants and forms of electronic malware and Internet-based threats around the globe, so there are many forms of protection against these threats. Signature-based detection is one of the multifarious forms of defense that have been developed in order to keep us safe from malicious content.
Although signature-based detection can be argued to have been overshadowed by more sophisticated methods of protection in some environments, it remains as a core ‘technique’ featuring in the anti-virus controls of packages and suites that work to protect a user’s system today.
How does signature-based detection work?
Signature-based detection works by scanning the contents of computer files and cross-referencing their contents with the “code signatures” belonging to known viruses. A library of known code signatures is updated and refreshed constantly by the anti-virus software vendor.
If a viral signature is detected, the software acts to protect the user’s system from damage. Suspected files are typically quarantined and/or encrypted in order to render them inoperable and useless.
Clearly there will always be new and emerging viruses with their own unique code signatures. So once again, the anti-virus software vendor works constantly to assess and assimilate new signature-based detection data as it becomes available, often in real time so that updates can be pushed out to users immediately and zero-day vulnerabilities can be avoided.
Next-generation signature-based detection
New variants of computer virus are of course developed every day and security companies now work to also protect users from malware that attempts to disguise itself from traditional signature-based detection. Virus authors have tried to avoid their malicious code being detected by writing “oligomorphic“, “polymorphic” and more recently “metamorphic” viruses with signatures that are either disguised or changed from those that might be held in a signature directory.
Despite these developments, the Internet at large does of course still function on a daily basis. Populated as it is by users who not only have up to date security software installed, but also by those who have educated themselves as to the type of risks discussed here. |
By Jason Kohn, Contributing Columnist
Like many of us, scientific researchers tend to be creatures of habit. This includes research teams working for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. government agency charged with measuring the behavior of oceans, atmosphere, and weather.
Many of these climate scientists work with massive amounts of data – for example, the National Weather Service collecting up-to-the-minute temperature, humidity, and barometric readings from thousands of sites across the United States to help forecast weather. Research teams then rely on some the largest, most powerful high-performance computing (HPC) systems in the world to run models, forecasts, and other research computations.
Given the reliance on HPC resources, NOAA climate researchers have traditionally worked onsite at major supercomputing facilities, such as Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, where access to supercomputers are just steps away. As researchers crate ever more sophisticated models of ocean and atmospheric behavior, however, the HPC requirements have become truly staggering.
Now, NOAA is using a super-high-speed network called “n-wave” to connect research sites across the United States with the computing resources they need. The network has been operating for several years, and today transports enough data to fill a 10-Gbps network to full capacity, all day, every day. NOAA is now upgrading this network to allow even more data traffic, with the goal of ultimately supporting 100-Gbps data rates.
“Our scientists were really used to having a computer in their basement,” says Jerry Janssen, manager, n-wave Network, NOAA, in a video about the project. “When that computer moved a couple thousand miles away, we had to give them a lot of assurances that, one, the data would actually move at the speed they needed it to move, but also that they could rely on it to be there. The amount of data that will be generated under this model will exceed 80-100 Terabits per day.”
The n-wave project means much more than just a massive new data pipe. It represents a fundamental shift in the way that scientists can conduct their research, allowing them to perform hugely demanding supercomputer runs of their data from dozens of remote locations. As a result, it gives NOAA climate scientists much more flexibility in where and how they work.
“For the first time, NOAA scientists and engineers in completely separate parts of the country, all the way to places like Alaska and Hawaii and Puerto Rico, will have the bandwidth they need, without restriction,” says Janssen. “NOAA will now be able to do things it never thought it could do before.”
In addition to providing fast, stable access to HPC resources, n-wave is also allowing NOAA climate scientists to share resources much more easily with scientists in the U.S. Department of Energy and other government agencies. Ideally, this level of collaboration and access to supercomputing resources will help climate scientists continue to develop more effective climate models, improve weather forecasts, and allow us to better understand our climate.
Powering Vital Climate Research
The high-speed nationwide HPC connectivity capability provided by n-wave is now enabling a broad range of NOAA basic science and research activities. Examples include:
- Basic data dissemination, allowing research teams to collect up-to-the-minute data on ocean, atmosphere, and weather from across the country, and make that data available to other research teams and agencies nationwide.
- Ensemble forecasting, where researchers run multiple HPC simulations using different initial conditions and modeling techniques, in order to refine their atmospheric forecasts and minimize errors.
- Severe weather modeling, where scientists draw on HPC simulations, real-time atmospheric data, and archived storm data to better understand and predict the behavior of storms.
- Advancing understanding of the environment to be able to better predict short-term and long-term environmental changes, mitigate threats, and provide the most accurate data to inform policy decisions.
All of this work is important, and will help advance our understanding of Earth’s climate. And it is all a testament to the amazing networking technologies and infrastructure that scientists now have at their disposal, which puts the most powerful supercomputing resources in the world at their fingertips – even when they are thousands of miles away. |
The bacterium Micavibrio aeruginosavorus (yellow), leeching
on a Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacterium (purple).
What’s the news: If bacteria had blood, the predatory microbe Micavibrio aeruginosavorus would essentially be a vampire: it subsists by hunting down other bugs, attaching to them, and sucking their life out. For the first time, researchers have sequenced the genome of this strange microorganism, which was first identified decades ago in sewage water. The sequence will help better understand the unique bacterium, which has potential to be used as a “living antibiotic” due to its ability to attack drug-resistant biofilms and its apparent fondness for dining on pathogens.
Anatomy of a Vampire:
- The bacterium has an interesting multi-stage life history. During its migratory phase it sprouts a single flagellum and goes hunting for prey. Once it find a delectable morsel of bacterium, it attacks and irreversibly attaches to the surface, and sucks out all of the good stuff: carbohydrates, amino acids, proteins, DNA, etc.
- Sated, the cell divides in two via binary fission, and the now-depleted host is left for dead.
Hungry for Pathogens:
- M. aeruginosavorus cannot be grown by itself; it must be cultured along with another bacteria to feed upon. A 2006 study found that it only grew upon three bacterial species, all of which can cause pneumonia-like disease in humans. A more recent study showed that it can prey upon a wider variety of microbes, most of them potentially pathogenic, like E. coli.
- These studies also found that M. aeruginosavorus has a knack for disrupting biofilms, the dense collection of bacteria that cause harmful plaques on teeth and medical implants alike, and can be up to 1,000 more resistant to antibiotics than free-swimming bugs.
- The bacteria can also swim through viscous fluids like mucous and kills Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the bacterium that can colonize lungs of cystic fibrosis patients and form a glue-like film.
- These qualities have caught the eye of researchers who think it could be used as a living antibiotic to treat biofilms and various types of drug-resistant bacteria, which are a growing problem in medicine. Sequencing the organism’s genome is an important step in understanding its biochemistry and how it preys on other microbes.
Clues From the Vampire Code:
- The new study found that each phase of life involves the use (or expression) of different sets of genes. The migratory/hunting phase involves many segments that code for flagellum formation and genes involved in quorum sensing. The attachment phase involves a wide variety of secreted chemicals and enzymes that facilitate the flow of materials from the host.
- Micavibrio aeruginosavorus possesses no genes for amino acid transporters, a rather rare trait only seen in a few other bacterial species that depend heavily upon their host to help them shuttle these vital protein building-blocks. This absence helps explain the bacterium’s dependence on a narrow range of prey, from which it directly steals amino acids. Although it remains unclear exactly how the microbe attaches to and infiltrates other cells.
The Future Holds:
- The range of microbes upon which Micavibrio aeruginosavorus can survive is expanding; after being kept in laboratory conditions for years it has apparently evolved a more diverse diet. If this expansion continues, that could be a real problem for its use as an antibiotic; it could begin to eat beneficial gut bacteria, for example.
- Researchers claim it is harmless to friendly gut microbes, but it hasn’t been tested on all the varieties of bacteria present in humans.
- Several important steps must be taken before testing in people, like learning more about what traits makes another bacteria tasty to Micavibrio aeruginosavorus. Researchers speculate the bacterium may need to be genetically altered in order to go after specific pathogens, or to reduce the risk of it causing unforeseen complications.
Reference: Zhang Wang, Daniel E Kadouri, Martin Wu. Genomic insights into an obligate epibiotic bacterial predator: Micavibrio aeruginosavorus ARL-13. BMC Genomics, 2011; 12 (1): 453 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2164-12-453
Image credit: University of Virginia |
- November 15th, 2008
- Derek Robertson
- Comments: 7 Comments »Tags: Consolarium, Endless Ocean, games based learning, Wii
Endless Ocean for the Nintendo Wii was one of those games that immediately caught my eye. A wonderful world in which the player can become immersed in a rich, vibrant and somewhat hypnotically therapeutic underwater world. I’ve written about how I thought it might be used to drive learning before but my initial ideas have been put into place and extended beyond recognition by some really creative teachers.
Last week I went with Margaret Cassidy from Stirling Council to Cowie PS to see a teacher that was using Endless Ocean with her class:
Mrs Bullivant and her class of P.6 children treated me to an afternoon of sheer joy. I walked in to a class that had been turned into an underwater world that was awash with a tide of enthusiastic and industrious learnning.
- Streamers of various shades of blue were hung from two lines that criss-crossed the class.From these lines also hung starfish, sharks and other underwater creatures that the children had made.
- The Wii was hooked up to the whiteboard and the gameplay was integral to the learning.
- The children were divided into ‘dive teams’ and their ‘dive leader’ had to manage certain aspects of how the children worked together.
- Children were engaged with a teacher led leson that investigated buoyancy.
- Children were searching the web to find out more about some of the creatures that they discovered in the game.
- A spreadsheet activity detailing the range of creatures that they had discovered was in place.
- A shipwreck (created by the janitor) was sitting in the class. This helped drive much of the creative writing work.
- The children created treasure maps and were using these to look at grid references.
- Mermaids were created in art and design and very lifelike they were too!
- Reference books were in great demand when I was in the class and the initial stimulus of the game appeared to drive a real interest for what could be found in the complementary resource that was the book.
- Children actively encouraged to measure exactly how long 7 metres is as a result of finding out that that was how long a Great White Shark was.
This was just a wonderful visit and an example of what learning in class can be. Yes we need creative teachers to lead this but isn’t that what we are meant to be. The work that was in evidence in this class was delightful to witness and further cemented my ideas of the possibilities of sandbox games such as Endless Ocean.
Categories Stirling Council |
Correctly identifying what is causing a problem is the most important step in pest control. We do our best here to help you do that. Sometimes we can identify the cause accurately enough from your phone or e-mail description of what is happening and what you see. Sometimes we can do this from photographs you submit, either electronically or printed on paper. But sometimes word descriptions and photographs aren't quite good enough, and we ask you to submit a specimen of an arthropod you have found, or the damage it has caused.
The information we give you is only as good as the information you give to us. I can't identify specimens that look like the one in the photograph above. Here are some hints that will help all of us:
1. Make sure any photographs are CLEAR and take several, from very close up to farther away. Make sure you have sufficient light, or that you compensate with your camera to make sure we can clearly see what you are trying to show us. Learn how to use the close up mode on your digital camera.
2. You have 20,000 of something flying around? Please give us at least - oh maybe - six of them. If it's something unusual, we need at least one full, intact set of key characteristics. If there are big individuals and little ones, try to submit a few of each size. Maybe they're different, maybe they're not, but we won't know for sure unless we see them.
3. Label your material. Where and when was it found? What does it seem to be doing?
4. You had 20,000 last week, but you can't find even one now? Maybe you don't have the problem anymore. Keep an eye on the situation and try not to worry.
5. That doesn't go for termites. If you think you had a termite swarm, worry! Keep a close eye on it, try to find a least one, even if it's only a wing, and submit it for identification.
6. You can kill most small pests by putting them in the freezer or by dropping them into alcohol. Any sort of alcohol will do. The alcohol not only kills them, it also preserves them. Never submit arthropod specimens in water (unless they are living aquatic animals). Moths and butterflies are easier to identify if they are not preserved in alcohol, so just freeze them and bring them in dry. We can also take live specimens.
7. Some insects and mites are most easily submitted on or in a piece of the plant they are living on. It's best if the sample is as fresh as possible. Don't bake it in a hot car.
8. A few creatures can't be identified from the sample you submit. Ants are most easily identified from the workers (the ones without the wings). Some spiders can only be identified to species if you have adults of both sexes. Small larvae, nymphs and eggs can be extremely difficult to identify. That's just the way it is.
9. Entomologists specialize. Sometimes we have to send things off. If they only have to go to the university, turn-around time can be quick. If they have to go further, it may be a long time before you hear back. This doesn't happen that often, though. |
died Aug. 28, 1818, St. Charles, Mo., U.S.
black pioneer trader and founder of the settlement that later became the city of Chicago.
Du Sable, whose French father had moved to Haiti and married a black woman there, is believed to have been a freeborn. At some time in the 1770s he went to the Great Lakes area of North America, settling on the shore of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Chicago River, with his Potawatomi wife, Kittihawa (Catherine). His loyalty to the French and the Americans led to his arrest in 1779 by the British, who took him to Fort Mackinac. From 1780 to 1783 or 1784 he managed for his captors a trading post called the Pinery on the St. Clair River in present-day Michigan, after which he returned to the site of Chicago. By 1790 Du Sable's establishment there had become an important link in the region's fur and grain trade.
In 1800 he sold out and moved to Missouri, where he continued as a farmer and trader until his death. But his 20-year residence on the shores of Lake Michigan had established his title as Father of Chicago. |
Angola is a giant jigsaw puzzle of different climates, landscapes, cultures and colors. From mountains to vast open plains, wide white beaches to thick tropical rainforest, Angola has it all, as if each of its eighteen provinces were a different country. Lubango has a mild temperate climate, Luanda is hot and dry, while Cabinda is steamy and tropical. Much of the landscape is dramatic, with plunging waterfalls, bizarre rock formations and deep gorges.
With an Atlantic coastline stretching for over 1.650 kms, Angola has mighty rivers flowing into wide estuaries depositing sediments from the high plateaus to form numerous small islands, bays and sandbanks.
In Angola, you can encounter a diversity of wild animals: lions, hyenas, elephants and antelopes. Apes, hippopotamuses and crocodiles are also indigenous to this country. In the Namib Desert, which is situated in the south-west, you can find the tumboa, a unique plant with two wide leaves that are several metres long and lie on the ground of the desert.
Although the climate is such that the beaches can be visited all year round, it is in fact during the hot season that they are most frequented. The bars all filled and the local music and dancing provide an animated and exotic atmosphere that mixes well with the mystery of the African nights. |
Public Papers - 1991
White House Fact Sheet on The Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START)
Today, the United States and the Soviet Union signed the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. This treaty marks the first agreement between the two countries in which the number of deployed strategic nuclear weapons will actually be reduced. Reductions will take place over a period of 7 years, and will result in parity between the strategic nuclear forces of the two sides at levels approximately 30 percent below currently deployed forces. Deeper cuts are required in the most dangerous and destabilizing systems.
START provisions are designed to strengthen strategic stability at lower levels and to encourage the restructuring of strategic forces in ways that make them more stable and less threatening. The treaty includes a wide variety of very demanding verification measures designed to ensure compliance and build confidence.
The treaty sets equal ceilings on the number of strategic nuclear forces that can be deployed by either side. In addition, the treaty establishes an equal ceiling on ballistic missile throw-weight (a measure of overall capability for ballistic missiles). Each side is limited to no more than:
-- 1600 strategic nuclear delivery vehicles (deployed intercontinental ballistic missiles [ICBM's], submarine launched ballistic missiles [SLBM's], and heavy bombers), a limit that is 36 percent below the Soviet level declared in September 1990 and 29 percent below the U.S. level.
-- 6000 total accountable warheads, about 41 percent below the current Soviet level and 43 percent below the current U.S. level.
-- 4900 accountable warheads deployed on ICBM's or SLBM's, about 48 percent below the current Soviet level and 40 percent below the current U.S. level.
-- 1540 accountable warheads deployed on 154 heavy ICBM's, a 50-percent reduction in current Soviet forces. The U.S. has no heavy ICBM's.
-- 1100 accountable warheads deployed on mobile ICBM's.
-- Aggregate throw-weight of deployed ICBM's and SLBM's equal to about 54 percent of the current Soviet aggregate throw-weight.
Ballistic Missile Warhead Accountability
The treaty uses detailed counting rules to ensure the accurate accounting of the number of warheads attributed to each type of ballistic missile.
-- Each deployed ballistic missile warhead counts as 1 under the 4900 ceiling and 1 under the 6000 overall warhead ceiling.
-- Each side is allowed 10 on-site inspections each year to verify that deployed ballistic missiles contain no more warheads than the number that is attributed to them under the treaty.
Downloading Ballistic Missile Warheads
The treaty also allows for a reduction in the number of warheads on certain ballistic missiles, which will help the sides transition their existing forces to the new regime. Such downloading is permitted in a carefully structured and limited fashion.
-- The U.S. may download its three-warhead Minuteman III ICBM by either one or two warheads. The Soviet Union has already downloaded it's seven warhead SS - N - 18 SLBM by four warheads.
-- In addition, each side may download up to 500 warheads on two other existing types of ballistic missiles, as long as the total number of warheads removed from downloaded missiles does not exceed 1250 at any one time.
The treaty places constraints on the characteristics of new types of ballistic missiles to ensure the accuracy of counting rules and prevent undercounting of missile warheads.
-- The number of warheads attributed to a new type of ballistic missile must be no less than the number determined by dividing 40 percent of the missile's total throw-weight by the weight of the lightest RV tested on that missile.
-- The throw-weight attributed to a new type must be no less than the missile's throw-weight capability at specified reference ranges (11,000 km for ICBM's and 9,500 km for SLBM's).
START places significant restrictions on the Soviet SS - 18 heavy ICBM.
-- A 50-percent reduction in the number of Soviet SS - 18 ICBM's; a total reduction of 154 of these Soviet missiles.
-- New types of heavy ICBM's are banned.
-- Downloading of heavy ICBM's is banned.
-- Heavy SLBM's and heavy mobile ICBM's are banned.
-- Heavy ICBM's will be reduced on a more stringent schedule than other strategic arms.
Because mobile missiles are more difficult to verify than other types of ballistic missiles, START incorporates a number of special restrictions and notifications with regard to these missiles. These measures will significantly improve our confidence that START will be effectively verifiable.
-- Nondeployed mobile missiles and non-deployed mobile launchers are numerically and geographically limited so as to limit the possibility for reload and refire.
-- The verification regime includes continuous monitoring of mobile ICBM production, restrictions on movements, on-site inspections, and cooperative measures to improve the effectiveness of national technical means of intelligence collection.
Because heavy bombers are stabilizing strategic systems (e.g., they are less capable of a short-warning attack than ballistic missiles), START counting rules for weapons on bombers are different than those for ballistic missile warheads.
-- Each heavy bomber counts as one strategic nuclear delivery vehicle.
-- Each heavy bomber equipped to carry only short-range missiles or gravity bombs is counted as one warhead under the 6000 limit.
-- Each U.S. heavy bomber equipped to carry long-range nuclear ALCM's (up to a maximum of 150 bombers) is counted as 10 warheads even though it may be equipped to carry up to 20 ALCM's.
-- A similar discount applies to Soviet heavy bombers equipped to carry long-range nuclear ALCM's. Each such Soviet heavy bomber (up to a maximum of 180) is counted as 8 warheads even though it may be equipped to carry up to 16 ALCM's.
-- Any heavy bomber equipped for long-range nuclear ALCM's deployed in excess of 150 for the U.S. or 180 for the Soviet Union will be accountable by the number of ALCM's the heavy bomber is actually equipped to carry.
Building on recent arms control agreements, START includes extensive and unprecedented verification provisions. This comprehensive verification regime greatly reduces the likelihood that violations would go undetected.
-- START bans the encryption and encapsulation of telemetric information and other forms of information denial on flight tests of ballistic missiles. However, strictly limited exemptions to this ban are granted sufficient to protect the flight-testing of sensitive research projects.
-- START allows 12 different types of on-site inspections and requires roughly 60 different types of notifications covering production, testing, movement, deployment, and destruction of strategic offensive arms.
START will have a duration of 15 years, unless it is superseded by a subsequent agreement. If the sides agree, the treaty may be extended for successive 5-year periods beyond the 15 years.
Noncircumvention and Third Countries
START prohibits the transfer of strategic offensive arms to third countries, except that the treaty will not interfere with existing patterns of cooperation. In addition, the treaty prohibits the permanent basing of strategic offensive arms outside the national territory of each side.
Air-Launched Cruise Missiles (ALCM's)
START does not directly count or limit ALCM's. ALCM's are limited indirectly through their association with heavy bombers.
-- Only nuclear-armed ALCM's with a range in excess of 600 km are covered by START.
-- Long-range, conventionally armed ALCM's that are distinguishable from nuclear-armed ALCM's are not affected.
-- Long-range nuclear-armed ALCM's may not be located at air bases for heavy bombers not accountable as being equipped for such ALCM's.
-- Multiple warhead long-range nuclear ALCM's are banned.
Sea Launched Cruise Missiles (SLCM's)
SLCMs are not constrained by the treaty. However, each side has made a politically binding declaration as to its plans for the deployment of nuclear-armed SLCM's. Conventionally-armed SLCM's are not subject to such a declaration.
-- Each side will make an annual declaration of the maximum number of nuclear-armed SLCM's with a range greater than 600 km that it plans to deploy for each of the following 5 years.
-- This number will not be greater than 880 long-range nuclear-armed SLCM's.
-- In addition, as a confidence building measure, nuclear-armed SLCM's with a range of 300 - 600 km will be the subject of a confidential annual data exchange.
The Soviet Backfire bomber is not constrained by the treaty. However, the Soviet side has made a politically binding declaration that it will not deploy more than 800 air force and 200 naval Backfire bombers, and that these bombers will not be given intercontinental capability.
The START agreement consists of the treaty document itself and a number of associated documents. Together they total more than 700 pages. The treaty was signed in a public ceremony by Presidents Bush and Gorbachev in St. Vladimir's Hall in the Kremlin. The associated documents were signed in a private ceremony at Novo Ogaryevo, President Gorbachev's weekend dacha. Seven of these documents were signed by Presidents Bush and Gorbachev. Three associated agreements were signed by Secretary Baker and Foreign Minister Bessmertnykh. In addition, the START negotiators, Ambassadors Brooks and Nazarkin, exchanged seven letters related to START in a separate event at the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Moscow.
Magnitude of START -- Accountable Reductions
Following is the aggregate data from the Memorandum of Understanding, based upon agreed counting rules in START. (Because of those counting rules, the number of heavy bomber weapons actually deployed may be higher than the number shown in the aggregate.) This data is effective as of September 1990
(TABLE START)and will be updated at entry into force:
Delivery Vehicles .... 2,246 .... 2,500
Warheads .... 10,563 .... 10,271
Ballistic Missile Warheads .... 8,210 .... 9,416
Heavy ICBM's/Warheads .... None .... 308/3080
Throw-weight (metric tons) .... 2,361.3 .... 6,626.3
As a result of the treaty, the above values will be reduced by the following percentages:
Delivery Vehicles .... 29 percent .... 36 percent
Warheads .... 43 percent .... 41 percent
Ballistic Missile Warheads .... 40 percent .... 48 percent
Heavy ICBM's/Warheads .... None .... 50 percent
Throw-weight (metric tons) .... None .... 46 percent |
Common Core Catholic Identity Initiative
A national working group has begun the Common Core Catholic Identity Initiative (CCCII) to develop and disseminate resources and guidelines to assist Catholic elementary and secondary schools in integrating elements of Catholic identity (Catholic values, Scripture, Church social teachings, encyclicals, etc.) into curriculum and instruction based on the Common Core State Standards.
The initial phase of CCCII focuses on K-8 English/Language Arts/ Literacy. Resources for other subjects and for 9-12 curriculum will be developed in later phases.
Forty-six states have agreed to adopt the Common Core State Standards, a set of high quality K-12 learning standards that includes rigorous content and application of knowledge using higher-order thinking skills, leading students to college and career readiness. Currently, Catholic schools are assessing what the implications of the standards and accompanying assessments may be for them.
While Catholic schools have their own local or diocesan standards, their ability to continue to provide high-quality education for their students is compelling them to consider adoption of the common core standards. Catholic schools will be impacted as curriculum resources and professional development opportunities become aligned with Common Core State Standards by producers of instructional materials, college teacher preparation programs, or regulations for participation in the federal programs that currently benefit their students and teachers. Within this environment, maintaining the uniqueness and integrity of the Catholic school will require integrating the demands of their mission and the academic expectations of their constituents and the wider education community.
To assist Catholic schools with enhancing Catholic identity integrated into the curriculum, the Common Core Catholic Identity Initiative (CCCII) has been launched as a collaborative project involving Catholic universities, corporations and sponsors invested in Catholic education, and the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA).
The Common Core Catholic Identity Initiative has two goals:
- to empower Catholic schools and dioceses to design and direct the implementation of the Common Core standards within the culture and context of a Catholic school curriculum
- to infuse the Common Core standards with the faith/principles/values/social justice themes inherent in the mission and Catholic identity of the school.
The CCCII project aims to accomplish its goals by creating a process and a product:
Phase 1: Gather approximately 35 practitioners and curriculum and catechetics experts to pilot a CCCII ELA Unit development process to be shared with the larger Catholic educational community. (June 2012)
Phase 2: Revise and refine the unit development process so that it can be replicated in dioceses around the country.
Phase 3: Invite participation in development of additional CCCII ELA Units by Catholic educators around the country.
Phase 1: Utilize the expertise and strength of experienced and innovative teachers to develop complete units/exemplars that join Catholic identify with the Common Core curriculum standards. Utilize the expertise of CCCII leaders to develop supporting resources and guidelines. (June 2012)
Phase 2: Post exemplar units, guidelines, and resources developed in for the June 2012 launch for open access by Catholic educators on the Catholic School Standards Project Website www.catholicschoolsstandards.org) . (July 2012)
Phase 3: Expand exemplar units and Catholic Identity resources available for use by local Catholic schools.
Tailor the CCCII Unit development process for Catholic secondary schools.
Expand CCCII to include additional subject areas.
Meet the CCCII Leadership and Planning Teams |
Instructors: Andrea Dykstra, Curt Van Dam, Kelli Ten Haken and Tami De Jong
1. Students will gain interest in the Unit on Alaska.
2. Students will be introduced to Alaska and the Iditarod race that takes place
in Alaska every year.
3. Students will be able to appreciate the beauty of Godís creation in Alaska.
4. Students will be able to see Godís majesty and power in their personal experiences.
In this lesson, the students will discuss what they know about Alaska. They will watch
a movie and then discuss how God shows His power and majesty through creation. Next,
they will be introduced to the Iditarod race by reading a story and then the teachers will
explain the game the students will play about the Iditarod through the unit. At the end of
class, students will have a chance to start work on their maps of Alaska and then the
teachers will end in closing prayer.
- Psalm 19:1-
The Heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.
- Other Scripture references that can be used through out the unit:
The Creation story in Gen. 1 and 2
Alaska: Spirit of the Wild
2. DVD player
5. Learning center and trade books
6. Example of the Iditarod Game
7. Book: Iditarod Dream by Ted Wood
8. Overhead projector, overhead and pen
9. Construction paper
10. Markers, crayons, colored pencils
1. On the first day of this unit, teachers should enter the room dressed in parkas,
snowshoes, scarves, mittens; anything that looks like what people in Alaska would
wear. Motion for the student to sit down. Once they are quiet, ask them where
they think the teachers are from and how they came to this conclusion. We would
expect conclusions such as the Artic, Antarctica, and possibly Alaska.
2. Have students take out a sheet of paper and write five things down that come to
their minds when they think of Alaska. Have them get into groups of three and
share what they wrote with their group. The students will be encouraged to share
the combined ideas from their group with the whole class. The teacher will write
down these ideas on the overhead.
3. Explain to the students that they are going to be learning about all of these of
these things and even more about Alaska in the upcoming unit.
4. Have each student write down one or two things about Alaska they would like
to know more about. Suggest ideas such as: What sports do they play in Alaska?
How many people live there? Is it really cold and snowy year round? Take these
ideas into consideration when planning the rest of the unit.
1. Put in the DVD Alaska: Sprit of the Wild. Students will watch the movie. It is forty
minutes long. Before they watch it, share with them the beauty that can be found in
Alaska. Tell them to look specifically for how they can see God in the things that are
shown on the film.
2. After the movie, discuss with the students what they thought of the movie. Ask them
questions such as what surprised you about this film? What did you learn about Alaska
that you didnít know before? What can we discover about God by watching this movie?
How can we get to know God better by studying Alaska?
3. Read Psalm 19:1 aloud. Read it again, this time have the students say it after you. Ask
them how this verse relates to Alaska. Hopefully they will make the connection that
creation shouts Godís praise. Alaska is so beautiful; this reflects on Godís majesty,
creativity and mercy. God loves us enough to give us beautiful creation simply so we
can enjoy it. We can see his fingerprints in Alaska.
4. Read Psalm 8 aloud. Again, ask them how this verse relates to Alaska. They will probably
have similar responses as above in step three. Share a personal experience of how he/
she has seen Godís power and majesty in His creation.
- For example, this is my own experience; you could share something similar to it:
One time I climbed the highpoint of Colorado with my dad. We started hiking
before the sun was up. As we were walking along the ridge of the mountain, the
sun began to rise; the colors were brilliant! We kept on hiking and hiking. I was
getting tired and hungry but soon we came close to the top. As I climbed up the
last little peak and the top of the mountain, I looked out and the view was
breathtaking!!! I had never seen so many snow capped mountains before. Sitting
up there on the mountaintop, I felt such a joy and peace. What a great God I
serve! He created all of this; His creation alone is enough to tell of His majesty.
5. Ask the students if any of them have had an experience like this; encourage them to
share if they would like.
6. Encourage them to find other verses that could relate to our study of Alaska and bring
them to class tomorrow to share.
1. Introduce the Iditarod race the studentís will be learning about by reading the book
Iditarod Dream by Ted Wood. As you are reading, stop periodically through out the
book and ask them to jot down a few of their thoughts. At the end of the book ask
them to share a few thoughts they wrote down about the book.
2. Introduce the game the students will be playing throughout the unit. Tell the students
they will be having their own Iditarod race in the classroom. Each student will make a
map of Alaska on construction paper. On this map, they will draw the trail of the
Iditarod race. They will have to map out the different checkpoints of the race on their
trails. It is their job to find out how many miles are between each checkpoint and how
many miles they can travel in one day.
3. Each day the students will move their markers on their maps how ever many miles we
decide as a class they can travel in one day. Every morning the students will receive
a ďracerís fateĒ card. These cards will say various things such as, ďyour dog has broken
a leg, move back twenty milesĒ, or ď you have found an extra bundle of food on the trail,
move ahead twelve milesĒ. The students will have to keep track of where they are on
the trail on their own maps and on a large map on the classroom bulletin board.
4. Each afternoon, students will have an opportunity to receive another card if they got
their homework done on time that day. This card could be good or bad, but the students
get to decide if they want to take it.
5. This activity will be incorporated into language arts. The students will be keeping a
race journal. As they play this game they can write their feelings about the race in the
journal as if they were an actual racer.
6. This game will also be incorporated into math. Students will need to do calculations to
play the game correctly. They will also discover how to find median, mean and
using the game.
1. The students will begin making their maps of Alaska for the Iditarod game. The
outline of the map of Alaska will be projected on the overhead so the students have
something to follow when they draw. Copies of the outline of this map will be available
for students to trace if they do not want to draw the map freehand.
2. The students can use crayons or colored pencils to make their maps on.
3. The trail outline and check points will be labeled on the overhead map, but the students
will need to research how many miles are in between each check point in a later class
1. Read Psalm 8 one more time and end in prayer, thanking God for His creativity that
is evident in all of creation, especially as it has been seen in Alaska today.
1. Students can do more research about the real Iditarod race on the Internet.
2. Students can read one of the many books about Alaska set up in the learning center.
3. Students can complete any activity set up in the learning center, including: math
story problems, language arts writing activities, and social studies and science
1. Observe how much students participate in the lesson. Have one teacher walk
around with a checklist and put checks by the names of the students who are
on task and participating by sharing, asking questions, diligently listening.
2. Observe how diligently students work on their maps. Check the next day to see
if they have completed them. Give them a check if they are finished and are done
Lesson Plans Unit Outline Home Page
Trade Books Learning Center |
Young Kids May Be Able to Unbuckle Car Seats
Survey of Parents Finds Some Kids May Be Unbuckling While Car Is in Motion
May 2, 2011 -- Children as young as 1 year old can unbuckle themselves from car safety seats, a new survey of parents finds.
"We found that children can unbuckle from their child car safety seats by their fourth birthday, and there is an alarming 43% who do so when the car is in motion," says researcher Lilia Reyes, MD, a clinical fellow in pediatric emergency medicine at the Yale School of Medicine in New Haven. "It was reported as early as 12 months."
The findings are being presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies annual meeting in Denver.
Child Car Seats: How Secure?
While working in the pediatric emergency room at Yale, Reyes encountered two different mothers who had minor car accidents. They told her it happened when they turned their heads around after discovering their kids had unbuckled themselves.
Trying to determine how frequently it happened, she and her colleagues from Yale surveyed 378 parents of young children. Among the other findings:
- 51% or about 191 families reported that at least one of their children had unbuckled their car seats. Of these, 75% were age 3 or younger. The youngest was 12 months old.
- Boys unbuckled more than girls; 59% of the kids who unbuckled were boys.
Parents were not asked if they were sure they had buckled correctly, Reyes tells WebMD. So there is a possibility the children weren't buckled in correctly. But parents do typically hear a click, like a seat safety belt, when the buckle latches, she says.
The problem, she says, is that while children may be able to physically unbuckle the seat, they are just beginning, at around age 3, to develop reasoning skills to appreciate the consequences of unbuckling.
Parents used seats of various types. They included the five-point harness, convertible seats, and booster seats, depending on their child's age and weight.
Are Car Seats Really Buckled?
''This study raises questions about how the child restraint was used," says Lorrie Walker, training manager and technical advisor for Safe Kids USA, an advocacy group.
"Federal motor vehicle safety standard 213 requires the buckle to release using between 9 and 14 pounds of pressure," she says. "It is often challenging for an adult to unbuckle the harness."
She wonders if the buckle was not adequately locked in some cases.
"A buckle may give the appearance of being buckled when it has not completely latched," she tells WebMD.
Among the mistakes many parents make when placing a child in a car seat she says, is to loosely attach the harness straps or place the straps in the wrong harness slots.
If these mistakes occur, she says, it makes it easy for a child to climb out.
The finding that a child as young as age 1 could unbuckle the seat is a surprise to Jennifer Stockburger, program manager of vehicle and child safety for Consumer Reports. She reviewed the findings for WebMD but was not involved in the study. |
GEF and UNEP Launch Global Platform for Efficient Lighting
25 September 2009: The Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) have launched the “Global Market Transformation for Efficient Lighting Platform,” a public-private partnership directed at reducing global energy demand for lighting.
The Platform aims to transform lighting markets, primarily in developing countries, by fostering the usage and production of energy efficient lighting while gradually discontinuing use of incandescent lighting, and substituting traditional fuel-based lighting with modern, efficient alternatives such as solid-state lighting (SSL) and Light Emitting Diode (LED) lamps. It is hoped that, through these efforts, global demand for lighting energy can eventually be reduced by up to 18 percent.
In attendance for the event was UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner, who noted that “in terms of climate change, this is among the lowest of low-hanging fruit. Eight percent of global greenhouse gas emissions are linked with lighting; this project can by 2014 make a big dent in these while saving people money too.” [UN News Centre] [GEF press release] |
Tornadoes are the most intense storms on the planet, and they’re never discussed without at least some mention of the term wind shear. Many of us sitting at home, though, have no idea what wind shear is, or if we do, how it affects tornado production.
What is Wind Shear
Wind shear, although it might sound complex, is a simple concept. Wind shear is merely the change in wind with height, in terms of wind direction and speed. I think that we all understand that the wind is generally stronger in the atmosphere over our heads than it is here on the ground, and if we think of the atmosphere in terms of the three dimensions that it has, it should not be surprising that the wind above us might also be blowing from a different direction than the wind at the ground. When that happens–the wind speed and direction vary with height–wind shear is occurring.
Wind Shear and Supercell Thunderstorms
This wind shear is an important part of the process in the development of a supercell thunderstorm, from which the vast majority of strong tornadoes form.
All thunderstorms are produced by a powerful updraft–a surge of air that rises from the ground into the upper levels of the atmosphere, and when this updraft forms in an area where wind shear is present, the updraft is influence by this speed and different direction of the wind above, pushing the column of air in the updraft into a more vertical alignment.
Rain’s Influence on Tornado Production
Needless to say, thunderstorms typically produce very heavy rain, and rain-cooled air is much heavier than the warm air of the updraft, so the rain-cooled air, produces a compensating downdraft (what comes up, must come down). This downdraft pushes the part of the rotating air that was forced in its direction by the stronger wind aloft downward, and the result is a horizontal column of rotating air.
That’s Not a Tornado!
I know what you’re thinking that you’ve seen enough TLC or Discovery Channel shows to know that a horizontal column of air is NOT a tornado; you need a vertical column of air.
This Can Be a Tornado
You’re right, but remember the updraft that is driving the thunderstorm is still working, and it’s able to pull the horizontal, spinning column of air into the thunderstorm, resulting in a vertical column of spinning air.
(NOAA image showing vertical column of air in a supercell thunderstorm)
The result is a rotating thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado, and it would not be possible without wind shear.
(NOAA image showing tornado formation in supercell thunderstorm) |
Reversal of fortune
To unlock the vast, untapped potential of the world’s drylands, we must learn from the people who live in them, says Dr Jonathan Davies.
Drylands are a major global biome, home to a great diversity of species and some of our most treasured natural heritage. They are also home to over 2 billion people and in the developing world in particular they are associated with poverty and social inequity. Global development and environment goals are not being met in the drylands: by 2015 many dryland regions are set to fail to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, whilst progress towards the goals and objectives of the UN environmental conventions (the Convention to Combat Desertification and the Convention on Biological Diversity in particular) is generally poor.
Recent experiences in the drylands of emerging countries, such as China and India, illustrate that economic development in drylands can outpace that in areas that are usually considered “high potential”. Although development is often associated with degradation, experiences in Sub Saharan Africa illustrate that economic development can be greatly enhanced through protection of biodiversity as a source of income. By taking an even broader, global view of drylands and examining industrialised dryland countries, it becomes clear that for every seemingly-insurmountable challenge we are able to find evidence of a viable solution somewhere in the world.
To address the challenges of the drylands, we need to understand their unique features and how these have to be managed. Perhaps the most important of these is climate unpredictability: the amount of precipitation varies enormously between areas, between seasons and between years. The sheer magnitude of this uncertainty is hard to grasp, but in many drylands the normal range of rainfall, drought-years aside, can be plus or minus 50% of the average. Yet development in many water-deficit areas continues to favour agricultural practices that expose farmers to huge risks whilst simultaneously degrading the natural resource base on which they depend.
Climate change is a cause for concern in dryland areas, but also an opportunity for new approaches and new learning that illustrate the value of dryland areas. Dryland ecosystems and people are highly adaptable and can survive in their uncertain climate.. Whether drylands become wetter or drier as a result of climate change, they will almost invariably become more unpredictable and their adaptive capacity will be vital to their future. Drylands more than any other ecosystem have the capacity to deal with that unpredictability and we have a great deal to learn from them.
Contrary to popular perception, drylands are not necessarily poverty traps. Dryland ecosystems and their goods and services already contribute significantly to national and international economies. The vibrant tourism sector in Eastern and Southern Africa relies heavily on the biodiversity of drylands. Globally-important dryland commodities include grain, meat and milk and dryland goods like Gum Arabic, Henna, Aloe, and Frankincense. Recent years have seen the commercial development of natural medicines from drylands, and untold numbers of medicinal plants remain un-researched, known only to the dryland inhabitants who have used and conserved them for centuries.
Local knowledge of the drylands is rich and is a powerful resource to be harnessed. There has been a tendency to dismiss this knowledge, because local dryland practices have been portrayed as backward or inappropriate and in need of replacing. The current emergency in the Horn of Africa graphically illustrates the outcome of this attitude: populations are exposed to insupportable risk as a result of losing their traditional strategies and being pushed into new ways of life that simply don’t work. Where people are driven towards catastrophe it is almost guaranteed that the environment will face similar consequences. Customs and cultures that are intimately connected to biodiversity become contorted into a system of pure survival where respect for the environment becomes an unaffordable luxury.
The scientific explanation of the rationale behind traditional strategies has been known for long enough to develop innovative new approaches to sustainable drylands management. Development support has to enable management of the extreme climatic uncertainty of drylands and needs to be built on understanding of the drivers of continuous change in dryland ecosystems. These are dynamic ecosystems in which adaptation and flexibility are pre-requisites for survival. We need to learn from past failures and successes and ensure that development and humanitarian interventions recognize dryland characteristics and build on local knowledge and capacity to turn the existing opportunities into equitable and sustainable wealth creation. In particular we need to generate greater awareness of the tremendous opportunities for strengthening biodiversity-based livelihoods to diversify dryland economies and strengthen resilience.
IUCN’s vision 2020 emphasizes the need to strengthen the Union’s work on conserving the diversity of life while also connecting nature conservation to wider societal objectives such as security and poverty reduction. This vision cannot be reached if we fail to understand and address the unique challenges of the drylands. IUCN, with its great diversity of members and commission members, has a vital role to play in securing effective global action to address dryland issues and in enabling dryland communities to develop their nature-based solutions to risk management and sustainable development.
Dr Jonathan Davies is Coordinator of IUCN’s Global Drylands Initiative. |
|Retinal Pigment Epithelium (RPE) Detachment
Signs and Symptoms
In most instances, serous detachment of the RPE occurs asymptomatically.
Only in those cases in which the macula is affected will patients report blurred vision,
metamorphopsia, micropsia, or positive scotomas. Other associated clinical findings may
include induced hyperopia and delayed retinal recovery time on the photostress test. Most
individuals with RPE detachment are male, between the ages of 20 and 60 years. The history
often reveals predisposing or concurrent ocular conditions such as macular degeneration,
idiopathic central serous chorioretinopathy (ICSC), angioid streaks, presumed ocular
histoplasmosis syndrome (POHS), or hereditary choroidal degeneration. In other cases, the
condition occurs idiopathically.
RPE detachment appears ophthalmoscopically as single or multiple,
well-circumscribed round or oval lesions within the posterior fundus. The lesions are
typically dome-shaped with slight elevation and appear yellow to orange in color. A
reddish "halo" is often seen around the base of the detachment, and overlying
pigment defects such as clumping or mottling are commonplace. Lesions may vary in size
from one-fifth to over 5 disc diameters (DD), but most are less than 1 DD. Fluorescein and
indocyanine green (ICG) angiography show early hyperfluorescence of the entire RPE
detachment, which persists throughout the angiogram demonstrating late pooling. Leakage
into the sensory retina occurs only in cases of concurrent serous retinal detachment.
RPE detachment is a non-specific anatomical alteration that may result from
any number of choroidal disorders that disrupt the normal junction between the basement
membrane of the RPE and the inner collagenous layer of Bruchs membrane. This
disruption permits serous fluid from the underlying choriocapillaris to gain access into
the sub-RPE space. Age-related macular degeneration, choroidal neovascular membranes, high
myopia, angioid streaks, hereditary choroidal degeneration, POHS, and tumors of the
choroid have all been identified as precipitating conditions in the development of RPE
detachment. Idiopathic cases are sometimes associated with ICSC; some believe these two
conditions to represent a continuum of a similar underlying pathology. Uncomplicated
idiopathic serous detachments of the RPE often resolve spontaneously, however, those
associated with more generalized damage to the choriocapillaris may be complicated by
hemorrhage, choroidal neovascular membrane formation, and disciform scarring.
Most patients under the age of 55 who present with small serous RPE
detachments without evidence of other retinal or choroidal disease enjoy an excellent
prognosis without intervention. This is particularly true if the lesion is outside of the
fovea and there is no associated subretinal fluid.
Older patients who manifest RPE detachment without angiographic evidence
of a choroidal neovascular membrane have a 25-30 percent chance of developing such
membranes during their lifetime, and therefore warrant careful observation as well as
weekly home monitoring with an Amsler grid.
Those patients over the age of 55 who present with associated choroidal
neovascular membranes and/or hemorrhagic RPE detachments have an exceedingly poor visual
prognosis. Focal laser photocoagulation is indicated for these patients.
Approximately 90 percent of cases of RPE detachment have
or will manifest concurrent serous retinal detachment over the natural history of the
disorder. In cases of idiopathic RPE detachment, a striking similarity with ICSC is seen
in the predisposed patient population; i.e. male, average age of 44 years, and a moderate
to severe emotional stress level.
The presentation of RPE detachment is quite
characteristic. Nonetheless, one must be sure to rule out other conditions that may appear
similar from an ophthalmoscopic perspective. These include: ICSC, malignant melanoma,
metastatic carcinoma, choroidal hemangioma, and Bests disease (vitelliform
dystrophy). History and angiography are the most helpful factors in making this
RPE detachment in patients over 55 years of age should be
considered secondary to choroidal neovascular membrane, rather than idiopathic, until
proven otherwise. Prompt fluorescein angiography is mandatory in these cases.
Other reports in this section |
First - you might want to redefine you search. Are you looking for happiness or rather positive affect? Happiness is fairly ambigious term, and it's much more associated with positive psychology studies on well-being. If you are interested in more global definition of happiness, check the work of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.
On the other hand, there is a large number of studies on physiological measurements of positive affect.
One such physiological measurement is Electromyography (EMG) - recording the electrical activity produced by skeletal muscles. EMG will detect very brief smiles or higher activity in cheek muscles (zygomaticus major) which are correlated with positive affect. There is quite classic (but very quoted) paper on that:
Cacioppo JT, Petty RE, Losch ME, Kim HS. (1986) Electromyographic
Activity Over Facial Muscle Regions Can Differentiate the Valence and
Intensity of Affective Reactions. J Pers Soc Psychol., 50(2):260-8. download
Another simple physiological assesment is heart rate measured by the interbeat interval (IBI). For example, study by Brosschot & Thayer (2003) shows that heart rate response is longer after negative emotions than after positive emotions.
Brosschot JF, Thayer JF. (2003) Heart rate response is longer after
negative emotions than after positive emotions. Int J Psychophysiol.,
In fact, the full spectrum of somatic measurements have been used along heart rate including pulse transmission time to the finger, skin conductance level or pupil dilation (Partala, 2003). All those are a bit less reliable methods and usually they detect arousal rather then indicate physiological differences between positive and negative affect.
Partala T.; Surakka V. (2003) Pupil size variation as an indication of
affective processing. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies,
Finally, I would advise browsing literature on measurements of negative affect. You are likely to find some interesting methods there, like in this paper on the psychophysiology of crying (Gross et al., 1994).
Gross JJ, Frederickson BL, Levenson RW. (1994) The psychophysiology of
crying. Psychophysiology, 31(5):460-8. download |
Is this bone a Neanderthal flute?
Cave Bear femur fragment from Slovenia, 43+kya
DOUBTS AIRED OVER NEANDERTHAL BONE 'FLUTE'
(AND REPLY BY MUSICOLOGIST BOB FINK)
Science News 153 (April 4, 1998): 215.
By B. Bower
Amid much media fanfare, a research team in 1996 trumpeted an ancient, hollowed out bear bone pierced on one side with four complete or partial holes as the earliest known musical instrument. The perforated bone, found in an Eastern European cave, represents a flute made and played by Neandertals at least 43,000 ye us ago, the scientists contended.
Now it's time to stop the music, say two archaeologists who examined the purported flute last spring. On closer inspection, the bone appears to have been punctured and gnawed by the teeth of an animal -- perhaps a wolf -- as it stripped the limb of meat and marrow report, April Nowell and Philip G. Chase, both of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. "The bone was heavily chewed by one or more carnivores, creating holes that became more rounded due to natural processes after burial," Nowell says. "It provides very weak evidence for the origins of [Stone Age] music." Nowell presented the new analysis at the annual meeting of the Paleoanthropology Society in Seattle last week.
Nowell and Chase examined the bone with the permission of its discoverer, Ivan Turk of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences in Ljubljana (S.N.: 11/23/96, p. 328). Turk knows of their conclusion but still views the specimen as a flute.
Both open ends of the thighbone contain clear signs of gnawing by carnivores, Nowell asserts. Wolves and other animals typically bite off nutrient-rich tissue at the ends of limb bones and extract available marrow. If Neandertals had hollowed out the bone and fashioned holes in it, animals would not have bothered to gnaw it, she says.
Complete and partial holes on the bone's shaft were also made by carnivores, says Nowell. Carnivores typically break open bones with their scissor like cheek teeth. Uneven bone thickness and signs of wear along the borders of the holes, products of extended burial in the soil, indicate that openings made by cheek teeth were at first less rounded and slightly smaller, the researchers hold.
Moreover, the simultaneous pressure of an upper and lower tooth produced a set of opposing holes, one partial and one complete, they maintain.
Prehistoric, carnivore-chewed bear bones in two Spanish caves display circular punctures aligned in much the same way as those on the Slovenian find. In the March Antiquity, Francesco d'Errico of the Institute of Quaternary Prehistory and Geology in Talence, France, and his colleagues describe the Spanish bones.
In a different twist, Bob Fink, an independent musicologist in Canada, has reported
on the Internet
(http://www.webster.sk.ca/greenwich/fl-compl.htm) that the spacing of the two complete and two partial holes on the back of the Slovenian bone conforms to musical notes on the diatonic (do, re, mi. . .) scale.
The bone is too short to incorporate the diatonic scale's seven notes, counter Nowell and Chase. Working with Pennsylvania musicologist Robert Judd, they estimate that the find's 5.7-inch length is less than half that needed to cover the diatonic spectrum. The recent meeting presentation is "a most convincing analysis," comments J. Desmond Clark of the University of California, Berkeley, although it's possible that Neandertals blew single notes through carnivore-chewed holes in the bone.
"We can't exclude that possibility," Nowell responds. "But it's a big leap of faith to conclude that this was an intentionally constructed flute."
TO THE EDITOR, SCIENCE NEWS (REPLY BY BOB FINK, May 1998)
(See an update of this discussion on Bob Fink's web site, November 2000)
The doubts raised by Nowell and Chase (April 4th, DOUBTS AIRED OVER NEANDERTHAL BONE 'FLUTE') saying the Neanderthal Bone is not a flute have these weaknesses:
The alignment of the holes -- all in a row, and all of equivalent diameter, appear to be contrary to most teeth marks, unless some holes were made independently by several animals. The latter case boggles the odds for the holes ending up being in line. It also would be strange that animals homed in on this one bone in a cave full of bones, where no reports of similarly chewed bones have been made.
This claim is harder to believe when it is calculated that chances for holes to
be arranged, by chance, in a pattern that matches the spacings of 4 notes of a
diatonic flute, are only one in hundreds to occur .
The analysis I made on the Internet (http://www.webster.sk.ca/greenwich/fl-compl.htm) regarding the bone being capable of matching 4 notes of the do, re, mi (diatonic) scale included the possibility that the bone was extended with another bone "mouthpiece" sufficiently long to make the notes sound fairly in tune. While Nowell says "it's a big leap of faith to conclude that this was an intentionally constructed flute," it's a bigger leap of faith to accept the immense coincidence that animals blindly created a hole-spacing pattern with holes all in line (in what clearly looks like so many other known bone flutes which are made to play notes in a step-wise scale) and blindly create a pattern that also could play a known acoustic scale if the bone was extended. That's too much coincidence for me to accept. It is more likely that it is an intentionally made flute, although admittedly with only the barest of clues regarding its original condition.
The 5.7 inch figure your article quoted appears erroneous, as the centimeter scale provided by its discoverer, Ivan Turk, indicates the artifact is about 4.3 inches long. However, the unbroken femur would originally have been about 8.5 inches, and the possibility of an additional hole or two exists, to complete a full scale, perhaps aided by the possible thumbhole. However, the full diatonic spectrum is not required as indicated by Nowell and Chase: It could also have been a simpler (but still diatonic) 4 or 5 note scale. Such short-scale flutes are plentiful in homo sapiens history.
Finally, a worn-out or broken flute bone can serve as a scoop for manipulation of food, explaining why animals might chew on its ends later. It is also well-known that dogs chase and maul even sticks, despite their non-nutritional nature. What appears "weak" is not the case for a flute, but the case against it by Nowell and Chase.
Letter to the Editor: Antiquity Journal:
"A Bone to Pick"
By Bob Fink
I have a bone to pick with Francesco d'Errico's viewpoint in the March issue of Antiquity (article too long to reproduce here) regarding the Neanderthal flute found in Slovenia by Ivan Turk. D'Errico argues the bone artifact is not a flute.
D'Errico omits dealing with the best evidence that this bone find is a flute.
Regarding the most important evidence, that of the holes being lined up, neither d'Errico nor Turk make mention of this.
This line-up is remarkable especially if they were made by more than one carnivore, which apparently they'd have to be, based on Turk's analysis of the center-spans of the holes precluding their being made by a single carnivore or bite (Turk,* pp.171-175). To account for this possible difficulty, some doubters do mention "one or more" carnivores (Chase & Nowell, Science News 4/4/98).
My arguments over the past year pointed out the mathematical odds of the lining up of the holes occurring by chance-chewing are too difficult to believe.
The Appendix in my essay ("Neanderthal Flute --A Musicological Analysis") proves that the number of ways a set of 4 random holes could be differently spaced (to produce an audibly different set of tones) are 680 ways. The chances a random set would match the existing fragment's spacing [which also could produce a match to four diatonic notes of the scale] are therefore only one in hundreds. If, in calculating the odds, you also allowed the holes to be out of line, or to be less than 4 holes as well, then the chance of a line-up match is only one from many tens of thousands.
And yet randomness and animal bites still are acceptable to account for holes being in line that could also play some notes of the scale? This is too much coincidence for me to believe occurred by chance.
D'Errico mentions my essay in his article and what he thought it was about, but he overstates my case into being a less believable one. My case simply was that if the bone was long enough (or a shorter bone extended by a mouthpiece insert) then the 4 holes would be consistent and in tune with the sounds of Do, Re, Mi, Fa (or flat Mi, Fa, Sol, and flat La in a minor scale).
In the 5 points I list below, extracted from Turk's monograph in support of this being a flute, d'Errico omits dealing with much of the first, and all of the second, fourth and sixth points.
Turk & Co's monograph shows the presence on site of boring tools, and includes experiments made by Turk's colleague Guiliano Bastiani who successfully produced similar holes in fresh bone using tools of the type found at the site (pp. 176-78 Turk).
They also wrote (pp. 171-75) that:
1. The center-to-center distances of the holes in the artifact are smaller than that of the tooth spans of most carnivores. The smallest tooth spans they found were 45mm, and the holes on the bone are 35mm (or less) apart;
2. Holes bitten are usually at the ends of bones rather than in the center of them;
3. There is an absence of dents, scratches and other signs of gnawing and counter-bites on the artifact;
4. The center-to-center distances do not correspond to the spans of carnivores which could pierce the bone;
5. The diameters of the holes are greater than that producible by a wolf exerting the greatest jaw pressure it had available -- it's doubtful that a wolf's jaws would be strong enough (like a hyena's) to have made the holes, especially in the thickest part of the wall of the artifact.
6. If you accept one or more carnivores, then why did they over-target one bone, when there were so many other bones in the cave site? Only about 4.5% of the juvenile bones were chewed or had holes, according to Turk (p. 117).
* Turk, Ivan (ed.) (1997). Mousterian Bone Flute. Znanstvenoraziskovalni
Center Sazu, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Maintained by Francis F. Steen, Communication Studies, University of California Los Angeles |
Coyotes spend a good deal of their day sleeping. Members of a pack or family may sleep within close proximity of each other, or they may sleep much further apart, but probably within the same couple of acres of each other. They have amazing built-in time clocks, but they also are influenced by circumstances of the moment. My own dog could tell the time and knew what was to be done at that time. For example, I always set off, with my dog, at exactly 2:40 to pick up one of my kids at school. But one day I fell asleep — I would not have made it on time except that my dog began poking me with her muzzle at exactly 2:40. Needless to say, I was amazed. The same is true for coyotes — they seem to know when it is time to meet up, but if people or dogs are around, they will delay.
Most coyotes I know like to go trekking alone. After all, their staple diet consists of voles and gophers — animals that really can’t be divvied up very well. Might as well hunt alone. But some coyotes do enjoy trekking together, usually in pairs. When they hunt in pairs, there is usually a rendezvous beforehand.
Rendezvous locations can remain the same for a while, or they can change drastically from day to day, but coyotes seem to have various favorite meeting spots which they alternate between for a while, before changing these altogether . This is where they congregate to then move together for their foraging.
In this case here, the older female had spent her day sleeping in the sun quite some distance from where the young male had been also sleeping in the sun. The female was the first to move around — she disappeared into some bushes. In the meantime, I watched the male who moved from where he had been sleeping to a new location where he curled up and then dozed a while longer. Finally, he got up, stretched, scratched, and began to forage. I watched him catch a vole and toy with it. He continued searching for voles and then looked up ahead. He must have seen the female approaching, because he sat down and watched intently. She trotted over, and arrived on the scene.
The ritual began with hugs and kisses. They are hidden in the grass in these photos, but you can see what is going on. It was intense, but lasted only about a minute. That was the first phase of the meeting. Then there was a pause where all activity ceased. I think the male was waiting for something, but since nothing happened he turned around and backed into her — it looked like a request. He did it again and then looked over his shoulder: “well?”. The older female was obliging. She began grooming the young fellow, pulling off burrs and bugs. He accepted this, repeatedly laying his ears back against his head — he seemed to melt with the attention. There was care, affection, and intensity here which few animals that I have seen show each other. The next phase of the meeting involved trotting off together. From what I have seen in the past — though I did not follow them this time — they will spend their time together trekking, marking their territory, hunting, playing, exploring and maybe even meeting up briefly with a couple of lone coyotes who live adjacent to this territory, before again returning to separate localities to rest. |
End of preview. Expand in Data Studio
README.md exists but content is empty.
- Downloads last month
- 37