Leg exercise is critical to brain and nervous system health

Source: Leg exercise is critical to brain and nervous system health: In a new take on the exercise truism ‘use it, or lose it,’ researchers show neurological health is an interactive relationship with our muscles and our world — ScienceDaily

Studies: Huntington, Crohn’s, Eggs, and Aging

Vol. 10

Eating Schedule and Huntington Disease

Huntington disease (HD) is an inherited progressive disease that can cause involuntary movements and psychological problems. Symptoms of HD appear in adulthood and worsen over time. Children with at least one parent with HD have a 50% chance of developing HD. As of now, HD is thought to be caused by the buildup of mutant huntingtin protein (mHTT) and there is no known cure. HD is linked to a problem with autophagy (cell death). The University of British Columbia (UBC) published research involving a mouse model of HD. Mice were restricted to a 6 hour eating windown, which prompted autophagy in the mice. There are practical applications for humans utilizing intermittent fasting, or a fasting mimetic diet.

Eggs and Infants

Eggs. They are good for you, this much is made more and more obvious every day. Recently though, the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, published research stating that eggs are beneficial for infants as well.

Starting at 6 months of age, infants were fed eggs (whole eggs) as part of their diet. The infants, aged 6-9 months, were fed 1 egg per day. Eggs, being high in choline precursors, DHA, vitamins A, B12, selenium and other fatty acids, are vital for brain development.

Artificial Sweeteners and Crohn’s

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University found artificial sweeteners (splenda, maltodextrin, and sucralose) worsened the symptoms of people with Crohn’s disease. Accorfding to the research, the artificial sweeteners increased the presence of proteobacteria and myeloperoxidase. Both of these are involved in inflammatory and autoimmune responses in people with Crohn’s. Researchers did not find the same reaction in people that do not suffer from Crohn’s.

Exercise Slows Aging

Yet another reason to regularly exercise. The University of Birmingham and Kings College, London conducted research regarding exercise and aging. The study consisted of 125 participants, aged 55-79, 84 males and 41 females. Excluded from the study were smokers, heavy drinkers, and those who had high blood pressure. A control group of 75 non-exercisers was measured as well. The treatment group, the exercisers, had no loss of muscle mass or strength, no increase in body fat or cholesterol and their testosterone levels remained stable. The immune systems of the exercisers was also comparable to a younger person. One reason for this, according to the researchers, was that exercise prevented the shrinking of the thymus, which normally begins around age 20.

Deloading is a common aspect in many training routines. During a deload training is reduced in frequency, intensity, volume, or a combination of these dimensions. A deload will most often last a week.

There are a few reasons for a deload period. The most common reasons are:

  • Avoid a plateau in performance: The concept of a deload is based on the principle of supercompensation. Simply put, the body is always trying to adapt. So after a certain amount of time/stress put on the body, it will begin to adapt and gains in strength or performance will plateau.
  • Avoid aggravating recurring injuries: If you have a past injury a deload week may be necessary to avoid another injury. A deload week is much better than months lost to injury
  • Physical and/or mental recovery: Physical recovery is an obvious reason for a deload. Recovery from fatigue is vital to improving strength, performance, and hypertrophy. Mental recovery is often overlooked. Pushing your body daily or even several times a week is draining on mental resources. Without proper recovery, those resources will deplete. A routine for improving strength will tax the nervous system even more so, so a deload week will help to maintain steady progress with these types of routines.
importance of deload for mental and physical recovery
Deloading allows for mental and physical recovery

For the most part, routines will have a deload week built in around the fourth or fifth week. Depending on your goal or the purpose of the routine (hypertrophy, strength, etc.) when the deload is scheduled may be different. However as a main reason for deload is to avoid injury and avoid plateaus, if you feel that you need to deload at week 3 so be it. And if you’re at week 5 and feel great, don’t feel you have to deload simply because the routine says so. Trust your body.

The way you deload matters on preference, goals, and how much you feel you need to deload. The different dimensions that can be manipulated during a deload are:

  • Frequency: Simple. If you normally exercise 5 days a week, reduce the number to 2-3 sessions a week.
  • Volume: Use the same weight and number of reps, but reduce the number of sets performed by about 60%.
  • Intensity: Using the same set/rep scheme, but with weight reduced by 40%-60%.
  • Exercise selection/modality: If you’re a hardcore weightlifter, try a week of cardio (running, swimming, biking, etc.) or vice versa. Body weight circuits is another good alternative to your usual lifting routine. Even exercise selection is a good way to deload. If compound exercises are your thing, try a week of machines, make a circuit out of it.

Another effective and fun way to deload is to try a whole different method of activity. For example, I discovered hot yoga during a scheduled deload last year, and have been going to yoga ever since. Get out of your comfort zone. Challenge yourself to try something new, you’ll be better for it. And when you do get back to your routine, you’ll appreciate it that much more and maybe have a new passion as well.

Cyclical Ketogenic Diet

I’ve written about the standard ketogenic diet (SKD) before and a modified version, the targeted ketogenic diet (TKD). The cyclical ketogenic diet, like the TKD is another variant of the keto diet, with an emphasis on athletic performance.

Cyclical keto (CKD) is similar to the TKD in that carbs are used to enhance performance and maximize hypertrophy. The CKD however, uses “carb ups” or “carb loading” as opposed to targeted ingestion of carbs around workouts. A “carb up” or “carb load” is a dramatic increase in the amount of carbs you’re eating 1 to 2 days per week. The amount of carbs depends on the person and your non-carb up amount of carbs. Generally, 50 to 70 percent of your daily calories will be carbs on your carb up/load days. As with most things, a strict schedule or plan is essential for best results. This is especially true when optimizing nutrition for performance. The CKD is difficult to implement without a somewhat strict workout schedule.

To implement a CKD, you would begin to carb load about 5 hours before your last workout of the week. Anywhere from 20-50 grams of carbs can be eaten in this window. An hour or two before the workout consume another 25-50 grams of carbs ideally from glucose and fructose, as fructose will replenish liver glycogen. If you are very active and perform very high intensity exercise, you may benefit from 2 carb up days. If this is the case, during the first day calories should be about 70 percent from carbs (15 protein and 15 fat), preferably high glycemic index. The second day reduce to about 50 to 60 percent of the days calories from carbs (25 protein and 15 fat) and switch to low glycemic index sources.

The time it takes to get back into ketosis (a fat burning state) will vary by person, body composition, and how long you’ve been on a keto diet. There are some tricks to speed up the process though. The first day after a carb up, get back to a SKD, with fewer carbs than normal (0 to 2 percent). Also, implement a time-restricted eating schedule; basically don’t eat after sundown. The second day it’s best to do fasted HIIT or even a fasted high intensity weight training session, first thing in the morning. On the third day upon waking, while fasted, do some medium intensity cardio or weight training. Not too light, but less intensity than the previous day. Carbs should stay be the 3-5 percent range. After these few days, fat burning should be re-established and liver glycogen should be depleted.

Keep in mind, the CKD is not for the average person. Or even an active person. If you’re active, even daily you can make great improvements with your fitness, strength, and even muscle growth with a SKD or a TKD. The CKD is for optimizing muscle growth and performing daily, very high intensity workouts. Like any method that allows for muscle gain, fat gain though slight, will occur.

Fitness and strength are not only physical attributes. They are intangibles of a person as well. In order to achieve anything difficult, challenging, truly meaningful, one must be fit and strong where it counts most: your brain.

There are various strategies to achieve and maintain strength in your thought processes, interpretations and the like. One great technique is meditation. Just the word meditation evokes many different things. It can be as simple or complex as you need it to be. For some, 2 hours a day is needed others need only 10 minutes. The goal is the same: clarity, calm, relaxation, focus.

With so many benefits coming from regular meditation and the fact that it can be done anywhere, with no required equipment, there is no reason to not at least try meditating. Studies continue to be published demonstrating the many positive effects of meditation. On a physiological level, mediation appears to reduce inflammatory processes, boost the immune system, reduce stress, depression, and anxiety, promote cortical gray matter regrowth (regrow your brain), slow and prevent neurological aging, and improve focus and attention. That’s quite a few benefits from something you can do outside for 20 minutes a day for free.

How do I meditate? You may be asking. It’s simple, but not easy at first. It is generally advised that when first going about developing the habit of meditating you should try for twice a day, for shorter amounts of time, 10-20 minutes. The goal is to achieve total relaxation, clarity, and calmness. Both inside and outside. Your body, your thoughts, everything needs to be aligned, and calm but focused. Meditation is a skill and like any skill, it needs to be developed. You’re first day at the gym wouldn’t be a 2 hour workout, so take the same approach with meditating. Work your way up to it, with shorter more frequent periods. As you get more used to the process, you will “go under” more easily and in less time. Your goal is to “go under” and stay there for as much time as necessary. At first it may take time. In 20 minutes, you may only spend a few minutes “under.” That’s ok. Keep at it.

As with eating, exercise, and so much more: what works for you is the best method. I wake up as early as necessary, to get my 20 or so minutes every morning. I feel better the rest of the day for it. The types of meditation are vast and can all be beneficial, transcendental, kundalini, heart-rhythm, mindfulness, and so much more. Research a few, try a few. Ultimately though, do what works.


Auriculotherapy in Jupiter at NovaGenix

Jupiter Auriculotherapy

  Auriculotherapy Jupiter Erica Martina acupuncture Chinese medicine zen health earth healing arts

Auriculotherapy is defined as a Healthcare modality in which the external surface of the ear, or auricle, is stimulated to alleviate pathological conditions in other parts of the body. While Ear Acupuncture is originally based upon the ancient Chinese practice of Acupuncture, the correspondence of specific parts of the body to specific points on the ear, was first developed in modern France.

Auriculotherapy is a safe, painless, noninvasive and non-Toxic procedure, performed through Transcutaneous Electro Stimulation of specific reflex points on the ear. Auriculotherapy works by stimulating the central nervous system through the cranial nerves and spinal nerves on the auricle. This stimulation results in neurotransmitters being stimulated within the Brain and Spinal Cord of the Central Nervous System. This stimulation of neurotransmitters modulates the pain and modulates nerve function, thereby stimulating the healing process within the body to that organ or body part that is affected..

What is Auriculotheapy?

  Auriculotherapy Jupiter Erica Martina acupuncture Chinese medicine ear needle novagenix jupiter

Auriculotherapy has been used as a form of Healthcare for thousands of years all over the world. Ancient records from China, Egypt, Greece, Rome and Persia all indicate treatments applied to the ear for a variety of problems.

Modern Auriculotherapy got its start in the early 1950’s when a French neurologist named Dr. Nogier,  discovered that cauterizations on the ear were performed by local healers in the Mediterranean basin around 380 BC. He based his theory on those practices and spent his career researching and developing the map of reflex points on the ear, based on the concept of inverted body (fetus) arrangement of the ear.  The head areas are represented toward the bottom of the ear, the feet towards the top and the body in between.  He eventually discovered over 200 Auricular points and their corresponding effects.

To schedule an appointment call Erica at  561-379-7778. You may also email her at ericamartina@aol.com

About Erica Martina

  Auriculotherapy Jupiter Erica Martina acupuncture Chinese medicine west Palm Beach NovaGenix Ears

 Erica Martina is a Licensed Acupuncturist in Florida and has lived in Jupiter for the last 20 years. Erica Martina Graduated with a teaching degree in Biology from the College of Education in the Netherlands. She has been involved with natural medicine since 1985, when she became part of the first Natural Medicine Clinic (INOMA) in the Netherland Antilles. She was trained in ...  She has experience in nutritional management, tobacco cessation, spiritual and emotional well-being and addiction detoxification. To schedule an appointment or for more information, Erica can be reached at 561-379-7778.

Today, Auriculotherapy research continues with major advancements in the study and placement of ear reflex points, as well as scientific documentation of Erica's technique’s and effectiveness.

Auriculotherapy is recognized by the World Health Organization and approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

And now accepted worldwide as a valuable and effective procedure for many conditions, Erica brings her vast knowledge and experience to Jupiter, Florida in the Heart of Palm Beach County..

How can Auriculotherapy be of benefit to you?

  Auriculotherapy Jupiter Erica Martina acupuncture Chinese medicine zen Ear NovaGenix power Jupiter

What Conditions Can Auriculotherapy Help Treat?

  • Smoking cessation – Auriculotherapy is thought to be 7 times more powerful than other methods used for smoking cessation
  • Allergies – Relief of sinusitis, bronchitis, asthma, and cold and flu symptoms.
  • Weight loss – Clinical studies showed an average of 1-2 pounds lost per week just by applying acupressure on the Hunger Point of the outer ear.
  • Pain relief – including back pain, neck pain, migraines, sciatica pain, and radiating pain to the legs or arms.
  • Hypertension (high blood pressure) and hypotension (low blood pressure).
  • Stress relief and stress related disorders – confers a calming effect.
  • Insomnia – A study involving 46 cases of insomnia — 19 male and 27 female — was conducted in the China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Beijing.  The test subjects were treated with the auriculotherapy procedure. Of the 46 cases treated, 32 cases were cured(69.5%) –i.e.,able to sleep more than 7 hours; 13 cases (28.3%) were improved–1.e.,able to sleep 5-6 hours; and only 1 case (2.2%) failed–i.e., able to sleep less than 3 hours. The overall success rate was 97.8 %.
  • Depression – nervousness, anxiety and other mental disorders.
  • Hemorrhoids, digestion problems and constipation.
  • Headaches – relief of tension headaches and migraine headaches.
  • The Correction of a wide variety of other health conditions.

  Auriculotherapy Jupiter Erica Martina acupuncture Chinese medicine Palm Beach NovaGenix Jupiter

How Old Is Auriculotherapy?

 As far as we know Auriculotherapy dates back to at least 500 BC. In the written text of the yellow emperor’s classic of internal medicine, many details of complex acupuncture procedures have been recorded. Within the manuscripts contain specific mentionings of acupuncture being used on points within the external ear for treatment various medical conditions and disorders. Since then more comprehensive diagrams and procedures have been created to treat the greater number of internal systems through auriculotherapy.  In the 1950s discoveries in France lead to advancements in the technique that are even being adopted and used to this day in China. We have written records and evidence of your acupuncture being used by the ancient Egyptians Greeks and Romans as well. This practice of alternative medicine is now being widely used around the globe in Europe as well as Asia and north and South America. In modern history we have many advancements due to the work of Dr. Paul Nogier. He was able to successfully document treatments performed on his patients to help treat sciatica. By finding a sciatica point on the ear he was able to reduce their pain substantially. Later created a more complex and comprehensive model, where he discovered that within the inner ear laid out a neurological series of acupuncture points that mimicked and could be compared to an inverted fetus, with the lower ear lobe representing the head and neck and at the top of the external ear lobe what is the feet. Connecting the top and bottom of the ear lobes the rest of the body systematically felon to order. After these discoveries the rest of the world took note and now employ this very model within their acupuncture practice.

  Auriculotherapy Jupiter Erica Martina acupuncture Chinese medicine zen Pain treatment NovaGenix

How does one treat chronic pain with auriculotherapy?

 There are two major theories for how auriculotherapy seems to work. One is due to the release of endorphins which are chemicals released by the brain that make you feel good and help reduce stress and pain. The other concerns the network of neurotransmitters and how our nervous system sends pain signals to our brains. By using auriculotherapy to help reset these pathways of bio-electrical signals, we are able to gain control over the pain reflex arc. By normalizing the pathways and signaling of our peripheral nervous system and dermatomes we are able to help minimize and reduce pain, by stimulating your reflex points that connect the reflex system in the brain which then resets the entire message delivery system.

 To schedule an appointment call Erica at  561-379-7778. You may also email her at ericmartina@aol.com

Auriculotheapy Programs in Palm Beach

How Auriculotherapy can help you with your weight-loss

  Auriculotherapy Jupiter Erica Martina acupuncture Chinese medicine weight loss novagenix jupiter

It has been proven that:

Auriculotherapy reduces appetite by suppressing Ghrelin production.

Ghrelin is a peptide hormone that signals the brain that the stomach is empty and therefor increases appetite

Auriculotherpy boosts serotonin levels

Seotonin makes you feel good, suppresses appetite and reduces cravings.

Auriculotherapy also increases systemic release of endorphins. Endorphines give you energy and make you feel good

Auriculotherapy can balance out the endocrine system which often plays a role with weight-gain.

Auriculotherapy also can have an effect on the entire metabolic process.

Aurilotherapy is completely safe, painless and has no side effects.

It is the perfect therapy to support your effort to lose weight in a healthy manner, assuming life style and dietary measures are applied.

Treatment consist of weekly treatments with electro stimulation and ear seeds or semi permanent needles may be used. If you've tried diets to lose weight and are looking at acupuncture for weight loss, Erica Matina can help you. Many people are skepticle, but she will quickly make you a believer as her auriculotherpy for weight loss techniques will get results. Losing weight at NovaGenix with ear acupuncture techniques that she has perfected to let you reach your weight loss goals. Auriculotherapy in Florida with Erica can help you today. She is one of the few experts in this form of medicine in the Jupiter/Palm Beach area, so call her to discover more about Auricultherapy Near You at NovaGenix.

Auriculotherapy can help you to quit smoking

  Auriculotherapy Jupiter Erica Martina acupuncture Chinese medicine quit smoking Palm Beach Jupiter

Smoking is a strong, complicated addiction.  Quitting smoking is no small task and you will need lots of support to be successful.  You need the best tools to help with the physical and emotional symptoms, and we offer several great resources to help you succeed. Smoking Cessation programs in Jupiter at NovaGenix use auriculotherapy performed by the skilled hands of licensed auriculotherapist, Erica Martina. If you live in the Palm Beach area and have asked yourself "How do I quit smoking?" She can help. Auriculotherapy in Florida at NovaGenix in Jupiter can help you curve the cravings of nicotine. Erica has helped countless patients quit smoking with her techniques.

Emotional Balance  is a method to help the conscious and subconscious mind to become congruent with the decision to give up smoking.

Our subconscious will always steer us towards pleasure and away from pain.  So even if you consciously want to quit smoking the subconscious mind is basically telling you that it is too difficult of a task to accomplish and will sabotage your efforts to succeed.

With Emotional Balance we can find out which emotions are involved in these sabotage  mechanisms and reprogram the mind .

Auriculotherapy and Acupuncture will both help with the withdrawal symptoms of quitting Nicotine .

– Auriculotherapy uses a mild, electronic stimulation on points on the outside of both ears. This treatment is similar to ear acupuncture but it uses no needles.

When you first start smoking, your body tells you it’s a bad idea by causing nausea, coughing, and dizziness. As you continue to smoke, the nicotine causes the body to close down these receptors, creating an addiction. These points, when electronically stimulated, send a message to the brain that acts like a reset button for your nicotine receptors. The nicotine receptors open back up eliminating withdrawal symptoms caused by nicotine addiction. The lungs and liver are also addressed and will be simulated to start the healing process of these organs.

– Both Ear Acupuncture and body Acupuncture  make use of needles to help  restore  balance ,detoxify the body and increase relaxation

Clinical Homeopathy is used as part of the treatment to help with the emotional stress and detoxification of the organs involved.

Hypnosis is also added when and if needed /requested.  In order to successfully stop smoking you must break the habits associated with your nicotine addiction. I teach a simple and effective method to overpower the triggers that tell you it’s time to smoke.

How does auriculotherapy help treat drug substance abuse?

  Auriculotherapy Jupiter Erica Martina acupuncture Chinese medicine Addiction treatment NovaGenix

To explain how auriculotherapy helps people recover from substance abuse problems like alcoholism drug abuse and smoking takes a combination of both Eastern and Western medicine into account. The first observations came from Hong Kong from H. L. Wen in the 1970s. Dr wen, a neurosurgeon from Hong Kong discovered by accident the effectiveness of acupuncture in treating drug addiction. He reported that acupuncture at four body points into in your ear points combined with electrical stimulation was able to help relieve opiate withdrawal signs and drug addicts. This was later expanded upon by Dr. M. Smith physician in New York who also practiced Oriental medicine. In the 1980s Smith who is the head of the national acupuncture detoxification association, was able to create and finalize an auriculotherapy protocol using so leave it to your points without electrical stimulation to help treat drug abuse. The lung point on the ear being used to relieve addiction is thought to affect energy associated with the lung meridian that affects not just respiratory disorders but also detoxification problems. It’s thought that the Concha Area of the ear that is used for addiction treatment helps control parts of the autonomic nervous system through our Vargas nerve as well as the hypothalamus in the brain. By helping read channel do you neurological pathways it has shown promise with helping to treat addiction. There is much clinical evidence to suggest the treatment of drug addiction with auriculotherapy is beneficial for patients open to successfully recover from their dependency. Chemical dependency program called the underground railroad used in acupuncture -based program that combined traditional treatment methodology with acupuncture. In their traditional drug treatment program they had a 20 to 30% completion rate however after adding acupuncture to that same treatment they had more than doubled the completion rate with rates of between 60 and 65% completing the program. They claimed that acupuncture helped restore rational thought and an overall sense of well-being that made it possible for their patients to come to terms and except the benefits of attending support groups in psychotherapy which helped them through recovery.


Some things I’d like you to know about Data Science

Things I’ve learned mostly by making mistakes

Masses of data + cutting edge machine learning + cheap compute = Profit.

It’s not that simple.

Data science isn’t a replacement for asking difficult questions and doing hard work based on the answers. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. Enabled by increasingly powerful algorithms and ever larger datasets, the breadth and depth of problems we can work on is only increasing. And that means choosing what to work on can be hard. This post is a loose collection of lessons I’ve learned about making the most of your analytical effort.

If you’re a project lead, product owner or decision maker, it’s vital to make the right choices with the information available to you. If you’re a data scientist/analyst/engineer you need to be laser-focused on furthering the goals of your organisation. The thread that ties these together is asking the right questions.

Asking the right question

Data science is not a magic bullet. It’s more like a good recipe. I like simple recipes with room to tailor them (or more realistically, use what’s in the fridge).

Since good analysis is essentially telling an informative story, I’ve taken this recipe from a textbook on journalism. It might seem simplistic, but often the goals, processes and environment are complex, and it is easy to get each of the following things wrong in subtle ways.

  • What are we doing? Ask a question with quantifiable answer
  • Why are we doing it? Know the upside of doing the work & and how to turn an answer into an action
  • How will we get & process the data? The ideal data vs. the actual data
  • When do you need it? Timeliness vs accuracy
  • Who is going to do it? Having the right skillset on your team

Let’s step through these. The focus will be on using data science to aid decision making, but some of this carries over to building data products. For a much deeper discussion of putting machine learning into products, check thisout.

What are we doing? Ask a question with quantifiable answer

Ask questions so that the answers are quantifiable and actionable. If the answer isn’t quantifiable, it’s unlikely that a model can be built. If the answer you get from the model doesn’t imply a clear action you won’t get anything useful from even the best model.

Bad example: What patterns are there in my data?

This question will drive your data scientists mad. They probably have less domain knowledge than you, didn’t collect the data themselves, and don’t know what actions you could take.

This isn’t to say you shouldn’t explore new data, but exploring data without some defined directions of inquiry is unlikely to go anywhere. Exploratory analysis should be thought of as the zeroth step in the analysis process, not an end unto itself.

Good example: which customers are we most likely to lose unless we intervene? Which of them should we target for intervention? Which from a specific set of interventions will bring the highest expected ROI?

With this, data scientists can investigate which signals in the data led to customers leaving historically. These signals, and their combination, can be used to build a model to predict which customers are most likely to leave. They can propose targeted interventions for high-value customers and a threshold below which you shouldn’t intervene.

Unless the work being defined can be clearly mapped to furthering the goals of the organisation (or something obvious like provably improving a product or decreasing a cost), the project should be treated with skepticism.

One failure mode is an unengaged stakeholder. Do they really want you to do the work? Will they act based on the results? Are they expecting a cat riding a fire-breathing unicorn with a gold desert eagle to solve their problems? Hint: they aren’t going to get it. They are going to get some very detailed input on what they should do, and that conversation may go badly.

Is this what you were expecting? (Original image here)

Typically, the results from the models will be idealized, and some suggested actions may be impractical for domain-specific reasons. This is where your stakeholders need to shine — you could always build a more complex model, or use the human (hopefully expert) judgement they bring. Often the latter yields higher ROI — the goal is to augment human intelligence, not replace it!

Not all use cases are the same but here are some thoughts about making data science projects valuable.

Designing ad-hoc analysis/experiments

As far as is practical, it is helpful to know in advance:

  • the criteria for success,
  • the metrics that define it,
  • the variables that may influence those metrics,
  • the data needed to find & represent these variables. The location, use restrictions and quality of the data have a huge impact on your project, so its good to sort that out early on.
  • A baseline: Measuring something is greatly devalued if you don’t have a specification for how the system you are observing is supposed to perform in the first place.

With this in place, a data scientist may not even be needed. Self-service visualisation/analytics tools will work in most cases.

This ideal case is rare, more frequently you need to “use what’s in the fridge”. A common problem is mistakenly believing you have something in the fridge that isn’t there. Double-check the fridge before getting elbow deep in the cooking.

The cost of data

Not all data collection can be defined up-front, or be gathered as a side benefit of something else. Generally, data has collection, extraction and storage costs, and we must be selective.

At the beginning, it is tempting to get as much data as possible, and that’s usually the right intuition. Over time, this isn’t sustainable, so how do we trace back from the actions taken as a result of analysis to quantify the contribution of any given data item, so we can optimize data collection for maximum benefit?

  • If the question is regression or classification, feature selection can be used to determine which data to collect going forward
  • customizable instrumentation helps — be prepared to iterate on the system that generates the data, you (or the team running that system) may benefit from collecting different or additional data. Software engineers are your friends.
  • purely technological solutions exist — cold storage, streaming, logical data warehousing, and most importantly, not choosing vendors who make it difficult to access your data for analysis.

Quantifying uncertainty

Some actions require near certainty, and some situations require different action when you are uncertain. Data science also includes working with small datasets (or that less-than ideal data you had in the fridge). Popular methods (deep learning, classical hypothesis testing) aren’t designed to tell you how uncertain your results are. Check out BEST for hypothesis testing, Gaussian processes for classification/regression and PyMC3 for density estimation.

When do you need it? Timeliness vs accuracy

Timeliness ~ usability of results + interpretability of analysis + required level of certainty

Do you even need a model? Often dashboards or visualisation suffice to maximise the above. It’s OK to solve a problem without a model! You don’t need Temporally Recurrent Online Learning to solve every problem, despite the barrage of hype and pushy vendors.

Jeff Bezos’ letter to Amazon shareholders had a wealth of advice on timeliness. One highlight was this:

Another good guideline before you implement that algorithm hot off arxiv.org is to consider the benefit per human hour of effort. My lab mates and I once spent all night coding a faster image in-painting algorithm for Carola Schonlieb’s image processing course. Tired and proud of ourselves, when presenting our work, the only comment we were given by a professor in the audience was “human time is expensive, computer time is cheap”. Our time would have been better spent elsewhere.

Tangent: The rise in popularity of deep learning over other machine learning methods can be partially explained by this — deep learning often requires a relatively straightforward understanding of the mathematical problem, the ability to manipulate tensors and gradient descent. Contrast this with classical methods that require extensive feature engineering and model comparison across different families of problems. Bayesian methods are even harder to apply, requiring solid understanding of probability distributions, their interaction and computational quirks of approximating them efficiently. So, it’s easier to go from software engineering to deep learning, which means more people use it, and the rise becomes self-perpetuating. That’s awesome but it doesn’t make deep learning the right tool for every job (at least right now), it helps to keep other tools in mind.

Aside from the well-known data science skills, you need some support from other folks in your organisation. Trying to be/hire a unicorn is a lot less efficient than just talking someone who knows something you don’t. So go and talk to some people. Maybe even stare at their shoes!

Deploying a model is non-trivial — you need some software chops to do it right. At scale, Python can be a nightmare (what was the type of that data you passed?). Your nearest friendly software engineers will almost certainly have some opinions.

If your model crashes or the data gets weird, what happens? Can you rollback to a previous model or a fail over to simpler system? Get a dev-ops person to school you.

Good decisions require human insight as well as data. Have you done everything necessary for a human expert to make an informed choice and mitigated the risks sufficiently? Get a domain expert to critique your model.

Are you sure your analysis and its consequences are ethical and legal? Are you storing the data according to regulations and informing users of your system appropriately. Make friends with Legal, they can make things much easier, or disastrously difficult.

I hope this helps! Comments and corrections gratefully received.

I’ll post again soon on why AI != Machine learning != Data science

Original Source.


Out of Memory

4/26/2018 1736 Contributors

The system doesn't have sufficient free memory to run the application.

Possible Causes

This error doesn't necessarily mean that the system has completely run out of free memory, only that it isn't able to allocate enough memory for the application to run.  The most common causes are low system memory or a memory leak in the application.

Recommended Fix

Check the available free memory on the system.  If it seems high enough then contact support as it is probably a bug in the application.


Nanotechnology in food

On behalf of the UN and the World Bank, more than scientists had summarised the state of global Nanotechnology in food, its history and its future in a four-year-process. A synthetic statement is propositionally meaningless if it is in principle neither falsifiable nor verifiable. So whether the universe we perceive existed or not, it as a merely possible universe would be perceived by its merely possible inhabitants no differently than our actual universe is perceived by its actual inhabitants.

Agnosticism is the thesis that one does not or cannot know whether supernatural agency exists. Graphene Films and Foils ANI offers carbon films and foils based on high-strength graphene for stripper foil, radiation windows, gas-cell windows, x-ray and ion-beam windows and thermal management applications.

Take a look at your share of gobal food and land!

In the know...on food packaging

Two circumstances are causally unrelated if neither could ever influence the other. Major objectives for a nanotechnology strategy have already been incorporated into the new research framework programme Horizon The purpose of the state is to effect justice, provide aid and sustenance to persons in mortal danger, protect species in danger of extinction, and prevent torture.

Logical Positivism is an analytic school holding that meaningful propositions must be either logically provable or empirically verifiable, and that propositions about metaphysics and ethics are therefore nonsensical or at best emotional.

That is the message of a new report released by the Landmatrixan independent initiative that collects and evaluates data on large-scale land acquisitions.

The ongoing revision of specific food legislation addresses explicitly the use of nanomaterials in all foods. One could imagine a set of circumstances causally unrelated to the maximal set that includes this sentence, and could choose to consider it a separate universe.

Furthermore, exposure of rats to the same migration extracts for 90 days in drinking water did not show evidence of toxicity in terms of oxidative stress, inflammation, clinical biomarkers and histopathological analysis Maisanaba et al. The sensors recognize when a plant needs nutrients or water, before you could see any sign that the plant is deficient.

IBM Research

An event is itself a change and time is no more than an ordering of these changes. It outlines the additional data needed for the assessment of a material when used in its nanoform to address potential intrinsic hazards that may arise. Two years into the SDGs: Nature is the aspects of the universe governed by lawlike and non volitional regularity.

Research Grants

Their results showed that silver migrated into food simulants and that acidic food presented the highest level of migration. The universe is the maximal set of circumstances that includes this statement and no subset of which is causally unrelated to the remainder.

Thus all persons practice philosophy whether they know it or not. Number two on the list was "agricultural productivity enhancement", number three was "water treatment and remediation" and number six was "food processing and storage" read more: We connect mainstream researchers around the world and those interested in knowing more about their researches through our website.In the food industry, nanotechnology has been utilized in order to enhance the delivery of food ingredients to target sites, increase flavor, inhibit bacterial growth, extend product shelf life and improve food safety.

Nanotechnology involves the manipulation of microscopic matter that ranges from 1 to nm in size. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates a wide range of products, including foods, cosmetics, drugs, devices, veterinary products, and tobacco products some of which may utilize nanotechnology or contain nanomaterials.

Food packaging is an area of the industry where nanotechnology has been most rapidly embraced, as it offers many benefits ranging from improving barrier properties, thus preventing contamination. More than 2 million questions answered! is the oldest & largest free Q&A service on the Internet.

Welcome to Insight Medical Publishing (iMedPub LTD)

Rapid development of nanotechnology is expected to transform many areas of food science and food industry with increasing investment and market share. In this article, current applications of nanotechnology in food systems are briefly reviewed.

In other words, not only can nanotechnology be used to structure new types of food ingredients, it can also be used to build new types of food packages, food quality detection tools, and other types of measurement and detection systems.

Nanotechnology in food
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Employee Assistance/Support Programs

What is it? This approach aims to minimize work disruptions and absenteeism and improve workers’ financial stability by offering confidential and customized support around life issues that interfere with work. Employee assistance programs have only recently become part of local workforce system services.

Who provides it? Nonprofit organizations in partnership with employers.

One of the first employee support organizations to implement this approach was the SOURCE in Grand Rapids, Michigan, which began when a group of manufacturing employers came together to address the child care needs of entry-level employees. Several similar efforts were later developed in communities across the country and called the “sustainable workforce model.” In 2015, four nonprofit organizations—the SOURCE (Grand Rapids, MI), WorkLife Partnership (Denver, CO), Connect for Success (Seattle, WA), and Working Bridges (northwest Vermont)—came together to form a replication network called WorkLab Innovations, with support from the Rockefeller Foundation and the consulting firm FSG.

Why is it important? Entry-level and low-wage workers can face many barriers to performing in and maintaining their employment. Simultaneously, key issues for employers include absenteeism and turnover, which can affect the bottom line. Employers may not be able to identify the issues that cause problems like absenteeism and turnover, nor may they be positioned to provide the kinds of support workers require to overcome these challenges. The sustainable workforce model is designed to bring a third-party nonprofit provider that is better able to help employers reduce workplace issues and increase productivity.


 Chapter 76 – Bear-san And The Shop’s Reconstruction, Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear, Kumanano, Romance, WuxiaWorld light novel

Chapter 76 – Bear-san And The Shop’s Reconstruction

    Chapter 76 - Bear-san And The Shop's Reconstruction

    The next day, I went to the shop to prepare what was needed.

    Still, it was really big, huh.

    I had thought that if I had to make a shop, I would make something like a fast food place, so I couldn't stop thinking about how big the mansion in front of me was.

    Well, just thinking about it wouldn't resolve anything now that I had already bought it.

    The site's condition left nothing to be desired.

    It was big and near the orphanage. Even though it was a little far from the center of the town, it wasn't a distance that would stop the customers from coming.

    As soon as I entered the shop, I headed towards the kitchen.

    First, I had to make the stone ovens that were vital for baking.

    I placed the things that would've been a hindrance inside the Bear Box, so that there would be enough space in the kitchen.

    I had prepared three stone ovens for baking bread and pizza.

    I hoped that this would be good enough.

    Well, I would just have to make more if it wasn't.

    Next, I thought about what I should do for the fridge.

    I found a small storehouse next to the kitchen and entered it.

    Although I said it was a small storehouse, it was around 10 tatami mats wide.

    Was this the pantry? There weren't any windows.

    Once I pressed a switch on the wall, a light magic stone lit up the storehouse.

    There was absolutely nothing inside.

    This was probably a good spot.

    I insulated the walls with my earth magic so that no heat could enter.

    Then I placed ice magic stones in different places and transformed it into a big, refrigerated storehouse.

    Was there anything else we needed?

    I thought about it, but nothing came to mind.

    I would have to consult Morin-san about this.

    (Editor's Note: 10 tatami mats is about 16.53 meters squared or 177.91 square feet)

    Next were the shop's decorations.

    Originally, it was a noble's home, but...

    Had no one cleaned this place for a long time? Even the carpets and wallpaper were all dirty.

    Mylene-san said that she would take care of the cleaning and renovation. Since it was included in the price, I decided to let them do it.

    I went to the second floor.

    There were rooms kept for guests, but wouldn't they be too big for couples?

    Wouldn't it be better to use them to hold events like birthday parties?

    Still, would anybody use them?

    Well, we'll think about what to do about the second floor once the shop opens.

    Then I went to the garden.

    It was quite big.

    However, it was also quite messy.

    Since no one was living here, the vegetation had grown wild.

    I wondered, did the cleaning and renovation include the garden as well?

    If it didn't, we would have to do it ourselves.

    However, could we create a café terrace once it was cleaned?

    Well, that would depend on the number of customers though.

    It would be great if we could make it, but it would be meaningless if no one used it.

    I decided to hold onto this idea for now.

    For a few days after this, I went to the orphanage to teach the children how to cook.

    During that time, I left the renovations to Mylene-san.

    I assembled various ingredients for the pizza and made some different types of pudding as well. I modified the taste and used different toppings to increase the menu choices.

    Making such a big menu was not necessarily a good thing, so I asked for impressions from Helen, Mylene, and Helena to narrow it down.

    As the preparations for the shop progressed steadily, Morin-san and her daughter finally arrived from the capital.

    After arriving, Morin-san went to the orphanage we promised to meet at.

    「Yuna-san, so you're already here, huh.」

    I couldn't tell them that I came back through the Bear Transfer Gate.

    「Yes, I arrived a little earlier than you.」

    The two of them seemed to be really tired after their long trip. Their fatigue was clearly visible.

    「What will you be doing after this today?」

    「We are really tired, so we were thinking of finding an inn.」

    「Don't worry, I have already prepared a place for you to stay.」

    「That would help us a lot. We are exhausted after the long journey.」

    I led the two of them outside of the orphanage.

    「So, Yuna-san, where are we going?」

    「Ah, Morin-san, you can stop addressing me so formally.」

    I was really unaccustomed to being addressed with '‐san' by older people.

    「Then is it okay to call you Yuna-chan?」

    「Yes, please go with that instead. We are going to the place where Morin-san will be working. There are a lot of spare rooms in the shop, so I thought about letting you live there.」

    「Thank you.」

    「No problem, I've unreasonably made you come here after all.」

    We arrived at the shop (?).

    Morin-san and Karin-san froze.

    (TL note: the "?" was in the raw)

    「Yuna-chan, isn't this a mansion?」

    In front of them stood a mansion that was going to be used as the shop.

    「A former one. Now, it's my shop and the place where Morin-san and everyone else will work.」

    「A shop? Are you saying that we will sell bread here?」

    「It's still in the middle of renovations, though.」

    There was no signboard or name for this shop either.

    It was because I wanted to think about it with everybody.

    A café, a tea house, a bakery, a pizzeria, or a pudding store, what would be good?

    In this situation, I couldn't decide by myself.

    「In this sort of place, the bread...」

    「I will be explaining about the shop tomorrow, so please rest for today.」

    I brought the two of them into the shop.

    「It's amazing!」

    「Mum, will we really be selling bread here?」

    The two of them looked at the already cleaned floor.

    「The first floor will be used for the shop, so please use the rooms on the second floor.」

    They went to look at the second floor.

    Past the big staircase, there were plenty of rooms.

    「I don't mind, but will we really be living here?」

    「It's great because the workplace is near, right?」

    I took them into the farthest rooms on the second floor.

    There weren't any conspicuous ornaments that stood out, but it was a pretty room.

    Was it because it used to be the room of a noble? The window frame made the room look very stylish.

    「For now, I will bring out the luggage that I've brought from the capital. Please let me know if you have any requests for the arrangement.」

    I arranged the beds, the closets, and the drawers.

    「It doesn't seem to go well with the room, huh...」

    The wallpapers, the floor, and the curtains were beautiful...

    However, the beds and other things that I brought out were for commoners.

    The bed was small, and the closet was dirty.

    Also, the small desk stood out in the big room.

    It created a strange sense of discomfort.

    「Do you want me to buy some furniture meant for nobles?」

    「It won't suit us.」

    「More importantly, will I be able to sleep in such a large room?」

    Karin-san muttered with a small voice.

    「There's also a bath, so please feel free to use it. It has been cleaned, so you can use it whenever you feel like. Let me know if you need anything else.」

    「There's nothing in particular, it's already amazing.」

    「It's the same for me.」

    「Then I'll bring the children that will be helping with the shop tomorrow, so please take your time to rest today.」

    The next day, I went to the orphanage and brought the six children that would be working at the shop.

    The children had already come to the shop several times.

    They were the ones who took care of the weeds in the garden, and trimmed the branches.

    The rooms on the second floor were also cleaned by them.

    When we arrived at the shop, the delicious scent of freshly baked bread was already drifting in the air.

    We entered the shop and went into the kitchen. There, we saw Morin-san and Karin-san already baking bread.

    If I knew that they were making it now, I wouldn't have eaten breakfast before coming here...

    「Yuna-san, good morning.」

    Karin-san came to greet me.

    Morin-san was taking care of baking bread.

    「Did you sleep well?」

    「Yes, I was really tired, so I fell asleep the moment I got in bed.」

    「That's great.」

    Morin-san also came over.

    「Yuna-chan, good morning.」

    「You're already making bread?」

    「I wanted to see how to adjust the stone oven. I had some ingredients to make bread, so I practiced a little during the night.」

    In the end, she examined everything as soon as I left?

    「So, how was the stone oven? If there is anything wrong with it, please let me know.」

    「There are no problems. It's a great stone oven. After this, I just have to bake bread, figure out the quirks of the oven, and gain some experience.」

    「The quirks of the stone oven?」

    「How the heat is distributed, or how much time it takes to heat up the oven. There are lots of quirks depending on the stone oven, and it changes how the bread is baked.」

    That's what a pro artisan is like.

    Compared to me, I didn't pay attention to anything when I was baking pizza.

    Everything was so random in comparison.

    So that's why she could bake delicious bread.

    「So are those the children that will be helping me with the store?」

    She saw the children standing behind me.

    The children went to the front and greeted them.

    「Can you teach these children how to make bread? It's okay if you don't want to.」

    「There's no problem. You taught me how to make pudding, so I won't do something as rude as refusing to teach them.」

    「Then, you'll all learn how to make bread in the mornings, and you can then take the bread you've made back to the orphanage.」

    The children energetically responded.
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Awful forms intimidate taxpayersIf the 104th Congress...

Awful forms intimidate taxpayers

If the 104th Congress is serious about getting government off the backs of citizens and eliminating or simplifying paperwork, why, oh why, did it not begin with that monstrosity visited upon millions of U.S. citizens for innumerable years, federal income tax forms?

I just finished preparing my 1994 tax returns and find myself, as I have for some 40 years, shaking my head in disbelief and frustration that supposedly intelligent, reasonable and moral people could devise a system and forms that are so complex and incomprehensible that a person of above-average intelligence and education has great difficulty completing them.

For example: To make this task "simpler and easier," these forms inform me, I am provided by federal and state agencies with two booklets totaling some 90 pages of instructions.

I am also told that for my particular situation, the average time required to complete my return is some 18 hours.

That, of course, is assuming I don't need to complete any of the other 29 forms listed on page 35 of the federal booklet or go to the library to get any of the 22 publications also listed, all of which will make this task "simpler and easier."

In case I would need to complete all of those forms, the average time required would be an additional 38 hours. And that does not include the time required for preparing state income tax returns.

Need I go on? The system is out of control.

I dislike demonizing, but I wonder if some virus has invaded the minds of Congress, to create the laws governing taxation, and the Internal Revenue Service, to convince us that this system and these forms are "simple and easy" and even beneficial. Even worse, that virus seems to have paralyzed the minds of citizens like me who have, year after year, allowed this invasion of our time without a word of protest, perpetuating the system to the next generation.

Careful as I am, I am never entirely sure that I have filled out all the forms properly and accurately.

When I read the veiled threats in the instruction booklets and recall some of the horror stories of what might happen to people who complain about the IRS, I am usually cowed into silence for another year.

This year I am speaking out. Is anyone listening?

Margie Ashe

Bhutto is a friend

Our fearless leaders forget Pakistan was our friend during the Cold War and the war in Afghanistan. Uncle Sam deals with India, which not only has nuclear weapons but is also developing ballistic missiles.

Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto is seeking a military balance with India. She is asking us to apply sanctions equally to both nations. Ms. Bhutto also suggests that the United States should offer to mediate the conflict over the province of Kashmir in order to prevent a future war.

If common sense were more common, our politicians would lift the Pressler amendment which bans U.S. arms sales to Pakistan.

Our government donates a fortune to North Korea to persuade its leaders to stop its development of nuclear weapons. We also do business with China, which is a cruel communist nation.

Many of your readers believe Uncle Sam should stop rewarding our enemies and punishing our friends.

Joseph Lerner

Silent world

I read with interest the April 16 feature article describing the life and death of Charlie Christensen, the hearing impaired individual who was recently murdered.

The article served to enlighten those who never gave thought of what it would be like to be unable to hear or speak.

As one who is dating a hearing impaired person, I can relate to the daily obstacles Mr. Christensen endured throughout his life. The day-to-day communication most of us take for granted is TC constant struggle for the deaf.

A night out at the movie theater or listening to the radio are just a few of life's pleasures hearing impaired people cannot enjoy.

Understanding and engaging in conversation with others is very difficult without someone to assist in interpreting what is being said.

Misunderstandings in conversations occur often. Being deaf isolates individuals from the mainstream and breeds frustration and loneliness.

I do hope the killers of Mr. Christensen are brought to justice. The best punishment for them would not be prison, but instead to make them deaf for the rest of their lives.

Only then could they experience just how maddening it is to live in a world of silence.

James D. Brown

Purchases of Guns

I was surprised, but pleased, to see The Sun chronicle, on the front page yet, the failure of the gun-control laws to curtail straw purchases of firearms (March 26).

Surprise! Gun-control laws hassle law-abiding citizens but don't deter criminals.

If a criminal wants a gun, he gets a gun, either outside the law or, according to this article, inside the law.

The only gun-control laws that have a history of success against crime are the lenient gun-carry laws of Florida and some other states. Too bad Maryland is not so enlightened.

I am sure that the article was written as a prelude to the next level of gun-control hysteria, but the real solution to the crime problem can also be deduced from this article.

To wit, Gardenia Blanding committed a firearms crime by being a straw purchaser but was given immunity for squealing on her boy friend. He, in turn, received a suspended sentence for illegally purchasing firearms.

Here are two people identified as being guilty of firearm crimes, but neither one is in jail.

Then Nathaniel Dawson, the recipient of Ms. Blanding's straw-bought weapons, is identified as a drug lord and is responsible for the shooting death of an innocent child, yet he is still drawing the breath of life.

The gun-grabbers are busy thinking of new ways to harass the law-abiding gun owner. But if they really want to attack crime, they would aim their guns at the courts, not at us law-abiding old men who just want to enjoy our gun hobbies.

John Cullom

Smoking Laws

. . .An article in the Maryland section of the March 29 edition noted the impending federal cuts to substance abuse treatment and prevention funds.

It is ludicrous that this state passes a law limiting the use of tobacco products in buildings across the state, but two bills requiring accountability for an already intact statue regarding sales of tobacco products to minors are put aside.

. . .Were our state representatives truly oblivious to the ramifications when letting these bills be defeated? Do they comprehend the outcome when funds of this magnitude end programs that work to impact on communities more paralyzed by substance abuse issues each passing day?

I am currently involved in a program in Carroll County that is subsidized in part by this federal grant money. What options do our legislators propose if these funds are cut?

Where do sincere, earnest individuals turn to address their treatment options if they seek out assistance in ending their substance abuse problems?

The state is not going to pick up the tab. That I know first-hand. I will not even attempt to address the federal government decision-making with money. When we talk about problems of accountability and responsibility, does the adage, "lead by example" hit close to home?

Our elected officials have to be held responsible and accountable for their decisions, and we as voters have to contact them if we perceive them as failing.

Joe Hassman, M.D.

Good Samaritan

I write this letter to thank the good Samaritan who returned $6,000 in cash to the Russian couple.

In this day and age of sensational trials, ethnic wars and a pervasive lack of respect for human decency, it is uplifting to read about someone who practices random kindness and performs acts of beauty that make sense.

Lawrence M. Garten


Geek Trivia

Modern Subway Maps Were Inspired By?

Abstract Art Deco Paintings
Business Flow Charts
Circuit Diagrams
Postal Charts
A Pen Invented By Thomas Edison Is Still In Use Today For What Purpose?

Answer: Circuit Diagrams

Early subway diagrams weren’t the easiest things to read. Designers of early maps strove to make them properly scaled, accurate, and they were often superimposed over a roadway map of the city they ran through, which meant that the numerous downtown subway stations were clustered together and the peripheral stations were positioned far to the edge of the map.

In short, they were terribly impractical and in serious need of rethinking. That rethinking came to us courtesy of Harry Beck, an English technical draughtsman who is best known for his invention of the London Underground Tube map that bore his name through 1960 and which cities all over the world imitated.

He based his design on that of a circuit diagram and eschewed complex information and true scale for simplistic depiction that told travelers what they really wanted to know: what line am I on, where does it stop, where is that relative to here, and what line can I transfer to. Beck’s arrangement of information proved to be very easy to read and we’ve used the general design principles he created ever since.


Lino Naranjo

Almost all the studies performed during the past century have shown that drought is not the result of a single cause. Instead, it is the result of many factors varying in nature and scales. For this reason, researchers have been focusing their studies on the components of the climate system to explain a link between patterns (regional and global) of climatic variability and drought.

Some drought patterns tend to recur frequently, particularly in the tropics. One such pattern is the El Niño and Southern Oscillation (ENSO). This chapter explains the main characteristics of the ENSO and its data forms, and how this phenomenon is related to the occurrence of drought in the world regions.

Originally, the name El Niño was coined in the late 1800s by fishermen along the coast of Peru to refer to a seasonal invasion of south-flowing warm currents of the ocean that displaced the north-flowing cold currents in which they normally fished. The invasion of warm water disrupts both the marine food chain and the economies of coastal communities that are based on fishing and related industries. Because the phenomenon peaks around the Christmas season, the fishermen who first observed it named it "El Niño" ("the Christ Child"). In recent decades, scientists have recognized that El Niño is linked with other shifts in global weather patterns (Bjerknes, 1969; Wyrtki, 1975; Alexander, 1992; Trenberth, 1995; Nicholson and Kim, 1997).

The recurring period of El Niño varies from two to seven years. The intensity and duration of the event vary too and are hard to predict. Typically, the duration of El Niño ranges from 14 to 22 months, but it can also be much longer or shorter. El Niño often begins early in the year and peaks in the following boreal winter. Although most El Niño events have many features in common, no two events are exactly the same. The presence of El Niño events during historical periods can be detected using climatic data interpreted from the tree ring analysis, sediment or ice cores, coral reef samples, and even historical accounts from early settlers. Many researchers are currently working to determine whether global warming would intensify or otherwise affect El Niño.

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What is genesis?

/What is genesis?
What is genesis?2018-11-30T13:20:15+00:00

The word genesis means “origin or coming into beginning” (Webster’s). Using the genesis tool creates wonderful choreography that gives glory to God and communicates biblical messages. Additionally, genesis activates organic movement that looks natural; and genesis is important because it accesses all levels of technical ability. To fully understand how to use the genesis tool, Mary recommends that you read chapter 3 of her book “Soul to Sole Choreography: Practical Steps to Prayer in Motion for Christian Dance Ministry” or invite her to teach Workshop VI – Genesis: A Creative, Practical Choreography Tool” for your ministry needs.

Genesis includes the following:

  1. Genesis is a written movement plan.
  2. Genesis describes movements that you want the dancers to create using the movement words found in tools 3-5 of Workshop III. The plan can be long or short.
  3. A genesis plan does not use technical movement terms from a particular dance style (i.e. ballet, jazz, modern, etc.).
  4. After the plan is written, the choreographer distributes it to dancers in a rehearsal on a piece of paper.
  5. Dancers read this written movement plan, and they “create” organic movement choices based on what the descriptive movement plan asks.
  6. All genesis plans invite dancers to create movement with choices from their own organic base. Like detectives, dancers “solve” the written movement plan and turn it into actual created movement.
  7. Genesis plans can be conceived based on lyrics, text, and/or counts of music (that represent a biblical choreography target).

The key for genesis is to have biblical intent behind the descriptions you want participants to solve. You will be surprised at the invention, the beauty, and the power of what develops if you lead the intent of genesis with intentional preparation.


Positional Vertigo

Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) constitutes a major proportion of the population with peripheral vestibulopathies. Although the freely floating otoconia within the semicircular canals is responsible for the symptoms of BPPV, the source of the otoconia debris is mainly believed to be the otolith organs. Therefore, the pathology in either or both the otolith organs appears a logical proposition.

Timothy C. Hain, MD
There are several hypotheses that have been put forth to explain Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV). The most popular and current is the “canalith hypothesis”, in which dizziness is thought to be due to debris which has collected within the long arm of the posterior canal. This debris is tenatively thought to be loose “otoconia”, derived from the utricle. Otoconia consits of crystals of calcium carbonate, about 3 microns in diameter, derived from a structure in the ear called the “utricle”. The utricle may have been damaged by head injury, infection, or other disorder of the inner ear, or may have degenerated because of advanced age. Normally otoconia appear to have a slow turnover. They are probably dissolved and reabsorbed by the “dark cells” of the labyrinth, which are found adjacent to the utricle and the crista.
The canalith hypothesis is not accepted by all. R. Buckingham recently summarized a large number of puzzling observations. He suggested that loose otoconia displaced by the Epley maneuver, would end up displaced into the utricle, and then move into the lateral canal or the other end of the posterior canal, in the “sump”. He also reviewed articles suggesting that normal, non-symptomatic individuals also have loose debris in their canals.

Anatomical and theoretical observations on otolith repositioning for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo.
Buckingham RA

To determine if there is an anatomic basis for the assumption that loose, “rogue” otoliths presumed to arise from the utricular macula and theorized to cause benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) by impinging on semicircular canal ampullae could be returned to their original site by a series of changes in the position of the head called particle repositioning maneuvers (PRMs). Further, if such otolith movement were possible, once they were replaced into the utricle, would they adhere to the utricular macula?

A study of cross-sections of the temporal bone shows that loose macular otoliths after PRMs would tend to fall into the lumen of the utricle. Once the patient assumes the erect position, however, repositioned otoliths would tend to fall into the near or utriculopetal side of the cupula of the posterior semicircular canal, which opens directly into the inferior portion of the utricle, and could cause labyrinth stimulation and BPPV by the same mechanism of misplaced otoliths on the opposite or far side of the cupula. Loose otoliths in the utricle could also stimulate the horizontal ampullae.

Particle repositioning maneuvers do not remove or fix otoliths in any specific site in the labyrinth. Repositioning of loose otoliths onto the original site in the macula of the utricle, which lies superiorly in the vestibule, could not be accomplished by any of the repositioning maneuvers. If otoliths were to be repositioned on the utricular macula, there is no evidence that the otoliths would adhere to the macula when the patient assumes the erect position. The good results obtained by physiotherapeutic procedures suggest that some other mechanism than repositioning of otoliths is responsible for the relief of BPPV.

Galina Toktalieva

Kyrgyzstan-born author residing in Graz, Austria

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Arusha City

ArushaArusha, the gateway to the world famous game sanctuaries of Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Tarangire and Lake Manyara, is one of the oldest towns in Tanzania. From a tiny German garrison in 1900, Arusha has grown to become the tourist capital of Tanzania with a population of about 400,000 people. At 1,540 metres above sea level, Arusha enjoys a very agreeable climate throughout the year. Positioned at the centre of Africa between the Cape and Cairo on the Great North Road, Arusha is the administrative seat of the East African Community made up of Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda. Arusha offers an excellent opportunity for authentic souvenir shopping, including the bold Makonde carvings, and the colourful Tinga Tinga works and batiks. Tanzanite, the native gemstone of Arusha, and one of the most beautiful and exciting gems to come from Africa, is sold in all gemstone shops in town alongside other locally mined stones like Ruby, Rhodolite and Tourmaline. Tanzanite was first discovered in 1967, some 40 kilometers to the southeast of Arusha at Mererani. To date Mererani remains the only commercially viable source for Tanzanite in the world. Tanzanite was named after Tanzania.

Arusha National Park

Arusha National Park is a relatively small park, covering an area of 137 square kilometers (52.9 square miles), and lies near the town of Arusha. The town and the Park derive their name from the Warusha people who traditionally lived in this area. However the Park also overlaps into areas where the Maasai lived and most of the place names in the Park are of Maasai origin. The park has different vegetation zones and places with different types of animals: migrating water birds settle on the lakes, waterbuck and reedbuck are found near the water, while shy bushbuck and duikers keep to the forested areas. It is obviously impossible to say exactly where different species will be encountered but it is possible to build up a picture of the most likely species to be found in any area. Within this wide range of habitats almost 400 species of birds have been recorded in the Park. Some of these are migratory and present between October and April, others are permanent residents in the forests.


Mobilize: Beyoncé Made Him Famous, But This is Why You Must Know Laolu Senbanjo

For Afrofuturistic artist and activist, Laolu Senbanjo, art is an inexorable part of life. The urge to create is compulsory, as fundamental as breathing. It is with a zealous pursuit of his passion that he has garnered a notable following, which includes influencers like Beyoncé, who commissioned him to paint the body art in her music-film exploration, Lemonade. But his journey as an artist has not been easy, with trials emerging in his home country of Nigeria as well as in the United States. Still, his combination of symbolic cultural elements and modern, interpretive methods has elevated his status as a notable figure in the New York art scene, and his work is challenging the world to question how we think of the term “immigrant.”

Born in Ilorin, Nigeria, Laolu was never lacking in imaginative influences. His grandmother taught him his “Oriki,” an inspiring Yoruba literary genre, often in the form of poetry or songs of praise. She told him stories about the Yoruba Gods and Goddesses, filling him with his country’s narratives.

I didn’t realize until I was an adult how much influence she had over me and my artistic style,” Laolu reflects, “Unfortunately, she passed away in 2001, and I never got to thank her for the tremendously profound impact she had in my life and my art. I think she’d be very proud of who I’ve become.”

Almost every piece that Laolu creates takes a cue from his Yoruba culture, and often nods to the tales his grandmother told. He places Yoruba religious iconography inside his work or renders artifacts, like a calabash offering cup and the ankara wrapper garment, both influential symbols of his culture.

The inclusion of these elements suffuse his artwork with nuanced undertones and an explosive charge, but they are also a point of controversy. In his home country, it is seen as taboo to utilize such significant tokens in public displays or for profit. Though his intention is to spread the glory of Nigeria’s history and culture, it has not always been easy to convey this to others. Artists like Beyoncé have helped to break down this barrier, empowering a culture through the use of their symbols and history, but it is still a difficult path to navigate.

Of course, as an artist, it is inevitable that you face opposition. For Laolu, this didn’t stop once he stepped inside his home. The profession of artist was not an easy concept for his parents to accept. He even went on to become a human rights lawyer at the National Human Rights Commission in Nigeria before switching into his chosen career.

My dad thought art was a waste of time and that it wasn’t a proper career path. He didn’t think I could be successful as an artist.

But, when something is as ingrained in you as art is for Laolu, it is impossible to ignore. The day Laolu left his law job to focus on art was the most important day of his life. Now, through that art, he continues to fight for the rights of humankind.

Each design invites you to connect, to take part in a dialogue with the art. His piece, “Am I a Threat to Your Liberty?” has an especially forceful impact on those who view it. Through a startling contrast of vibrancy and darkness and the juxtaposition of a familiar silhouette painted with primal patterns, it dares you to confront the emotions that have arisen since the implementation of the immigration ban.

A lot of people say things like ‘immigrants are going to take my jobs or I pay taxes and they live off the system,’” Laolu says when describing what he hopes to confront with this piece, “Am I going to take their job? Not likely. I am an artist who actually creates jobs for others… and I work in a highly-specialized field. I also am not eligible for any of these services that they are afraid I might live off of. I pay taxes! Yes, jobs have been lost, but that’s not because of immigrants. It’s because of technology, and it’s been happening for years—since the beginning of the industrial revolution. Unless you’re a Native American, you or your ancestors were immigrants once upon a time.”

Combining pieces of himself, his Nigerian culture, and modern American symbolism, “Am I a Threat to Your Liberty?” asks viewers to stop and think about what they’re really afraid of.

All of Laolu’s artwork produces a visceral response. It features inclusive and alienating characteristics, making you feel connected and disconnected at the same time. This intriguing combination is a direct comment on the dilemma Americans face as we, a population of former immigrants, begin to see new immigrants as “outsiders.”

In the face of the current political climate (including the nationwide sweeps by US immigration agents), Laolu has continued to create, create, create. He feels that it is his duty as an activist and artist to continue to produce art in these times and to connect with like-minded on a higher level.

As an artist, it’s my duty to create art that reflects the times; to communicate messages, messages that people don’t want to discuss or deal with. That is my role as an artist and activist, and I am committed.”

Laolu’s work is a symbolic representation of our individual identities as a combined whole. It encourages us to communicate with each other, become friends with our neighbors, and more importantly, with people who are different than us. When we allow ourselves to know the other, we can coexist.

To further this movement toward connection with our fellow humans, Laolu has donated his art to the Hobnob app. Whether you’re gathering a group to participate in a protest or to discuss your individual roles as Americans during this time or just coming together in a moment of optimism and hope, you can choose one of his pieces as a template for your invite. It’s a small yet powerful way to choose harmony and camaraderie over separatism and dissonance.

See more of Laolu’s work here.

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This Young Actor’s Youthful Optimism Has Stolen Our Hearts

This Young Actor’s Youthful Optimism Has Stolen Our Hearts


The past two days, my former colleagues at the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Initiative (GHG Protocol) at the World Resources Institute (WRI)  invited me back to participate in the First International Workshop of GHG Programs.  This workshop convened representatives from voluntary GHG accounting and reporting programs from all over the world, from both developed countries like the U.S., Europe, and Japan and developing countries, including China, India, Brazil, and Mexico.  For the first time, program managers, government representatives, consultants, and NGOs had an opportunity to exchange experiences and lessons learned, while providing recommendations for where WRI and its long-time partner, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), should take the GHG Protocol next.

Having worked at WRI during the very early stages of the GHG Protocol’s developing country programs, when the Mexico GHG Program was just finishing its pilot phase and we were initiating programs in the Philippines, India, China and Brazil (yes, I got to do loads of traveling, despite our commitment to climate change mitigation), the workshop was an exciting opportunity to finally bring everyone together in one room and to see how far these programs have come.

For most people who have no idea what GHG accounting is or why these registry programs are significant, trust me, you are not alone (I could be entirely self-aggrandizing and point you to a publication my colleagues and I wrote about such a topic).  Despite multiple attempts to describe this work to my parents, I think they still refer to the years I worked at WRI as “the lost years” when they simply told their friends I worked for Al Gore (only a half-truth, as Al Gore indeed sits on WRI’s Board of Directors). But I digress.

First, sound climate policy relies on sound knowledge and information. As the oft-quoted mantra suggests, you can’t manage what you don’t measure; and you can’t manage well what you don’t measure well.  Through multi-stakeholder processes and partnerships over the last decade, the GHG Protocol has provided standards and tools for companies and organizations to measure (e.g. account) their greenhouse gas emissions.  As a result, most GHG accounting and reporting programs (or registries), emissions trading schemes, and offset programs use it. It is absolutely critical that these methods are standardized and harmonized, so we know that one ton of carbon measured from one company or organization means the same thing as another ton of carbon from another, even if it’s located in another country.

Second, many of these programs occur in non-Annex I countries, which have no reduction obligations under the Kyoto Protocol.  In some cases, these programs occur in countries that lack national climate policies (such as The Climate Registry, in the U.S.).  Business participation in these programs means that companies are realizing that eventual regulation is imminent, and getting an early start will allow for baseline protection and bolster their CSR image amongst stakeholders.  The information reported through these registries can then act as ground-truths for national government inventories, and perhaps also help developing countries demonstrate measurable, reportable, and verifiable (MRV) actions toward climate change mitigation.  In some cases, as in the Mexico GHG Program, the voluntary program has been so successful, that the Mexican government announced in 2007 that it would adopt it as the basis for its climate mitigation strategy.

Some of the recommendations and themes that emerged from the two-day discussion:
There is a need for more information, particularly regarding emission factors in developing countries.  With supply chains becoming increasingly globalized, a company’s operations are seldom geographically isolated.  A centralized source or database of emissions factors (other than those provided by the IPCC) would be hugely beneficial for programs, particularly in developing countries.

More capacity on GHG accounting is needed, across the board.  GHG accounting is very specialized and limited to a very small segment of professionals (most of whom were at WRI the last two days).  Although there is a push to increase this population (check out the GHG Management Institute), it’s still costly to train people within a company or to hire an outside consultant to do the work.  Particularly in developing countries that are home to many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), capacity is a huge obstacle to multinational companies like Wal-mart who are now asking their suppliers to provide GHG information (good luck in that endeavor, Wal-mart).

I‘ve counted my carbon, now what? This is what companies are now asking after they’ve established their baseline emissions and gone through the process of identifying their emission sources.  But this is where the GHG Protocol currently stops. There aren’t enough guidelines or recommendations to assist companies who want to reduce their carbon footprints and actually take the next step in managing their emissions.  Toward this aim, the GHG Protocol has developed new standards that allow for companies to more fully measure GHG emissions throughout their supply chains (from cradle to grave) and within product life-cycles.  However, perhaps more general guidelines for management (e.g. renewable alternatives, offset projects, etc.) can be made.

I’ve probably succeeded in providing you with way more information than you ever wanted to know about GHG accounting and reporting programs.  But, because they were so nice to invite me and pay for my travel, I thought the least I could do was to write a blog entry to share what I learned and what my take-away from it is.  In the end, I think the most valuable aspect of the workshop was the chance for people to just meet and to talk to people (in my case, catching up with partners I haven’t seen in a few years, since I was last in their respective countries), but isn’t this true of most workshops?


Concepts of Physics

Temperature of ice-salt mixture

Kulphi is a popular Indian dish item, especially in summers. The vendors freeze Kulphi in ice-salt mixture. Normally when two objects are mixed the temperature of the mixture is intermediate between the temperatures of the two objects. But that does not happen for ice-salt mixture. This experiment is to give a direct feel of this phenomena.

Ice in a vessel, Plastic glass, salt, digital thermometer/thermocouple, weighing machine, watch glass, a stick.

  1. Take 100 g of ice in the plastic glass. Put a thermometer with mercury bulb well inside the ice.
  2. Measure the temperature of ice.
  3. Weigh 10 g of salt on the watch glass using the balance.
  4. Put this salt in the ice and mix with the stick. Measure the temperature.
  5. Put 10 g of more salt in ice and mix it. Measure the temperature. Repeat this to get the minimum temperature.
  6. At what ratio of ice and salt, the temperature of the mixture is minimum?

Suppose a solid is kept at it's melting point in a closed vessel. There could be some liquid phase too. If no heat is taken from it or given to it, the masses of the liquid phase and the solid phase remain constant. However, the solid does melt at the surface and the liquid freezes there. So the two rates are equal.

Ice also has water layer at the surface and this two-way process goes on. If you put salt in this, the salt dissolves in the melted water and decreases it's freezing point. Thus the process of water freezing back is considerable slowed down. Thus ice melts faster.

Now melting needs latent heat. This heat is taken from the mixture of ice and the water which cools down below 0 degree Celsius.

table to be made


RIMDrill Rig Sync

The current industry climate is pushing companies to seek improved operational performance and reduced downtime partly through a more effective use of information. This in turn is driving a requirement for the drilling contractor and other rig based service companies to share information in an automated fashion to reduce redundant data handling, improve accuracy and maximize the benefit of the data to improve operational performance.

To help meet this goal Infostat has developed the RIMDrill Rig Sync Module. RIMDrill Rig Sync is designed to transfer data from RIMDrill to other internal or third-party information systems and/ or receive relevant from other sources such as third party service companies. RIMDrill Rig Sync runs as a quiet service on the rig managing the data flow between RIMDrill and other information systems. Based on customer requirements, a custom plug-in module is used to transfer the specified data to the third-party systems.

RIMDrill Rig Sync can be configured in either of two modes:

  • Push Mode: designed to “push” or send data from the RIMDrill database to third-party entities on the rig. Examples of the types of data that might be sent include IADC Daily Drilling Report data or certain types of WITSML-formatted data
  • Receive Mode: designed to receive data from third-party entities on the rig. Examples might include drilling parameter data from data acquisition packages

How It Works

RIMDrill Rig Sync has two components:

  • Sync Base Unit: contains the engine to interact with the RIMDrill database in handling the data in incoming or outgoing data files
  • Third-Party Plug-In Unit: custom built for each specific opportunity to allow specific data to be selected and transferred to/from the RIMDrill database. The specification is based on the requirement of the third-party entity which is supplying or receiving data. In all cases the data content must be approved by the RIMDrill system owner

The application runs as a service on a rig server and is connected to the rig RIMDrill database. A user interface allows the user to interact with the application for configuration purposes. Timing of the data sharing event is one of the configuration settings and can vary from once per day to multiple times per hour. The transport method and structure of the data is mutually agreed upon between Infostat and the third-party.

Features and Benefits

  • Streamlines rig site data sharing by reducing redundant data entry
  • Improves data quality and consistency
  • Once configured requires little maintenance or user input
  • Customizable for each data sharing third-party
  • RIMDrill owner controls shared data content
  • Flexible timing of data sharing events


The Full Wiki

More info on Ancient astronauts

Ancient astronauts: Map

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Some of these theories propose that deities from most—if not all—religions are actually extraterrestrials, and their technologies were taken as evidence of their divine status.

These theories have been popularized, particularly in the latter half of the 20th century, by writers Erich von Däniken, Zecharia Sitchin, Robert K.G. Temple, and David Icke.

Ancient astronaut theories have been widely used in science fiction. Such theories have not received support within the scientific community, and have received little or no attention in peer-reviewed studies from scientific journals.

Scientists maintain that gaps in contemporary knowledge of the past do not demonstrate that such speculative ancient astronaut ideas are a necessary, or even plausible, conclusion to draw. The scientific community remains generally skeptical, and the dominant view is that there is no evidence to support ancient astronaut and paleocontact theories.

Scientific consideration

In his 1979 book Broca's Brain, Sagan suggested that he and Shklovski might have inspired the wave of '70s ancient astronaut books, expressing disapproval of "von Daniken and other uncritical writers" who seemingly built on these ideas not as guarded speculations but as "valid evidence of extraterrestrial contact." Sagan argued that while many legends, artifacts and purported OOPArts were cited in support of ancient astronaut theories, "very few require more than passing mention" and could be easily explained with more conventional theories. Sagan also reiterated his earlier conclusion that extraterrestrial visits to Earth were possible but unproven, and perhaps improbable.

Ancient astronaut theories have been advanced by the following authors (listed by year of initial publication):

Erich von Däniken

Certain artifacts and monumental constructions are claimed by von Däniken to have required a more sophisticated technological ability in their construction than that which was available to the ancient cultures who constructed them. Von Däniken maintains that these artifacts were constructed either directly by extraterrestrial visitors or by humans who learned the necessary knowledge from said visitors. These include Stonehengemarker, the Moai of Easter Islandmarker, the Great Pyramid of Gizamarker, and the ancient Baghdad electric batteries.

Sarcophagus lid of Pakal the great, which represents an "ancient astronaut" ascending to the stars in his spaceship according to Von Däniken.

Von Däniken claims that ancient art and iconography throughout the world illustrates air and space vehicles, non-human but intelligent creatures, ancient astronauts and artifacts of an anachronistically advanced technology. Von Däniken also claims that geographically separated historical cultures share artistic themes, which he argues imply a common origin. For one such example, is von Däniken's interpretation of the sarcophagus lid recovered from the tomb of the Classic-era Maya ruler of Palenquemarker, Pacal. Von Däniken claimed the design represented a seated astronaut, whereas the iconography and accompanying Maya text identifies it as a portrait of the ruler himself with the World Tree of Maya mythology.

Zecharia Sitchin

Robert Temple

Raëlian religious movement

Raëlism, or Raëlianism, is a religious movement created by Claude Vorilhon, better known as Raël. Raël claims to have encountered extraterrestrials on a number of occasions. On one such occasion, he claims that he was informed that humans were created by an advanced extraterrestrial humanoid race, the Elohim, using their knowledge of DNA and genetics. The Raëlian movement also argues against evolution and supports human cloning.

Evidence cited by proponents

Religious texts

Flying machines are sometimes mentioned in ancient texts; one example is the Vimanas, flying machines found in the Sanskrit epics of Indiamarker. These tales range from fantastic aerial battles employing various weaponry, to the mundane relating simple technical information, flight procedure, and flights of fancy. (See also Vaimanika Shastra, a text on Vimanas supposedly "channeled" in the early 20th century.)

In the Biblical Old Testament, the Book of Ezekiel tells of a flying object seen as a fiery whirlwind which when descended to the ground gave the appearance of being made of metal. It is described among other things as a wheel within a wheel containing four occupants, "living creatures", whose likeness was that of man. The passage goes on to say that wherever the wheels went the creatures went, and when the living creatures were lifted up the wheels were lifted up. The book of Genesis(6:1-4) also tells us of such an encounter where the "sons of heaven" had intercourse with the "daughters of man" which produced the Nephilim. The apocryphal Book of Enoch tells of similar flying objects and beings called "the Watchers" who have mutinied from "heaven" and descended to earth, but goes further in that Enoch is taken on journeys to various corners of the Earth in the object and at one point even travels to the heavens. In several chapters of the Old Testament God is depicted as traveling as a column of smoke and/or fire and making the sound of a trumpet. These descriptions also describe Yahweh as having a physical presence, rather than an abstraction. Yahweh is described raining lightning and stones down upon the enemies of the Hebrews. However, descriptions of the Hebrew God have also featured protecting wings and outstretched arms in the Psalms, features which may be considered contrary to theories of mechanical manifestations of God.

Artifacts and artwork

Alleged physical evidence includes the discovery of artifacts in Egyptmarker (the Saqqara Bird) and Colombiamarker-Ecuadormarker, which are claimed to be similar to modern planes and gliders, although these have been interpreted by archaeologists as stylized representations of birds and insects.

More support of this theory draws upon what are claimed to be representations of flying saucers in medieval and renaissance art. This is used to support the ancient astronaut theory by attempting to show that the creators of humanity return to check up on their creation throughout time.

Other artistic support for the ancient astronaut theory has been sought in Palaeolithic cave paintings. Vondijina in Australia and Val Camonicamarker in Italymarker (seen above) are claimed to bear a resemblance to present day astronauts. Supporters of the ancient astronaut theory sometimes claim that similarities such as dome shaped heads, interpreted as beings wearing space helmets, prove that early man was visited by an extraterrestrial race.

Nazca Lines

Monumental architecture

Evidence for ancient astronauts is claimed to include the existence of ancient monuments and megalithic ruins such as the Giza pyramidsmarker of Egypt, Machu Picchu in Peru, or Baalbekmarker in Lebanonmarker, and the Moai of Easter Island. Supporters contend these stone structures could not have been built with the technical abilities and tools of the people of the time and further argue that many could not be duplicated even today. They suggest that the large size of the building stones, the precision with which they were laid, and the distances many were transported leaves the question open as to who constructed these sites. These contentions are categorically rejected by mainstream archeology. Some mainstream archeologist have participated in experiments to move large megaliths. These experiments have succeeded in moving megaliths up to at least 40 tons, and they have speculated that with a larger workforce larger megaliths could be towed with ancient technology. Such allegations are not unique in history, however, as similar reasoning lay behind the wonder of the Cyclopean masonry walling at Mycenaean cities in the eyes of Greeks of the following "Dark Age," who believed that the giant Cyclopes had built the walls.

See also

  1. Sagan, Carl. Broca's Brain. 1979
  8. Sagan, Broca's Brain, p. 67
  9. Lhote, Henri (1903-1991)
  10. "Erich von Daniken's Chariots of the Gods: Science or Charlatanism?", Robert Sheaffer. First published in the "NICAP UFO Investigator", October/November, 1974.
  11. Temple, Robert K. G., The Sirius Mystery, 1976. ISBN 0 09 925744 0
  12. Sagan, Carl, Broca’s Brain, published by Random House, Inc. in 1974
  13. Investigating the Sirius "Mystery" - Skeptical Inquirer (1978) Ian Ridpath
  15. David Hatcher Childress ( The Anti-Gravity Handbook)
  16. King James Red Letter edition 1944, Ezekiel 1:1–28
  17. The New American Bible, Genesis 6:1-4
  19. Exodus 13:21
  20. Exodus 19:16–19
  21. Numbers 35:34
  22. 2 Samuel 22:10–16
  23. Joshua 10:10–11
  24. God: a Biography, Jack Miles 1996 ISBN 0679743685
  25. AncientDimensions Mysteries: De-Coded: The Ark Of The Covenant
  26. World Mysteries - Strange Artifacts, Ancient Flying Machines
  27. Art and UFO - Part 5
  28. UFO Evidence
  29. Nazca Lines and Culture - Crystalinks
  30. . The Mysterious Nazca Lines
  33. History Channel "Mega Movers: Ancient Mystery Moves"
  34. Ancient Astronauts

Further reading

External links

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